Ahoy There, Baby Gramps Ahead

One of last year’s most interesting music compilations was Rogue’s Gallery: Pirate Ballads, Sea Songs & Chanteys, a double-disc compilation (dreamed up by Johnny Depp and Pirates of the Caribbean director Gore Verbinski) that included performances by Nick Cave, Jolie Holland, Bono, Lucinda Williams and a host of other notables…

Canton v. Bristol

So, would you exchange your current job for, let’s say, immortality? Not exactly the deal on Michael Irvin’s table, but according to the New York Post, the recent Pro Football Hall of Fame inductee may be on the way out the ESPN door. According to the article — OK, more…

Sniper’s Perch a Real Dutch Treat

So, this is the person who bought the so-called “sniper’s perch” from Caruth Byrd off eBay: “r.seydel” from the Netherlands. And R. wasn’t cheap with his or her bid, either: $3,001,501 is what the alleged window from the former Texas School Book Depository sold for, after more than a week’s…

The Innocence Mission

Because Dallas County boasts the highest number of falsely convicted men exonerated with DNA evidence since post-conviction testing began, the news that Dallas County District Attorney Craig Watkins has agreed to cooperate with the Innocence Project of Texas is momentous. As we reported in early January, so far 12 people…

Best Anchor in Town Calling It Quits

Yup, Tracy Rowlett at KTVT-Channel 11 this morning announced that when his current contract expires in July 2008, he’s out the door, bringing to a close a career on Dallas-Fort Worth television that began in April 1974, when he moved from Oklahoma City to become an investigative reporter for WFAA-Channel…

Girly Meat

Ed Bailey’s making the transition from McDonald’s burgers to fancy-schmancy steaks, a much happier meal. I had the privilege of speaking with Ed Bailey, owner of 61 North Texas McDonald’s franchises and among the world’s richest purveyors of Big Mac attacks. Bailey recently purchased two Patrizio restaurants and is building…

Shine On, Golden Warriors

You know who I miss? Corn Mo. And if you miss the gone-to-NYC Dutch Treat as much as I do, go to his Web site and download a handful of tracks, including the immortal Kevin Von Erich trib “Shine On, Golden Warrior,” which I do believe appeared on one of…

Lost in Transition

Mark Graham District Attorney Craig Watkins denies his office cut some slack to a Dallas police officer who lied to a DeSoto cop. Did Dallas County District Attorney Craig Watkins’ office cut a break for one of his friends? That’s what one of his own prosecutors suggested in a secretly…

Go, Fightin’ Farmers!

I write this as a proud former resident of Farmersville, Texas: Today, Country Music Television announced that among the 64 finalists for its online “Music City Madness” video contest, one of the lucky few left is Farmersville’s own Tim Cooper. The competition’s being presented March Madness-style, complete with brackets. Just…

I Will Die Childless And Alone And Without Stretch Marks

Allison V. Smith This is Weekly Bob, who Andrea Grimes finds so adorable she’s thinking of having a Lil’ Bob herself. Or, maybe not. Last night, the man o’ the hour and I had a lovely Valentine’s Day dinner at CiCi’s Pizza. We went to the nice one, of course,…

Eat Up, Then Listen Up

Dine with Iggy and the Stooges March 5. Well, kinda. Remember back in the day, when you had to actually purchase a physical object in order to listen to music — you know, records and CDs, as opposed to bits and bytes? And remember when that much-anticipated album was due…

Dallas Takes a Pregnant Pause

Gurinder Chada’s expecting twins, which means she’s not expecting to direct Dallas any time soon. Looks like the big-screen version of Dallas is being pushed further off the starting line, thanks to the just-announced pregnancy of director Gurinder Chadha. She tells the Associated Press in a story that just moved…

Stephen Colbert Brands Rick Perry a Hippie. Goodbye, Bizarro World.

In case you missed it last night, Stephen Colbert’s “The Word” segment dealt with Gov. Rick Perry’s issuing an executive order on February 2 directing the Health and Human Services Commission to adopt rules requiring all 11- and 12-year-old girls to receive the human papillomavirus vaccine prior to entering sixth…

Smoke Gets In Your Eyes

Yesterday evening, we finally talked to Bobby Hood, co-owner of Gezellig on Lower Greenville, where, last Friday, some folks were ticketed for smoking on the premises in violation of the city’s smoking ordinance. Hood and his partner in the restaurant-live-music-venue were actually among those popped, and despite the tenor and…