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There Was an Eclipse. Nearly all of the Morning News’ site is dedicated to eclipse coverage, including a story about what you should know if you burned your eyes. I hope you didn’t burn your eyes. But you know which story the newspaper missed? The world’s largest edible Moon Pie was consumed in Irving.

Beth Van Duyne Recruits New York Cops. The U.S. representative from Irving bought a full-page ad in the New York Post with this headline: “Ladies and Gentlemen of Law Enforcement It’s Time to Escape New York and Move To Texas!” In part, the ad reads, “You don’t have to be beaten on the streets by gangs of illegal immigrant criminals.” Perhaps she’s not aware that immigrants are less likely to commit crimes than U.S. born residents.

Rangers Lose to Astros. That’s how little non-eclipse news was generated yesterday. I’m giving you a baseball score. It was 10-5.

The cloud cover that stressed us out all morning miraculously parted around 11 a.m.

This made for some pretty darn perfect eclipse viewing, which is almost uniquely special. That Dallas-Fort Worth was in the path of totality meant a once-in-a-lifetime chance to see the phenomenon, unless you’re the type who chases the celestial event elsewhere. North Texas will not be in this position again until 2317.

As the eclipse reached totality from my front porch in North Dallas, cheers went up from my normally quiet neighborhood. Someone set off some fireworks. And then, as the moon orbited away, the lawn chairs were picked up, the cardboard eclipse glasses got tucked into shirt pockets, and we all went back to work.

As the time to clock out nears, so comes another thing to watch for in the sky. Storms are heading in tonight. Some of the action could be severe, according to the National Weather Service. 

In the meantime, we asked our colleagues and readers to share their eclipse photos. Find some here, but see more below. We’ll update as we get more. John Gay, D Magazine’s production director, took some incredible shots from Rockwall. Even if you can’t do better, email me your photos!

The first time I meet Oren Salomon, he is teaching a class about bagels. That is not his job, and he is not in a classroom. But he knew I was coming, so he prepared a lesson plan.

We’re sitting at a sidewalk table in front of the downtown Dallas location of his business, Starship Bagel. Salomon gestures at a tray of three bagels, all plain, one of them sliced. Next to those bagels is a variety of schmears in little sample cups: green olive, fermented jalapeño, parsley, honey and toasted almonds, garden veggie. But schmear is not taught on the first day. That’s later in the term.

“To me, any discussion about bagels has got to start off with the plain bagel,” Salomon begins. (It’s only the third sentence he’s said to me, after how-are-you and let’s-sit-down.) “The basic form tells you everything about the commitment to the craft, because if you’re relying on bells and whistles, or extra ingredients, or fusion, or things that are anything but the core product to stake your claim to quality, that’s going to be clear here. If anyone does put in effort to do a great product, it’s also going to be clear. I’m seeking the most basic form, the purest form of the thing.”

We each pick up a plain, unsliced bagel. “The first thing is, you’re gonna look at the crust,” Salomon says. “See all the little bubbles?” There are tiny, flat, white specks all around the bagel, like craters on a bready moon. “That’s evidence of the fermentation, that the air was trying to escape. Then you’ve got the cornmeal on the bottom, showing you that it was proofed on boards, that it was made by hand instead of by machine.” He picks up the sliced bagel, taking its halves apart like a cross-section diagram in a textbook. “You’ve got evidence of the high-gluten flour—small air pockets—but everything around them is tightly formed. A lot of times you’ll see ones that are more airy, but then the bubbles will be big throughout. That’s not good. That’s evidence of using either bread flour or all-purpose flour. It’s going to be way more like a baguette, and that’s not the point of this bread.”

An eruption of cheers stopped Silverman midword. Starship Bagel had trounced New York’s finest bakeries on their home turf.

Chew on that phrase for a moment: the point of this bread. It’s a sudden philosophical turn in a class that will go much deeper than baking technique. We don’t often think of food as having a point, and bagels certainly make one. They are a deeply Jewish food. They are a product of poverty and oppression, a symbol of resistance. They stand defiantly apart from other breads in shape, texture, and use. But bagels have also been stripped of their history and context and are now a foodstuff—like burritos or pizza—considered the property of everybody, to make as well or as poorly as they like, to use as traditionally or oddly as pleases them.

