Skip to main content

MemphisFlyer 04/02/2026

Page 1


Sp ng Fairs & Festivals

A bird’s-eye view of all the banner events of

SATURDAYS IN APRIL | 7PM–11PM

50 POINTS = 1 ENTRY | EARN ENTRIES APRIL 1–25

200

Plus, Free Play doubles at 11pm

SHARA CLARK Editor-in-Chief

ALEX GREENE Managing Editor, Music Editor

BRUCE VANWYNGARDEN Senior Editor

TOBY SELLS Associate Editor

KAILYNN JOHNSON News Reporter

CHRIS MCCOY Film and TV Editor

MICHAEL DONAHUE, JON W. SPARKS Staff Writers

KIMBERLY HAM Calendar Editor, Copy Editor

BRYCE W. ASHBY, JESSE DAVIS, EMILY GUENTHER, COCO JUNE, AJ KRATZ, MICHAEL J. LAROSA, PATRICIA LOCKHART, FRANK MURTAUGH Contributing Columnists

SHARON BROWN, AIMEE STIEGEMEYER Grizzlies Reporters GRACIE DRIVER Editorial Intern

CARRIE BEASLEY Senior Art Director

CHRISTOPHER MYERS Advertising Art Director

NEIL WILLIAMS Graphic Designer

KELLI DEWITT, CHIP GOOGE, SHAUNE MCGHEE Senior Account Executives

JANICE GRISSOM ELLISON, KAREN MILAM, DON MYNATT, TAMMY NASH, RANDY ROTZ, LEWIS TAYLOR, WILLIAM WIDEMAN Distribution

KENNETH NEILL Founding Publisher

THE MEMPHIS FLYER is published weekly by Contemporary Media, Inc., P.O. Box 1738, Memphis, TN 38101 Phone: (901) 521-9000 Fax: (901) 521-0129 memphisflyer.com

CONTEMPORARY MEDIA, INC.

ANNA TRAVERSE Chief Executive Officer

LYNN SPARAGOWSKI

Controller/Circulation Manager

JEFFREY GOLDBERG Chief Revenue Officer

MARGIE NEAL

Chief Operating Officer

KRISTIN PAWLOWSKI Digital Services Director

Spring Fairs & Festivals

A bird’s-eye view of all the banner events of the season, where drinks, food, and great times abound.

PHOTO: COURTESY ISAAC SINGLETON

Juneteenth Shop Black Festival p10

See That My Grave is Kept Clean

Volunteers aim to save cemetery where Furry Lewis, 1968 strikers, and Frank Stokes are buried. p18

PHOTO: ROBERT BUCHHOLZ

Farewell to Clancy’s Cafe A beloved Mississippi restaurant closes. p24

PHOTO: MICHAEL DONAHUE

- 8 COVER STORY “SPRING FAIRS & FESTIVALS” BY KIMBERLY HAM - 10 ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT WE RECOMMEND - 16 MUSIC - 18 AFTER DARK - 19

CALENDAR - 20 NY TIMES CROSSWORD - 21

WE SAW YOU - 22 FOOD - 24

METAPHYSICAL CONNECTION - 25 NEWS OF THE WEIRD - 26 ASTROLOGY - 27 TV - 28

CLASSIFIEDS - 30 LAST WORD - 31

THE fly-by

MEM ernet

Memphis on the internet.

MORE MPD VIOLENCE

Memphis Police Department (MPD) o cers pepper-sprayed peaceful protesters at Saturday’s No Kings rally Downtown. A video by Boyds Hot Images shows a group of attendees with arms linked walking down Linden. ey are set upon by MPD o cers who grab them; one sprays them with a chemical agent. MPD issued a statement saying the organizers’ permit was for a rally, and there were no provisions made “to turn the rally into a march on the city streets.”

MEMPHIS MADE

Memphis Made Brewing Co. closed its taproom in the Edge District with one last hoorah Sunday. e brewery opened its original taproom in Cooper-Young in 2013. It will continue to make beer for restaurants around town, including the Memphis-Made-branded restaurant in Memphis International Airport.

TRUMP

President Trump did not visit Cue Guard Smokehouse on Watkins when he was in town last week. But hey, we hustle here.

{WEEK THAT WAS

Questions, Answers + Attitude

Task Force, Curfews, & AI

Funds

Trump came to town, MPD on youths, and xAI funds could fuel home repairs and more.

TASK FORCE STATS

e Memphis Safe Task Force routinely ignores calls for stats on the operation. But here are some presented last week when the Trump administration came to town:

Trump

• “…that includes a 60 percent drop in robberies, a 74 percent drop in carjacking and motor vehicle the s.”

• “We’ve achieved a 77 percent reduction in murders from the peak in this place.”

• “In total, we’ve arrested 7,000 criminals.”

• “…seized more than 1,100 illegal guns, taken more than 1,000 pounds of illicit narcotics and rescued more than 150 missing children.”

• “In the year before I took o ce, Memphis saw more than 12,500 violent assaults, 429 rapes, and 7,600 burglaries and armed robbery.”

Gadyaces S. Serralta, Director, U.S. Marshals Service

• “In just over six months, the Memphis Safe Task Force has made over 7,342 arrests.”

• “Seized over 1,200 illegal rearms”

• “Located and returned 150 missing children”

• “43 percent reduction in total serious crimes”

• “37 percent reduction in murder”

• “40 percent reduction in sexual assault”

• “56 percent reduction in robbery”

• “68 percent reduction in motor vehicle the s”

• “65 percent increase in the solvability of crimes”

Todd Lyons, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement

• “We did have 619 illegal aliens arrested.”

TASK FORCE QUOTABLE QUOTES

e best and brown-nosiest quotes from the Trump circus:

Tennessee House Speaker Cameron Sexton

“It’s as little as watching a kid … they had a bicycle in their living room and now they’re able to ride it outside. We take that freedom for granted. But because of you now here in the city of Memphis, the kids can ride their bicycles outside, which they had never experienced before.”

Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee

“We o entimes say Nashville’s the heart of Tennessee, but Memphis is the soul. .... I have a lot of hope for the future [for Memphis]. I do believe, and have believed all my life, that this is a great city and now it is on a trajectory of greatness beyond where it’s been in the past.”

MPD ENFORCING CURFEWS

Top police o cials had few rm answers last week on enforcing curfews for city youths but said “9-year-olds don’t belong in the back seat of a patrol car.” MPD Chief C.J. Davis said MPD is willing to further enforce curfews. But she said new resources were needed to do it right.

SCHOOL LAWSUITS

A bill passed the Tennessee Senate that would stop local education agencies from using public funds to pursue legal action against the state for imposing “accountability measures.” e bill is sponsored by Sen. Brent Taylor (R-Memphis).

Taylor said accountability measures include things such as report cards, standardized tests, and performance ratings.

AI FUNDS

Home repairs, weatherization, and energy e ciency were top priorities for some on how to spend public funds from arti cial intelligence companies here.

Visit the News Blog at memphis yer.com for fuller versions of these stories and more local news.

PHOTO: GOV. BILL LEE | FACEBOOK
Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee told President Donald Trump that Memphis was the “soul” of Tennessee.

{CITY REPORTER

Memphis Gangs

Memphis Safe Task Force: 770 gang members arrested, networks “decapitated.”

Memphis gangs “are falling apart” and entire gang networks are “without any sort of direction,” according to Memphis Safe Task Force officials.

While not the focus of last Monday’s roundtable, gangs were a key point of discussion for many on the panel. Hundreds of Memphis gang members have been arrested, they said, including key gang leaders. Even the set of the roundtable was decorated with guns seized from gangs and boxes labeled “D.E.A. evidence,” which they said were taken from “violent gang members.”

At least 48 gangs operated in Memphis in 2024, according to the latest public data. That’s what the Memphis Police Department’s Multi-Agency Gang Unit (MGU) told Memphis City Council members at the time.

down because of the Memphis Safe Task Force.”

Cekada pointed to the items on stage Monday saying they were, “used by the gang members to terrorize this community and commit numerous homicides and numerous aggravated assaults.”

The Task Force was not an “immigration-led operation,” according to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) acting director Todd Lyons. However, in that same sentence, Lyons said of the 619 “illegal aliens” that were arrested in the operation, seven of them were known TDA gang members from Venezuela.

An example of the MPD working alongside the Task Force on gangs was the Operation All Off Boyd Round Two in November. In it, MPD’s Organized Crime Unit worked with the Task Force to execute search warrants in the 500 block of Boyd Street, an area of South Memphis they said was known for persistent drug and gang activity.

By December 2025, the Task Force reported it had arrested more than 400 gang members. These included members of the Gangster Disciples, Vice Lords, Young Mob, Los Serranos, Tren de Agua (TDA), EBK (Everybody Killa), Piru Bloods, Grape Street Crips, Kings Gate Mafia, and other factions of Bloods and Crips, among additional gangs.

Those groups were tied to drug trafficking, firearms offenses, and violent crimes such as assaults, robberies, and homicides. They were also tied to organized criminal activity like extortion, racketeering, and turf conflicts, “all of which have contributed and fueled high rates of violent crime.”

Since then, a total of 770 gang members have been arrested, according to U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi. Those arrests were made on 757 charges of gang-related offenses, said Gadyaces Serralta, Director of U.S. Marshals.

Gangs were the focus in Memphis for the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), according to its Deputy Director Robert Cekada.

“So much so that we’ve … decapitated the leadership of the Rich and Ruthless Gang and the Vice Lords gangs operating here in Memphis,” he said. “Their leadership, their membership is currently running the streets without any sort of direction.

“The gang members are falling apart. Their ability to coordinate and commit violent crimes [has] broken

Gangs include: Gangster Disciples, Vice Lords, Young Mob, Los Serranos, Tren de Agua, EBK (Everybody Killa), Piru Bloods, Grape Street Crips, and Kings Gate Mafia.

The operation yielded eight arrests, the recovery of one firearm, the seizure of over four pounds of marijuana, and more than $1,000 in cash.

“Operations like this show our commitment to pushing back against the drivers of violent crime in our neighborhoods,” MPD Chief C.J. Davis said at the time. “When we remove drugs, guns, and repeat offenders from our streets, we are taking meaningful steps toward a stronger, safer Memphis.

“I am proud of the teamwork shown by our Organized Crime Unit and our partners with the Memphis Safe Task Force.”

The operation highlighted interagency collaboration, according to Ryan Guay, Supervisory Deputy U.S. Marshal and spokesperson for the Memphis Safe Task Force.

“Through these joint efforts, drugs, guns, and repeat offenders are being removed from Memphis neighborhoods, and together we are building safer communities for Memphis families,” he said.

