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Hobbies Are Hot Crafting, board games, sports, and more —

extracurriculars are cool (and good for you). PHOTO: MEMPHIS CHESS CLUB

CARRIE BEASLEY Senior Art Director CHRISTOPHER MYERS Advertising Art Director NEIL WILLIAMS Graphic Designer

JANICE GRISSOM ELLISON, KAREN MILAM, DON MYNATT, TAMMY NASH, RANDY ROTZ, LEWIS TAYLOR, WILLIAM WIDEMAN Distribution KENNETH NEILL Founding Publisher THE MEMPHIS FLYER is published weekly by Contemporary Media, Inc., P.O. Box 1738, Memphis, TN 38101 Phone: (901) 521-9000 Fax: (901) 521-0129 memphisflyer.com CONTEMPORARY MEDIA, INC. ANNA TRAVERSE Chief Executive Officer LYNN SPARAGOWSKI Controller/Circulation Manager JEFFREY GOLDBERG Chief Revenue Officer MARGIE NEAL Chief Operating Officer KRISTIN PAWLOWSKI Digital Services Director

National Newspaper Association

Association of Alternative Newsmedia

Long Live the King

Along with the nostalgia, Elvis Week at Graceland offers golden moments of live music.

p12

PHOTO: ELVIS PRESLEY’S GRACELAND

The Price Ain’t Right

Consumers’ wallets are feeling the pinch as prices skyrocket for the same old goods.

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PHOTO: JP VALERY | UNSPLASH

NEWS & OPINION THE FLY-BY - 4 FINANCE - 7 COVER STORY “HOBBIES ARE HOT” BY GRACIE DRIVER - 8 ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT WE RECOMMEND - 11 MUSIC - 12 AFTER DARK - 13

CALENDAR - 14 NY TIMES CROSSWORD - 15 WE SAW YOU - 16 FOOD - 17 NEWS OF THE WEIRD - 18 ASTROLOGY - 19 TV - 20 NOW PLAYING - 21 CLASSIFIEDS - 22 LAST WORD - 23

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 most insurance plans. Self-pay is $125 for individual sessions

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

Mended Therapy

KELLI DEWITT, CHIP GOOGE, SHAUNE MCGHEE Senior Account Executives

CONTENTS

SHARA CLARK Editor-in-Chief ALEX GREENE Managing Editor, Music Editor BRUCE VANWYNGARDEN Senior Editor TOBY SELLS Associate Editor KAILYNN JOHNSON News Reporter CHRIS MCCOY Film and TV Editor MICHAEL DONAHUE, JON W. SPARKS Staff Writers KIMBERLY HAM Calendar Editor, Copy Editor JESSE DAVIS, EMILY GUENTHER, BUDDY JONES, COCO JUNE, PATRICIA LOCKHART, FRANK MURTAUGH, LINDSEY D. RHEA Contributing Columnists SHARON BROWN, AIMEE STIEGEMEYER Grizzlies Reporters GRACIE DRIVER, ALLIE MAURY Editorial Interns

THE

fly-by

MEMernet Memphis on the internet.

August 13-19, 2026

LEGENDS BUST The Memphis Safe Task Force bust of Legends Bistro & Lounge was streamed live early Sunday morning by Mob Tae Sosa. In it, agitated patrons POSTED TO FACEBOOK BY MOB TAE SOSA mill about the front door, which they cannot open apparently. After about three minutes, an officer tells the crowd to get in a single-file line and begin exiting the venue. Police checked identifications of the patrons as they walked out. The video prompted some to question the legality of locking patrons in a building and forcing them to show ID to exit. The Memphis Police Department said they’ve responded to about 27 incidents at Legends over the last seven months, including assaults with firearms, car thefts, and more. CHAIRRY Ever wanted your own, life-sized (and maybe kinda sad) Chairry, the lovable character from Pee-wee’s POSTED TO FACEBOOK Playhouse? BY JENNIFER CARR Get it now MARBRY-FULLER on Facebook Marketplace. $250. Bartlett pickup. PRINT THIS

POSTED TO THINGIVERSE BY BULOK

If you have a 3D printer, search “Memphis” on Thingiverse, a hub for open-source print plans. You can make a mini Downtown Memphis, the Johnny Cash statue, and even the gates of Graceland (above).

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Questions, Answers + Attitude Edited by Toby Sells

W E E K T H AT WA S By Flyer staff

SpaceXAI, Elections, & ICE Turbines blast another year, a female gubernatorial race, and deportation flights. x AI POLLUTION Environmental groups said last week an agreement between SpaceXAI and the Mississippi Department of Environmental Quality (MDEQ) will allow the company to continue “illegal air pollution into communities” for another year. The new agreement allows the company to continue to operate the turbines for another year. SpaceXAI announced it would begin removing all 69 temporary mobile turbines from its Southaven location as early as this month. PHOTO: JOHN SALVINO | UNSPLASH The Southern EnviVencindarios 901 asked Wilson Air Center to reconsider their role in the Trump ronmental Law Center administration’s mass immigrant deportation operations. (SELC) called the agreement “a stark reversal” of the company’s promise. The group said the agreement was defeating his colleague, state Sen. London Lamar, while state negotiated in secret and without any input from the comSen. Brent Taylor bested three other Republicans, including munities forced to deal with SpaceXAI’s pollution. state Rep. Todd Warner. SELC noted that the plant is a major source of air polTwo-term 5th District U.S. Rep. Andy Ogles lost his lution in the region, and fails to meet the standards of the primary to Williamson County farmer and former state agAmerican Lung Association. riculture commissioner Charlie Hatcher, a shocking setback SpaceXAI said it is making sure its mobile turbines for President Donald Trump, who endorsed Ogles in each of are equipped with technology to “reduce environmental his three races. impact.” It claimed current monitoring showed air quality “continues to meet or exceed EPA standards.” VECINDARIOS 901 ON ICE FLIGHTS Last week, Memphis advocates called on a privately run ALL-FEMALE GOVERNOR’S RACE aviation company to stop servicing flights that transport Tennessee voters will select a woman as the state’s governor, detained immigrants out of the state. as U.S. Sen. Marsha Blackburn and Memphis City Council Volunteers with Vecindarios 901, a Memphis mutual aid member Jerri Green clinched the Republican and Demoorganization that coordinates a “rapid response” network cratic gubernatorial nominations, respectively. to help immigrants impacted by Immigration and Customs Despite predictions of a close race, Blackburn fended off Enforcement (ICE), said they have tracked 51 flights since U.S. Rep. John Rose and state Rep. Monty Hatcher, winning March transporting detainees from Wilson Air Center. by 11 percentage points. Green easily defeated four oppoUsing publicly available flight tracking data, the group has nents, winning with 69 percent of the votes cast. traced most of these flight destinations to Alexandria, Louisiana, where ICE has established a large detention facility. 9TH DISTRICT Maria Oceja, Vecindarios 901 co-founder, urged owners Two state lawmakers will face off for the opportunity to rep- of the Wilson Air Center, located on the site of the Memresent the 9th Congressional District in a campaign that will phis International Airport, to “reconsider your role” in the likely get national attention. The district, formerly encomTrump administration’s mass immigrant detention and passing Memphis, has been held by a Democrat for more deportation operations. Tennessee Lookout contributed to this report. than 50 years and was redrawn in a May special legislative Visit the News Blog at memphisflyer.com for fuller versions session. of these stories and more local news. Rep. Justin J. Pearson won the Democratic nomination,

