Where Do You Get Good Cajun Food?

I'm really at a loss as to where to find it in Fort Worth. And, no, Pappadeaux's really doesn't cut it. Not that the food is bad -- it's quite tasty -- it's just I never have an exceptional dining experience there. I feel overfed and overcharged.

Anyway, I bring this up because I did experience a total Cajun foodgasm today ... in Dallas. The place in question is Dodie's on Greenville Ave.

I ended up there because no good deed goes unpunished. Like two years ago, I did some design work for my friend, Lee Roth. Lee's a very accomplished landscape architect. I won't name-drop his clients, but most of them are nine and ten-figure net-worth types. Yeah, I know how many zeros that is.

Anyway, I did a little favor for Lee and he says, how much? I say, don't worry about it. He says, I'll take you to lunch. Deal.

Now, Lee is from New Orleans, so I know he knows good Cajun. So I say, hook me up, brutha. And then a lot of time passes.

So today, Lee calls me and says, you got lunch plans? I do now. And that's how I ended up at Dodie's.

Basically, I don't even need to look at a menu -- Lee just orders. We start off with Abita Amber. Now, I don't know about you, but there's something about drinking beer at lunch when you are really supposed to be working that just kicks ass. Maybe it's the beer part.

Well, if you follow that up with some really great food, it gets better.

For starters, there was this cole slaw -- vinegary, not creamy -- with loads garlic. Now, I hate cole slaw and I ate the whole bowl.

Then we moved on to chicken and sausage gumbo. I've been leaning toward this a little more when I eat at home, except I like to put a little duck in there when I can get it. But I digress, the gumbo was superb. The roux was actually a little on the light green side -- not the thick, dark brown to which I'm accustomed. Again, I ate the whole bowl.

That was followed up with Cajun tamales, which are these chili peppers stuffed with this -- I dunno? -- crawfish sausage? -- then deep fried. Wowza.

We are just now getting to the entree -- crawfish etouffee. Again, this was a little different than I'm used to -- the roux was red with a hint of tomato. And the best part was the crawfish were fresh. Excellent.

Because this wasn't enough food, I sampled with red beans and rice. Lee believes that great red beans need to be thoroughly soaked -- which few people will do. These were soaked and served with grilled andouille sausage. I'm going to order this next time.

So we ate, talked about some of his projects, bamboo for my yard, LSU football and kids. And as you can imagine, I wasn't worth a shit at work all afternoon. Is Christmas here yet?

Anyway, thanks, Lee. You are a rock star. And if anyone knows where to find good Cajun in the Fort, lemme know.

Music Notes, 10.19.07

St. Vincent at The Modern: You won't be able to sling a cat without hitting a blogger tonight at The Modern: 7:45 pm is Tame..Tame and Quiet, 8:30 pm is Sleeping States, 9:15 pm is Doug Burr, 10 p.m. is Peter & the Wolf and 10:45 pm is St. Vincent, featuring alt-rock darling Annie Clark, former member of Polyphonic Spree.

The S.P.E.A.K. Project: This Saturday at the Ridglea Theater, Black Tie Dynasty, PPT, The Burning Hotels, and the cut*off, among others, are performing a benefit concert put on by the S.P.E.A.K. Project, a brand-new ad hoc nonprofit group dedicated to raising awareness of sexually transmitted diseases among young people. Tickets are $10-$12. Doors open at 3 p.m.

David Garza at John "Beard" Brewer Benefit: David is the first artist to confirm that he will play the John "Beard" Brewer benefit show set for October 28 at Club Dada. For more information about the benefit plus some David-love, read Unfair Park.

Carter Albrecht Memorial concert: The Saturday show at the Granada Theater features Sorta, the Old 97’s, The Slack, Salim Nourallah, the Drams, Junky Southern and other "special guests." Proceeds will go to the Carter Albrecht Music Foundation being set up by Albrecht's parents through Northern Trust Bank. Tickets are $30.

Doug Bryan: Mad Love

Way back in the 1980s, I was a big Paul Weller fan. Starting with his hard-edged punk riffs from his early years with The Jam and later as he became the Soul-infused conscience of Brit Pop with The Style Council, I loved his music.

So did Doug Bryan. So much so that the Dallas rocker named his band Big Boss Groove after one Weller's Style Council hits.

Doug and I have that in common -- we like the pop music, whether it is Paul Weller, Lennon and McCartney, Squeeze, XTC or Crowded House. We say bring it.

The big difference between me and Doug as that where I like the music, he can actually play it. And I mean play it.

Doug did alright for himself with Big Boss Groove. But after marrying fellow bandmate Jill Johnson, life intruded a bit. Doug owns a successful post-production shop in Uptown and he and Jill have a pistol of a little girl. But business and family life don't leave too much time for rocking out. So the music went on the back burner for a while.

But now Doug is back with his new album, Mad Love, a delightful piece of musical candy that reminds me a lot of Paul McCartney, except that it is actually good. Exhibit A, B and C: The first three tracks on the album -- "Long Gone," "Brand New Heartbeat" and "Hattie's Coming Home." You know you've heard these riffs and musical textures before from years of listening to classic rock radio, but Doug manages to take it apart and re-assemble it in a way that sounds new and fresh. And he gets BIG points from me for one line alone in the song "Know It All" -- "She loves Al Green, Martin Sheen and Robert Duvall". Freaking brilliant. Pop music for grown-ups. What a concept!