Trail of No Tears

What’s the true cost of the federal surge?

Alot has happened in the news, in the world, and in our own Memphis community. Kristi Noem’s firing as Secretary of Homeland Security was welcome news to those who bristled at her flat yet aggressive affect — void of emotion, apology, understanding, or basic humanity. We knew her tenure in the cabinet was coming to a close when her ICE force detained and transported the 5-year-old with the blue bunny hat, Liam Conejo, from Minneapolis to Texas. She described Renée Good and Alex Pretti as domestic terrorists and wouldn’t apologize, though no one thought Liam, Renée, or Alex constituted the “worst of the worst.”

What is a little worse for wear since September is our own city of Memphis. The pandemic revealed that the economic growth and innovation we were experiencing was tenuous. The city has felt as though it is plodding forward through a funk in recent years, despite major issues like violent crime falling considerably since 2024.

There’s a sense the city has lost its spark or chispa recently, with restaurants closing, IKEA bailing on us, and layoffs at major employers like FedEx and Nike. Even our schools are closing (five of them next year), which reflects both a population decline and a community without sufficient resources to fund capital investments. Our population has shrunk by about 4.5 percent since the last nationwide census in 2020. Not good news.

President Trump told us during the February State of the Union Address what a “big success” his deployment of the National Guard to our city has been; he said he “restore[d] law and order to our most dangerous cities, including Memphis.” The president brought his circus to our still struggling Memphis last week to remind us how he has saved us — he is desperate for any type of win these days.

Memphians never asked for his task force of 13 federal agencies, including ICE and the National Guard, to come here in the first place. The governor asked for the forces, the city mayor mostly collaborated, the county mayor got angry and sued, and the police chief reported last October that the city was indeed collaborating with ICE.

But what has been the cost of this federal surge? MLK50: Justice Through Journalism reported that of the 3,000 people arrested in the first two months of the Task Force’s efforts, only 6 percent appeared white. A Daily Memphian analysis showed that 87.6 percent of the Force’s 662 immigration-related arrests between

October and December began with traffic (read pretextual) stops.

This disproportionate attack on minority and immigrant communities has left the city shaken. Anecdotally, we know many Latino families are keeping their kids out of school and considering moving to other locations where they can work, attend school and church, and live away from the fear of ICE’s reach.

The immigrant community and its investment in our city are critical to Memphis’ resurgence. This is a community who plays an outsized role in the construction and service sectors that keep our city moving. This is a community that, while representing only 5.2 percent of the Memphis metropolitan area, has significant influence on our economy.

Current data is hard to come by but even a decade ago, undocumented immigrants were contributing $61.5 million in taxes, exercised more than $350 million in spending power, and contributed $4.2 billion to the Memphis area GDP. Immigrants are over 25 percent more likely to be entrepreneurs than those who are born in the United States. These numbers, of course, shed little light on their cultural contributions.

We receive no benefit from the federal government attacking our immigrant neighbors.

Given our current downward economic trend, the community receives no benefit from the federal government attacking our immigrant neighbors. Indeed, we think most Memphians would welcome more of their influence and less from outsiders like the state senator from Eads, Brent Taylor, who wields power over a city that wants nothing to do with him.

We face real challenges going forward in Memphis. These challenges were not created by the likes of Kristi Noem or even Brent Taylor, but the way past them is by uniting. We choose Memphis.

We need and deserve the kind of locally focused leadership that pulls us together — all of us — without separating and arresting us based on the language we speak or the color of our skin or the neighborhood we live in.

Bryce W. Ashby is an attorney at Donati Law, PLLC. Michael J. LaRosa is an associate professor of history at Rhodes College.

Reach for the stars with a Home Equity Line of Credit.

Get Started Today

*Terms and conditions apply.

Sp ng Fairs & Festivals

COVER STORY

April showers bring April festivals — and then May shows up with even more, followed closely by June, which clearly didn’t get the memo about pacing. Blink once and July and August are already stringing up lights and ring up food trucks. at’s right, friends (and we’re comfortable calling you that if you are): Festival season has o cially taken over Memphis. From street fairs to music blowouts to that one event where you swear you’re “just going for an hour” and leave six hours later with a sunburn and kettle corn, it’s time once again for the “Spring Fairs & Festivals Guide.”

APRIL

Memphis Cocktail Festival

Cra cocktails, top bartenders, and enough creative spirits to make your group chat’s “one drink” plan hilariously unrealistic.

Minglewood Hall, April 4

Vintage Market

Get ready to give your closet some personality. is market brings together more than 30 of the nest vintage vendors around.

Crosstown Concourse, April 4

Memphis Tattoo Festival

World-class tattoo artists, buzzing machines, and brave souls with fresh skin collide under one roof.

Graceland Exhibition Center, April 10-12

A bird’s-eye view of all the banner events of the season, where drinks, food, and great times abound. (above) Shelby Farms Canoes and Cocktails; (le ) Earth Day Festival and Fun Run

Art in the Loop

Stroll, sip, and pretend you weren’t already planning to buy “just one small thing” before leaving with three prints, a handmade mug, and a new personality as a patron of the arts.

Ridgeway Loop Road, April 10-12

Spring Arts & Cra s Festival

Scoring handmade goods, supporting local artists, tasting yummy foods from vendors, and live entertainment — basically a festival where your wallet and your stomach both win.

Agricenter International, April 10-12

Juke Joint Festival

A blues-soaked block party where the guitars are loud, the barbecue is louder, and sleep is optional.

Clarksdale, MS, April 11

Taste the Rarity

Experience rare pours, good vibes, and the very real possibility that you’ll loudly declare a barrel-aged stout your new best friend by day’s end.

Wiseacre Brewing Company, April 11

Shop Black Fest is traveling market’s serving up Black-owned business vibes, creativity on tap, and strong community love.

Bass Pro Drive and Riverside Drive, April 11

Mimosa Festival Memphis

A bubbly, brunch-fueled celebration where Memphis gathers to sip endless mimosas.

Tom Lee Park, April 12

Good Vibes Comedy Festival

Where very funny people make us laugh so hard we forget about pollen season.

Hi-Tone, April 16-18

Canoes + Cocktails

Rent a canoe, kayak, or bring your own boat.

Shelby Farms Park, April 17 and most Fridays through September

Africa in April

African culture, cra s, and music

— and enough dancing to make the Mississippi River start moving to the beat.

Robert Church Park, April 17-19

Belgian Beer Festival

A celebration of Belgian beer and the re-release of Ophelia Saison.

Soul and Spirits, April 18

PHOTOS: COURTESY SHELBY FARMS PARK CONSERVANCY

Shell Daze

Mempho Presents o ers this laid-back celebration of live music blending rock, folk, bluegrass, and Americana vibes. Overton Park Shell, April 17-18

Earth Day Festival and Fun Run

Explore, learn, trot, and experience how to go green in fun ways. Shelby Farms Park, April 18

Cooper-Young Porchfest

Porches turn into mini concert stages. Cooper-Young Historic District, April 18

World Championship Hot Wing Contest & Festival

Brave souls battle sweat, sauce, and questionable life choices in the name of crispy, spicy glory.

River Garden Park on Riverside Drive, April 18

Vegan Block Party

Enjoy a family-friendly day lled with epic vegan food, DJs, and fun.

Martyrs Park, April 18

Vintage 901 Food & Wine Festival –e Grand Tasting

Uncork experiences with wine tastings and local avor.

e Lobbyist, April 18

Mid-South Food Truck Festival

Memphis parks its best rolling kitchens in one spot so you can eat like a king without ever committing to just one type of cuisine.

Martyrs Park, April 19

Wolf Springfest with Ashley McBryde Ashley McBryde brings the beat, the crowd brings the chaos, and your “just one drink” plan quietly disappears by sunset.

BankPlus Amphitheater, April 23

Double Decker Arts Festival

Art, music, and just enough doubledecker buses to make you crave sh and chips between guitar solos.

Oxford Courthouse Square, Oxford, MS, April 24-25

33rd Rajun Cajun Craw sh Festival

Get ready to pinch and peel, and nobody leaves without butter on their shirt and zero regrets.

Riverside Drive, April 19

Shelby Forest Spring Fest

An annual excuse to frolic outdoors, go all in on your love for nature, and eat funnel cake like it’s a competitive sport. Meeman-Shelby Forest State Park, April 25

Overton Square Craw sh Festival

A butter-drenched celebration where you eat your weight in craw sh. Overton Square, April 25

Mississippi Wildlife Heritage Festival

A gloriously delicious church café pop-up where shrimp, beignets, and good intentions unite.

St. Michael Catholic Church, April 26

Trolley Night

Trolley Night turns the city into a block party where art, music, and peoplewatching compete for your attention.

South Main Arts District, last Friday of the month

MAY

RiverBeat Music Festival

Hip-hop, EDM, Americana, and indie acts will share stages for a weekend with the best food, vibes, and views.

Tom Lee Park, May 1-3

Experience Memphis Gardens

A citywide garden tour that showcases hundreds of private and public gardens.

Various locations, May 1-June 14

Memphis in May International Festival

Explore and honor Ireland and its vibrant culture. Memphis, May 1-31

Bookstock

A gloriously nerdy neighborhood bash where book lovers crawl out of their reading nooks to mingle, enjoy storytelling, and pretend they totally meant to buy all those books.

Benjamin L. Hooks Central Library, May 2

A relaxed, social atmosphere centered around tasting and pairing experiences. Agricenter International, May 2

Memphispano Performing Arts Festival is inaugural showcase of artistic talent features workshops, theater performances, and activities for artists of all ages and disciplines.

Voices of the South, May 4-31

Cinco de Mayo at the Renasant Enjoy the sounds of a live bilingual band while challenging friends to classic yard games.

Renasant Convention Center, May 5

Celebrate Mississippi’s rich outdoor traditions, local culture, and Delta heritage. Downtown Leland, MS, May 8-9

Manes on Main

Smoked beers and food and the re-release of What a Mane Smoked Festbier. Soul and Spirits, May 9

Puppy Palooza

Bring your furry friends and enjoy activities like pet portraits, agility courses, a costume contest, pupsicles, and more.

Crosstown Concourse, May 9

Memphis Greek Festival

Visitors are invited to “be Greek for a day” while experiencing traditional music, dancing, cuisine, and cultural exhibits. Annunciation Greek Orthodox Church, May 8-9

Big Squeeze Food Truck Festival

A delightfully messy mashup of food trucks, sunshine, and questionable self-control, where “just one bite” quickly turns into a full-blown culinary sprint.

Germantown Performing Arts Center, May 13

World Championship Barbecue Cooking Contest

A smoky showdown of serious grill masters and equally serious appetites.

