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CONTENTS

SHARA CLARK Editor-in-Chief ABIGAIL MORICI Managing Editor JACKSON BAKER, BRUCE VANWYNGARDEN Senior Editors TOBY SELLS Associate Editor KAILYNN JOHNSON News Reporter CHRIS MCCOY Film and TV Editor ALEX GREENE Music Editor MICHAEL DONAHUE, JON W. SPARKS Staff Writers KEN BILLETT, JESSE DAVIS, EARLE J. FISHER, EMILY GUENTHER, COCO JUNE, AJ KRATZ, PATRICIA LOCKHART, FRANK MURTAUGH, KATIE STEPHENSON Contributing Columnists SHARON BROWN, AIMEE STIEGEMEYER Grizzlies Reporters

OUR 1922ND & 1923RD ISSUES 12.25.25-01.07.26 The Memphis Safe Task Force (MSTF) announced on December 15th that it had surpassed 4,000 arrests since the October launch of its initiative, “underscoring a sustained commitment to reducing violent crime and protecting the most vulnerable in Memphis neighborhoods,” the press release stated.

After a month of the force’s activity here, I spent some weeks working to access public records regarding the 1,000-plus arrests that had accumulated at that point — arrests leaders claim to have been tracking on the city’s Safe Data site (memphistn.gov/safedata). The info there is provided in such a confused format — separating “warrant arrests” from “total arrests” while having an apparent number of felonies vs. misdemeanors in each category, numbers that don’t add up, and a blatant lack of transparency even at surface level with upwards of a thousand charges filed in the “other” category (out of what they say, as of December 18th, is 4,316 arrests) — it is not meant to be understood. Looking over the charts, it would be easy to miss that detail — nearly 22 percent were detained for publicly unknown or “other” charges. The site and its numbers create a facade of safety as the task force itself has focused largely on traffic stops (47,625 as of this writing) and immigrations arrests, profiling Black and brown people at a rate well beyond the already high level of pretextual stops we’ve seen — and fought against — in recent years.

When probed to release public information on arrestee demographics, charges, and more, MSTF officials in mid-November replied, “The Task Force has remained transparent throughout this operation, and the numbers shared are those tracked through our established metric system. We do not break the data down much further … that is not how the information is gathered.” Freedom of Information Act public records requests submitted to U.S. Marshals, the proprietors of the data, have yet to be acknowledged beyond “received.”

The extent of transparency I’ve seen is via crafted press releases: “Traffic Stops

by Memphis Safe Task Force Remove Guns, Drugs, and Dangerous Offenders from Streets”; “Fake Badge, No Authority: Memphis Safe Task Force Arrests Criminal TBI Impersonator”; “There’s No Escaping Justice, Memphis Safe Task Force Ends Fugitives’ Run from Accountability.”

They have announced the capture of alleged gang members, murder suspects, and sex offenders, and I absolutely praise efforts to remove violent criminals from our streets. But some cases they’ve highlighted bring into question the truth of their narrative — arrests for “Felon in Possession of a Firearm” and “Possession of a Controlled Substance” were news enough to send out a press release, yet immigrations arrests have been wiped completely from the publicly tracked data.

These highlights also situate the Memphis Police Department as a failure — with its many outstanding warrants for various offenses, mild to heinous, neglecting to find on their own sex offenders who hadn’t registered or re-registered, for example.

But even for the most serious criminals who have been apprehended, the public records are not available. We get what they give us.

What’s truly heartbreaking is the number of people who’ve sat idly by, or worse, in agreement with what’s happening in our city under the guise of public safety.

While just last week, a video showed 850 Memphians lined up through a maze of halls in queue for traffic court — 850 on the docket for one day; people who had to take time off of work and otherwise waste hours standing in 201 Poplar for a tag light or tint infraction. The jail itself is grossly overcrowded, with several inmates dying in recent months and conditions reportedly unsanitary and torturous. And the task force’s own release illustrated that there are criminals impersonating the feds. Perhaps that wouldn’t be so easy to do if the officers were all uniformed, badged, unmasked, and in marked NEWS & OPINION cars. But as has been shown, they work THE FLY-BY - 4 POLITICS - 7 undercover, trailing troopers in old AT LARGE - 8 pick-up trucks or new SUVs, and their VIEWPOINT - 9 actions aren’t being tracked in any way COVER STORY that can be analyzed or accounted for.

“TIME KEEPS ON SLIPPIN’ …

If the aim, as repeatedly stated by INTO THE FUTURE” force officials, is to “protect the most

BY FLYER STAFF - 10 vulnerable,” this misuse of funds and ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT force is even more vile. Funnel that WE RECOMMEND - 13 money into food, housing, and educaMUSIC - 14 tion. Stop pulling people over for their AFTER DARK - 15 CALENDAR - 17 skin color and writing tickets to already NY TIMES CROSSWORD - 19 struggling citizens. Until all of our city’s WE SAW YOU - 20 people have stable foundations to build FOOD - 22 upon, safety is an illusion and the freeMETAPHYSICAL CONNECTION - 25 dom we enjoy in Memphis, and in this NEWS OF THE WEIRD - 26 country, slips farther away.

ASTROLOGY - 27 FILM - 28 Do you have anything to say?

Shara Clark CLASSIFIEDS - 30 LAST WORD - 31 shara@memphisflyer.com

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THE

fly-by

MEMernet Memphis on the internet.

YEAR IN MEMERNET Memphis showed out online this year. From funny to poignant to funny/poignant, here are some of our faves from the year.

December 25, 2025-January 7, 2026

POSTED TO REDDIT BY U/BACKGROUND-WAR9535

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Two No Kings protests flooded the MEMernet with photos and videos, like the one above showing Memphis Flyer legend Chip Googe.

The small but mighty protest in support of Ukraine was the most upvoted and commented post in the Memphis subreddit for 2025.

POSTED TO REDDIT BY U/JESUSWITHAPENIS_ The King made a comeback in 2025: this time in AI-generated videos that had him shaking hands on the street (right), hitting a homerun, and crashing a mo- POSTED TO TIKTOK BY WOOZYAI bility scooter off a stage.

In a consequential post, DeeDee Williams thanked President Donald Trump for sending in the National Guard. She POSTED TO TIKTOK BY claimed the DEEDEEMANNING move got her fired from the Tri-State Defender but the paper said she was a freelancer and could “not be fired from a job she didn’t have.”

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Questions, Answers + Attitude Edited by Toby Sells

Y E A R T H AT WA S

By Flyer staff

National Guard, xAI, & Kings’ Crossing The Memphis Safe Task Force, fights over Grok, and a new bridge across the river.

JANUARY • Tennessee Governor Bill Lee rejected money that would have provided free summer meals for up to 700,000 Tennessee children.

• We told you how to get around Tennessee’s then-new porn law. The story would remain in our Top 10 most-clicked web stories almost every month of the year.

• Lee called a special session of the Tennessee General Assembly to pass his school voucher plan.

• Lee said he’d use the National Guard to deport immigrants if President Donald Trump wanted it.

• Memphis-Shelby County Schools (MSCS) Superintendent Marie Feagins was fired.

FEBRUARY • GOP lawmakers wanted to ban undocumented students from schools.

• TACOnganas employees were taken by federal immigration agents.

• Alliance Healthcare Services opened its new 24/7 Crisis Wellness Center in Binghampton.

• State GOP applauded Trump’s “Gulf of America” change.

Biden-era investigation of the MPD’s use of excessive force and more.

JUNE • NAACP officials urged officials to stop the xAI project completely.

• Mississippi Boulevard Christian Church unveiled a $310-million plan to transform its Midtown campus.

• Memphis Pride turned 50.

• Lawmakers accused MSCS officials of destroying documents.

• Consultants running the Memphis Area Transportation Authority (MATA) asked the Memphis City Council for $45 million in funding, a $15 million increase.

• City officials released independent testing that found no dangerous pollutants related to xAI. • Celtic Crossing Irish Pub closed temporarily after a car crashed into its patio.

JULY • Tennessee tourism saw a record-breaking $31 billion spend for 2024.

Marie Feagins • The SCHD approved 15 permanent natural gas turbines for xAI’s power backup needs.

• A plan was announced that could move riverboat operations a mile upstream into MARCH the Wolf River Harbor.

• The woman who sought to steal Grace• Greater Memphis Chamber officials land from the Presley family pleaded guilty lauded xAI environmental steps and finanto fraud charges in court. cial impact.

• Opposition grew to the Memphis 3.0 • Grok, xAI’s artificial intelligence, spewed plan. hate against Jews (and more) from its artifi• xAI bought the 1 million-square-foot cial brain in Memphis. former Electrolux facility in Whitehaven.

• The Southern Environmental Law Center • Death row prisoners in Tennessee chal(SELC) filed an appeal to xAI’s air permits.

PHOTO: JERRED PRICE / COURTESY RAYMOND CHIOZZA lenged the state’s the use of pentobarbital in • The American Civil Liberties Union of PHOTOGRAPHY executions, as it could lead to a “tortuous Tennessee (ACLU-TN) sued the city of death.”

Bartlett after elected officials there denied a Clayborn Temple permit to build a mosque.

APRIL • The city of Memphis was sued by a law • The Shelby County Health Department (SCHD) anstudent who claimed the city restricted access to police nounced a hearing on xAI’s air permits. disciplinary documents.

• Lawmakers banned THCA products.

• An audit found a host of financial problems at MATA. • The Mississippi River was named the “most endangered” in the country.

AUGUST • A bill that would have allowed the state to take over MSCS • Groups demanded change from Shelby County Sheriff failed to pass.

Floyd Bonner after an inmate died at Shelby County Jail.

• Fire gutted Clayborn Temple in Downtown Memphis.

• Governor Lee mobilized the National Guard to help with Trump’s mass deportations.

MAY • Thabo, the Memphis Zoo’s male lion, died at age 16.

• Three officers involved in the Memphis Police Department • Lee readied the National Guard for D.C. to help Trump.

(MPD) killing of Tyré Nichols were found not guilty on all • Tennessee and Arkansas officials said “Kings’ Crossing” state criminal charges by a Chattanooga jury.

• The Trump-led U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) closed its continued on page 6 PHOTO: DR. MARIE N. FEAGINS | FACEBOOK

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NEWS & OPINION

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continued from page 4 would be the new name of the new bridge spanning the Mississippi River.

• Lee said he was not ready to send National Guard troops to Memphis.

• MATA canceled its search for a new CEO as city leaders said they’d appoint a trustee.

• A new trial was ordered for the three MPD officers convicted in the police killing of Tyré Nichols as the original judge in the case, U.S. District Judge Mark Norris, was found to have made disparaging remarks about the MPD. SEPTEMBER • Trump threatened to pull funding from Tennessee school unless gender identity was pulled from sexual education classes.

• Trump told Fox News he’d send National Guard troops to Memphis.

• Trump introduced his “Memphis Safe Task Force” in a memo. It included 13 federal agencies and the Tennessee National Guard, and would target everything from immigration to traffic violations.

• Memphis Mayor Paul Young said the task force was not his call.

• Shelby County Mayor Lee Harris claimed Lee did not have the constitutional right to send National Guard troops into any Tennessee community.

• Regional One Health announced plans to build a new hospital campus on the site of the former Commercial Appeal building.

OCTOBER • Shelby County led the state in firearm deaths from 2019-2023 PHOTO: TENN. AIR GUARD MASTER with a reported 1,849 SGT. KENDRA OWENBY firearm deaths.

• The Memphis-area Tennessee National Latino community Guard was in paralysis over racial profiling from the Memphis Safe Task Force.

• Lee said Trump’s task force in Memphis NOVEMBER could “last forever.”

• A new trail in Over• Mayor Harris deton Park’s Old Forest clared a state of emeropened and a fence gency over task force around it came down. arrests.

• Lee announced $5 • Seven Memphismillion for food banks area elected officials PHOTO: TENNESSEE DEPARTMENT to help those affected OF CORRECTION sued the state over the by the SNAP cuts. constitutionality of the Harold Wayne Nichols • SNAP benefits were Memphis Safe Task restored after weeks of Force. uncertainty.

• Major crime numbers slid from • A judge temporarily blocked the 2024.

National Guard presence in Memphis, • Lawmakers worked to keep SNAP, though they remained here as the state

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the federal food assistance program, funded as a federal shutdown loomed. Governors in other states rushed to help constituents; Lee toured Asia on a state business trip.

• Lee provided Tennesseans with a website listing resources for those possibly affected by the looming SNAP cuts.

• Leaders announced that the Memphis Art Museum Downtown will open in December 2026.

had time to appeal.

• Leaders announced that the Baron Von Opperbean immersive experience on Mud Island will open in March 2026.

• Southaven residents complained about the noise from xAI’s energy plant there.

• ICE targeted immigrants in Tennessee traffic courts.

DECEMBER • Doctors and faith leaders urged Lee to halt the execution of Harold Wayne Nichols. His execution marked the state’s third for the year.

• Businesses suffered amid task force presence.

• Ford pivoted to making gas trucks at West Tennessee’s BlueOval City.

• Chamber officials announced that two full blocks of Downtown Memphis are slated to become an “innovation district” in a project called the “Neural Nexus.”

• Memphis International Airport officials said the airport would officially become Fred Smith International Airport.

• Arguments on the National Guard presence in Memphis were set to be heard in March.

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

INTRODUCING

POLITICS By Jackson Baker

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Unexpected events preceded election year 2026.

Marie Feagins And the impact of the fissure would spread quickly to other organs of government, not only in Memphis and Shelby County but in Nashville, where officials of the Republican-dominated state government reacted in outrage to what they considered further evidence of what they already viewed as ideological irresponsibility in Memphis self-governance and indifference to state authority.

When the MSCS board voted by a 6-3 margin in mid-January to sever ties with Feagins and appoint Roderick Richmond as an interim leader, it cited a bill of particulars that ranged from charges of mismanagement to dishonesty in communications with the board to accepting a grant without board approval to, finally, a catchall count of “engaging in conduct detrimental to the school district.” The overall indictment seemed sketchy at best.

What was oddest about the whole imbroglio was that Feagins’ impressively stout support base ranged

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PHOTO: DR. MARIE N. FEAGINS | FACEBOOK

from conservatives, who saw her as a foe of administrative privilege, to inner-city residents at large, who sensed that she had streetwise sympathies.

She had Mick Wright and Justin J. Pearson both defending her.

Feagins came across as an allpurpose disrupter, and even as she forged ahead with litigation to restore her superintendency, she was heady enough to launch a campaign for Shelby County mayor against an existing field of established local politicians.

Meanwhile, prevailing sentiment against the school board’s moves resulted in action both in the legislature and on the county commission to conflate the formerly staggered terms of board members so that all board seats were up for review on the 2026 election ballot.

Crime continued to be an issue locally, though apparently reliable statistics showed the rate of violent offenses to be dropping, even before the Trump administration and Governor Bill Lee combined to impose a Memphis Safe Task Force regime on the city, National Guardsmen and all.

The two mayors differed in their responses, with Shelby County Mayor Lee Harris filing suit against the intrusion and Memphis Mayor Paul Young opting for a policy of diplomatic coexistence with the occupiers. Though the Young strategy has been reasonably nimble, he finds himself the target of leaders in the Hispanic community who have railed against MPD’s cooperation with ICE. The aforementioned Justin J. Pearson spent much of the first half of 2025 inveighing against the environmental dangers of the local xAI monolith before taking the pivotal step of launching a campaign for Congress against the 9th District’s venerable incumbent, Steve Cohen, that could prove to be the most expensive and watched political race in Memphis history.

