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Photo by Bill Sallans -
Photo by Bill Sallans -
Photo by Bill Sallans
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University of Texas announces major $26 million renovation of iconic tower
Oct 6, 2022 | 3:25 pm
Photo by dszc Getty Images
The tower hasn't had major renovations like the ones planned since it was built in 1937.
The iconic University of Texas Tower does tell time, but it has a clock for that. Before the nearly 90-year-old tower itself starts looking tired, it will undergo a big renovation with a $26 million investment, the remainder of which after completion will go to cleaning up surrounding areas including the Main Mall.
This is the first major renovation of the tower, and thankfully for many Texans who look to it as an unchanging symbol, it won’t be totally redone. The plans include restoring the exterior — not rebuilding, updating the observation deck, and making sure the carillon bells are in tip-top shape. The lead investment comes from the University of Texas System Board of Regents and Chairman Kevin P. Eltife.
“In the 1930s the UT Tower was a bold statement about the enduring excellence of The University of Texas at Austin,” said Eltife in a press release. “Our board is deeply proud to support carrying that bold vision forward for generations to come.”
First built in 1937, the tower looms 307 feet above campus. At the time, it was the tallest in Austin, but as the city has changed around it, it has started to blend into its surroundings with the exception of burnt orange lights on days of celebration or reflection.
The carillon — technically more an instrument in itself than an architectural space to house the bells — contains 56 bells weighing between 20 and 7,350 pounds. There is little information about the expected maintenance, but if it takes an hour to tune a piano, Austinites can assume any carillon refurbishing will be an awe-inspiring undertaking.
According to the release, the university will actively pursue engagement from Longhorns to “join the project and support the centerpiece of campus.” It plans to announce more on November 12 at the football game against Texas Christian University, on home turf.
“The Tower stands on the very spot where our first learning community gathered, and it endures as a beacon for truth-seekers, academic excellence and achievement,” said President Jay Hartzell. “I am grateful to Chairman Eltife and the regents for their incredibly generous support. Their investment will enhance and preserve the Tower’s legacy and ensure that it shines even brighter for generations to come.”
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Movie review
New Hellraiser is stylishly gut-wrenching, but lacks substance overall
Oct 6, 2022 | 1:59 pm
Photo courtesy of Spyglass Media Group
Hellraiser debuts exclusively on Hulu on October 7.
Horror franchises, even more than ones featuring superheroes, action stars, or animated characters, have proved themselves to be eternal. No matter how many times a villain or monster is bested by the hero of the film, filmmakers find a way to bring them back to try to wring more scares out of their presence.
The original Hellraiser came out in 1987 and was followed by nine sequels, including one as recent as 2018. But everything old is new again, and so now we get the reboot. An opening sequence reintroduces the series’ central device, a puzzle box that stabs unwitting users, thereby summoning horrific figures known as Cenobites to inflict torturous pain on those who’ve been stabbed.
Cut to a few years later and a group of young people are ensnared by the puzzle box’s allure, including the central figure Riley (Odessa A’zion), an addict who lives with her brother Matt (Brandon Flynn) and roommate Nora (Aoife Hinds). Riley’s boyfriend Trevor (Drew Starkey) convinces her to help him steal things from a warehouse, inadvertently bringing the puzzle into their lives. When Riley tries solve the puzzle, all hell is unleashed on the group.
Directed by David Bruckner and written by Ben Collins and Luke Piotrowski, the film is a stylish yet mostly empty demonstration of gruesomeness. The Cenobites – who go by names like The Priest (aka Pinhead), The Chatterer, and The Weeper – are freaky-looking creatures with all manner of flayed flesh and painful piercings. Their mere presence and supernatural ability to grab victims by chains and hooks is scary, but an actual reason for why they keep procuring more targets is lacking.
The story is hit-and-miss, with the main group alternating between heroic, stupid, or heroically stupid decision-making. Riley seems to be a person who’s unreliable at best, yet person after person tries to intervene on her behalf, a loyalty that is left unexplored in the film. While the way Riley and the others eventually fight back against the Cenobites makes sense, the scenes featuring those fights are uninspiring.
