::Martin Luther King Jr. Grande Parade:: And when this happens, when we allow freedom to ring, when we let it ring from every village and every hamlet, from every state and every city, we will be able to speed up that day when all of God's children, black men and white men, Jews and Gentiles, Protestants and Catholics, will be able to join hands and sing in the words of the old Negro spiritual, "Free......

From local Houston headlines, we bring you these weekend news bits... • The Chevron Houston Marathon is in full swing this morning. Watch out for street closures along the marathon route. • The identity of the Westfield High School senior that was killed during a fight at northwest area park has been released. The victim was Kenneth Wayne Caraway Jr. and he was seventeen years old. • A 60 year old, off duty, constable's......

Save the bricks! While we have seen a lot of wasteful demolition over the past two weeks, we're happy to report that more and more parts of houses are being salvaged (and hopefully reused/recycled) - this week 5550 Candlewood in Briargrove (picture), 741 Rocky River in Tanglewood (picture), and 1314 South Blvd. in historic Broadacres (pictured) were stripped down and paletted up. 741 Rocky River is just down the street from the Ralph Anderson, Jr.......

The Texans bandwagon that looked so promising at the beginning of this season has definitely seen better days: the wheels have fallen off, the axles have snapped, and all but the Pollyanna-esque optimists and the mentally ill have given up the possibility of the playoffs. So as the Texans make their second trip to California in as many weeks to face the Raiders in Oakland, the question becomes: what's the best case scenario from here......

Good morning, Houston. Here's one of those things that ended up selling for much more than we would have expected: A Rosenberg man bought a lock of Che Guevara's hair yesterday for $100,000. Bill Butler, a bookstore owner, was the only bidder; he said he collects items from the 1960s and that the hair will fit in well. "A lot of his writings are still worth reading today," Butler said of Guevara. Gustavo Villodo,......

Good morning, Houston. Time to flex your democratic muscle again: Early voting begins today for the Nov. 6 election. You can check out a map of early voting locations here and get more information on where and how to vote from the Harris County elections website — so now, you can't say you haven't been informed. See you at the polls! >> For some, a flood of bad news: If you're a property owner......

The Axiom nightclub was only open for a short 5 years. But in that short time (from 1987 – 1992), many then-unknown rock bands performed at the venue, only to be headliners on large tours later. Of course, Nirvana is probably the most notable to make a stop at The Axiom in their early years, playing for a small crowd. Other bands that played at the club include Bad Religion, Dinosaur Jr., The Flaming Lips,......

695 Rocky River - Tanglewood This week, the almost 5,000 square foot mid-century Tanglewood home designed by Ralph A. Anderson, Jr. (of Wilson, Morris, Crain & Anderson architects) met its demise - one in a series of many large (and large-lotted) unique mid-century homes in this close-in treed area to be replaced by even larger Mediterr-uscan-Spani-French style homes. According to the Houston Architectural Guide,The full impact of the Eisenhower era is visible here [in Tanglewood],......

Good morning, Houston. We enjoy a good, quick breakfast as much as anyone, but seriously, there are limits — just ask the four people who were hurt Monday when a driver who was eating oatmeal at the wheel crashed into a Metro bus near downtown. Witnesses told KPRC that the driver ran a red light at Pierce and St. Charles and hit the front of the bus, which caused the driver's vehicle to spin......

Good morning, Houston. In case you didn't hear yesterday, we'll soon see the end of an era in air travel: Beginning Oct. 2, Southwest Airlines will assign passengers a place in line based on the order in which they check in. That means no more of the airline's (in)famous "cattle call" boarding process, which means there's no longer any point in arriving at the airport 16 hours early to get in the A group......

The Astros search for a replacement for Tim Purpura may be coming to an end. The baseball world is atwitter with reports that the new GM will be selected as soon as today. After interviewing eleven different candidates, owner Drayton McLane and team president/acting GM Tal Smith (pictured, on left) have narrowed the field and will be making an announcement some time this week. The leading candidate right now is Phillies assistant GM Ruben Amaro,......

In the wake of last week's firing of Tim Purpura, the Astros have a hole to fill in the General Manager's office. Team President Tal Smith (pictured, on left) is running the show for the time being, but a long-term replacement is required. Yesterday, owner Drayton McLane, Smith, and former vp Bob McClaren interviewed three candidates, and more interviews will take place before the end of the week. Let's take a look at the candidates......

Good morning, Houston. It's no secret that Texans like fried food — so it's no wonder that the Big Tex Choice Awards, the taste-test contest at the State Fair of Texas, focuses on fried concoctions. But this year's Big Tex winner for the best-tasting new food might surprise even the most jaded connoisseur of fried delicacies: It's fried cookie dough, created by Abel Gonzales Jr. The fried cookie dough is a cookie base with......

Goodbye hump day, hello rain. Did anyone else have a sucky Wednesday? And to top it off, the current monsoon over our office is making us have flashbacks of the beginning of the summer. What happened to our 108 degrees and sunny?! We are on a mission to make the most of this wet and soggy day, so we are heading to the Museum of Fine Arts tonight as they present Artful Thursdays. Because......

Houstonist took it on the chin with another late night out on the town. Don't ask. What happens out there stays out there. We missed our alarm. We showed up late for work. The office coffee pot was broken so we headed to Starbucks to get a jump start. Our caffeinated bliss was tainted after we learned about the nine cent price increase that is now in effect. While we agree with Lewis Black......

Houston rapper Lil' Flip is in some trouble, the Chronicle reports: Lil' Flip (whose real name is Wesley Eric Weston Jr.) turned himself in to police on a charge of credit card abuse this weekend, and he's due in court today. Weston, known as the "freestyle king" for his ability to improvise, is accused of buying a $671 Southwest Airlines ticket to Baltimore from Houston on June 8 with an American Express card held by......