Back on Track

™

Trolleys return this fall after long absence.

PHOTO: MEMPHIS AREA TRANSIT AUTHORITY

Brake testing commenced on Main Street last week.

“We want to make sure that when these trolleys get back out on the line, they are safe and reliable.” The trustee said this paperwork should allow the trolleys to return to tracks in the fall of 2026. “We want to make sure that when these trolleys get back out on the line, they are safe and reliable,” Holmes said. “There’s still work to be done by our trolley team, but we wanted to report we are certainly moving forward in the right direction.” Holmes provided these updates during a Memphis City Council Transportation Committee meeting on Tuesday. The agency decided to suspend trolley service in 2024 after discovering

a trolley brake issue. Officials said this resulted in a “costly” recommendation from TDOT. MATA opted to temporarily suspend the service rather than “make that spend” at the time. In a Facebook video last week, MATA Director of Trolleys Kevin Hervey explained the brake testing process and why it is such a critical step. For the test, MATA blocked off Main Street from Sycamore to Greenlaw with Memphis Police Department and Memphis Fire Department personnel on hand for safety. “The reason for this test is to ensure state safety oversight that MATA has gone above and beyond to ensure our trolleys will stop as we have promised that they would do,” Hervey said. Holmes emphasized MATA’s intentions to replace its working bus fleet. It takes about 51 buses to run MATA’s routes, and officials plan to purchase 56 over the next 12 months. Twelve buses have been delivered, with more on the way. Almost half of MATA’s current buses have more than “half a million” miles on them, which Holmes said led their maintenance team to impose preventive measures. As a result, MATA said it’s maintained on-time performance. To reduce wait times for buses, MATA plans to refurbish 15 of its buses. Holmes called this a “significant improvement” and believed the community would welcome this. Holmes recognized the agency has room for improvement in providing reliable service and said procuring more buses and training more employees would help. Regarding the agency’s finances, officials have implemented controls for their review processes. They have also discussed cash flow and the agency’s budgeting process. Councilwoman Yolanda CooperSutton commended Holmes for being “consistent and compassionate” and referred to the agency’s prior state of affairs as a “chaotic mess.” “You have done a tremendous job,” Cooper-Sutton said. “At first we were in the blind, and we didn’t know anything. We thank you for all the hard work that you’re doing, and for being transparent with us.” Cooper-Sutton also expressed her hope that the city’s public transit would one day no longer be referred to as a “poor man’s transportation.”

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he Memphis Area Transit Authority (MATA) plans to restore trolley service this fall. According to MATA trustee and interim CEO Roderick Holmes, the agency performed safety tests for the trolleys’ braking systems. MATA passed the test, which Holmes said was a major step for trolley operation. In addition to brake testing, MATA is performing system test integration and submitted a 180-day notice to the Tennessee Department of Transportation (TDOT) as part of reaching regulatory and safety milestones.

NEWS & OPINION

{

CITY REPORTER By Kailynn Johnson

August 13-19, 2026

FINANCE By Lindsey D. Rhea

How To Be a Millionaire Four tips to build and preserve wealth.

2. Diversify, diversify, diversify. Most of us looking to create wealth rarely look beyond stocks/equities and bonds. And for good reason. Stocks/equities have a proven track record of providing higher returns than bonds or cash alternatives. But consider additional strategic incomeproducing assets to boost your wealth: • Treasury Inflation-Protected Securities, or TIPS, which are marketable U.S. Treasury securities aimed at combating purchasing power erosion. • I-Bonds, which also are backed by the U.S. Treasury and tied to the Consumer Price Index. Their interest rate is adjusted every six months in May and November based on the rate of inflation and can be cashed out after a year. Stay balanced: At a minimum, sit down

3. Continue investing, no matter what. While it’s smart to keep cash on hand for emergencies, parking too much of your money in low-interest savings or checking accounts allows inflation to quietly erode its purchasing power. Instead, stay focused on your long-term goals. Markets will rise and fall, but building wealth means staying invested and resisting the urge to move everything to cash when uncertainty strikes. Sweet summer adventures await! Use this personal loan for your dream vacation or home improvements. It’s your loan, your way. Apply today before this rate melts away! Maximum loan amount $10,000. Subject to credit approval, including a minimum credit score of 600. Limit one loan per qualified borrower during the promotion period. Other restrictions may apply. Promotion period runs 06/01/26 through 08/31/26. Loans must close by 09/08/26 to qualify for the rate offered at the time of application and approval. Thereafter, the currently offered rate will apply. Payment example: At 8.50% APR, 36 monthly payments of $31.57 or each $1,000 borrowed.

