AltWeeklies Wire
Immigrant Battled State Rep for Custody of Her Sonnew
Mariam Katamba, born in Uganda, was taken under the wing of Texas State Representative Talmadge Heflin. But she balked after the Heflins became so possessive of her son they tried to gain custody.
Houston Press |
Josh Harkinson |
10-26-2004 |
Immigration
A Vietnamese Immigrant May Just Whip the GOP's Old Guardnew
Hubert Vo, a minor real estate mogul from Alief, a suburb of Houston, has emerged from virtual oblivion to challenge one of the most powerful Republicans in Texas, 22-year state Representative Talmadge Heflin.
Houston Press |
Josh Harkinson |
10-26-2004 |
Politics
Appeals Court Justice's Alleged Remark Raises Questions of Fitnessnew
Lawyers for Clara Harris, who was convicted of murder for running over her unfaithful husband, want Justice Sam Nuchia removed from her appeal because of a biased remark he reportedly made.
Houston Press |
George Flynn |
10-12-2004 |
Crime & Justice
Wigged Gigs: The Wildest Shows in Houston Historynew
One reason people go to live music shows is to see some real, live, good old-fashioned mayhem. Coupling music and egos with drugs and alcohol leads to creepy scenes, anarchy and violence.
Houston Press |
John Nova Lomax |
10-12-2004 |
Concerts
Brothers in Armsnew
This is the kind of big-screen opus that Michael Bay only wishes Pearl Harbor could have been. Foreign films often feature intellectual alternatives to homegrown cinema, but rare is the foreign blockbuster that can go toe-to-toe with the big American studio action franchise flicks and clobber them on their own terms.
Houston Press |
Luke Y. Thompson |
09-28-2004 |
Reviews
A Star Is Rebornnew
Mike Haaga may no longer be the metal merchant he was in dead horse, one of Houston's most beloved bands of the 1990s, but he's still every bit the genius he was then.
Houston Press |
John Nova Lomax |
09-14-2004 |
Profiles & Interviews
First-Time Home Buyers With Bad Credit Meet the Specialistnew
In Buffalo, N.Y., slumlord Scott Wizig's leases landed him in criminal court. In Houston, his leases made him rich.
Houston Press |
Craig Malisow |
09-07-2004 |
Business & Labor
Cleared of Charges, Accused Robber Suffers Consequencesnew
To hear Desmond Haye tell it, the police just showed up at his Alief home in January and, for no reason, took him in as the gunman in gaudy hip-hop apparel who had robbed a Handy Stop check-cashing outlet five weeks earlier.
Houston Press |
George Flynn |
08-30-2004 |
Crime & Justice
Tags: crime & justice
Rick James RIP, Bitch: DJs Pay Homage to the Funky Onenew
Rick James was a junkie who banged black (and white) models, as did the Rolling Stones. What's more, he was utterly unrepentant about it all from glorious beginning to sorry downfall to pitiful end.
Houston Press |
John Nova Lomax |
08-23-2004 |
Music
Blackbird Fly: Americana the Way It Ought to Benew
The Houston native's music manages to sound both Depression-era vintage and strikingly contemporary, while her songs are full of pleas for good old-fashioned morphine and desperate failed romances, not to mention the talking starfish and singing mermaids that gambol and frolic on the beaches of her adopted San Francisco home.
Houston Press |
John Nova Lomax |
08-23-2004 |
Profiles & Interviews
Double Trouble: Wrong Juan Diaz Jailed for Drug Runningnew
Family man Juan Diaz had just passed his citizenship test when immigration officers arrived with a sealed federal indictment and arrested him.
Houston Press |
George Flynn |
08-23-2004 |
Immigration
Cowboy Noir: African-American Aims for Rodeo Stardomnew
Twenty-one-year-old Justin Richard started roping calves when he was 10 and rode his first bull a year later. He's following in the tradition of the black cowboys who played an important, often overlooked role in frontier life.
Houston Press |
Craig Malisow |
08-23-2004 |
Performance
Moovin' On Up: DQ's New Drink Rings Racist Bellsnew
Dairy Queen has introduced a new drink, the MooLatte. While it's a step in the right direction, there remains a vast, untapped treasure chest of archaic racial names that might prove useful for marketing purposes.
Houston Press |
Richard Connelly |
08-16-2004 |
Comedy
Tags: humor & satire
Amusement Park Thrills Can Be Based on Real Dangersnew
Hundreds of medical complications ranging from whiplash to torn organs have occurred at Houston amusement parks. And most galling to those injured, the parks could have taken obvious steps to prevent them.
Houston Press |
Josh Harkinson |
06-05-2004 |
Business & Labor
Spanish Blame Oil Spill on Houston Firmnew
Fishermen and citizens harmed by what's been called the worst environmental disaster in Spanish history are looking to a Houston ship classification society to bear some financial responsibility.
Houston Press |
Josh Harkinson |
04-27-2004 |
Environment
Tags: This Week in Alternative Weeklies, coast, environment, Houston, Spain, fishermen, $1 billion, American Bureau of Shipping, civil lawsuit, damages, environmental disaster, financial responsibility, Houston Press, international law, M/V Prestige, November 2002, oil spill, oil tanker, ship classification society