To read more about Doug, check out this feature from Lakewood Now. Or, better yet, join him on Friday night at Club Dada for his record release party. They'll go on after the Beatles cover band Hard Night's Day finish their weekly happy hour set sometime after 9.

Doug's record is available for purchase in Dallas at Good Records, CD World, and CD Source. You can also order the CD at www.moontownproductions.com or you can download it at iTunes or at www.myspace.com/dougbryanmusic.

Rick Noriega in Dallas Yesterday

Rick Noriega isn't officially running for the U.S. Senate, but you'd never know it by watching him yesterday.

He was here in the Fort yesterday afternoon for a lunch at Joe T's where he spoke to a group of 50 over enchiladas, picking up campaign contributions and the endorsements of Tarrant County State Representatives Lon Burnam, Paula Hightower Pierson and Marc Veasey before making his way through the rain to Far North Dallas for event at the home of Lenna Webb and Bob Franklin.

Noriega's had a good week for endorsements. Governor Dolph Briscoe, Lt. Gov. Bill Hobby and State Senator Rodney Ellis gave him their support, as did the Texas State Association of Firefighters. An endorsment from Daily Kos appears to be forthcoming next week.

Why the endorsements? Why are all of these people lining up behind him now?

Because in the reddest of red states, in the heart of maybe the most Republican state in the country, Rick Noriega looks like he can do the unthinkable: run as a Democrat for a statewide office and win. And after listening to him last night, I'm more convinced than ever.

Part of his appeal is his military bearing. The Texas National Guard lieutenant colonel and Afghanistan vet isn't vulnerable to accusation of being "soft" on security. He can talk about running a convoy and setting up checkpoints because he's been there. As he puts it, he knows the difference between an M203 and an M&M.

"I just got back from two weeks of training at Fort Benning, and when you look at these 18- and 19-year-old kids who will do anything their country asks them to do, you realize they deserve better. They need leadership that is willing to be held accountable."

After six years of the dodge and deflect strategy from Republicans, it's kind of refreshing to hear that. But Noriega also knows that the Republicans aren't going to take this lying down.

"Are we as Texans ready to take a step forward? Our state is off track and if we are going to set things right, we must be ready for the campaign of misinformation that John Cornyn and the Republicans are ready to unleash. They'll use this to divide us so they can maintain power. We have to reject that, but it will be a tough fight."

I can't help but wonder how long will it take before Dallas' own Merrie Spaeth finds a way to swift boat Noriega and tell us he wasn't even in Afghanistan?

But Noriega was there. And he's also served with the Guard along the border, and was tapped by Houston Mayor Bill White to manage the care for 30,000 Katrina evacuees at the George R. Brown Convention Center. That, combined with his background as a legislator allows him to speak knowledgeably on defense, security and immigration issues. If that's what you want, he can do the wonk thing.

But he also has the one-liners down, too. When someone asked the inevitable Larry Craig question, he knocked it over the fence -- "Republicans give gays and lesbians a bad name."

Of course, that wasn't the only bit of Republican hypocrisy that he skewered. He got plenty of shots in at the junior senator from the State of Texas. "John Cornyn voted twice to build a wall along the border. When he's speaking in East Texas, he tells them he voted for it. When he speaks in the Valley, he says he voted against. But he's changed his position on lots of issues since this little chihuahua started nipping at his heels."

And that is part of what makes Rick Noriega such a formidable candidate -- he's an experienced legislator with a significant military background who also happens to be Hispanic. And because he's so strong with issues that Republicans have traditionally owned, he can talk about education, healthcare and social issues without appearing to be "soft" on anything. As he puts it, "Compassion isn't a weakness." Amen, brother.

So who is Rick Noriega? He's the guy Republicans have worried about for years. And he's the guy Democrats have been waiting for. He's a winner.

Help Rick Noriega Today
Today, grassroots activists across Texas are launching a petition to put Rick on the March 2008 Democratic Primary Ballot. The election code gives candidates the option of obtaining signatures or paying $5,000 to qualify a candidate for the ballot. Many candidates opt to just pay the fee because it's the "easy" way to go.

Not Rick. He's building a grassroots campaign, and here's our chance to show the strength of the Noriega grassroots. Texas requires a candidate to obtain 5,000 signatures. Rick wants 25,000 signatures. You can help him get there by signing a petition. Download one here or drop me a line and I'll sign you up.

Also, take time to tell someone about Rick. And, if you are able, send him a few dollars. A small investment in time and money today could mean a Democratic senator from Texas in 2008.

Rick Noriega in Fort Worth and Dallas

Rick Noriega, who I'm sincerely hoping will run for the U.S. Senate, will be in the area today.

This morning, he'll be in Fort Worth as Tarrant County State Representatives Lon Burnam, Paula Hightower Pierson and Marc Veasey host a fundraising lunch event to support his U.S. Senate Exploratory effort. The lunch will be held at Joe T Garcia's on 2201 North Commerce. It starts at 11:30 a.m.