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4. Preserve your wealth. You’ve gotten this far, now let’s protect the wealth you worked hard to build. A few tips to get you thinking in the right direction: • Keep the savings pot primed for emergencies and large purchases. With three to six months of living expenses saved in a savings account or money market account. • Stay in tune with tax liability. From a tax-diversified investment portfolio to a charitable giving strategy, tax-saving tactics help reduce your tax liability. For example, with a Roth IRA, you won’t pay taxes on it again or be subject to required minimum distributions in retirement. • Invest in insurance. Annuities, as well as life, disability, and long-term care insurance, can protect your assets from unexpected changes to your family, career, and health. Remember, building wealth is a marathon, not a sprint. The habits you create today can help provide the financial freedom and security you want tomorrow. Lindsey D. Rhea, CFP, is owner and wealth strategist at Alia Wealth Partners, connect@ aliawealth.com.

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1. Focus on building assets, not lifestyle. This step certainly involves a dose (or two) of healthy honesty and humility to accomplish. Let’s start with “lifestyle inflation.” One of the biggest mistakes people make when they start earning more is spending more instead of investing more. The desire to immediately buy new, better, more expensive things to match new perceived wealth, say from a raise, detracts from the goal of building assets that would generate more income. Wealth creation involves maintaining discipline and commitment to see it through. Tip: Use the 24-hour rule to stop spending extra money. This mandates you wait 24 hours before making non-essential purchases on items you really want but don’t really need.

with a financial planner to examine your portfolio to ensure it aligns with your long-term financial goals. Think of it as a tune-up for your investments.

NEWS & OPINION

hile prosperity means different things for different people, being able to realize the richness of life, family, money — wealth — is universal. We all have desires to accomplish something greater than ourselves. Creating wealth provides security to enjoy and care for the people and places you love. With 80 percent of U.S. millionaires being first-generation “rich,” according to Thomas Stanley, who studied more than 1,000 millionaires for his book The Millionaire Next Door, it’s not only possible to build wealth but attain it. These four strategies are the tip of the iceberg, but they get you started and keep you focused on reaching your goals.

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COVER STORY By Gracie Driver

Hobbies Are Hot

August 13-19, 2026

Crafting, board games, sports, and more — extracurriculars are cool (and good for you).

obbies are often pegged for people with a lot of time or at least a great deal of creativity. I boldly argue that every single person should have a hobby. Making time for something that doesn’t earn money but still connects us to the world has tremendous value in our lives (bonus points if it’s a hobby you’re not great at). There’s a freedom in stepping out of your comfort zone and just doing it because it brings you joy. This year, I set out with the intention of replacing some of my screen time with literally anything else. I’ve noticed an increase in confidence, mood, creativity in other avenues of life, and patience with myself. Sewing, board games, jewelry making, sports, and beekeeping are just a few ways that Memphis business owners are showing up for us in our pursuit of personal growth.

KNITTING & SEWING

Sewing is soaked in nostalgia for people all over the world. My grandma tried to get me into the hobby when I was young, but I was more interested in jumping into her fabric pile and playing hide-and-seek with my cousins. It wasn’t until this year of hobby endeavors that I decided to brush up on my very rusty sewing skills. My grandma graciously re-taught me

PHOTOS (ABOVE): MEMPHIS CHESS CLUB

Play board games and chess at the Memphis Chess Club. PHOTO (LEFT): THE SEWING HOUSE | FACEBOOK

Everything you need to knit and sew is at The Sewing House. how to thread her machine and keep a steady hand on the fabric while avoiding stitching my fingers. One wonky vest later, and I was hooked. When it came time to acquire my own supplies, it didn’t take me long to find The Sewing House. Owner Jennifer Reith took her grandma’s hobby to heart much earlier than I did. She has fond memories of exploring her grandma’s quilt shop as a

PHOTO (ABOVE): KENTON FRISON

Have fun with sports leagues at Morris Park. Beekeeping helps our local ecosystems.

kid in the small Alabama town where her mom grew up. “I remember running my hands along, feeling the fabrics,” Reith said. She loved the community it fostered and the art of sewing even more. Reith now has a location in Collierville as well as Memphis, across the street from Novel bookstore, and it all sprouted from the craved feeling of childhood. She said, “I felt like I was out there by myself quilting, and I thought about my grandma’s store and how there were always people around.” Not only do they supply every tool you could possibly need to begin this hobby on your own, but they also have classes you can take to learn everything from bagmaking to crocheted socks. There’s a coffee corner in the store where you can mingle, work on your projects, and ask questions for free. Crocheting is a great way to ease into the world of textiles because you really only need yarn and needles, but sewing is a different story. Sewing machines are the primary expense, but The Sewing House has combated this obstacle to commitment by offering $30 machine rentals for on-site use. Now Reith has the joy of watching her grandkids run around her own business. It’s a full-circle moment that’s ignited friendships all over the Mid-South.

BOARD GAMES

The Memphis Chess Club has been around for almost 150 years, moving from location to location as a nonprofit until 2020, when it became a brick-and-mortar business. The café portion of the space started as a way to pay the bills, but the menu quickly grew in both quality and quantity due to the Memphis Chess Club team’s passion for food. They serve house-made cocktails, coffee, sandwiches, and more. I ordered the refreshing grenadine soda, made with orange blossom water, lemon, pomegranate juice, and topped off with sparkling water, that revived me during the heatwave. At $50 a year, you have access to the shop while it’s open, plus 10 percent off all food and drink, and dibs on all chess literature in their curated library. If you don’t want to commit to a membership,

you can also just come in with your own board for free or rent one for $5. Everyone, from beginners to internationally recognized players, comes to play, and tournaments are hosted every week. If you want to get started yourself, beginner classes are hosted on the first Sunday of every month for $15. Manager Mike Shuey’s grandpa was the first to teach him chess, but he didn’t really get into the hobby until his early twenties. The thing he admires most about chess is its ability to connect people from all corners of the world. Shuey says, “Chess is kind of its own language.” The pieces and moves become a form of communication beyond words. The Memphis Chess Club will be hosting the Tennessee Open and State Chess Championship in early September, with $10,000 up for grabs. If you’re not a chess fan but love the board game dynamic, MCC offers a variety of other games to play. There are even board game-dedicated shops all over the Mid-South, including 901 Games, The Cellar Tabletop Games & Comics, and Unplugged Tabletop Games. “Proud nerd” and exceptionally sweet podcaster Kristen Schebler’s favorite spot to play is Board to Beers. Her love for gaming began 10 years ago, when a friend introduced her to a group of avid board gamers who would soon become lifelong friends. She says, “Gaming as a hobby is one of the best ways to break down social barriers.” Now they even share a gaming podcast called Astronomica, which Schebler calls “a bridge to people all over the world” in gaming.