Liberty Park, May 13-16

continued on page 12

Café du Memphis
Cigar & Whiskey BBQ Festival
PHOTO: BRANDON DILL Porch Fest
PHOTO: JAMIE HARMON Puppy Palooza

continued from page 11

DreamFest Weekend

Enjoy a chill outdoor hang at this multi-day music event. People picnic at these concerts, so don’t forget your lawn chair.

Overton Park Shell, May 16-17

Hope Festival

Family-friendly festival with food trucks, entertainment, vendors, and reworks.

Tom Lee Park, May 22

Blu City Fair

A family-friendly event with carnival rides, including thrill rides and kiddie ones, along with a petting zoo.

Tiger Lane at Liberty Park, May 22-31

Great American River Run 5K, 10K, and half marathon courses along the Mississippi River, followed by a festive post-race celebration.

Routes throughout Memphis, May 23

Memphis Italian Festival

Italian-American food, grape stomping, arts and cra s, and bocce ball.

Marquette Park, May 28-30

Germantown Performing Arts Center’s Big Squeeze

Memphis Dragon Boat Festival

A day of spirited paddling, questionable coordination, and enthusiastic yelling as teams race dragon boats across Shelby Farms Park’s water.

Shelby Farms Park, May 30

Memphis Listening Lab’s Record Exchange

A love letter to vinyl and people who collect it. e festivities spin up with a lm screening, a cozy candlelight listening session, and live music.

Memphis Listening Lab, May 30

Memphis Concrète Music Festival

Two days and nights, a stack of synthesizers, and enough experimental electronic music to make your houseplants feel futuristic.

e Green Room at Crosstown Arts, May 30-31

Memphis Margarita Festival

Serving up tangy sips, good vibes, and just enough lime to make you pucker your lips (in a fun way).

Overton Square, May 30

JUNE

Tupelo Elvis Festival

Downtown Tupelo turns into a blue-

continued on page 14

PHOTO: COURTESY MEMPHIS LISTENING LAB Memphis Listening Lab’s Record Exchange
PHOTO: COURTESY JUSTIN FOX BURKS

from page 12

suede swirl of rhinestones, Elvis impersonators, and hip-shaking nostalgia.

Downtown Tupelo, MS, June 3-7

Memphis Pride Fest Celebrate love, glitter, and gloriously unapologetic vibes, where Memphis turns up the color, the crowds, and the collective fabulousness across the city.

Various locations, June 6

Juneteenth

Douglas Freedom & Heritage Festival

A celebration honoring Juneteenth with music, culture, and enough good vibes to make freedom feel like a block party with historical signi cance.

Douglas Park, June 18-20

Blues Week @ e Blue Front

Where the ri s are hot, the drinks are cold, and your “just one more song” turns into closing the place down.

Blue Front Café, June 17-20

Juneteenth Shop Black Festival

A vibrant Juneteenth celebration featuring dozens of Black-owned vendors, food, and community culture in honor of freedom and entrepreneurship.

Martyrs Park, June 20

Memphis Cra s & Dra s: Summer Market

Shop some of the best local artists and makers while enjoying your favorite beer at this indoor and outdoor shopping event.

Crosstown Concourse, June 6

Record Fair

Vendor fair with local shops and individual sellers of all things music.

Soul and Spirits, June 13

Memphis Brewfest

Live music, food trucks, artisan vendors, entertainment — need I say more?

Shelby Farms Park, June 29

Tequila Festival

A spirited gathering where tequila ows with tastings, good vibes linger, and questionable decisions are made.

e Kent, June 27

Vintage Market

A collaboration with Mint Condition Vintage with vendors selling clothing, home goods, and retro items.

Soul and Spirits, June 27

JULY

4th Fest

A family-friendly event with both indoor and outdoor views of dazzling downtown reworks on Independence Day, with concessions and festive bar specials.

Renasant Convention Center, July 4

Harry Potter’s Birthday Party and Trivia

Celebrating Harry Potter’s birthday with themed beers, food, and trivia — Hogwarts’ houses costumes strongly encouraged.

Soul and Spirits, July 31

AUGUST

Elvis Week

A week-long celebration where Graceland becomes ground zero for tribute acts, fan devotion, and more Elvis sightings than logic can comfortably explain.

Graceland, August 8-16

Book Fair

Local shops and individual sellers of all things books.

Soul and Spirits, August 8

Memphis Chicken & Beer Festival

Where August heat meets fried greatness and cold brews in a glorious celebration of chicken-fueled decision-making.

Tiger Lane, August 8

FedEx St. Jude Championship

Golf’s biggest names chase birdies and bragging rights while Memphis chases shade, snacks, and at least one hole-inone worth cheering about.

TPC Southwind, August 12-16

FoodieLand Food Festival

Where your diet goes to be deeply misunderstood, your stretchy pants earn their keep, and “just one more bite” becomes a multi-day commitment.

Simmons Bank Liberty Stadium, August 21-23

steppin’ out

We Recommend: Culture, News + Reviews

Style for Every Body

Casey O’Rourke fell in love with the sustainability and uniqueness of vintage clothing and started a side hustle in 2017. Blue Suede Vintage quickly became her passion project while she worked her corporate marketing job at the time. In 2022, O’Rourke had her baby girl, and a er coming back from maternity leave she was told they no longer had a job for her.

While trying to gure out next steps, her husband suggested she open up a brick-and-mortar version of her passion project. He already owned an event business, and O’Rourke was building her name from past pop-ups and online sales.

ey took the leap in November of that year. She had a retail storefront upstairs, and he had an o ce downstairs. ey were able to split many costs, allowing O’Rourke to test the business. A er building con dence and clientele, they upgraded their headquarters just last year, right o Broad Avenue.

O’Rourke’s most recent project is hosting a vintage market featuring clothing for as many body types as possible. A common thread (no pun intended) with vintage fashion is that it only comes in small sizes. At the upcoming market, vendors will be required to bring at least one rack of size-inclusive vintage clothes, ranging from petite to 4XL.

Sizes on the original tag of vintage clothing aren’t always what they seem, though. O’Rourke says, “Something that’s interesting about a lot of women’s vintage clothing, 1970s and older, is that a lot of it is handmade and tailored. We put a modern size equivalent on our tags, just to show you roughly if you’re in the right ballpark looking at a piece.”

And while sizes are more accurately discerned, nothing beats trying clothes on. Some vendors will bring tting tents, but the tting rooms will also be open in the store, so you can try everything on before purchasing.

O’Rourke’s journey to becoming an entrepreneur has been anything but easy, but she says of her child, “I hope that she can grow up and see both of her parents doing things that they love instead of being stuck in a grind, doing something for somebody else’s sake.”

Level up your style at Blue Suede Vintage’s upcoming size-inclusive market on April 4th.

VARIOUS DAYS & TIMES April 2nd - 8th

MLK’s Legacy Reimagined: e Man. e Movement. e Momentum

National Civil Rights Museum, ursday, April 2-Saturday, April 4 Each year on April 4th, the National Civil Rights Museum commemorates the life and legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., inviting the community to gather in remembrance — whether in person or online. It’s a time to re ect on the enduring impact of Dr. King’s work and consider the ongoing journey toward justice and equality. e three days will include a book talk by James W. Douglass, author of Martyrs to the Unspeakable: e Assassinations of JFK, Malcom, Martin, and RFK, a panel discussion on “Economic Justice: e Un nished Civil Rights Movement,” as well as the commemoration program.

120th Anniversary Celebration

Memphis Zoo, Saturday, April 4, 9 a.m.-6 p.m.

Celebrate 120 years of wild adventure with a full day of familyfriendly fun. e festivities kick o with a morning ribbon cutting by president and CEO Matt ompson and special guests, followed by free gi bags at the gate, live entertainment, and activities throughout the park. Spin the prize wheel, catch screenings of Madagascar Jr., meet animal ambassadors, and explore a century of zoo history with an interactive scavenger hunt — all included with general admission.

Emerge: New Student Dance Works

University of Memphis, Department of eatre & Dance, Friday, April 3, 7:30 p.m.; Saturday, April 4, 2 p.m. and 7:30 p.m.

With new voices and fresh choreography, the next generation takes the spotlight. Experience an electrifying showcase of original pieces by University of Memphis student choreographers. is annual performance highlights bold movement, inventive collaboration, and the creative synergy between dancers and student designers in costume, lighting, and sound. Expect an evening that’s dynamic, daring, and full of new ideas shaping the future of dance.

BLUE SUEDE VINTAGE SIZE-INCLUSIVE VINTAGE MARKET, 486 N HOLLYWOOD ST., APRIL 4TH, 10 A.M.-5 P.M.
PHOTO: (ABOVE) ZACK ORSBORN; (RIGHT) COURTESY BLUE SUEDE VINTAGE
Casey O’Rourke inside her shop; beautiful vintage rings.

Make Family Memories

Oliver! is a musical of Charles Dickens’s Oliver Twist. It follows an orphan in Victorian London who joins Fagin & his gang of young pickpockets. Meet iconic characters like Artful Dodger, Fagin, Oliver Twist, Nancy, Bill Sykes. With songs: Consider Yourself - You’ve Got To Pick A Pocket or Two - I’d Do Anything. This iconic show tells the story of the boy who asked for more. Experience Oliver!

Featuring BPACC Youth Theatre APRIL 10, 11 / 7:30PM – APRIL 12 / 2:00PM

901.385.5588 — Box O ce Hours — 10a.m. to 2p.m. Michael Bollinger — Artistic Director TICKETS @ BPACC.org

Mended Therapy

Combining mental health with a love of fashion, creativity, and sustainability, Mended Therapy was born. Ashley wants to show that although things may seem like they cannot get better, there is hope. Just like a mended piece of clothing is brought new life, the same can be said of us. She is here to walk with you through this journey with laughter, creativity, and challenging your beliefs about yourself. She is MENDED (and constantly mending). She hopes you will let her join you as you MEND.

Ashley specializes in working with LGBTQ+ populations and mood disorders.

For more information or to book an appointment, visit mendedtherapypllc.com.

She currently accepts Aetna, Cigna, Quest Behavioral Health, All Savers (UHC), Health Plans Inc, Optum, Oscar, Oxford, Surest (Formerly Bind), UHC Student Resources, UMR, UnitedHealthcare, UnitedHealthcare Shared Services (UHSS), UnitedHealthcare Global, and UnitedHealthcare Exchange Plans (ONEX) insurance plans. She does provide a superbill for out-of-network clients if they want to submit to their insurance. Self-pay is $125 for individual sessions.