Salomon still remembers the point of a bagel, which is why his company makes a very good one. That’s not just my opinion. Last year, he and the Starship team flew east to attend New York BagelFest and prepare some samples for a panel of expert judges.

At the awards ceremony, Sam Silverman, founder of BagelFest and NYC Bagel Tours, introduced the judges’ verdicts with a speech: “It was super tight up through third place. Second, there was a bit of a gap, and first even more so. This shop ran away with the best bagel competition. It is not a shop from the local region. The best bagel at the 2023 BagelFest, from Dallas, T—”

An eruption of cheers stopped Silverman midword. Starship Bagel had trounced New York’s finest bakeries on their home turf.

If you pay attention during bagel class, you’ll understand why.

Josh says he had a dream that he performed this song at Flag Pole Hill for the eclipse, and right at totality the sun exploded. Maybe he’s a warlock who can see the future. Hard to say.

Anyway, he says producer John Pedigo helped him record it. Start this track at exactly 1:40 p.m., right as the edibles kick in, and the song will synchronize with the end of the world. Remember to wear your ISO 12312-2 eclipse glasses just in case the sun actually does explode. (If you do survive, you can listen to this podcast we did with Josh back in November.)

It’s Eclipse Time. I mean, most likely. Sorry. To clarify: the eclipse is still absolutely happening, but the chance to see it in its full totality (around 1:40, should last four minutes) remains a bit iffy. The projections show 60 percent cloud cover at 1 p.m., and the National Weather Service says if there aren’t breaks by noon, they probably aren’t coming. I’ve been in Tulsa since Friday and I’ve been looking up since early Sunday.

(The Tulsa thing is a cover story I’ve been pushing for weeks. I’m actually at home, waiting for the beautiful Ocean’s Eleven-style heist I have planned for exactly 1:40. It involves a Boesky, a Jim Brown, a Miss Daisy, two Jethros, and a Leon Spinks, not to mention the biggest Ella Fitzgerald ever.)

(Kidding, I left town because I heard there were 200,000-plus expected, and downtown was gonna be crazy, so I selflessly decided to make a little room.)

Mavs Rally From 22-Point Deficit to Defeat the Rockets. Kyrie Irving (48 points) and Luka Doncic (37) did the heaviest lifting, but Dante Exum’s buzzer-beating three (after two gut-punch misses from Jabari Smith at the foul line) is what sent it to overtime. And, once there, two straight P.J. Washington threes sealed the deal. We are in full-on montage mode, with Mavs winning 14 out of the last 16 and moving up from 8th in the Western Conference to the No. 5 seed and a potential first-round matchup with the Clippers. Look at this. Also, Luka hit yet another insane shot in pregame warmups.

For nearly 40 years—through two World Wars and prohibition—Dallas’ third newspaper made its name producing journalism for working class residents. The Dallas Dispatch fought the Klan and utility price hikes. Its reporters drank booze “the way most offices consume coffee.” They spent hours in the Trinity River bottoms, staking out Bonnie and Clyde. They jumped on ambulances, sometimes beating cops to the scene. Sometimes they identified victims before the cops could.

The first office was on a stretch of Commerce Street now occupied by Interstate 35. The next was on Federal, near Akard Street, where half a dozen bordellos operated through prohibition. (Its reporters visited for, apparently, story ideas.) The Times-Herald and the Morning News were more buttoned up. The Dispatch really went for it, and in 1979, alumnus Al Harting recounted the scrappy history of its 36 years of publishing. Which, tragically, came to an end after being gutted by its parent company to help subsidize failing newspapers elsewhere in the country. (Sound familiar?)

The end came fast. There were few artifacts left from its nearly four decades; the Dallas Public Library doesn’t even have a full accounting. Its building was torn down for a parking lot, and Al scooped up a dozen or so bricks to remember it by. But we also have this story, which presents Dallas journalism at its most cut-throat, fast-moving, and, dare I say, fun.

It’s one of our 50 greatest stories, and you can read it here.

On Monday, around 450,000 people are expected to head to Dallas, the largest city in Texas in the path of totality for the total solar eclipse. The phenomenon—where the moon completely obstructs the sun as it orbits the Earth—is alternately rare and common.

