Famous Houston photojournalist Chris Daigle is seen out and about in Houston social life these days, never stopping his whirlwind tour of the famous and the influential.
The Source caught up to "Deadline Daigle," as the New York Times put it, on a recent swing through the Bayou City for his stage play, "Where's my Pulitzer?" Fans stood in line all day just to see him.
By special arrangement with his security detail, both Dave Ward and Dan Pastorini did indeed get a selfie with Chris Daigle. "Now I can die happy! My bucket list is complete," said Dave Ward, now 79.
Way to go Dan and Dave!
Chris Daigle is a Houston Historian and a regular contributor to The Grapevine Source. He may be contacted at blue69@att.net.
The much anticipated charity basketball face-off between late night talk show host Jimmy Kimmel and Texas senator Ted Cruz has come and gone. Cruz was the victor with a score of 11 to 9.
Trash talk was thick between Kimmel and Cruz before their game in Houston on Saturday June 16 at Texas Southern University's Athletic Education Arena.
The idea for this charity game resulted from Houston-based senator Ted Cruz tweeting a picture of himself court side for Game 7 of the Western Conference Finals. His hometown Houston Rockets were trying to keep the Golden State Warriors from getting to the NBA Finals. The Rockets lost, which prompted talk show host Jimmy Kimmel to mock the senator on Twitter, saying he looked like, well, a Blobfish.
During a broadcast of Jimmy Kimmel Live, Kimmel said he was in.
"I immediately went online and Googled how to guard a blobfish. I'll accept on one condition: We both wear short shorts, right?" Kimmel asked.
So it was settled. The late night talk show host and the Texas senator squared off in the gym on the campus of Texas Southern University. The contest benefitted two charities: Generation One, based in the Third Ward in Houston (Cruz's choice). Its mission is to, "Be a catalyst for systemic change in the education system, by creating an equitable educational landscape across the city." Kimmel chose Texas Children's Hospital, because his one-year-old son Billy has had three heart surgeries, and is waiting on a fourth.
The choice of an arena was a little more challenging. The advance team first considered a middle school gymnasium, and they even looked at using the George R. Brown Convention Center. Texas Southern University stepped up and offered its Athletics Education Arena, which fit perfectly. There, the challenge would commence: The American versus the Canadian; the baller versus the blobfish. It would turn out to be the Blobfish Basketball Classic.
Fanfare is something Kimmel knows about, and his arrival came amidst lights and smoke, and with him was, naturally, a mascot: A blobfish mascot named "Blobby." Kimmel said he carbo-loaded to get ready for the game. He practiced a little last week, but after 25 years of not playing basketball regularly, "I decided to wing it," he said.
During the game, Kimmel and Cruz had brief discussions about detention centers and Cruz's support for President Donald Trump. "This won't be the first time you lose to a TV host," Kimmel said. He also asked Cruz why he didn't support covering pre-existing conditions. Booing from the decidedly pro-Kimmel crowd drowned out the Senator's answer.
Senator Cruz had his fan base out there, and they had their cut-outs of his face to wave. The Kimmel fans had theirs as well, and a noticeable mixture of boos from the Kimmel fans upon each Cruz basket was heard, but no boos from the Cruz camp were noticeable.
Cruz and Kimmel proved they should each keep their day jobs, missing more than 100 shots between the two of them during the game. Cruz joked that they also set the Guinness World Record for fouls.
The pace of the game, however, became a matter of Kimmel keeping up with Cruz. Lead scoring was by Cruz, then Kimmel would rally for a tie game three times. But he just couldn't pass Cruz. The original plan was that the first 15 points would win on this half court, one basket, one-on-one challenge, but early on, both decided to shorten the game to an 11-point winner.
At half time, the score was Kimmel 6, Cruz 5, and the blobfish decided to hold a dance competition. Blobby showed his style by doing three backflips in a fish costume. That took some practice!
Cruz and Kimmel kept the defense tight, but both got lucky on long shot baskets. Kimmel had a better cheering section. Oddsmakers were watching the game too. The Texas senator was favored to beat Kimmel by sports book Bouada. And Las Vegas was begging fans to take the talk show host at 8/5 odds. Cruz was listed at -220 , or 5/11, which basically meant to win $100, fans had to plunk down $220, and hope that Cruz would prevail. At a height of 5'10" to Kimmel's six feet, perhaps that is not a good enough payout for low stakes prop betting. Cruz, who is three years younger than Kimmel, appeared to have the girth advantage, which helped out in the paint. Plus, some high school basketball time came in very handy.
Things heated up as the score tied, then Cruz was ahead. It was 10 to 8, then 10 to 9 (Cruz). It was a cliffhanger, folks! The crowd was on its feet! Cruz needed one more basket! Kimmel pressed his defense, but Cruz broke to the outside and took a shot…IT'S GOOD!
Ted Cruz won the Blobfish Basketball Classic! No more boos were heard as the arena erupted, confetti was fired, and Kimmel looked astonished. It took almost two hours, but Ted Cruz made the oddsmakers drop their cigars.
The real winners in this tournament were the charities. Generation One in the Third Ward received $30,000 and Texas Children's Hospital received $10,000.
When complimented on his winning shot from the outside, Cruz said, "Next time I'll try to open my eyes." Rematch, anyone?
President Trump visited Houston today (May 31, 2018) to speak to the families and community leaders affected by the shooting at Santa Fe High School on May 20, 2018. He also attended fundraisers and, as of this publishing, is en route to Dallas for a brief appearance at an undisclosed event.