ADULT SPORTS LEAGUES

If you’re like me, childhood was full of dirty cleats, sweaty jerseys, and endless bottles of Gatorade. Sports were a part of everyday life, yet somewhere along the way to adulthood, I retired my basketball shoes and volleyball knee pads for office attire. But the addictive competitive quality and a longing for social outlets led me to my first adult league this year, and what came of it was more than I ever expected. In addition to open tennis courts, golf courses, and swim lessons, the Memphis

Parks Department hosts adult sports leagues. Softball is their most loved league, running from fall to spring, while basketball and soccer are scheduled on a yearly basis. To register, it’s important to first put together your team. If you want to join as an individual, give them a call, and they’ll match you with an existing team. Memphis Parks is also a great resource for connecting with organizations that host other sports, such as 901 Volleyball. If you’re nervous about getting into sports after a long break, keep in mind that many leagues in Memphis have two levels of skill, so your beginners’ team won’t be crushed by freshly retired college athletes. It’s meant to be fun, and it’s okay to not be amazing at it. You have the opportunity to get out of your comfort zone, exercise, and socialize all at once. There are countless places in Memphis to participate in athletics year-round. Bellevue Baptist Church, Memphis Jewish Community Center, Bluff City Pickleball, and Memphis Rox are just a few organizations that facilitate adult leagues. Memphis has a deep and glorious history with sports, practically as old as the city itself, and whether it’s your neighborhood basketball court or a city soccer field, sports foster a competitive fire I can’t get enough of.

BEEKEEPING

With beekeeping growing in popularity each year, it doesn’t take too much effort to find a golden jar of honey sourced from the Mid-South. And who can resist drizzling it on pancakes or mixing a spoonful of it in some piping hot Earl Grey tea? The Memphis Area Beekeepers Association (MABA) is a hodgepodge team of people fascinated with bees, ranging from teenagers to retirees, with two goals: to educate people about the importance of bees and to foster a love for beekeeping.

Ten years ago, seasoned veterinarian Dr. Jimmy Murphy discovered a beehive on a tree branch just outside his building. He ended up calling a beekeeper from MABA to relocate the hive, and that’s how he met his very own mentor. Murphy is now a seasoned beekeeper with several hives in Memphis and Arkansas, and mentors others now with his ample knowledge of the craft. One of the nonprofits MABA partners with is The Bee Cause Project, which has a cool grant for schools. They install an entire beehive, safely enclosed in clear material, for classrooms to enjoy inside. They attach it to the wall with exit points on the outside for bees to come and go as they please. Students get to see honey being made in real time and observe the special dance bees use for communicating. Hives are composed of almost all female bees, with the male population at roughly five percent. Their only job is to help the queen make babies, and then they’re promptly kicked out when it gets cold. While sipping on sweet flower nectar, honeybees’ fuzzy little bums pick up the pollen that makes our world go round. As Murphy states simply, “We couldn’t survive without them.” From a hobby standpoint, you’re receiving the health benefits of honey and preserving the ecosystem at the same time. What’s even cooler is the effect of their buzz on our nervous system. Vibroacoustic healing is caused by a sonic frequency bees emit that releases endorphins and calms the body. Sadly, bees face a constant threat. Varroa mites latch onto bees, suck out their blood, and leave behind a virus that exponentially shortens their lifespan. It affects every major colony in the United States. They also fall victim to habitat loss. Bees thrive in a grassland ecosystem because of continued on page 10

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

PHOTO (RIGHT): DR. JIMMY MURPHY

continued from page 9 its abundance of native flowers, but each year these ecosystems are destroyed. While nothing can replace what’s been lost, growing flowers around your community is one small and beautiful way to make a difference. If you want to help these little guys thrive and enjoy a relaxing hobby, you can join the Memphis Area Beekeepers Association for monthly meetings. They host guest speakers and can connect you with a mentor who will show you the ropes before committing to your own hive.

JEWELRY MAKING

Brandy Boyd is the one-woman show behind BMB Designs, based in Bartlett, who previously worked in the corporate world for almost 20 years while honing her craft in engineering, entrepreneurship, and art. The beautiful chaos of life has led her to become a jewelry maker and teacher, and that all began with weekends at her grandparents’ house.

metal. Besides the weekend classes Boyd hosts in her personal studio, the Memphis Botanic Garden and Metal Museum also use her expertise to teach four- to 10-person classes. Beyond the city limits, Boyd teaches at schools and conferences all over the country. The travel component of her job means she doesn’t have regular hours open at her studio, but everything is kept up to date on her socials. Tuesday and Wednesday afternoons are available most weeks for you to buy supplies, purchase something from her jewelry collections, and work on your own projects. You can have access to all of her equipment for just $15. Boyd says, “One of the things that’s important to me is making jewelry making accessible for people, regardless of their finances or physical ability.” She will also hand-make tools to fit people’s particular mobility needs. Hand-making jewelry ensures that what you wear is not only beautiful but also displays who you are — and can be enjoyed for generations.

NEVER STOP LEARNING

CALENDAR PHOTO: BMB DESIGN

SATURDAY AUGUST 15

JAM IN THE HOUSE! PART 2

7:30PM | THE GREEN ROOM | $20

SUNDAY AUGUST 16 STRICTLY JAZZ presents the music of

PAT MARTINO and PAT METHENY feat GERARD HARRIS

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THURSDAY AUGUST 20 August 13-19, 2026

CROSSTOWN ARTS FILM SERIES

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THURSDAY AUGUST 27 EXHIBITING ARTISTS

ARTIST TALKS

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CROSSTOWN ARTS 10

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Jewelry making is not only creative, but also creates community. Boyd’s grandfather was an engineer who tinkered with everything from radios to lamps in his spare time, while her grandmother was a seamstress and florist with her own flower shop. Many art projects began with sitting in front of the TV watching PBS shows and finding things Boyd liked. She said, “We’d go to the store, buy everything, and we would do it together.” She started making and selling beaded jewelry as early as elementary school and fell back into it during college. Initially, she was pursuing a degree in biomedical engineering at the University of Memphis, but after falling in love with a general credits art history class, she knew she had to make that her new major. Soon after, Boyd started her corporate job and, in 2002, began BMB Designs as a creative outlet. Boyd sources material from all over America, Mexico, and Canada, and her work is heavily inspired by nature. Petrified wood, fossils, and other unique stones make up the bulk of her material, while she also uses natural metals like sterling silver. A particularly intriguing technique she uses imprints plant life on