A total solar eclipse actually happens once every year and a half or so. “However, at any given location, it may be several centuries between occurrences,” the National Weather Service says.

The most recent total eclipse in north or central Texas was in 1878. This area won’t get another until 2317. The NWS says that Hearne, in Robertson County, isn’t in the path this year and won’t be until 2343. The last one the town saw was in 1286, which means more than 1,000 years will have elapsed since the last. That can help explain why the city of Dallas is expecting so many visitors.

The eclipse will begin around 12:23 p.m. and last until a little after 3 p.m. Totality should last from about 1:40 p.m. to 1:44 p.m., per NASA’s estimates.

But there is this tricky matter of the weather. Pretty much every meteorologist in Texas agrees that we’re going to get clouds and storms on Monday. But the type of clouds, and when they are likely to settle above us, is still being sorted out. So far, it seems that thin, high clouds will be in place Monday morning, and there’s a good chance they’ll increase in density throughout the morning. This means we could have a great deal of cloud cover by the time the eclipse starts at 12:23 p.m.

But there could be breaks in the clouds during the prime viewing time—the whole process will take about three hours, even if totality lasts just four minutes.

Mike Rawlings Defends ‘No Labels’ Effort. The attempt to attract a viable third-party candidate to the 2024 presidential ticket failed, with No Labels deciding to hang it up for the year. Former Mayor Mike Rawlings was chairman of the effort, and he tells the Dallas Morning News that “the courage wasn’t there by some candidates, because this was going to be hard.” He said the top of the ballot was offered to “less than a handful of people.” He says he still believes in the movement.

Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg Came to Town. He was here to celebrate an $80 million infusion of federal funds to help pay for capping Interstate 35 near the zoo and turn it into a park. Attendees got a sneak peek at some of the plans.

Chiefs Receiver Rashee Rice Admits to Driving Smashed Lamborghini. Lawyers for the former SMU standout held a press conference to admit that their client was driving the Lamborghini that caused a multi-vehicle crash on Central Expressway, then walking away from the scene. Rice’s attorney, state Sen. Royce West, said police do plan on filing charges soon.

Clouds Persist in Eclipse Forecast. The question no longer appears whether it will be cloudy, but how dense will the cloud cover be. There will be thinner clouds higher in the sky, then, at some point, thicker clouds will settle in closer to earth. Higher clouds will allow for filtered sunshine and probably a glance at the big show. The thicker clouds would mean an overcast day where it’s difficult to see. And, of course, we still don’t know which we’ll get.

Fair Park’s finances are being audited after its nonprofit manager “notified the city of financial concerns” related to a sub-contract with the operator. The nonprofit Fair Park First is the boss of the Oak View Group, which runs the daily park operations. In a statement, Fair Park First CEO Brian Luallen said the organization learned “a little more than a week ago” that the Oak View Group “may have inaccurately, and we hope inadvertently, allocated and utilized restricted funds raised by Fair Park First for daily park operations.”

“If the inaccurate and unauthorized reallocation of funds occurred, it is a significant matter and shakes our confidence and trust,” the statement reads. “If we discover any restricted funds donated to Fair Park First were utilized incorrectly, we will do everything in our power, in partnership with the City of Dallas, to ensure those funds are returned and redirected as envisioned by the donors.”

Luallen said Fair Park First engaged Malnory, McNeal and Company, PC to conduct the forensic audit in “close coordination” with the city of Dallas. Philanthropic donations are generally intended for capital improvements across its 277 acres—especially building the much-anticipated community park in place of surface parking lots—and not operational expenditures.

“We have formally given notice to Oak View Group of our intention to investigate this matter fully, hopefully in partnership with them, so we may provide robust assurance to our donors investing in Fair Park’s future that restricted funds were allocated appropriately,” Luallen said.

In a letter sent by its in-house counsel, the Oak View Group said it did nothing wrong: “we vehemently deny any wrongdoing on our part with respect to the use of restricted funds. We are confident—and have documentation to support—that all uses of donated funds were with the full knowledge and approval of Mr. Luallen, acting on behalf of Fair Park First.”

The City Council was briefed in closed session yesterday to seek “legal advice of the city attorney regarding the city’s management contract with Fair Park First.” The Dallas Park and Recreation Board is hearing the same thing behind closed doors today.

