Entertainment
NIOSA 2026 Locks In Dates, Ticket Deals, and La Villita Layout Changes Ahead of Fiesta San Antonio
NIOSA 2026: “A Night in Old San Antonio” (NIOSA) will take place from April 21-24, 2026, in La Villita. The festival maintains its 14 cultural areas with food, music, and entertainment while slightly adjusting some layouts. Discounted tickets are available, supporting historic preservation efforts.

NIOSA 2026 Locks In Dates, Ticket Deals, and La Villita Layout Changes Ahead of Fiesta San Antonio
“A Night in Old San Antonio” (NIOSA) is already in full build mode for 2026, and for longtime Fiesta fans, the headline is simple: the experience is staying familiar—just with a few on-the-ground tweaks.
NIOSA, the four-night festival known for turning La Villita Historic Arts Village into a packed, music-filled maze of cultural neighborhoods, will run April 21–24, 2026, from 5:30 p.m. to 10:30 p.m. nightly, during Fiesta San Antonio. The event remains centered in La Villita, in the heart of downtown San Antonio, with organizers confirming that all 2025 areas will return—though some entertainment and dining areas will be moved around within the roughly five-acre footprint.
A Fiesta favorite with a preservation purpose
Celebrating its 78th presentation in 2026, NIOSA is more than a marquee Fiesta party. Organizers describe it as the top fundraiser for historic preservation in the United States, operating under the motto “A Celebration for Preservation.”
NIOSA is produced by and benefits The Conservation Society of San Antonio, one of the nation’s oldest historic preservation organizations, which marked its 100th anniversary in 2024. Proceeds support the Society’s work preserving historic properties and parks, along with education and advocacy efforts that include scholarships, grants, and funding support for research and restoration projects.
According to the release, NIOSA provides the Society over $1 million annually on average, helping fund preservation seminars, scholarships, a resource library, and house museums. The event also invests heavily back into the community through local suppliers and operational costs tied to hosting the festival in La Villita.
The 14 areas that make NIOSA feel like its own city
The core of NIOSA’s draw is its immersive layout: 14 cultural areas filled with food, music, décor, and continuous entertainment. The press release highlights the festival’s mix of atmosphere booths, entertainment stages, decorations, souvenirs, and an all-hands volunteer effort that brings the village to life each night.
The 14 areas include:
- The Mission Trail, celebrating early San Antonio history with colorful mission-inspired façades
- Arneson Theatre, set along the River Walk with an amphitheater built in 1941
- China Town, featuring Asian flavors
- French Quarter, where beignets share the menu with escargot
- Frontier Town, bringing the old west to life (and home to the famous Shypoke Eggs)
- Irish Flat, known for favorites like Potato Skins
- Haymarket, featuring Tejano sounds and handmade Maria’s Tortillas
- Clown Alley, built for nostalgic fun
- Froggy Bottom, where the music rocks while fans line up for Chicken on a Stick
- Main Street USA, where it’s always the 4th of July
- Mexican Market, featuring popular Anticuchos beef kabob
- Sauerkraut Bend, serving sizzling sausage with a German Oompa band
- South of the Border, with Northern Mexico-influenced cuisine like Pollo Rancho
- Villa España, surrounded by colorful Spanish murals
Organizers note that while some areas will shift locations within La Villita, every area from 2025 will still exist in 2026—meaning the festival’s “choose-your-own-adventure” feel should remain intact, even if your usual route through the grounds changes.
What’s staying the same (for the better)
NIOSA’s message for 2026 is that the fan favorites aren’t going anywhere.
The festival will again serve a long list of staples, including Mr. Chicken, Maria’s Tortillas, Anticuchos, German sausage, Bongo-K-Bobs, Shypoke Eggs, Beignets, Fried Mushrooms, Yak-i-Tori, Steer on a Stick, Gorditas, and Fajitas de Pollo. Organizers also say NIOSA’s favorite entertainers will return nightly for continuous entertainment, and popular souvenirs will be back, including 2026 NIOSA medalsand the event’s collectible beer cups.
A private medal unveiling ceremony is planned for late January, open to media.
NIOSA also emphasizes that it operates rain or shine, with no refunds on tickets.
Tickets: early discounts and member pricing
For those planning ahead, NIOSA is pushing early ticket savings now.