In case you need more hobby inspiration, the Meeman Center for Lifelong Learning at Rhodes College offers professor-taught classes for under $50 that anyone, of any age, can attend to learn something new. Every niche hobby is taught, from the science of beer-making to the wonders of medieval medicine, from a mystery book analysis featuring fingerprinting to the art of filmmaking. It gives professors the creative freedom to teach a particularly interesting subject in a short amount of time without the pressure of designing a full-blown course. They even provide virtual classes for people who can’t make the drive to campus. Professor Lori Ann Garner serves as the director of the Meeman Center for Lifelong Learning. She frequently attends classes herself to see what the Rhodes College team has come up with. Her favorite part is seeing generations united under a common curiosity. Students from teenagers to 80-something-year-olds sit together, ask questions, and discuss views on all kinds of literature. If you’re having trouble finding a group that celebrates the hobby you’re passionate about, consider starting your own! The most important thing you can be is welcoming. Create a space for people to show up. Why not start that craft night you’ve been dreaming of, host a baking class (both messy and delicious), or organize that kickball game in the park? Professor Garner says, “Hobbies are where our hearts are. It’s where the passion lives. It’s where we build empathy, critical thinking skills, and connections with one another.” I hope this adventure through Memphis has inspired you to embrace what makes you special and reap the benefits that activities outside of work provide. There’s always more to learn.

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VARIOUS DAYS & TIMES August 13th - 19th

Dive-In Movie: Zootopia 2 Hickory Hill Community Center, Saturday, August 15, 10 a.m. Hickory Hill Community Center invites families to cool off with a free Dive-In Movie: Zootopia 2 at the Hickory Hill Pool. Guests can

float in the pool while watching the animated adventure, with inflatable floats provided for a fun morning of swimming and movie-watching. Proper swim attire, including swimsuits, swim trunks or dry-fit clothing, is required. Refreshments will also be served, making this a family-friendly way to enjoy a summer day together. Zoo Brew Memphis Zoo, Friday, August 14, 7 p.m. Bringing together local, regional, and national breweries for an evening of beer tastings, live music, lawn games, and after-hours zoo fun. Whether you’re planning a date night, gathering with friends, or simply looking for a unique way to spend a Friday evening, Zoo Brew offers a chance to sip, stroll, and enjoy the zoo after dark.

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MEMPHIS ODDITY & CURIOSITY TWO DAY MARKET, THE MEDICINE FACTORY, 85 W. VIRGINIA AVE., SUITE 101, AUGUST 15-16, NOON-7 P.M., FREE.

1970s Community Night Dixon Gallery & Gardens, Saturday, August 15, 5-8 p.m. Step back in time at the Dixon Gallery & Gardens. Part of the Dixon’s quarterly Community Days, this free, all-ages event invites guests to embrace the groove with hands-on art-making, feel-good music, live entertainment, and plenty of retro vibes. Visitors are encouraged to dress in their best ’70s-inspired looks and enjoy an evening of creativity, connection, and familyfriendly fun while exploring the museum and gardens.

2520 Mt. Moriah 4349 Elvis Presley 2484 Jackson Ave. 1370 Poplar Ave. 1217 S. Bellevue

By Allie Maury

Craft fair season is around the corner, and the Oddity Market hosted by Crystal Casket Events offers an opportunity for those interested in less-conventional art styles to explore the weirder work of local artists and find things that couldn’t be found in regular stores and markets. Chris King and Reed Mann of Crystal Casket Events host these markets to give exposure to artists who work with odd, macabre subject matter. They said that animal bone art, jewelry, taxidermy, and other unusual media are common at their events. The upcoming market will feature vendors such as Obsidian Revival, Medusa’s Lair Creations, Black Sheep Fleece Co., and Lil Hex Co. Mann came across the oddity scene after discovering Relic Oddities, a Memphis-based oddities and curiosities shop. After being inspired by the work there, she looked to expand people’s awareness of oddities. “When I became an oddities dealer, I noticed that there weren’t a whole lot PHOTO: COURTESY REED MANN at that point in Memphis, and there were a lot of people that were wanting to Chris King and Reed Mann start creating,” Mann said. Since they began hosting the shows, King and Mann noticed a more palpable sense of community among not only Memphis-based artists and creators, but the people who come to the markets. They believe that in the past couple of years, the public perception of oddities has shifted. Mann thinks that a lot of this has to do with the internet. “[Oddities] became oddly trendy around 2024, and I think that has a lot to do with TikTok and the internet,” Mann said, “and I think, thankfully, all of that’s really cool and easy to access.” Using taxidermy as an example, she went on to explain how before the shift in perception, people thought that the only people who used it as decoration in their homes were “folks that, you know, went out hunting and shooting deer and shooting ducks”. King and Mann believe that, since 2024, more people have been seeing oddities as an unconventional, new way to look at art. Their shows consistently draw crowds, including regulars, kids and adults of all ages, and people from all sorts of different walks of life. “We’ve just gotten really positive feedback from the whole community who’s showing up to our events,” King said. “It’s had a lot of people that you wouldn’t think would be interested in taxidermy, wet specimens, or bone art.”

Speak, Salvation, Speak Hattiloo Theatre, Friday August 14-Sunday, September 6, 2 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. Speak, Salvation, Speak is a gripping family drama that explores faith, spirituality, and the bonds of legacy. The play follows Paul, a devoted Pentecostal husband and father, and his son, Ohun, who has chosen a spiritual path rooted in ancestral tradition. Between them is Mae, the mother and emotional center of the family, as she struggles to hold them together amid their unspoken tensions. Each year, Paul and Ohun share a mysterious dream that leaves them with fragments of meaning and a sense that something unfinished is reaching toward their family. This drama builds toward a powerful reckoning where devotion, family legacy, and survival collide.