"I am honored to have the support of my friends and colleagues from Tarrant County," Noriega said. "Representatives Burnam, Pierson and Veasey and I have stood side by side in the trenches fighting for common-sense solutions to help Texas families. They are outstanding public servants and advocates for their communities. I am grateful for their invitation to come to Fort Worth, and I look forward to discussing my campaign for change in the U.S. Senate."

He'll be in Dallas tonight for an event at the home of Lenna Webb and Bob Franklin at 17201 Hidden Glen Drive in the 75248. The event is scheduled from 6-8. If you would like to attend, contact Rick Cofer at (512) 771-6266 or rick@rickcofer.com. Campaign contributions will be accepted and appreciated. Please come out and meet the next Senator from the State of Texas.

If you are wondering "Who is this Rick Noriega?" watch the video above.

Architecture: A Dissent

I like architecture. I write about architecture sometimes. It interests me.

Annie Choi doesn't like architecture. In fact, she wrote an entire article about it. Not that I agree with all of it, but it's funny. My favorite part:

"Architects love to discuss how much sleep they have gotten. One will say how he was at the studio until five in the morning, only to return again two hours later. Then another will say, oh that is nothing. I haven’t slept in a week. And then another will say, guess what, I have never slept ever. My dear architects, the measure of how hard you’ve worked and how much you’ve accomplished is not related to the number of hours you have not slept. Have you heard of Rem Koolhaas? [Yes, I have, Annie. He's designing the new Opera House in Dallas. - Steve] He is a famous architect. I know this because you tell me he is a famous architect. I hear that Rem Koolhaas is always sleeping. He is, I presume, sleeping right now. And I hear he gets shit done. And I also hear that in a stunning move, he is making a building that looks not like a glass cock, but like a concrete vagina [Wow, it does. It'll be GREAT in Dallas]. When you sleep more, you get vagina. You can all take a lesson from Rem Koolhaas."

Or maybe not.

Dallas Bicyclists Attacked

Two Dallas cyclists were attacked on the Katy Trail on Monday night by a man wielding a box cutter. The worst part? The assailant appears to be another biker. Disgusting.

NED?! Ned Ryerson!

I love the movie Groundhog Day. But who would've thought that Ned Ryerson, played by Stephen Tobolowsky was in a garage band with Stevie Ray Vaughan during his Kimball High School days in Dallas? If you don't believe me, check out the Filter magazine interview with Tobolowsky, or skip to the good parts at Unfair Park.

A Year Older, But Not Wiser

Dave Barry once wrote that there is an age to stop expecting people to make a big deal over your birthday and that age is 12. Well, today is my birthday and I don't expect anyone to make a big deal over it, but sometimes, it happens anyway. And I am much older than 12.

So here I am. I just finished lunch with my colleagues at Chic Barcelona (or, as I like to say, Bar-THE-lona) and you can see what I had pictured at the left -- rotisserie chicken with a side of of roasted apples and grilled asparagus. We also had an appetizer of olives, pan con tomate -- toasted bread slices rubbed with tomato, salt, pepper and virgin olive oil with some slices of manchego -- and a shot of gazpacho. Washed all this down with a bottle of tempranillo so I've got a nice little red wine dronk right now and I'm not anticipating much productivity this afternoon.

Tonight, I'm going to party like it's 1959 -- red meat, martinis, champagne and Sammy Davis Jr. Schmelkus, babe!

Doug and Jill Bryan ... In Print!

Doug and Jill Bryan ... those kids are going to be alright. Check out this nice little write-up on the dynamic duo at Lakewood Now.

D(a)MN, That Hurts!

Seems like I can't go anywhere these days without running into a former Startlegram colleague. And that's mostly a good thing, because I think that there are a number of very dedicated and talented people who work their butts off to cover Cowtown. I'm flattered that most of these people still remember and want to take a few minutes to talk to me. Guess I wasn't too big an asshole.

That said, in case you haven't noticed, there is a malaise in media circles these days about the impending death of newspapers. The chatter this past week has mostly regarded a recent Columbia Journalism Review piece on the aftermath of the layoffs at the Dallas Morning News. Not surprisingly, there's more more than a few sour grapes from people who got a pink slip and unease from the people left behind. From the article: "Reese Dunklin, who received a 2004 Livingston Award for Young Journalists, chose not to take the buyout. At thirty-three, Dunklin wants to remain at the Morning News but concedes he is worried about the paper’s future. 'At times you wonder where it’s all headed,' he says, 'because you sense this air of desperation.' ”

I met Reese once and I thought he was a pretty neat guy, and certainly the Livingston Award certifies him as a rising young reporting talent. While I wouldn't have wanted to be Reese last week -- "Uh, Reese, this is Bob Mong. Have you lost your FREAKING mind?!" -- he nailed the mood in Metroplex newsrooms right now. Most don't feel very confident about the direction of their profession generally and the management decisions of the local papers specifically.

While it isn't hard to get someone who was pink-slipped to say something bad about the company who cut them loose, I've always had a more compassionate view of the situation. But one of my former S-T friends I saw on Friday, who is also a former D(a)MNer, had an interesting take on the whole situation.

"I don't feel bad for most of those Morning News people," he said. "What happened there was way overdue. They were overpaid, underworked, arrogant assholes. They would cruise in at 9:30, shoot the breeze, make a few phone calls, then take a long lunch. Maybe -- MAYBE -- do an interview in the afternoon, then leave at 4. They had no idea what it was like other places."