- Discount tickets are on sale for $17 through January 4, 2026.
- Those tickets are valid for any night of NIOSA 2026.
- Tickets are sold online at: https://niosa2023.ticketspice.com/a-night-in-old-san-antonio-2026
Families should also note: Children 12 and under are admitted free with a paying adult.
The release also points to the best discounted option for regular attendees: joining The Conservation Society of San Antonio by the end of March 2026. Discounted member tickets are listed at $15 per person, with the added benefit of supporting the preservation mission behind the festival.
Powered by volunteers, built for community
NIOSA’s scale is massive—and it runs on volunteer power. The release states that the entire event, including food booths, is operated by an “army” of 10,000 volunteers, with many booths staffed by second- and third-generation families. Volunteers travel from across the country to participate.
The 2026 NIOSA Chair is Julie Terrill, supported by Vice Chairs Monica Reyes, Anita Gonzalez, Lisa Pierce, and Abbi Power, with DeAnna Keesee serving as Treasurer.
The bottom line
NIOSA 2026 is set for April 21–24 at La Villita, keeping its signature mix of cultural areas, live entertainment, and iconic Fiesta food—while shifting a few dining and entertainment zones around the grounds. Early-bird tickets are already available, and organizers are positioning membership as the best way to save while backing San Antonio preservation efforts.
For more information, visit https://www.niosa.org/ or follow NIOSA on Facebook and Instagram.
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Consumer Corner
UOG Wins Three CES 2026 Awards for Black Diamond Carbon & Nano Silver Wellness Wearables
At CES 2026, United One Group Healthcare (UOG) highlighted wellness wearables, winning three significant awards for its innovative products, including the UOG 5-in-All Wellness Band and Socks. These recognition honors emphasize practical consumer value and meaningful innovation, marking UOG as a leader in non-invasive wellness technology.
Last Updated on January 20, 2026 by Daily News Staff
LAS VEGAS — CES is usually where the flashiest screens, fastest chips, and wildest concept gadgets steal the spotlight. But this year, wellness wearables made a serious push into the conversation—and United One Group Healthcare (UOG) walked away with some of the show’s biggest editorial wins.
United One Group (UOG), the developer behind what it calls the world’s first Black Diamond Carbon & Nano Silver fusion wellness technology, announced it earned three major industry awards at CES 2026—plus an on-floor boost when a CES official spokesperson publicly highlighted UOG’s featured productsduring the event.
Three CES 2026 Awards for UOG’s 5-in-All Line
According to the company, UOG’s wearable wellness products received:
- Two TWICE Picks Awards for
- UOG 5-in-All Wellness Foot Pain Relief Socks
- UOG 5-in-All Wellness Band
- One TechRadar Pro Picks Award for
- UOG 5-in-All Wellness Band
That kind of cross-recognition matters at CES, where editorial awards are often split across categories and audiences. UOG’s haul places it among a smaller group of wellness-focused brands to earn multiple editorial honors—including wins from both TWICE (a key consumer electronics and retail publication in the U.S.) and TechRadar Pro (a global tech and professional solutions outlet).
Why These Awards Carry Weight
Both award programs are editor-selected, not paid placements, which is a big deal in a show environment packed with marketing noise.
- TWICE Picks Awards spotlight products that show market readiness, performance, and practical consumer value.
- TechRadar Pro Picks Awards focus on meaningful innovation, usability, and real-world impact.
In other words: these wins aren’t about the loudest booth—they’re about products editors believe people will actually use.
What UOG Showed Off at CES 2026
UOG’s CES lineup centers on non-invasive, wearable wellness gear that integrates its proprietary Black Diamond Carbon & Nano Silver nanotechnology. The company says the material is designed to support microcirculation, activate the body’s natural electrical pathways, and encourage recovery—without electronics or medication.
Here’s a quick look at the featured products:
1) UOG 5-in-All Wellness Band (Award Winner)
The 5-in-All Wellness Band was the standout, earning recognition from both TWICE and TechRadar Pro. UOG describes it as a soft, flexible, one-size wearable designed to support:
- deeper sleep
- headache relief and reduced cranial tension
- neck and shoulder relaxation
- stress reduction through parasympathetic nervous system support
UOG positions it for people dealing with insomnia, migraines, eye fatigue, frequent travel, and high-stress routines.
