Breaking news: Here is a blog about “Tree of Life”.  Part of the movie was filmed here in Smithville, Texas, about 10 blocks from our Bed and Breakfast.  Most of Smithville will be in Austin to see the movie the first week it is out.  Read below about “Tree of Life” at the Cannes Film Festival.  I wish I had been there!  For more information on the Katy House Bed and Breakfast visit http://www.katyhouse.com/ or call (512) 237-4262.

Austin360 blogs

Director Malick wins Palme d’Or at Cannes for ‘Tree of Life’

By Charles Ealy | Sunday, May 22, 2011, 01:09 PM

CANNES, France — Austin director Terrence Malick  became the first Texan ever to win the top prize, the Palme d’Or, at the Cannes Film Festival on Sunday, for his ambitious, cosmic “The Tree of Life.”

The movie centers on a family in 1950s Waco, includes about a 20-minute segment that focuses on the birth of the universe and has been called a Texan “2001,” a reference to Stanley Kubrick’s “2001: A Space Odyssey.”

Malick, who does not make public appearances, did not show up at the Palais to accept the award, but two of his producers did. “He remains notoriously, infamously shy but quite humble,” said producer Bill Pohlad.

When the movie premiered Monday, it received a mixed reaction from the press, but support for the film, which was made in Smithville and Austin, has been growing in recent days. It stars Brad Pitt, Jessica Chastain and Sean Penn.

Here is a movie review about Doonby, filmed here in Smithville, last spring. And will be released in September 2011.  The crew and actors were a great group.  It was fun having them film in our little town. Some of them stayed at our Bed and Breakfast.

Movie Review: Doonby

by Bill Sardi

Directed By: Peter Mackenzie

Produced By: Mike Mackenzie, Peter Mackenzie, Mark Joseph, Tommy G. Warren,
Dawn Krantz, Antonio Quintos

Starring: John Schneider, Jenn Gotzon, Robert Davi, Jennifer O’Neill, Joe Estevez,
Will Wallace and Ernie Hudson

Most of us look forward to a night at the movies to enjoy a comedy, a thriller, or even an on-screen romance. But would we be enticed to go to a movie that had a serious meaning to it?

The tag line to the movie I’m talking about is: “Every story’s worth telling. Every life’s worth living.”

Hmm, sounds a little heavy for a night at the movies. But the meaning of the movie is held right up until its tearful end. So its meaning doesn’t get in the way of an action movie that will grip your insides. It jumps from one action scene to another as movie goers are left to ask just what the connection is between each spine-tingling scene. As much as you want to figure out the meaning of this movie, it won’t let you discover it till its emotional end.

There’s a shoot ‘em up robbery at a bar, and a just-in-the-moment of time plucking of a baby from the path of an oncoming truck, and a rescue of a damsel in distress from a knife-wielding stalker, thrown in with a doctor who is falsely accused of rape. And then there is a budding but immature romance that is woven from beginning to end.

Well then, you ask, is it a guy flick or a gal flick? Not telling.

To understand the movie, entitled Doonby, you have to understand its lead character,

Sam Doonby, played by John Schneider of Dukes of Hazard fame.

You will join the entire cast of the movie in trying to figure out just who Sam Doonby is.

They all want to know too. “Where’d you come from Doonby?” asks the town’s sheriff. He says a small town in Louisiana, where his girlfriend and her mother travel to find out what they can about this mystery man named Sam.

You get to see flashbacks in his life, which gives you a growing hint at his roots, his true identity. Yet every tidbit of information is never enough to let you know what you need to know about Sam.

This guy Doonby turns a sleepy Texas town into a whirlwind of events which somehow throw him into the center of each one.

And as the movie unfolds you are going to ask yourself, why is this saintly guy Doonby falling in love with the town’s floozy? But then again, why is angelic Sam working as a bar tender in Smithville, Texas?

And why doesn’t Sam Doonby become, just for a moment, a little bit human and succumb to the seductions of his lusty drink-mixing bar maid whom Sam discovers naked in his bed?

Sam Doonby has this mysterious diary which we never get a peek at, and with every event in the movie, he jots down another chapter. Laura, his spoiled girlfriend, played by Jenn Gotzon, whom he says he fell in love with the moment he spied her from a bus driving down the highway in her convertible sports car, is dying to get a look at that diary. At the movie’s very end, she finally snatches Sam’s diary. You’ll want to be there when Laura opens its cover and examines its pages.

May 14, 2011

For more information on Smithville, visit the Chamber web page.  www.smithvilletx.org

For more information on our Katy House Bed and Breakfast visit the web site. www.Katyhouse.com

This is a blog from http://bighollywood.breitbart.com.  Actor Robert Davi writes about Doonby. Doonby was filmed in Smithville, TX and we were honored to have Mr. Davi stay here at the Katy House Bed and Breakfast.

Exclusive Premiere: Trailer for John Schneider’s ‘Doonby’

by Robert Davi

Friends:            When I write it is usually out of a deep concern for our country and the world in which we live, and not to hawk a project except, perhaps, in those cases where entertainment and a cultural message can be married. This is one of those times. Also, the producer of the project, Mark Joseph, is one big pain in the butt and wouldn’t leave me alone until I did this. I know it comes from his passion for the project and he is a friend, so here’s the trailer for the new John Schneider film “Doonby“:

Doonby from Doonby the Movie on Vimeo.