See That My Grave is Kept Clean

Volunteers aim to save cemetery where Furry Lewis, 1968 strikers, and Frank Stokes are buried.

When musician, writer, and visual artist Diane Green — best known for playing in history-making Memphis bands like the Odd Jobs and the Hellcats, now based in Chicago — set out to pay her respects to the nal resting place of bluesman Walter “Furry” Lewis last summer, she expected to see some signage or other indication of Hollywood Cemetery’s presence at 2012 Hernando Road, the South Memphis address she’d found in her research. But she and her partner, Robert Buchholz, were stumped at rst. “ e only reason we found the place was, someone had created a found art cross-type of thing and attached it to a telephone pole. It was made from car parts, and Bob is a found object sculptor so he started to take pictures, and that’s how we found it.”

Once she drove into the cemetery, Green was shocked. As she wrote in her Substack account, Bella Meow, the area’s trails and roads “were gutted streambeds and valleys now,” and the acreage “was uber-muddy … e whole place was so overgrown you could barely see the tops of a few tall gravestones. Other gravestones were toppled over or about to fall. Others were completely crashed and broken.”

Lewis’ headstone was leaning precariously and surrounded by poison ivy and other brush. For Green, this was all very wrong. She had sought out this place precisely because the music of Furry Lewis meant the world to her. “I had been a fan of Furry’s unique country blues songs since I was in my mid-teen years,” she wrote. “Going to Peanuts Pub in midtown Memphis in the 1970s with my crew of blues enthusiasts, I would see Furry Lewis playing onstage backed by Lee Baker every Tuesday night. Sometimes Furry would sing one of his earliest songs, ‘Kassie Jones,’ all the way through … sometimes maybe halfway. But I loved that song so much I named my son a er it.” Now, she wrote, she was seeing his nal resting place “desecrated.” e irony was overwhelming, given that Green had such vivid memories of Lewis singing the old Blind Lemon Je erson chestnut, “See at My Grave Is Kept Clean,” aka “One Kind Favor.” Remembering those words echoing through Peanuts Pub many years ago, Green resolved to do something. Since then, she’s picked up some like-minded allies along the way, and her nonpro t, the Museum for Universal Self Expression (MUSE), is leading a group of volunteers (and calling for

more) to clean up Hollywood Cemetery on April 11th and 12th from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. For those who can’t be there, she’s also set up a GoFundMe campaign under the name “ e Art of Restoring Hollywood Cemetery in Memphis.” And the contributions are already having an e ect: only days ago, Green posted photos of the worst piles of tires and rubbish and announced that “Donations have helped us get A&J Junk & Demolition Removal Services in Memphis to haul all this away.”

Others are helping her make things happen, including two board members from the similarly-motivated Mt. Zion Memorial Fund, Cynthia Burse-Wesson, the granddaughter of blues player Charlie Burse, and Margaret Hangan, an archaeologist from Arizona, not to mention Brooklyn-based lmmaker Augusta Palmer, whose lm e Blues Society features performances by Lewis.

ey’ve now expanded their vision to include the similarly decrepit Rose Hill Cemetery.

As it turns out, many have taken note of the disrepair that’s befallen historically Black cemeteries and, like Green, have made moves to remedy the years of neglect they’ve su ered. Since 1989, the Mt. Zion Memorial Fund, named a er the Mount Zion Missionary Baptist Church outside Morgan City, Mississippi, then redubbed the Mt. Zion Memorial Fund for Blues, Music, and Justice in 2021, has pioneered such e orts. ey’re no strangers to Hollywood Cemetery, having installed a monument for bluesman Frank Stokes there in 2016. Yet in the past

10 years, Hollywood has deteriorated. As Green’s GoFundMe site states, “ e nonpro t Mt. Carmel Ally has done amazing work to clean up and maintain Mt. Carmel Cemetery, but Hollywood Cemetery has not been well maintained for many years.”

Green wrote in her Substack that Hollywood, founded in 1909, “is the second known Blacks-only cemetery in Memphis. It is also the nal resting place for many who bravely broke racial barriers in the U.S. military and Tennessee’s colleges and universities, as well as sanitation workers who participated in the 1968 Memphis sanitation strike.” Now she’s putting out a special call to anyone with relatives interred there. Meanwhile, Hangan notes in a press release, “I am working to register these cemeteries as historic, as part of Mt. Zion’s mission to prevent the erasure of cultural resources in African American communities.”

As Palmer observes, their e orts go way beyond paying tribute to great

musicians. While making e Blues Society, she says, “I just realized how important these cemeteries are as repositories of American history. Because there may be a blues artist there that brings a little bit of tourism, but then there are all these other people, like Diane’s nding in Hollywood. So it’s just so important that these cemeteries get preserved.”

In his article, “Sti ed,” Preston Lauterbach, writing for the Memphis Flyer in 2007, described the neglect Hollywood was su ering even then, noting that although the state dissolved the Hollywood Cemetery Company in 2005 a er the company failed to le its annual report, the company was “still responsible for upkeep at Mt. Carmel and Hollywood cemeteries” under state law.

Green and her allies are currently delving deeper into the legal niceties, but in the meantime, they’re taking action — and Green is even making music about it. “Last week, I recorded ‘One Kind Favor,’” she says, “and I will be putting out a single, the sales of which will go toward continuing restoration of the graveyard. And MUSE is taking over the upkeep while we can. But we’re not in it for making money. We’re in it for keeping it clean for families of loved ones. Including myself — my loved one is Furry Lewis.”

PHOTOS: (ABOVE, ABOVE LEFT) ROBERT BUCHHOLZ | (LEFT) DIANE GREEN (above le ) Green recording ‘One Kind Favor’; (above) at graveside; (le ) Hollywood Cemetery

PHOTO: COURTESY OF CROSSTOWN ARTS

Ashton Riker & The Memphis Royals

ursday, April 2, 8 p.m.

B.B. KING’S BLUES CLUB

Blues Players Club

Friday, April 3, 8 p.m. | Saturday, April 4, 8 p.m.

BLUES CITY CAFE

David Ingle

One man piano show. Sunday, April 5, 6 p.m.

SILKY O’SULLIVAN’S

Denver Massey

Saturday, April 4, 3 p.m.

TIN ROOF

Eric Hughes

ursday, April 2, 7 p.m.

RUM BOOGIE CAFE

Keer

An indie rock and independent singer-songwriter. Saturday, April 4, 7 p.m.

TIN ROOF

CJ Starnes

Saturday, April 4, 7 p.m.

SOUTH MAIN SOUNDS

DMA Piano Recital

Jingyi Bai’s second DMA piano recital. Free. ursday, April 2, 5:30-6:30 p.m.

HARRIS HALL, RUDI E. SCHIEDT

SCHOOL OF MUSIC, UNIVERSITY OF MEMPHIS

Landslide (Fleetwood Mac Tribute)

Experience a powerful live music show featuring the songs of Fleetwood Mac & Stevie Nicks. Saturday, April 4, 8 p.m.

NEIL’S MUSIC ROOM

Van Duren

is singer-songwriter is a pioneer of indie pop in Memphis, performs solo. ursday, April 2, 6:30-8:30 p.m.

MORTIMER’S

Andy James & Jon Cowherd All-Stars

Andy James is an internationally acclaimed vocalist and songwriter. Friday, April 3, 7:30 p.m. THE GREEN ROOM AT CROSSTOWN ARTS

Bugs Exist in the Garden Tour

With Sandalwood, Macy Moose, and JVLIX. Friday, April 3, 8 p.m.

LAMPLIGHTER LOUNGE

Deborah Swiney Duo Jazz and bossa nova. ursday, April 2, 6-9 p.m.

THE COVE

DJ Funn

Prizes, drinks, food, fun, and the best music trivia with DJ Funn. Sunday, April 5, 6 p.m.

CELTIC CROSSING

Elizabeth King and The Jubilee Hummingbirds On the Mobile Shell stage. Saturday, April 4, 3-5 p.m.

MEMPHIS PUBLIC LIBRARIES ORANGE MOUND BRANCH

Emergency Broadcast In the small room downstairs. Friday, April 3, 7 p.m. HI TONE

Jazz Jam with the Cove Quartet

Jazz musicians are welcome to sit in. Sunday, April 5, 6-9 p.m. THE COVE

Kashjimer Rock and soul show. Sunday, April 5, 5 p.m.

LAMPLIGHTER LOUNGE

Memphis Women in Jazz

A rst-of-its-kind concert featuring master vocalists. Saturday, April 4, 7:30 p.m.

THE GREEN ROOM AT CROSSTOWN ARTS

Modern Masters

With the Ben Markley & Michael Shults Quintet.

Wednesday, April 8, 7:30 p.m.

THE GREEN ROOM AT CROSSTOWN ARTS

Memphis Women in Jazz: Deborah Swiney, Joyce Cobb, Patrice Williamson

Rosehaven Motor Hotel

With Izzy Arthurs and Hayden Hunter. Saturday, April 4, 9:30 p.m.

LAMPLIGHTER LOUNGE

Billingsley & Earp

A husband-and-wife duo backed by a smoking band and built on classic country chemistry. Saturday, April 4, 6 p.m.

HERNANDO’S HIDE-A-WAY

Chuck Mead

Co-founder of the legendary alt-country band BR5-49. Tuesday, April 7, 7:30 p.m.

HERNANDO’S HIDE-A-WAY

Dale & Ray

Blending Western swing, honky-tonk, country, and Texas grit. ursday, April 2, 8 p.m.

HERNANDO’S HIDE-A-WAY

Ellis Bullard

With Bullard, you’re listening to a life of barnstorming, hard living, and layers of musical in uences. Friday, April 3, 8 p.m.

HERNANDO’S HIDE-A-WAY

Joe Stamm Band

Midwest grit meets roots rock power. Saturday, April 4, 8 p.m.

HERNANDO’S HIDE-A-WAY

Richard Wilson

Soulful Jazz and Bossanova

Smooth, soulful and relaxing jazz and bossanova. Saturday, April 4, 9 a.m.-noon

CARRINGTON OAKS COFFEEHOUSE AND BISTRO-LAKELAND

Sppiirrit F Fest Spirit Fest

ART AND SPECIAL EXHIBITS

Burton Callicot: “Light & Space” is collection of paintings presents ideas far beyond exercises in technical precision or ability. rough April 25.

DAVID LUSK GALLERY

Bruce McGee: “Cosas Diversas / Diverse Things” - Nature, Travel, and Other

Photography McGee’s work captures the beauty and diversity he encounters as an avid traveler, capturing both the quiet majesty of nature and the vibrant spirit of the human world. Free. rough April 29.

