I’m learning to walk again. It was odd at rst. A er more than two months of being unable to bear weight on my le foot a er an April 13th fall, broken bones, and three subsequent surgeries, my brain had begun to rewire itself not to, under any circumstance, step on that foot — or else. Or else, what? I wasn’t sure of the medical speci cs, other than it would undoubtedly hurt and it could hinder the healing. Incredibly cautious and afraid of the consequences, I have exercised great care in this endeavor and have become increasingly skilled at hopping on one foot while using a walker and balancing on the good foot while standing. Not skills I’d ever thought I’d master, but hey, my right leg is a lot stronger now. And I can challenge anyone to a standing-on-one-foot timed battle. Who’s up for it?
SHARA CLARK
Editor-in-Chief
ABIGAIL MORICI
Managing Editor
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Senior Editors
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Since I was given the green light from the surgeon to bear weight — still with caution, and in an orthopedic boot — I’ve had to relearn, in a way, how to walk. At rst, I was scared. Is my ankle going to collapse when I stand? Will the titanium plate snap out of place? Are fragments of my healing tibia and bula going to crumble again beneath the weight of my body? And beyond that, it just felt downright weird to put that foot on the ground — tingly, as if it had just awoken from a monthslong slumber, burning a bit as the nerves reignited to do the job they’ve done for decades. Just like riding a bike, I suppose, but accompanied by some strange lighting strikes of pain and a brain that didn’t want to cooperate.
Last week, it started slowly, a step here and there as I remembered how to put one foot in front of the other, how to balance on two legs, expecting it to hurt. And it has.
A er the rst full day of “walking” — some with a walker and some without, still in the boot and a little o -kilter — it felt like I’d traversed the expanse of Disney World, stood in long lines, and su ered the sorest feet (or foot) I’d ever felt. But the most I’d done was walk from the parking lot into the movie theater for a showing of Inside Out 2. (It was a great movie, by the way. I might have enjoyed it more than my niece and nephew. Among others, the part about losing joy as we grow up got me right in the feels.)
In this experience of learning to walk again, nding balance, and rewiring my brain to physically move forward once more, I’m struck with the notion that this applies to other parts of my life. Much has changed for me in the past year — in nearly equal parts good and bad — and even more in the last few months. In more than the literal sense, I’m learning to walk again — in the same environment with new characters, new challenges, new feelings I have to feel my way through. Sometimes it’s like looking at a dusty old box of pictures and letters with yellowing pages, so crisp as you pull at the folds. ere’s not a lot of room for looking back though — wallowing in the holes le by a sister that’s moved far away, a dog that’s died, friendships that have grown apart. It stings and burns and pulls at the heart strings in a way that’s not conducive to the forward momentum needed to inspire those steps toward the future. And a voice inside quietly says, “Don’t look at them. It’s going to hurt.”
If you can rely on nothing else, you can on this: Change is a constant. We may want to cry and holler and resist when it comes, but it’s inevitable. In embracing mine, and in relearning to walk — literally and guratively — I’ll try to muster the joy and gleeful vigor that’s seen in a baby taking its rst steps. e whole world is new from an upright position, waddling unbalanced to and fro, tripping and falling down now and then. Both feet on the ground, wide eyes and a toothy grin, and so much — a lifetime — to look forward to.
Shara Clark shara@memphis yer.com
PHOTO: YOUJNII | DREAMSTIME.COM Baby steps rst
fly-by
{ STATE WATCH
By Kailynn Johnson
Questions, Answers + Attitude
Edited by Toby Sells
Memphis on the internet.
NIGHTTIME VISITOR
West Overton Crossing neighbor
John G. said he heard a loud knock on his door one night last week. His Ring camera showed nothing. So he peeked outside but saw no one.
“I had this weird feeling like someone was watching me from across the street so I snapped a photo [above],” he said.
A tech-savvy Nextdoor user
Bobby Anderson downloaded the photo, adjusted the image settings, and revealed this:
In the adjusted image, you can just make out the gure of a person who seems to be in all black standing on the porch across the street.
John G. had not posted an update on the situation as of press time. So it remains just … creepy.
“DRINKING
HOLES”
UK tourist and bar enthusiast Ryan Hutchinson posted on Facebook last week that “Alex’s Tavern and Earnestine and Hazel’s in Memphis, TN, delivered the goods. Unpretentious, real drinking holes.”
‘Freedom
to Be Heard’
State Democrats take battle for diversity, equity, and inclusion on the
As opponents of diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives are working to erase these practices from the workplace, state political leaders are working to emphasize their importance and e ectiveness.
“In recent years, state Republican o cials have cheered the Supreme Court ruling overturning a rmative action, passed several ‘divisive concepts’ laws targeting speech at K-12 public schools and colleges, proposed legislation to ban DEI policies at public universities, established a process to ban books, and threatened lawsuits against companies that employ DEI tactics,” the Tennessee Senate Democratic Caucus said in a statement.
PHOTO: TENNESSEE SENATE DEMOCRATS
Lawmakers warned of threats to DEI on the state and national levels.
Tennessee Senate Minority Leader Raumesh Akbari (D-Memphis) and House Minority Leader Karen Camper (D-Memphis) held a eld hearing in Memphis last Monday at the National Civil Rights Museum. Akbari and Camper were joined by representatives Justin J. Pearson (D-Memphis), Jesse Chism (D-Memphis), and Senator Sara Kyle (D-Memphis). During this hearing, legislators were able to hear from community and state advocates about the importance of DEI practices in their respective work.
“It’s not just about honoring the past, but also about shaping a better future.”
Akbari said Memphis was the rst stop on their “Freedom to Be Heard” tour, which will head toward Nashville and possibly a location in East Tennessee.
During the hearing, Akbari said there are threats to DEI policies on the local and national level, and she and other lawmakers wanted to hear community input on programs and policies currently in place.
Veda Ajamu, chief DEI programs and community engagement o cer at the National Civil Rights Museum, said a major component of the museum’s success and vision is their ability to facilitate “tough conservations.” Ajamu said this includes “inequities that a ect society,” and they address these by way of the Corporate Equity Center and community engagement programming.
Ajamu explained that the Corporate Equity Center
uses the historical signi cance of the museum through “strategic programming” that seeks to “transform workplace environments.” e Corporate Equity Center currently has two programs to promote equitable decisionmaking — the C-Suite Initiative and the Unpacking Racism for Action program.
“ e ongoing importance of this work lies in the transformative potential to challenge biases, promote equity, and foster a more inclusive and just society for generations to come,” Ajamu said. “It’s not just about honoring the past, but also about shaping a better future grounded in truth, justice, and respect for diverse histories and experiences.”
Michelle Taylor, director of the Shelby County Health Department, said racial disparities are also apparent in healthcare, and these disparities are the result of systemic inequities as well. For context, she told an anecdote about how the health department had historically used unequal practices for vital record keeping for Black and white patients.
“Elected o cials understand how important vital records are,” Taylor said. “Vital records are used by local, state, and federal o cials to make decisions about funding. … If they [the health department] were color-categorizing between 1901 and 1971, we also know those funding decisions were di erent based on race.”
Taylor said the amount of health issues and disparities apparent in the community are a result of an “uphill battle” that started years ago. She added that this is also evident in geographical inequities, where Black residents are disproportionately a ected by certain health epidemics such as lead poisoning, infant mortality, and life expectancy.
Others explained the importance of DEI outreach in their programs and businesses such as FedEx and the Mid-South Minority Business Council Continuum.
POSTED TO NEXTDOOR BY JOHN G.
POSTED TO FACEBOOK BY RYAN HUTCHINSON
POSTED TO NEXTDOOR BY BOBBY ANDERSON
road.
MY HEALTH is our health
Since welcoming little one, life expanded while my world contracted.
More complexity, less time
Every day I advocate for my baby whether it’s at daycare or the doctor’s office.
And every day, I push off one thing my own health.
Cardiovascular disease is the #1 killer of new moms, with risks can last for months post-partum.
So, I’m taking action and starting the conversation, with not just my doctor, but with other moms I know, too.
Because not only do I want to be a great mom — I want to be a mom for a very long time.
Locally supported by
Trans Protections Blocked { LGBTQ
By Toby Sells
federal judge will temporarily allow some transgender discrimination in Tennessee and other states, skirting new changes to Title IX.
ose changes came in President Joe Biden’s rst day in o ce with an executive order that added gender identity and sexual orientation to the anti-discrimination law. Biden later extended those protections to educational environments in rules set to go into effect on August 1st. All of these changes came a er the 2020 U.S. Supreme Court ruling that prohibited companies from ring a person on the basis of gender identity and sexual orientation.
In April, Tennessee led a coalition in a lawsuit to block Biden’s new additions to Title IX. e group included Kentucky, Ohio, Indiana, West Virginia, Virginia, Christian Educators Association International (CEAI), and “A.C.,” a 15-year-old high school girl who lives in West Virginia.
e states argued that the new law would chill free speech and religious freedom because teachers would, under
the new rules, have to use a student’s “preferred pronouns,” according to the suit. e law would also mandate schools to open up bathrooms and locker rooms to all genders. e states also argued that the new rules subverted congressional review and overreached into states’ powers to make such laws.
CEAI opposed the rules on grounds of free speech and shared private facilities. Its members — particularly educators in K-12 public schools — wish to “live and work consistent with their shared belief that God created human beings as male and female and that sex is an immutable trait.”
A.C., the 15-year-old student, said a transgender female was allowed to compete on her middle-school track team. e other student’s biology is an unfair advantage, A.C. said, and she did not feel comfortable dressing in front of the other student.
A federal judge agreed with the plainti s in a ruling last Tuesday. “ ere are two sexes: male and female,” wrote Chief Judge Danny Reeves,
“Schools and universities would have to let boys into girls’ locker rooms and other private spaces.”
United States District Court of Eastern Kentucky. But Reeves said in a footnote that the statement was conceded by U.S. Department of Education o cials in oral arguments. “ e parties have agreed to little else.”
Reeves ordered a preliminary injunction against the new rules but only in those states who joined in the lawsuit.
e stay extends to the Christian educators group, A.C., and those six states.
“If the rule we stopped had been allowed to go into e ect on August 1st as scheduled, Tennessee schools and universities would have to let boys into girls’ locker rooms and other private spaces,” Tennessee Attorney General Jonathan Skrmetti said in a statement.
“If the rule went into e ect, our schools would have to punish teachers and students who declined to use someone’s preferred pronouns.
“ ese are profound changes to the law that the American people never agreed to. is rule was a huge overreach by federal bureaucrats, and the court was right to stop it.”
Chris Sanders, executive director of the Tennessee Equality Project, said, “We have a state government going into battle against trans and nonbinary students via their pronouns,” in an opinion piece in e Tennessean last Monday.
“Students are better served by policies that respect their identities,” Sanders said. “ ey are at school to get an education without barriers, not to serve as an opportunity for adults to exercise virtue by choice.
“Experiencing an agent of the state using the wrong pronoun in front of one’s peers day a er day is something students should not endure. Government employees should not have more of a right to de ne a student’s identity than the student does.”
By Jackson Baker
Hot Night, Hot Words
Shelby County Republicans get red up at their annual gala.
Say this about the Shelby County GOP: Demographic shi s in recent years have made it di cult to impossible for local Republicans to win a countywide race.
But they sure can turn out in impressive numbers for their annual Lincoln Day banquet, the most recent installment of which was held Sunday at the East Memphis Hilton on Ridge Lake Boulevard.
e keynoter this year was Kristi Noem, governor of South Dakota, who, a er being introduced to the crowd by 8th District Congressman David Kusto , said she intended to have “a family discussion” with them.
“If you know anything about me, you probably know that I’m a farmer and rancher who has run businesses my whole life,” she said, and, indeed, an introductory video had included some interesting rustic images of her, notably one of her galloping aboard a high-spirited horse across the Dakota plains.
moderation in the pursuit of Republican goals was treated as anything but a virtue Sunday night. State Republican chairman Scott Golden riled the crowd up with his assertion that no fewer than “103 liberal, Communist le -wing groups” had registered to protest at this summer’s forthcoming GOP convention.
And there was a culminating speech from state Senator Brent Taylor, whose persona and nonstop crusade to oust Democratic District Attorney Steve Mulroy are both ubiquitous phenomena these days.
Taylor, who was presented with an award Sunday night for his “outstanding public service” and, with his signi cant nancial support of the gala, was designated as the event’s “title sponsor,” did his best to make his anti-Mulroy vendetta a predominant theme of the evening.
Actually, she is best known — both locally and everywhere else — as having quite recently been a likely, maybe even probable, choice of Donald Trump to be his vice presidential running mate in the forthcoming election.
But that was before news leaks of the content in her just-published memoir, No Going Back, which contained, among other things, her account of having shot to death — executed, as shocked critics, not all of them Democrats, would allege — a young hunting dog that, for various reasons, she had become dissatis ed with.
And the deed was done at a gravel pit. Not the best family-style imagery to boost her veep chances, even for the hyper-aggressive Trump. So, even though Noem’s notoriety made her a good draw for this year’s banquet, there was no going back for her vice-presidential boom.
e MAGA-minded Noem’s own accounting for her choice of book title was to forswear any going back to “the Mitt Romneys and the Cheneys and the Bushes” and their purportedly go-alongto-get-along ways.
Recalling a once-famous phrase of the late GOP icon Barry Goldwater,
Last week, as the senator reminded his audience, he had sworn to introduce legislation next year to remove Mulroy from o ce via two-thirds votes in both chambers of the legislature.