Cohen continued to use his seniority to bring project after project to his district — the most notable being the new Kings’ Crossing bridge, the largest pork any congressional leader has ever brought to Tennessee. The agile Pearson made himself known at the announcement event, grabbing a chair from the audience and inviting himself on stage.

More fun and games expected to come.

NEWS & OPINION

Any review of the political year 2025 cannot escape the unique prevalence of the Marie Feagins saga.

Feagins, it will be recalled, began the year still serving as superintendent of the Memphis-Shelby County Schools (MSCS) system, a post she had held but a scant few months. But she was holding on to that job by her fingertips, having been put on notice in December by a MSCS board majority that it wanted her gone.

The news struck most observers without warning, though tensions between the superintendent and the board had been building quietly but ominously almost as soon as she had begun to assume the reins of office.

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n my first column of 2025, I wrote that the forthcoming year was “looming like the open cellar door to the end-times.” Nailed it. The year 2025 was beyond anything even my most cynical self could have imagined. However, since it is my duty as a columnist to do an annual “year in review” piece, here goes.

The first major news event of 2025 was the January fire in Los Angeles that swept through 40,000 acres and killed 400 people. Then-President-elect Trump blamed the fire on the L.A. Fire Department’s DEI hiring policies and Governor “Newscum’s” refusal to allow water to “flow daily into many parts of California.” A couple weeks later, now-President Donald Trump granted blanket clemency to all 1,600 people with offenses related to the January 6th attack on the Capitol. Also in January, Trump told the premier of Denmark the U.S. wanted Greenland and renamed the Gulf of Mexico. As one does.

In February, Memphis got a taste of the racist terrorism to come when masked ICE agents raided a TACOnganas food truck and sent three men to an immigration facility in Louisiana.

In March, Trump unleashed bazillionaire Elon Musk on U.S. government agencies, after which Musk fired thousands of federal workers who inspect and direct airplanes, protect food, test drugs, provide disaster relief, run our national parks, and administer the IRS, Medicare, Medicaid, and Social Security, the last of which Musk called a “Ponzi scheme.” Later that month, Trump ignored a federal judge’s orders and shipped 238 Venezuelan immigrants to a notorious prison in El Salvador.

Trump said he was invoking the Alien Enemies Act, which permits the government to deport people from countries at war with the United States.

In April, Memphis got 12 inches of rain in four days, but it was really just background noise as the country was being “looted, pillaged, raped, and plundered by nations near and far.” Or at least that’s what was happening in Trump’s cranium, as he proclaimed “Liberation Day” and imposed tariffs on pretty much every country in the world except Russia.

In May, this was a real headline in The Washington Post: “Trump Orders Government to Stop Enforcing Rules He Doesn’t Like.” Those rules included enforcing antidiscrimination laws and air- and waterpollution standards, and releasing climate change information.

Trump celebrated his June birthday with a Putin-esque military parade in Washington, D.C., and followed it up a couple weeks later by boasting that U.S.

bombers had destroyed three nuclear sites in Iran. A subsequent report noted that the facilities were still mostly intact.

In July, The Wall Street Journal reported on a birthday card from Trump to Jeffrey Epstein which contained lines such as: “We have certain things in common, Jeffrey,” and “May every day be another wonderful secret,” and a nude drawing of a small-breasted female.

In August, House Speaker Mike Johnson adjourned Congress indefinitely to avoid allowing members to vote on releasing the Epstein files.

In September, the United States began destroying small Venezuelan boats in the open sea and killing their occupants, claiming without evidence they were bringing drugs to the U.S. Then Trump renamed the Defense Department the War Department, while massively amping-up ICE racist-terrorism efforts in several cities.

PHOTO: STEPHAN PIETZKO | DREAMSTIME.COM

In October, Trump abruptly tore down the East Wing of the White House and announced construction of a massive ballroom to be named after himself. After months of bullying and extorting law firms, universities, automakers, pharmaceutical companies, and media corporations, Trump met his match in ABC talk-show host Jimmy Kimmel, who was suspended but reinstated, even after pressure from the administration to fire him.

In November, as Johnson’s “Epstein shutdown” of Congress entered its third month, federal employees didn’t get paid, SNAP benefits weren’t distributed, and airports became crowded morasses. Later that month, a contrived deal of sorts ended the shutdown.

In December, Trump began showing more and more overt signs of mental decline — falling asleep in public several times and posting deranged late-night rants on Truth Social, including one particularly sick response to the murders of Rob and Michele Reiner. After Vanity Fair ran a disastrously revealing interview with Trump’s chief of staff Susie Wiles, he was pumped up long enough to give a speedy nationally televised lie-fest. At this writing, the Epstein files still await. Happy New Year.

V I E W P O I N T B y R e v. E a r l e J . F i s h e r CALENDAR

The leadership gap in Memphis police reform.

FRI JAN 16

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LUKE WINSLOW-KING with JEREMY STANFILL function directly and publicly.

That is precisely why the absence of comparable leadership on police reform is so troubling.

When it comes to policing, the mayor’s office has not exhibited the same level of urgency, transparency, or political courage. Nor has Police Chief C.J. Davis offered the public a clear accounting of how DOJ findings have translated into concrete disciplinary actions or structural reforms within MPD. Leadership that expects trust must be willing to demonstrate accountability, especially in an institution with a long history of harming the communities it claims to protect.

Compounding this failure is the role of the Memphis City Council. The council possesses oversight authority, approving budgets, receiving briefings, and having the power to demand documentation, timelines, and measurable outcomes. Yet far too often, members have functioned as a passive audience rather than an active check. When legislative bodies fail to insist on evidence, executive silence becomes normalized. Oversight deferred is accountability denied.

This is not a call for spectacle or public shaming. It is a call for governance. Police reform cannot be reduced to dashboards, talking points, or selective statistics. It requires public documentation, clear standards, and demonstrable consequences for misconduct. Anything less erodes trust and deepens the very crises of legitimacy city leaders claim they are addressing.

If Memphis leadership is serious about reform, it must answer a basic question: What, if anything, has the mayor’s task force actually produced? The absence of any public findings or recommendations suggests that reform has been reduced to performance rather than practice.

In the meantime, the city’s dismissal of the DOJ’s report as “meaningless” has left thousands of residents — already subjected to pretextual and racially disproportionate traffic stops — exposed to the very forms of police misconduct reform was supposed to address. This is not public safety. It is punitive populism masquerading as policing, operating without transparency, accountability, or meaningful oversight.

Memphis does not need more assurances that it is safer. It needs evidence that leadership is willing to govern with transparency, courage, and integrity — especially when it comes to policing. Political courage has been shown in other arenas.

It is far past time to show it here, too.

This piece was originally published by Tennessee Lookout.

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n recent months, Memphis residents have been told — by federal officials and echoed by local leadership — that the city is safer.

Crime statistics are cited. Task forces are announced. Press conferences are held. Yet for many Memphians, especially those who live in over-policed neighborhoods, these assurances ring hollow — not because reform is impossible, but because accountability remains largely unproven.

Nearly a year ago, Mayor Paul Young announced the formation of a task force focused on policing and public safety.

Since then, there has not been a single comprehensive, public-facing document outlining that task force’s findings, recommendations, or implementation outcomes. No clear timeline. No benchmarks.

No explanation of what has changed as a result of its work. This silence echoes the skepticism many residents already feel toward initiatives like the Memphis Safe Task Force — initiatives that promise reform but rarely show their work.

This is not merely a matter of political theater or messaging. It is a question of political leadership.

The Department of Justice’s (DOJ) Pattern and Practice Investigation into the Memphis Police Department (MPD) documented serious and, in some cases, unlawful conduct by officers. The findings were not abstract. They were specific. They detailed patterns of excessive force, unconstitutional practices, and systemic failures that demanded more than acknowledgment. They demanded consequences.

Yet to this day, there is no publicly identifiable officer city leadership can point to as having been disciplined, terminated, or otherwise held accountable as a result of reforms implemented in response to the DOJ’s findings. If accountability has occurred, the public has not seen evidence. And accountability that cannot be demonstrated cannot be trusted.

It is important to be clear: This critique is not rooted in a belief that Mayor Young is incapable of political courage. In fact, the opposite is true. The mayor has demonstrated fortitude and resolve on other contentious matters. He has stood firm amid criticism surrounding major development projects, including xAI. He has asserted his authority decisively when he believed boards were operating inadequately, as seen in his intervention with the Memphis Area Transit Authority board. In those instances, whether we agree with his actions or not, the mayor showed a willingness to confront dys-

NEWS & OPINION

Promises Without Proof

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COVER STORY By Flyer Staff

Time Keeps on Slippin' ...

Into the Future THE FLYER PEERS INTO POLITICS, ARTS, FILM, SPORTS, MUSIC, AND MORE FOR THE NEW YEAR.

I

December 25, 2025-January 7, 2026

always think about crafting a vision board this time of year, one on which I place imagery of what I want the new year to look like.

Lamborghini, mansion, a personal Bon Jovi concert, my own real-life Ken — wait, that’s what I dreamed of in elementary school. Luckily, myself and the rest of the Flyer staff are more down to earth and much more educated than we were as kids. Wielding that hard-earned knowledge, we have put together a vision board of sorts for what 2026 will (or maybe might) look like in Memphis.

Grand Openings The new year promises exciting openings for some of Memphis’ biggest cultural institutions.

Metal Museum at Overton Park The new Metal Museum at Overton Park is set to open in September.

Change has been evident on the site of the former Memphis College of Art (MCA) for months to anyone who has visited the park. Rust Hall’s exterior gleams a new white and shifting mounds of dirt promise a new landscape.

MCA closed in 2017. Metal Museum leaders announced interest in the space in 2018, along with a $45 million capital campaign to finance the move.

The new Metal Museum will feature a new cafe, an auditorium, and lots more space for studios, education, exhibits, storage, and more.

The museum will keep its original 10 French Fort location on the river for residency programs.

PHOTO: (ABOVE) COURTESY METAL MUSEUM; (BELOW) COURTESY NCRM

(above) Metal Museum; (below) National Civil Rights Museum

Memphis Flyway at Tom Lee Park Memphis River Parks Partnership (MRPP) will open the only “free and ADA-accessible observation deck on the Mississippi River” early next year.

The $10-million “Memphis Flyway”

is a 218-foot-long distinctive curving observation deck that towers five stories above the river. The project is a canopy boardwalk ground-supported by three steel mast column bundles.

“The Memphis Flyway will become

the premier place to experience the Mississippi River along the Great River Road, which follows the Mississippi River from its source in Minnesota to its delta at the Gulf of Mexico,” MRPP said in a statement.

The organization said it expects more than 1 million visitors at the Flyway every year.

“The Memphis Flyway will conserve the unspoiled habitat below the structure for a wide variety of species, including the at-risk monarch butterfly, and offer visitors a view of the more than 100 species of birds that fly past the Memphis riverfront each year,” the organization said.

National Civil Rights Museum The National Civil Rights Museum (NCRM) is set to open its Legacy Building in spring 2026. The museum’s new Founders Park area is also slated to open.

The renovation of the Legacy Building promises to be a “rich and timely examination of civil and human rights movements since [Dr. Martin Luther King’s] assassination,” according to the NCRM. The new space will usher visitors into an “urgent and immersive journey through the unfinished business of civil rights.”

“Through five powerful thematic galleries — poverty, education, housing, gender equity, and nonviolence — visitors are invited to explore the structural inequalities Dr. King warned of and how those injustices still shape American life today,” the NCRM said.

Memphis Art Museum The new Memphis Art Museum — relocating the longtime Memphis Brooks Museum of Art to Downtown’s riverfront — is slated to open in December 2026.

The 122,000-square-foot facility will offer about 50 percent more gallery space than the current museum, not to mention 600 percent more art-filled free public space, including a 10,000-square-foot community courtyard at street level and a 50,000-squarefoot rooftop sculpture garden. It will also offer classrooms, theaters, riverview galleries, a cafe, and dining spaces.

The $180 million project is supported by public, private, and philanthropic funds. — Toby Sells Holding xAI Accountable In 2025, community members and advocacy groups took the fight for environmental justice into their own hands.

The year culminated with a December hearing brought before the Shelby County Air Pollution Control Board by the Southern Environmental Law Center (SELC) on behalf of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) and Young, Gifted & Green. It sought to have xAI’s air permit rescinded, but the appeal was dismissed by the board.

SELC said this decision would influence how other similar companies move forward with operations and that community organizations are often tasked with holding big companies responsible. We will likely see a continued pattern of activism as groups like Memphis Community Against Pollution have promised to release a report detailing threats to Memphis’ air quality. These findings will likely be compared to reports the city released earlier, which many found issue with.

While we wait to see what moves SELC and other community organizations make next, residents in Southaven will no doubt take this into consideration as they fight against xAI’s expansion into Mississippi.

Southaven residents have voiced noise pollution complaints to elected officials and the company. With ongoing concerns, we are looking to the city to see if there will be any regulation of noise from the facility.

The Safe and Sound Coalition has asked that the Southaven data center stop operations until an independent, third-party health environmental impact study is conducted.

As the fight for clean air coincides with noise pollution and other con-

PHOTO (ABOVE): SOUTHERN ENVIRONMENTAL LAW CENTER

(above) xAI; (below) Wuthering Heights

cerns across state lines, we will likely see groups from both states joining together. — Kailynn Johnson Political Moves The bottom line is that the coming election year is one of those all-toocommon re-evaluation points (“midterms,” in the parlance) when we get to second-guess the political and economic choices we thought we had committed ourselves to.

Midterm elections almost always do amount to course reversals of some kind, large or small. Anybody who’s been paying attention is surely aware of the conniptions that have been stirred up in this or that state where pols are falling all over themselves to rig or rerig electoral district lines to make sure members of the political opposition can’t get elected to office.

They will get elected, though — at least at the national level, where numerical control of the U.S. House of Representatives is almost certain to pass from Republican to Democratic control. Whatever else this entails, it means that the dizzying rush toward authoritarianism of Donald J. Trump’s second term as president will, hopefully, begin to abate.

Tennessee is another matter. Much was made of the relatively close special election just held in the state’s 7th Congressional District, resulting in the victory of a MAGA-minded West Tennessee Republican over a progressive Democratic woman from Nashville. But

the dirty work of gerrymandering was accomplished by the state’s GOP legislators so thoroughly after the last census that no tinkering with district lines a la Texas was necessary to maintain control of the 7th or any of the state’s other congressional districts save one — the 9th District in Memphis.

There and there alone is an enclave so steeped in Democratic demographics — mainly via the preponderant African-American population of Memphis — that Democrats can get themselves elected.

At stake in 2026 is the one congressional seat — of nine in the state overall — held by a Democrat, and that Democrat, Steve Cohen, finds himself, at the apex of a lengthy and distinguished government career, challenged by a young community organizer whose apparent gifts and biography so far stamp him unmistakably as a rising star.

