Let us close 1986 with a look at Chronicle photos from the month of December. Personally, I look back on that year with fondness, considering this 10-year-old's life focused mainly on the Astros, Rockets and schoolwork, in that order probably. And 1986 was a good year to be a Rockets and Astros fan.

Here's a little of what went down this month three decades ago.

* At KTRK (Channel 13), Shara Fryer joined Dave Ward on the 6 p.m. anchor desk. Fryer, who joined the station in 1980, was already co-anchor on "Live at Five."

Here's an excerpt from Ann Hodge's profile on Fryer:

Dave Ward and supporting cast have been No. 1 for so long that the confirmation of that top spot by November's ratings sweeps was a yawning what-else-is-old?

Ward is the last of the big-time solo anchors in Houston. He's carried the show for Ch. 13 at 6 and 10 p.m. since the late '60s.

Now, he has a new partner at 6. Shara Fryer has quietly slipped into the co-anchor chair.

Ward will still do the 10 on his own.

"Dave was very much a part of this decision," assured Ch. 13 news director Jim Topping. "It's because we have the hour-long newscast that we decided to take a look at doing it this way.

"When we started the hour, we had a lot of questions about whether one person would be able to do the whole thing. It's a lot to ask," Topping said. "This is an attempt to lighten the load."

Fryer has been doing the national news block at 6 for some time, Topping notes, so viewers are used to seeing her at the anchor desk.

She'll continue to do "Live at Five," as co-anchor with Bob Boudreaux.

"For a while, anyway," Topping added. "We think she can handle both shows. We'll see how it works out."

"I think it's a good move," said Ward. "They've been talking about doing something like that for a long time. Shara is good, and I think she'll do well there."

"I've never had anything this wonderful happen before," said Fryer. "This is the best city in Texas, and I'm right where I want to be."

* As you can see, touring bands like Big Audio Dynamite and Book of Love dropped by the Houston area that month. Here in Texas though, the Houston music scene was largely anemic in 1986, according to Marty Racine.

But there were some highlights, says this Dec. 28, 1986, Chronicle article by Racine. Boy, did I miss out.

Club of the Year: Rockefeller's, while it lasted (its future is uncertain), due to a great variety of showcased touring acts. Oh, the club has its detractions, but no venue hosted such consistently fine performances, especially during a four-month stretch beginning in August. Otherwise, the Ale House, Anderson Fair, Chelsea's 804, Wunsche Bros., Fitzgerald's and Blythe Spirits deserve credit for their persistent support of local and regional talent.

Independent Promoter of the Year: Richard Tomcalla, for bringing in top new bands to Rockefeller's and other venues.

Concert of the Year: Jean-Michel Jarre's "Rendezvous Houston: A City in Concert". A historical event.

Concert of the Year - The Summit: John Cougar Mellencamp. The little brat from Indiana suddenly grew up and found a reason to believe. Runners-up: Lionel Richie, George Strait, Journey.

Concert of the Year - Southern Star Amphitheater: Bob Dylan/Tom Petty. Runners-up: Jackson Browne, The Cure.

Concert of the Year - nightclubs: A toughie. How about Robert Cray/John Lee Hooker at Rockefeller's? Stevie Ray Vaughan showed up for a late-night jam, placing five monster guitarists (including Hooker's boys) onstage at the same time. Another 50-60 shows left precious memories, among them: Mason Ruffner, Chelsea's 804; True Believers, Ale House; Bugs Henderson, Backstage Club; Greg Brown, Lyle Lovett and Ramblin' Jack Elliot, Anderson Fair; XOX (Halloween show), Blythe Spirits; Dwight Yoakam, Gilley's; Big Audio Dynamite, Numbers; Roomful of Blues (Nov. show), Rodney Crowell, BoDeans (first appearance), Bonnie Raitt (Nov. show), Screaming Blue Messiahs, Loudon Wainwright, Del Lords, Smithereens, Neville Brothers, David Bromberg, Beat Farmers (both appearances) and Dwight Yoakam/Lee Roy Parnell, all at Rockefeller's; George Thorogood and Jason & the Scorchers/Georgia Satellites, Cardi's; Nick Gravenites, Juke Jumpers, Tailgators, Steve Earle, Miss Molly & the Passions, Omar & the Howlers (several times), Blasters (several times) and Lonnie Mack/the Commandos, all at Fitzgerald's.

Albums of the Year - rock: Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band's Live 1975-85, Paul Simon's Graceland and Timbuk 3's Greetings From Timbuk 3. Country - Dwight Yoakam's Guitars, Cadillacs, Etc. and Steve Earle's Guitar Town. Blues - Robert Cray/Johnny Copeland/Albert Collins' Showdown! and Robert Cray's Strong Persuader.

Texas Band of the Year: The Fabulous Thunderbirds could do no wrong.

* Seems like only in Houston could we cut a 6,000-square-foot, 3-story home in half and transport both sections on the freeway to its new location downtown. And leave it up to the folks at Cherry Moving to pull it off without a hitch.

But first it had to get there from its original home at 421 Westmoreland. You'd think the house could be moved from Montrose, through Midtown, to the park, but the Pierce Elevated wouldn't allow it. So, on the freeway it went.

From Rad Sallee's article on Dec. 15:

"Here comes the tricky part," announced John Cherry, his eyes darting cautiously at the strange apparition looming bigger by the minute in the mists ahead.

Half of an old-fashioned three-story house was being pulled by two big tractor-trailers driven by two very careful drivers Sunday morning.

The other half, delivered earlier in the day, was resting near its eventual site in Sam Houston Park on the west edge of downtown Houston.

Cherry explained why the quarter-mile of elevated concrete that remained to be traversed by this second, and slightly larger, section was crucial: The roadbed has a sharp sideways slope.

A banked curve is great at highway speeds, but pure hell when you're trying to ease a 39-foot-tall mansion down a freeway exit ramp at 1 1/2 mph.

Like most sane adults, the folks at Cherry House Movers would have preferred to avoid the elevated freeway, but you can't get to the park from 421 Westmoreland in the Montrose area, where the house had sat since 1905, without running up against an overpass.

So the house was routed up the West Dallas exit ramp to Interstate 45, along its southbound lanes to the McKinney exit and down again.

"Seven degrees (of tilt) is critical," said Cherry, as the house assumed an attitude slightly reminiscent of the Leaning Tower of Pisa. "She's probably about 3 degrees now."

By about noon, though, the move was a success. Participants said the 6,000-square-foot house was the biggest residence and third biggest building ever moved in Texas, trailing only the Fairmont Hotel in San Antonio and an office building in Denton.

These days you can visit the 1905 house -- known as the Staiti House -- in Sam Houston Park, where it's managed by the Heritage Society.

