Summer X-Games

Houston inches closer to hosting Summer X-Games

The Summer X Games could be coming to Houston.

The Harris County-Houston Sports Authority is making a bid for ESPN's action sports event, an annual competition that began in 1995.

"It's definitely another feather in our cap," said Janis Schmees, the CEO of Harris County-Houston Sports Authority. "It's a useful event, it's a great timing because we have a brand new skate park that we just broke ground on. There, it attracts a younger crowd. Even in the Olympics they've added snowboarding because they're trying to keep the youth excited about the Olympic movement. I think that up and coming generation loves the X Games."

Two other Texas cities – Fort Worth and Austin – advanced to the round of 13 cities still in consideration. Houston is also competing with Atlanta, Charlotte, Chicago, Detroit, Long Beach, Calif., Minneapolis, Montreal, New Orleans, Pasadena, Calif., and Philadelphia.

Read Full Article

Visit my Food Blog at http://southerncookingwithtodd.blogspot.com/

Symphony celebrating centennial

Symphony celebrating centennial with free concerts, A-listers

When the Houston Symphony throws its yearlong 100th-birthday party next season, A-list guests will include cellist Yo-Yo Ma, soprano Renee Fleming and actress Sigourney Weaver. Also invited are as many Houstonians as the orchestra can draw to a pair of free events: a June 21 concert celebrating the centennial of the symphony's first performance - to the day - and a July Jones Hall music festival that will include a presentation of the annual Houston Chronicle Dollar Concert - which will be free this year.

When the season starts in earnest in the fall, big-name soloists will include violinist Joshua Bell, pianist Emanuel Ax, violinists Gil Shaham and Midori and pianist Yefim Bronfman.

John Adams, whose works have been popular with the orchestra, will conduct the group for the first time in January. Veteran Hollywood composer John Williams will conduct an evening of his own works, sharing the stage with Ma, who will play Williams' Cello Concerto. Popular-music performers scheduled include jazz singer Steve Tyrell, trumpeter Chris Botti and "Smash" star Megan Hilty.

Information about the centennial season is available at 713-224-7575 and houstonsymphony.org.

Read Full Article


Visit my Food Blog at http://southerncookingwithtodd.blogspot.com/

Things you can only get in Houston

See Photo Gallery


Visit my Food Blog at http://southerncookingwithtodd.blogspot.com/

Alamo Drafthouse Cinema

Inside the making of an Alamo Drafthouse Cinema

 

When it was announced a decade ago that the Alamo Drafthouse would be opening locations in the Houston area, all the cool kids familiar with the experience the theaters offer were elated. Unfortunately for some, those locations happened to be far west of the city in West Oaks Mall and Mason Park in Katy. Now that the West Oaks location has closed to make way for a Toby Keith’s I Love This Bar & Grill, cinephiles can turn their attention to two new Alamo Drafthouses, one at Vintage Park and another in Midtown.

 

First to open will be the Drafthouse at Vintage Park, near Tomball Parkway and Louetta. The grand opening of the seven-screen cinema will be Valentine’s Day, but screenings of new releases and classics such as “Ghostbusters,” “Jaws” and Ted Kotcheff’s lost classic “Wake in Fright,” begin Sunday. Films confirmed for the “official” opening weekend include the fifth entry in the “Die Hard” action series, a singalong to Baz Luhrmann’s “Moulin Rouge,” featuring a live performance by the Houston Burlesque Revue on Thursday, and a professional heckling of “Back to the Future” provided by the master mockers of Master Pancake (Feb. 17).

 

And for the first time, Houston Drafthouses are being custom built.

 

“Designing an Alamo Drafthouse Cinema from the ground up allows us to create a unique experience for each theater,” says Robert Saucedo, programming and support manager for the Houston region. “From a small art-house film in an intimate screening room to a summer blockbuster in a 190-seat auditorium — we provide the perfect setting for each movie.”

 

Read Full Article

Visit my Food Blog at http://southerncookingwithtodd.blogspot.com/

Movies with ties to Houston

Movies filmed or set in Houston


Visit my Food Blog at http://southerncookingwithtodd.blogspot.com/