Over the course of his 20 years so far in Congress, Cohen has handily disposed of all his opponents, a veritable all-star list of local Democratic primary challengers. Pearson, who already has something of a national following as a result of derring-do in the legislature and locally, will be his ultimate test.

Statewide, the governor’s race seemingly will come down to a Republican primary race between U.S. Senator Marsha Blackburn and 6th District Congressman John Rose, though Memphis City Council Member Jerri Green will be making a bid as a Democrat.

Shelby Countians will have a choice

of several prominent local Democrats for the office of county mayor — Councilman JB Smiley Jr., County Commissioner Mickell Lowery, County CAO Harold Collins, Assessor Melvin Burgess, and Criminal Court Clerk Heidi Kuhn, as well, apparently, as the controversial former schools superintendent, Marie Feagins. County commissioners, state legislators, and a new sheriff will also be chosen.

Meanwhile, the Memphis-Shelby County Schools board, whose seats are normally staggered, is scheduled for a review by the voters of all nine seats as a direct result of animosities stirred up

by Feagins’ unceremonious ouster by the board. — Jackson Baker On Screens The big story in the film and television world for 2026 is the impending purchase of Warner Bros. (WB) by Netflix.

Only three years after the legendary legacy studio which produced everything from Casablanca to Looney Tunes to Batman was sold by AT&T to David Zaslav’s Discovery network, it’s on the market again. It was recently the subject of a bidding war between Netflix, the streaming TV giant, and Larry and David Ellison’s Skydance, who just snapped up Paramount. It’s a lose-lose proposition for everyone involved who isn’t already a billionaire. The Ellisons are Trump allies eyeing WB/Discovery’s TV properties so they can turn CNN into Fox News Lite. There’s little evidence that they care about the film studio part of the operation, since they already have one of their own, which would mean massive job losses and fewer choices at the multiplex. In other words, more Mission: Impossible movies and fascist propaganda. For now, WB/Discovery’s board has rejected the Ellisons’ bid.

Netflix, on the other hand, will spin off the WB/Disco’s TV division, gobble up WB’s unmatched back catalog of historic cinema for their own streaming service, and use the storied studio’s production division to beef up their own operations. The problem is, Netflix CEO Ted Sarandos hates movie theaters. Netflix’s stock price, which determines Sarandos’ pay and wealth, are based on money from speculators who have been led to believe the company will eventually be the only way to access filmed entertainment. So it’s in Sarandos’ personal interest to destroy everything he believes to be competition, and if that includes your neighborhood movie theater, so be it.

There are many ironies to this story which belie the way we were told in school capitalism is supposed to function. Warner Bros. had a great year, both artistically and commercially. A Minecraft Movie pulled in a cool billion at the box office, Superman soundly continued on page 12

COVER STORY m e m p h i s f l y e r. c o m

Also, Founders Park and the Legacy Terrace will open just west of the museum to South Main. The enhanced outdoor area will offer enlarged spaces, additional seating, audio and staging capabilities, and landscaped reflection areas.

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continued from page 11 trounced the comic book competition from Marvel, Sinners was a surprise hit, and either it or One Battle After Another will take home Best Picture at the Oscars. So why is WB for sale in the first place? Two reasons. First, WB/ Discovery is loaded down with billions of dollars in debt that were accrued first

by AOL when they bought the studio at the turn of the century, then by AT&T when they bought the studio from Time Warner, then by Zaslav when Discovery bought it from AT&T. After the Netflix transaction is complete, WB will be forced to pay off something north of $50 billion. Second, once the sale goes through, Zaslav’s stock options will vest, and he stands to retire with about a $567 million windfall. Will these perverse incentives lead to Zaslav burning down the house on his way out?

Then there’s the possibility that the Trump administration’s Department of Justice will jump in with an antitrust prosecution which will force the sale of the studio to his political ally Ellison, thus further expanding state control over the news and mass media. Any way you slice it, it’s bad for the people who make film and television, and bad for the people who consume it.

— Chris McCoy

December 25, 2025-January 7, 2026

Good Sports 2026 is a sports year the world has had circled for quite some time. The Winter Olympics in February will make skiing and ice-skating topics of the day for two weeks, and with the gorgeous setting of northern Italy. Then in June, soccer’s World Cup arrives in these United States (the home country is guaranteed a place in the field … though nothing beyond that). But what about here in Memphis, before, between, and after the international fun?

The Memphis Grizzlies are climbing toward a .500 record despite lengthy absences, due to injury, of Ja Morant and Zach Edey. Can the likes of Cam Spencer, Vince Williams Jr., and rookie Cedric Coward help the franchise return to the NBA playoffs in a top-heavy Western Conference? Last season, 48 wins were merely good enough for 8th place in the conference. Another question that will be answered in the coming months: Are Morant and Jaren Jackson Jr. the centerpieces of a team still hungry for its first Finals appearance? If Grizzlies GM Zach Kleiman isn’t convinced, 2026 could yield a roster transition.

At the college level, Memphis Tigers coach Penny Hardaway knows plenty about roster transition. His entire 202526 roster is new to the U of M. After a 1-4 start and an ugly December loss at Louisville (!), a winter of discontent 12 seems to have lowered upon a program that last season won both the Ameri-

PHOTO: BOBBI RICH

Alabama Shakes can Conference’s regular season and tournament championships. The lack of star power on this year’s team has led to sagging attendance at FedExForum and a general sense of “What can be done?” Win the conference tourney again, and Memphis will return to the NCAA tournament. Win it or not, we can expect roster turnover. Again.

With the St. Louis Cardinals undergoing their most comprehensive rebuild in three decades, the Triple-A Memphis Redbirds will serve as a conduit for growth. At least that’s the hope for Cardinal fans. Last season’s headliner — infielder JJ Wetherholt — is a virtual lock to land a roster spot with the big

PHOTO: (ABOVE) FRANK MURTAUGH; (BELOW) WES HALE

(above) Charles Huff; (below) Ja Morant

club. Pitcher Quinn Mathews — the 2024 Minor League Pitcher of the Year — may be back for some fine-tuning, though the Cardinals’ starting rotation is thin in both talent and experience.

The Cards’ top pick in the 2025 draft, left-handed pitcher Liam Doyle from the University of Tennessee, could land a Memphis rotation spot. And remember the name Rainiel Rodriguez, one of baseball’s top catching prospects, but only 19 years old.

When Memphis Tiger football returns in September, it will be under the watch of new coach Charles Huff, hired in December to replace Ryan Silverfield, who departed for Arkansas after six years (and 50 wins) in blue and gray.

At his meet-the-city press conference, Huff had attendees well beyond college age ready to don helmet and shoulder pads for “the apex predator” Huff intends Memphis to be on fall Saturdays.

With Simmons Bank Liberty Stadium scheduled to complete its massive ($212 million) renovation by the season opener, the 2026 campaign could be the most significant in program history.

With dreams of larger conference affiliation still a motivator, mediocrity is the enemy. — Frank Murtaugh Live Music (With an Eye on the Past) If there’s one theme uniting the most exciting concerts on next year’s horizon, it may be “honoring yesterday for a better tomorrow.” The shows coming our way somehow promise to keep the best of what we thought was lost, even as they wrap it up in a whole new package.

First of all, of course, will come Graceland’s annual tribute to Elvis Presley in the days surrounding his birthday, from Wednesday, January 7th to 11th, which will have all the historical tributes we’ve come to expect, including a day devoted to “Elvis 1956,” the singer’s breakout year. But in the middle of the music and conversations with folks who knew The King, the event will also include something utterly new: an exclusive sneak-peek screening of Baz Luhrmann’s EPiC: Elvis Presley in Concert, a celebration of

Presley’s live shows, especially in 1970s Las Vegas, sprinkled with rare intimate footage and even newly-discovered audio recordings of Presley telling his own story. This will be the world’s first chance to see a film that won’t appear on IMAX screens until February 20th, to be followed by a theatrical run beginning February 27th.

Fast on the heels of that, the Blues Foundation will shift into high gear with the International Blues Challenge, Tuesday, January 13th, through Saturday, January 17th, which for 45 years has offered the best glimpse into the future of the blues, as heretofore lesserknown groups from around the world vie for recognition as the real deal. But along with those new faces, the Blues Foundation also pays tribute to those “who have played crucial roles in advancing the art and commerce of blues” with their Keeping the Blues Alive (KBA) honorees. While those awardees — Cognac Blues Passions, John Anderson, Jeff Davis, Michael Gray, Jazz Alley, Nola Blue, Jim Hartzell, Robert Terrell, and Mark Jacobson — were announced earlier this month, they’ll be honored in person at the Keeping the Blues Alive Awards brunch on Friday, January 16th, at the Hyatt Centric.

On a more local, personal note combining a tearful look backward with hope for the future of music, several Memphians, in collaboration with Music Export Memphis, have launched the Luke White Memorial Fund, offering grants to emerging musicians in the city and offering a day of recording at High/Low, Luke’s home studio, and mastering by Jacob Church at JLC Audio. White, who died in April after a long battle with cancer, was a bandmate to many and a mainstay of the Memphis music scene for many years. A fundraiser show at B-Side on February 27th, featuring Jeff Hulett & the Hand Me Downs and Toby Vest & the Dream Machine, will help jumpstart the fund.

Speaking of jumpstarts, many are hotly anticipating the opening of the Grind City Amphitheater, aka Grind City Amp, a new venue launched by Grind City Brewing Co. and Barbian Entertainment on the brewery’s property in Uptown. The inaugural show won’t come until April 22nd, but get your tickets now — the headliner will be none other than the Alabama Shakes. The garage soul group, spotlighting the powerful vocals of Brittany Howard, seemed to call it quits in 2018 so Howard could pursue her solo career, but just this month reunited for a surprise show in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, and shortly thereafter announced their work on a new album and a summer tour next year. The Grind City Amp show will be an early chance to witness this brilliant ensemble of yore made whole again, laying the groundwork for untold sonic delights to come. — Alex Greene

‘In Memoriam’

By Abigail Morici

When gallery owner David Lusk met Veda Reed, he saw her as the “grand old woman of Memphis,” he says. “To call her the ‘grand old woman’ makes her sound older [than she was], but she had such an illustrious and important career to that point, she was famous.”

Reed was small in stature but could command a room with a quiet authority, especially in the classroom at the Memphis Academy of Arts, later the Memphis College of Art, where PHOTO: COURTESY DAVID LUSK GALLERY AND THE ©ESTATE OF VEDA REED she taught painting, drawing, lettering, design, still life, and landscape painting for 34 years.

Taos Mountain Sky: 6-26-97, Herself a 1956 graduate, she continued to support the school until its closure and encourage 1998, oil on canvas, 36x51” her students until her death in June 2025.

Over the course of her career, Reed was nationally renowned, her work having been displayed in galleries and museums all across the United States. Lusk began representing her in the ’90s.

For Reed, much of her art was dedicated to the prairies of her native Granite, Oklahoma — first landscapes, and then skyscapes — subjects, as she told Memphis Magazine in 2016, that gave her “a warm, safe feeling.”

She studied the sky, the clouds, read everything she could, and even joined the Cloud Appreciation Society. She was meticulous, too, in the way she painted, technical with a process of hand-cut stencils, rulers, layers of pigment that she wiped away and reapplied to capture the colors of the clouds bouncing and hiding light seemingly beyond the horizon.

And so, the clouds unfold on the canvas dramatically, yet seamlessly, almost in a “broad panorama-like CinemaScope,” Lusk says. “I frequently find her pieces to have a cinematic viewpoint.”

Reed painted all the way through to the end. For her 90th birthday in 2024, Lusk hosted a show, her last show, of new works.

“People from far and wide — we had some from down in South Louisiana — came up for the show, and we had folks in from the Minneapolis area,” Lusk says. Asked what brought people out to see her show from hundreds of miles away, Lusk says, “I think it’s that authority from which she spoke, her feeling about art and her ability to say what she really firmly believed, that really worked well or didn’t work so well.”

Over the summer, the gallerist began archiving her work, going through her studio and uncovering all that Reed left behind. “It feels like another beautiful life,” he says. Reed’s output was prolific, he adds. “I’m gonna miss not having a new body of work for her every two or three years — I liked what she made and I liked seeing her new ideas.”

For January, in honor of her birthday once again, Lusk has planned a show in memory of Reed, featuring works that date from 1960 to 2022. The show opens Friday, January 2nd.

“IN MEMORIAM,” DAVID LUSK GALLERY, 97 TILLMAN, ON DISPLAY JANUARY 2-FEBRUARY 7.

OPENING, FRIDAY, JANUARY 2, 5-7 P.M. VIRTUAL TOUR, TUESDAY, JANUARY 6, 12:30 P.M.

VARIOUS DAYS & TIMES December 25th - January 7th New Year’s Celebration with Mid-South Pride Minglewood Hall, 1555 Madison Avenue, Wednesday, December 31, 7:30 p.m., $50/at the door Mid-South Pride is closing out 2025 with intention, rhythm, and community by hosting a multistage New Year’s Eve celebration designed for LGBTQ Memphians, allies, and anyone looking for something real to carry into the new year.

Doors open at 7:30 p.m., with music until 2 a.m. The space will feature two live stages, immersive light shows

by Illumination Lasers & Lights and Sublime Light, and nonstop performances by some of the South’s most electrifying DJs, including Scotty B, Jordan Rogers, MAD, Vibe Check, Katie Loopz, illstu, and Test Kit. Find out more at events.midsouthpride.org.

Wellness January Crosstown Concourse, 1350 Concourse, Saturdays in January This January, Crosstown Concourse invites you to refocus your mind and body with Wellness January, a brandnew Better Together series designed to help you build healthier habits in a way that feels accessible, encouraging, and fun. Throughout the month, enjoy free wellness programming every Saturday, from fitness classes and nutrition talks to healthy meal specials and inspiring films — all leading up to the Crosstown 10K/5K. Each Saturday in January follows the same easy-to-follow rhythm, so you can plan your day — or simply drop in when it works for you. January 3rd will have runners’ Pilates at 11 a.m., nutrition coaching at 1 p.m., and a screening of McFarland, USA at 1:30 p.m.

Memphis Belle Comedy Queen Lamplighter Lounge, 1700 Madison Avenue, Sunday, January 4, 7 p.m.

Get ready for a night of comedy, camp, creativity, and realness as contestants WERK for the crown and earn their shot at National Miss Comedy Queen.

See the unique talents and charisma of participants in a celebration of humor and confidence. Unlike traditional pageants that focus primarily on physical appearance, this distinctive competition places an emphasis on the contestants’ ability to make others laugh while embracing their individuality. Aspiring comedians and entertainers from diverse backgrounds gather to compete, each bringing their own flair and comedic style to the stage.

You’ll laugh, cheer, and support your local Memphis drag talent.

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And we strive to keep you informed about and connected to our city.

Whether you can help in the form of a few dollars a month or a larger one-time contribution, you’ll be making a difference.

Think of this as an investment in our shared future.

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MUSIC By Alex Greene

A Dozen Bangers from ’25 These albums are proof positive of magic brewing in the Memphis mud.

Ben Nichols & Rick Steff — Lucero Unplugged (Liberty & Lament) While none can deny the sheer power of Lucero as a quintet, this intimate release, featuring singer-songwriter Nichols and pianist Rick Steff reinterpreting the band’s catalog as a duet, highlights the weave of the singer’s guitar and Steff ’s piano with a power all its own. It’s a compelling reminder of the focused, poetic soul at the heart of Nichols’ writing.