The most interesting aspect of the film is the one that is explored the least. A mysterious man named Voight (Goran Visnjic) is introduced in the opening sequence, reappearing in the film’s final act. He has a particular connection to the puzzle box and Cenobites that makes him half villain/half victim, one which could have been fleshed out a bit more to make him less one-dimensional.
A’zion, who kind of looks like Alia Shawkat, makes for an unusual protagonist. She’s not that expressive, so the audience really has to dig deep to empathize with her character. The other members of the group are also generic, never bringing anything that makes you want to care about them more. The actors playing the Cenobites are good, although the makeup does half the job for them.
This reboot of Hellraiser is the classic example of style over substance. Much effort was made into making the film look as good as possible, but the story fails on multiple levels, making all of those visuals in service of very little.
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Hellraiser debuts exclusively on Hulu on October 7.
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7 things to know in Austin food right now: Famous Nashville hot chicken restaurant brings the heat
Oct 6, 2022 | 12:30 pm
Photo by Joseph Woodley
Hattie B's is bringing the Nashville heat to Austin.
Editor’s note: We get it. It can be difficult to keep up with the fast pace of Austin’s restaurant and bar scene. We have you covered with our regular roundup of essential food news.
Openings
Famous Nashville hot chicken restaurant Hattie B's is opening a new Texas location, this time in Austin. The eatery at 2529 S. Lamar Blvd. is slated to open in fall 2023, giving the team ample time to get their third Texas location — and Austin debut — right. In a press release, cofounder Nick Bishop, Jr. said he has always wanted to open in Austin thanks to similar cultures between Austin and Nashville. The Austin location will seat 150 guests, who can test their palate against Nashville-level heat.
Nine months after changing hands, and right on time according to chain president Craig Haley, the barbecue joint Smokey Mo’s is expanding into Round Rock. When the first restaurant opened 22 years ago in Cedar Park, the founders were starting with 30 years of barbecue experience, so this is well-practiced. The new location at 17280 North FM 620 Road, Suite 100, is throwing a party to celebrate on October 25 from 6-8 pm. Stop and enjoy the DJ, photo booth, face painter, games, and giveaways.
Uproariously, the downtown location of Roaring Fork is returning to lunch service for the first time since the pandemic started. Weekdays from 11 am to 5 pm, the restaurant focused on wood fired cooking is offering a long menu covering soups, salads, burgers, sandwiches, and more. It’s not much different than the dinner menu (said by director of operations Brad Miller to contain “a little bit of everything”), but it opens up hours of service as the Congress Avenue restaurant sees more traffic.
Other news and notes
The extremely popular blogger Joy the Baker is issuing the 2022 fall and winter edition of her eponymous magazine, and her recipes are going on tour. Restaurants around Texas will be recreating favorite recipes by the baker on October 7, the day of the launch, including Austin’s Bakery Lorraine, which will be selling Tart Lemon Poppy Seed Bars. Also participating are Houston’s Fluff Bake Bar and San Antonio’s Extra Fine.
We should have more holidays around melted cheese, but for now, we have Quesoff, “a celebration of all things melted cheese.” On October 8 from noon to 3 pm, competitors and spectators will gather at The Mohawk to face off in four categories: meaty, spicy, veggie and wild card. Anyone can compete, but this year’s 35-40 teams represent many local restaurants, listed in part on Instagram. Tickets will be available at the door, benefiting the Central Texas Food Bank.
Whether you’re enjoying ACL Fest or saving money and relaxing for the weekend, the Carpenter Hotel has a special hookup for coffee and late-night snacks. The new Lil Carpenter food truck will be open at the hotel for the two festival weekends — October 7-9 and 14-16 — starting coffee service at 9 am (with donuts and breakfast sandwiches) and starting late food service (hot dogs, burgers, fries, and beer) right as the festival starts to wind down, at 9 pm.
Rambler Sparkling Water, a growing default in Austin restaurants and bars, now offers a new flavor, its third in four years: satsuma, a type of mandarin orange. It joins grapefruit, lemon lime, and an unflavored original in the Rambler lineup, easily recognizable for its charming can depicting a Texas spring. The brand uses a proprietary "Texas Limestone Filtration" system and has one of the more carbonated sparkling waters on the market, which gives some proceeds back to environmental protection.
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