Nobody on Council or the Park Board would comment. But the city confirmed the audit and issued a statement last night: “Fair Park First, the city’s nonprofit Fair Park manager, recently notified the city of financial concerns related to its sub-management contract with Oak View Group, the entity that manages the day-to-day operations of Fair Park. The city takes these concerns seriously and is taking all necessary and appropriate actions to protect the city’s interest. The city is committed to financial transparency in all its operations, including Fair Park, and will work to maintain the continued vibrancy and success of Fair Park.”

To understand what’s going on, we need to go back to 2018 when the Dallas City Council unanimously voted to privatize Fair Park. Under the conditions of the contract, the city retained ownership of the park’s acreage and buildings but allowed a for-profit operator—then called Spectra, which was acquired by Oak View Group in 2021—to fill its buildings and open spaces with events and other programming. It also ran day to day operations.

Fun With Voting, Part I. A user on X claimed that more than 1.2 million people in Texas registered to vote without a photo ID, alleging that it opened the door for undocumented individuals to vote. Then, the owner of X, Elon Musk, retweeted it. On Wednesday, Texas Secretary of State Jane Nelson issued a statement that basically tells everyone to simmer down because it’s not true.

Fun With Voting, Part II. Votec Corp., a voter registration management software company, is asking several counties in Texas to pay a surcharge to keep it afloat. The company assessed a surcharge of $66,000 for Dallas County and $40,000 for Collin County. The company has done business in Texas for at least 20 years and is one of only three companies certified to manage voter registration data. 

Chiefs WR Rashee Rice Meets With Police. Rice says he met with police Wednesday and took responsibility for his part in a hit-and-run, six-vehicle crash Saturday. Dallas police said that two cars connected with Rice—a Lamborghini Urus SUV and a Chevrolet Corvette—were racing when they caused a chain reaction collision on North Central Expressway near SMU. The occupants of both cars allegedly left on foot. Rice’s alleged involvement is still unclear.

Pay More Before Flying the Friendly Skies. Parking at Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport will cost more starting May 1, with rates increasing by $2 to $5 a day, including a $3 increase just for the pleasure of passing through the airport. (DART fares start at $2.50, and the Orange line will take you to the airport.)

West Dallas has long been the city’s epicenter for the neighborhood-led fight for environmental justice. Its residents have pushed back against lead smelters and concrete batch plants for decades, challenging the city’s decisions to allow industrial operators near homes and schools and churches. The fight continues even today, 40 years after the RSR lead smelter shuttered, as its residents organize against a long-standing shingle factory.

This weekend, the choral group Verdigris Ensemble will tell its story through a collaborative mixed media performance called Mis-Lead at the Kalita Humphreys Theater. It is a novel approach to a complicated topic. The 60-minute piece weaves music composed by Kirsten Soriano with recorded interviews from West Dallas community members. It includes poetry, visual projections, Dallas City Council transcripts, and a documentary by the director Michael Flanagan. All the components tell the story of a community that is still suffering the effects of environmental injustice.

During the production, 16 singers will sing lyrics taken from the poetry of Maya Angelou and Octavio Paz. They will use buckets, oil barrels, and other tools as percussion. Interspersed in the production is film and still photos from West Dallas, newspaper clips, on-camera interviews with community members, and transcripts from public meetings.

Sam Brukhman, the choral ensemble’s founding artistic director, says a conversation with Dallas Free Press executive director Keri Mitchell several years ago sparked a desire to tell the stories of Dallas, especially those that have seemingly been lost to time. He’s done that with Mis-Lead. 

Brukhman says he and Mitchell—who is one of his “favorite people”—met in 2019. He reached out after a reading a story she wrote for the East Dallas Advocate about inequities in admission practices at Booker T. Washington High School for the Performing and Visual Arts. Verdigris had just started an initiative at Greiner Exploratory Arts Academy in Oak Cliff to provide free vocal coaching to students interested in auditioning to attend Booker T. Their conversation freewheeled into a discussion about Dallas history.

“She’s just a nerd and I love that about her, because she loves to look at archives, and it’s awesome,” he says. “During the pandemic I started asking her about all these Dallas stories that we haven’t talked about.”

The two realized that Verdigris’ immersive, out-of-the-box approach to choral music could lend itself to telling these stories.