2) UOG 5-in-All Wellness Foot Pain Relief & Diabetic Support Socks (Award Winner)
Also a TWICE Picks Awards winner, these socks are aimed at relief for:
- plantar fasciitis
- neuropathy
- swelling
- chronic foot fatigue
The company says the design includes a three-zone arch system and targeted cushioning to support circulation and nerve function—especially for people managing diabetes or circulation issues.
3) Performance Sports Socks, Knee Sleeves, and Arm Sleeves
UOG also featured additional recovery-focused wearables, including:
- Performance Sports Socks for circulation support, fatigue reduction, and daily recovery
- Knee Sleeves engineered for joint stabilization and compression-based comfort
- Arm Sleeves designed to support endurance, flexibility, and reduced arm/elbow fatigue
The common thread: UOG’s nanotech material paired with compression and ergonomic design, aimed at everyday users as much as athletes.
What’s Next for UOG After CES
UOG says its long-term mission is to merge advanced nanotechnology with accessible wellness solutions—and it plans to expand into next-generation recovery wear, biosensor-integrated systems, and AI-driven wellness platforms.
At a show where “the future” often means bigger, brighter, and faster, UOG’s CES moment points to a different direction: wellness tech that’s wearable, practical, and built around daily life.
UOG at CES 2026
UOG exhibited at Booth #56227 at the Venetian Expo in Las Vegas, offering live demos, performance testing, and product trials throughout the show.
More info about UOG at CES 2026
- PRNewswire: UOG Wins Three Industry Awards at CES 2026
- CES Exhibitor Listing: United One (Group) America Inc (CES 2026)
- United One Group Healthcare (UOG) Official Website
- Yahoo Finance: UOG Unveils Next-Gen Recovery Wearables at CES 2026
Dive into “The Knowledge,” where curiosity meets clarity. This playlist, in collaboration with STMDailyNews.com, is designed for viewers who value historical accuracy and insightful learning. Our short videos, ranging from 30 seconds to a minute and a half, make complex subjects easy to grasp in no time. Covering everything from historical events to contemporary processes and entertainment, “The Knowledge” bridges the past with the present. In a world where information is abundant yet often misused, our series aims to guide you through the noise, preserving vital knowledge and truths that shape our lives today. Perfect for curious minds eager to discover the ‘why’ and ‘how’ of everything around us. Subscribe and join in as we explore the facts that matter. https://stmdailynews.com/the-knowledge/
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Entertainment
Home Alone’s ‘Wet Bandits’ are medical miracles
How did the Wet Bandits survive Home Alone? A trauma-focused breakdown of the head, neck, burn and electric injuries they’d actually face.

Adam Taylor, Lancaster University
The festive movie season is upon us, and one of my perennial favourites is Home Alone 2: Lost in New York. I will die on this hill: it is better than the original. But rewatching it as an adult raises an awkward question. How on earth did the Wet Bandits survive the first film at all, let alone escape without lasting injuries?
Ten-year-old Kevin McCallister, the boy left home alone, sets up traps that are played for laughs, but many involve levels of force that would be catastrophic in real life. A 100lb (45kg) bag of cement to the head, bricks dropped from height, or heavy tools swung at the face are not things a human body can simply shrug off. High-impact trauma to the head and neck rarely ends well.
To understand why, it helps to know a little about skull anatomy. The skull has a protective “vault” that encases the brain, while the bones of the face contain hollow spaces called sinuses. These spaces reduce the weight of the skull but also act as a biological crumple zone, helping to absorb force and protect the brain during impacts. But that protection has limits.
A rough calculation of the forces involved when a 100lb bag of cement strikes the head suggests instant fatal injury. The neck simply cannot absorb that level of force. To put that in perspective, research shows that the cervical spine suffers severe damage above about 1,000 newtons of force. A 100lb (around 45kg) cement bag already exerts roughly 440 newtons under its own weight, and when falling, it decelerates over a very short distance on impact.
While the exact force depends on the height of the fall and how quickly the bag comes to a stop, even conservative assumptions place the impact well above 1,000 newtons, easily exceeding thresholds for catastrophic neck injury.