With an assist from Golden, who had characterized Mulroy as a “Soros-minded” DA — meaning a tool of philanthropist-mega-activist George Soros, an international bogeyman for conservatives — Taylor invited the crowd to share his enthusiasm for a purge of Mulroy. e DA was savaged for sins ranging from alleged so ness in bail policy to an abortive proposal to o er a diversion program to previous nonviolent o enders apprehended for illegal possession of rearms.
“Make no mistake!” thundered Taylor. “Our community is less safe” because of the DA with his “restorative justice system.” He called for “maintaining the Memphis middle class by making Mulroy meaningless.”
Since the dinner, Taylor has upped the ante, establishing a “hotline” to receive input from crime victims, current or former sta members, or “anyone with information relative to the ouster resolution.”
Meanwhile, a er the re and brimstone of the Lincoln Day gala, attendees have the opportunity, for better or for worse , to enjoy some quiet reading time. Each person present received a copy of Governor Noem’s book, which is subtitled “ e Truth on What’s Wrong with Politics and How We Move America Forward.”
PHOTO: JACKSON BAKER David Kusto and Governor Noem at Lincoln Day
The Great Debate
An advance look at this week’s big show.
“Hello, I’m Jake Tapper, here with Dana Bash to moderate the rst presidential debate of 2024 between President Joe Biden and Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump. Dana?”
“ ank you, Jake. Our rst question goes to you, President Biden, and it’s this: Would you rather sink with a batterypowered boat and risk electrocution or be eaten by a shark?”
“Why, what kinda malarkey question is that?”
“It’s an issue that Mr. Trump has raised in several speeches and we’d like your response.”
“Well, it’s a stupid question because I don’t think a boat battery would electrocute you, but I guess I’d choose going down with the boat. A shark attack would be a painful death.”
“ ank you, President Biden. Now, Mr. Trump, your rst question: You’ve said you’re in favor of posting the Ten Commandments in public schools. How many of the Ten Commandments can you name?”
“ ou shouldn’t steal! What’s wrong with posting that in schools? ey stole an election from me! Stop the steal. e Ten Commandments. Has anyone read this incredible stu ? My uncle taught at MIT, so I’m pretty smart, believe me. at being said, I really can’t pick a favorite commandment. ey’re all great.”
her own healthcare decisions? What about new gun laws? What about climate change? Ukraine and Russia? Israel and Hamas? ese are the issues we should be talking about!”
“Be that as it may, Mr. President, we’d like to know where you stand on water pressure. Mr. Trump alleges that in America water just drips from showers and he can’t get his hair wet enough. We’d also like to know how your administration plans to deal with cancercausing windmills.”
“Windmills don’t cause cancer!
at’s nuts! And I don’t care what my predecessor says about faucets. His hair is a joke, anyway.”
“President Biden, we ask that you refrain from personal attacks and stay on the issues. Mr. Trump has recently proposed that the UFC stage a series of bouts between its ghters and ‘migrants.’ If a migrant wins, he gets to stay in the country. Mr. Trump has also proposed that any immigrant who graduates from any college would get an automatic green card. Your response?”
“I would point out that Mr. Trump is also proposing to round up and deport millions of immigrants on his rst day in o ce. Which is it?
“ ank you, Mr. Trump. Back to you, Jake.”
“ ank you, Dana. President Biden, I’d like you to address another issue raised by Mr. Trump: Speci cally, what do you think about Hannibal Lecter? Mr. Trump says, ‘ e late, great Hannibal Lecter said nice things about me.’ How do you feel about Mr. Lecter and his comments?”
“What?? Hannibal Lecter is a ctional horror-movie character. He was a cannibal. He never said anything about Donald Trump. at’s crazy.”
“So, President Biden, you have no opinion about Mr. Lecter? You’re silent as a lamb?”
“ is is ridiculous! Since I’ve been president, we’ve had the two strongest years of job growth in U.S. history. My administration has created 11 million jobs since 2021. I stood up to OPEC and have brought gas prices down by almost $2 a gallon. And what about a woman’s right to control her own body and make
Green cards or deportation or UFC ghts? He has no coherent policy on immigration. Why aren’t you asking him how he plans to do any of this and how much it will cost?”
“President Biden, with all due respect, we need you to stay on topic. Mr. Trump said in a speech last weekend that you plan to name a military base a er Al Sharpton. Is this true?”
“What??? No, of course not. What is wrong with you people? We now have a 3.5 percent unemployment rate — the lowest in 50 years. Mr. Trump talked about infrastructure for four years and did nothing. We passed an infrastructure bill that’s creating needed projects in all 50 states. Sixteen million households are now getting low-cost or free high-speed internet. We passed the rst signi cant gun reform legislation in 30 years. ese are the issues we need to be discussing, not sharks and windmills and UFC matches and Trump’s faucets.”
“Back to you, Dana.”
“ anks, Jake. President Biden, one nal question: How old are you and can you nd your way o this stage?”
PHOTO: GVISION | DREAMSTIME.COM Sharks or electrocution?
Personal Planning
ost people realize the importance of saving and investing for the future, but only 32 percent of Americans have a written nancial plan in place to help them prioritize their goals and track their progress.
If you’ve been putting o establishing a nancial plan, you may want to reconsider. Following are ve ways a comprehensive nancial plan can help improve your nancial outlook.
1. A nancial plan serves as a map to guide you toward achieving your nancial goals.
One of the bene ts of creating a personal nancial plan is that it identi es and prioritizes your goals and objectives. Achieving major goals such as planning for retirement, paying for a child’s college education, making a large purchase, paying down debt, etc. requires focus and determination. A nancial plan can guide your decisionmaking and coordinate the various elements of your nancial life to help ensure they’re working together toward achieving your goals.
also help you protect it. If not properly planned for, risks such as a medical emergency, an accident, a lawsuit, or a natural disaster can quickly jeopardize everything you’ve worked so hard to accomplish.
A thorough and well-designed nancial plan will include personalized insurance and asset protection strategies to help protect your wealth and loved ones from unexpected risks.
4. A nancial plan can guide your investment strategy.
Without a nancial plan in place, it can be di cult to determine whether your investment strategy meets your ever-evolving needs and goals. Instead, a well-cra ed plan recognizes that your investments play a crucial role in supporting you as you navigate the di erent stages of your nancial life. By having a nancial plan in place, you can implement long-term investment strategies that allow you to take advantage of opportunities during periods of volatility while also protecting your assets against loss during market downturns.
5. A nancial plan can assist you in leaving a nancial legacy.
2. A nancial plan can help you feel more con dent about your future.
A study conducted by Charles Schwab indicated that 54 percent of people with a nancial plan feel con dent they’ll be able to reach their nancial goals, yet only 18 percent of those without a plan have the same level of con dence.
Creating a comprehensive nancial plan to guide your decision-making can be a big step toward helping you feel more con dent and in control of your nancial future.
3. A nancial plan can assist in protecting your family and managing your risk.
A comprehensive nancial plan not only helps you build wealth but can
If your goals include leaving a nancial legacy for the people and causes that matter most to you, it’s important to have a proper plan in place. Incorporating estate planning as part of your overall nancial strategy can help ensure your assets are distributed according to your wishes and in the most tax-e cient manner possible. Your nancial plan can also help you identify opportunities to support charitable causes both during your lifetime and a er your death, such as through a donor-advised fund or charitable trust.
Gene Gard, CFA, CFP, CFT-I, is a Partner and Private Wealth Manager with Creative Planning. Creative Planning is one of the nation’s largest Registered Investment Advisory rms providing comprehensive wealth management services to ensure all elements of a client’s nancial life are working together, including investments, taxes, estate planning, and risk management. For more information or to request a free, no-obligation consultation, visit CreativePlanning.com.
Call today or apply online to refinance your car, truck, or SUV. Plus, make no payments for up to 90 days!
PHOTO: MICHEILE HENDERSON | UNSPLASH Plant seeds for success.
COVER STORY
By Samuel X. Cicci, Michael Donahue, & Alex Greene
Our writers dug into Madison Tavern’s char-grilled fruit and a sausage-and-cheese board for latenight apps, and a bit of breakfast.
Late-Night Eats
Night owls get hungry, too. So the Memphis Flyer once again selected a few places where those birds of a feather can savor delicious cuisine until midnight or later while the early birds concentrate on catching the worms.
We headed to three restaurants that don’t shut their doors at 10 p.m. ese places accommodate people out on the town who might be hungry a er a movie, a concert, or a play. Or even if they’re hungry again because their early dinner has worn o .
Madison Tavern
Madison Tavern was always supposed to be a place that could accommodate people who wanted to eat a meal later in
the evening, at 10 p.m. or a er.
Tim Quinn, who owns Madison Tavern (the former Local on the Square) with his wife, Tarrah, wanted the restaurant/bar at 2126 Madison Avenue to be available for people who might be hungry a er they’ve seen a play or heard some music in Overton Square. It opens at 11 a.m., but people can order food until last call, which depends on how late they stay open. It could be 1:30 a.m. or later.
ey feature “an America menu” with “Southern-in uenced” fare, Tim says.
Previously, people could only order appetizers a er 10 p.m., but Tim recently added a “late-night menu” with more items.
On our visit for this story, we tried several culinary delights, including the sausage-and-cheese board, hot wings, and, my favorite, the “Char-Grilled Fruit Board,” which includes a grilled watermelon with agave syrup and nished with sea salt. It’s now one of my top favorite things to eat in Memphis. I want to re up my grill and make these every night.
People can order all of their appetizers late at night. ese include fried green tomatoes served with horseradish, pretzel sticks served with Dijon and queso, elote queso and chips, a fried shrimp basket served with cocktail sauce and house slaw, and cheesy toast served with marinara and a choice of shrimp or craw sh. e tamales with a choice of queso,
tomatillo, or red chili sauce, are no longer on the appetizer list. ey’re now on the new late-night menu, and they’ve been improved. ey still come with the same sauces, but the new ones are made by their chef, Jose Reyes. ey’re handmade and come from Reyes’ grandmother’s recipe.
Tim recently began Tamale Tuesday, which features the new tamales.
e tamales on the appetizer list were replaced with braised beef egg rolls. Also on the new late-night menu are tacos, a smash burger, sliders, and their famous grilled cheese sandwich, which Tim describes as “a staple in American history.”
Tim began making grilled cheese sandwiches with Adam Hall and friends with their team at the Memphis Grilled Cheese Festival. Hall came up with the sandwich, which is made with grilled chicken, bu alo sauce, white cheddar cheese, and regular white bread. He puts a mixture of butter and Miracle Whip on the bread and toasts it.
Courtnee Wall, who was with us the night we dined at Madison Tavern, tried some of my “Breakfast Plate,” which is on the entrée list. You get a choice of steak (that was my choice, and it was superb) or fried chicken breast. It’s served with a wa e, eggs, and home fries. She thought that should de nitely be on the
PHOTOS: MICHAEL DONAHUE
Blues City Café is synonymous with good grub, like its tamales, cheese fries, and cat sh.
late-night menu.
e happy news is I recently learned that breakfast is available all day. And Tim tells me that the steak I liked so much is “tallow-injected rib eye.” Tallow is beef fat. “ e good fat.”
“We cut those to order,” he adds.
When I ask if people can order other menu items besides appetizers and latenight items, Tim says, “Hey, you know what? If it’s not busy and we’ve got the opportunity, there’s no reason to say no.
“Most de nitely if you slide in there and you’ve seen a show at Lafayette’s and didn’t have a chance to have dinner — they have great food, but should you have missed out — if we can make it, why would we say no? We’d like to stick to our menu. at’s where you nd consistency. But, hopefully, we’ve got enough talent in the kitchen to knock something out for you if we’ve got the demand.” — Michael Donahue
Blues City Café
In the quest for good grub during the wilder hours of the night in Memphis, one option is too o en forgotten by anyone living east of Danny omas. Sitting at the entrance to the heavily peopled Beale Street, this ne eatery is so obvious that you might say it’s hiding in plain sight: Blues City Café.
But if you’ve ever dined there while having a night on Beale Street, you already know that its name is synonymous with good grub; a er all, it started out under the venerable name “Doe’s Eat Place,” back in the ’90s. At this café, as with all the joints on this late night eats quest, the food is dynamite.
Another draw for me is that Blues City Café is on the periphery of Beale proper, and thus amenable to a quick bite or take-out order even if you’re not feeling Beale-tastic. If Beale is raging the way that only Beale can rage, but you’ve just had one of those days, you can simply pop into the restaurant’s Second Street entrance without running the gauntlet of the cobblestone crowd. Once you’re there, however, there’s no guarantee the convivial spirit and swinging, rootsy music won’t turn “one of those days” into “one of those nights,” and you nd yourself feeling very Beale-tastic indeed.
e food alone could accomplish that, of course, evoking as it does every backyard hootenanny and barbecue party of your dreams. I’ve dined at other establishments where that party could be from Anywhere, U.S.A., but it’s not for nothing that Blues City Café’s motto is “Put Some South in Your Mouth.” It’s a virtual tour through the Mid-South, with top-notch ribs, cat sh, turnip greens, tamales, and a “Memphis Soul Stew,” but it also makes stops in Louisiana, for gumbo, and Kan-
sas City, for steak.
But I usually go for the MississippiArkansas-Tennessee tamales. at unforeseen hybrid of Latino and rural Southern culture that became a thing in itself, the Southern tamale is a delicious echo of Mississippi Delta culture, and it pairs well with the music that lls the air at Blues City. at, in turn, goes back to Blues City’s very origins.
“Doe’s Eat Place” is a veritable institution in Greenville, Mississippi, at one time Dominick “Big Doe” Signa’s grocery store, morphing into a restaurant that challenged segregationist conventions due to the cross-cultural appeal of their food, especially their tamales. at reputation has carried on unabated in the hands of Big Doe’s descendants, as when Doe’s was named an “American Classic” restaurant by the James Beard Foundation in 2007.
