If Benjamin Franklin were alive on his 300th birthday, it’s not entirely clear what kind of reception he would get in Fort Worth. Yankee, Francophile, left-wing journalist, avowed secularist and legendary womanizer—OK, we know exactly what kind of reception he’d get. Luckily, Franklin’s dead, and his place on the $100…
Broken Flowers (Universal Home Entertainment) Bill Murray, who long ago swapped manic kineticism for melancholy deadpan, is once more mired in a middle-aged funk; what else is new? As Don Johnston, an aging lothario whose latest young girlfriend is walking out as the audience is just settling in, Murray’s on…
Pity the college basketball coach. He toils endlessly to explain the vagaries of offensive sets and defensive zones. He frets over lineups, injuries, and scouting reports. His job is never safe — one losing season, and it’s back to teaching bounce passes to the JV girls at St. Elizabeth’s. Few…
All in the Family: The Complete Fifth Season (Columbia/Tristar) Annie Duke’s Beginner’s Guide to Texas Hold ‘Em (Big Vision) As Time Goes By: Reunion Special (PBS) The Cave (Sony) Dumb and Dumber: Unrated (New Line) Football Collection: Radio, Jerry Maguire, and Rudy (Sony) The Gospel (Sony) Green River Killer (Lions…
The critical consensus has Match Point as Woody Allen’s finest film since…oh, let’s see… Bullets Over Broadway, is it? Or perhaps Deconstructing Harry? Or maybe Sweet and Lowdown? One forgets where the good stuff left off, because there’s been so much bad stuff since. It’s not difficult to understand the…
What’s an unemployed former super spy to do? Faced with a midlife career change, suave Pierce Brosnan seems to have chosen wry self-mockery, reinventing himself as a scruffy, fallen James Bond surrogate: sometimes still furnished with a license to kill and a certain gift for cool but far more likely…
Mercy Wine Bar is so 972 it’s not even funny. But it’s about the only spot that can make me trek north of 635, lay aside my 214 pride and commingle with suburbia. The food is good. The lights are dimmed to perfection. And minus the Ashworth golf shirts and…
Hey everybody, Jim Brickman is coming to town! You know, that piano guy? Good. Have fun…Hmmm, somehow that didn’t clear my editor. So now I will convince you readers that this is an event not to be missed: Like Kenny G, Yanni and John Tesh, Mr. Brickman plays New Age…
Judging by the way Brokeback Mountain has been selling out theaters, if you haven’t seen the gay cowboy movie of 2005, you’ve at least heard about it and probably read the reviews. Thus, I’ll spare you a critical discussion of plot points and potential spoilers. Just know that director Ang…
No arm-twisting should be necessary to make you check out the latest installment from the brainiacs at Art Prostitute. This Saturday night they’ll host their second-to-last opening in their original gallery space for Thank You…A collection of thoughts, an exhibit featuring new works by Steven Harrington and Justin Krietemeyer of…
Chris Penn, who holds such titles as Good Records owner/manager and Polyphonic Spree Robemaster, has one awesome beard. He’s also responsible for one of the finest nights of my life. (Wink, wink.) It was October 31, 2005. I was dressed as a born-again Chick-Fil-A cow, Mr. Penn was dressed as…
An IMAX movie about da ’85 Bears has been a long time coming, but 20 years later, it’s finally here. Ditka and “Da Fridge” on an 80-foot dome screen! 18,600 watts of “The Super Bowl Shuffle” coming out of the Fort Worth Omni Theater’s 72 speakers! Excited?! Well, too bad…
In all of our opera experience, we’ve found a guarantee. As you nestle into your Music Hall at Fair Park seat, even if you know nothing of the production you’re about to see, you can expect one of two types of opera: a gut-wrenching drama (death is optional, love is…
According to a friend of mine, it’s not easy being a divo. And no, that’s not a typo. A divo is a male diva. Let me help you out. Madonna, diva. Elton John, divo. Oprah, diva. Little Richard, divo. Barbra Streisand, diva. Richard Simmons, divo. Being a diva is hard…
Imagine this: You’re watching The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance, and as Lee Marvin and the Duke cross paths, a doo-wop melody kicks in, they turn and begin a choreographed number. It all turns into a jovial scene in which Marvin’s character is never a violent demon-spawn and Wayne’s never…
Are you willing to die for what you believe in? French composer Francis Poulenc explores this wrenching question, grappling with sacrifice through the eyes of the martyr, in his opera Dialogues of the Carmelites. Based on a true story, Dialogues begins at the close of the French Revolution and the…
Once upon a time, Robert Ryman worked as a guard at New York’s Museum of Modern Art. Day in and day out he watched people admire the works of art hanging from the museum walls. Over the next 40 years, Ryman created his own masterpieces, exploring the many tones of…
At some point in time, people will realize that Elvis Presley is dead. He’s not incognito or in exile, he’s in the ground, six feet under. And it’s safe to assume those famous fried peanut butter and jelly sandwiches didn’t help. Would he have heeded all the advice now regarding…
Here’s a family movie for the 21st century. Forget cuddly animal adventures and commercial toy spin-offs. Live the daily reality of the thousands of kids who have just gotten divorced. If your parents’ match wasn’t “made in heaven,” you often find yourself going through the same hell they’re experiencing when…
Living in East Dallas, the plight of the historical structure is of great interest to me. I see these beautiful homes—or perhaps I should say they were once beautiful—slated for a coldcock by a new development company’s wrecking ball, and I get choked up. Then I come to work and…
This is amazing to me: According to the Bill Gaither Homecoming press release, Pollstar declared Gaither’s 2004 gospel tour outsold concerts by Rod Stewart, Elton John and Fleetwood Mac. Seriously? OK, now Rod Stewart we could see (we could go the rest of our lives never hearing “Maggie May” again)…
“Western swing ain’t dead, it’s Asleep at the Wheel.” So goes the slogan for big Ray Benson’s beloved ensemble, the band that’s kept Bob Wills alive for longer than he’s been dead while touring everywhere from Texas to Timbuktu. Most western swing bands only sport twin fiddles, but this Friday…