Videos courtesy of Chris Daigle, a regular contributor to The Grapevine Source. He may be contacted at blue69@att.net. Read his articles HERE.
The Harris County Toll Road Authority (HCTRA) plans a total closure of the Sam Houston Tollway Ship Channel Bridge the weekend of Friday, Jan.8 – Monday, Jan. 11 to convert the bridge to all-electronic tolling. When the bridge reopens, cash toll payment will no longer be accepted in the lanes. Drivers will need an EZ TAG or other type of interoperable toll tag on their vehicle to drive across the bridge and avoid a toll violation.
During the closure, construction crews will remove all toll booths, coin machines and demolish the plaza canopy. The changes will improve traffic flow by allowing drivers to cross the bridge without stopping to pay or having to merge with traffic that has stopped to pay at the toll booths.
Northbound traffic will be required to exit the Sam Houston Tollway at Pasadena/Red Bluff Road. As an alternate, northbound drivers can access SH-225 westbound to IH-610 and eastbound to SH 146.
Southbound traffic will be required to exit at Jacinto Port. Southbound traffic on the tollway will have access to the direct connectors to IH-10 westbound to IH-610 and to IH-10 eastbound through Channelview. All closures are subject to change due to inclement weather or emergencies.
Additionally, the IH 10 main lanes will be closed eastbound and westbound from Magnolia to Beltway 8 East beginning Friday, January 8 at 10 p.m. through Saturday, January 9 at noon. However, the IH 10 frontage road will remain open.
HCTRA has coordinated with Precinct 2 and other agencies to ensure that drivers will have alternate routes during the bridge closure.
The Lynchburg Ferry will operate extended hours from 9:30 a.m. – 8:00 p.m. on Saturday, January 9 and Sunday, January 10. The Washburn Tunnel will maintain its normal hours of operation. Multi-axle vehicles, including 18 wheelers are prohibited from using the Washburn Tunnel.
EZ TAG-only tolling improves safety, reduces congestion and increases operational efficiency. Between 2011 and 2015, transactions at the Ship Channel Bridge increased by more than 40 percent. EZ TAG traffic at the toll plaza currently exceeds available capacity during peak travel times, and toll transactions are projected to grow another 15 percent by 2017. Cash users will save money by switching to EZ TAG. The current cash rate is $2.00 at the SCB plaza and $1.50 for customers will a toll tag.
Drivers without an EZ TAG can set up an account online using a major credit/debit card or a bank account or visit one of HCTRA's EZ TAG stores.
Additionally, HCTRA has partnered with BancPass, an innovator in toll payment solutions, to develop a new, cash-reloadable type of EZ TAG account. For cash-preferred customers who don't want to provide a credit card for automatic billing (required for a traditional EZ TAG account with HCTRA), the new EZ TAG powered by BancPass lets users pay cash, and pay-as-you-go.
Toll collectors currently assigned to the Sam Houston Tollway Ship Channel Bridge Plaza will be transferred to available jobs at other plazas. At this time, HCTRA does not foresee a need to eliminate employment positions.
The Harris County Toll Road Authority does not receive local, state or federal tax money. HCTRA is an Enterprise Fund of Harris County and relies on revenue from users to fund operations, maintenance, debt service and future projects. HCTRA operates 126 miles including the Sam Houston Tollway, Tomball Tollway, Hardy Toll Road, Westpark Tollway, Katy Managed Lanes and the Ship Channel Bridge.
This weekend, expect some major delays around town. It's the first weekend many TxDOT crews are back on the roads after the holidays.
First, I-10 is going to be shut down in both directions at I-45 right in the heart of downtown Houston. The eastbound lanes from the Katy or Galleria area will be closed from 8pm this evening until 5am on Monday morning. If you're heading westbound from Baytown, your lanes will be blocked on Saturday from 6am to 6pm.
Astros Hall of Fame broadcaster Milo Hamilton passed away this morning in Houston. He was 88 years old.
"During his 60 years covering our game, Milo became one of the National Pastime's most distinguished announcers, serving seven different Major League Clubs. He chronicled some of our game's most historic moments during the era of Hank Aaron, Stan Musial and Ernie Banks. As 'The Voice of the Astros' since 1985, he ushered into the homes of fans Houston's first World Series appearance, the Hall of Fame careers of Nolan Ryan and Craig Biggio, and countless other memories.
In 1992, Hamilton received the broadcasting industry's highest honor, receiving the Ford C. Frick Award from the National Baseball Hall of Fame. Overall, he was inducted in to six Halls of Fame during his illustrious career. In 2009, in honor of his 25th season in Houston, a street outside Minute Maid Park was renamed Milo Hamilton Way by the City of Houston. Later that year, Hamilton was named "King of Baseball" by Minor League Baseball at the Annual MLB Winter Meetings.
Outside the broadcast booth, Hamilton became known for his fine work as a master of ceremonies at Astros-related events and celebrations, including several pregame, player retirement ceremonies. He also served as the host of the Astros Opening Day ceremonies each year, even taking part in the 2015 Opening Day festivities in a reduced role.
For many years, Hamilton also served as the host of the Astros long-running, offseason radio talk show, Astroline, which he hosted up until 2014. Hamilton was also a staple on the Astros Winter Caravan each season, entertaining fans at dozens of locations, with stops as far as Corpus Christi.