Entrepreneur George Eldridge was aiming to carry on in that tradition when
he opened a new “Doe’s Eat Place” on the corner of Second and Beale in 1991.
ough it was only two years before other investors joined and redubbed the place “Blues City Café,” Eldridge’s commitment to good tamales lived on.
As Blues City general manager Jason Ralph tells me, “George Eldridge started serving the tamales, and he still has the Doe’s over in Little Rock. en he has a place called the Tamale Factory over in Gregory, Arkansas. So we circled back to him a few years ago, and since then it’s come kind of full circle and we use tamales that he produces at the Tamale Factory in Gregory. at was a pretty cool day when we went back to serving the original tamales that they used to make here.”
So there’s a credible back story behind Blues City’s claim to serve the “World’s Best Tamales.” And I guess my purchasing habits would be Exhibit A in support
of that statement. When I sometimes sit in on organ with Earl “ e Pearl” Banks and e People of the Blues in the Band Box room (where you can dine or not, to your preference), I’m o en picturing those tamales as my reward for a hard day’s night. Not only do you get three or six fresh corn masa tamales, steamed in their wraps, stu ed with beef, pepper, and spices, but you get homemade chili on the side. Hearty fare indeed for the people of the blues!
If you follow suit, look for Edgar
continued on page 14
PHOTOS: JAY ADKINS
continued from page 13
Momma’s serves up lasagna, a fried chicken sandwich, burgers, and lots and lots of co ee.
among the servers there. “He has been here since the beginning. He tells me stories about it,” says Ralph. Edgar can also tell you about other favorite dishes at Blues City over the years, like the café’s most popular item, the pork ribs.
“ e ribs came from chef Vonnie Mack, who was with Doe’s Eat Place originally as well,” says Ralph. “He developed the sauce and our style of ribs, and we kind of stay true to that. We slow smoke them in the smoker out back until they’re so tender they fall o the bone. e ribs are by far our most famous item, that and the cat sh. And then for late night, people tend to order the golden fried chicken tenders or the cat sh. Or lately we’ve seen a lot of orders of the cheese fries, where we put gumbo or the barbecue on top of it.”
Like I said, Blues City Café is the hootenanny barbecue party of your dreams, and they’re open Sunday through ursday until 1 a.m., Friday and Saturday until 3 a.m. — Alex Greene
Momma’s e revving of motorcycle engines grumbled in the air as we moseyed into Momma’s on a balmy Wednesday night. e rst, or last, bar in Memphis, depending on which way you’re headed, sits just o I-55 at 855 Kentucky Street, the site of the former Dirty Crow Inn, and close to the Memphis-Arkansas Bridge. We’d wandered in during bike night, with plenty of motorcyclists sitting in the patio corner enjoying plenty of brews. e trucker-themed bar sees lots of visitors who are just passing through (there’s plenty of space to park a semi), but the menu has something for everyone.
It was getting fairly late when we arrived, but we were in luck. For when the hunger pangs hit long a er dark, Momma’s has you covered. e bar is open until 1 a.m. Sunday through ursday and until 3 a.m. Friday and Saturday, and the kitchen keeps the griddle hot until an hour before closing. Anyone hanging out past their bedtime Downtown will have a much better alternative to Taco Bell. e menu boasts plenty of easy comfort options; think all the dishes that, er, momma used to make. On Wednesdays, the chefs whip up their lasagna special, a comfortable glob that combines a warm blanket of ricotta, Parmesan, and mozzarella cheese, ably abetted by a smooth marinara sauce and a big helping of ground beef. Coupled with a small plate of deviled eggs, supported by bacon bits and a healthy sprinkling of smoked paprika, it made for a ne start to the evening.
Of course, with this being another
late-night excursion, Michael Donahue requested several cups of co ee, while I deferred to the Express-O Martini for my ca eine kick, a mix of Smirno vanilla vodka, cream, Disaronno amaretto, and a ground espresso shot, topped with three co ee beans for good measure.
e main courses arrived to our table just as the toll of another a er-hours jaunt hit our weary bones. ere’s never not a good a time to order a fried chicken sandwich, but that crispy, spicy crunch just hits di erently a er wandering around Downtown hopped up on the buzz of a few beers. e Firebird slaps a he y chunk of chicken between two buns and spruces it up with bacon slices, pickles, fried onions, melted Swiss and cheddar
cheese, and slathers Memphis Mojo sauce atop it all. I needed another jolt to avoid a food coma, so my attention turned to the Diablo burger. Cooked medium rare, the patty provides the foundation for this “one hot momma,” mixing several di erent hits of spice with sauteed jalapeños and ghost pepper cheese.
For those craving the most important meal of the day while under the moonlight, the Bacon-Egg-N-Cheeseburger comes as advertised, reminiscent of nocturnal treks to CKs or other all-nighter breakfast places. By the way, if you nd yourself out and about so late that night has turned to dawn, Momma’s does have a full breakfast menu from 7 a.m. to 11 a.m.
A lot of truckers and bikers pass through, but weekly events have pulled back a decent group of regulars. ere’s the aforementioned bike night, but Momma’s also holds Redneck Trivia
(Mondays), Industry Night (Tuesdays), and Ladies Night ( ursdays), among others. And it’s safe to expect some sort of live performance most nights per week to o er late-night snacks and a show.
Momma’s fell o the radar a bit when it closed in 2021, due to a mixture of Covid and renovations. It opened back up in August of 2023 with a few improvements: namely, a much-expanded patio overlooking Kentucky Street, decked with extra tables and, crucially, a music stage. During our visit, singer-songwriter Max Kaplan took to the stage and serenaded diners with a mix of popular covers by request. It’s probably the rst time I’ve heard a solo blues-tinged take on Britney Spears’ “Baby One More Time.” But there was no loneliness killing us, or any diners, as we all enjoyed smooth tunes, some fried chicken sandwiches, and a fun night out under the stars. — Samuel X. Cicci
PHOTOS: MICHAEL DONAHUE / SAMUEL X. CICCI
steppin’ out
We Recommend: Culture, News + Reviews
A Glam Rock Picnic
By Abigail Morici
Few things are more noteworthy than seeing a photo of your coworker in the crotch of a 10-foot, papier-mache sculpture of David Bowie in progress. at coworker is, of course, Michael Donahue, one of our writers here at the Flyer. In fact, Mike McCarthy, creator of the sculpture, has covered Bowie in Flyers. We’re honored to say the least, but this sculpture is not in honor of us, but rather of a mostly unknown Memphis music history moment.
In 1973, while on his Aladdin Sane tour stop in Memphis, David Bowie visited the nowclosed Memphis Academy of Art on the invitation of Dolph Smith, an instructor at the school. Smith had a watercolor he wanted to give the musician, which he happily accepted. Of this story, McCarthy says, he only heard glimmers during his time at the school in the ’80s, but it’s stayed with him ever since.
ese days, McCarthy is running a nonpro t Sculpt Memphis, with the goal of preserving Memphis music history through sculpture. His Johnny Cash stands on South Cooper now, and, for the last year, he’s made statuettes of Howlin’ Wolf, Aretha Franklin, Memphis Minnie, Rufus omas, Muddy Waters, and the like. “Everybody loves them,” he says, “but [the question becomes] how do these things get to become like eight-foot-tall block sculptures. I think Memphis is extremely under-sculptured, under-statued.
“Maybe this is a little counterintuitive on my part,” he continues, “but I thought, maybe if I do a 10-foot tall David Bowie, it will draw attention also to the fact that there’s lots of Memphis music history, obviously closer to home, that people should be thinking about. If you had Bowie in Overton Park, that would be one more reason to go to Overton Park. If you had all these other sculptures in locales throughout the city, it could drive tourism, create international interest.”
For the Bowie statue, McCarthy chose to portray him in the “Tokyo Pop” jumpsuit by Kansai Yamamoto. Also, instead of one head, the musician has four atop a weather vane, with the four faces representing Bowie’s a nity for taking on di erent identities — from Ziggy Stardust to Halloween Jack. Why a weather vane? “I don’t know,” McCarthy says, “but I thought, okay, I’ll do a weather vane. Oh, weather vane rhymes with Aladdin Sane. Aladdin Sane Weather Vane.”
So far, McCarthy has been working on sculpting the piece since December with help from friends, but this Sunday, he’ll invite the public to begin the process of covering Bowie with clay at what he’s calling the Glam Rock Picnic. “ e ultimate goal is to climb the ladder and start from the heart and start spreading the clay,” he says. “I want people to be involved.”
e Glam Rock Picnic will also have DJ Kitschy Kat spinning entire Bowie albums, a Bowie bar, Eat at Eric’s food truck, face painting by Kasey Dees, and vendors curated by Jana Wilson of Vintagia.
NOON-5 P.M., $10.
VARIOUS DAYS & TIMES June 27th - July 3rd
Mid-Summer Jam
The Ravine at Memphis Made Brewery, 571 Marshall, Saturday, June 29, 5:30 p.m., $10 Rock out for a good cause at the Mid-Summer Jam, benefiting Clean Memphis’ ongoing efforts to promote environmental awareness among teens and young adults. On the lineup are three dynamic bands with strong grunge and punk inspirations: The Contradictions, After the Rain, and Macrophonics.
Good Groceries Mobile Diner will be parked in the Ravine and Memphis Made beer will be available for purchase. Bring your ID to imbibe. Gates open at 5:30 p.m. and music starts around 6 p.m.
Queer Prom 2024
East Atrium at Crosstown Concourse, 1350 Concourse, Saturday, June 29, 7-11 p.m., $35/ advance, $50/door
Celebrate queer resilience and Pride at an evening of drinks and dancing to bene t OUTMemphis. Get dressed in your nest, raise one up for queer survival, and dance the night away. Queer Prom is for anyone 18+ that considers themselves a part of or an ally to the LGBTQ community, however you de ne it. Only a limited number of tickets will be sold at the door, so get yours at queerprom.org in advance.
e celebration doesn’t stop when Queer Prom ends. e o cial Queer Prom A erparty takes place at Black Lodge, 10 p.m. to 3 a.m.. Cover charge is $10 (Queer Prom wristband holders get $5 o ).
24 Hour Plays: Memphis
eatreworks at Evergreen, 1705 Poplar, Saturday, June 29, 7 p.m., $15
e 24-Hour Plays: Memphis features a group of talented local playwrights, directors, and actors racing against the clock to write, rehearse, and perform six new plays in 24 hours. is production is based on a long-running format based out of New York City that has been produced around the world since 1995. From comedy to drama and everything in between, the show will o er a wide variety of styles and genres.
e show will kick o with a special performance by artist Eileen Kuo who will perform between plays as well. Light refreshments will be available.
GLAM ROCK PICNIC, OFF THE WALLS ARTS, 360 WALNUT, SUNDAY, JUNE 30,
PHOTO: MIKE MCCARTHY Aladdin Sane Weather Vane in progress
MUSIC By Alex Greene
Lina Beach Rising
A lifetime in music helped her take a studio internship to unexpected heights.
G
rowing up in Franklin, Tennessee, Lina Beach came to love playing music, but she never imagined that her playing would go as far and as fast as it did once she moved to Memphis. “Since I was born, both my parents sat me at the piano, and my dad started teaching the violin at 5 years old,” she says, “and I wanted to be around that however I could. But when I got to college, I didn’t necessarily believe in myself enough to pursue a career as an artist and musician.” ese days, all that has changed.
As a teenager learning guitar, Beach knew what she liked: Joe Walsh, U2, classic rock, Stevie Wonder, e Beatles. en one day a new sound seized her imagination. “I was out eating lunch at a hot chicken place in Franklin and they played ‘I’m Still in Love with You’ on the speaker. And it literally stopped me and my friend mid-conversation and we got out our phones and Shazam’d it.
“That became one of my all-time favorite songs. I found the vinyl LP in a shop in Downtown Franklin and that was a heavily rotated album for me. When I got to Rhodes, I made that Memphis connection and I started to learn that that’s where that music was made. This was before I knew about the Hi Rhythm Section. I just knew I was in Memphis.”
“[Boo] came in and asked, ‘Who is that playing guitar?’”
at changed in the spring of 2021 when she landed an internship at Royal Studios, where Al Green and other Hi Records artists had recorded with the Hi Rhythm Section. Suddenly she was working directly with Boo Mitchell, whose father had produced those hits for Hi.
“When I got to Royal I was soaking it all in: how to make records, learning the engineering side, and watching Boo work,” Beach recalls. “Boo allowed me to get my hands dirty, wrapping cables, learning how to match the mic to the channel in the [mixing] board. And he let me sit at the board and learn commands in Pro Tools, and I just felt so empowered. I took that back to Rhodes and would help lead the live sound events all over campus, and helped teach other students, too.”
About six months into her time at Royal, a fellow intern had brought an acoustic guitar to the studio and Beach started idly playing it. “I’d been inspired to soak up all I could at the studio and go home and learn the guitar ri s. I was playing a lot at home. But it wasn’t until halfway through the summer that Boo rst heard me play guitar in the lobby. He came in and asked, ‘Who’s playing that guitar?’ at was a life changing moment. Boo said, ‘Okay, I didn’t know you could do all that.’
And then he looked kind of puzzled and said, ‘It doesn’t make sense. I’m looking at this girl, and she sounds like a 70-year-old Black man.’”
Mitchell began incorporating Beach’s playing into sessions, most notably on his son Uriah’s track “Exotic Love,” released last year. And then came a game changer: Beach received a grant from the Rhodes Institute for Regional Studies, which contributes $3,000 to each fellow for summer projects and research. Beach, who had just begun writing her own songs, decided that her “research” would be recording an album, and Mitchell was all for doing it at Royal.