WKNO DIGITAL MEDIA CENTER

“Memphis College of Art, 1936-2020: An Enduring Legacy” It’s tting that the nal exhibition mounted by the Brooks Museum in its original home in Overton Park is a celebration of the Memphis College of Art, its sister organization. rough Sept. 30.

MEMPHIS BROOKS MUSEUM OF ART

“Oracle” Reminiscent of Dutch still lifes, Libby Johnson’s paintings depict fruit and owers with careful attention to balance, light, and shadow. rough April 18.

DAVID LUSK GALLERY

“Familial Objects” ShapeShi er is thrilled to host the multimedia textile sculpture of Sharon Havelka. rough April 18.

SHAPESHIFTER ARTSCHOOL AND GALLERY

ART HAPPENINGS

Ideas Over LunchRemembering the Memphis College of Art

Celebrate the Memphis College of Art with this special edition coinciding with Brooks’ “An Enduring Legacy” exhibition. Friday, April 3, 11:30 a.m.

MEMPHIS BROOKS MUSEUM OF ART

BOOK EVENTS

Club de lectura

(Spanish Book Club)

Les invita a compartir sus experiencias de lectura en español a través del título

seleccionado del mes: Como Agua Para Chocolate, por Laura Esquivel. Tuesday, April 7, 6 p.m.

THE DIXON GALLERY & GARDENS

CLASS / WORKSHOP

Country Swing Dance Lessons

A partner is not required to join the class. Friday, April 3, 7:30 p.m.

WHISKEY JILL’S

Metal Petals & Healing

Roots: Enameled Flower Pendant

Create a ower design on a copper disk that can be worn as a necklace or hung as an ornament. $35. Saturday, April 4, 11:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m. | Saturday, April 4, 1:30-2:30 p.m.

METAL MUSEUM

Mosaic Art Classes

Memphis: Turkish Lamp Workshop

Learn the 500-year-old tech-

niques of Turkish mosaic art, from design to tile placement. Enjoy a delightful Turkish tea service and traditional Turkish delight. $99. Saturday, April 4, 10-11:15 a.m.

HOLIDAY INN MEMPHIS-DOWNTOWN (BEALE ST.) BY IHG

Rhythm & Roots

Presented by Memphis Youth Arts Initiative, this is a free community program o ering high-energy music and dance lessons for youth ages 6–17. Wednesday, April 8, 6 p.m.

MEMPHIS YOUTH ARTS INITIATIVE CENTER

Super SaturdayRecycled Animal Sculptures Inspired by beloved works in the museum’s “Greyhounds Playing and Cori with Cat,” this hands-on activity invites young artists to reimagine egg cartons as sculptural portraits of animals. Free. Saturday, April 4, 10 a.m.-noon MEMPHIS BROOKS MUSEUM OF

COMEDY

An Improvised Powerpoint Comedy Show

A comedy show that challenges performers to use quick wit and improvisation. $10/general admission. Thursday, April 2, 7-8:30 p.m.

LAMPLIGHTER LOUNGE

COMMUNITY

Seated Mindfulness Experience

Cultivate a sense of peace. No experience necessary. Saturday, April 4, 11 a.m. OVERTON PARK

The Fool’s Journey: Free Tarot Share

A relaxed, supportive space where attendees can practice reading for one another, build confidence, and deepen their connection to the cards. Saturday, April 4, 7 p.m.

THE BROOM CLOSET

FAMILY

Mini Masters

Introduce your little ones to the arts and nature with crafts, movement, and more. $8. Tuesday, April 7, 10:30 a.m. THE DIXON GALLERY & GARDENS

Story Time At Novel

For children ages 5+, Story Time at Novel includes songs and stories, featuring brandnew books in addition to well-loved favorites. Saturday, April 4, 10:30 a.m.

NOVEL

FILM

Titane

A fusion of body horror, melodrama, and black comedy, Titane is an audacious work that violently fractures genre in order to rebuild it. Thursday, April 2, 7-9 p.m.

CROSSTOWN THEATER

FOOD AND DRINK

Easter Brunch at Delta’s Kitchen

Enjoy Easter brunch at Delta’s Kitchen in Graceland’s Guest House Hotel. $72.29/reserved seating. Sunday, April 5, 11 a.m.-5 p.m.

GUEST HOUSE AT GRACELAND

Sightseeing Cruise

The sightseeing cruise is a 90-minute tour that takes you down the Mighty Mississippi with a live historical commentary. $29.13/general admission. Thursday, April 2, 2:30-4 p.m. | Friday, April 3, 2:30-4 p.m. | Saturday, April 4, 2:30-4 p.m. | Sunday, April 5, 2:30-4 p.m. | Monday, April 6, 2:30-4 p.m. | Wednesday, April 8, 2:30-4 p.m.

MEMPHIS RIVERBOATS

Sip and Stroll

Enjoy an after-hours, 21+ walking tour of a highlighted specialty garden featuring themed cocktails. Thursday, April 2, 6 p.m.

MEMPHIS BOTANIC GARDEN

Trivia with Cerrito Entertainment

Enjoy all the trivia fun with Cerrito Entertainment, along with prizes, drinks, and food. Wednesday, April 8, 7 p.m.

CELTIC CROSSING

HEALTH AND FITNESS

Taijiquan with Milan Vigil

This Chinese martial art promotes relaxation, improves balance, and provides no-impact aerobic benefits. 16+. Free. Saturday, April 4, 10:30-11:30 a.m.

THE DIXON GALLERY & GARDENS

Wednesday Walks

A pleasant stroll through the park can work wonders. Free. Wednesday, April 8, 4 p.m.

OVERTON PARK

HOLIDAY EVENTS

Easter Bunny Photos at Saddle Creek

Hop on over to Saddle Creek for photos with

the Easter Bunny. Saturday, April 4, 10 a.m.-2

p.m.

SADDLE CREEK SOUTH

Easter Egg Eggstravaganza

Have the kiddos enjoy this festive Easter egg hunt. Friday, April 3, 10 a.m.-2 p.m.

MORRIS PARK

Easter Egg Hunt

Kids can hunt for eggs and meet the Easter Bunny. Saturday, April 4, 9-10:30 a.m.

THE DIXON GALLERY & GARDENS

Easter Lunch

Enjoy this Easter celebration with a live band.

$74.13. Sunday, April 5, noon-3 p.m.

MEMPHIS RIVERBOATS

Kroc Memphis Easter Eggstravaganza 2026

The annual Easter-Eggstravaganza is back. Saturday, April 4, 11 a.m.-2 p.m.

THE SALVATION ARMY KROC CENTER

Springtime Scribbles & Bunny Tales

Meet the Easter Bunny and watch local chalk artist Craig Thompson bring colorful art to life. Saturday, April 4, 10 a.m.

MEMPHIS BOTANIC GARDEN

LECTURE

Munch and Learn: 50 Paintings with Tulips

Kevin Sharp is the Linda W. and S. Herbert

Rhea Director of the Dixon Gallery and Gardens in Memphis, a position he has held since 2007. Wednesday, April 8, noon

THE DIXON GALLERY & GARDENS

PERFORMING ARTS

Drag Show at Lamplighter

Enjoy this epic drag show. Monday, April 6, 9 p.m.

LAMPLIGHTER LOUNGE

Emerge: New Student Dance Works

New voices, new moves. Watch the future take stage. Friday, April 3, 7:30 p.m. | Saturday, April 4, 2 p.m. | Saturday, April 4, 7:30 p.m.

UNIVERSITY OF MEMPHIS, DEPARTMENT OF THEATRE & DANCE

SPECIAL EVENTS

120th Anniversary Celebration

Celebrating 120 years of wild adventures. Saturday, April 4, 9 a.m.-6 p.m.

MEMPHIS ZOO

MLK’s Legacy Reimagined

The event serves as a moment to reflect on the significant impact of Dr. King’s work and the path that lies ahead in the pursuit of justice and equality. Thursday, April 2-April 4

NATIONAL CIVIL RIGHTS MUSEUM

ACROSS

1 “A pity”

5 Holier-thanthou

9 Possible poker payments

14 Lead role in “Rent”

15 Boxed up, say 16 California’s Santa ___ Range

17 “Rocky IV” rival who makes a reappearance in “Creed II”

19 Crack

20 Like the love story in 2013’s “Blue Is the Warmest Color”

21 What might precede a bite

23 School 43-Across

24 Home of the Basilica di San Francesco

25 Astronomical rarity

27 Digital native, often

28 Timeconsuming environmental procedures

30 Something rain might change, in brief

31 Squeezes (into)

32 Sweet treat since 1924

33 Called to see, in a way

34 Set (on)

37 Whittlers’ tools

38 One of 309 in the National Mall

39 Tissue affliction common during the Civil War 40 Reflect

42 World of Warcraft creature

43 23-Across, for one: Abbr.

44 Mood influencer

45 Program on a Billy Blanks DVD

47 Protest item that leaves a powdery mess

49 In a pickle or in a jam

50 Brewery fixture

51 Substance made from seaweed

52 Is disposed (to)

53 Rocker David Lee ___

54 City near Tesla Gigafactory 1

DOWN

1 Question following a holdup 2 What a band plays at a concert 3 Stocked up

Penalty box, in hockey lingo

Hair care item 6 Say “Not this again!,” say 7 Boot brand since the 1970s

8 Voice-activated smart speaker introduced in 2016

9 Wine-colored 10 Agcy. that oversees Ginnie Mae

Fruity summer treats

State of the Arts

The Memphis Culture Coalition will host a mayoral candidate forum as part of its State of the Arts event. Monday, April 6, 6-8 p.m.

PINK PALACE MUSEUM & MANSION

THEATER

Clown Bar - LoneTree Live

Step into the seedy, smoky underworld where clowns gather when the greasepaint fades and the spotlight goes dark. $20/general admission. Friday, April 3, 7:30-9:30 p.m. | Saturday, April 4, 7:30-9:30 p.m.

THEATREWORKS @ THE SQUARE

Seussical

From Horton the Elephant to The Cat in the Hat and Jojo, this performance is a journey through themes of friendship and community. Thursday, April 2, 8 p.m. | Friday, April 3, 8 p.m. | Saturday, April 4, 8 p.m. | Sunday, April 5, 2 p.m.

CIRCUIT PLAYHOUSE

The Shawshank Redemption

When Andy Dufresne is convicted of murder and sentenced to life in the notorious Shawshank prison, he must find a way to keep himself and his hope alive by using his wits and forging friendships. Friday, April 3, 7:30 p.m. | Saturday, April 4, 7:30 p.m. | Wednesday, April 8, 7:30 p.m. THEATRE MEMPHIS

Edited by Will Shortz No.

