• A fatal accident occurred this morning on Chimney Rock near Highway 90A. As of 7:30 A.M. the area around the accident has been cordoned off and traffic was being diverted. No further details are available as an investigation is under way. • Health officials are calling this latest round of the flu a "moderately severe epidemic." Flu cases are up 31% over last year and three children have already died as a result.......

It's an American tradition, just like representative democracy and childhood obesity: the Super Bowl. Even people who aren't football fans usually find a way to watch the game (or the commercials, depending on your priorities) and the die-hards view Sunday as some combination of Christmas, graduation, and the non-lame parts of the Olympics all rolled into one. If you don't have plans for the big game already, here are a few options around town: -......

It's Superbowl Sunday next week, and you know what that means... a ridiculously over-blown Halftime Show/pyrotechnic extravaganza!!! Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers are set to perform this year. Monday -CBS, 10:35pm: The Late Show with David Letterman, the Whigs -ABC, 11:05pm: Jimmy Kimmel Live, Wyclef Jean Tuesday -CBS, 12:05am: The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson, Deana Carter Thursday -CBS, 10:35pm: The Late Show with David Letterman, Colbie Caillat Friday -NBC, 7am: Today Show, Sheryl......

The Country Houses of John F. Staub Stephen Fox Color Photography by Richard Cheek Texas A&M University Press Houston Texas – 1930’s. By the first quarter of the 20th century, Houston had made a dramatic evolution from the dusty southern outpost of the late 19th century into (basically) the city we know today. Industry was in full swing and there was a growing class of socialites moving into town, the Weiss’s, Farish’s, and Dow’s......

Turns out it might not be such a bad thing that the old Warwick Hotel is no more: According to government documents recently released to the UK National Archives, former Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher spent some time locked in her bathroom at the hotel during a visit to Houston in 1977. Details of the trip, which took place two years before Thatcher became prime minister, were released under a law that allows top-secret government papers......

Here are a few books Houstonist thinks your friends and family won't use for doorstops (that's the fruitcake, right?). Everyone likes a good read, or at least a smart-looking book to sit on the nightstand. Give these a try. And shop at your local independent bookstore -- they can give you even more recommendations, and probably a good cup of coffee as well. Fun, mostly fiction books for people who are... Houstonians and/or architecture......

"We gon' rock it till the wheels fall off," the poet Nate Dogg once said. If he was referring to the Houston Texans' 2007 season (and we have no reason to believe that he wasn't), then the rocking will soon cease, as the wheels are at very least wobbling their way out of place as a prelude to actually falling off. The annual optimism has given way to the annual draft speculation, as the never-ending......

Animal Collective’s new record, Strawberry Jam, was one of the most talked about indie releases of 2007. The experimental rock group's [pictured] national television debut on the Conan O’Brien show re-airs tonight. Monday -NBC, 11:35pm: Late Night with Conan O’Brien, Animal Collective Tuesday -FOX, 9am: Morning Show with Mike and Juliet, Wyclef Jean -NBC, 12pm: Ellen DeGeneres, Snoop Dogg Wednesday -FOX, 9am: Morning Show with Mike and Juliet, Gloria Gaynor -NBC, 12pm: Ellen DeGeneres, Ryan......

You might want to set your TiVo for these. PBS is re-airing three great music docs on Saturday night, including a live performance of Willie Nelson's new classic country album and a collection of archival concert footage of Stevie Ray Vaughan. Monday -ABC, 11:05pm: Jimmy Kimmel Live, Hot Hot Heat Tuesday -NBC, 7am: Today Show, James Taylor -ABC, 9am: Regis and Kelly, Jordin Sparks -NBC, 12pm: Ellen DeGeneres, Soulja Boy Wednesday -NBC, 7am: Today Show,......

Ok, it's officially time: skip a Sunday in front of the NFL, ignore Terry Bradshaw's fake hillbilly schtick and dozens of former players pretending that they're still relevant, and watch your Houston Dynamo take on the New England Revolution for the MLS Cup. Here's five reasons why the Dynamo game should take precedence over the NFL on Sunday: 1. In case you haven't noticed: Boston sports fans, once the loveable Charlie Brown-esque losers of the......

When a bye week is one of the highlights of your team's football season simply because no one got hurt, you know that the rest of the season won't be much to write home about. Given that this is exactly the position that Texans fans find themselves in, it's at least comforting that they're coming out of the bye week to face a team almost as disappointing as the Texans. After an inspiring 2006......

Looks like it's going to be slim pickings for awhile, folks. A reader informed us last week that all late night shows are in repeat mode for the duration of the writer's strike. Bummer. Recommended viewing this week includes any TV appearances by Alicia Keys, and Nicole Atkins' (pictured) wonderful Letterman performance in case you missed it the first time around. Monday -CBS, 10:35pm: The Late Show with David Letterman, Ryan Adams Tuesday -ABC, 7am:......

Houston Mod Board members Jason Smith, Robert Searcy, Ben Koush, Michael Brichford, and Stephen Fox were included in an article in Tribeza magazine about Houston's modern architecture. The article highlights Smith's renovation of his William Jenkins-designed home in Willow Bend, and also touches on Houston Mod's mission and goals of education and awareness of Houston's modern architecture. “It’s really a waste,” laments Searcy. “We are filling our landfills with works of art—and replacing them with......

Well, good news from the Texans, Cougars, and Dynamo camps. All three were winners this weekend. But there was a lot more going on in the Houston sports universe this week. Let's take a look at what people were saying: - Chronicle columnist Jose de Jesus Ortiz got called out for misdiagnosing the Astros offseason needs, and the commenter used complete sentences and no profanity. Intelligent comments on a sports blog (other than this one,......

