WillowBend56 Posted April 5, 2009 Share Posted April 5, 2009 Austin retains 17 of the original 31 towers erected before 1900. They have been restored and declared historical landmarks. Did Houston ever have them? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NenaE Posted April 5, 2009 Share Posted April 5, 2009 I've never heard of the term "moon tower". What exactly is it? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WillowBend56 Posted April 5, 2009 Author Share Posted April 5, 2009 I've never heard of the term "moon tower". What exactly is it?Just that: a tall metal-frame tower (almost like a giant radio station antenna) that supported arc lamps that could light up whole blocks of a nearby neighborhood. They were common in the early electrification era (pre-1900) of America.Austin is perhaps the only American city that retains any of the towers. Just curious if Houston or other Texas cities had them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
UrbaNerd Posted April 5, 2009 Share Posted April 5, 2009 Essentially, they're ancient versions of the high-mast lighting we see everywhere on our freeways, right? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
editor Posted April 5, 2009 Share Posted April 5, 2009 Cool. I've never heard of them. Do you have any pictures? Were these used for street illumination? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
djrage Posted April 5, 2009 Share Posted April 5, 2009 Cool. I've never heard of them. Do you have any pictures? Were these used for street illumination?Didn't you ever see the movie Dazed and Confused? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WillowBend56 Posted April 5, 2009 Author Share Posted April 5, 2009 (edited) Here's a link describing a bit more about their history in Austin:http://www.austinpostcard.com/moontower.htmlI'm surprised they lasted as long as they did. Here's the best postcard view of a tower:http://www.austinpostcard.com/cgi-bin/view...t.txt?card=1097I can find them in other postcards but they are difficult to see. They are just metal lattices supporting a bunch of electric lamps at the top. Edited April 5, 2009 by WillowBend56 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
editor Posted April 6, 2009 Share Posted April 6, 2009 Didn't you ever see the movie Dazed and Confused?Nope. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheNiche Posted April 6, 2009 Share Posted April 6, 2009 (edited) Very interesting! My grandfather (deceased) managed the work to convert the old moon tower in Zilker Park to a lighted Christmas tree. Only I never knew that it was originally a moon tower. Edited April 6, 2009 by TheNiche Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
margokorin Posted April 6, 2009 Share Posted April 6, 2009 meet me at the moon tower! apparenlty huntsville must have had them at some point, bc the writer of dazed and confused based the script on huntsville, his home town,.. however the movie was filmed in austin. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TJones Posted April 6, 2009 Share Posted April 6, 2009 (edited) Very interesting! My grandfather (deceased) managed the work to convert the old moon tower in Zilker Park to a lighted Christmas tree. Only I never knew that it was originally a moon tower.Didn't you see Dazed and Confused? I believe that is the one in Zilker Park where they actually filmed.What do you know. Wiki is actually good for something.http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moonlight_towerMargo, from what I have been reading, the book was apparently based on several highschools, not just Linklater's highschool. Besides, screenplays get rewrites ALL the time, yet it is possible that Huntsville had them. Edited April 6, 2009 by TJones Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheNiche Posted April 6, 2009 Share Posted April 6, 2009 Didn't you see Dazed and Confused? I believe that is the one in Zilker Park where they actually filmed.I did not. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TJones Posted April 6, 2009 Share Posted April 6, 2009 I did not.Man, you and Ed amaze me. Dazed and Confused is on Tarantino's top ten list. It has been claimed as one of THE top 25 funniest movies to come out in the last 25 yrs. also. Excellent flick, Matt McConaughey's first movie. Affleck is in it. Milla Jojovich, lots of stars BEFORE they were stars, movie. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
memebag Posted April 6, 2009 Share Posted April 6, 2009 I saw "Dazed and Confused" and was not impressed. There are better films dealing with the same subject matter out there. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TJones Posted April 6, 2009 Share Posted April 6, 2009 (edited) I saw "Dazed and Confused" and was not impressed. There are better films dealing with the same subject matter out there.such as...I will concede that the longhaired kid, cast in the second lead is without a doubt one of THE worst actors, EVER. There are some real gems in that movie though. Hard for most movies to come away with a catch phrase like "Party at the Moontower." and have people know what you are referencing. I like it more for sentimental reasons, the location of the kid's hangout and Affleck getting the paint dumped on him are literally down the street from me. I drive by it almost everyday. Edited April 6, 2009 by TJones Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