I have to say I was a little taken aback by this, but then again, there is a particular brand of schadenfreude that comes from former D(a)MNers. It's not just that they feel bitter about shabby treatment they endure there, it's like they feel angry because the Big Bad Belo stole part of their soul, too. But my friend was right about one thing, the folks at the D(a)MN had it easier than most for longer than most. Welcome to reality.

While the CJR story paints a rosy picture of life for the RIF-fed 30 percent of the newsroom, I have a hard time believing things are quite so good. Sure, Ed Bark’s blog gets lots of (deserved) praise, but he’s still going to be freelancing for the S-T. If blogging paid the bills – and I assure you, it does not – I don’t think Uncle Barky would be taking that on. Maybe I’m wrong. Maybe he just wants to get back into the local market.

But if you want the ultimate contrarian POV, read Matt Pulle’s take at Unfair Park. I think this perspective has some merit. The D(a)MN is going through a painful re-focusing process. They are no longer trying to be a national newspaper that sees itself as a peer to the LA Times, the New York Times, the Chicago Tribune or the Washington Post. The paper, like the city of Dallas itself, always thought that the eyes of the country were on it. In truth, they weren’t. The D(a)MN never was the paper it thought it was.

Nonetheless, it is doing some things right. They did man up and basically admit their Web site re-design was a disaster. Now they are trying to fix it. When the Startlegram’s redesign eventually implodes, will the same thing happen in FW? And the only reason I'm implying that the redesign isn't working is a little reporters' mutiny that the S-T sherrifs are trying to keep a lid on. And the fact that everyone I talk who works at or reads the paper hates it. Other than that, it's just my hunch.

So as fashionable as it is to bag on Belo, there is still some quality journalism going on there. Pulle is right about that. And not all the former D(a)MNers are spending their time sticking it to their former employer -- Manny Mendoza is working on an interesting looking film that gets to the root problem: what’s wrong with American newspapers.

I don't know how to solve the problem with American newspapers, but I know what I think would make the Metromess's papers a little more compelling: focus on quality over quantity. By being the best at covering the news in their communities, they will make their papers indespensible to their readers and the community. Don't waste your time with "News You Can Use" infotainment. Give me meaningful local news and put it in context. That's what you do. Do it well.

Take It To The Hoop

I haven't had a chance to check out the new Polyphonic Spree album, The Fragile Army, but the word on the street is it is crazy good. If that wasn't enough reason to check out their tour kickoff tomorrow night at the Grenada, now Robert Wilonsky at Unfair Park gives me another reason, Jesca Hoop, who is the opening act for the Spree. "She's also an wondrous singer-torch-songwriter, with a debut (Kismet) forthcoming later this year worth a few dozen spins," sez Robert. OK, sounds good. And of note to you Rain Dogs out there, she used to be the nanny to Tom Waits and Kathleen Brennan's three kids. If you can't make it to the Grenada tomorrow, check Jesca out on the Interweb.

Is Texas Swinging Left?

Jim Schutze had some interesting musings on this topic at Unfair Park. I actually met Emil Reichstadt at the Lon Burnham breakfast a few weeks ago. Can this guy beat Cornyn? My thought was "Hell, no. This guy is cannon fodder." The Republicans may be dead in Dallas, but Big D is only a very small blue spot in a very red state.

Things I've Learned This Morning

I'm in the summer doldrums today. I need to crank out another couple of History of Guns segments, but they are getting harder to write. Plus that and all of the Iraq stuff lately has left me in a funk. So let's have a little fun:

Tammy Gomez reminds us that no matter how much we work on trying to create art and beauty in a vain attempt to be remembered by posterity, what really lasts is the stuff we throw away. If you have to choose one thing to endure: Shakespeare or chicken bones from lunch, you'd probably bet on the Bard. And you'd be wrong. Wow, I'm starting off on an up note!

In trying to find a picture of chicken to go with the first item, I discovered something disturbing: Japan has a history of defacing Colonel Sanders statues. And the Colonel IS PISSED!

Austin frets over its Dallasification.

Hey, WFAA, this is so, like, two months ago!

To lighten things up, a cool blog: Very Hot Jews. They are asking important questions like: What kind of Jew are you, besides hot? Are you observant, just unusually witty and smart, or other? Check it out and get your mitzvah on.

One last thing: I like this new Rangers pitcher. He was on Galloway and was talking about pitching for Team USA against Cuba. "Yeah, Castro was there and he's kind of a funky little dude. He looked like one of the GI Joes I used to play with." Awesome.

Porter Wagoner is back! I grew up watching his TV show, so it's kind of funny to think of him on the same label at Tom Waits and Neko Case. But it sort of makes sense, too.

Wound My Heart With Monotonous Languor

That line above is from Verlaine: The long sobs of autumn's violins wound my heart with a monotonous languor. And, although you may not know that line if you are not a devotee of French symbolist poetry, you may know it from the movie about the Normandy Invasion, The Longest Day. The reading of the second line (wound my heart with a monotonous languor) on BBC radio signaled to the French Resistance that the allied invasion would occur within hours. With that, the French set about destroying rail lines, communications, and other German targets to pave the way for liberation.