Beyond that, there is a high risk of brain herniation, where swollen brain tissue is forced into spaces it does not belong. This can compress areas that control breathing and movement, often leading to coma and death.
Head injuries are only part of the problem. Many of Kevin’s traps would also place enormous stress on the chest and major blood vessels. Falling forward from a height, being crushed by heavy objects, or being struck in the torso can cause severe internal injuries. These forces are commonly seen in high-speed, head-on car crashes. In extreme cases, the impact can rupture the aorta, the body’s main artery, which is almost always fatal.
Crush injuries elsewhere in the body can have serious and life-changing consequences. Even if they are not immediately deadly, they can cause internal bleeding that worsens over hours or days. Broken ribs, for example, can puncture the liver, kidneys or spleen, allowing blood to leak slowly into the abdomen. Damage to soft internal organs can also lead to infection, organ failure, or delayed death, depending on the severity.
Then there are the less obviously lethal moments. When Marv crashes into a shelf stacked with paint tins and the shelf falls on him, the impact alone could cause serious internal injury. And paint splashed into the eyes could cause chemical burns and blindness.
Simple slips and falls are not harmless either. The bones at the back of the skull are only about 6–7mm thick. A hard blow here can cause bleeding inside the skull. These brain bleeds do not always show symptoms immediately and may worsen over hours or days after what seemed like a minor bump.
Electricity is another recurring gag that would be anything but funny in reality. When Marv grabs the taps attached to an arc welder, he is exposed to electrical current that causes his muscles to contract uncontrollably. This is why people who touch live electrical sources often cannot let go. The current overrides the body’s normal nerve signals. Prolonged exposure increases the risk of disrupting the heart’s normal rhythm, potentially triggering cardiac arrest. https://www.youtube.com/embed/ZfuAyYoc94A?wmode=transparent&start=0
Despite what cartoons suggest, electricity does not make the skeleton visible – as we see happen to Marv. There is no X-ray radiation involved. To expose bone, you would need extremely high-voltage current, causing fourth-degree burns, which destroy skin, muscle and bone.
Piercing injuries also feature heavily. A nail through the foot is not just painful. It can damage nerves and soft tissues, fracture bones, and introduce bacteria deep into the wound. This raises the risk of serious infection, including tetanus.
Finally, there is Harry’s infamous blowtorch scene. Being set alight for 22 seconds is more than enough time to cause permanent nerve damage, potentially destroying pain sensation altogether. While scalp skin is among the thickest on the body, it has relatively little cushioning underneath. This makes the underlying tissue and bone more vulnerable to deep burns, reaching third or even fourth degree severity, which can be lethal.
Add combustible kerosene to the mix and the risks escalate further. Exposure is linked to kidney damage, heart problems, central nervous system depression and serious respiratory issues.
In short, Harry and Marv are walking medical impossibilities. Surviving a second round of Kevin McCallister’s festive booby traps would require extraordinary luck, immediate trauma care, and months of rehabilitation. Even if they appeared outwardly fine, the internal damage would probably be devastating. Perhaps those lingering injuries explain why the Wet Bandits never made it back for another sequel.
Adam Taylor, Professor of Anatomy, Lancaster University
This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.
Dive into “The Knowledge,” where curiosity meets clarity. This playlist, in collaboration with STMDailyNews.com, is designed for viewers who value historical accuracy and insightful learning. Our short videos, ranging from 30 seconds to a minute and a half, make complex subjects easy to grasp in no time. Covering everything from historical events to contemporary processes and entertainment, “The Knowledge” bridges the past with the present. In a world where information is abundant yet often misused, our series aims to guide you through the noise, preserving vital knowledge and truths that shape our lives today. Perfect for curious minds eager to discover the ‘why’ and ‘how’ of everything around us. Subscribe and join in as we explore the facts that matter. https://stmdailynews.com/the-knowledge/
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Movie and television Reviews
Blade Runner’s chillingly prescient vision of the future
Blade Runner’s neo-noir future still feels uncomfortably close—where corporations shape emotions, memories can be manufactured, and the line between human and machine keeps disappearing.

Marsha Gordon, North Carolina State University
Can corporations become so powerful that they dictate the way we feel? Can machines get mad – like, really mad – at their makers? Can people learn to love machines?