WITH THIS COUPON. EXPIRES 10/31/26.

ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT

Weird Art, Creepy Crafts

W/ PURCHASE OF ONE 2PC DARK DINNER & 2 MED DRINKS.

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MUSIC By Alex Greene

Long Live the King Along with the nostalgia, Elvis Week at Graceland offers golden moments of live music.

August 13-19, 2026

ou have to move fast to get in on the conversation that’s flowing in and around Graceland this week. Because it’s not just any week, it’s Elvis Week, and there are a dizzying number of meet-and-greets and reminiscences going on at Elvis Presley’s former home. Those in the know already have tickets, but by now the special photo op with Charles Stone and Sam Thompson, the tour of the Graceland archives with Linda Thompson, who dated Elvis from 1972 to 1976, the conversation with Jerry Schilling and Linda Thompson about their nights at the movies with Presley, and Schilling’s Q&A and tour of Graceland (at only $1,300 per person) are sold out. And yet, there are still plenty of other activities going down at Graceland and elsewhere to scratch that Elvis itch. The good news for music lovers is that many of the actual concerts have not sold out, and Elvis Week brings out some fierce talent well worth hearing onstage. This Thursday, August 13th, consider a deep dive into the youthful first sparks of Presley’s career, as host Andy Childs, Jerry Schilling, Billy Blackwood & The Blackwood Brothers Quartet, Angie Marchese, Andrew Solt, and prizewinning tribute artist Emilio Santoro (backed by the band Sixwire) all strive to conjure up the spirit of “Elvis 1956” at the Graceland Soundstage. It was a pivotal year for the singer, who first entered RCA studios in January of that year and emerged with hits like “Heartbreak Hotel” and “Blue Suede Shoes,” leading to his famous TV appearances with celebrity hosts Ed Sullivan, Milton Berle, and Steve Allen. This is a must-see event for anyone in love with the more prickly, punkish Presley. Later that same night, fans can time travel to 1976 and honor the 50th anniversary of Presley’s “Jungle Room Sessions.” The depth and quality of those recordings made in Graceland, Presley’s last-ever before his death the next year, was revealed in RCA/Legacy’s 2024 box set, Elvis: Memphis, featuring Matt RossSpang’s remixes of the Jungle Room sessions with all overdubs stripped away, leaving only the sounds of the players in Presley’s home at the time. Yielding such hits as “Moody Blue” and “Way Down,” the sessions capture Presley’s ability to “imbue familiar material with personal emotion,” as Robert 12 Gordon writes in the liner notes. At this Thursday’s event, one can relive

PHOTOS: ELVIS PRESLEY’S GRACELAND

The candlelight vigil; (inset) Emilio Santoro

Elvis Week brings out some ﬁerce talent well worth hearing onstage. some of that intimate magic in the TCB Showroom, where host Tom Brown will introduce performances by Pat Dunn, Spencer Sutherland, Dean Z, and Larry Strickland, all backed by the Infinit-E Band. Yet some fans don’t want the intimate, they want the spectacular. And there will be plenty of spectacle at the “Elvis Presley in Concert Live” show at the Graceland Soundstage on Friday, August 14th. It promises fans the chance to “relive the excitement of Elvis Presley in concert as the King of Rock ‘n’ Roll takes the stage once again on the big screen,” while a live band plays along. Thanks to technological advances in stagecraft, this sort of thing has become more common in recent years, with Paul McCartney singing duets with an onscreen John Lennon, or live bands jamming with a hologram of B.B. King. Expect this Friday’s show to be state-of-the-art in this regard. On the other hand, for something even more intimate than the “Jungle Room Sessions,” consider the “Elvis Presley Guitar Circle” on the Graceland Guesthouse lawn this Saturday, August

15th, at 6 p.m. This innovative event encourages fans to awaken their inner Elvis with an informal singalong, where guitar players can share songs, play side by side, and celebrate Presley’s music. Some of this week’s performers will join in as well, so expect professional playing mixed into this free, inclusive event. Of course, Presley’s true-blue devotees will want to attend the free “Candlelight Vigil” that same night, starting at 8:30 p.m. After an opening ceremony at the gates of Graceland, fans can traverse Graceland’s driveway to Elvis’ gravesite and back carrying a candle, and thousands will do so until the early morning hours of August 16th, the anniversary of Presley’s passing. Alas, the crowning “Candlelit Concert” in Graceland’s Chapel in the Woods that night is sold out, but that doesn’t mean the live music options will be over. It’s fortuitous that August 16th falls on a Sunday this year, as The King’s passing can be properly honored with a full-on gospel concert. It’s no secret that Presley remained devoted

to sacred music all his life, and “Elvis: Sunday Morning Gospel Celebration” at the Graceland Soundstage that morning at 11 a.m. will celebrate that fact. The talent on hand will include Pat Dunn; former member of The Stamps Quartet Larry Strickland; The Blackwood Brothers Quartet with Billy Blackwood; Presley’s associate Jim Murray with his wife Brenda Nielsen Murray; and singer Belle Frantz, all backed by the Infinit-E Band. Finally, while not an example of live music per se, “An Epic Closing Party” will celebrate the best of Presley’s galvanizing performances with a screening of Baz Luhrmann’s EPiC: Elvis Presley in Concert on the Soundstage’s three giant screens. Featuring previously unreleased footage found in 38 boxes within the Warner Bros. archives, plus audio of Presley himself telling his life story and some slapping remixes of Presley’s ’70s tracks, the film is said to be the next best thing to being there. Better yet, attendees can top off this year’s Elvis Week, dance, and view the celebrated film all at once with fellow fans.

AFTER DARK: Live Music Schedule August 13 - 19

HALLORAN CENTRE IMMERSIVE THEATRE

Neon Mooners

Thursday, August 13, 6 p.m. THE PEABODY ROOFTOP

The Swingtime Explosion

With 17 instrumentalists and two vocalists, there is nothing that can compare. Saturday, August 15, 7:30 p.m. RUMBA ROOM

DISCO DETECTIVE: A 1970S SOULFUL MURDER MYSTERY EXPERIENCE

The Chaulkies

Sunday, August 16, 3 p.m. HUEY’S EAST

Live at the Garden: John Legend - An Evening of Songs and Stories Open lawn seating. Friday, August 14, 8 p.m. RADIANS AMPHITHEATER

MORTIMER’S

Jam in the House!

