There are tons of great events happening this week in the RGV. Reporters Daisy Martinez and Melissa McEver talked about a few of them, including the Lil Flip concert and a local film fest, in this week’s Weekend Edition, filmed at the Valley Morning Star offices in Harlingen. Click the links below to learn more about items mentioned this week, and don’t forget to catch the three-minute video here.

Music:
- Lil Flip
Chart-topping Houston rapper Lil Flip will play the Mercedes livestock show grounds on Saturday, Dec. 1. Other activities at the grounds, including a car show, bikini contest, other musical acts and a toy drive, will begin at 3 p.m. Click here for more info and check out our story on opening act Go Lightly Project.

- Greeley Estates
Don’tGetEmo presents Arizona hardcore band Greeley Estates with Confide and The Requested this Friday at STC. Get all the info you need here and stream some music at GE’s MySpace page.

- Three Days Grace with Miser and Neverset
Check out our interview with Three Days Grace drummer Neil Sanderson and click here for more info on the Dec. 5 show at Graham Central Station.

Art Events:
- Christmas Extravaganza
Click here to learn more about the holiday exhibits opening tonight at the Harlingen Arts & Heritage Museum

- WILD’s Original Film Contest
Indie film lovers can ditch the megaplexes and catch locally-produced movies this Friday at South Texas College. Learn more here.

Movie(s):
- ‘Awake’
Watch Jessica Alba and Hayden Christensen try to “act” in the trailer for this new thriller about a man who suffers “anesthetic awareness.” Get local movie showtimes here.

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Photos courtesy Sony Music and MGM

Santa Claus and Christmas cheer are popping up all over this week in the Rio Grande Valley. Last night, ol’ Saint Nick showed up in a pick-up truck (conforming to South Texas standards) to greet local kids at Valley Baptist Medical Center in Harlingen at the “Lights for Life” event. Valley Morning Star staffer Theresa Najera shot that cute pic to the right. Click here for another.

There’s more holiday fun coming up this week. Harlingen’s Arts and Heritage Museum will debut its Christmas Tree and Wreath exhibit on Thursday during a Christmas Extravaganza. Thursday also marks the Jackson Street Holiday Rendevous. The downtown Harlingen event will feature food, beverages, music and merchandise provided by local shops. The historic Brownsville Museum will hold its annual Nacimientos del Mundo display on Friday, featuring nacimientos from all over the world.

Check our local events calendar for more events. We’re adding them every day.

The rock band Hawthorne Heights was slated to play Dec. 4 at Graham Central Station in Pharr, another DontGetEmo concert, but reports are coming in that guitarist Casey Calvert has died. This was posted Nov. 24 on the band’s Web site:

Today is probably the worst day ever. Its with our deepest regrets that we have to write this. Casey Calvert passed away in his sleep last night. We found out this afternoon before sound-check. We’ve spent the entire day trying to come to grips with this and figure out as much as possible. At this time we’re not sure what exactly happened. Just last night he was joking around with everyone before he went to bed. We can say with absolute certainty that he was not doing anything illegal. Please, out of respect to Casey and his family, don’t contribute or succumb to any gossip you may hear. We don’t want his memory to be tainted in the least. Casey was our best friend. He was quirky and awesome and there will truly be no others like him! His loss is unexplainable. As soon as we know more we will let you know.

Sincerely,

Hawthorne Heights

Eron, JT, Micah and Matt

DontGetEmo posted this response via a MySpace bulletin:

We’re waiting for an official response from Hawthorne Heights management with respect to the tour date confirmed for Tuesday December 4th at Graham Central Station. We will post a bulletin when we have more information about this matter. Our thoughts and prayers are with Hawthorne Heights and the family of Casey Calvert.

Sincerely,

Dontgetemo Concerts

Our sincerest sympathies go out to the band and Casey Calvert’s friends and family. Fans are posting supportive wishes on the band’s official MySpace page.

Happy Thanksgiving … Daisy Martinez and I hosted this week’s “The V Cast: Weekend Edition” while grabbing a cup of coffee in Harlingen. Watch the video to learn about some of the great entertainment events coming to the Rio Grande Valley this week.

If you already watched the video you know that our co-host was The Wind. The Wind had a lot to say, and he stepped over a few of my lines this week. Maybe we’ll cut him out next week.

Check the notes and links below to find out more about items mentioned in this week’s episode. Check back for a new Weekend Edition and more notes every Thursday …

Music:
- Corry Morrow
The up-and-coming country music performer hits Harlingen’s Wild Bill’s on Friday.

- Marky Ramone
The former Ramones drummer plays Brownsville on Saturday and McAllen on Sunday. He’s backed by members of The Queers and local acts, including Superzero, are also slated to perform.

- Alejandro Sanz
The Latin pop star plays Dodge Arena on Thursday.

Art:
- 37th International Student Art Show
The annual show at the Brownsville Museum of Fine Art is always worth a look.

Movies:
- ‘August Rush’
We forgot to mention this saccharine-soaked drama starring Freddy Highmore, Jonathan Rhys-Myers and Keri Russell. Read a review here.

- Get local movie showtimes for ‘This Christmas,’ ‘The Mist,’ ‘Hitman,’ Enchanted’ and ‘No Country for Old Men.’

Thursday is Thanksgiving and the RGV is ready to kick off its holiday events season.

Friday marks the annual Lighting of the Island. The event starts at 6 p.m. at the Visitors Center at 600 Padre Blvd. The free event will feature caroling, hot coffee and chocolate, cake, cookies and ol’ Santa Claus.

The Harlingen Museum Association will host a Christmas Extravaganza on Thursday, Nov. 29 at the Arts and Heritage Museum. The event will feature music and will kick off the museum’s Christmas Tree exhibit.

There’s a lot more to come this holiday season. Keep an eye out for events in your town.

I caught The Misfits on Monday night with about 400 other punk rock fans at McAllen’s Cine El Rey, and my ears are still ringing. You can read an official review of the show here. We also have a photo gallery of the concert and a video featuring local fans.

I must admit that I’m not a big Misfits fan. I don’t own any of their music and I would never consider tattooing their logo on any part of my body. I had interviewed former front man Michale Graves a few times and he was a nice fellow, and I knew a bit about the band’s influential history. So, I figured it would be a fun show, and I was not disappointed. I had a good time, but I wasn’t as into the music as this guy …

That’s the kind of reaction The Misfits got all night. People loved them. Everyone knew every word to every song. I never knew the RGV was full of so many punk rawk fans. Everyone was screaming, dancing and the crowd-surfers never stopped (I stopped counting at 12). The good people from Chapa’s Bar the Pit Productions and Cine El Rey delivered a great early X-mas gift to Valley music lovers by bringing these guys down.

Opening bands Threat of Tomorrow, the Livends and Superzero