These are a few of the questions raised by Ridley Scott’s influential sci-fi neo-noir film “Blade Runner” (1982), which imagines a corporation whose product tests the limits of the machine-man divide.
Looking back at the original theatrical release of “Blade Runner” – just as its sequel, “Blade Runner 2049” opens in theaters – I’m struck by the original’s ambivalence about technology and its chillingly prescient vision of corporate attempts to control human feelings.
From machine killer to machine lover
Even though the film was tepidly received at the time of its release, its detractors agreed that its imagining of Los Angeles in 2019 was wonderfully atmospheric and artfully disconcerting. Looming over a dingy, rain-soaked City of Angels is Tyrell Corporation, whose namesake, Dr. Tyrell (Joe Turkel), announces, “Commerce is our goal here at Tyrell. More human than human is our motto.”
Tyrell creates robots called replicants, which are difficult to differentiate from humans. They are designed to be worker-slaves – with designations like “combat model” or “pleasure model” – and to expire after four years.
Batty (Rutger Hauer) and Pris (Darryl Hannah) are two members of a small cohort of rebelling replicants who escape their enslavement and hope to extend their lives beyond the four years allotted them by their makers. These replicant models even possess fake memories, which Tyrell implanted as a way to buffer the machine’s anxieties. Instead, the memories create a longing for an unattainable future. The machines want to be treated like people, too.
Deckard (Harrison Ford), a policeman (and maybe a replicant too), is tasked with eliminating the escaped machines. During his search, he meets a special replicant who lacks the corporate safeguard of a four-year lifespan: the beautiful Rachael (Sean Young), who shoots and kills one of her own in order to save Deckard. This opens the door for Deckard to acknowledge growing feelings towards a machine who has developed the will to live and love beyond the existence imagined for her by Tyrell Corp.
The greatest challenge to Deckard comes from combat model Batty, who has demonstrably more passion for existence than the affectless Deckard.
The film’s climax is a duel to the death between Deckard and Batty, in which Batty ends up not just sparing but saving Deckard. As Deckard watches Batty expire, he envies the replicant’s lust for life at the very moment it escapes him. Batty seems more human than the humans in this world, but Tyrell’s motto is both clue and trap.
Deckard’s end-of-film decision to escape with Rachael defies the rules of the corporation and of society. But it’s also an acknowledgment of the successful, seamless integration of machine and human life.
“Blade Runner” imagines a world in which human machines are created to serve people, but Deckard’s interactions with these replicants reveals the thinness of the line: He goes from being on assignment as a machine killer to falling in love with a machine.
A world succumbing to machines
Today, the relationship between corporations, machines and humans defines modern life in ways that Ridley Scott – even in his wildest and most dystopic imagination – couldn’t have forecast in 1982.
In “Blade Runner,” implanted memories are propped up by coveted (but fake) family photos. Yet a world in which memory is fragile and malleable seems all too possible and familiar. Recent studies have shown that people’s memories are increasingly susceptible to being warped by social media misinformation, whether it’s stories of fake terrorist attacks or Muslims celebrating after 9/11. When this misinformation spreads on social media networks, it can create and reinforce false collective memories, fomenting a crisis of reality that can skew election results or whip up small town hysteria.
Meanwhile, Facebook has studied how it can manipulate the way its users feel – and yet over a billion people a day log on to willingly participate in its massive data collection efforts.
Our entrancement with technology might seem less dramatic than the full-blown love affair that Scott imagined, but it’s no less all-consuming. We often prioritize our smartphones over human social interactions, with millennials checking their phones over 150 times a day. In fact, even as people increasingly feel that they cannot live without their smartphones, many say that the devices are ruining their relationships.
And at a time when we’re faced with the likelihood of being unable to differentiate between what’s real and what’s fake – a world of Twitter bots and doctored photographs, trolling and faux-outrage, mechanical pets and plastic surgery – we might be well served by recalling Deckard’s first conversation upon arriving at Tyrell Corp. Spotting an owl, Deckard asks, “It’s artificial?” Rachael replies, not skipping a beat, “Of course it is.”
In “Blade Runner,” reality no longer really matters.
How much longer will it matter to us?
Marsha Gordon, Professor of Film Studies, North Carolina State University
This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.
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