December 25, 2025-January 7, 2026

Bobby Rush & Kenny Wayne Shepherd — Young Fashioned Ways (Thirty Tigers) While Rush sought out this collab with Shepherd as a fellow Louisiana native, this full-band pairing, cut at Royal Studios, has a truckload of Memphis in it. With Rush singing and blowing harp over Shepherd’s gritty guitar grooves, there’s an undeniable chemistry between them.

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Frank McLallen — Extra Eyes (Red Curtain) Within this album’s lo-fi aesthetic are moments of sparse quietude and layers of soulful harmonies over chord changes reminiscent of the Beach Boys or Bowie. The album’s closest antecedent might be Tyrannosaurus Rex, but the greatest revelation is hearing McLallen’s voice in a new register, his expressive baritone given more space than in his noisier bands. This is the

out album, Shake Hands With Shorty, this marks the Dickinson brothers’ evolution as artists. Yes, the Hill Country blues are all over this LP, but so are refreshingly lyrical breakdowns and sonic delights like clavinet and synth bass that still slot right in with the traditional strings and world boogie beats.

And the collage of different cameos makes it a truly communal celebration.

sound of a man taking stock of his life via lovely melodies, folk-pop riffs, and swinging, swaggering vocals.

Joe Restivo — A Beautiful Friendship (Warbler) The jazz guitar ace made this album much as artists would have half a century ago, recording live direct-to-tape at Phillips Recording Service as Scott Bomar engineered, playing with fellow ringers Charlie Wood on organ and Renardo Ward on drums. There’s a refreshingly light, swinging mood throughout — the sound of three cats having fun, at the top of their game. Restivo’s originals hold up beside his choice of standards.

Laundry Bats — Hangin On A String (HoZac) Brevity is the soul of wit, and also punk defiance. Once they heard his laserfocused songwriting, erstwhile Oblivians Greg Cartwright and Jack Yarber rushed to collaborate with Abe White (Manateees/True Sons of Thunder) and the results are electrifying. White has mastered in-your-face confrontation, but with the messy hooks and trenchant ideas of early New York Dolls, and more Stonesy swagger than the Stones themselves have these days.

Lawrence Matthews — Between Mortal Reach & Posthumous Grip Matthews shrugs off his Don Lifted persona and embraces a more authentic, harder-edged version of himself.

After the opener, “Green Grove (Our Loss),” begins with classic soul strings, the track briefly dips into hazy atmospherics until a harder-hitting beat kicks in. Elsewhere, country blues voices pepper the album. Matthews’ new voice is one of grim determination, mixed with a new playfulness that might even make it scarier.

North Mississippi Allstars – Still Shakin’ (New West) An oblique tribute to the group’s break-

Optic Sink — Lucky Number (Feel It) Compared to their earlier work, the beats are more complex, the arrangements more nuanced, and, with Keith Cooper’s bass more integral than ever, the bottom more heavy. The synth-centered band has always recorded on actual hardware as three humans, and singer-songwriter Natalie Hoffmann’s inclination to play guitar again, first apparent on Glass Blocks, has only grown on this album.

Her deadpan vocals have taken on an aggressive tone, that, paradoxically, also gives way to out and out singing.

The Pop Ritual — The Columns (Thisco/Black & Wyatt) Arguably the best gothic techno rock in the nation right now, these Memphians capture our current dystopian era with gripping intensity. Think “Wardance”

by Killing Joke, and you’re in the right neighborhood, yet the chants, ambient touches, and sick synth sounds give this album the individual stamp of a group that has always kept things inventive.

Southern Avenue — Family (Alligator) Producer John Burk allows the band to breathe here as never before. And as they drink in the air of the Jackson sisters’ North Mississippi roots more deeply than ever, their personal odyssey becoming a journey into the very building blocks of the blues themselves, to be pulled apart and reassembled just as Southern Avenue sees fit, as they’ve never been heard before.

Tav Falco — Desire on Ice (ORG Music) While Falco, a man without a country, is no longer a Memphian, this reworking of his back catalog, much of it composed here, captures the surreal combination of genres he’s mined all his life. Yet all of it is reframed by the overarching blend of crime jazz, blues, and rock crafted by musical director Mario Monterosso.

Songs born decades apart fit together in a grandiose frame of espionage and intrigue, even as disparate talents from Falco’s past, including Charlie Musselwhite, make their cameos.

Tony Thomas Three — Get With This!

(Southern Grooves) Recorded live to tape at Matt Ross-Spang’s Southern Grooves studio, this trio’s debut album oozes raw Memphis groove played with utter ease by three jazz masters. As with many classic organ trios, compelling originals sit neatly with imaginative reinterpretations of pop songs from the likes of Hall and Oates. Thomas has played the Hammond all his life, and Charlton Johnson (guitar) and Ken Coomer (drums) are similarly seasoned. A study in pure musical chemistry.

Archival release of the year: Various Artists — Stax Revue: Live in ’65! (Craft Recordings) A pure slice of Stax magic in its early years, this double LP pairs performances at Memphis’ Club Paradise with shows in the Watts neighborhood of Los Angeles soon thereafter, at the 5-4 Ballroom, only days before the Watts Riots erupted. Booker T. & the M.G.s can be heard with their thennew bassist, “Duck” Dunn, along with Carla Thomas, Wilson Pickett, the Astors, Wendy Rene, David Porter, and others.

While the Memphis show is loose yet energized, the Watts show is incendiary.

AFTER DARK: Live Music Schedule December 25 - January 7

B.B. KING’S BLUES CLUB

Baunie and Soul

Sunday, Dec. 28, 7-11 p.m. | Tuesday, Dec. 30, 7-11 p.m. | Sunday, Jan. 4, 7-11 p.m. | Tuesday, Jan. 6, 7-11 p.m.

RUM BOOGIE CAFE

Blind Mississippi Morris Friday, Dec. 26, 8 p.m. | Saturday, Dec. 27, 8 p.m. | Tuesday, Dec. 30, 7 p.m.

BLUES CITY CAFE

Dash Rip Rock

Thursday, Jan. 1, 9:30 p.m.

BLUES CITY CAFE

Eric Hughes

Thursday, Dec. 25, 7 p.m. | Thursday, Jan. 1, 7 p.m.

Wednesday, Jan. 7, 7 p.m.

NEIL’S MUSIC ROOM

Formerly Known As Saturday, Dec. 27, 8 p.m.

NEIL’S MUSIC ROOM

Landslide (Fleetwood Mac Tribute)

Wednesday, Dec. 31, 9 p.m.

NEIL’S MUSIC ROOM

The Debbie Jamison Band

Tuesday, Dec. 30, 6-10 p.m. | Tuesday, Jan. 6, 6-10 p.m.

NEIL’S MUSIC ROOM

The New Pacemakers Sunday, Dec. 28, 4-8 p.m.

NEIL’S MUSIC ROOM

Twin Soul

Friday, Dec. 26, 8 p.m.

RUM BOOGIE CAFE

NEIL’S MUSIC ROOM

Eskimo Brothers

Van Duren

Friday, Jan. 2, 9:30 p.m. | Saturday, Jan. 3, 8 p.m.

BLUES CITY CAFE

Flic’s Pics Band

Led by the legendary Leroy “Flic” Hodges of Hi Rhythm.

Saturday, Dec. 27, 4 p.m. | Sunday, Dec. 28, 2 p.m. | Saturday, Jan. 3, 4 p.m. | Sunday, Jan. 4, 2 p.m.

B.B. KING’S BLUES CLUB

FreeWorld

Friday, Dec. 26, 7-11 p.m. | Saturday, Dec. 27, 7-11 p.m.

RUM BOOGIE CAFE

FreeWorld

Sunday, Dec. 28, 7 p.m. | Sunday, Jan. 4, 7 p.m.

The singer-songwriter, a pioneer of indie pop in Memphis, performs solo.

Wednesday, Dec. 31, 6:30-8:30 p.m.

MORTIMER’S

Aidan Osias

With Caroline Gunn. Friday, Dec. 26, 8 p.m.

GROWLERS

Baunie and Soul

Wednesday, Dec. 31, 6 p.m.

LAFAYETTE’S MUSIC ROOM

Big Wheel

BLUES CITY CAFE

Friday, Dec. 26, 9 p.m.

Memphis Soul Factory

LAFAYETTE’S MUSIC ROOM

B.B. KING’S BLUES CLUB

With Funcitnal in Public, Eye for an Eye. Friday, Jan. 2, 7 p.m.

Sunday, Dec. 28, 6:30 p.m.

New Year’s Eve with Dash Rip Rock

Wednesday, Dec. 31, 9 p.m.

BLUES CITY CAFE

New Year’s Eve with FreeWorld

Wednesday, Dec. 31, 9 p.m.

RUM BOOGIE CAFE

New Year’s Eve with the B.B. King’s Blues Club Allstar Band

Wednesday, Dec. 31, 8:30 p.m.

B.B. KING’S BLUES CLUB

Red Thomas

Monday, Dec. 29, 7-11 p.m. | Monday, Jan. 5, 7-11 p.m.

RUM BOOGIE CAFE

Rockin’ 88s

Monday, Dec. 29, 7 p.m.

BLUES CITY CAFE

The B.B. King’s Blues Club Allstar Band Friday, Dec. 26, 8 p.m. | Saturday, Dec. 27, 8 p.m. | Monday, Dec. 29, 7 p.m. | Thursday, Jan. 1, noon. | Friday, Jan. 2, 8 p.m. | Saturday, Jan. 3, 8 p.m. | Monday, Jan. 5, 7 p.m.

B.B. KING’S BLUES CLUB

Bog Boys

GROWLERS

Candlelight: Tribute to Lauryn Hill

Ethan Baker & the Parallax

Level Three

B-SIDE

LOUIS CONNELLY’S BAR

Found Harmonium

Louder Than Bombs (Tribute to The Smiths/ Morrissey)

JUST LOVE COFFEE CAFE

B-SIDE

HI TONE

Neighborhood Texture Jam

The Alex Chilton Birthday Bash

Tuesday, Dec. 30, 10 p.m.

With Alexis Jade, Mary Hatley.

Friday, Dec. 26, 9 p.m.

B-SIDE

The Beale Street Quartet performs the best of Hill’s music in a live, multisensory setting. $39.51/general admission. Saturday, Dec. 27, 6:30-7:45 p.m.

Jazzmas By the Fire

MEMPHIS BROOKS MUSEUM OF ART

Joe Restivo 4

Deborah Swiney Duo

Jazz and bossa nova classics performed by this soulful singer. Thursday, Jan. 1, 6-9 p.m.

THE COVE

Devil Train

Bluegrass, roots, country, Delta, and skiffle. Thursday, Dec. 25, 9 p.m.

B-SIDE

Echoes in the Room – Special Edition – Alex Chilton’s Birthday

David Less and Robert Gordon share rare recordings by the late rock, power pop, jazz, and indie innovator.

Sunday, Dec. 28, 7-9 p.m.

MEMPHIS LISTENING LAB

Featuring Erosfromzion and Memphis Jazz Workshop alumni. Saturday, Dec. 27, 6 p.m.

HI TONE

Guitarist Restivo leads one of the city’s finest jazz quartets.

Sunday, Dec. 28, noon.

LAFAYETTE’S MUSIC ROOM

Kilobauud

With Juice, Qemist. Sunday, Dec. 28, 8 p.m.

HI TONE

Landslide (Fleetwood Mac Tribute) Sunday, Dec. 28, 5 p.m.

LAFAYETTE’S MUSIC ROOM

Laser Rock: Laser Holiday

Holiday music, from classical to modern, all set to fantastic laser light. Friday, Dec. 26Dec. 28, 3 p.m. | Tuesday, Dec. 30-Dec. 31, 3 p.m.

LMEMPHIS MUSEUM OF SCIENCE AND HISTORY

Wednesday, Dec. 31, 10 p.m. | Wednesday, Jan. 7, 10 p.m.

Wednesday, Dec. 31, 9 p.m.

Saturday, Dec. 27, 8 p.m.

B-SIDE

New Year’s Eve Party With Area 51. Wednesday, Dec. 31, 10 p.m.

Richard Wilson

PHOTO: COURTESY NEIL’S

Landslide

Smooth and relaxing jazz and bossanova. Tuesday, Dec. 30, 11 a.m.-1 p.m.

Rite of Sokar: Live from Necropolis Wednesday, Dec. 31, 8 p.m.

Van Duren, Turnt, and Sophie Chertow pay tribute to the great singer-songwriter.

Saturday, Dec. 27, 8 p.m.

LAMPLIGHTER LOUNGE

LAFAYETTE’S MUSIC ROOM

The Breakfast Club

New Year’s Eve with Lahna Deering

LAFAYETTE’S MUSIC ROOM

Saturday, Dec. 27, 9 p.m.

LAFAYETTE’S MUSIC ROOM

Willie Waldman

With Kofi Baker, Kristofer Lohn. Sunday, Dec. 28, 9 p.m.

B-SIDE

Will Sangster & the Fine Chaps

With Chasin’ the Skye, Eastern Dreamers. Tuesday, Dec. 30, 8 p.m.

GROWLERS

Thursday, Dec. 25, 6 p.m.

The earthy folk-soul songstress, now based in New York, will be accompanied by Krista Lynne, Tony Shanahan, Shawn Zorn, and Doug Easley.

Wednesday, Dec. 31, 6:30 p.m. | Wednesday, Dec. 31, 8:30 p.m.

The Contradictions VCTRE

BAR DKDC

On the eve of The King’s birthday, the genre-defying Watson pays tribute to Elvis Presley in his own inimitable way. Wednesday, Jan. 7, 7 p.m.

MINGLEWOOD HALL

HERNANDO’S HIDE-A-WAY

“We Rappin’ Up The Holidays” Hip Hop Show

Dwight Icenhower

Postal

With A Kiss Before Dying, Aversive Control, Muzzleflash, No One Left. Monday, Dec. 29, 7 p.m.

HI TONE

Pulse (Pink Floyd Tribute)

Friday, Dec. 26, 5 p.m.

LAFAYETTE’S MUSIC ROOM

Friday, Jan. 2, 8 p.m.

HI TONE

With support from Copycatt, Kyokee, Gill_Yum, Voartyx, and Nolan Void. Saturday, Dec. 27, 8 p.m.

With Jason Da Hater and special guests. Saturday, Dec. 27, 8 p.m.

HI TONE

White Trash Christmas Bash With Mustache The Band.

Dalevis with Dale Watson

Considered to be one of the best Elvis tribute artists in the world today. Tuesday, Jan. 6, 4 p.m.

HERNANDO’S HIDE-A-WAY

Victor Trevino

m e m p h i s f l y e r. c o m

Thursday, Dec. 25, 5:30 p.m. | Thursday, Jan. 1, 7 p.m.

Elmo & the Shades ft.

Eddie Harrison

ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT

Ashton Riker & The Memphis Royals

Wednesday, Jan. 7, 10 p.m.

HERNANDO’S HIDE-A-WAY

15

16

Give a year (12 issues) of Memphis Magazine for just $11, and each of your recipients will receive the special 2026 VANCE LAUDERDALE CALENDAR along with a personalized gift card.