I don’t have a major role in the film. I did my best to serve sensitive English director/writer Peter Mackenzie’s vision, as I always do when I take on a project. Speaking of the English, I confess I did watch the Royal Wedding and was moved. In this chaotic world a little romance and beauty is good for the soul. To see the crowds cheering was very emotional, but more importantly, it proved that a tradition for love and magic is what we all yearn for, as opposed to the latest celebrity rehab reality show. We yearn for the nobility of the human soul, the best it has to offer, not the lowest that we are barraged with continually on television and elsewhere. The poetry of life has given way to crude and destructive programming . But last week while watching the marriage of a beautiful young couple, two billion people dreamed.

One of my favorite films is “It’s a Wonderful Life.” When first released it was not received well because it was considered “Capracorn,” a derogatory term referring to the sentimental and heartfelt emotion that director Frank Capra infused in his work.  So of course the cynics panned it, but the public eventually discovered it and today it is considered a classic . The basic theme of Capra’s classic is that one life can make a difference, and here n lies the similarity to “Doonby. ” Only this time you have John Schneider in the Jimmy Stewart role.

How many of us may have imagined what things would be like if we did not exist – – what lives would be touched or not? I have not seen the finished film so cannot give you a full rundown, but from what I’ve been told it packs a wallop.

Yes, Mark told me so!

Anyway here’s the trailer, please watch and pass on. Thank you for your your indulgence.

–Robert Davi

1st Annual
Smithville Melodrama
Curses!

Playhouse Smithville

Show Dates: Fridays & Saturdays June 3 – 18, 2011

Evil villains and dashing heroes play tug of war over the heroine. Audience members boo and toss popcorn when the villain appears, ooh and aah when the heroine glides across the stage and cheer when the hero arrives. Who will win the day? Will the heroine meet her dastardly fate tied to the train tracks (of course not!)? Will the hero fail to arrive in time (of course not!)? Will the villain succeed with his heinous plot (welllll….)?

Join us for a fun trip through a melodrama with saltwater taffy and sasparilla on tap for all! Show Dates are Fridays & Saturdays, June 3-18, 2011 at 7:30pm.

For more information on the Meloddrama go to http://www.texasplaywright.com/LSOH%20page.html 

For info on lodging, visit our web site at http://www.katyhouse.com/ or call 512 237-4262

Smithville is a small town and a great place to visit.  Visit the Chamber page.

Here is a recap of the Smithville Area Chamber of Commerce Banquet held last Saturday, March 26, 2011. Those attending saw an excellent video on why film makers should film in Smithville. The video was filmed by Danny Cameron  and Miranda Smith Cameron. Click here to see the video: Film in Smithville on YouTube.  I (Sallie Blalock) have a very small part near the end.  We are excited that two of the films that filmed in Smithville will be shown in Austin at SXSW. The two are “Natural Selection” and “Five Time Champion.”  We were thrilled to have some of the production crew to stay with us at the Katy House Bed and Breakfast.

Look at the video and let me know what you think about our town!

This report on our Chamber Banquet is from Mika Spears: ” We hope you had a great time at the Annual Chamber Banquet this past Saturday evening.  Congratulations to our Organization of the Year (Smithville Police Association), our Business/Employer of the Year (Smithville I.S.D.), and our very surprised Citizen of the Year, David Herrington!  We also had top-notch entertainment provided by some of the guys on our Board of Directors to celebrate the War Memorial Splash Pad project.  As usual, Catering by Chabot did an excellent job with the meal.

 There was also a surprise in store for our very own Adena Lewis as she was named “Citizen of the Decade” by the City of Smithville, and the Chamber of Commerce was awarded “Organization of the Decade”.  As someone who sees Adena in action almost every day, I can attest to her efforts and dedication, and I was elated to see her work acknowledged publicly.  And as someone who is employed by the Chamber, I am more than honored to be part of the “Organization of the Decade”, and I can assure you all that we don’t plan to “let up” anytime.”

A  recipe that is a favorite here at the Katy House Bed and Breakfast is our Katy House Baked Eggs.  It’s the recipe guests want to try at home.

 We serve this dish with homemade toast, fresh fruit and our peppered bacon, plenty of orange juice and coffee.

Smithville, Texas,  512-237-4262/www.katyhouse.com

 Katy House Baked Eggs (we use one egg per person)-

 We will be glad to email you this recipe,  just email and request the Katy House Baked Eggs.

Email:  stay@KatyHouse.com

 For more recipes and information on our bed and breakfast click here and be on our mailing list.

Katy House Bed and Breakfast  (512) 237-4262   in Beautiful Smithville, Texas

Hometown of many movies: Hope Floats, Tree of Life, Doonby, Five Time Champion.

