Instrument panel lights

My wife was driving home one night in the dark, half way home, all of a sudden all the "white" dash lights went out. There are still a few colored lights on but all the back light went out on the instrument panel, radio, and climate control. Everything works fine, you just can't see how fast you are going, what preset button on the radio you are hitting, or if you're turning on the heater or defroster. I checked the obvious things, headlight switch and instrument panel switch don't change anything (Headlights work and I can still turn on the interior lights with the dimmer switch). I then checked the fuses and didn't find any blown, the only one that made sense for the instrument panel also included the radio and that works, so I just pull them out one by one checking them, including the fuse box under the hood.

Oh, the only other clue that I have is there is a fast chime ringing when I open the door to get out. There normally is one when you leave the keys in but when I take the keys out, it rings even faster. I know it has to be a warning for something, but I can't find a reference guide anywhere, in my manual or online.

Any ideas?

Thanks, Doug