Vance Lauderdale has once again ransacked his archives for some of the best local history stories and images.

Don't forget to gift yourself a subscription, too.

You'll also receive the Vance Lauderdale calendar!

O R D E R T O DAY M E M PH IS M AG A Z I N E .C OM Use code H O L A F T E R 2 5 or call 9 0 1 . 5 7 5 . 9 4 7 0 .

M O O R JU U E S R T C H T O A $ V N 1 ER 7 1 0 PR % !

IC OF E! F

December 25, 2025-January 7, 2026

CELEBRATE THE CITY ALL YEAR LONG WITH THE GIFT OF MEMPHIS MAGAZINE!

CALENDAR of EVENTS: Dec. 25 - Jan. 7, 2026 As the artists says, “Through biomorphic and geometric visual language, I dismantle and reconstruct the world around me, forging dynamic relationships between color and form.” Through Dec. 30.

MEMPHIS BOTANIC GARDEN

Artists’ Link Holiday Show

Artists’ Link announces its annual Holiday Show including over 40 works by local artists exhibiting a variety of media.

Through Dec. 29.

ST. GEORGE’S EPISCOPAL CHURCH ART GALLERY

Bartlett Art Association Holiday Showcase There will be a wide range of work from local artists available for purchase in a variety of media. Through Dec. 26.

WKNO DIGITAL MEDIA CENTER

“Bettye’s Bin: The Personal Archives of Stax Songwriter Bettye Crutcher”

Discover the story of a woman who transformed poetry into platinum hits, whose words echoed from South Memphis to the world, and whose rediscovered archives now return home. Through Feb. 22.

STAX MUSEUM OF AMERICAN SOUL MUSIC

Brantley Ellzey – “Reflection + Ritual + Refuge”

A major solo exhibition by Memphis-based artist Ellzey.

The spiral is his recurring form. It turns through the exhibition like a silent logic — natural, ancestral, unstoppable. Through Jan. 25.

CROSSTOWN ARTS AT THE CONCOURSE

“From Paris to the Prairie”: The George H. Booth II Gift to the Dixon Gallery and Gardens

Eleven spectacular prints from George H. Booth II of Tupelo, Mississippi. Through Jan. 11.

THE DIXON GALLERY & GARDENS

“Last Whistle: Steamboat Stories of Memphis”

Featuring detailed model boats and original steamboat artifacts, this exhibit rekindles the romance of the steamboat era while sharing stories and insights about their role in shaping the region. Through June 26.

PINK PALACE MUSEUM & MANSION

“L’Estampe Originale: A Graphic Treasure”

This extremely rare portfolio, originally conceived as a celebration of the original print, and especially color lithography, features 95 works of graphic art by 74 artists. Through Jan. 11.

THE DIXON GALLERY & GARDENS

In fields these skins are laid.

In mounds, awaiting destiny.

Wind, rain, and sun will lash and wash them clean and dry: the shapes of bodies that once wore them. Through Jan. 10.

THE DIXON GALLERY & GARDENS

Mini Masters

Introduce your little ones to the arts and nature with crafts, movement, and more. $8.

Tuesday, Dec. 30, 10:30 a.m. | Tuesday, Jan. 6, 10:30 a.m.

TOPS GALLERY

Mary K. VanGieson: “Chasing the Ephemeral”

THE DIXON GALLERY & GARDENS

Project Pop-up

Participants explore a new part of the Dixon with an inspiring project for all ages.

Supplies are provided. Free.

Saturday, Jan. 3, 1-3 p.m.

VanGieson creates prints, sculptures, and installations using alternative materials as ways to investigate themes including loss, erosion, and the transitory. Through Dec. 31.

THE DIXON GALLERY & GARDENS

THE DIXON GALLERY & GARDENS

F I LM

Master Metalsmith James Viste: “Let Me Tell You a Story”

Apollo 11: First Steps Edition

A special edition of Todd Douglas Miller’s critically acclaimed Apollo 11 documentary, created exclusively for giant screen theaters. Friday, Jan. 2, 1 p.m. | Saturday, Jan. 3, 1 p.m. | Sunday, Jan. 4, 1 p.m. | Monday, Jan. 5, 1 p.m. | Tuesday, Jan. 6, 1 p.m. | Wednesday, Jan. 7, 1 p.m.

This exhibit is filled with whimsy, humor, memories, and anecdotes, underscoring the innovation found in smithing techniques of the past. Through Feb. 1.

METAL MUSEUM

“Navigating Knowledge” This exhibition explores vessels and navigation as metaphors for the containment and transmission of knowledge.

Through Oct. 31.

CTI 3D GIANT THEATER

Black Holes

MEMPHIS BROOKS MUSEUM OF ART

Patrick McGee Exhibition

McGee’s painting styles range from realism and floral studies to abstract-surrealism and the avant-garde. Friday, Jan. 2-Jan. 30.

MEMPHIS BOTANIC GARDEN

“Redemption of a Delta Bluesman: Robert Johnson”

“The Redemption of a Delta Bluesman: Robert Johnson” is a 29 paintings series dedicated to reimagining the story of the mythical crossroads account where the bluesman was supposed to have made a deal.

Through June 30.

GALLERY ALBERTINE

Riley Payne: “Ocean Size” These works offer up multiple readings through the use of instantly recognizable reference imagery. Yet the moment an interpretation is settled on, the cards are reshuffled.

Through Jan. 10.

TOPS GALLERY: MADISON AVENUE PARK

Sean Latif Heiser: “Time Is a Hearer”

Heiser’s paintings shift between imagined landscapes and architectures, often using symbolism and abstracted imagery. Free. Through Jan. 9.

BEVERLY + SAM ROSS GALLERY

“Seasons” - New Works

by Melody Weintraub

Weintraub currently supervises art education candidates remotely for UT-Knoxville, and has written over 30 articles for SchoolArts Magazine.

Free. Monday, Jan. 5-Jan. 29.

WKNO DIGITAL MEDIA CENTER

PHOTO: COURTESY MBG

Patrick McGee’s painting styles range from realism to abstract-surrealism and avant-garde in his Memphis Botanic Garden exhibit.

C LAS S / W O R KS H O P

Dance Lessons

Swing lessons with Matt and Lara, 7:30 p.m., and line dance lessons with Dancing with Boss Lady, 8:30 p.m. Thursday, Dec. 25, 7:30 p.m.

WHISKEY JILL’S

“Speaking Truth to Power: The Life of Bayard Rustin” Exhibition

“Speaking Truth to Power” explores Bayard Rustin’s innovative use of the “medium” to communicate powerful messages of nonviolence, activism, and authenticity. Through Dec. 31.

NATIONAL CIVIL RIGHTS MUSEUM

Tributaries: Kat Cole’s “Meditations”

Cole captures ephemeral gestures in glass, enamel, and steel, resulting in gleaming puddles of light and color.

Through March 8.

METAL MUSEUM

Figure Drawing (Long Pose)

A figure drawing session with a two-hour long pose. Artists of all levels can practice and increase their skills drawing the human form at Memphis’ art museum. $12. Sunday, Dec. 28, 2-4 p.m.

MEMPHIS BROOKS MUSEUM OF ART

The Tingey Painting with Parkinsons Program

A free art therapy program that supports people living with Parkinson’s. The sessions encourage participants to freely explore art materials and work without interruption while listening to music. Wednesday, Jan. 7, 10 a.m.-noon.

THE DIXON GALLERY & GARDENS

B O O K E V E N TS

Club de lectura (Spanish Book Club)

Este club de lectura del Dixon les invita a compartir sus experiencias de lectura en español a través del título seleccionado del mes. Tuesday, Jan. 6, 6-7 p.m.

THE DIXON GALLERY & GARDENS

C O M E DY

Bluff City Liars Improv: The Big One-One

The Liars compete in an improv game show, only they don’t know the rules of the game or the content of the show. 18+.

Thursday, Jan. 1, 7:30 p.m.

HI TONE

Dan Alten

Alten headlines the last show of the year, with a lineup of other strange creatures. $15.

Saturday, Dec. 27, 8 p.m.

FLYWAY BREWING COMPANY

Who Wrote That?!

Comedians are paired up to write each other’s jokes.

Friday, Dec. 26, 9 p.m.

HI TONE

C O M M U N ITY

Invasive Species Pull

Help keep our ecosystem healthy by identifying and removing non-native invasive species plants. Friday, Jan. 2, 9-11 a.m.

OVERTON PARK

E X PO/SA LES

Gifts of Green

A variety of tropical and unusual plants, stylish pots, and other botanical novelties make the perfect gift for the holiday hostess or your own home decor. Also find holiday gifts for the plant lover. Through Dec. 30, 9 a.m.-4:30 p.m.

MEMPHIS BOTANIC GARDEN

FA M I LY

Kaleidoscope Club

Each week, participants aged 5 to 9 will enjoy an art or horticulture project that sparks creativity and critical thinking.

This planetarium show gives an overview of what black holes are, how they form, and what would happen if you fell inside one. Thursday, Dec. 25, 4 p.m. | Friday, Dec. 26, 4 p.m. | Saturday, Dec. 27, 4 p.m. | Sunday, Dec. 28, 4 p.m. | Monday, Dec. 29, 4 p.m. | Tuesday, Dec. 30, 4 p.m. | Wednesday, Dec. 31, 4 p.m.

PINK PALACE MUSEUM & MANSION

Season of Light

This presentation traces the history and development of the world’s most endearing holiday customs, all of which involve lighting up the winter season.

Friday, Dec. 26, 11 a.m. | Friday, Dec. 26, 1 p.m. | Saturday, Dec. 27, 11 a.m. | Saturday, Dec. 27, 1 p.m. | Sunday, Dec. 28, 11 a.m. | Sunday, Dec. 28, 1 p.m. | Tuesday, Dec. 30, 11 a.m. | Tuesday, Dec. 30, 1 p.m. | Wednesday, Dec. 31, 11 a.m. | Wednesday, Dec. 31, 1 p.m.

AUTOZONE DOME PLANETARIUM

The Light Before Christmas

Young Katie and Makean, lost, are rescued by their friend, the Candleman, an old sage who imparts wisdom, hot chocolate, and stories. Friday, Dec. 26, 11 a.m. | Saturday, Dec. 27, 11 a.m. | Sunday, Dec. 28, 11 a.m. | Tuesday, Dec. 30, 11 a.m. | Wednesday, Dec. 31, 11 a.m.

CTI 3D GIANT THEATER

The Wizard of Oz

For the holidays, relive the magic of Dorothy in Oz. Friday, Dec. 26, 1 p.m. | Saturday, Dec. 27, 1 p.m. | Sunday, Dec. 28, 1 p.m. | Tuesday, Dec. 30, 1 p.m. | Wednesday, Dec. 31, 1 p.m.

m e m p h i s f l y e r. c o m

Amy Hutcheson Exhibition

$8. Wednesday, Jan. 7, 4-5 p.m.

Lui Shtini: “Tree Spirits”

ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT

ART AN D S P EC IA L E X H I B ITS

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 EVENTS LISTING, VISIT EVENTS.MEMPHISFLYER.COM/CAL.

PINK PALACE MUSEUM & MANSION

17 continued on page 18

C A L E N DA R: D E C E M B E R 2 5 - JA N UA RY 7 , 2 0 2 6 continued from page 17

PHOTO: COURTESY OVERTON PARK CONSERVANCY

Volunteer at Overton Park Conservancy’s Invasive Species Pull to keep the park healthy.

T. Rex: Greatest of All Tyrants

The most dazzling and accurate giant screen documentary ever made on this legendary predator — and its carnivorous Cretaceous cousins. Thursday, Dec. 25, 11 a.m. | Friday, Dec. 26, 11 a.m. | Saturday, Dec. 27, 11 a.m. | Sunday, Dec. 28, 11 a.m. | Monday, Dec. 29, 11 a.m. | Tuesday, Dec. 30, 11 a.m. | Wednesday, Dec. 31, 11 a.m.

New Year’s Eve at Maeve’s Tavern

A night of delicious food, expertly crafted drinks, sensational music, and lasting memories counting down to 2026. $85. Wednesday, Dec. 31, 5 p.m.-midnight.

CTI 3D GIANT THEATER

MAEVE’S TAVERN

Tron: Ares

Mankind encounters AI beings for the first time when a highly sophisticated program, Ares, leaves the digital world for a dangerous mission in the real world. Thursday, Dec. 25, 3 p.m. | Friday, Dec. 26, 3 p.m. | Saturday, Dec. 27, 3 p.m. | Sunday, Dec. 28, 3 p.m. | Monday, Dec. 29, 3 p.m. | Tuesday, Dec. 30, 3 p.m. | Wednesday, Dec. 31, 3 p.m.

CTI 3D GIANT THEATER

H EALT H AN D F IT N ES S

First Day Hike

Join a T.O. Fuller State park ranger for a four-mile hike around the park. Learn about park history, indigenous plants and animals, and the unique geography of area.

Thursday, Jan. 1, 10 a.m.

December 25, 2025-January 7, 2026

T.O. FULLER STATE PARK

18

New Year’s Eve at the Peabody Hotel

First Saturday Paddle - Walnut Grove to Kennedy Park

Canoe through a beautiful section of the urban Wolf River. Saturday, Jan. 3, 9 a.m.

WOLF RIVER CONSERVANCY

Wednesday Walks

A pleasant stroll through the park can work wonders. Free.

Wednesday, Jan. 7, 4 p.m.

Wednesday, Dec. 31, 5 p.m.

28, 5-8:30 p.m.

BEALE STREET

MEMPHIS BOTANIC GARDEN

THE PEABODY HOTEL

Lantern Festival

New Year’s Eve Dinner & Music Cruise

Christmas Brunch at the Peabody

The lavish buffet features hundreds of hot and cold items, including breakfast dishes like made-to-order omelets and waffles, holiday favorites, and seasonal side dishes. Thursday, Dec. 25, 10:30 a.m.-3 p.m.

OVERTON PARK

THE PEABODY HOTEL

H O LI DAY EVE N TS

Holiday Wonders at the Garden

Beale Street Countdown to 2026

With live entertainment, a ball drop, and midnight fireworks.

With music by Seeing Red, DJ A.D. and the Vibe Tribe, and the Jeremy Shrader Jazz Duo in the Corner Bar. Wednesday, Dec. 31, 7 p.m.

Step into a world of twinkling lights, cozy moments, and holiday magic. Friday, Dec. 26, 5-8:30 p.m. | Saturday, Dec. 27, 5-8:30 p.m. | Sunday, Dec.

A one-of-a-kind holiday light experience featuring more than 60 larger-than-life illuminated fixtures. Through Feb. 1.

MEMPHIS ZOO

New Year’s Celebration with Mid-South Pride

With two live stages, light shows by Illumination Lasers & Lights and Sublime Light, and performances by DJs like Scotty B, Jordan Rogers, MAD, Vibe Check, Katie Loopz, illstu, and Test Kit. Wednesday, Dec. 31, 7:30 p.m.

MINGLEWOOD HALL

Dance your way into the new year with a live DJ, dinner, and bar. This event is 21+ only.

Wednesday, Dec. 31, 6 p.m.

MEMPHIS RIVERBOATS

New Year’s Eve on the River

Sip your way into the New Year on the Mississippi River, with sweeping river views and fireworks lighting up after the countdown. Wednesday, Dec. 31, 5 p.m.

