The beginning of a beautiful friendship?

The Dallas Stars are set to reveal new uniforms on June 4, but Yahoo! Sports speculates that the team’s new logo has leaked early, via the wallpaper selections available in its iPhone app.

You can see for yourself, above, that the Stars may be ditching gold in favor of silver, which does (as Yahoo notes) make for a look that could result in a Pavlovian hankering for coffee.

Instead of Tall, Grande, or Venti, just ask for the Stanley?

It was with great disappointment that I received the news today that the national council of the Boy Scouts of America voted to change the membership standards that have guided the organization for over a century. It was my sincere hope that the executive leaders of the BSA would heed the call and the prayers of the scouting family throughout the country, the great majority of whom spoke with clarity and resolve in their opposition to the change. I am grieved and dismayed that the BSA has abandoned the 103-year legacy of its founder to prepare young people to make ethical and moral choices.

BSA has its roots in the international Scouting movement, which was founded in Britain by Robert Baden-Powell in 1907. In 1989, biographer Tim Jeal wrote of Baden-Powell’s extremely close friendship with a fellow army officer: “Available evidence points inexorably to the conclusion that Baden-Powell was a repressed homosexual.”

Last year, on the opinion pages of the New York Times, Brooke Allen wrote that this possibility (which has been disputed, since there is no evidence that Baden-Powell’s relationship with this friend was ever physical), shouldn’t necessarily weigh on BSA’s decision regarding the inclusion of homosexuals:

Were Baden-Powell himself to be consulted on the subject, he would no doubt be horrified by any mention of open homosexuality in the Scouting movement. His mother’s training had taught him that sex was dirty, and this was an opinion he did his best to impart to the boys — and girls — who took up scouting. (“A Scout is clean in thought, word, and deed,” after all.)

Still, Baden-Powell’s life is a poignant story that should be known. This man who gave so much to so many suffered from the forces of repression and taboo. It is unfortunate that the American branch of the movement he founded should perpetuate them.

With Hill’s departure, there’s one less member of the organization to carry on that tradition.

photo by Justin Cozart/Flickr

As Oak Cliff People notes, the Alamo Plaza sign that stood on Fort Worth Avenue, and in the way of Sylvan Thirty, will be incorporated into the new development, just not in the form that some proponents of its preservation had hoped.

The sign is going to be broken up into three pieces that will be placed on different portions of the site. Seems like a great solution. The sign can still serve as a creative reminder of a portion of the history of that patch of land, kind of like that “Park” sign at Main Street Garden downtown.

Sure it would’ve been cool for Sylvan Thirty to keep the sign where it is, and incorporate it into their plans there, as the Lucas B&B sign on Oak Lawn has been preserved, but it still seems as though it’ll be an asset for Sylvan Thirty.

Carona continues in his dogged way to press his case to whoever will listen. Like an Old Testament prophet, he’ll spell out the consequences of their mismanagement to his colleagues, even though they flee at the sight of him barreling down the halls of the state capitol. He knows a prophet is not honored in his own country or, in Carona’s case, in his own party. He knows the prophets of old were ridiculed, stoned, cut in half, and thrown into wells.

It doesn’t seem to bother him. Maybe it’s because he also knows those prophets of yore were right.

Contrast that with the Carona story in the current issue of Texas Monthly. Titled “Conflicts and Interests,” the piece by Jay Root (a joint project with the Texas Tribune) takes a fascinating look at how Carona balances his business interests with his duties as a state senator. Carona, you see, is the president and CEO of Associa, the country’s largest manager of homeowners’ associations, with 9,000 HOAs in 31 states. From the story:

But the Dallas millionaire isn’t just the president and CEO of Associa. He’s also a powerful state senator who chairs the Committee on Business and Commerce and who, back in 2001, authored the law that enshrined pro-industry HOA foreclosure practices in statute, ensuring that associations … could continue to aggressively collect fees and dues from homeowners. And if you’re flabbergasted by that fact, well, you don’t know much about Texas politics.

The story goes on to note that “Associa employs 8,800 people and remains the largest and most active business operated by a member of the Legislature” and that Carona employs lobbyists to influence his colleagues. It’s a fine piece of reporting that only — ahem — deepens my appreciation of Carona’s business acumen.

And now I will hand over my office key fob to Wick.

Mozart’s Requiem, choreographed by Ben Stevenson.

Hello long weekend, what a pleasure it is to finally shake your hand. Have a good one, and spare a thought for the military men and women who gave their lives in service of this country.

Friday

This is a good weekend for catching up on some theater. The Dallas Theater Center’s Fly By Night closes on Sunday, so you should definitely, definitely see it before then. And if you’ve been a good Liz’s Picks reader and already seen it, Kitchen Dog starts their yearly New Works Festival this evening with the opening night of Se Illama Cristina. The fest’s headliner is written by the San Francisco-based playwright Octavio Solis and the plot revolves around a man and woman who wake up in a room and have no idea who they are or how they got there. Spooky, scary. And since it is opening night, your theater ticket includes the reception.

