Austin Tops in Film, TV Production

Austin leads all Texas cities in film and television total production budgets for the fifth consecutive year, accounting for 86 percent of total film budgets in the Lone Star State, a two percent increase over last year. Read More

Pictured at right: In "Man of the House", one of the movies filmed in Austin in 2004, Tommy Lee Jones stars as a Texas Ranger charged with protecting UT cheerleaders who witnessed a murder. Photo credit: Sony Pictures

Legislative Session Brings Big Bucks to Austin

The 79th Texas Legislature convenes January 11, bringing an influx of politicos and money to the Capital City. Read More

Austin CVB Names New Board of Directors

The Austin Convention and Visitors Bureau’s Board of Directors holds its first meeting of the year on February 28. The board, representing various business, environmental, cultural and hospitality organizations, serves as the governing body of the Bureau. Read More


LBJ Museum Trips Back to the 60s

On February 7, 1964, the course of America’s cultural history changed forever when The Beatles appeared on The Ed Sullivan Show to spark a revolution in pop culture. "The Signs of the Times: Life in the Swingin' Sixties" exhibit at the LBJ Library and Museum explores the radical changes of a generation, from the British Invasion and Motown to hippies and go-go dancers and the consumerism that inundated pop art. Highlights include copies of Andy Warhol’s “Marilyn” silk screens, pop art from artists such as Roy Lichtenstein and Jasper Johns, sequined “butterfly” dresses worn by The Supremes, a 1967 hippie Volkswagen bus and psychedelic concert posters for Austin’s Vulcan Gas Company, an underground venue that featured such counter-culture musicians as Janis Joplin. The exhibit runs until August 28, and admission is free.
CVB Receives Readers Choice Award
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Noteworthy
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The Toast of Texas

Golf for Women
(January/February 2005)
“Austin is the un-Texas. It looks like Texas, with about 300 days of sunshine a year and acres of rich, wide-open land. The locals wear cowboy boots and speak with a slow molasses drawl. The University of Texas at Austin is set right in the heart of town. In Austin, football is religion, shooting is sport, and golf is somewhere in between… The city boasts one of the country’s hippest music scenes, an indie movie scene, rollicking bars and trendy restaurants and a storied history.”


Molly Ivins’ Austin

More
(December 2004/January 2005)
“The State Capitol, a gorgeous rose-granite building, is actually taller than the one in D.C. There are also some treasures—such as the world’s first photograph—at the Harry Ransom Center, an archive and museum. And for everything from Fifties collectibles to Southwestern art, spend a day on South Congress Avenue. If you’re around at dusk, you might even catch the nightly migration of Mexican free-tail bats that fly out from under Congress Avenue Bridge.”


A City With (Almost) No Limits

New Orleans Home & Life
(November 2004)
“For an easy getaway to the best of all worlds, consider a weekend jaunt to Austin, Texas… Since the mid-1970’s Austin has enjoyed deserved renown as a creative crucible of American music—a town where the boundaries between genres dissolve into innovative hybrids, as personified by the likes of Willie Nelson. This organic process continues to evolve today, as evidenced by Austin’s wealth of talent and broad selection of music—blues, R&B, rock, country, jazz, Tex-Mex, and variants of all the above—performed nightly.”


 

Alamo Drafthouse Cinemas

Since opening eight years ago, the Alamo Drafthouse has attracted a faithful following of movie buffs who enjoy the cinema’s screenings of indie and cult films, theme nights, celebrity appearances and the chance to dine and watch a flick. The Alamo’s uniqueness translates well for a meeting planner intent on giving clients a one-of-a-kind experience. Read More
 
January 8-9
Junior Volleyball Association of Austin
2005 Tour of Texas
Austin Convention Center
www.austinjuniors.com
Est. Attendance 10,000
 
 
January 8-9
Texas Weddings, LTD
Wedding Guide Bridal Extravaganza
Palmer Events Center
www.austinweddings.com
Est. Attendance 3,500
 
 
January 13-17
Town Lake Productions, Inc.
2005 TLP Austin Boat and Fishing Show
Austin Convention Center
www.austinboatshow.com
Est. Attendance 17,000
 
 
January 21-23
Show Technology
2005 Spring House & Garden Show
Austin Convention Center
www.showtechnology.com
Est. Attendance 25,000
 
 
January 21-23
Sundown Promotions
2005 Custom Car & Hot Rod Show
Palmer Events Center
www.austincarshow.com
Est. Attendance 5,000
 
 
January 24-26
Geo-Frontiers 2005 Annual Conference
Hilton Austin
www.asce.org/conferences/geofrontiers05
Est. Attendance 2,200
 
 
January 31-February 1
Texas Association of School Administrators
2005 TASA Education Expo
Austin Convention Center
www.tasanet.org
Est. Attendance 5,000
 
 
January 31-February 3
Government Technology Conference
2005 GTC Southwest
Austin Convention Center
www.govtech.net/gtc
Est. Attendance 12,000