For the past two years, that’s been at the center of Beach’s life. e songs began to pour out of her, and, in another watershed moment, her backing band for some of those sessions turned out to be the Hi Rhythm Sec-
tion. at group still includes brothers Rev. Charles Hodges and Leroy “Flic” Hodges, plus Archie “Hubbie” Turner, who all played on Hi’s hits half a century ago, not to mention Steve Potts on drums, cousin to original Hi drummer Al Jackson Jr. And until his death 10 years ago this month, Mabon “Teenie” Hodges, with his uniquely stinging guitar lines, was also central to the group.
To this day, Hi Rhythm remains in demand, especially as the core band in the musical documentary series Take Me to the River, and as the touring group representing the lm on the road for the past 10 years. “When I was in the studio with them recording my album, it was a dream come true,” says Beach. But by 2023, fate was about to give her another undreamt-of boost.
“I think it was in May, right a er I graduated,” she recalls. “ e guitar player that was lling in [for Teenie Hodges] moved out of town right before this big Hi Rhythm show and Boo was like, ‘Uh, Lina, do you think you could learn these 20-plus songs in the next two weeks?’ From that point on, I was listening to the songs in all my free time. I listened to all those Teenie parts — really studied them. And I don’t even think Boo told the band that I was the guitarist! I just showed up at sound check with my guitar and I had to kind of breathe in my car for a second before I went inside. en I walked in and
they saw me and were like, ‘Lina! Are you going to be playing with us today?’ I was like, ‘Apparently so, yeah.’ So I get up there and plug in, and Charles is playing Al Green’s ‘It Ain’t No Fun to Me.’ As Charles was playing the organ, I jumped in and he was like, ‘Oh man, that’s amazing!’ He said, ‘I can feel that!’ All my nerves melted away then; it was a huge validation from the band themselves.”
e rest, as they say, is history, as Beach has proved herself a worthy addition to this legendary group. As Boo Mitchell noted before their appearance at the RiverBeat Music Festival, “Hi Rhythm features Lina Beach, who is o cially lling in the Teenie Hodges guitar spot. e band has adopted her as their sister. She’s the o cial guitarist and she’s also an artist.”
And so, even as she still puts the nishing touches on her debut album, Beach has ascended to the heights of Memphis soul royalty, holding her own with Hi Rhythm, even leading them through her own songs as they’ve toured Australia, England, and the U.S. this year, not to mention accompanying the likes of William Bell at England’s Red Rooster Festival. Not bad for a 23-year-old (who sounds like a 70-year-old Black man).
PHOTO: BIANCA HOLDERNESS
Lina Beach live in Australia this year.
David Haffner
AFTER DARK: Live Music Schedule June 27 - July 3
Hailing from Portland, David
Ha ner is one of the most trustworthy DJs and selectors when it comes to soul, funk, and boogie rarities. Saturday, June 29, 9 p.m.
EIGHT & SAND
DJ Swift Friday, June 28, 9 p.m.
EIGHT & SAND
Frank Ray, Annie Bosko
Kix on Beale celebrates 20 years of bringing music to historic Beale Street. is season will bring six free country acts to Beale Street’s Handy Park. All ages are welcome. Free.
ursday, June 27, 7:30 p.m.
HANDY PARK
Goner Records 20th
Birthday Party Cruise
New Orleans’ Quintron and Miss Pussycat will perform live on the boat. Includes barbecue and drinks. $60. Friday, June 28, 6:30-9:30 p.m.
MEMPHIS RIVERBOATS
Live at the Tracks:
Elevation Memphis
Live music on the upper deck at Central Station Hotel.
ursday, June 27, 6:30-9:30 p.m.
THE CENTRAL STATION MEMPHIS, CURIO COLLECTION BY HILTON
Lucky 7 Brass Band
With two special acoustic performances by Shinedown and the Wallows. ursday, June 27, 6 p.m.
THE PEABODY HOTEL
Matt “Heartbreak” Hill
Sunday, June 30, 3 p.m.
HUEY’S DOWNTOWN
The Central BBQ Sessions
Saturday, June 29, 6-8:30 p.m. CENTRAL BBQ
John Williams & the 440 Band
ursday, June 27, 8 p.m.
NEIL’S MUSIC ROOM
Landslide (Fleetwood Mac Tribute)
Saturday, June 29, 8 p.m.
NEIL’S MUSIC ROOM
Play Some Skynyrd (Lynyrd Skynyrd Tribute)
Friday, June 28, 8 p.m.
NEIL’S MUSIC ROOM
The Settlers
Sunday, June 30, 3 p.m.
HUEY’S POPLAR
Van Duren
e singer/songwriter, a pioneer of indie pop in Memphis, performs solo. ursday, June 27, 6:30-8:30 p.m. | Wednesday, July 3, 6:30-8:30 p.m.
MORTIMER’S
Aquanet
Saturday, June 29, 9 p.m.
LAFAYETTE’S MUSIC ROOM
Basketcase
Friday, June 28, 6 p.m.
LAFAYETTE’S MUSIC ROOM
Bob and Reagan
Sunday, June 30, 3 p.m.
LAFAYETTE’S MUSIC ROOM
Bottom of the Pot Immersive Music Experience
Blended sounds of Jersey club, house music, hip-hop, jungle funk, alternative, and more. [Small Room-Downstairs].
$15. Saturday, June 29, 9 p.m.
HI TONE
Buddy Albert Nemenz
Tuesday, July 2, 6 p.m.
LAFAYETTE’S MUSIC ROOM
Cowboy Mouth
A potent blend of musical ingredients — rock, blues, punk, funk, country, pop, soul and whatever else feels good — goes into their bodacious tunes. Orion Free Concert Series. Free. Friday, June 28, 7:30 p.m.
OVERTON PARK SHELL
Da M Town Band
Wednesday, July 3, 6 p.m.
LAFAYETTE’S MUSIC ROOM
Devil Train
Bluegrass, roots, country, Delta, and ski e ursday, June 27, 10 p.m.
B-SIDE
DJ AD Tea Dance
Sunday, June 30, 3 p.m.
BAR DKDC
Driftwood Ramblers
With Grape [Small RoomDownstairs]. Wednesday, July 3, 8 p.m.
HI TONE
Driver
Saturday, June 29, 5 p.m.
LAFAYETTE’S MUSIC ROOM
Ethan Johnson
With Alexis Jade, Mary Hatley, Pleaser [Small Room-Downstairs]. Friday, June 28, 8 p.m.
HI TONE
Flow Tribe
Saturday, June 29, 8 p.m.
RAILGARTEN
Jack Oblivian & the Sheiks
e o cial post-Quintron party cruise secret a er show. Choice tunes by New Orleans’ DJ Matty. $10. Friday, June 28, 10 p.m.
B-SIDE
Lo-Fi in Hi-Fi with Shangri-La Records
ursday, June 27, 7 p.m.
MEMPHIS LISTENING LAB
Lucky 7 Brass Band
Friday, June 28, 8 p.m.
RAILGARTEN
Maggie Rose: No One Gets Out Alive Tour Friday, June 28, 8 p.m.
MINGLEWOOD HALL
MC Chris
e star of Adult Swim series
e Brak Show and Sealab
2021 is also a touring rapper.
With Crunk Witch, Geekster the SuperNerd [Big RoomUpstairs]. Friday, June 28, 7:30 p.m.
HI TONE
Memphis Reggae Nights: Tamesha Moore
With DJ Static. Sunday, June 30, 7:30 p.m.
B-SIDE
Mighty Souls Brass Band ursday, June 27, 6:30 p.m.
RAILGARTEN
Pat Vaughan Band [Small RoomDownstairs] Sunday, June 30, 8 p.m.
HI TONE
Paul McKinney and The Knights feat. Jamille “Jam” Hunter
O the Walls Arts’ Caribbean Night. Featuring live Caribbean-styled music, dance oor, and food trucks. $20. Monday, July 1, 7:30 p.m.
OFF THE WALLS ARTS
Pity Invite ‘n’ Friends Friday, June 28, 9 p.m.
BAR DKDC
Sande Lollis
With Eron Ackerman, Jon Hart [Small Room-Downstairs]. Monday, July 1, 8 p.m.
HI TONE
Shamarr Allen
Orion Free Concert Series presents an artist hailing from the Lower 9th Ward of New Orleans. Allen has in uences in jazz, hip-hop, rock, funk rhythms, blues, and country. Free. ursday, June 27, 7:30 p.m.
OVERTON PARK SHELL
Speaker Girl
With Dinosauria, Silver Fern [Small Room-Downstairs]. ursday, June 27, 8 p.m.
HI TONE
Steve Hopper Monday, July 1, 6 p.m.
LAFAYETTE’S MUSIC ROOM
The Bugaloos Sunday, June 30, 11 a.m.-2 p.m.
LAFAYETTE’S MUSIC ROOM
The Delta Dukes Sunday, June 30, 3 p.m.
HUEY’S MIDTOWN
The Lamplighter Lounge All Day Fun Fest
With Aquarian Blood, Alicja Pop & Friends, Louise Page, Oakwalker, Poly Glamorous, Noir Walls, Yesse Yavis, Andy Cohen, and others. Shows by Felicity Fox, Hunny Blunt, Onyx Davenport, Laurel Faery. $10. Saturday, June 29, 2 p.m.-2 a.m.
LAMPLIGHTER LOUNGE
The Lost 45s Sunday, June 30, 7 p.m.
LAFAYETTE’S MUSIC ROOM
High Point Sunday, June 30, 6 p.m.
HUEY’S SOUTHAVEN
Live In Studio A:
Summer Series with 926 Stax Music Academy Alumni Band
e Stax Museum of American Soul Music presents live music from 926, the Stax Music Academy Alumni Band, each Tuesday through July 23. Tuesday, July 2, 2-4 p.m.
STAX MUSEUM OF AMERICAN SOUL MUSIC
Shake the Monday Blues
Your Monday reset has arrived. $10/general admission. Monday, July 1, 6-8 p.m.
SMOOTH LIVING RESTAURANT
Sooper Flat
With Life Explicit. Friday, June 28, 8 p.m.
HERNANDO’S HIDE-A-WAY
The Pistol & The Queen Sunday, June 30, 6 p.m.
HUEY’S SOUTHWIND
CAITLYN RIDENOUR Quintron (R) and Miss Pussycat (Center).
The Ross & Jeff Revue
With Yesterday’s Trash, Haley Ivey. Friday, June 28, 9 p.m.
LAMPLIGHTER LOUNGE
The Steel Woods Doors at 6 p.m. $30/general admission. ursday, June 27, 7 p.m.
LAFAYETTE’S MUSIC ROOM
Twin Soul Friday, June 28, 10 p.m.
LAFAYETTE’S MUSIC ROOM
Vibes - ’90s Night
DJ DY3 and DJ Mala Leche spin cumbia, merengue, reggaeton, hip-hop, and house. 18+ only. Saturday, June 29, 9 p.m.
GROWLERS
Vinyl Happy Hour
With Guest DJs every ursday. ursday, June 27, 3-5 p.m.
MEMPHIS LISTENING LAB
Virghost
With Saturday Sunset, Samantha Elice, Phee, Soulful Skonie, Celest. Saturday, June 29, 7 p.m.
B-SIDE
Vision Video
With Skull Family, e Writer/ e Signal. A erparty with Sanctuary of Shadows DJs Midnight and Plastic Citizen. 18 + only. $20. Wednesday, July 3, 8 p.m. GROWLERS
Concerts in The Grove—Alice Hasen and Josh Threlkeld
From reinventions of old ddle tunes to backwoods detours, you’ll be transported to vibrant and unexpected landscapes. $7/general admission. ursday, June 27, 6:30-8 p.m.
THE GROVE AT GERMANTOWN
PERFORMING ARTS CENTER
Five O’Clock Shadow Sunday, June 30, 6 p.m.
HUEY’S MILLINGTON
Happy Hour in the Grove
Righteous rhythm and acoustic soul from Motown to the Blu City, hosted by Carter relkeld. Friday, June 28, 5-8 p.m.
THE GROVE AT GERMANTOWN
PERFORMING ARTS CENTER
Memphis Blues Society Weekly Jam
Hosted by Jackie Flora & Friends! ursday, June 27, 7:30 p.m.
ROCKHOUSE LIVE
Richard Wilson Soulful Blues at Jackie Maes
Live and smooth ! Friday, June 28, noon-2 p.m.
JACKIE MAE’S PLACE
Singer Songwriter
Sundays
Enjoy some of the areas best local musicians every Sunday. Sunday, June 30, 4-6 p.m.
MEDDLESOME BREWING COMPANY
Wendell Wells & The Big Americans
Honky tonk, cowjazz, barn burnin blues. Saturday, June 29, 5 p.m.
MARGARITAS MEXICAN RESTAURANT
PHOTO:
The staff at Twin Oaks Memorial Gardens & Funeral Home takes great pride in caring for our families, and has made a commitment to provide you with a beautiful, lasting tribute to your loved one. Honoring your loved one is our top priority, and part of that is assisting you deal with grief during this difficult time.
Everyone’s needs are different, and for that reason, families can entrust their loved one’s wishes to our staff. We have a wide range of resources to support you not only today, but in the weeks and months to come. Here, everyone is welcome.
Twin Oaks Memorial Gardens & Funeral Home
CALENDAR of EVENTS: June 27 - July 3
ART AND SPECIAL EXHIBITS
“Bracelets, Bangles, and Cuffs: 1948-2024”
A remarkable collection of contemporary bracelets. rough Nov. 17.
METAL MUSEUM
“Branching Out”
Discover intricate connections between students, teachers, and casting communities, which branch out much like a family tree. rough Sept. 8.