TERRACE AT THE RIVER INN

New Year’s Eve Party

With DJ Funktual. Wednesday, Dec. 31, 9 p.m.

EIGHT & SAND

New Year’s Eve Party & Show

Featuring Zoey Adams, Aubrey “Boom Boom” Ombre, Sairen Strange, and Rebekah Random. Wednesday, Dec. 31, 10:30 p.m.

DRU’S BAR

New Year’s Eve Party & Supply Drive for the Homeless

Any of us could be the homeless at any time based on circumstances; this New Year’s Eve take the opportunity to give others some much needed assistance. Wednesday, Dec. 31, 11 a.m.-3 p.m.

BRINSON’S

New Year’s @ Noon

An event giving children a chance to ring in 2026 without staying up all night. Little ones are encouraged to dress up as their favorite superheroes and show off their superpowers while enjoying a balloon drop, face painting, art projects, live music from a DJ, candy and, of course, a countdown to the new year. Wednesday, Dec. 31, 10 a.m.-2 p.m.

CHILDREN’S MUSEUM OF MEMPHIS

Regift the Unwanted Gifts

Free entrance with gift. Friday, Dec. 26, 9 p.m.

HI TONE

C A L E N DA R: D E C E M B E R 2 5 - JA N UA RY 7 , 2 0 2 6 Liberty Bowl Beale Street Parade

One of Downtown’s signature events, with floats and high school and university marching bands. Free. Thursday, Jan. 1, 3 p.m.

AutoZone Liberty Bowl Professional Rodeo

A driving tour through dazzling displays featuring millions of lights that starts at the Farm Road Gate. Pony and wagon rides also available. Thursday, Dec. 25, 6 p.m. | Friday, Dec. 26, 6 p.m. | Saturday, Dec. 27, 6 p.m. | Sunday, Dec. 28, 6 p.m. | Monday, Dec. 29, 6 p.m. | Tuesday, Dec. 30, 6 p.m. | Thursday, Jan. 1, 6 p.m. | Friday, Jan. 2, 6 p.m. | Saturday, Jan. 3, 6 p.m.

MEMPHIS SPORTS & EVENTS CENTER

Celebrate the patriotic spirit of America as the Navy Midshipmen and the Cincinnati Bearcats, two of the best teams in college football, take to the field. Friday, Jan. 2, 3:30 p.m.

SIMMONS BANK LIBERTY STADIUM

Where There’s a Will There’s a Way: New Year’s Eve Bash

An event presented by Fat Charlie’s Speakeasy.

Wednesday, Dec. 31, 7 p.m.

ALOFT HOTEL

L E CT U R E

Munch and Learn: Sketching the Arctic A presentation by artist Elizabeth Alley.

Wednesday, Jan. 7, noon-1 p.m.

THE DIXON GALLERY & GARDENS

P E R FO R M I N G AR TS

Naughty or Nice: Poetry, Paint & Sip A spoken word poetry, comedy, painting, and sipping experience. Saturday, Dec. 27, 6 p.m.

RUMBA ROOM

QCG Best of Big Top Tease

Expect high-energy burlesque, fierce drag, and unforgettable stage moments all packed into one late-night spectacle. Saturday, Dec. 27, 10 p.m.

DRU’S BAR

S P EC IAL EVE N TS

Bash on Beale Liberty Bowl Pep Rally

Join fans from the competing teams for this exciting pep rally and then enjoy a festive time on Beale Street the afternoon before the game.

Free. Thursday, Jan. 1, 4:30 p.m.

HANDY PARK

Take on as many miles as you’d like on a fourmile loop along the scenic Wolf River Trails.

Once the clock starts at noon, it ticks down to zero at noon the next day. Saturday, Dec. 27, 10 a.m.

AGRICENTER INTERNATIONAL

Memphis Grizzlies vs. Milwaukee Bucks Friday, Dec. 26, 7 p.m.

SHELBY FARMS PARK

FEDEXFORUM

Polar Wolf Plunge

Gather around a bonfire with warm beverages and food, then move to the Bateman Road Bridge access ramp to the Wolf River for a plunge into the chilly waters at 1 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 1, noon-3 p.m.

FEDEXFORUM

Memphis Grizzlies vs. Phoenix Suns

WOLF RIVER CONSERVANCY

Wednesday, Jan. 7, 7 p.m.

Time Travel Half-Marathon (and 5k/10k) - Memphis

FEDEXFORUM

Memphis Grizzlies vs. San Antonio Spurs

Grab your friends and family; you are not going to want to miss this one. $25.98/general admission. Sunday, Jan. 4, 9 a.m.-noon.

Tuesday, Jan. 6, 7 p.m.

Crossword

Super Saturday - New Years Eve

PINK PALACE MUSEUM & MANSION

Moccasin 24 Hour Run

FEDEXFORUM

SHELBY FARMS PARK

The Pink Palace’s Mezzanine filled with beautifully decorated trees, with animated characters, model trains, and more. Benefiting Le Bonheur Children’s Hospital. Through Dec. 28.

FEDEXFORUM

SHELBY FARMS PARK The New York Times Syndication Sales Corporation 620 Eighth Avenue, New York, N.Y. 10018 For Information Call: 1-800-972-3550 For Release Friday, July 5, 2019

An adults-only holiday speakeasy tucked inside a softly lit yurt. Warm lighting, curated cocktails, cozy seating, and a soft winter soundtrack set the tone. 21+. Select nights, 6, 7:30, and 9 p.m. Through Jan. 2.

The Enchanted Forest Festival of Trees

Wednesday, Dec. 31, 3 p.m.

Tuesday, Dec. 30, 7 p.m.

67th Annual AutoZone Liberty Bowl Football Classic

Starry Nights Afterglow

THE MEMPHIS BROOKS MUSEUM OF ART

Memphis Tigers vs. North Texas

Featuring top performers from around the country competing in events such as bull riding, bareback bronc riding, steer wrestling, and barrel racing. $20, $5/kids 10 and under.

Tuesday, Dec. 30, 7 p.m.

Memphis Grizzlies vs. Philadelphia 76ers

S P O R TS

SHELBY FARMS PARK

Start the countdown to 2026 with creativity at your art museum! This Super Saturday celebrates New Year’s traditions across cultures with a hands-on art activity perfect for all ages. Saturday, Dec. 27, 10 a.m.-noon.

LANDERS CENTER

ACROSS

50 Not twiddle one’s thumbs 53 “Bear with me” 31 Shell game?

55 Man’s name 9 Mission for a that’s a number Mafia member 33 Light and graceful in Italian 15 “You sure about 34 River that meets 56 Longtime head of that?” the Colorado at Duke basketball, Yuma 16 Something a to fans tuning fork has 35 Sports news pro 58 Proudly 17 Sort of pricing 37 Thomas Dewey tech-savvy sort model with or Hubert 60 Verbal attack multiple tiers Humphrey, 61 Conferral after notably 18 Singer Sharp some two-year with the 1962 hit 39 Aquatic source of programs “Mashed Potato iodine 62 Not-too-bright Time” 40 Uncle ___, main subordinate 19 ___ bar role on “The 63 Invasive plant?

Fresh Prince of 20 An “A” in physics?

Bel-Air” 22 One traditionally DOWN dressed in red or 42 Verse 1 Feature of Algeria green 43 Creature that and Egypt might live in a 23 Mounts 2+1 39-Across forest 25 What “mía” 3 “Everybody has 44 Verbal attack means across the their issues, Pyrenees 46 Glassless right?” glasses 26 Question from an 4 Can’t do it alone anxious person 47 – 5 Put a stop to?

6 Flexible ANSWER TO PREVIOUS PUZZLE 7 ’18 honoree, D I P B E E L I N E C H E today E R A A T E C R O W A O L 8 Part of a J A C K S O N H O L E M M A percussion A S K S I N A N I B E E P ensemble H U N T I M E F L I E S 9 Chemical group A V E M A M A F E N C E with the formula B E A T B O X N A L A -OH O X T A I L T A C K E D 10 “Gotcha” S T E P P O T H E A D I R A T E A S A P N U S 11 Not just any 12 Green hue P O W E R P L A Y W E S H A A S L A N V E S T E D 13 Sister company of Peugeot O R R P A D D L E B O A R D N E D A M I R I T E R I A 14 Argument E D S S E N A T O R R E Y 21 Green hue 1 Stick to one’s guns

28 Group of close friends, in modern slang

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PUZZLE BY SAM EZERSKY

24 Like some breakfast bars 27 Didn’t go out 28 Performers who take a lot of heat?

29 “I wish it weren’t so!”

30 A bajillion 31 ___ bomb (cocktail) 32 Something to take in protest

34 Praise that might be dispensed with a treat 36 Light shower 38 English 41 “… per my reasoning” 44 Greeting that might follow a fist bump 45 Leave the country 48 Likely to take a bite out of one’s wallet

49 Cornball 50 Opposite of bombs 51 Application of paint 52 Its leaves are used for the Hawaiian dish laulau 54 Abba of Israel 57 Head of lettuce?

59 “Stand” band, 1989

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Read about and comment on each puzzle: nytimes.com/wordplay.

m e m p h i s f l y e r. c o m

Starry Nights

Open to all attending the AutoZone Liberty Bowl game, the march serves as a powerful tribute to our nation’s fallen heroes and courageous veterans who have served in our nation’s military. Friday, Jan. 2, 2 p.m.

Monday, Dec. 29, 7 p.m.

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Apollo 11: First Steps Edition showcases the real-life moments of humankind’s first steps on the moon.

Memphis Hustle vs. Valley Suns

Pepsi Liberty Bowl Pre-Game Party

Pre-Liberty Bowl Gold Star Families March

Saturday, Dec. 27, 7 p.m.

LANDERS CENTER

AGRICENTER INTERNATIONAL

PIPKIN BUILDING

Memphis Hustle vs. Valley Suns

Benefitting the Ashley Brooks Rodeo Memorial Scholarship fund Thursday, Jan. 1-Jan. 4.

BEALE STREET

Featuring all-you-can-eat and drink buffet with great live entertainment, and only a short walk to the stadium. $50. Friday, Jan. 2, 2:30 p.m.

PHOTO: COURTESY PINK PALACE MUSEUM & MANSION

Ashley Brooks Memorial Barrel Race

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We Saw You. with MICHAEL DONAHUE

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n the road again, sings Willie Nelson. I didn’t see Willie, but I saw lots of people on the streets and inside buildings. This is another special edition of “We Saw You” featuring photos of people (and one dog) spotted around town.

Locations included the Rendezvous, Shelby Forest General Store, Dr. Bean’s Coffee & Tea Emporium, Gibson’s Donuts, Pete & Sam’s, Otherlands Coffee Bar, Catherine & Mary’s, Kyuramen, the James Gattas Jewelers holiday party, and a Midtown private holiday party.

PHOTOS: MICHAEL DONAHUE

above: Kemba Ford and Tony Barrasso below: (left to right) Duncan Clancy, Natalie Detwiler, and Sabrina and Luke Parishat; Dylan Dunn; John Vergos and Senator Steve Cohen

December 25, 2025-January 7, 2026

bottom row: (left to right) Jay West, Nathan Owen, and Nicholas Jerden; Ann Barnes

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above: Bo Farnsworth, Finn Barry, Colby Wiedower, Holden Shuping, and Luke Grant right row: (top and below) Third annual Pete & Sam’s Thanksgiving Eve Dinner; Ashley Earwood and Steve Jones below: (left to right) Babbie Lovett and Paul Thomas; Nick Askew; Charlie Do; Caitlin Liu and Lea Clark

ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT

m e m p h i s f l y e r. c o m

bottom row: (left to right)Lakourtney Cummings; Lauren Long and Avery Ellis

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FOOD By Michael Donahue

Knock Your Socks Off New executive chef Guy Sockrider is overhauling Paulette’s Restaurant.

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December 25, 2025-January 7, 2026

ther kids used to joke about Guy Sockrider’s name. They said, “Are you riding your socks?”

Well, Sockrider has been riding his socks pretty heavily since he became the new executive chef at Paulette’s Restaurant at the River Inn of Harbor Town a little over a month ago. “I have not left Mud Island since I came here,” he says. “And I live nine-tenths of a mile from the restaurant.”

Actually, he did leave at least once.“I left and went to Whole Foods and got lost. I want to see the city, but it’s going to be awhile.”

During his career, Sockrider has worked with noted chefs, including Paul Prudhomme and Roger Vergé.

Asked what originally enticed him about cooking, Sockrider says, “I think it’s the art of it. The fact that you’re making something that people love.

That’s one of the biggest thrills I have.

Walking through the dining room and watching guests take the first bite of food.”

His philosophy is, “I’m only as good as the last plate I serve. And I love to come out and see the look on guests’ faces the first time they eat something they never have before.”

In addition to the best service, Sockrider believes a restaurant should 22 provide the “very best in food, very best in china, the very best in glassware.”

PHOTOS: COURTESY GUY SOCKRIDER; MICHAEL DONAHUE

(top row) left to right: grilled swordfish with sun dried tomatoes and basil; braised gulf grouper with raspberry and mango sauce; roast duck, raspberries, and figs; grilled Alaskan halibut, leek confit, and fried leeks; (above) fresh berries sabayon; Guy Sockrider Sockrider, who is planning a completely new look for Paulette’s dining room, also is overhauling the kitchen. He’s already created special dinners, including a Charles Dickensinspired Christmas Eve dinner.

Born in Council Bluffs, Iowa, Sockrider’s love of cooking began as a child, but if he was anybody else, it might have ended there.

When he was 4 years old, his grandmother took him out to the

chicken coop, where he watched her wring a chicken’s neck.“She picked it up, gave it a swing, and blood was everywhere.”

It was horrifying, Sockrider says.

“But my grandmother used to make the best chicken and dumplings.”

He began working in his first restaurant, Churchill’s, in Omaha, Nebraska, when he was 14. “My mother introduced me to the chef, who was a semi-retired chef from the SS France

they had brought in. This was back in the day when chefs were really brutal.”

The chef “was very difficult and hard to work with, but I learned tremendous things from him.”

Sockrider then landed a job at Le Perroquet in Chicago. “I washed dishes and cooked. Did a lot of prep. Moved up. By the time I finished high school, I was sous-chef.”

He then met Roger Vergé, who was a guest chef at the restaurant. “At the

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but I missed the fire in the kitchen and the excitement of the line.”

He also missed the South, so he was intrigued when he heard about the opening for an executive chef at Paulette’s. “I looked at the dining room and thought it was very formal looking.

But I ate in the restaurant and I was not impressed. The style of the food, the quality of the food, I realized, was just not that good.”

Sockrider has now worked just about every single day “updating and improving the quality of the food.

Instead of using frozen fish, we use fresh fish.”

He adds, “The quality of the sauces and soups are all made from scratch now.”

Filet Paulette’s, one of the restaurant’s signature items, was “good when I first started, but I did a lot of research and spoke to the ownership of the hotel, spoke to past employees of Paulette’s, and found out the real recipe. A week and a half ago we started doing the original recipe from Paulette’s.”

He didn’t stop with the steak. “I’ve created a Paulette’s Heritage Week [January 13th to 19th], where I’m doing a prix fixe menu of all the old dishes of Paulette’s.”