On this anniversary of D-Day, that climactic day of World War II, I wanted to share that little bit of poetry, but also a few local stories. If you are interested and are suitable equipped, you may listen to original re-broadcast of NBC newscasts from that day on XM, beginning at 12:41 a.m. Eastern on Channel 4.

Mark Stevenson and General Roosevelt
I've known a few D-Day vets through the years. When I was a kid, a friend of my Dad's named Joe Cummings from Waco, a red-haired firecracker of a guy shared his stories about landing in the first wave at Omaha Beach with a unit of combat engineers from the Big Red One. There was also another old friend of my father's who took the time to share his stories, a guy I've mentioned before, Marcus O. Stevenson of Dallas.

On D-Day, Stevenson was aide to Gen. Theodore Roosevelt Jr., the assistant division commander for the 4th Infantry Division -- that's a picture of them together above. They landed in the first wave that morning at Utah Beach. Years later, when I asked him about what I thought going in that day, Stevenson -- by D-Day was already a veteran of landings in North Africa and Sicily -- was succinct in his answer. "I thought we were going to die."

But they didn't. Roosevelt was the only general to land in the first wave on D-Day. When the general learned that the landing craft had drifted more than a mile south of their objective, he made the decision that typifies the American power of improvisation. "We’ll start the war from right here," he said. And young Lt. Stevenson, who Ernest Hemingway would describe later in the Normandy campaign as looking like a sheriff out of the Old West with his handlebar mustache, was right there by his side as history was made.

With artillery landing close by, Roosevelt made his way around the beach wearing a knit cap rather than a helmet and using a cane rather than a rifle. He got the men of the 4th moving inland to their objectives and worked as a self-appointed traffic cop, untangling traffic jams of men and material.

General Raymond O. "Tubby" Barton, the commander of 4th Division, later remembered meeting Roosevelt on the beach that morning: "While I was mentally framing [orders], Ted Roosevelt came up. He had landed with the first wave, had put my troops across the beach, and had a perfect picture (just as Roosevelt had earlier promised if allowed to go ashore with the first wave) of the entire situation. I loved Ted. When I finally agreed to his landing with the first wave, I felt sure he would be killed. When I had bade him goodbye, I never expected to see him alive. You can imagine then the emotion with which I greeted him when he came out to meet me [near La Grande Dune]. He was bursting with information."

Roosevelt and Stevenson made their way inland with the rest of the 4th and eventually made contact with paratroopers from the 82nd Airborne, commanded by another former Roosevelt aide, Gen. Matthew Ridgway. After their first meeting, Roosevelt remarked that Stevenson and Ridgway had a lot of good qualities, much like Stevenson. "Keep it up, and maybe you can be a general one day, too," he said, slapping him on the back.

For his courage and leadership on D-Day, Roosevelt would be posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor on September 28, 1944. However, he didn't live to see the award. He died of a heart attack on July 12, 1944, while commanding troops in the field, and he's buried with many of his men at the Colleville-sur-Mer Cemetery in Normandy. Roosevelt was 56 years old on D-Day. He had been seriously wounded in the First World War and was already in poor health. He could have stayed home and let men like Mark Stevenson fight it. But he didn't.

The RAF Pilots of Kaufman
The British, French, Canadians, Russians and pretty much everyone else in the world like to point out -- correctly I might add -- that the Americans didn't beat the Germans alone. So I would like to tell another local story to remind us of that.

I discovered Monday that the RAF had a training base in Terrell, southeast of Dallas, thanks to a documentary on KERA. During World War II, almost 2,000 RAF pilots trained to fly there and almost a third of those men went on to perish in the skies over Europe and Asia.

And those young men from England are still remembered by the people of Kaufman County. Many who trained have returned over the years to visit and one cadet, Henry C. Madgwick, returned, became a citizen and served as Mayor of Terrell in the 1990s. Even today, the graves of 18 RAF pilots are tended by locals at Oakland Memorial Park Cemetery with a monument there inscribed with the words of Rupert Brooke: Some corner of a foreign field that is forever England. For those who are interested in finding out more, a book on this subject is available through UNT Press.

To the men and women of the French Resistance, to Joe Cummings and the men of the 1st Infantry, to General Roosevelt and Lt. Stevenson and the men of the 4th Division, to the RAF pilots who trained in Terrell and the people of Kaufman County who supported them, to all of those people who have passed into history and those who are still with us, thank you for the sacrifices you made and the things you achieved.

Interview with Kenney Mencher

I’ve been a fan of Kenney Mencher since I first saw his work on the Hang Art Gallery Web site. While some of the work at Hang is the type you would expect to see at a gallery catering to the San Francisco loft-dweller demographic – placid landscapes and color fields – Kenney’s work was different. A sexy-looking gal cavorting in the bedroom with Scooby Doo, scenes from hard-boiled detective stories and lots of small moments and stolen glances. He’s a storyteller with a strain of darkness and a wicked sense of humor. What’s not to love?

If you drop in at his Web site every few weeks as I have over the past few years, you'll see the work of an artist who is contemporary and classical at the same time. His work is very much of the 21st Century but his themes and technique are timeless.