Creep, perhaps

Great red dragon, in Revelation

Burn, in slang

Go on disparagingly

Home sweet home?

Word in the translation of “e pluribus unum”

Quarantine locales

[Just

PUZZLE BY RYAN MCCARTY

We Saw You.

with MICHAEL DONAHUE

It was easy being green at the Memphis Irish Society/Cooper-Young St. Patrick’s Day Parade.

Of course, the day was March 17th, the day of the wearin’ of the green.

People in green sunglasses, green socks, green shirts, and at least one person with green hair were on hand for the festivities inside Celtic Crossing and on the street to watch the parade.

It was presented by the Memphis Irish Society and Celtic Crossing, says Tamara Cook, executive director of the Cooper-Young Business Association.

PHOTOS: MICHAEL DONAHUE above: Corshette Taylor, Tabitha D. Yarbrough, Nerissa Cade circle: Wyly Bigger below: (le to right) Grant Carr, Alayna Blier, Daniel Hancock, Drew Hancock; Jeannie Whitney, Mary Jackson; Lindsey Barron, Ainsley Pettit bottom row: (le to right) Eden Williams, Trystan Williams, Jaden Brown; Darneicsha Williams, Celisia Woodard

above: Ryan Marsh, Craig Sharpe, Jack Gentry, Jacob Marsh circle: Raine Irvy

right row: (top and below) Camber Ellis, Payton Hinson, Kelly Cunningham, Kayla Benson; Christopher Hannah, Carter Williams below: (le to right) Sarah, Mason, LoLo McHugh; Sophie Chertow, Miller Sykes, Sarah Valdman; Ra y Valenzuela, Cullen Ford; DJ Naylor bottom le : Alex Dinwiddie, Kyla Kennin

Farewell to Clancy’s Cafe

A beloved Mississippi restaurant closes.

The passing of a favorite restaurant is like the death of an old friend. It’s so permanent.

I ate dinner at Clancy’s Cafe in Red Banks, Mississippi, the night it opened. It was on New Year’s Eve 2010. e David House Band from Potts Camp, Mississippi, performed. ere was a full menu as well as a seafood bu et.

I’ve been going there ever since for barbecue, blackened cat sh, fried cat sh, blackened chicken, grilled cheese sandwiches, and pimento cheese. And usually banana pudding with whipped cream and ice cream on top. Or a slice of cake made by Norma Jackson, grandmother of the restaurant’s chef/owner, Tyler Clancy.

Now, “Clancy’s Cafe” is closed. Clancy signed the buyer purchase agreement on March 17th. “ e day I signed it was St. Paddy’s Day,” Clancy says. “I’m Irish. Why not?”

Selling the restaurant was bittersweet, Clancy says. “Man, it was tough.” But, he says, “I was tired of working nights. And it was one of those things. I truly enjoyed it. And the whole restaurant part of it. But here, lately, I was almost forcing myself to do it.”

“I’m ready to let go of some of the burden of being self-employed.”

And, he says, “I’m tired of watching the world through a kitchen pass,” he says, adding, “ e expediting window.”

But one day he had an epiphany, Clancy says. “I was sitting on the patio at my house with my wife. e kids were playing in the yard. My wife was planning what I should plant in the ower beds. e sun was warm on my face and my heart was full. I knew then that I had been chasing fame for the past 15 years. at is the kind of thing that can motivate a person to work 60 hours a week, while struggling nancially. Fame.

“I did not have the desire for that anymore,” says Clancy. “My passion and desire was to chase family. Not fame.”

e restaurant had typically been open for lunch and dinner, Wednesdays through Sundays. On January 1st, Clancy began serving

breakfast and lunch, but no dinner. Brunch was served, as usual, on Sundays. “ at can work in a big city. But when you’re in a small community, there’s just not enough pro t to sustain it,” he says.

“To be honest, the breakfast and lunch was kind of a deal where I was trying to be rejuvenated. I was hoping a change in hours, a change in menu, and all those things would just re o a spark. Renew a ame. But it did not.”

Recalling his early days at Clancy’s Cafe, Clancy says he opened using some recipes from another oncefamous, but now-closed, restaurant. “A lady that worked for Starnes [Cat sh Place], which is the original cat sh house in North Mississippi, shared some recipes. Hushpuppies and the onion salad. And, pretty much, we kind of gured out everything else on our own.”

same” as it’s been. “We might add some Mediterranean and Mexican food. And upgrade the furniture.”

Asked if he’s going to open another restaurant, Clancy says, ”I’m not doing a restaurant or anything like that.” Never? “I’ll never say that. But not right now, for sure.”

If he ever does, he says, “Obviously, it will be in Marshall County.”

eir original menu “was stupidly big. We had too much. ree di erent steaks.” And, he says, “Man, we had frog legs, chicken livers, and we had spaghetti and meatballs.” ey were also doing a bu et at night.

Clancy simpli ed the menu to primarily cat sh and barbecue. “You could do variations o of that,” he says. And he served specials, including shrimp and grits, a mu uletta, and “Cat sh Ponchetrain,” which was “blackened sh with the Cajun cream sauce.”

He also did a lot of catering. e

late Fred Smith, founder of the Federal Express Corporation, was one of his customers. “We catered at his farm. Especially the opening morning of dove season. He loved the way we fried the quail. We marinated it. I don’t think they were marinating it before I started frying quail for them.”

Ibraham Babukr, who owns several businesses in and out of Red Banks, bought the Clancy’s Cafe space.

ey’re not going to lease it to another restaurant, Babukr says. And they’re going to change the name to something that relates to the history of Red Banks or to Marshall County.

Babukr plans to serve breakfast, lunch, and dinner six or seven days a week instead of just being open four days a week. But, he says, they’re going to leave the restaurant “pretty much the

As for cooking, he says,“I wouldn’t mind popping up here and there for local events. I’m not burned out on cooking. And I’d love to help out at di erent events.” But, he says, “I’m ready to let go of some of the burden of being self-employed.”

His sister was proposed to at Clancy’s Cafe. Both of his and his wife Lacey’s children were born while he was at the restaurant.

But one of his favorite memories was when he posted on Facebook about doing curbside service at Clancy’s Cafe when Covid began. “I didn’t know what was going to happen,” he says. But he found out that night. “ at parking lot was full.”

And that didn’t stop. “ e phone rang o the hook. e parking lot was full. It was locals. And they were there to support us.”

PHOTOS: MICHAEL DONAHUE
Tyler Clancy; Blackened cat sh was on the menu from the start.

Happy Fool’s Day

A lighthearted openness guides us toward new beginnings.

pril 1st has always been a day of mischief, masks, and merry chaos — when the world gives itself permission to be a little foolish. But beneath the pranks and playful deceptions lies something older and more meaningful: a reminder that the archetype of e Fool in tarot is not merely a clownish gure, but a sacred traveler stepping boldly into the unknown. When we look at April Fool’s Day through the lens of tarot, the day becomes less about trickery and more about the courage, curiosity, and vulnerability required to begin again.

e Fool is numbered zero in the major arcana, a number that is both everything and nothing. Zero is the seed before it sprouts, the breath before the rst word, the moment of potential before form takes shape. In the northern hemisphere, April 1st sits at the threshold of spring, when the world is still shaking o winter’s sleep but not yet fully in bloom. It is a liminal moment, a hinge between seasons, and e Fool thrives in liminal spaces.

Just as e Fool steps o the cli with trust in the path ahead, April invites us to step into a new cycle with openness. e air is warming, the days are lengthening, and nature is beginning its annual leap of faith. Everything is in motion, propelled by instinct and hope. April Fool’s Day, then, becomes a celebration of that leap, an echo of e Fool’s willingness to risk looking silly in pursuit of something new.

the world upside down, forcing us to question what we think we know.

On April Fool’s Day, when the world collectively agrees to suspend seriousness, we participate — knowingly or not — in this ancient tradition. We allow ourselves to be surprised. We laugh at our own gullibility. We remember that certainty is o en an illusion, and humility is a virtue.

April 1st, arriving just a er the equinox, is a natural time to re ect on beginnings. What are we ready to risk? What new path is calling? What would we pursue if we weren’t afraid of looking foolish? e Fool reminds us that wisdom is not gained by standing still. It is gained by moving, by trying, by stumbling, by learning. e cli he steps from is not a fall but a ight. ere is also a lightness to e Fool that mirrors the playful spirit of April Fool’s Day. He carries only a small pack — just enough to sustain him. He travels lightly, unburdened by regret or expectation. His companion, the small dog at his heels, represents instinct, loyalty, and the inner voice that nudges us forward.

e

Of course, it is also a day of jokes, pranks, and playful deception. But the trickster archetype has always been intertwined with the sacred fool. In myth and folklore, tricksters disrupt the ordinary world to reveal deeper truths. Loki, Coyote, Anansi, Hermes — these gures remind us that wisdom o en arrives wearing a foolish grin.

e Fool in tarot shares this lineage. He is not naive because he is ignorant; he is naive because he has not yet been shaped by experience. His innocence is not a aw but a power that allows him to see the world without cynicism or fear. Tricksters, too, challenge our assumptions by turning

April Fool’s Day invites us to set down our heaviness for a moment. To laugh. To release the need to control every outcome. To remember that joy, too, is a form of wisdom.

In a world that o en rewards seriousness, productivity, and certainty, e Fool counters that wonder, curiosity, and openness are equally essential. Sometimes the most profound spiritual act is to trust the path even when we cannot see it. is month, consider honoring the deeper meaning beneath the mischief. Let the pranks remind you not of gullibility, but of the humility required to be human. Let the laughter remind you that joy is a teacher. Let the lightness of the day remind you that beginnings are sacred. Step forward with trust. Carry only what you need. Allow yourself to be surprised. A er all, every great adventure begins with a single, foolish step.

Emily Guenther is a co-owner of e Broom Closet metaphysical shop. She is a Memphis native, professional tarot reader, ordained Pagan clergy, and dog mom.

PHOTO: PAMELA COLMAN SMITH, PUBLIC DOMAIN | WIKIMEDIA COMMONS
Fool travels lightly, unburdened by regret.