A 10-piece band with a dynamic horn section, soulful vocals, and driving percussion. Saturday, August 15, 7:30 p.m. THE GREEN ROOM AT CROSSTOWN ARTS

Aberrant

Sunday, August 16, 9 p.m. B-SIDE

Aubrey McCrady

Saturday, August 15, 10 p.m. B-SIDE

Baunie & Soul

Saturday, August 15, 5 p.m.

Left On Red

With Alborn. Tuesday, August 18, 8 p.m. GROWLERS

Leo Party

DJ sets by Tree, Brian Hamilton, Bassventura, and Ben Murray. Saturday, August 15, 7 p.m.

LAFAYETTE’S MUSIC ROOM

CANVAS OF MEMPHIS

Cloudland Canyon

Nubia Yasin’s Album Release Show

DJ sets by Cloudland Canyon, Strooly, and DJ Livin. Saturday, August 15, 9 p.m. BAR DKDC

Daphnie & Chris Duo

Thursday, August 13, 6 p.m. LAFAYETTE’S MUSIC ROOM

Deerfields

With Mr. Scientist, Wagoneer. Sunday, August 16, 8 p.m. THE HI-TONE CAFE

DJ Zirk

With Frayser Boy, White Sosa, and others. Friday, August 14, 8 p.m. GROWLERS

Duane Cleveland

Sunday, August 16, 12 p.m. LAFAYETTE’S MUSIC ROOM

Dyke Night: DJ Shai

Thursday, August 13, 8 p.m. BAR DKDC

Eternity’s Pillar

With Spek Was Here, Ash Leon, Starbunny, Deaf Revival. Saturday, August 15, 8 p.m. THE HI-TONE CAFE

Five O’Clock Shadow Sunday, August 16, 3 p.m.

Sunday, August 16, 8 p.m. BAR DKDC

Poor Elijah

With The Blue Byrdes, Aubrey McCrady. Saturday, August 15, 8 p.m. MINGLEWOOD HALL

Primo Danger

With Phantomelo, After the Rain, Wilshire. Thursday, August 13, 8 p.m.

Stolen Faces (Grateful Dead Tribute) Friday, August 14, 9 p.m. B-SIDE

With DJ Oddyssey. Saturday, August 15, 9 p.m. GROWLERS

Rock the Boat

Friday, August 14, 6 p.m. LAFAYETTE’S MUSIC ROOM

Seeing Red

Saturday, August 15, 9 p.m. LAFAYETTE’S MUSIC ROOM

Side Street Steppers

Saturday, August 15, 6 p.m. CENTRAL BBQ

Soul Circuits

An electronic country band from Minneapolis. Saturday, August 15, 9 p.m.

Heartless (A Heart Tribute)

Soundhaus

Wednesday, August 19, 7 p.m. B-SIDE

AUGUST 29 - 3PM & 7PM HALLORAN CENTRE

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ORPHEUM-MEMPHIS.COM

Strictly Jazz: The Music of Pat Martino and Pat Metheny

With guitarist Gerard Harris. Sunday, August 16, 6 p.m. THE GREEN ROOM AT CROSSTOWN ARTS

The Switchblade Kid

With Bo Peep and the Backbeat, Los Psychosis, the Rockets. Thursday, August 13, 8 p.m. THE HI-TONE CAFE

Thumpdaddy

Friday, August 14, 9:30 p.m. LAFAYETTE’S MUSIC ROOM

Trivet

With Mary Hatley, Simon Michael, Garlic Butter. Sunday, August 16, 8 p.m. GROWLERS

Préndelo Memphis

LAMPLIGHTER LOUNGE

LAFAYETTE’S MUSIC ROOM

Phantomelo

GROWLERS

HUEY’S MIDTOWN

Sunday, August 16, 5 p.m.

PHOTO: COURTESY PHANTOMELO

SATURDAY AUGUST 22

Dash Rip Rock

Friday, August 14, 8 p.m. HERNANDO’S HIDE-A-WAY

Elvis Week Robert Washington Dinner Show

Robert Washington, known as Black Elvis, delivers an electrifying Elvis tribute. Thursday, August 13, 5 p.m. | Friday, August 14, 5 p.m. | Saturday, August 15, 5 p.m. HERNANDO’S HIDE-A-WAY

Maxlee James & Alex Wells

A salute to the legendary sounds of Sun Records. Thursday, August 13, 7 p.m.

GET TICKETS NOW SEE A COMEDY LEGEND LIVE IN MEMPHIS

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

Thursday, August 13, 6:30 p.m.

ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT

Van Duren

Step into the groovy world of the 1970s as you become part of the biggest television event of the decade. BBB Station—Big Bold & Beautiful—is celebrating its 10th anniversary with a live televised special watched by millions across the country. The music is soulful, the fashion is ﬂy, and the stars of the station are all gathered for one unforgettable night. Get ready for an evening ﬁlled with soul, laughter, music, audience interaction, and a mystery that will keep you guessing until the very end.

HERNANDO’S HIDE-A-WAY

CALENDAR of EVENTS: August 13 - 19, 2026 Summer Exhibition

AR TS AND S P ECIAL E X H IBITS

Three summer exhibitions at Crosstown Arts, featuring works by Barbara Penn, George Edward Walker, and Romain Collin in collaboration with filmmaker Matthew Palmer. Through September 6.

“A Bend in the River”

With a focus on the early history of Memphis, when it was viewed as a frontier flatboat town, the gallery will explore the founding of Memphis in 1819 up to the “flatboat rebellion” of 1842. Through October 25.

CROSSTOWN ARTS GALLERIES

Works by Linda Clark

Linda Clark developed an interest in painting when a friend asked her to help with an art class she was teaching. Now she has been painting in oils for over a decade. Free. Through August 27.

PINK PALACE MUSEUM & MANSION

“Black Joy, In Spite Of ... ”

Curated by Memphis native Brigette Janea Jones, the exhibition brings together 25 historical photographs and contemporary artworks exploring how Black Tennesseans have created lives of joy, connection, and purpose across generations of adversity. Through August 14.