METAL MUSEUM
CBU 2024 Spring BFA
Exhibition esis exhibition for graduating seniors in the department of visual arts at Christian Brothers University. rough June 30.
BEVERLY + SAM ROSS GALLERY
Dr. Gopal Murti:
“Finding Beauty in Everything I See”
Murti’s art is eclectic in terms of style, subject, medium, and substrate. rough July 1.
MEMPHIS BOTANIC GARDEN
“Everyday People: Snapshots of The Black Experience”
A photography exhibition showcasing Memphis artist Eric Echols’ photo collection of 20th-century African Americans. rough July 14.
MUSEUM OF SCIENCE & HISTORY
Freida Hamm: “Storytelling” Capturing colorful, languid moments just a er dawn and just before dusk, when the day’s light does its dance. rough July 13.
DAVID LUSK GALLERY
“It’s a Fine Line” New works by Stephanie Howard (Greenville, SC) and Khara Woods (Memphis, TN).
Saturday, June 29-Aug. 9. SHEET CAKE
“It’s All Relative” Sicilian/Puerto Rican postsurrealist sculptor Morgan Lugo uses permanent materials, such as bronze, to speak to the lasting e ects of past experiences. rough July 7.
METAL MUSEUM
“Memphis 2024 Exhibition” Experience visual art in various genres and media from artists across Memphis. Free. rough June 30.
THE DIXON GALLERY & GARDENS
“Mission: Astronaut” Get a taste of life as an astronaut, using skills like engineering, physics, teamwork, and fun. rough Sept. 2.
MEMPHIS MUSEUM OF SCIENCE & HISTORY
“People Are People” is exhibition honors
famed American designer Christian Siriano’s electrifying contributions to fashion. rough Aug. 4.
MEMPHIS BROOKS MUSEUM OF ART
Sisters of the Brush and a Brother Present “An Eclectic Mix”
Paintings by a group called Sisters of the Brush, including Phyllis Boger, Ann Brown omason, Barrie Skoda Foster, and Jana Jones, and a brother, Patrick McGee.
Mondays- ursdays, 9:30 a.m.4 p.m.; Sundays, 9:30 a.m.12:30 p.m. rough June 30. ST. GEORGE’S ART GALLERY AT ST. GEORGE’S EPISCOPAL CHURCH
Sowgand
Sheikholeslami:
“Progression” is show ranges from enigmatic gures set within interior spaces to boldly painted still lifes and abstract landscapes. rough July 7.
THE DIXON GALLERY & GARDENS
Summer Art Garden:
“Creatures of Paradise” Memphis-based duo Banana Plastik present an environment lled with vibrant and whimsical beings. rough Oct. 26.
MEMPHIS BROOKS MUSEUM OF ART
“Threading Legacies: A Tribute to Black Women
Quilters in Memphis”
“Threading Legacies” honors Black women quilters, celebrating resilience, artistry, and community
PHOTO: COURTESY SHEET CAKE Stephanie Howard’s e World is Always Ending is inspired by outsider and folk art.
Send the date, time, place, cost, info, phone number, a brief description, and photos — two weeks in advance — to calendar@memphisflyer.com.
DUE TO SPACE LIMITATIONS, ONGOING WEEKLY EVENTS WILL APPEAR IN THE FLYER’S ONLINE CALENDAR ONLY. FOR COMPREHENSIVE EVENT LISTINGS, SCAN THE QR CODE OR VISIT EVENTS.MEMPHISFLYER.COM/CAL.
ART HAPPENINGS
Learn how to attract native pollinators.
through their quilts, weaving personal and communal histories. Through June 28.
COSSITT LIBRARY - DOWNTOWN
MEMPHIS
“Whimsy & Wonder”: Bartlett Art Association Exhibition
Enjoy the Bartlett Art Association’s use of pixels and palettes. rough June 29.
MEMPHIS BOTANIC GARDEN
“GiddyUP Youth Empowerment Initiative” Exhibition
Opening Reception
Explore 10 students’ entrepreneurial projects to enrich the equestrian ecosystem, with paintings by program mentor and visual artist Jose Valverde. Friday, June 28, 6 p.m.
MORTON MUSEUM OF COLLIERVILLE HISTORY
Gallery Evenings at The Memphian
Discover captivating art by local creators this season at e Memphian. Sunday, June 30, 4-7 p.m.
THE MEMPHIAN, A TRIBUTE
PORTFOLIO HOTEL
“Glass Slippers, A Fairy Tale Art Show” e Mid-South Cartoonists Association presents the “Glass Slippers” art show, running with eatre Memphis’ Cinderella. Sunday, June 30, 10 a.m.-9 p.m.
THEATRE MEMPHIS
“It’s a Fine Line” Opening Reception Sheet Cake Gallery is pleased to present a new exhibition, “It’s a Fine Line,” featuring Stephanie Howard (Greenville, SC) and Khara Woods (Memphis, TN). Saturday, June 29, 5-7:30 p.m.
SHEET CAKE
Munch and Learn
Presentations by local artists, scholars, and Dixon sta sharing their knowledge on a variety of topics. Wednesday, July 3, noon-1 p.m.
THE DIXON GALLERY & GARDENS
BOOK EVENTS
Mark Greaney: Sentinel
An intense thriller from the #1 New York Times bestselling author of e Gray Man series. Saturday, June 29, 2 p.m.
NOVEL
Novel Manga Club: The Scary Stories of Junji Ito
Do you like to share your opinions on manga or o er manga recommendations to like-minded folks? So does the Manga Club. ursday, June 27, 7 p.m.
NOVEL
Phyllis R. Dixon: A Taste for More
A story of mothers and daughters, against-all-odds success, generational trauma, and rede ning home. Tuesday, July 2, 6 p.m. NOVEL
CLASS / WORKSHOP
First Shots Handgun, Ladies Only
Learn to shoot in a comfortable and safe environment with female instructors. $80. Saturday, June 29, 10 a.m.
TOP GUN MEMPHIS
Life Drawing Workshop
Spend a Saturday a ernoon with fellow creatives at O the Walls Arts’ new life drawing workshop. Saturday, June 29, 3-5 p.m.
OFF THE WALLS ARTS
Nature Photography: Camera
Led by experienced photographer Erica Haskett. Saturday, June 29, 9 a.m.
MEMPHIS BOTANIC GARDEN
Nature Photography: iPhone
Led by experienced photographer Erica Haskett. Saturday, June 29, 8 a.m.
MEMPHIS BOTANIC GARDEN
Podcast Bootcamp for High Schoolers is interactive program o ers students the opportunity to explore the exciting realm of podcast creation from start to nish through hands-on workshops. ursday, June 27, noon.
COSSITT LIBRARY
Pollinator Gardening Workshop
Colin Rye teaches the basic principles of attracting native pollinators to your garden through plant selections, including common varieties favored by caterpillars and butter ies. Saturday, June 29, 10 a.m.
MEMPHIS BOTANIC GARDEN
Reelfoot Lake Photo Workshop
Experience and photographs sunrises, sunsets, birds, and nature at it’s nest. Get up close and personal on a boat to photograph wildlife. Friday, June 28, 5 p.m.
REELFOOT LAKE PHOTO WORKSHOP
Teen Workshop: Embellished Bags
An intensive three-hour workshop on the basics of hand-sewn embellishments, from applique to beading and embroidery. Materials supplied. $15. Saturday, June 29, 1 p.m.
THE DIXON GALLERY & GARDENS
continued on page 20
PHOTO: JOSHUA J. COTTEN/ COURTESY MEMPHIS BOTANIC GARDEN
continued from page 19
Youth Workshop: Natural Inkmaking
Sustainable fashion designer Nivedha Vignesh shares her process for distilling pigment from the natural world to produce organic inks and dyes. Ages 7-12. Wednesday, July 3, 10:30 a.m.
MORTON MUSEUM OF COLLIERVILLE HISTORY
Youth Workshop: Wood Carving
Learn the basics of wood carving and the essentials of tool safety in this two-part workshop. Ages 10-13.
ursday, June 27, 1:30-3:30 p.m. | Friday, June 28, 1:303:30 p.m.
THE DIXON GALLERY & GARDENS
COMEDY
Amateur Night with Lil Pistol Starter
Social media sensation Lil Pistol Starter is unleashing an incredible amateur night.
$20-$35. ursday, June 27, 8 p.m.
CHUCKLES COMEDY HOUSE
Bubba Dub
Known for his “Snitching on Rogers” skits and other story lines on social media, he is truly a viral laughing sensation. $25-$80. Friday, June 28, 7:30 p.m. | Friday, June 28, 10 p.m. | Saturday, June 29, 7:30 p.m. | Saturday, June 29, 10 p.m.
CHUCKLES COMEDY HOUSE
Comedian Taylor Williams Headlines at High Cotton Brewing Co.
Comedian Taylor Williams (Zanies, opened for Dusty Slay, Rory Scovel, IG: @ Tayslurp) headlines a stacked lineup of comedians. $10/ discount online tickets.
Saturday, June 29, 8 p.m.
HIGH COTTON BREWING CO.
Comedy Open Mic
Hosted by John Miller. $10. Tuesday, July 2, 8 p.m.
HI TONE
Kerwin Claiborne:
Socially Hilarious Comedy Show
Saturday, June 29, 8 p.m.
MINGLEWOOD HALL
Kiara Benson
Not just a stand-up queen, Benson’s got a ton of accolades to her name — from co-creating to executive producing in the writer rooms in L.A. $20-$60.
Sunday, June 30, 8 p.m.
CHUCKLES COMEDY HOUSE
Saturday Night Showcase is underground comedy show, hosted by Tylon Monger, boasts a diverse and interesting line up each week that cracks smiles, shakes heads, and causes uproarious laughter. $15. Saturday, June 29, 7 p.m.
MEMPHIS CLOVER CLUB
COMMUNITY
Autura Eason-Williams
Day of Lament and Action
A time for lament and discussion on gun violence impact, reduction, and repair. Sunday, June 30, 4 p.m.
CENTENARY UNITED METHODIST
CHURCH MEMPHIS
Educator’s
Appreciation Month
Current educators receive free daily admission to the Memphis Botanic Garden and get a 20 percent discount on MBG Memberships during the month of July.
Monday, July 1-July 31.
MEMPHIS BOTANIC GARDEN
Trolley Night with DJ
Avious emed drink and food specials from Longshot, Bar Hustle, and Hustle & Dough. DJ Avious will be spinning the hottest songs of the summer. Free. Friday, June 28, 5-11:45 p.m.
BAR HUSTLE AT ARRIVE MEMPHIS
The Mystic Live at the Green Room e Mystic is hosted by a rotating panel including Rabbi Micah Greenstein, Dr. Scott Morris, Rev. Joshua Narcisse, Dr. Rev. Lillian Lammers, and Kirk Whalum.
Tuesday, July 2, 6-7 p.m.
THE GREEN ROOM AT CROSSTOWN ARTS
DANCE
Bi Bi Bi: Y2K Pride Party with DJ Alpha Whiskey
Celebrate Pride! DJ Alpha Whiskey is playing all your favorite ’00s hits with free glow sticks and Pride-
CALENDAR: JUNE 27 - JULY 3
Sunday Argentine Tango Mini-Lesson & Practica
themed drink specials. Saturday, June 29, 8 p.m.midnight LONGSHOT
Line Dancing with Q Line dancing lessons with “Q.” 21+.
Tuesday, July 2, 6-9 p.m.
DRU’S PLACE
Queer Prom: A Night Out with OUTMemphis
Celebrate queer resilience and pride with an evening of drinks and dancing to bene t life-saving services for LGBTQ youth and adults. $35/general admission, $100/VIP.
Saturday, June 29, 6-11 p.m.
CROSSTOWN ARTS AT THE CONCOURSE
Queer Prom Afterparty e o cial Queer Prom
A erparty is just down the road from the main event venue. Keep the night alive with incredible music, drinks, and dancing. 18+ only. $10, $5/Prom wristband holders. Saturday, June 29, 10 p.m.-3 a.m.
BLACK LODGE
Mariallan and James will be conducting a short tango class directed at beginning dancers (5:30-6:15 p.m.), followed by a guided practica (6:15-7:30 p.m.). $15/lesson and practica, $10/practica. Sunday, June 30, 5:30 p.m.
THEATREWORKS
Whet Thursdays: Salsa on the Bluff Edgar Mendez and his instructors will be giving salsa lessons. ursday, June 27, 5 p.m.
METAL MUSEUM
EXPO/SALES
Southaven Exotic Pet Expo
Expect to see parrots, tarantulas, geckos, pythons, boas, feeder insects, bird cages, bird toys, sugar gliders, hedgehogs, and lots more. $10, Free. Saturday, June 29-June 30.
LANDERS CENTER
FAMILY
CREATE-ure Challenge
Design a “create-ure” that has never been seen before, or combine features from other animals in a brand-new way. Ages 6-12. ursday, June 27, 3 p.m.
BENJAMIN L. HOOKS CENTRAL LIBRARY
Fairy Escape Room
You have stumbled into fairyland and been captured by a group of fairies. Now you need to nd away to escape or else you’ll be trapped here forever. Ages 6-adult. Friday, June 28.
BENJAMIN L. HOOKS CENTRAL LIBRARY
At Crosstown eater on June 27th, A Brighter Summer Day, directed by Edward Yang
Family Yoga at the Garden
A fun way for parents to bond with their kids. Please bring a mat and water. Free with MBG admission.
Monday, July 1, 10-11 a.m.
MEMPHIS BOTANIC GARDEN
International Mud Day Drop-In Activity
Kids can get creative decorating their mud pies with flowers, sticks, leaves, and other found objects.
Saturday, June 29, 10 a.m.2 p.m.
MEMPHIS BOTANIC GARDEN
Kaleidoscope Club (ages 5-9)
Each week, participants will enjoy an art or horticulture project that sparks creativity and critical thinking.
