Where to watch tonight's game

Wanted to let you guys know about a couple of out-of-the-ordinary events going on in honor of tonight's matchup between the Panthers and the Cowboys:

• WCNC will host a pregame special at Wild Wing Cafe at the EpiCentre tonight. WCNC's Greg Bailey and former Panther Mike Minter will be taping live before kickoff. The party starts at 7 and includes a wing-eating contest.

• EpiCentre Theaters will be showing the game on one of the movie screens. Free admission; first come, first served. Prizes and giveaways. Specials include $2 Bud Lights and half-price wine; half-price chicken sliders. Cocktail waitresses will serve game-watchers in the theater.

Where will YOU watch?

This week's party picks

Here's the best of Charlotte nightlife this weekend.

Saturday

PlayDate Charlotte

9 p.m. Tyvola Marriott, 5700 Westpark Drive. $10. www.playdatecharlotte.com.

Be a kid again at this month’s PlayDate party. Games include Twister, Connect 4, Pac-Man and Wii Bowling – and don’t miss the always entertaining hula hoop contest.

Anniversary bash

4 p.m. 19712 One Norman Blvd., Cornelius. $5 donation. www.ontheroxx.com.

On the Roxx martini bar celebrates five years in Lake Norman this weekend with a block party. Free food for the first two hours, live music, a fashion show, silent auction, and of course great drinks. Proceeds benefit the Huntington’s Disease Society of America.

Gimme Shelter benefit

8-11 p.m. Dilworth Neighborhood Grille, 911 E. Morehead St. $10. www.jinglebellball.com.

Help raise funds for this winter’s Jingle Bell Ball at the Gimme Shelter benefit concert. Underground Detour performs live at this fundraiser for United Family Services’ Shelter for Battered Women.

’70s party

9 p.m. Visulite Theatre, 1615 Elizabeth Ave. $10 in advance; $12 day of show. www.visulite.com.

Join Nasty Productions and metal band Iron Cordoba for "Funk You: A '70s Flashback of Peace, Freaks and Hair Grease." Prizes will be awarded in the SupaFly Guy and Foxy Mamma costume contest, and don't forget your platform dancing shoes for the Soul Train dance-off.

New to Charlotte?

Come join me, Observer columnist Tommy Tomlinson and WCNC news anchor Sonja Gantt at the Levine Museum of the New South tomorrow evening.

Tommy, Sonja and I will be speaking as part of the museum's New South for the New Southerner series, and we'll be talking about why we chose to live in Charlotte as well as giving a sneak peek of the Observer's annual newcomers magazine, Living Here. I'll specifically be talking about what makes the city appealing to young professionals.

The evening starts at 5:30 p.m. It's $5 per person. Wine and food will be provided by Mert's.

Hope to see you there!

Film Fest parties, plus win tickets!

The Fourth Annual Charlotte Film Festival is already under way, but it's not all about the movies. Just like SunDance (OK, maybe on an extremely small scale), it's about the after-parties, too.

Mingle with the directors and producers of this year's festival lineup at these receptions:

Thursday

Awards Celebration: After the awards are handed out, you can see the Best Documentary winner. 6 p.m. Whisky River. $25 (includes party and admission to screening).

Friday

VIP and Filmmaker Reception: Meet the filmmakers and watch "Amreeka." 5 p.m. BlackFinn Saloon. $25. 

Saturday

After-party: Celebrate the end of the festival at Therapy Cafe. Show your ticket stub to join VIPs, filmmakers and volunteers for one complimentary martini and appetizers. 10 p.m.-midnight. 

Win tickets!

I have two tickets to Friday night's screening of Michael Moore's "Capitalism" (9:15 at EpiCentre Theaters). Want 'em? First person to e-mail me gets them. ***UPDATE: Tickets gone. Thanks for playing!***

Live music Thursdays continue this fall

For those of you mourning the end of Alive After Five this week, fear not: Whisky River is continuing the Thursday night live music tradition with a five-week concert series called "Rockin the River."

Jessie James and The Carter Twins open the series Oct. 1. Tickets are $15. Proceeds from the series benefit the Dale Jr. Foundation.

The rest of the schedule follows:

Oct. 8: Rehab, $15.

Oct. 15: Gavin DeGraw, $25.

Oct. 22: Blake Shelton following a live taping of QVC's race show with Junior, $25.

Oct. 29: Phil Vassar, $15.

Package deals are available for $75.

For more info, click here.

Stool Pigeons unveiling new look

The uptown sports bar temporarily closed Monday and is tentatively set to reopen next Wednesday with a new look and a new owner.

Greensboro's Rick Buckner bought the bar from CSM Restaurant Services -- which owns other Stool Pigeons locations around North Carolina -- but plans to keep the name and a loose affiliation with its namesake bars, according to manager J.K. Savilla.

Savilla says renovations include a much-needed audio and visual overhaul to add HD programming and plasma TVs throughout.

(Thanks to Rob for the tip!)

New bar set to open in Brevard Court

Courtyard Hooligans opens Friday, replacing the old George Herman's, which quietly closed in June.

The bar will be a European Soccer pub, serving up beers from all over the world, according to managing partner Kristian Pedersen.

The grand opening starts at 2 p.m. tomorrow and the party continues starting at 9:30 a.m. Saturday for the Arsenal game and even earlier on Sunday for the Manchester United vs. Manchester City game at 8:30 a.m. (No cover, but you do have to be a member. Sign up at the door.)

I give the guys props for coming up with a different concept than the rest of Charlotte's cookie-cutter sports bars, but I have to wonder whether there are enough soccer fans to sustain it.

What do you guys think?