memebag Posted April 6, 2009 Share Posted April 6, 2009 such as..."The Stoned Age". I liked Linklater's "Slacker", but have been disappointed by the rest of his films. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TJones Posted April 6, 2009 Share Posted April 6, 2009 (edited) "The Stoned Age". I liked Linklater's "Slacker", but have been disappointed by the rest of his films. Dude, "The Stoned Age" really....you want to try and compare that to D&C ? Ok, I think maybe you got shot with the laser beam eye at a BOC show... that would explain alot. Edited April 6, 2009 by TJones Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mkultra25 Posted April 6, 2009 Share Posted April 6, 2009 "The Stoned Age". I liked Linklater's "Slacker", but have been disappointed by the rest of his films.I guess I need to track down a copy of THE STONED AGE, as I've never seen it. But I have to disagree with you on the merits of D&C - I thought it was an almost perfect realization of the overall tone of what it was like to be in high school in suburban Texas in the 70s, even if some of the details hit a wrong note. Anyone who lived through that time and place owes it to themselves to see this movie. And I say that as someone who also hasn't been wild about all of Linklater's films - in particular, I was completely mystified by the near-religious gushing over BEFORE SUNRISE. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fringe Posted April 6, 2009 Share Posted April 6, 2009 I have spent a lot of time in Austin through the years but had never heard or been aware of the moon towers. Very interesting. D&C was a classic but probably only because I could relate to it. It was low budget. The acting was really bad. I mean they cast McConaughey after meeting the guy in a bar. He had absolutely no acting ability. Of course some would say that he still doesn't. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr. Chenevert Posted April 14, 2009 Share Posted April 14, 2009 I found a site that has pictures of the existing towers in Austin.http://www.abandonedbutnotforgotten.com/au...ight_towers.htm Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MirrersTrucking Posted October 22, 2015 Share Posted October 22, 2015 I was blankly surfing the web last night when I somehow wound up on a lot of info about the moon towers in Austin. Basically they are very tall towers with 6 lights at the top that illuminate large areas beneath them. So of course now I am curious if Houston ever had actual moon towers way back in the day? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Howard Huge Posted October 22, 2015 Share Posted October 22, 2015 Sure, there's a billion if them next to our freeways that light up the night. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IronTiger Posted October 22, 2015 Share Posted October 22, 2015 After Googling the term, they are different things. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MirrersTrucking Posted October 22, 2015 Share Posted October 22, 2015 Sure, there's a billion if them next to our freeways that light up the night.No, those are a smaller yet similar design, but that's not what I'm talking about, let me see if I can post a pic from my phone. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FilioScotia Posted October 22, 2015 Share Posted October 22, 2015 (edited) I know what Austin towers you're asking about. I don't believe Houston ever had any of them. The Austin towers are, after all, just glorified street lights that were built before Austin put street lights on every corner.   Edited October 22, 2015 by FilioScotia Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MirrersTrucking Posted October 22, 2015 Share Posted October 22, 2015 (edited) Take a look at this https://www.google.com/search?q=moon+towers+in+austin+tx&rlz=1CDGOYI_enUS647US647&hl=en-US&prmd=msniv&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=0CAsQ_AUoBGoVChMIt_X9nPvUyAIVAdBjCh0n4gCh#hl=en-US&tbm=isch&q=moon+towers+in+austin+tx+dazed+and+confused&imgrc=HO-jYmMO1-UKZM%3A Edited October 22, 2015 by MirrersTrucking Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
towerjunkie Posted October 22, 2015 Share Posted October 22, 2015 No Houston never had moon towers. The closest thing we have are those moon lights at buffalo bayou park. lol Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MirrersTrucking Posted October 22, 2015 Share Posted October 22, 2015 No Houston never had moon towers. The closest thing we have are those moon lights at buffalo bayou park. lolLol, surely your not talking about the office buildings lighted up in the shape of the moon? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GEM Posted October 22, 2015 Share Posted October 22, 2015 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
terra002 Posted October 22, 2015 Share Posted October 22, 2015 Makes me think of the movie Dazed and Confused. Party at the moon tower! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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