If you live in the Dallas / Fort Worth area or can get here between June 7 and July 1, Kenney’s work will be showing at the Dahlia Woods Fine Arts at 600 Cantegral Street in Dallas. He also has a solo show scheduled at the gallery for September. Kenney was kind enough to swap e-mails with me ahead of his Dallas shows. Please take a few minutes to learn more about him. I think you’ll be glad you did.

The Caravan of Dreams: Some your work involves nudity and sexual themes such as voyeurism and power. I suppose it shouldn't surprise that your work has been controversial. However, I live in Texas so I sort of expect that thing. How does your work get called too "wry and perverted" in San Francisco?

Kenney Mencher: One reason might be political. Some other artists who started showing at Hang showed some work that was similar to mine. These artists dealt with difficult themes, especially dealing with female and male sexual dynamics, however, since these artists were female painters I think the staff at Hang felt that these female’s artists’ work were feminist statements. I’m a man so I think that there was the perception that my work, even though it called attention to negative stereotypes, still was not really “feminist” in content. (Ed note: Click to see a larger version of "Apocrypha" from above. For other Not Safe For Work Images, click here, here and here.

Other reasons may be that I pushed the themes a bit too far and was too edgy for Hang as a venue. Hang was interested in representing emerging artists they were not a “cutting edge” gallery. Hang was not really interested in cultivating the counter culture or avante garde art scene or its collectors. Hang’s business model was to cater to educated upscale thirty something professionals who were interested in decorating an apartment. Decorative artwork sells much better than artwork that is designed to provoke thought or challenge the viewer. You would be amazed at how conservative this segment of the population in California and San Francisco is in general.

At the other end of the raunchy spectrum, there are some edgier galleries [ed warning: the links are NSFW] (The Shooting Gallery, Varnish, and 111 Minna to mention a few) who do show edgy provocative “outsider” and “visionary” work that is purposefully meant to provoke and titillate. My work is not considered edgy, cool, or really dirty enough in content to get me into one of those galleries. I also think that my style of rendering is too conservative for these venues. I’m a little stuck between two worlds.

TCoD: Do you intend your work to be provocative?
KM: Yes. I want it to be thought provoking but not necessarily titillating in an overtly erotic way.

TCoD: Do you ever get tired of answering questions about the Scooby Doo painting?
KM: I never actually answer those questions directly. I’m more interested in finding out what people think is going on in that painting. What do you think is going on in that painting?

TCoD: Another word I see in a lot of your reviews is ambiguous? Do you intend your themes to be ambiguous? Or do you have a theme or message you want to convey?
KM: The only thing I’m clearly trying to get my audience to do is laugh or be amused. Second on my agenda is to be deliberately ambiguous in that I don’t have a definite or clear story as to who the characters are or what they are doing in the painting.

TCoD: What are the themes that interest you as an artist?
KM: If I was to give myself a shopping list of themes or motifs each painting should address they are: interpersonal communication, sexual dynamics and roles, and story telling.

TCoD: Does your work get compared to John Currin?
KM: My friends do but the people who have reviewed my work in the newspapers don’t even seem to know who he is. I think he’s good but very different from me. He doesn’t seem to tell as much of a story as I do. He is doing some similar things in terms of the themes and motifs that I discussed before but he also varies a lot more in terms of formal things in his paintings. He purposefully awkwardly drafts the human figure. He also changes the way he applies paint from show to show. I actually think I have more in common with Eric Fischl.

TCoD: In your earlier work, your brushwork was much more impressionistic, but now it is much cleaner, smoother and more refined? Was this just part of your evolution as a painter? Or was this more of a deliberate shift on your part?
KM: I’ve actually refined my style quite a lot especially in the larger more ambitious paintings in which the narrative is more specific. I still do some smaller paintings in that quick oil sketch or 1940’s pulp illustration style.

TCoD: Much of your earlier work drew heavily on film noir themes for characters and composition. Your current series of Sequential Narratives (such as "Little Did He Know" at the right) seems to draw on more contemporary film and TV shows. How do you believe film and TV has influenced you as a painter? Does David Lynch fit in there anywhere? Is your film noir period over?
KM: I think that film and TV are my primary influences. Even more than traditional art historical sources. The way television and film tell the story, how they frame the images and compositions, and even the lighting are really important to me and I think about them all the time.

David Lynch. Hmmm. . . I’ve seen all of Lynch’s films and I like David Lynch in theory, but, he tries way too hard to be weird. I think he tries to shock whereas I actually like to be more predictable in my scenarios. I think I would still be making the paintings I do even had I not ever seen one of Lynch’s films.

TCoD: What's with the waterglass paintings? (See "Pollyana" at left)
KM: There’s a feature about that particular series in “The Artist” magazine this month. You can tell a lot about a person just by asking them, “Is the glass is half empty or is it half full?” I like painting portraits and still life and this was a perfect excuse do just that but with a thesis or theme in which to explore. I guess they are the visual equivalent to a haiku. They are limited in form but within the formula, a half glass of water and a character, you can say and explore a lot of ideas.