OF THE WEIRD By the editors at Andrews McMeel Syndication

Least Competent Criminals

• A 25-year-old man in Philipsburg, Montana, drove to the Granite County Courthouse to pay a fine he had received for an open container, KBZKTV reported on Feb. 17. While he waited, Sheriff Rico Barkell observed that he appeared to be intoxicated. He asked if the man had driven to the courthouse, to which he answered yes. Then he admitted he had had two drinks and smoked two bowls of marijuana. A breath test confirmed the sheriff’s suspicions, with the man’s blood alcohol at three times the legal limit. He also had an open container in his car. He was charged with aggravated DUI and open container. The sheriff’s office posted about the incident on its Facebook page, summarizing with “Stupidity is not an excuse!” [KBZK, 2/17/2026]

• On Feb. 11, Dean Young, 26, entered a parked landscaping van in Hialeah, Florida, allegedly with intent to steal tools inside, NBC Miami reported. However, Young became trapped in the locked van and started screaming and beating on the doors. “Help me! I’m inside,” he yelled. The landscapers called police but didn’t free Young from the van, as there were machetes inside that he might have used as a weapon. Young, who had posted bail in an earlier case, was held on charges of burglary and criminal mischief. [NBC Miami, 2/12/2026]

Irony

A famous rock formation in Melendugno, Puglia, Italy, called Lovers’ Arch collapsed into the Adriatic Sea on Valentine’s Day, The Guardian reported. Strong storm surges and heavy rain pounded the area before the landmark fell. “It is a devastating blow to the heart,” said Melendugno Mayor Maurizio Cisternino. “Nature has been overturned.” [The Guardian, 2/16/2026]

Repeat Offender

Michael Delsid, 46, is no stranger to Fresno, California, police. KMPHTV reported that Delsid was arrested after a chase on Feb. 17 for the 36th time — in this incident, for evading police, reckless driving, and probation violations. Delsid’s criminal record dates back to 1994 and includes violent crimes, drug offenses, and property crimes. He is ineligible for bail. [KMPH, 2/18/2026]

Meanwhile, at the Olympics ... The real star of the Feb. 18 women’s cross country team sprint qualifying round in Lago di Tesero, Italy, was Nazgul, a 2-year-old Czechoslovakian wolfdog. NPR reported that as skiers flew across the finish line, Nazgul broke out of his doghouse and ran across, too — even being captured with the official finish line camera. The dog’s owner said Nazgul “just wanted to follow us. He always looks for people.” [NPR, 2/18/2026]

Wrong Plane, Wrong Time

Fox5 Atlanta reported on Feb. 10 that a passenger on a United Airlines flight boarded the wrong plane, then wondered why it was taking so long. The passenger intended to fly from Los Angeles to Managua, Nicaragua, through Houston. Six hours into the flight, he asked a flight attendant why it was taking so long to get to Houston — and realized he was on a flight to Tokyo. United Airlines paid for a two-night hotel stay as they worked out a new itinerary for the passenger and offered a $1,000 travel credit. [Fox5 Atlanta, 2/10/2026]

The Continuing Crisis

The Town of Phillipsburg, New Jersey, declared a local emergency on Feb. 17 after at least two sinkholes opened up on its streets, WFMZ-TV reported. A dump truck that was hauling asphalt to repair one sinkhole ended up falling into the ground, while farther down the street, a car fell into a hole. The dump truck also damaged a water main, which could not be repaired until the truck could be removed from the hole. Using ground-penetrating radar, officials located several different voids beneath the surface, said Mayor Randy Piazza. The emergency declaration allowed faster access to resources and assistance, town officials said. Public Works Director Matt Noel said eight homes were evacuated, and residents of other homes were encouraged to leave. [WFMZ, 2/18/2026]

Send your weird news items with subject line WEIRD NEWS to WeirdNewsTips@amuniversal.com.

NEWS OF THE WEIRD © 2026 Andrews McMeel Syndication. Reprinted with permission. All rights reserved.

FREE WILL ASTROLOGY By

TAURUS (April 20-May 20): My Taurus friend Elena keeps a “gratitude garden” in her backyard. When she feels grateful for a specific joy in her life, she writes it on biodegradable paper and buries it among her flowers, herbs, and vegetables. “I feed the earth with appreciation,” she says. “Returning the gift.” She feels this practice ensures that her garden and her life flourish. Her devoted attention to recognizing blessings attracts even more blessings. Her cultivated appreciation for beauty and abundance leads her to discover more beauty and abundance. Elena’s approach is pure Taurean genius. I invite you to create your own rituals for expressing your thankful love. Not just paying dutiful homage in your thoughts, but giving your appreciation weight, texture, and presence in the actual world.

GEMINI (May 21-June 20): Many of us periodically slip into the daydream that everything would finally feel right if only our lives were somehow different. If we’re single, maybe we imagine we ought to be partnered; if we’re partnered, we wish our beloved would change, or we secretly wonder about someone else entirely. That’s the snag. The blessing is this: In the days ahead, you’re likely to discover a surprising ease with your life exactly as it is, and feel a genuine, grounded peace. Congratulations in advance!

CANCER (June 21-July 22): A cautious voice in your head murmurs: “Proceed carefully. Don’t be overly impressed with your own beauty. Stick with dependable methods. Live up to expectations and avoid explorations into the unknown.” Your bold genius interrupts: “Tell that fussy, boring voice to shut up. The truth is that you have earned the right to be an inquisitive wanderer, an ingenious lover, a fanciful storyteller, and a laughing experimenter.”

LEO (July 23-Aug. 22): In medieval European gardens, there was a tradition of creating “pleasure labyrinths.” They were walking meditations that spiraled inward to a center, then back out again. There were no decisions and no wrong turns, just the relaxing, meditative journey itself. I think you need and deserve a metaphorical pleasure labyrinth right now, Leo. You’ve been treating every choice as a high-stakes dilemma and every path as potentially problematic. But what if the current phase isn’t about making the perfect decision? Maybe it’s about trusting that the path you’re on will take you where you need to go, even if it meanders. By cosmic decree, you are excused from second-guessing every turn.

VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22): Your eye for imperfection is a gift until it becomes the lens through which you see everything. The critical faculty that drives you to re-

fine and enhance may also shunt you into a dead end of never-being-good-enough, where impossible standards immobilize you. In the coming weeks, dear Virgo, I beg you to use your vaunted discernment primarily in the service of growth and pleasure rather than constraint. Be excited by buoyant analysis that empowers constructive change. Homework: For every flaw you identify, identify two things that are working well. You won’t ignore what needs attention, but instead will compensate for the excessive criticism that sometimes grips your inner critic.

LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22): You Libras shouldn’t expend excessive effort trying to force the external world to be more tranquil. That’s mostly a futile task that distracts from your more essential work. The secret to your happiness is to cultivate serenity within. How do you do that? One reliable way to shed tension is to continually place yourself in the presence of beauty. Nothing makes you relax better than being surrounded by elegance, grace, and loveliness. Now is a good time to recommit yourself to this key practice.

SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21): In computer science, there’s a concept called “graceful degradation.” When a system encounters an error, it doesn’t crash completely. It loses some functionality but keeps running with what remains. According to my reading of the astrological omens, Scorpio, you’d be wise to acknowledge a graceful degradation like that. Something isn’t working as you had hoped and planned. A relationship? Project? Adventure? In classic Scorpio fashion, you’re tempted to burn it all down. But I encourage you to practice graceful degradation instead. Keep what still works and release only what’s actually broken. Not everything has to be all-or-nothing. You can lose some functionality and still run. You can be partially out of whack and still be valuable. PS: The awkwardness is temporary.

SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21): At your best and brightest, you are a hunter — though not the kind who stalks prey with weapons and trophies in mind. Your hunt is noble: the fervent pursuit of adventures that nourish your curiosity and the brave forays you make into unfamiliar territories where intriguing new truths shimmer. And now, as the world drifts deeper into chaos, you are called to respond with even more exploratory audacity. I invite you to further refine your hunter’s craft. Lift it up to an even higher, more luminous form of seeking.

CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19): Capricorn meditation teacher Wes Nisker guided his students to relax the relentless mental static that muddled their awareness. But he also understood that

ARIES (March 21-April 19): Now is an excellent time to decide your favorite color is amaranth (a vivid red-violet), or sinopia (earthy red-orange), or viridian (cool blue-green, darker than jade). You might also conclude that your favorite aroma is agarwood (deep, smoky, resin-soaked wood), or heliotrope (cherry-almond vanilla), or petrichor (wet soil after a rain). I’m trying to tell you, Aries, that you’re primed to deeply enhance your detailed delight in smells, colors, tastes, feelings, physical sensations, types of wind, tones of voice, qualities of light — and everything else. Indulge in sensory and sensual pleasures!

excessive striving can sabotage the peace we’re seeking. I invoke his influence now to help you release some of the jittery goal-obsession you’ve been gripped by. Nisker and I offer you permission to temporarily suspend the potentially exhausting drive to constantly be better and more accomplished. Instead, just for now, simply be your authentic self. Loosen your high-strung grip on selfimprovement and allow yourself the radical luxury of purposelessness.

AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18): Here’s a danger you Aquarians are sometimes prey to: spending so much energy fixing the big picture that you neglect what’s up close and personal. You may get so involved in rearranging systems that immediate concerns get less than your best attention. I hope you won’t do that in the coming weeks. Your aptitude for overarching objectivity is a gift because it enables you to recognize patterns others can’t detect. But it may also divert you from the messy, intricate intimacy that gritty transforma tion requires. Your assignment: Eagerly attend to the details, which I bet will be more interesting than you imagine.

PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20): In horticulture, “hardening off” is the process of gradually exposing seedlings started indoors to outdoor conditions before transplanting them. Too much exposure too fast will shock them; no exposure at all will leave them unprepared. Let’s invoke this as a useful metaphor for you. I believe you are being hardened off, Pisces. Life is making small, increasing demands on your tender self. Though this may sometimes feel uncomfortable, I assure you that it’s preparation, not cruelty. You’re being readied for a shift from protected space to open ground. My advice is twofold: 1. Don’t retreat back into the ultra-safe greenhouse. 2. Don’t let yourself be thrown into full exposure all at once.

A Love Story

Ryan Murphy’s portrait of doomed lovers doesn’t just exist to shock.

For the last few years, pop culture enthusiasts like myself have taken part in a yearly ritual. We are united by Reddit threads, video essays, and deep dives separating fact from ction in a Ryan Murphy production. is year’s research project has been mixed with TikToks of New York women and girls in search of the perfect headband, eBay bids on the September 1996 issue of George magazine, and a statement from Daryl Hannah condemning her portrayal in FX’s Love Story. Murphy, known for camp classics like Nip/Tuck and Glee, has become infamous for taking creative liberties when depicting the lives of notable people. e new series follows an anthology-style similar to American Crime Story and Murphy’s Monster series on Net ix. e rst subjects are John F. Kennedy Jr. (Paul Anthony Kelly) and Carolyn BessetteKennedy (Sarah Pidgeon).