Explosion rocked Smithville

Thursday, February 3, 2011 | Denis McGinness, Smithville Times

Ceremony to commemorate dark day in history from 1911 

 Like tracks weaving through a rail yard, Smithville’s history is intertwined with the Missouri, Kansas & Texas Railroad, affectionately dubbed the Katy. On Tuesday, Feb. 8 at 2 p.m., at the Gazebo, a ceremony will be held to commemorate a dark day in that history known as “The Terrible Explosion at Smithville.” 

 The ceremony will take place 100 years to the day and almost to the minute that the disaster took place.  

The tragic event occurred when a boiler on one of the huge switch engines exploded from massive steam pressure at the large MK&T Railroad roundhouse facility on Wednesday, Feb. 8, 1911 at about 2:10 p.m. 

“I am unaware of any greater tragedy that has befallen this city,” said Bruce Blalock, railroad historian and a member of the James. H. Long Railroad Park and Museum board. 

  Dozens of Smithville residents can be seen taking in the scene of a boiler explosion on Feb. 8, 1911 that killed 10 men and injured several others. Pictured to the right, the remains of the switch engine after the boiler blast. Prior to the explosion, the engine had been located in the center of the picture between two locomotives. Bruce Blalock/Courtesy Photo 

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE – January 15, 2011

 Sallie Blalock (512) 237-4262
 
Katy House Bed and Breakfast CHOSEN AS BEST OF THE SOUTHWEST IN THE BEST OF BEDANDBREAKFAST.COM AWARDS

 Smithville, Texas – Katy House Bed and Breakfast in Smithville was selected as Best of the Southwest in the annual Best of BedandBreakfast.com Awards, 2010-2011. The Best of BedandBreakfast.com Awards are based upon a qualitative and quantitative review of the nearly 50,000 independent reviews submitted to BedandBreakfast.com, the leading online B&B directory and reservation network worldwide.
 
“BedandBreakfast.com surveys show that independent reviews are the most important factor when choosing a B&B. In fact, according to BedandBreakfast.com’s most recent survey, 96% of consumers consider reviews to be somewhere between important and essential when selecting a place to stay, and 12% will not make a reservation at a property without them. We’re delighted that inn-goers concur that Katy House is deserving of its accolades from travelers,” explained BedandBreakfast.com’s Sandy Soule, one of the most highly recognized authors and a spokeswoman for the B&B industry. “Clearly, Sallie and Bruce Blalock earned stellar reviews from inn-goers for its quality accommodations, breakfasts, amenities and wonderful hospitality and service,” commented Soule. 

“It’s a true honor to be chosen for a Best of BedandBreakfast.com award, and we thank our guests for the positive reviews that resulted in this award, stated Sallie Blalock, Katy House innkeeper. “It is gratifying that our guests took the time to share their comments about our hospitality, accommodations, breakfasts and attention to the details which set Katy House apart,” commented Blalock. Here’s an excerpt from one of our reviews:” I have rarely felt as relaxed as I did at Katy House Bed and Breakfast. Sallie and Bruce are the perfect hosts and Smithville is a blast to explore.”  1/17/2011

 
About the Katy House: Opened in 1994, in the beautiful old railroad town of Smithville, Texas. This historic home is decorated in American antiques and railroad memorabilia. All guest rooms are on the second floor. Each room offers a queen-sized bed with private bathroom, cable TV and wireless internet. Included are the spacious Texas Special Suite with a private balcony, the Katy Limited and the charming Bluebonnet Room. The Katy’s most private accommodations are separate from the main house: The Katy Tower with rocking chairs and balcony is located in a small building in the back yard. The Conductors’ Quarters also offers a sofa-sleeper to accommodate families and extra guests. The outside rooms are “Pet Friendly.” A delicious full country breakfast is served in the main dining room every morning. For more information, please call 1-(512) 237-4262 or www.KatyHouse.com

 
For a complete list of all winners, including regional and international Best of BedandBreakfast.com Award winners, please visit www.BedandBreakfast.com and click Winners 2010-2011.

Founded in 1995, BedandBreakfast.com is highly recommended by The New York Times, Real Simple, Forbes, Travel & Leisure, USA TODAY and many others. To learn about more than 11,000 other perfect choices for your next B&B getaway, visit BedandBreakfast.com, the leading online bed and breakfast directory and reservation network worldwide. A variety of search functions and extensive maps enable inn-goers to find the perfect B&B. Travelers can make reservations online, purchase The Getaway Gift Card from BedandBreakfast.com, welcomed at over 4,000 B&Bs in the U.S. and Canada, read up-to-date trip reports on The BedandBreakfast.com Blog, read and write independent reviews, and post questions on expert-hosted message boards.

BedandBreakfast.com is owned and operated by HomeAway, Inc., the worldwide leader in online vacation rentals, representing more than 475,000 paid vacation rental home listings across 120 countries.

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High resolution photos available upon request (include this if you have high-res photos)

Sallie Blalock
Katy House Bed and Breakfast
201 Ramona Street, Smithville
512) 237-4262
www.Katyhouse.com

Here is a great event coming up here in Smithville, Tx. 

Smithville Playhouse is featuring a romantic evening. You should plan to attend.

here is the link for buying tickets: http://www.texasplaywright.com/