Sockrider also is featuring a weekly prix fixe menu Tuesday through Saturday in addition to the regular menu.

He still serves Paulette’s iconic popovers with strawberry butter, but, he says, “We’ve improved the popovers quite a bit. They were quite flat when I first started, but now they look like popovers.”

Sockrider is planning special dinners at Paulette’s. He recently held a Veuve Clicquot champagne six-course dinner, which was “quite a successful event,” he says. “They were all hugging and kissing me on their way out of the door.”

His upcoming New Year’s Eve dinner was inspired by Auguste Escoffier — “the greatest chef that ever lived. The menu is designed to be very similar to the menu that he created at the Hotel Savoy in London in 1899. I had to reduce it. That menu was like 12 courses.”

As for future plans, Sockrider says, “My primary goal right now is to find some farms I can work with directly.

That’s important to me so I can get the freshest and best quality products.”

The dining room is “very classical looking,” but he “wants to change it to a more formal setting.”

All in all, Sockrider says, “I just believe that people need to be treated well. And when you go out and spend a lot of money at a restaurant it means you need the best of service and best of food.”

And there’s more. “My big dream is Sunday brunch. And to have a jazz band walk through the dining room.”

ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT

end of the night after we finished the very formal dinner, he said, ‘Would you like to come home with me and work?’

And I was on a plane the next day.”

Sockrider became assistant to the chef saucier at Verge’s Le Moulin des Mougins restaurant in France. “I was the first American to ever work the line of one of Vergé’s restaurants.”

Having Vergé observe him on the line when he was auditioning to be the restaurant’s chef saucier was pretty scary. “He stood next to me, watched me, and didn’t say a word the entire time through the service. I was terrified.”

Vergé finally showed some emotion when Sockrider was through. “He grabbed me, hugged me, and told me I was chef saucier.”

Sockrider only stayed at the restaurant for 13 months. “I got deported because I didn’t have the correct paperwork.”

He moved back to the United States, where he became Paul Prudhomme’s executive sous-chef at Commander’s Palace in New Orleans. “He was a gem.

I knew nothing about Cajun or Creole cuisine.”

But Prudhomme was supportive.

“He saw my enthusiasm. He taught me so many things, it was unbelievable.”

He taught him “the way to blacken a fish, the way to buy the very best produce that you can to make the very best dish that you can.”

When Prudhomme left Commander’s Palace, so did Sockrider, who took a job as executive chef at the Plimsoll Club, a “very formal” French restaurant at the World Trade Center in New Orleans.

From 1996 to 2004, Sockrider worked at the now-closed Top of the Cove, a “very highly rated” restaurant in San Diego, California, before moving back to Nebraska. “My grandmother was the only member of my family that was still alive. After my mother passed, I went back to Omaha to take care of her.”

While in Omaha, Sockrider worked as a professor for the Institute for the Culinary Arts.

But he and his wife weren’t planning on staying in Omaha forever. “I told my wife that when grandma passed, we’d go anywhere in the world. And she chose New Orleans.”

Sockrider worked at Muriel’s restaurant until he became corporate chef for three restaurants owned by Tommy Andrade.

Then tragedy struck. “My wife was crossing Canal Street in a torrential rain storm.”

She was hit by a streetcar and killed instantly, Sockrider says.

He took a couple of years off before going to work as a private chef for “a very high net worth family” in California. “I enjoyed that very much,

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December 25, 2025-January 7, 2026

Mended Therapy

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Combining mental health with a love of fashion, creativity, and sustainability, Mended Therapy was born. Ashley wants to show that although things may seem like they cannot get better, there is hope.

Just like a mended piece of clothing is brought new life, the same can be said of us. She is here to walk with you through this journey with laughter, creativity, and challenging your beliefs about yourself. She is MENDED (and constantly mending). She hopes you will let her join you as you MEND. Ashley specializes in working with LGBTQ+ populations and mood disorders.

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

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

M E TA P H Y S I C A L C O N N E C T I O N B y E m i l y G u e n t h e r

Full Circle The Wheel tarot leads with luck for new cycles in 2026.

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e have survived moves in cycles — ever-turning, ever2025 and now find changing. It speaks to the truth that joy 2026 in view. As we and sorrow, fortune and hardship are approach the end of all part of the same rhythm. No one the year, many of us like to look ahead escapes its turning. Whether king or and see what to expect from the next. commoner, we are all carried along by At The Broom Closet, we see an uptick fate. in people wanting readings about When life lifts you up, savor it, knowwhat’s coming, and it is something we ing that the wheel will eventually turn often encourage people to do. One way again. And when you find yourself in to see what the next year may bring is darker times, hold fast to hope because to look at the numerology and its asthe light will return. The Wheel is sociated tarot card. guided by forces greater than us. Luck, The numerology for 2026 adds up fate, and chance are woven into this costo the number 10. If you add 2+0+2+6 mic dance. You may rise, you may fall, you get 10. In numerology, the number but remember: The wheel is always in 10 is typically not used independently. motion, and change is the only constant.

The digits 1 and 0 are As we step into added together, rethe new cycle, we sulting in 1. However, may find that the in the realm of tarot, ideas and struccards with the numtures shaping our ber 10 have distinct society begin to meanings. Numeroltake clearer form. ogy and tarot share This turning of a profound connecthe wheel offers us tion, and the number both opportunity 10 is fascinating in and clarity, invitboth realms. While ing us to refine numerologically, 10 is the projects we’ve often reduced to 1 (1 been nurturing + 0), within the tarot, and to finally it unfolds a narrative bring forward the of completion and visions we’ve long fresh beginnings. held in our hearts.

In numerology and With The tarot, the number 10 Wheel guiding signifies a moment this transition, we PHOTO: PAMELA COLMAN SMITH, PUBLIC of reflection on the may also witness DOMAIN, VIA WIKIMEDIA COMMONS finished journey. It’s the balancing of not always straightkarmic debts. forward, as not every 10-card depicts Actions set in motion may return to us, “joyful” individuals who are content reminding us that every choice carwith the outcomes of their expedition. ries weight and that the turning of fate Nevertheless, it is crucial to pause at this always brings its lessons home. juncture, look back over your shoulder, The new year will likely be a year of and give yourself a pat. Whether you’re change since we are ending a cycle and pleased with the results or not, the 10 beginning a new one. Collectively, this marks the end of a cycle, akin to reachcould be a change for the better, but that ing the top of a mountain. But as with doesn’t mean we won’t have our personal all mountains, they never end because hardships or setbacks to endure. As The what went up needs to come down.

Wheel tells us, life is a mixed bag. When There are five tarot cards that have I was learning tarot, I was also taught that the number 10 on them. Each 10 card The Wheel tarot card, associated with deserves its own examination, but we Jupiter, is a card of luck. This brings me are going to focus on The Wheel card hope that 2026 will be a better year for from the major arcana. The major arus all, with The Wheel greasing the way cana cards typically reflect the overarchfor us with its aspect of luck. We always ing themes in our lives. Doing a deep want a little bit of luck on our side when dive into each 10 card would be benstarting something new.

Emily Guenther is a co-owner of The eficial, but since we are looking at next Broom Closet metaphysical shop. She is a year as a collective, we will focus on the Memphis native, professional tarot reader, broad strokes of what we can expect. ordained Pagan clergy, and dog mom.

The Wheel reminds us that life

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NEWS OF THE WEIRD By the editors at Andrews McMeel Syndication

December 25, 2025-January 7, 2026

Recurring Themes It’s falling iguana time again in Florida! With this year’s first cold blast making it all the way to the Sunshine State, The Guardian reported on Nov. 10, Floridians are being warned about paralyzed reptiles tumbling out of trees and hitting them on the head.

While some people are moved to help the stunned iguanas, the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission warns against intervening. “Once they recover and warm up, they could act defensively.” Also, it’s illegal to relocate or release captured iguanas. Just let ’em lie, folks. [Guardian, 11/10/2025]

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We help Mid-South nonprofits succeed.

Questionable Judgment Tucker Kemp, 31, of St. Petersburg, Florida, is rethinking his decisions after an incident in a local Starbucks last month. According to The Smoking Gun, Kemp had stopped for a tea when he noticed a pride flag hanging on the wall inside the store. He told the manager he was “offended by the flag and … they should put up an American flag.” Then he allegedly threw his tea at the flag and tore it off the wall before stuffing it into a trash can. Kemp was arrested for criminal mischief and spent a few hours in jail — but the long-term consequences may have been more influential. Kemp lost his job at nearby Dignity Memorial and is on the hunt for a new gig.

He said his “poor decisions … led to my rightful arrest and termination from my career.” Anyone looking for a recalcitrant funeral director? [The Smoking Gun, 11/7/2025] Call of the Wild Amherst Junior High School in Amherst, Ohio, was the site of an early morning surprise on Nov. 13, FOX 8 reported. According to a press release issued by Principal Andrew Hoffman, a large deer crashed through one of the school cafeteria’s windows, startling “a couple of students and staff ” who were preparing for breakfast. Video of the incident showed the deer fighting to gain traction on the slick cafeteria floor before lying down in exhaustion. Staff members and the Amherst Police Department were able to keep the deer corralled in the cafeteria before herding it toward a set of doors they had propped open

to provide the deer with an escape route. “As shocking as the event was to witness, we are happy to report that no significant injuries took place,” Hoffman said, while assuring that “all students were offered the opportunity to receive breakfast during first period.” [FOX 8, 11/13/25] Nope In an underwater cave on the border between Greece and Albania, scientists have discovered a spider web that spans 1,076.4 square feet along a wall, People magazine reported on Nov. 11. The web is home to an estimated 110,000 spiders of two different species.

Istvan Urak of the Sapientia Hungarian University of Transylvania in Romania visited the cave to analyze the web. “It is a unique case of two species cohabiting within the same web structure in this huge number,” he said. The cave is also home to 512 other species of spiders. [People, 11/11/2025] Powerful Pipes The Great Melbourne Bagpipe Bash at Federation Square in Victoria, Australia, brought together 374 bagpipers on Nov. 12 to pay tribute to rock legends AC/DC with a performance of “It’s a Long Way to the Top (If You Wanna Rock ‘n’ Roll),” shattering the world record for the most bagpipers in a single performance, as reported by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation.

Among the ragtag assembly were none other than Les Kenfield and Kevin Conlon, who were members of the Rats of Tobruk Memorial Highland Band in the 1970s and performed in the piper trio seen in AC/DC’s video for the song, which was filmed just a few blocks from Federation Square in 1976. Kenfield hopes the event, which brought together pipers of all ages, will inspire renewed interest in the instrument. “Piping is really a dying art,” Kenfield said. “In my band, if everyone over 70 resigned, there would be no band left.” [ABC News, 11/12/25] Send your weird news items with subject line WEIRD NEWS to WeirdNewsTips@amuniversal.com.

NEWS OF THE WEIRD © 2025 Andrews McMeel Syndication.

Reprinted with permission.

All rights reserved.

TAURUS (April 20-May 20): When potters center clay on a wheel, they typically use one hand inside the vessel to apply steady, controlled force. The other hand remains fluid, guiding and stabilizing the outer rim of the spinning clay. This balanced use of pressure — one hand firm and bracing, the other adapting minutely to the shifting clay — helps bring the lump into perfect symmetry. I propose you make this a prime metaphor in the coming months, Taurus: control meeting surrender. You will be crafting a new balance between security and surprise. Too much rigidity, and the form cracks; too much flow, and it collapses. Practice the middle art.

GEMINI (May 21-June 20): Poet Audre Lorde spoke of how caring for herself was the exact opposite of being selfish. It was the foundation of her ability to serve and inspire other people. My Aunt Sophie used to say, “You can’t pour from an empty cup. Take care of yourself first.” Educator Stephen Covey advised, “Be patient with yourself. Self-growth is tender; it’s holy ground. There’s no greater investment.”

Poet Vironika Tugaleva writes, “Learning to love yourself is essential and life-changing.” Everything I just said should be your keynotes in the coming months, Gemini.

Boost your self-care to sublime levels.

CANCER (June 21-July 22): A remarkable species of jellyfish can circumvent the aging and death process that affects all other animals. Turritopsis dohrnii converts its mature, specialized cells back into stem cells, essentially recycling its own body into youth. The process may repeat indefinitely, making the animal theoretically immortal. In the coming months, Cancerian, your emotional wisdom will also show amazing regenerative power.

Challenging and intriguing situations will be opportunities for you to initiate stunning acts of renewal. Like the jellyfish, you won’t merely manage change but will use it as a catalyst for vigorous growth. Have you

ever before been blessed by such wildly rejuvenative powers of metamorphosis? I don’t think so.

LEO (July 23-Aug. 22): According to ancient Egyptian myth, the sun god Ra rode a celestial boat across the sky by day.

Each night, he plunged into the underworld to wrangle with chaos so he could rebirth light in time for the dawn. That’s your mythic assignment for the coming months, Leo: not to be nonstop luminous, but to renew and nurture your radiance in the dark. Your courage will lie in feeling and learning from your doubts without identifying with them. Your magnetism and wisdom will deepen as you descend.

You won’t be less golden for passing through shadow.

VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22): In medieval monasteries, scribes added whimsical drawings called drolleries into the margins of sacred manuscripts. These marginalia included scenes like frogs playing harps, nuns chasing rabbits, and fantastical creatures engaged in playful or absurd activities. How should we interpret these seemingly prankish additions? Scholars disagree. In any case, I recommend you experiment with drolleries of your own, Virgo. Inject improvisation into duty.

Add ornament to order. The coming months will reward your serious play.

You’ll accomplish more by enjoying the work than by obsessing on perfecting it.

A touch of friskiness may even improve efficiency. So when you edit, doodle; when you analyze, wink.

LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22): Italy’s Orto Botanico di Padova is the world’s oldest botanical garden still in its original location. Since its inception 480 years ago, it has been a center for botanical research, education, and conservation. Its layout is striking, a square-inscribed in a circle, symbolizing harmonious order. In the coming months, Libra, you will be wise to associate yourself intimately with a similar wonder: an enduring source of beauty and revelation that you can both serve and benefit from.

SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21): Astronaut Chris Hadfield has spent 166 days orbiting the Earth in the International Space Station. In the microgravity of outer space, he says, motion is very smooth; objects and people float. He marvels at how everything is always moving, and yet the pace itself is tranquil and unhurried. I foresee you enjoying a lot of this kind of grace in the coming months, Scorpio: momentum without mania; constant fluidic movement that’s never hectic or rushed. What a great privilege! I expect you will rack up many flowing accomplishments.

SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21): In Kyoto’s famous moss gardens, caretakers

practice artful arrangement rather than total removal of shed foliage. They use delicate tools to gather trees’ cast-off leaves and arrange them on the moss to create visual harmony rather than bare tidiness.

This approach reflects the Japanese aesthetic principles of embracing imperfection. Supposed “flaws” become part of the beauty of the garden. I propose that you regularly adopt a metaphorically comparable approach in the coming months, Sagittarius. Integrate rather than edit. Be creative with what’s changing form. Treat so-called messes and unexpected plot twists not as blemishes but as rich textures that feel meaningful and inspiring.

AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18): Engineers may engage in “stress testing.”