TCoD: To me, one of your most interesting paintings is Los Angeles. It reminds me very much of the painting "Second Story Sunlight" by Edward Hopper. But the figures also have this Thomas Hart Benton feel to them. Is this a meditation on aging and fleeting youth? Is this a metaphor about Los Angeles? Is there a homoerotic subtext? What's going on here?
KM: Yes, you are completely correct! (That’s what I say to anyone who interprets one of my paintings.)

TCoD: Your more recent paintings seem to involve quality of light more and more. Your earlier work seemed to deal more with cinematic lighting, but now you seem to be dealing more with natural light (such as "In Martini Veritas" at right). Am I just making this up or is there something to it?
KM: Yes, it has to do more with my abilities as a photographer and a painter. I’m getting better reference material. I’ve also learned a lot more about observing and painting light and color in the last year.

TCoD: Your wife, friends and students dress up and play characters in your paintings. Do people volunteer for this or do you choose your subjects?
KM: It’s a combination or a negotiation. I do keep a sketchbook of written out scenarios. I go to thrift stores and get the clothing I need and then I throw a party or visit a party at a sympathetic friend's house. It helps if everyone is drunk. I also ask my students to pose sometimes. You would be surprised how many people are hams.

TCoD: How long does a typical painting take? How much revision is involved and is that a process you enjoy?
KM: Size counts but let’s say one of the glass of water paintings as a midsize one 36”x48” would take about 40 to 60 actual hours to make. This is spread out over several weeks and I usually have two to three paintings going on at the same time.

It starts with writing out the scenario. The photo shoot is usually around two hours (setting up props lights and actually shooting.)

Next is three to five hours of Photoshop on the computer composing, moving things, analyzing light and color and modifying different versions of the batch of reference photos.

Laying out the drawing takes around two to three hours.

The acrylic underpainting takes about eight hours. Often I redraw and reblock in areas of the painting while in this phase. My wife actually tells me when things are off or look bad.

The last layer of oil paint usually takes two to three eight-hour days. This phase runs about twenty-four hours. During this phase I go back the next day and fix the problems that I had not noticed the day before.

TCoD: You explain on your Web site how you use photography to assist you with your composition. Because you make such extensive use of photography, is it a challenge to keep your work painterly and not photorealistic?
KM: It’s not a challenge at all for me. I paint as if I was painting from life and the forms are not abstract for me. When I paint a hand I think of the muscles and skeleton under it so I still lay the forms down by blocking them in a wet into wet 19th century style. I actually think I have more in common with Sargent, N.C. Wyeth and pulp illustrators than I do with photorealists like Bechtle or Estes.

TCoD: Now that you mention it, I can definitely see the influences of Sargent, N.C. Wyeth and pulp illustrators. But I also can see classical influences (see "The Calling of Marc" at right) in some of your work that I just can't place. Can you help a brother out here?
KM: Oh yeah. . . Don’t get me started. I think that one of the greatest painters that ever lived was Velasquez and tracing back from there Caravaggio. I sometimes flatter myself into thinking that I’m a modern caravaggisti (Italian for follower of Caravaggio). I love both those artists for their use of everyday items and things and for their very theatrical shifts of light and shadow. I’m an art historian so I look at old masters’ works all the time. I’m constantly stealing from art historical sources such as Artemisia Gentileschi, Michael Sweerts, Vermeer, and Rembrandt.

Still, in the words of Chauncey Gardner, “I like to watch.” Even more to the point I love to look at all art. One of my all time favorite artists is David Tomb. Recently artists like Lucien Freud (NSFW), Bo Bartlett, and Odd Nerdrum are some of my favorite views but I also love graphic novelists and artists like Frank Miller and Alex Ross. I also really dig some vernacular photo web sites such as http://www.bighappyfunhouse.com.

TCoD: I saw you used to teach at Texas A&M in Laredo? That seems like, um, an odd fit. How did that go?
KM: Not so well. They liked me because I was a far out import. The political, economic, and moral climate of Laredo seemed toxic. I found the town and the people of Laredo to be very much in line with the film “A Touch of Evil.” I actually took a $10,000 pay cut to move back to the San Francisco area. I would have stayed if my job were in any other Texas city. I really like Dallas, Austin, and San Antonio. My wife and I would flee Laredo once or twice a month and spend weekends and holidays in these cities.

TCoD: I see your going to be showing in Dallas again at the Dahlia Woods Gallery. You've shown in the past at Craighead Green. How did it go the first time and why are you coming back?
KM: Ineffable stuff happens sometimes and you just lose a gallery for random reasons. Craighead Green broke up with me I think because they just stopped selling my work. I’m not sure how or why I had a great run of sales with them initially but then they stopped being able to sell the work after the first two years. Dahlia actually bought some of my work while on a trip to San Francisco. A year or so after Craighead Green stopped returning my calls Dahlia opened a gallery. I contacted her and now we are working together. It’s funny, she and I went to the High School of Art and Design in New York although at different times. At least she likes my work enough to literally put her money where her mouth is. Go figure!

TCoD: I love your Web site, and one of the most interesting things about it is the blog where you show step-by-step the process of creating a painting. I know that lots of bands and musicians are using the Web and blogs to break down the walls between them and their audiences, but I haven't seen as much of that between an artist and his audience. Does your Web presence help you communicate with your audience/customers or is it something more for the benefit of your students or is it a little of both? I'm wondering why I don't see more artists doing this kind of thing. Is it I just don't get out much?
KM: My Web site is one of the best outreach tools I have. I love to correspond with people about art and yes, the website does tend to break down barriers and add to communication.