Don’t forget that the festival also includes a one man cabaret show, six staged readings of plays chosen from hundreds of submissions from across the country, and the PUP (Playwrights Under Progress) Fest, an afternoon of short plays written and performed by local high school talent. You can go back again and again.

Saturday

Once upon a time, the Dallas International Festival was a fixture in the Arts District. But it got a bit too big for its britches, and therefore made the wise decision to move to Fair Park in order to avoid displaying its underoos. Or something. This annual day-long celebration of our global citizenry offers  three stages for traditional music and dance performances, a food court serving cuisine from Taiwan, El Salvador, Mexico, and Jamaica, to name just a few, a craft and activities area for kids, a drum circle, and more.

Meanwhile, back in the Arts District, the Texas Ballet Theater is performing a very Memorial Day-weekend-appropriate series at the Wyly. The program pairs George Balanchine’s high-flying Theme and Variations, a glitzy, technically tough composition that recalls the glory days of the Imperial Ballet, with TBT artistic director Ben Stevenson’s Mozart’s Requiem. Mozart died working on Requiem; it was performed at his own funeral mass and countless others. The ballet, which Stevenson premiered in 2007, is hardly some stuffy dirge. It’s performed by only the male members of the TBT, and it’s an intense, emotional, 14 movement plunge that pays tribute to our military.

Sunday

Beer plus barbecue = Brew-B-Q. Easy math. The guys at Deep Ellum Brewing Company do these long weekends right. They’ll have Pecan Lodge barbecue (number nine on our Best Restaurants list) and a selection of their beers, plus live music. Get your tickets. All the VIP tickets are sold out.

Monday

Now, there’s no word on an official bash happening here, but you can count on the Fraternal Order of the Eagles swimming pool for a good time. Go get splashy. The happy hour is amazing.

For something a bit more family-oriented, I’d pack up a picnic for the Dallas Symphony Orchestra’s annual Memorial Day concert at Flagpole Hill on White Rock Lake. It’s free.

For more to do with your weekend, go here.

D: The Broadcast,

• Summer skirt trends with Lauren Scruggs
• Comedian Bobby Lee of Harold & Kumar Go To White Castle, Pineapple Express, and MadTV
• Live performance by Crossing Main
• The local low-down from Weekend Insiders

Click to watch D-TV live
Live streaming D: The Broadcast from 9 to 11 a.m.

D-TV is available on all local cable providers.
AT&T 47 | DirecTV 47 | Dish 47 | Charter 22 / 746 (HD) | Time Warner 24 / 429 (HD) | Verizon 18 / 518 (HD)

Man Killed in Southlake Town Square Was Drug Cartel Lawyer.  The murder that shocked this safe, affluent suburban community appears to be related to Mexican drug trafficking. The victim has been identified as Juan Jesus Guerrero Chapa, a native of Mexico who was a longtime attorney for the Gulf cartel and its leader, Osiel Cardenas (who’s serving a 25-year prison sentence in the U.S.).

Boy Scouts of America to Allow Openly Gay Scouts. Sixty-one percent of delegates to the organization’s National Council voted yesterday in Grapevine to permit boys to participate regardless of sexual orientation. The ban on homosexual leaders wasn’t lifted.  The Onion reports that at least one gay Texas teenager is thrilled by the new opportunities afforded him by the policy change: “It’s perfect because I’ve been looking for a second thing to get mocked for, and Boy Scouts seems like a great fit. I think it’ll really open me up to a whole new batch of cutting insults.”

Neiman Marcusis working with Credit Suisse Group AG on exploring an initial public offering or sale, according to people familiar with the matter. Its owners may seek about $8 billion for the company, which has about 40 namesake department stores and owns Bergdorf Goodman’s two stores in New York, the people said. TPG Capital and Warburg Pincus LLC bought Neiman Marcus in 2005 for about $5 billion, data compiled by Bloomberg show…

Saks generated revenue of $3.15 billion in the year ended Feb. 2. That compares with $4.35 billion in Neiman Marcus’s latest fiscal year, which ended in July. Luxury retailers fared better during the economic recovery than some of their lower-end counterparts as surging stock markets gave the wealthy the confidence to shop.

A Neiman Marcus and Saks combination could benefit from closing some duplicate stores in the same malls, consolidating distribution centers as well as achieving efficiencies in advertising, Mortimer Singer, president of New York retail consulting firm Marvin Traub Associates, said in a telephone interview yesterday.

Combining the chains under one name “would be a very tough decision,” Singer said. “They are both such wonderful brands. They are very iconic nameplates.”

Neiman Saks Fifth Avenue? Saks Fifth Avenue Marcus? Neiman “Saks” Marcus? Fifth Avenue Neiman? Neiman Saks Marcus Fifth Avenue? NMSaks? Gimbels?