They evaluate a system’s hardiness and reliability by subjecting it to pressure or force. I suspect that life will bring you a benevolent version of this trial in the coming months, Aquarius. That’s a good thing! It’s not meant to break you, but to prove how much resilience you have developed. Situations that might have formerly cracked your confidence will affirm and reveal your upgraded endurance. Take note of your composure and congratulate yourself for it. You will have every right to exult in the vivid evidence of how much you’ve grown.

PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20): Piscean author Anaïs Nin wrote, “Love never dies a natural death. It dies because we don’t know how to replenish its source.”

Apply her counsel dynamically during the coming months, dear Pisces. Be the great replenisher. Make yourself into a fountain of beauty as you share lavishly.

Nurture tenderness and adoration with unexpected flowers, gorgeous music in the midst of the routine, and affection expressed through artful thoughtfulness.

Be brilliant and persistent in ensuring that love thrives. Your elegant generosity and fond attention should enrich everything you touch.

These horoscopes are for the week of 12/2512/31. For the week of January 1st, visit freewillastrology.com.

MAKE YOUR CLOSET HAPPY, MANE. m e m p h i s f l y e r. c o m

ARIES (March 21-April 19): In the Brazilian rainforest, Cecropia trees and Azteca ants have a special relationship. The trees’ hollow branches serve as nesting spaces for the ants and offer them sugar-rich food. In return, the ants aggressively defend the trees from herbivores and predators, protecting them from damage. This mutualism benefits both species. The trees get protection that enhances their growth, while the ants gain shelter and nutrition.

In the coming months, Aries, I invite you to seek symbiosis that’s equally vigorous.

Enjoy the fun challenge of reducing your solo struggles as you rouse collaborations that boost your power and everyone else’s.

The goal is intelligent alliance, not compromise. Be resourceful as you trade a bit too much independence for just the right amount of interdependence.

CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19): A newly planted orchard spends its first year growing roots, not fruit.

Underground and unseen, the real work happens. I surmise that’s like what you will be doing in the coming months, Capricorn: mostly invisible stabilization and preparation. If anyone asks you what you’re producing, smile inscrutably and say, “Depth.”

Be committed to the quiet, hidden work rather than any showy song and dance. As my rough and rugged spirit guide Esther likes to say, “You don’t got to prove nothin’ to nobody!” The nourishment you will be storing up will sustain later abundance.

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FREE WILL ASTROLOGY By Rob Brezsny

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FILM By Chris McCoy

Sinners

The Best Films of 2025 Our annual movie awards recognize the outstanding and the forgettable.

Mickey 17

F

or all of the angst on the business side of the American film industry, artistically speaking, 2025 was an excellent year at the movies. Since I hate ranking things, I give out awards. Here’s my take on the best of the year.

December 25, 2025-January 7, 2026

Worst Picture: Snow White If you’re ever feeling imposter syndrome, just remember that grown men possessing essentially unlimited resources looked at those dwarfs and said, “Yes, that’s how I want my movie to look.”

Best Performance by a Nonhuman: Creeper Leader, Mickey 17 Bong Joon Ho’s sci-fi parable featured Robert Pattinson dying a dozen deaths on a wintry planet dominated by tardigrade-type creatures. The Creepers are just trying to be good neighbors, but the expedition’s leader (Mark Ruffalo) thinks they’re a threat, so the king-sized Leader of the Creepers (voiced by Anna Mouglalis) pulls off an epic bluff which ultimately brings down the colony’s power structure.

MVP: Michael B. Jordan, Sinners It’s fitting that this is the second time I’ve awarded Jordan the Most Valuable Player of the year because this is the year he played two people at once.

Ryan Coogler’s Sinners is a dazzling feat of filmmaking, but it would all be for naught if it weren’t for Jordan’s titanic performances as the Smokestack twins.

This has got to be one of the most technically challenging roles in the history of cinema. Jordan makes it look easy.

Best Abomination: Frankenstein Guillermo del Toro fulfills his destiny by creating the best take on Mary Shelley’s monstrous fable since the days of James Whale and Boris Karloff. The lavish 28 production design surrounded strong performances by Jacob Elordi and Oscar

Isaac as the creature and its creator, locked in a father-son conflict that neither can see their way out of.

Bugonia

Baldest Picture: Bugonia Emma Stone is a ruthless pharmaceutical executive who gets a radical makeover when paranoid beekeeper Jesse Plemons kidnaps her and shaves her head. He thinks she’s an alien invader who communicates with her mothership via hairlike antennae. Yorgos Lanthimos’ meditation on why people believe weird things succeeds where the Covid conspiracy flick Eddington failed.

Creepiest Picture: Weapons Don’t go searching for much deeper meaning in Zach Cregger’s horror breakout. He’s just here to creep you out with this tale of a town whose children mysteriously disappear into the night.

Amy Madigan’s aggressively eerie wine auntie will haunt your dreams.

Weapons

Foolproof Plan Award: No Other Choice Park Chan-wook’s bare-knuckled satire of late-stage capitalism is devastatingly funny. After Man-su (a brilliant Lee Byung-hun) is laid off from his job at the paper mill, he’s desperate for work.

When he finds his dream job opening, there’s only one thing to do: kill everyone else in South Korea who is qualified for the position. What could possibly go wrong?

Best Screenplay: Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery In this third outing with Daniel Craig as Benoit Blanc, Rian Johnson brings new depth to the locked-room mystery story.

When firebrand priest Wicks (Josh Brolin) is inexplicably killed in front of a congregation full of witnesses, suspicion falls on his young rival Jud Duplenticy (Josh O’Connor). Johnson expertly uses the whodunnit as a vehicle to dissect organized religion.

Natchez

FILM By Chris McCoy

m e m p h i s f l y e r. c o m

Best Documentary: Natchez Suzannah Herbert embedded her film crew in the plantation houses of Natchez, Mississippi, where the tourist trade meets the Lost Cause mythology of the Old South. But a new generation of tour guides tells the truth about the brutal slavery which underpinned all the grandeur.

Best Picture: One Battle After Another Paul Thomas Anderson perfectly captures the zeitgeist of an America on the edge in this loose adaptation of Thomas Pynchon’s novel Vineland.

Leonardo DiCaprio is a revolutionary known as Rocketman who helps a guerrilla group, known as the French 75s, liberate a camp full of detained immigrants. His girlfriend Perfidia (a fierce Teyana Taylor) strikes up a sadomasochistic affair with Col. Steven J. Lockjaw (Sean Penn). When she’s captured, Rocketman is left to raise their daughter Willa (Chase Infiniti) by himself while running from the feds. Sixteen years later, their past catches up with them. This revolutionary masterpiece couldn’t come at a better time.

ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT

Best Stealth Musical: Song Sung Blue Hugh Jackman and Kate Hudson star as Lighting & Thunder, a real-life couple of musicians who found fleeting fame interpreting the songs of Neil Diamond.

Craig Brewer’s tearjerker wrings every last bit of emotion out of the musical performances which form the backbone of this story of a family’s resilience in the face of tragedy.

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EMPLOYMENT • BUY, SELL, TRADE • SERVICES

901-575-9400 classifieds@memphisflyer.com

EMPLOYMENT FOURTEENTH COLONY LIGHTING is seeking a shipping and receiving clerk to oversee the shipment and receipt of all products, materials, and supplies. $20 an hour. Full-time with benefits.

Email resume to info@fourteenthcolonylighting.com or apply in person 8-12AM, 797 Roland - MIDTOWN

BUY, SELL, TRADE

SEND YOUR BUSINESS SKY HIGH WITH CLASSIFIEDS

WANTED: OLD WINDUP Victrolas & old 45 & 78 records.

Call Paul 901-734-6111.

CONTACT US AT classifieds@ memphisflyer.com

ANTIQUES & COLLECTIBLES 21,000 sq ft. 100 + booths • 5855 Summer Ave. (corner of Summer and Sycamore View ) exit 12 off I-40 | 901.213.9343 Mon-Sat 10a-6p | Sun 1p-6p

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WANTED: ELVIS PRESLEYOWNED ITEMS from cars to 8 mm home movies, cash paid.

CALL DAVE 813 ♦ 240 ♦ 6590

New/Used LPs, 45s & CDs 2152 Young Ave 901-722-0095 goner-records.com Voted Flyer’s Best of Memphis Since 2004

OPEN AT NOON

We Buy Records!

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Coco & Lola’s

Midtown Lingerie Create your identity!

ALL SIZES SMALL → 3X! New Styles at

CocoandLolas.com IG/FB/TW @CocoandLolas

Memphis’ Top Lingerie Shop 710 S. Cox | Mon-Sat 11:30-7:00

MEET OZZY! Ozzy is a handsome 3-year-old brown and white Staffordshire Bull Terrier.

He is a large boy with a gentle soul.

Ozzy is moderately active and enjoys quiet walks, playtime, and relaxing with his people. Ozzy is neutered and housetrained. He would thrive in a calm, loving home where he can feel safe and appreciated for the sweet companion he truly is.

To adopt Ozzy, visit:

dogs2ndchance.org/ adoption-application-form

T H E L A ST WO R D B y Ke n B i l l e t t

In Defense of Winter

THE LAST WORD

I’m proud to say that I make a heck of a fire. Honestly, I make great fires. Worthy of a Hallmark Christmas card, or, perhaps, as a scene in a holiday-themed Hallmark movie. Aren’t all Hallmark movies holiday-themed? I’m so proud of my fires that I post fireplace pictures and videos on Facebook and Instagram, along with screen PHOTO: KEN BILLETT captures from my iPhone’s weather app showing the Mid-South’s For this author, winter brings a sometimes sub-freezing temperatures. reminder of joy and happiness — and While making a fire might not be a big deal to many Memphians, Hallmark-worthy fires this born-and-raised Floridian loves to bundle up in a coat and scarf in the fireplace. and pop a thick knit beanie on my head. For me, sweater weather, as some folks call it, means a near constant parade of sweaters or pullovers to wear anytime I head out. At home on a chilly Sunday morning, we hang out in front of one of my famous fires, outfitted in sweat pants and plush fuzzy socks — hot coffee and a good book close by. Winter may be my favorite time of the year. But let’s make that our little secret, okay?

Cold weather is not a popular subject in my household. And don’t mention snow … even if it’s only a little bit.

Growing up in Tampa, Florida, in the 1970s, winter was about three weeks of chill from mid- to late-January and, some years, “cold weather” might’ve spilled into February. Christmas Day would find us outside shooting baskets in shorts and T-shirts. One year, relatives from New York brought us sweaters as gifts. They were thick, maybe wool, and looked expensive. Probably from Macy’s or Bloomingdale’s. I asked my mom, “What am I supposed to do with this?” She told me to hush and wear it at our family’s Christmas Day dinner. I ate dinner that year wearing my new sweater, along with cut-off shorts. The sweater itched. I never wore it again.

Nowadays, Floridians and all those transplanted snowbirds complain when the Sunshine State’s temperatures go below 60 degrees. The Floridians gripe about having to wear socks with their sandals while transplants grumble about pulling out their old puffer coats from the back of the spare closet. As far as I’m concerned, temps between 50 and 60 degrees mean a light hoodie, gym shorts, and slides. Guess I’m a Yankee, now … let’s keep that a secret, too.

After a four-year stop in Dallas, Texas, Vicki, my better half, and I have called Memphis home for 35 years and counting. Following our first couple of MidSouth winters, Vicki informed me — rather bluntly — that she was never moving north of Memphis. Never. Ever.

Nonetheless, there’s something about a beautiful, sunny winter’s day — that crisp feeling to the air, clear blue skies. What you might find in Colorado or New Hampshire, or in a Hallmark movie. Since we don’t have gorgeous mountain scenery here, I’ll take those “snow events” like we had earlier this year. Fluffy, puffy, and dry snow that covered our front yard. A winter wonderland digitally captured to prove to distant friends and relatives that, “Yes, it snows in Memphis.”

Sometimes, a lot. Definitely not a popular subject inside our household.

The beautiful snow (along with the occasional dreaded ice) brings back memories, lots of memories. Wonderful and bittersweet, and, at times, frustrating. I remember the “old days” when the Mid-South was ill-prepared to handle winter weather — no sand or salt on our roadways, especially the neighborhood roads.

Not many folks thought about spreading rock salt or kitty litter on sidewalks and building entrances. Snow and ice were a somewhat rare occurrence.

We survived Ice Storm ’94 and the Snowmageddons that frequently paralyze Memphis and the Mid-South. After all these years, I’m still amazed that whenever a “winter weather event” happens, many Memphians act as though it’s their first time experiencing cold temperatures and a potential wintry mix. There’s panicked grocery shopping and reckless driving on boulevards slick with snow or ice. Then again, Memphis drivers can’t seem to navigate our streets when they’re clear and dry. Frankly, this Florida Gator has more “cold weather” common sense than many locals.

Despite memories of cold weather disasters and misadventures, winter is a reminder of joy and happiness.

Both of our children were born during the depths of winter.

Emily was born about a week after the 1994 ice storm, and Zach arrived two years later, on a Super Bowl Sunday, when Super Bowls were still played in January. The Cowboys won that year — a little coincidental karma for our family.

Memories of guiding sleds down “the hill” in front of our home. Snowball fights with the neighbors. Building a snowman that quickly became a snow blob as temperatures climbed from the sun’s rays.

Yeah, I’ll admit it — I love winter. Just wish it wasn’t so windy all the time.

Ken Billett is a freelance writer and short-story fiction author. He and his wife, Vicki, have called Memphis home for over 35 years.

When not listening to blues music, Ken reads spy novels and tends to his flowers.

m e m p h i s f l y e r. c o m

A Floridian’s love for the Mid-South’s chill and snow … most of the time.

31

Looks like hell.

Tastes like heaven.

Just don’t eat the shucks.

The Hot Tamale Capital of the World invites you to enjoy an eclectic collection of events and entertaining stops. » FEBRUARY « Mississippi River Marathon msrivermarathon.racesonline.com

» APRIL « Showcase on Wheels cabinonthebogue.com

» MAY « Mississippi Wildlife Heritage Festival, including Frog Fest and Leland Crawfish Festival LelandChamber.com

Future Tour Golf Championship » JUNE « Delta Soul & Celebrity Golf Event facebook.com/DeltaSoulGolf

Lake Washington’s “Straight Off The Lake” Music Festival Snake Grabbin’ Rodeo

facebook.com/GrabUOneOutfitters

» JULY « WWISCAA Food Festival wwiscaa.com

» AUGUST « MS Delta Duck Boat Races at Lake Washington » SEPTEMBER « Delta Blues & Heritage Festival deltabluesms.org

Gumbo Nationals

greenvillespeedway.net

Sam Chatmon Blues Fest

facebook.com/SamChatmonBlues

Stephone Hughes Old Time Gospel Fest » OCTOBER « Delta Hot Tamale Fest mainstreetgreenville.com/ delta-hot-tamale-festival

visitgreenville.org • (800) 467.3582

Highway 61 Blues Festival highway61blues.com

Monuments on Main Street Historic Greenville Cemetery Tour deltacenterstage.org/events

YMCA Cotton Classic 10K/5K Run racesonline.com/ymca-cotton-classic

» NOVEMBER « Roll’n on the River Car Show facebook.com/redwinecarshow

» DECEMBER « Christmas on Deer Creek LelandChamber.com