A tragic story continued unfolding this week in the case of Dennis Ray Driver Jr., the 8-month-old Houston boy who died late last year while asleep on his father's chest: The father, Dennis Driver, has been charged with murder in connection with the infant's death — and police say the boy died from taking cocaine. It happened Dec. 28, when Driver says he fell asleep with Dennis Jr. asleep on his chest; when Driver woke......

This video comes from a 1988 television appearance by current presidential candidate Rep. Ron Paul. In 1988, Dr. Paul ran for president as a libertarian candidate and appeared on a talk show hosted by notorious nutcase Morton Downey, Jr. We're glad that Ron Paul seems to have chilled out a little since '88, and also that he's no longer inclined to insulting overweight kids. We're not saying we support Ron Paul (actually, we were......

Convicted murderer Dexter Johnson was sentenced to death in a Harris County courtroom yesterday — but he didn't take the punishment quietly. When the sentence was read, Johnson, 19, reportedly "gazed up and pressed his lips together. His eyes filled with tears. Then he looked toward his family and lifted his hand as if to wave to them." And then he threw a chair, causing folks in the courtroom to hit the deck. According to......

The story behind this drink is two-fold, so get ready for a history lesson. We first got turned on to the Aqua Velva when we saw Zodiac last spring. In the movie, a dandy, very late-1970's Robert Downey, Jr. and an earnest Jake Gyllenhaal discuss a serial killer over drinks. Gyllenhaal's character orders an Aqua Velva, a fancy bright blue drink with a paper umbrella, which Downey's character finds questionable. Cut to a scene......

In the late 80's and early 90's, Massachusetts alternative rock band Dinosaur Jr. made head waves in college radio, then finally to mainstream rock radio with this song from 1994, "Feel the Pain." Their music has been sighted by many, including Nirvana, to be one of the inspirations for the grunge movement. With lots of distortion (which you won't find on this particular song) and J Mascis' vocals, it's easy to see how they......

Tonight, Norah Jones plays in a very suitable place, Jones Hall. The show is sold out, but with M. Ward opening, it’s one that may be worth getting tickets for. Black Rebel Motorcycle Club returns to Houston on Thursday. Rock legend Dave Mason hits The Meridian Friday night, while former Rock Star: Supernova contestant and Austin native Patrice Pike visits Fitzgeralds. Another great double bill comes to us on Sunday night – The Black......

Good morning, Houston. Thanks to KHOU, we have a couple more details on the coming switch from Time Warner to Comcast cable — sort of. Next week, 20 new channels will come to the Houston cable market, including five HD channels — but Comcast isn't saying what they are (aside from ESPN HD and the NFL Network, which should appeal to you sports fans). Up to this point, the most visible result of the......

The Astros 2007 free-fall continued at Minute Maid Park on Tuesday as they dropped their 10th consecutive loss by losing to the Reds 4-3. The Reds attacked Wandy Rodriguez (2-5) for three first inning earned runs that would put the Astros anemic offense against the wall. Reds center fielder Norris Hopper got the game started on a lead off double and then scored on Alex Gonzalez's single for the 1-0 lead. Ken Griffey Jr.......

Four-day work weeks screw us up, too -- which is why you're seeing the concert calendar on Wednesday. It doesn't matter though, there are still plenty of good shows left to see this week. Two really good shows to choose from tomorrow night: Strokes guitarist Albert Hammond, Jr. will hit Warehouse Live, while local favorites The Scattered Pages will provide your coffee sipping entertainment at Brasil. Friday night, hit one of the best intimate......

The bond for Raymond Shaw, the man charged with shooting an 11-year-old friend of his son's, was doubled to $100,000 yesterday — and following the court hearing, the victim's family said they forgive Shaw for what he did. "We believe in God," Pamela Jones, a cousin of victim Jonathan Dixson, told reporters. "We have to forgive [Shaw] for that. It hurts us. We're hurting deeply, but we have to forgive him." Shaw, you'll remember, shot......

Good morning, Houston. Score one for Sugar Land's fake downtown: This summer, it will become the location of the Children's Museum of Houston's first satellite location. The Children's Museum of Houston Discovery Center at Sugar Land Town Square — that's CMHDCSLTS for short — will occupy 9,000 square feet of space in the Town Square development for six weeks beginning June 1. Though it's just a temporary deal, museum brass say the Discovery Center......

The Houston Astros won for the ninth time in 11 games as Craig Biggio crushed the hearts of Milwaukee Brewers fans with a grand slam in the ninth inning, which gave the Astros their third consecutive come from behind win. The stage was set as Chris Burke led off the ninth with a bunt that was seemingly caught for the first out, but pitcher Matt Wise couldn't hold on. Adam Everett then walked and......

More details are emerging in the Thursday stabbing death of Rice basketball player Jonathan Bailey — but that doesn't mean things are necessarily getting any clearer. The Chronicle has information from the Brazos County sheriff's office about the incident, which apparently grew out of a bar scuffle between Bailey's twin brother Janson and Michael Fuller, a Marine who had recently come home from Iraq: The Bailey brothers were in the V Bar in the Northgate......

A College Station bar fight early Thursday morning left Jonathan Bailey, a 22-year-old Rice University basketball player, dead and his twin brother Janson hospitalized. Details are still few, but according to police, the Bailey brothers were involved in a fight at the V Bar, a club near the Texas A&M campus. Those involved in the fight were asked to leave the bar and the fight continued outside; that's when police say Jonathan and Janson Bailey......