Wednesday, July 3, 4 p.m.
THE DIXON GALLERY & GARDENS
Meeman-Shelby Forest Park Ranger Visit
A park ranger from Meeman-Shelby Forest Park will bring some fun forest animals for kids to meet.
Saturday, June 29, 3 p.m.
BENJAMIN L. HOOKS CENTRAL LIBRARY
Mini Masters (ages 2-4)
Introduce your little ones to the arts and nature with cra s, movement, and more.
$8. Tuesday, July 2, 10:3011:15 a.m.
THE DIXON GALLERY & GARDENS
Mudpie Mondays
Children can cra their own mud pie using natural materials. is event is canceled if it is raining.
Monday, July 1, 10 a.m.
MEMPHIS BOTANIC GARDEN
Project WET: Water
Education Today
An interdisciplinary water education program featuring classroom-proven, hands-on learning activities that make water topics come alive. Thursday, June 27, 9 a.m.-3 p.m.
WOLF RIVER CONSERVANCY
Story Time
Enjoy stories, songs, art activities, and creative play that connect with Collierville history. Friday, June 28, 10:30 a.m.
MORTON MUSEUM OF COLLIERVILLE HISTORY
Story Time at Novel Recommended for children up to 5 years, Story Time at Novel includes songs and stories, featuring brand-new books in addition to wellloved favorites. Saturday, June 29, 10:30 a.m. | Wednesday, July 3, 10:30 a.m. NOVEL
FESTIVAL
Faith Family Festival Enjoy food, entertainment, music, and more with Agape Child and Family Services. Saturday, June 29, 2-6 p.m. SHELBY FARMS PARK
Glam Rock Picnic: Fundraiser, Art Market, & Interactive Sculpture Party
Participate in the making of local artist Mike McCarthy’s newest sculpture, e Aladdin Sane Weathervane, a 10-foot tall statue honoring David Bowie. Sunday, June 30, noon-5 p.m. OFF THE WALLS ARTS
The Lamplighter Lounge All Day Fun Fest
Twelve hours of fun! Including bands like Aquarian Blood, Alicja Pop & Friends, Louise Page, Oakwalker, Poly Glamorous, Noir Walls, Yesse Yavis, Andy Cohen, and others, and performances by Felicity Fox, Hunny Blunt, Onyx Davenport, and Laurel Faery. $10. Saturday, June 29, 2 p.m.-2 a.m.
LAMPLIGHTER LOUNGE
PHOTO: COURTESY PLAYHOUSE ON THE SQUARE Catch Me If You Can runs through July 14th.
PHOTO: COURTESY CROSSTOWN ARTS
CALENDAR: JUNE 27 - JULY 3
FILM
A Brighter Summer Day
This singular masterpiece of Taiwanese cinema, directed by Edward Yang, is set in the early Sixties in Taiwan, based on the true story of a crime that rocked the nation. Thursday, June 27, 7 p.m.
CROSSTOWN THEATER
Beale Street Monster Club presents Black Lagoon Tiki Extravaganza
The Beale Street Monster Club is proud to present a free showing of Creature from the Black Lagoon. Sunday, June 30, 2 p.m.
A. SCHWAB
Hawk Jones
Richard Lowry’s 1986 film about Antonio Coppola, a gangster threatening to take over the entire town of Minitropolis, leading to much destruction. Sunday, June 30, 8 p.m.
LAMPLIGHTER LOUNGE
I Read That Movie: Dune (Part One)
Participants are invited to read the first half of the book during June, then come for a screening of the 2021 film adaptation Dune (Part 1). Saturday, June 29, 2 p.m.
BENJAMIN L. HOOKS CENTRAL LIBRARY
Space: The New Frontier 2D
From self-assembling habitats, commercial space stations, and rockets without fuel to the Lunar Gateway to deep space. Through May 23, 2025.
MEMPHIS MUSEUM OF SCIENCE & HISTORY
FOOD AND DRINK
Canoes + Cocktails
A guided sunset paddle on the lake followed by specialty cocktails provided by Old Dominick, snacks from Cheffie’s, yard games, and music. Friday, June 28, 7 p.m.
SHELBY FARMS PARK
Cooper-Young Community Farmers Market
A weekly outdoor market featuring local farmers (no resellers), artisans, and live music. Saturday, June 29, 8 a.m.-1 p.m.
FIRST CONGREGATIONAL CHURCH
Dinner & Music Cruise
Enjoy a two-hour cruise on Ol’ Man River featuring live entertainment and a meal. $50/ general admission. Thursday, June 27, 7:309:30 p.m. | Friday, June 28, 7:30-9:30 p.m. | Saturday, June 29, 7:30-9:30 p.m.
MEMPHIS RIVERBOATS
Memphis Farmers Market
A weekly outdoor market featuring local farmers and artisans, live music, and fun activities. Saturday, June 29, 8 a.m.-1 p.m.
MEMPHIS FARMERS MARKET
Steven Universe Brunch
Celebrate the last weekend of pride by watching your favorite group of neurodivergent superheroes. Try a stack of pancakes shaped to cosmic dimensions and other brunch fare. Sunday, June 30, 11:30 a.m.
BLACK LODGE
Wax & Wine
A fundraiser benefiting Stax Museum of American Soul Music and celebrating the character of Southern soul and R&B music, food, and wine. DJ Paola Puente, DJ Bizzle Bluebland, and more. Free. Friday, June 28, 7-10 p.m.
STAX MUSEUM OF AMERICAN SOUL MUSIC
HEALTH AND FITNESS
Celestial Sound Bath
A musician, Reiki master, and certified sound therapist leads a meditative sound experience using crystal singing bowls, gongs, chimes, and multiple instruments. Ages 16 + only. $20. Monday, July 1, 6:30 p.m.
THE BROOM CLOSET
Get Outside! Les Mills Bodycombat
A high-energy, no-contact, martial artsinspired workout using moves from karate, taekwondo, boxing, muay Thai, capoeira, and kung fu. Monday, July 1, 6 p.m. | Wednesday, July 3, 8 a.m.
SHELBY FARMS PARK
FIT4Mom
Stroller Strides and Stroller Barre workouts
Thursday, June 27, 9:30 a.m.
SHELBY FARMS PARK
Lunchtime Meditations
Looking for something relaxing to do to clear your mind and improve your overall health?
Visit the Dixon for free meditation sessions every Friday. Friday, June 28, noon-12:45 p.m.
THE DIXON GALLERY & GARDENS
New to Yoga? Beginner Yoga
Workshop
Are you ready to explore the transformative power of yoga? Join Sana’s beginner workshop series, designed to introduce you to the fundamentals of yoga practice. $39/beginner yoga workshop. Sunday, June 30, 3 p.m.
SANA YOGA DOWNTOWN
SANA Yoga Free Yoga at Comeback
Coffee
Find your glow and fuel your soul with FREE Yoga every Tuesday at 11 a.m. at Comeback Coffee. This all-levels Flow class will surely leave you feeling refreshed and rejuvenated. Free. Tuesday, July 2, 11-11:45 a.m.
COMEBACK COFFEE
Slow Your Roll | Saturday Morning Meditation
A serene start to your Saturday with some morning mindfulness, led by the experienced mindfulness educator Greg Graber. Free.
Saturday, June 29, 8-8:30 a.m.
CHICKASAW GARDENS PARK
Tai Chi
Instructor Marjean teaches gentle moves that will strengthen and calm body, mind, and soul. Thursday, June 27, 7 a.m.
OVERTON PARK
Taijiquan with Milan Vigil
Led by Milan Vigil, this Chinese martial art promotes relaxation, improves balance, and provides no-impact aerobic benefits. Ages 16 and older. Free. Saturday, June 29, 10:30-11:30 a.m.
THE DIXON GALLERY & GARDENS
Yoga
Strengthen your yoga practice and enjoy the health benefits of light exercise with yoga instructors Laura Gray McCann. Free. Thursday, June 27, 6-6:45 p.m.
THE DIXON GALLERY & GARDENS
Yoga on the River Candace guides your yoga journey along the Mississippi. Free. Tuesday, July 2, 6 p.m.
RIVER GARDEN
LECTURE
Introduction to Ancient Egyptian Religion
Rev. Omma leads participants on a journey back in time to ancient Egypt, home to some
Crossword
ACROSS
1 Do some digging
6 “Good joke!”
10 Phishing scheme, e.g.
14 City whose cathedral is the subject of a series of Monet paintings
15 “Good gravy!”
16 Target of the U.S.-backed Radio Martí
17 Exuded
18 Was afraid of losing
20 Pre-22-Across
22 Go for a stroll
23 Indian bread
24 One who gets booked, informally
26 Pre-29-Across
29 Subject in acting school
32 Features of leopards
33 Noted family of German composers
34 Ceiling
36 Some Craigslist listings: Abbr.
37 Red Scare epithet
38 Animal also called a Nittany lion
39 ’70s rock?
40 Some Spanish murals
41 Bud of baseball
42 Pre-44-Across 44 Job in a monastery 45 Inauguration recitation
46 Enjoy a nice long bath
47 Pre-50-Across 50 How emotionally developed people handle things
54 One cabinet in a kitchen, typically
56 Douglas ___, author of “The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy”
58 ___ boots
59 Pod creature 60 Regal maker 61 Flabbergast 62 “All right already!” 63 Skunk’s defense
1 Positive
2 Thatcher’s creation
3 Anise-flavored liqueur
4 Bar snack
5 Causes (oneself) to be cherished
Long-beaked bird 7 Soup thickener
Doesn’t just choose randomly
Autoplaying annoyances, sometimes
Dish that can give you garlic breath
Park place?
Ferrara who directed “King of New York”
Wasn’t
of the most well-known deities in modern times. $5. Saturday, June 29, 2 p.m.
THE BROOM CLOSET
PERFORMING ARTS
Freak Nast presents “Kink Night” With demonstrations by HOIST Men of Leather and Fetish and Kink Club 901. Friday, June 28, 9 p.m.
DRU’S PLACE
Monday Night Poetry Set by Perform901
An immersive celebration of the written word, where the beauty of language comes alive.
Monday, July 1, 7:30 p.m.
HI TONE
Our Own Voice Theatre Troupe
Explore the moments before creation, and what that means to each participant. Share creation myths, personal memories, and stories from literature to make art (whatever that means to you), play interactive games, and enjoy respectful creative discussion.
Saturday, June 29, 2 p.m.-5 p.m.
SHADY GROVE PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH
continued on page 22
PUZZLE BY WILL NEDIGER
continued from page 21
QCG Big Top Tease: “Classy, Trashy, & Sassy”
With flow artists, burlesque, fire dancers, drag performers, and more.
Saturday, June 29, 10 p.m.
DRU’S PLACE
Queer Memphis
Presents: Ballroom
With a pride party, walk off, drag show, food, and drinks.
Sunday, June 30, 8 p.m.
BLACK LODGE
SPECIAL EVENTS
“Get Away For A Day” Self-Care Summer Kickback Retreat
A day dedicated to chilling out, recharging, and taking care of yourself. Includes vegetarian lunch, snacks, and beverages. $59.95/day pass, $74.95/day pass plus.
Saturday, June 29, 9:30 a.m.6:30 p.m.
MEEMAN-SHELBY FOREST STATE
PARK, NATURE CENTER
Grind City Brewing Tournament Series
Board to Beers is hosting a series of easy to learn and play games at Grind City Brewing Company. Games are free to play. First through third place will take home house cash for Grind City.
Sunday, June 30, 1:30-5 p.m.
GRIND CITY BREWING CO.
June Trolley Night
Stroll South Main’s many galleries, shops, restaurants, and bars as the sun sets on Memphis. The night features different live music performances, complimentary drinks/ appetizers, and more. Friday, June 28, 6 p.m.
SOUTH MAIN STREET
Morrighan’s Bluff, Amtgard of Memphis
Meet on Saturdays at noon for medieval/fantasy live action roleplay games. Join the adventure. Padded weapon combat, quests and adventure, arts and crafts, tournaments and competitions. Familyfriendly, LGBTQ-friendly. Free. Saturday, June 29, noon.
W. J. FREEMAN PARK
Science of Speed: National Corvette Day
Appreciate the rich history and diverse designs of Corvettes over the years with the Beale Street Corvette Association. Sunday, June 30, 1-4 p.m.
MEMPHIS MUSEUM OF SCIENCE & HISTORY
CALENDAR: JUNE 27 - JULY 3
Adult Skate Night
Bring your skates and enjoy food and drink specials available all night. Friday, June 28, 8 p.m.
GROWLERS
WYXR Presents The Dowd Awards
The second annual WYXR Dowd Awards, named in honor of Nathaniel Dowd Williams, a distinguished Memphis radio jockey and
educator. Thursday, June 27, 5:30 p.m.
COSSITT LIBRARY
SPORTS
Cobra Race Series
(Race #2)
The Samar 4 & 8 Miler, park locations TBA. Saturday, June 29, noon.
SHELBY FARMS PARK
Memphis Armored Fight Club
After exhibition fights, get in padded armor and fight each other, or duel with a stranger. Also screening Army of Darkness. Saturday, June 29, 6 p.m.
BLACK LODGE
Memphis Redbirds vs. the Nashville Sounds
$13-$86. Monday, July 1, 7 p.m. | Tuesday, July 2, 7 p.m. | Wednesday, July 3, 6 p.m.
AUTOZONE PARK
Open Water Swim Clinics
Get tips, advice, and training from professional swim and triathlon coaches. Sunday, June 30, 6:30 a.m.
SHELBY FARMS PARK
Race: Annie Oakley & Buffalo Bill Wild West Triathlon Course route includes South of Walnut Grove Road and Trap Lake. Saturday, June 29, 6:30 a.m.