::Maurice Manning and Emily Fox Gordon Poetry Reading at Diverseworks:: Giving Houstonians a chance to hear tomorrow’s great writers today. The Inprint Studio Series, presented by Inprint in association with the University of Houston Creative Writing Program and Diverseworks, features some of the best young writers in the country, as well as alumni from the University of Houston Creative Writing Program and leading local authors. Now in its second season, the 2007-2008 Inprint Studio Series,......

The Chronicle reported yesterday on Harris County's plans to demolish two of its buildings to make way for another amazing county plaza. Fair enough — the county has a lot of buildings, and apparently we could always use another plaza. The problem is that the two structures that are potentially on the chopping block — the former District Attorneys Building at 201 Fannin and the Family Law Center at 1115 Congress — happen to be......

Did you notice our lazy capitalization in the title? Well, that's exaclty how we're feeling today. A lazy weekend in the blazing sun out by the pool is just what we've been waiting for all summer. So here it is, make the most of it! For the record, FOX, yes we do think we can dance. And very well, might we add. With the recent success of the reality contest show, So You Think......

So the show's not even over and the tour's already planned. Don't cha love FOX? Their hit reality dance contest has had Billy Elliots poppin' up all over the US, er, wasn't Billy Elliot British? Whateva. If you haven't experienced the phenomena that IS "So You Think You Can Dance" then you're missing out on lots of adagios, ciseauxs, and some good old southern Crumping. The show is down to the top 6, with......

The Real Men of Genius guys have been wildly popular since 2000. In this clip from Fox 26 morning show, they rant about the traffic in Houston. While we don't recommend having a bud light while driving, we can relate to congestion on Houston streets (Katy Freeway over the past weekend comes to mind).......

Bridal Extravaganza + Ticket Giveaway Getting married soon? (Yikes.) If you are ready to dive into the world of florists, photographers, DJ's, and bridal gowns, you are in luck! This weekend, the 23rd Bi-Annual Bridal Extravaganza walks down the aisle at the GRB, July 14 & 15. The nation’s largest bridal show will take place on Saturday, at the George R. Brown Convention Center this Saturday and Sunday. This year’s event features over 300,000......

Meet David Purdie, a true AstroWorld fan: When he heard that the park was going to close, Purdie decided to capture its last days on film. With a hand-held video camera, he visited AstroWorld every weekend in October 2005, filming everything he could — from the drive down Kirby to the walk over the pedestrian bridge to the slow climb up the first incline on the Texas Cyclone. And then, when cranes and bulldozers moved......

The city's Planning Commission on Thursday recommended landmark designation for the River Oaks Shopping Center and Alabama Theater/Bookstop, meaning the two structures are a step closer to preservation — or as close as Houston ever really gets to preservation, which is far enough away to be sure the city doesn't piss off any developers with deep pockets. As we noted when the landmark designation process began back in April, the next step in designation......

Okay not really…except kind of…well, yes. Let’s explain. So as you know 4 Houston Dynamo players are out due to national team play in the CONCACAF gold cup. Pat Onstad and Dwayne De Rosario are playing for Canada while Brian Ching and Ricardo Clark are playing for the U.S. team. Both teams have advanced to the semi-finals and are set to play each other tonight at 6pm. This should be an excellent match as both......

So, Houston cable subscribers, the much-talked-about day is here: Today, Time Warner cable service in the city officially becomes Comcast cable service. Feel any different yet? You probably won't unless you go looking for the TV Guide Channel or west coast feeds of the Disney Channel and Encore, which have been dropped from the cable lineup. In their place are 20 new channels, some of which KHOU has listed: high-definition versions of Starz, The Golf......

Jeff Walton is an example of how you can live your dream in music and film without ever leaving the city. As a teenager growing up in Pearland, he was one-third of The Judy's, arguably one of the biggest unsigned Texas bands in the 80's, . When the group demised, Walton shifted his talents to another love of his -- movie scores. We caught up with Jeff and talked about his film composing, and also......

We noticed a news story yesterday about the city of Piney Point Village's plan to move its city hall to a $1.5 million, 7,000-square-foot mansion — a plan that isn't sitting well with some of the neighbors. KPRC had more on the story yesterday, and it looks like Piney Pointers aren't getting any happier. The basic idea is this: The city wants to move its offices to the six bedroom, six and a half bath......

There's so much going on across the Ist-a-Verse that it's almost impossible to keep track these days. Fortunately, we do it so you don't have to! Londonist took a walk through Oliver Twist's London, thanks to a gorgeous map layer for Google Earth. They also caught up with modern-day fictional London, with the Fantastic Four and 28 Weeks Later. It was a week of insanity over at DCist. They started the week off with......

The African Children's Choir, which is made up of children ages 7 - 11 who are all orphans of the AIDS pandemic and civil violence in Uganda and other countries, will be performing at two very prestigious venues tonight and again on Sunday. Tonight's performance is on FOX's American Idol. This is part of a special "Idol Gives Back" episode. During the show, viewers can make their donations to the Charity Projects Entertainment Fund by......

Good morning, Houston. We're gonna be honest with you — it's Friday, we're ready for the weekend and we want to get right to the news. But first, there's something that's been bothering us all week: this thoroughly bizarre on-air exchange between soon-to-be KHOU anchor Lucy Noland and Fox News morning team Mike Jerrick and Juliet Huddy. Seriously, what's up with this? Ms. Noland, we can assure you that Greg Hurst will never use......

Regular shelterporners will know about our soft spot for contemporary architecture — more specifically, good contemporary architecture — so it's no wonder we're excited to feature the only Skidmore, Owings & Merrill-designed house in Houston, a 1982 home in Turner Addition. As Stephen Fox says in the Houston Architectural Guide, it's "self-effacing from the street and quite opulent inside." True enough. Richard Keating, the partner in charge of SOM's local office from the mid-1970s......