John, the son of former President John F. Kennedy, is drawn to the magnetic yet guarded Carolyn, a Calvin Klein

publicist. John and Carolyn’s dissimilar lifestyles appear plucked from the romcom lexicon, especially considering the idealized setting of New York City in the ’90s. Perhaps that’s what drew America’s curiosity at the time — Carolyn, pulled from obscurity, marries into American royalty by way of People magazine’s “Sexiest Man Alive.” Behind the tabloids and paparazzi snaps was something sadder — a woman who took a chance on love at the cost of her privacy. But there’s still so little known about Carolyn. Her life is much more interesting than just being a Kennedy wife.

ere’s much lore around John, too, given the Kennedy lineage. Murphy does an interesting job exploring his complexities and in uences. e rst few episodes focus heavily on his relationship with his mother, Jackie Kennedy-Onassis (Naomi Watts); and his sister Caroline (Grace Gummer) is a major force throughout the show. Kelly portrays John as a kind, grounded man who always welcomes interactions with strangers, and even carries the ashes of his ex’s dog

COURTESY FX

Paul Anthony Kelly as JFK Jr. and Sarah Pidgeon as Carolyn Bessette in Love Story

on a plane. As someone who didn’t grow up during John’s lifetime, I appreciate the focus on his humanity. Given the current state of the Kennedy name in politics, it was imperative for Murphy to portray what the family meant to the public years a er JFK’s assassination. John’s fame

wasn’t something he brought on himself and Love Story portrays him as a man America had cast their hopes and dreams on in the wake of grief. is, coupled with consistent loss and despair, creates sympathy for him, but can it completely excuse his propensity to keep up

PHOTO:

appearances when it comes at the price of his wife’s comfort?

The first few episodes work to define Carolyn and John individually before fleshing them out as a couple. This leaves the latter half feeling a bit rushed, especially as it aims to tackle their postnewlywed challenges. It all builds to the inevitable finale as John and Carolyn die in a plane crash alongside Carolyn’s sister Lauren (Sydney Lemmon). Though you’re braced for it, nothing can quite prepare you for its aftermath and impact. The latter half of the episode gives an intimate and harrowing look at Caroline Kennedy and Ann Messina Freeman (Constance Zimmer), Carolyn and Lauren’s mother. Gummer and Zimmer give visceral, raw portrayals of griefstricken family members grappling with

how to say farewell after a public tragedy. It’s not often that a show ends its run with the main characters’ deaths — even if it is inevitable. Love Story leads the audience to grieve in an uncomfortable, yet necessary way.

Pidgeon does a good job at capturing the essence of a woman who few really knew completely, while Kelly delivers as an American heartthrob begging to be understood. A soundtrack of bangers is an added bonus against the backdrop of a beautifully depicted ’90s NYC. Love Story is one of Murphy’s better biographical pieces, showing he can do more than create shock value.

Love Story: John F. Kennedy Jr. & Carolyn Bessette-Kennedy is now streaming on Hulu , Disney +, and more.

901-575-9400 classifieds@memphisflyer.com

EMPLOYMENT

HYOSUNG HICO, LTD.

Hyosung HICO, Ltd. has an opening for a full-time Sr. Test Lab Engineer - 2nd Shift (M-F 4p-12:30p) in Memphis, TN 38109. Duties include but are not limited to leading testing of power transformers; troubleshoot and diagnose testing equipment problems; prepare detailed test plans based on customer specification, test specification, nameplate, control drawings; maintain/ repair test equipment & ensure equipment is calibrated; ensure engineering changes are acted upon as required and communicate nonconformances to the quality assurance department. Provide work leadership and train junior engineers and test technicians. Prepare failure reports, provide technical expertise to MRB teams to troubleshoot and solve transformer testing issues; support of ongoing business activities such as the ISO-9001 program, daily and routine

initiatives, internal audits, customer visits or field assessments, testing issues or general QA/QC procedural matters. Assist with on-the-job training in the areas of testing. Bachelor’s or its foreign equivalent in Electrical or Electronics Engineering or related engineering field. Plus 5 years experience in transformer testing in heavy industries or utilities. Also needed are experience in Quality Assurance and Manufacturing Department procedures, performing electrical power tests, using inspection tools, instruments and equipment and performing test equipment and tool inspections and calibration. Up to 10% international or domestic travel for training/conferences. Email resumes to: careers@hyosung.com

SEDGWICK CLAIMS

MANAGEMENT SERVICES, INC. seeks Financial Planning & Analysis Advisor in Memphis, TN to partner with and support the leadership teams to achieve financial objectives.

SHARED HOUSING

ROOM FOR RENT

Midtown/Medical District. Furnished rooms, great area, wifi, and utilities included. $160 - $185 per week. 901-699-6962.

BUY, SELL, TRADE

In

PRINCETON

Plaintiff(s)

WALKER, HEIRS OF FRANCES F. WALKER, HEIRS OF GEORGE WALKER & ANY KNOWN AND UNKNOWN HEIRS Defendant(s)

It appearing from the complaint in this cause which is sworn to that:

COURT of Shelby County, Tennessee No. CH-25-0871

SOUTHEAST REGIONAL DEVELOPMENT CORPORATION

Plaintiff(s) V.

JIMMY L. WARREN, AND KNOWN AND UNKNOWN OWNERS

Defendant(s)

It appearing from the complaint in this cause which is sworn to that:

There are parties known and unknown and as prayed for in the Petition to Quiet Title filed on October 16, 2023, as to all previous owners of 5007 Wilburn Ave, Memphis, Tennessee 38117.

It is therefore ordered that they make themselves appearance herein at the court House of Shelby County, in the city of Memphis, Shelby County, TN on May 11, 2026 and answer plaintiffs complaint for Petition to Quiet Title or the same will be taken for confessed as to defendant(s), and set for hearing ex parte, and that a copy of this order be published once a week for four successive weeks in the Memphis Flyer.

This 9th day of March, 2026.

A True Copy - Attest:

W. Aaron Hall, Clerk & Master

Jocelyn V. Henderson

Attorney for Petitioner

Mar. 19, 26 and Apr. 2, 9 2026

There are parties known and unknown and as prayed for in the Petition to Quiet Title filed on June 13, 2025, as to all previous owners of 0 Williams Avenue, Memphis, TN 38126.

It is therefore ordered that they make themselves appearance herein at the court House of Shelby County, in the city of Memphis, Shelby County, TN on May 25, 2026 and answer plaintiffs complaint for Petition to Quiet Title or the same will be taken for confessed as to defendant(s), and set for hearing ex parte, and that a copy of this order be published once a week for four successive weeks in the Memphis Flyer. This 26th day of March, 2026

A True Copy – Attest:

W. Aaron Hall, Clerk & Master By Jocelyn V. Henderson

Jocelyn V. Henderson

Attorney for Petitioner Apr. 2, 9, 16, 23, 2026

THE LAST WORD By

Master Classes (at Home)

Discover your family’s hidden talents.

We’re a family of six: hubby, wife, and four teens — a 17-yearold, twin 14-year-olds, and a 12-year-old. And honestly, a spring break vacation out of town wasn’t in the cards for us this season. We have a few big bucket goals for the summer, so we needed to be mindful of our spending. Nevertheless, our spring break was still amazing!

Family members share their special skills, like cooking chicken and dumplings.

I strongly believe that everyone is a master at something, teens included. So we decided to host master classes! For six nights during the break, each family member would host a master class. e criteria for the classes were: It must be something you’re a master at. It must include a visual presentation. And it must include verbal and hands-on components. at’s it!

Here are the master classes we held: Mom (me): Chicken and Dumplings; Dad: How to Install a Mailbox; 17-year-old: How to Play the Bass Guitar and Piano; 14-year-old: Creative Ideas: Reading and Creating Music; 14-year-old: Genshin Impact: Building Characters for Maximum Damage; 12-year-old: Ballet: e Basics.

ese classes were a huge hit! I received ying colors for my master class about chicken and dumplings. I covered the importance of African-American cuisine and gave simple instructions on how to make the dish from scratch. While I got dinged for using cartoon pictures and real images in my presentation (who knew that was so taboo?), the hands-on portion was perfect. e teens loved attening the dough and cutting squares for the dumplings, although one twin was extremely disappointed when he realized I wasn’t making Asian-style dumplings. Dad also did a fantastic job for his master class. For his presentation, he gave a brief historical recount of the postal service and explained the regulations for installing a mailbox. e kids mixed the concrete, measured for depth and distance from the curb, and installed our new mailbox. I watched, walked around, and “hmmmed” at the appropriate moments. It was fascinating.

I would suggest that all families put on a series of master classes in their homes.

e master class on Genshin Impact, a video game, was very insightful. We learned how to equip our character with artifacts so it could do maximum damage to an enemy. But even when you’re equipped with the most powerful artifacts, you can still lose if you don’t know how to ght. Or more speci cally, what buttons to push to ght and when to push them. It takes a lot of talent to play this game and win.

Ballet: e Basics was wonderful. e boys got rsthand insight into what their little sister does for ve and a half hours a week. We covered rst, second, and third positions as well as a few French words I am not familiar with. Skills were learned, balance was lost, and more importantly, I realized I need to stretch a lot more!

e Creative Ideas: Reading and Creating Music was … wow! I did not realize my teenager was so talented. We used Musescore to create the music. He said this was the easiest for us to learn with. I chose the saxophone as the instrument and learning proceeded. He taught us how to read a blank music sheet and how to add notes, too. He even used words like tempo, beats, and other musical phrases I can’t recall. Mostly, I just sat there in awe! Mr. Breaux (concert band teacher at the Maxine Smith STEAM Academy), you’re doing a fantastic job!

My 17-year-old son also had a musical master class. He showed us how to read and play di erent notes on the piano and on bass guitar. (I know you’re probably thinking we’re such a musical family that the parents must have major talent, but we don’t. My husband and I cannot play any instrument, nor can we hold a note or a tune.) I selected piano as my instrument because we have these cute little stickers on the keys to help us identify each note. A er learning the notes and a quick jingle, there was a surprise exam! An exam!? Needless to say, I have a little more work to do.

ese classes have given me a glimpse into what my teens are doing when they spend hours in their rooms. ey’re creating and cultivating skills beyond my wildest dreams. I would suggest that all families put on a series of master classes in their homes. You never know what you might discover.

P.S. Would other Memphis teens be interested in showcasing their master talents? Hit me up on IG: memphisismyboyfriend. Patricia Lockhart is a native Memphian who loves to read, write, cook, and eat. By day, she’s a librarian and writer, but by night … she’s asleep.

PHOTOS: PATRICIA LOCKHART

Turn static files into dynamic content formats.

Create a flipbook