A decade ago, [Kelcy] Warren joined a project with the ambitious goal of connecting Dallas’ separated halves by covering the freeway with a park, which would include recreational space, open-air restaurants and an auditorium for outdoor concerts. He donated $10 million of his own; $40 million more came from the very wealthy families at the heart of Dallas’ philanthropic community — the Thousand Families, as they’re sometimes referred to locally.

I’ve lived in Dallas since 1976, and I’ve never heard that term, “the Thousand Families.” Maybe I don’t run in the right circles. I asked our society columnist, Jeanne Prejean, about it. Jeanne knows a thing or two about a thing or two. If you name someone who has given at least $5 million to charity in the last decade, Jeanne has probably hugged the person and can tell you a personal detail about him or her that shouldn’t be published. Guess what. Jeanne had never heard the term either. Please, FrontBurnervians, if one of you has heard this term used locally, tell us about it in the comments.

Now, don’t get me wrong. I’m not saying that Sorman made up the term. I’m sure that while he was in Dallas doing research for his upcoming book about American philanthropy, someone used the term in his presence. What I am saying is that Sorman is “one of France’s leading public intellectuals.” He can probably talk your ear off about how much sovereign debt France needs to write down to rescue the Eurozone. But I’m not so sure how well he knows Dallas and the people here who might be trying to popularize a cute terms of their own invention. I apologize if I sound provincial.

The second detail — really a raft of details — that gives me trouble is a bit more serious. A few paragraphs deeper:

Dallas’ most prosperous philanthropists donate so massively that they lose track of their own giving. I recently found myself in the office of a Dallas-based financier and donor — call him Mr. T. His back was turned to me as we spoke, since he needed to watch two screens that displayed the fluctuating prices of stocks and raw materials, and he interrupted our conversation from time to time to place buy and sell orders.

I asked him how much he was worth; in Dallas, I had learned, such a question wasn’t unseemly, and within the philanthropic community, everyone seemed to know more or less how much money everyone else had.

Mr. T. wasn’t sure, since the answer changed constantly with the stock market. He called his secretary: “Pamela, how much am I worth today?” A few minutes later, Pamela announced that Mr. T., at that moment, was worth $10 billion. I asked him how much he had donated to philanthropic causes. Again, he couldn’t answer: This was primarily the domain of his wife and his two daughters, who ran the foundation that bore his name. Pamela again came to the rescue: Over the last decade, Mr. T.’s foundation had donated $1 billion.

My guess is that this anecdote concerns Harold Simmons. He has the daughters and the money. Forrest Hoglund is a suspect, but I’m fairly certain he’s nowhere near that loaded. Ross Perot, too, might be in the running, but he’s not actively trading stocks and raw materials.

Okay, first, I’m here to tell you that it is unseemly to ask a billionaire how much he’s worth, whether he lives in Dallas or anywhere else. Maybe Mark Cuban shrugs off the question and gives you that weird sideways look, but Harold Simmons isn’t going to talk to you about how much he’s worth. The only thing Simmons wants to talk about is how poor he grew up.

What do I know, though, right? I’ve never met Simmons. All I know is what I’ve read about him. Well, I do know this: if you’ve got $10 billion, no way can your secretary figure out how much you’re worth — in a few minutes. By the time she has called your broker and checked with your Realtor and contacted the four corners of your vast empire, that number will have changed, perhaps dramatically. And, in any case, that accounting would take days, not minutes. It’s not like Pamela can pull up your Chase account on your iPhone app.

“I’m sorry, Mr. Simmons, but Karl Rove apparently still hasn’t cashed that $5 million check. Do you want your net worth with our without that donation?” Nope. Not how it happens.

Finally, if asking someone about his wealth isn’t unseemly, then why didn’t Sorman use the billionaire’s name? I wrote to an email address provided at the end of the News story, and I’ve called the Manhattan Institute, where Sorman is a contributing editor to one of its publications. If I get a chance to ask him that question, I’ll update this post and let you know what he tells me.

Dr. Constantine “Connie” Konstans/Photo by Elizabeth Lavin

The business and academic worlds lost a pioneer with the passing this week of Dr. Constantine Konstans, a professor of accounting and information management at the University of Texas at Dallas. “Connie” died suddenly on Monday, a day shy of his 78th birthday.

Funny and blunt and a deep thinker about business, Konstans foresaw the rising importance of corporate governance and created classes on the topic a decade ago. He also founded and served for years as executive director of UTD’s Institute for Excellence in Corporate Governance. Later he created more classes in risk management and compliance, sensing the growing importance of those topics as well.

A month ago today, Konstans stood at a podium in downtown Dallas, accepting a “Lifetime Achievement Award” from D CEO magazine. If the audience was expecting him to be a little gruff, like he looked, his very brief talk was a pleasant surprise. He said he wasn’t going to thank anyone, because the people who needed to be thanked already knew who they were. He joked that he was only getting the award because he was old.

Visitation/memorial services will be held for Connie tonight at 7:30 at Holy Trinity Greek Orthodox Church on Hillcrest Road. The funeral will also be there, tomorrow morning at 10.