SHELBY FARMS PARK
THEATER
Catch Me If You Can
Based on the life of Frank Abagnale Jr., this musical jet sets audiences on a high-flying wild ride through the life of a young con artist who poses as a pilot, doctor, and lawyer, all while being pursued by the FBI. Catch Me If You Can is a thrilling musical adventure that is not to be missed. Through July 14.
PLAYHOUSE ON THE SQUARE
Cinderella
The classic saga of rags to romance is wonderfully captured with all the wonderment that comes with a fairy tale. Through June 30.
THEATRE MEMPHIS
The 24 Hour Plays:
Memphis
The 24 Hour Plays: Memphis is back. After six writers, six directors, and
GiddyUP participant
24 actors race the clock to create six new, short plays in just 24 hours, watch their one-nightonly performance. This production is based on a long-running format based in New York City that has been produced around the world since 1995. LoneTree Live brings it to Memphis. $15/general admission. Saturday, June 29, 7-9 p.m. THEATREWORKS AT THE EVERGREEN
TOURS
Backbeat Tours
Author and historian Bill Patton wanted to change the whole nature of sightseeing tours: a unique and special interactive experience that people would never forget, something that truly brings Memphis to life. Various times open to booking.
BACKBEAT TOURS
Haunted Pub Crawl
Visit three local bars for ghost stories, dark history, and tales of the paranormal. The only Memphis tour named “One of the Spookiest Ghost Tours in the Country” by House Beautiful magazine. Friday, June 28, 7:30-10 p.m. THE BROOM CLOSET
The Original Memphis Brew Bus
The Memphis Brew Bus is a Saturday afternoon trip into the amazing Memphis craft brewing scene. Locally owned, it’s the original craft beer tour in town. Visit three local breweries for tours, talks with the brewers and of course sampling beer at each stop. Friday, June 28, 7:30-10 p.m.
THE BROOM CLOSET
PHOTO: COURTESY MORTON MUSEUM OF COLLIERVILLE HISTORY
PHOTO: COURTESY DIXON GALLERY & GARDENS
Teens can learn to sew embellished bags at the Dixon.
We Saw You.
with MICHAEL DONAHUE
Loving Local returned this spring in a new location: Grind City Brewing Company. And, to make things even more festive, tap room manager Ashley Creecy created a special drink, “Peach, Please,” for the Project Green Fork event. It’s made with black tea, peach juice, lemon juice, and a Grind City seltzer base, all garnished with a lemon wheel and fresh mint sprig.
“ e sta was fantastic to work with,” says Leann Edwards, Clean Memphis/Project Green Fork program director. “And the location is a great backdrop, with a lot of places for people to roam.”
Guests also dined in the tap room where they could “get a respite from the heat.”
About 300 people attended the event, which featured fare from Biscuits & Jams, Good Fortune Co., Kitchen Laurel, Lulu’s Cafe & Bakery, and Shroomlicious Meals.
“Our chefs really love to be part of this event,” says Edwards. As a press release states, “ is community event celebrates the creativity of Project Green Fork certi ed chefs, breweries, and bartenders who create custom, small-plate appetizers, desserts, and cocktails for the evening.”
PHOTOS: MICHAEL DONAHUE
above: (le to right) Bianca Phillips and Joe Yester; Jon Van Hoozer, Will Coleman, Donna Van Hoozer below: (le to right) Ali Manning and Beth Wilson; Daniel Taylor and Daishu McGri ; Selah and Darius Nelson bottom row: (le to right) Kevin Sullivan; Ko Asare, Khendra Lucas, Ashley Peterson, Meredith Woloshin, Nathan Woloshin
FOOD By Michael Donahue
On
a
(Egg) Roll
Pok Cha’s Egg Rolls restaurant opens June 29th.
A
er a tour of duty in Kuwait, Jessica Hurdle, a member of the Air National Guard, decided it was time to open the brick-andmortar version of her food truck.
e restaurant, Pok Cha’s Egg Rolls, will open June 29th at 131 West Commerce Street in Hernando, Mississippi.
It will keep the Korean theme of the food truck of the same name that honors her mom, the late Pok Cha Chang, says Hurdle, co-owner of the restaurant with Brandon Jenkins.
She told her interior designer, Emily Chastain, items she wanted to incorporate in the restaurant. One of them was a “big Asian fan” like her mother had on a wall when Hurdle was a child. “She went to one of these antique shops and found the exact fan. She didn’t know it was the fan I was thinking about.”
Hurdle has a photo of herself as a child with the original fan.
“I just felt like, ‘Okay, this is a sign. is is so cool. What are the odds?’”
She got the idea to start a food truck in 2018 while on active duty at Little Rock Air Force Base. She visited a food truck operated by a Chinese woman who was serving Asian food. at sparked Hurdle’s memory of her mother’s egg rolls. So she decided to open her own food truck back home in Hernando and specialize in the type of egg rolls her mother made. It was a way to honor her mom. Plus, she didn’t know anybody else operating an egg roll food truck.
In addition to the food truck’s staple rolls, the restaurant will serve kimchi grilled cheese and bulgogi nachos.
She also didn’t know anybody else who made egg rolls like her mom did. Her mother, who was South Korean, put three di erent kinds of meat — hamburger, chicken, and Spam — in one egg roll.
Hurdle found the perfect location for her restaurant — a 1,200-squarefoot space near the Hernando town square.
In addition to the egg rolls, the restaurant will feature “more fusion items,” including kimchi grilled cheese: Mexican shredded cheese and sautéed
kimchi between two slices of Texas toast.
ey also will serve bulgogi nachos, which are wonton nachos with beef bulgogi a.k.a. “Korean barbecue.”
ey’ll o er bibimbap bowls, “rice bowls with fresh veggies and a fried egg on top,” as well as kimbap, veggie rolls that resemble sushi rolls.
She also will feature Korean corn dogs, which consist of panko and sprinkled sugar on the outside and a Nathan’s beef hot dog and mozzarella cheese on the inside. Hurdle rst tasted one of these in 2017 in South Korea. “I wanted to bring that to America,” she says, adding, “ ere was nothing like that here.”
It took a while for Hurdle to replicate the corn dog. “I just could not get the recipe right. It took me about a year of trial and error. And I nally have the recipe I’m happy with.”
She was amazed when she saw how Chastain, who owns Emily Chastain Interior Design in Hernando, transformed the look of the inside of the restaurant. “When I walked in, I felt like a little kid at Christmas time when they wake up in the morning and see all their presents under the tree. at’s the feeling I had. It was just awesome.”
Her food truck didn’t go away; Hurdle is keeping it “for social events. We won’t be going out as much.”
Hurdle doesn’t plan to stop with the food truck and the restaurant. She’s already done her “homework” on how to get their Korean hot chicken wing sauce and bulgogi sauce in the stores. “I’d love to be able to do that,” she says.
Overall, Hurdle is astounded at “the way this thing has blown up.”
She and Jenkins began with the food truck in 2021, and three years later they’re opening a brick-andmortar restaurant. “We have over 8,000 followers on our social media,” she says. Pok Cha’s “has grown into this really big thing.”
As a teenager growing up in Hernando, Hurdle never would have dreamed this could happen. She went to high school with “only two other Asian people in the school.” She knew other students would make fun of her if she brought “something weird” from home to eat in the cafeteria.
“You wouldn’t dare bring kimchi to Hernando High School and bring it out
Jessica Hurdle, Emily Chastain, and Brandon Jenkins
PHOTOS (ABOVE, BELOW): JESSICA HURDLE
Korean corn dogs will be featured on the menu along with egg rolls.
at the lunch table.”
But now, she says, “People are lining up to eat our food.”
Speaking of signs, maybe it was a little birdy who told Hurdle to get into the food business. In 2016, she and a friend were about to sit down to eat at a mall in Japan when a bird ew over and landed on her head. She thinks that bird may have been her mother.
“She was Buddhist at one point and she wanted to be reincarnated as a
bird. She was fascinated with birds. She loved birds.”
Hurdle and that friend were recently writing to each other on Facebook.
“I was talking about how proud my mom would be. She said, ‘But it’s your mother looking over you.’”
Her friend then added, “Please keep your door shut because a bird might y in.” And that bird might be somebody Hurdle knows. “Your mother wants to visit.”
PHOTO (TOP): SHELBY HURDLE
SPORTS By Frank Murtaugh
Walker in Memphis
A once and future Cardinal is nding his swing.
Few players have risen through the St. Louis Cardinals’ minor-league system with the star power of Jordan Walker. Twice the franchise’s Minor League Player of the Year, Walker entered the 2023 season as the fourth-ranked prospect throughout the minor leagues according to Baseball America. And Walker had yet to turn 21. He made the Cardinals’ Opening Day roster having never played a game at the Triple A level and proceeded to start his big-league career with a 12-game hitting streak. Not the stu of typical rookies.
Cut to the present and Walker nds himself midway through a 2024 season that hasn’t gone precisely to plan. He again started in right eld for St. Louis on Opening Day, but struggled in April with a .155 batting average and no home runs through 20 games. (In 117 games as a rookie with the Cardinals, Walker batted .276 with a .445 slugging percentage and 16 home runs.) On April 24th, the Cardinals sent Walker to Memphis to ne-tune his swing and recharge for his sophomore campaign. Over 43 games with the Redbirds, Jordan has batted .264, slugged .402, and hit three home runs.
starting his pro career. Instead, he has a season in the big leagues on his resume, and the weight of expectations for the kind of career that takes a franchise closer to the World Series. Does that weight get heavy? “Maybe a little bit,” he says. “But I don’t think I’ve changed anything, approachwise or mindset-wise. I just wasn’t as consistent with what got me success in the minor leagues, and what got me success last year. at’s the key. ese pitchers are tough. Your swing can feel good, but if you get tough pitches, it’s always tough to hit. But I’m comfortable with my swing, I’m making good swing decisions, and I feel like I can drive the ball. With a simple approach, I’ll catch re again. It’s an up-anddown game.”
“I’m trying to relax,” says Walker. “I’ve shortened my stance a bit. So I’m not as rigid when I start my swing. I feel like I’m seeing the ball better.” How relaxed? Last ursday, Walker took a nap during an optional team batting practice and proceeded to pick up three hits, including a homer, in a win over the Jacksonville Jumbo Shrimp. He also threw out a runner at the plate from right eld.
Walker says he hasn’t had a conversation with Cardinals’ brass specically about their expectations for his next promotion to the big club. But he knows it’s about the magic word for hitters at all levels: consistency. “If my swing is where it needs to be,” notes Walker, “if I’m driving the ball the way I’ve been recently, I should be ne. As long as I hit the ball hard, everything should work out.”
Had Walker played four years of college baseball, he’d just now be
Ben Johnson recently became only the third manager in Redbirds history to win 300 games, but he’s still getting to know Walker, who has now played a half-season, total, at the Triple A level. “With Jordan, it’s a matter of getting comfortable playing every day,” says Johnson. “He’s about to catch re, any day now. And we’ll get him [back to St. Louis] soon.”
A er a slow start, the Cardinals have played themselves into contention for a wild-card playo spot. In addition to Walker’s absence, the team has su ered lengthy stays on the injured list for Tommy Edman, Lars Nootbaar, and Willson Contreras. at’s virtually half a batting order the club can infuse for the second half of the 2024 season. And it can be safely said, among the four, no one has a higher ceiling of potential than Jordan Walker. Greatness awaits.
PHOTO: WES HALE Jordan Walker
ARIES (March 21-April 19): This may sound weird, but I think now is a perfect time to acquire a fresh problem. Not just any old boring problem, of course. Rather, I’m hoping you will carefully ponder what kind of dilemma would be most educational for you — which riddle might challenge you to grow in ways you need to. Here’s another reason you should be proactive about hunting down a juicy challenge: Doing so will ensure that you won’t attract mediocre, meaningless problems.
TAURUS (April 20-May 20): Now is an excellent time to start learning a new language or to increase your proficiency in your native tongue. Or both. It’s also a favorable phase to enrich your communication skills and acquire resources that will help you do that. Would you like to enhance your ability to cultivate friendships and influence people? Are you interested in becoming more persuasive, articulate, and expressive? If so, Taurus, attend to these self-improvement tasks with graceful intensity. Life will conspire benevolently on your behalf if you do. (PS: I’m not implying you’re weak in any of these departments; just that now is a favorable time to boost your capacities.)
GEMINI (May 21-June 20): Barbara Sher and Barbara Smith wrote the book I Could Do Anything If I Only Knew What It Was: How to Discover What You Really Want and How to Get It. I invite you to think and feel deeply about this theme during the coming months. In my experience with Geminis, you are often so versatile and multi-faceted that it can be challenging to focus on just one or two of your various callings. And that may confuse your ability to know what you want more than anything else. But here’s the good news. You may soon enjoy a grace period when you feel really good about devoting yourself to one goal more than any other.
LEO (July 23-Aug. 22): How many different ways can you think of to ripen your spiritual wisdom? I suggest you choose two and pursue them with gleeful vigor in the coming weeks. You are primed to come into contact with streams of divine revelations that can change your life for the better. All the conditions are favorable for you to encounter teachings that will ennoble your soul and hone your highest ideals. Don’t underestimate your power to get the precise enlightenment you need.
VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22): Border collies are dogs with a herding instinct. Their urges to usher, steer, and manage are strong. They will not only round up sheep and cattle, but also pigs, chickens, and ostriches — and even try to herd cats. In my estimation, Virgo, border collies are your spirit creatures these days. You have
By Rob Brezsny
a special inclination and talent to be a good shepherd. So use your aptitude with flair. Provide extra navigational help for people and animals who would benefit from your nurturing guidance. And remember to do the same for your own wayward impulses!
LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22): We have arrived at the midpoint of 2024. It’s check-in time. Do you recall the promises you made to yourself last January? Are you about halfway into the frontier you vowed to explore? What inspirational measures could you instigate to renew your energy and motivation for the two most important goals in your life? What would you identify as the main obstacle to your blissful success, and how could you diminish it? If you’d like to refresh your memory of the long-term predictions I made for your destiny in 2024, go here: tinyurl.com/ Libra2024. For 2023’s big-picture prophecies, go here: tinyurl.com/2023Libra.
SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21): Scorpioborn Gary Hug was educated as a machinist and food scientist, but for many years he has worked primarily as an amateur astronomer. Using a seven-foot telescope he built in the backyard of his home, he has discovered a comet and 300 asteroids, including two that may come hazardously close to Earth. Extolling the joys of being an amateur, he says he enjoys “a sense of freedom that you don’t have when you’re a professional.” In the coming weeks, Scorpio, I encourage you to explore and experiment with the joys of tasks done out of joy rather than duty. Identify the work and play that feel liberating and indulge in them lavishly.
SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21): Your power spots will be places that no one has visited or looked into for a while. Sexy secrets and missing information will be revealed to you as you nose around in situations where you supposedly should not investigate. The light at the end of the tunnel is likely to appear well before you imagined it would. Your lucky number is 8, your lucky color is black, and your lucky emotion is the surprise of discovery. My advice: Call on your memory to serve you in amazing ways; use it as a superpower.
CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19): Happy Unbirthday, Capricorn! It’s time to celebrate the season halfway between your last birthday and your next. I hope you will give yourself a fun gift every day for at least the next seven days. Fourteen days would be even better. See if you can coax friends and allies to also shower you with amusing blessings. Tell them your astrologer said that would be a very good idea. Now here’s an unbirthday favor from me: I promise that between now and January 2025, you will create healing changes in
CANCER (June 21-July 22):
You are entering a phase when you will be wise to ques tion fixed patterns and shed age-old habits. The more excited you get about re-evaluating everything you know and believe, the more likely it is that exciting new possibilities will open up for you. If you are staunchly committed to resolving longstanding confusions and instigating fresh approaches, you will launch an epic chapter of your life story. Wow! That sounds dramatic. But it’s quite factual. Here’s the kicker: You’re now in prime position to get vivid glimpses of specific successes you can accomplish between now and your birthday in 2025.
your relationship with your job and with work in general.
AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18): While sleeping, my Aquarian friend Janelle dreamed that she and her family lived in a cabin in the woods. When dusk was falling, a strange animal put its face against the main window. Was it a bear? A mountain lion? Her family freaked out and hid in a back bedroom. But Janelle stayed to investigate. Looking closely, she saw the creature was a deer. She opened up the window and spoke to it, saying, “What can I do for you?” The deer, who was a talking deer, said, “I want to give you and your family a gift. See this necklace I’m wearing? It has a magic ruby that will heal a health problem for everyone who touches it.” Janelle managed to remove the necklace, whereupon the deer wandered away and she woke up from the dream. During subsequent weeks, welcome changes occurred in her waking life. She and three of her family members lost physical ailments that had been bothering them. I think this dream is a true fairy tale for you in the coming weeks, Aquarius.
PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20): A psychologist friend tells me that if we have an intense craving for sugar, it may be a sign that deeper emotional needs are going unmet. I see merit in her theory. But here’s a caveat. What if we are currently not in position to get our deeper emotional needs met? What if there is at least temporarily some barrier to achieving that lovely goal? Would it be wrong to seek a partial quenching of our soul cravings by communing with fudge brownies, peach pie, and crème brûlée? I don’t think it would be wrong. On the contrary. It might be an effective way to tide ourselves over until more profound gratification is available. But now here’s the good news, Pisces: I suspect more profound gratification will be available sooner than you imagine.
FILM By Chris McCoy
The Bikeriders
In the 1950s-1960s, the motorcycle picture was its own genre. During the postwar years, as military-trained mechanics demobbed into civilian life, motorcycle clubs sprang up all over the country. Some of these guys, combat vets who had developed a taste for Army Air Corps-issued amphetamine pills, were pretty rough customers.
eir leather out ts and roaring chrome steeds made the bikers irresistible to the camera. In 1953, e Wild One, a story about the con icted leader of the Black Rebel Motorcycle Club, made a superstar out of Marlon Brando. In the 1960s, Russ Meyer and Roger Corman made biker movies a cornerstone of their no-budget empires, launching the careers of folks like Peter Fonda, Bruce Dern, Jack Nicholson, and John Cassavetes. e genre hit its apex when Dennis Hopper’s Easy Rider became a generation-de ning hit in 1969.
Sexy guys in leather and charismatic performances make this biker ick hypnotically fun to watch.
Je Nichols’ e Bikeriders aims to resurrect the biker movie and take it to the art house. It’s based on a book of photography by Danny Lyon, who rode with the Outlaws Motorcycle Club from 1963 to 1968. He appears in e Bikeriders, played by Challengers’ Mike Faist, with camera and bulky tape recorder always in tow. Danny’s interviews with biker wife Kathy (Jodie Comer) provide the framework for Nichols’ unconventional story.
Kathy’s husband is Benny (Austin Butler), who is the right-hand man to Johnny Davis (Tom Hardy), the founder of the Vandals, the ctionalized version of the Chicagobased Outlaws. Nichols tells his story in layered ashbacks, adding details as Kathy remembers them. e Vandals were a regular old club of guys racing dirt bikes until Johnny saw e Wild One and decided that was boring. What are we going to do, asks his friend Brucie (Damon Herriman), sit around and talk about motorcycles?
“ at’s what we do anyways,” says Johnny.
ere’s a little more to it than that. ey also drink truckloads of booze
The Bikeriders aims to resurrect the biker movie and take it to the
and ght, both other biker gangs and each other. Despite the fact that he has a day job as a truck driver and a suburban house with a wife and kids, Johnny maintains control of the organization through violence. If you challenge his leadership, you have to ght him. He wasn’t the biggest one, but he was the meanest one, says Kathy. Big Jack (Happy Anderson) nds this
out the hard way.
Johnny surrounds himself with weirdos who share his motorbike obsession. ere’s the aforementioned Brucie, whose red hair makes him look like someone squished Conan O’Brien. Cockroach (Emory Cohen) is called so because of his diet. Make of that what you will. Michael Shannon is Zipco, a Lithuanian immigrant who rails against “the pinkos.” When he tried to volunteer to go to Vietnam, he was rejected as an “undesirable,” and he’s still sore about it.
en there’s Benny. He’s a man of uncomplicated pleasures. His mere smoldering presence is enough to break up relationships. And most
importantly, he can take a lot of punishment in a ght. e lm opens with Benny getting his ass decisively kicked for refusing to take o his colors. By the late ’60s, the Vandals’ reputation was such that the guys stopped wearing their leather jackets and denim vests unless they were in a group, fearing they would get jumped if caught by a rival gang alone. Everyone, that is, except Benny. His devotion to the club borders on the fanatical, a fact that is not lost on Johnny, who is looking for a successor. But as the ’60s progress, embittered veterans of the Vietnam War join the rapidly expanding club. ey have a taste for more and harder drugs, and the motorcycle club gives them a ready-made smuggling and distribution infrastructure. Johnny’s generation were middle-class poseurs pretending to be Marlon Brando. e new breed took the bravado far too seriously.
Nichols and his cinematographer Adam Stone shoot the bikers like mythical gures, which, in a way, they are. But the actual characters are anything but mythical. is lm is exceptional for what his bikers don’t do. ey don’t plan a heist or go on a killing spree. One minute, they’re brawling with a rival gang; the next, the enemies are having beers and telling stories around the camp re. eir most dangerous habit is riding without a helmet. But that would interfere with Austin Butler’s superb haircut, and we certainly can’t have that. For a lm starring a bunch of sexy guys in leather, e Bikeriders is surprisingly chaste. Benny and Kathy never do much more than cuddle. For all its pretensions to realism, like Kathy’s extravagant Chicago accent, the lm feels sanitized. anks to a clutch of charismatic performances, it’s still hypnotically fun to watch. It might even inspire you to jump on a motorcycle. Just don’t ride without a helmet.
e Bikeriders
Now playing Multiple locations
Je Nichols’ gorgeous portrait of a Midwestern motorcycle gang roars with life.
art house.
Our critic picks the best films in theaters.
Kinds of Kindness
Emma Stone, Willem Dafoe, and director Yorgos Lanthimos reunite for another absurdist comedy after the triumph of 2023’s Poor Things. They are joined by Jesse Plemons (whose performance earned him a Best Actor nod at the 2024 Cannes Film Festival), Margaret Qualley, and Hong Chau for a triptych of intertwined stories about love, death, and healing.
A Quiet Place: Day One
The third film in the series goes back to the beginning — the end of civilization. Blind space monsters with extremely sensitive hearing land on Earth and start eating up all the tasty people. That’s not so yummy for Lupita Nyong’o, a New Yorker
who witnesses the invasion and must escape very quietly.
Horizon: An American Saga — Chapter 1
Kevin Costner directs Kevin Costner in this epic tale of American expansion in the West during the pre- and post-Civil War period. Expect horses, hats, and guns from this highly punctuated title.
Inside Out 2
This brilliant sequel is the biggest box office hit of the year. Head emotion Joy (Amy Poehler) must keep her human Riley (Kensington Tallman) on track as the ravages of puberty take hold, and a new emotion named Anxiety (Maya Hawke) arrives at headquarters. Beautifully animated with a stealthily profound screenplay, Inside Out 2 is a must-see.
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The Haves and the Have-Nots
Surging rent burdens low- and middle-income residents.
e gap between the haves and the have-nots gets larger every year. Some e ects of the Covid-19 pandemic are still being felt by the masses. One of those is the rise of rental prices. Rent will never be the same.
We could not predict a virus interrupting our economy or U.S. involvement in the Russia-Ukraine con ict. Now that we are here, we have been subjected to in ation. Everything is more expensive now, but one’s biggest expense is housing, especially with rent increases. It is taking increasingly more money to live comfortably.
SmartAsset did a study earlier this year based on the 50/30/20 rule that 50 percent of your income goes toward necessities (bills, transportation, groceries), 30 percent on entertainment, and 20 percent on savings and investments. Based on this metric, they compiled a list of the 99 largest cities, ranking them in terms of the lowest salary needed to sustain a comfortable life (not living paycheck to paycheck). Memphis was ranked 25th, listing $85,696 as the lowest salary needed to sustain a single person.
According to the 2022 census, the per capita income in Shelby County was $36,230. Most residents only have a high school diploma, but the SmartAsset study suggests that these same residents need to make $85,696 a year to live comfortably. It is suggested that no more than 30 percent of your income go toward rent, but half of all renters in Tennessee are spending more than that.
A ordable low-income housing exists, but the requirements o en include making less than $30,000 to $40,000 a year. is leaves those in the middle in a bind. Your income is above the poverty line, yet you do not make enough to be comfortable.
Because of rent increases, some people have to resort to nding roommates or are forced to relocate to a less desirable neighborhood. Rent increases promote the displacement of loyal tenants for those more well-o . is a ects proportionally more low-income and middle-class tenants. e need for rent control regulations in Tennessee is paramount. In 2021, lawmakers tried to amend TCA Title 66, Chapter 35, which prohibits local government authorities from enacting rent control. e amendment was withdrawn.
In a county where most have not completed undergrad or graduate school, it is becoming increasingly more di cult to survive in this in ation-riddled economy. ere needs to be a union organized to allow the community’s voices to be heard. Legislation for rent control should be introduced and passed. Locally, we should have the freedom to give tenants more rights instead of all the power belonging to the landlord. Opponents say rent control would suppress new housing construction. One could argue that supplying a ordable housing to the average American justi es that risk. Fewer evictions and more stable tenants able to pay rent prevent homelessness and time spent in civil court over evictions.
In the meantime, it’s understood that one must do their own part to sustain a lifestyle that can comfortably a ord a nice place even with rent increases. One must consider going back to school for another degree (potentially raking in more student debt) so they can potentially get promoted to a higher paying job. Nevertheless, the middle class deserves to live in safe neighborhoods with reasonable rates. Without any rent control protections, a landlord or property owner can raise the rent as soon as the lease expires to match the market, irrespective of the local county’s average income.
In the zip codes with the highest number of homicides, rent is cheaper. But the average citizen wants to live in a safe neighborhood where they don’t fear car the , robberies, and violence. e safer areas in Memphis cost more. Do only those with the means deserve to live in a safe environment where their kids can ride their bikes without cause for concern?
ere is a price tag on having peace of mind when you go to sleep at night. ere is an income level that dictates the probability of whether your car will still be in your driveway the next morning.
It’s understood that year a er year price increases a ect our lives, but it should be a reasonable percentage. It shouldn’t mean having to move because it became una ordable. Years ago, one expected maybe $50 to $100 increase (monthly) a er a lease renewal, but I have seen apartment complexes increase by the hundreds of late.
Hopefully there is further discussion on this topic with meaningful discourse toward nding common ground. ere should be compassion toward low- and middle-income citizens who want to live in safe neighborhoods where they can raise their children. If more people speak to lawmakers, sign petitions, work together to get legislation signed, and raise overall awareness, we can nd a solution to a growing issue that a ects the have-nots.
Bria Michele is a native Memphian who has always had a passion for writing. Outside of publishing her rst novel this year, she enjoys reading fantasy novels, dancing, skating, and crocheting. THE LAST WORD By Bria Michele
PHOTO: DESIGNER491 | DREAMSTIME.COM Rent is too high for most Memphians.