I primarily began it as a tool for my students to use and have access to all of the lessons and images that I use in both my art history and studio courses. It has developed organically as a public relations tool, mainly because I wanted to share what I know about painting.

I’m also interested in what my audience has to say about the work. The blog takes an enormous amount of work and I am actually backlogged on it right now. I have a ton of digital images that I haven’t edited or posted yet as step by step examples of how I work.

TCoD: Thanks, Kenney! Drop us a line when you're in town.

This Is George's Show ...

For those of you who remember Dallas / Fort Worth in the 1980s, to say mainstream radio was a musical wasteland is to be kind. To put it bluntly, it sucked. We didn't have no iPods and Interwebs, we had nothin' but Night Ranger on the Q102.

But we did have George Gimarc and the Rock and Roll Alternative on the late, great KZEW. And that, along with KNON (Saturday nights with Shaggy and Where's Your ID on Saturday afternoons) was our oasis of cool in a desert of musical suckitude. I heard a lot of bands for the first time on George's show: XTC, Bauhaus, Siouxsie, The Smiths and the list could go on. It was a crucial part of my musical education. Let me say "Thanks, George!"

Anyway, the amazing Cindy at the Fine Line has a reposting of her George Gimarc audio interview. Get over there and check that out.

Super Bowl in the 817, Holla!

OK, my boycott of Arlington is obviously not working.

So how much is a Super Bowl worth anyway? Depends on whom you ask. Some say $400 million and others say it's about a tenth of that.

But is it worth it for Arlington? Tom Kelly, Director of the Baylor Center for Business and Economic Research, contends that the town with a stadium like this suffers a winner's curse and "ends up paying for a facility that may be justified for the entire region but not for the particular jurisdiction." That seems true in this case. I'm betting that most of the partying will be going on in Uptown Dallas and not downtown Arlington. But we'll save a booth for Jerry Jones at the TGIFriday's on Collins and Ballpark -- just in case.

Of course, this delusion should be clear to Arlington, but it's not. Arlington is an established sports stadium whore that is willing to spread her legs for any sports owner with an itch to build a stadium. Case in point: The Ballpark in Arlington or what ever it's called this week. Reason magazine looked at this back in 2005 in the run-up to the special election in Arlington to finance JerryWorld. What they found was "the stadium clearly benefited the Rangers' owners more than anyone else: [George W.] Bush turned his initial $600,000 investment into $15 million when the team was sold in 1999. But it has produced little of the promised economic benefit to Arlington, and there has never been a real 'public use' factor aside from baseball fans' paying their money to see games."

So was it worth it Arlington? I'm completely biased and have an ax to grind, so I'm going to say no. Your town is still a dump. Former Mayor Richard Greene -- Mr. Really-Tight-Underwear himself -- used to say "we're nobody's damn suburb." But if Arlington is a big city, no one seems to have gotten the memo. It has plenty of big city problems (crime, education and infrastructure are all issues) without any of the big city amenities (fine hotels and dining, a downtown, any kind of civic life not revolving around a mall or an amusement park.) Hell, it doesn't even have mass transit -- but they are fixing that just for the Super Bowl. Woo. Hoo.

But putting aside issues like the dubious economic benefits, misuse of eminent domain and letting Jerry suckle at the government teat, maybe we shouldn't be asking Arlington if it was worth it. Maybe we should be asking Dallas. Of course, the D(a)MN is playing nice with Pollyanna editorials, but bitterness does seep through. And if you turn on sports radio and listen to Galloway or Hansen, that bitterness turns into a full-on anti-Laura Miller diatribe. Think there aren't some people who wish Big D has forked over some government moolah to bring the Cowboys back to town? There's lots of 'em.

So is it worth it? Well, to quote Tom Kelly again, that depends on Arlington's "ability to attract new income into the area and to maintain the circular flow of that income within the city limits." If you think Arlington can do this, then, yeah, you probabIy think it is worth it. You know what I think already. All this is just putting lipstick on a pig.

Black Tie Dynasty Go Old Skool

Fort Worth's Black Tie Dynasty will be taking a trip back to the 80s as they play with former Smiths bassist Andy Rourke at a Morrissey Pre-Party at the Mohawk in Austin tomorrow night. Then on June 2, they play with former Bauhaus frontman Daniel Ash at the Cavern in Dallas.

You'll Never Walk Alone

Blame Dominick, my soon-to-be-expatriated drinking buddy -- I am now a fan of Tom Hicks' only good team: Liverpool FC.

And tomorrow is the big day: the UEFA Champions League Final Match against AC Milan, which you can watch live at the American Airlines Center on the 48 1/2- by 52-foot HDTV starting at 1:45 p.m. (pre-game fun starts at 11 a.m.)

Dominick is one of Dallas' official Liverpool supporters group which includes about 40 diehards, according to Simon Roberts, a wine broker and involved member. He's from Liverpool, having relocated to Dallas about 10 years ago. He said the local chapter was once mostly ex-pats such as himself. Now, the greater majority of local members are actually Americans.

Now, the challenge is this: how to disappear from work for the entire afternoon.