WKNO DIGITAL MEDIA CENTER

A R T HA P P E N I N G S

Gallery Reception: “Floral Infusion”

Opening reception for “Floral Infusion,” new works by Vera Feldman and Bobo Huettel on exhibit. Free. Friday, August 14, 5 p.m.

NATIONAL CIVIL RIGHTS MUSEUM

“Canvas, Clay & Camera”

BUCKMAN PERFORMING AND FINE ARTS CENTER

This exhibit features work by local artists: Beth Bryson, Ben Couvillion, Jane Fulmer, Laura Allen Edwards, Pat Chafee, Anca Marr, Ann Durante, Luke McClellan, Pam Olson, Pat Patterson, and Nancy Adair. Through September 29. ST. GEORGE’S EPISCOPAL CHURCH

David Uzochukwu: “Bodies of Water”

In this show, 22 photographs present hybrid beings, part human and part animal, who inhabit surreal, dreamlike landscapes. Adorned with fins, scales, and other features, these figures are equipped to survive and thrive in challenging waters. Through September 27. MEMPHIS BROOKS MUSEUM

Deanna Mullins Art Exhibit

Deanna Mullins is a native Memphian working primarily in acrylic, water color, and mixed media. She is known for her bright colors, bold use of shapes and patterns, and often whimsical paintings. Free. Through August 31.

August 13-19, 2026

MEMPHIS BOTANIC GARDEN

Don Estes: “Bluff Walk”

Using layered pigments, textured surfaces, and subtle horizon lines, Estes transforms the landscape of Memphis bluffs into contemplative works that evoke memory, movement, and the changing light along the Mississippi River. Through August 22. DAVID LUSK GALLERY

“Floral Infusion”

New works by Vera Feldman and Bobo Huettel will be on exhibit in the Levy Gallery. Through September 21.

BUCKMAN ARTS CENTER AT ST. MARY’S EPISCOPAL SCHOOL

“Illuminate”

While stained glass is often associated with sunlight and windows, Suzy Hendrix’s

Opening Reception: “Canvas, Clay & Camera”

work demonstrates how glass transforms under changing light conditions, creating rich reflections, color shifts, and visual depth. Through August 20. ANF ARCHITECTS

Jennifer Stanford: “Piecework”

Stanford creates her own pieces for collage using a variety of printmaking techniques, while simultaneously amassing a (too) large collection of curated papers and books which frequently find their way into her work. Through September 19. TOWN OF COLLIERVILLE MORTON MUSEUM

Kim Jorgensen Art Exhibit

Kim Jorgensen has been painting for more than 10 years, working primarily in acrylic and mixed media. Largely selftaught, she is drawn to color, texture, and the ways visual art can communicate ideas and stories. Free. Through September 30. MEMPHIS BOTANIC GARDEN

“Living in Layers”

Enjoy art by Debbie Likley Pacheco. She works in mixed media, combining digital and analog methods to create layered images that straddle a line between naturalism and abstraction. Through September 27. DIXON GALLERY AND GARDENS

Made in Dixon | Hecho en Dixon Celebrating a half-century of growth and learning, this year’s exhibition offers an intimate look at the programs

PHOTO: DEBBIE LIKLEY PACHECO

Distracted that have inspired the Dixon’s onsite visitors and reached deep into the heart of the Memphis community. Through September 6. DIXON GALLERY AND GARDENS

“Memphis College of Art, 1936-2020: An Enduring Legacy”

Through this exhibition of 90 faculty, administrators, and graduates, this show reflects on the school’s historical impact and celebrates its continued legacy regionally and beyond. Through September 30. MEMPHIS BROOKS MUSEUM

“Navigating Knowledge”

This exhibition explores vessels and navigation as metaphors for the containment and transmission of knowledge. Through October 7. MEMPHIS BROOKS MUSEUM

“Nurses and Doctors”

Margaret Coleman made these drawings of Memphis healthcare workers in the late 1990s. Through September 2. TOPS GALLERY

Summer Art Garden: “Wax Print Wonderland”

Samilia Pelshak presents an enchanting installation of her vibrant African wax print designs. Through September 27. MEMPHIS BROOKS MUSEUM

St. George’s Art Gallery presents an exhibit featuring work by 11 local artists. Meet the artists at this reception. Saturday, August 15, 3 p.m. ST. GEORGE’S EPISCOPAL CHURCH

Opening Reception: Roscoe Hall and Stephanie Howard

Enjoy this opening reception for new solo exhibitions from Roscoe Hall and Stephanie Howard. Saturday, August 15, 5 p.m. SHEET CAKE GALLERY

BOOK E V E N TS

Genre Benders Book Club: Piranesi

Piranesi’s house is no ordinary building: its rooms are infinite, its corridors endless, its walls lined with thousands upon thousands of statues. Thursday, August 13, 6 p.m. NOVEL

No Pressure Book Club Share in a guided discussion on current reads and get book recommendations from others. This book club allows participants to discuss what they are reading, watching, or listening to right now without committing to a certain title.

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. Wednesday, August 19, 3 p.m.

day, August 15, 7 p.m.

COM M U N I T Y

C LASS/ WOR KSH OP

1970s Community Night

Intro to Calligraphy

DIXON GALLERY AND GARDENS

BENJAMIN L. HOOKS CENTRAL

GERMANTOWN COMMUNITY LIBRARY

Join an evening filled with hands-on art-making, feelgood music, and retro vibes everyone can enjoy. Come dressed in your best 1970s style and help turn back time for a night of creativity, connection, and fun. Saturday, August 15, 5 p.m.

Happy 9th Birthday, Novel

Happy birthday, Novel! Participants will celebrate Novel’s 9th birthday with a story, singing, and activities. Saturday, August 15, 10:30 a.m. NOVEL

Iris Rhizome Sale

Enjoy this Iris Sale with a wide variety of bearded irises. All funds go to West Tennessee Iris Society, a nonprofit public benefit affiliate of the American Iris Society. Saturday, August 15, 8 a.m. AGRICENTER FARMERS MARKET

Singles Meet (Cute) To Mix & Mingle

Celebrate Bookstore Romance Day with this Meet Cute event. Come mix and mingle with other single book lovers. Whether you want to make a friend or something more, come out and meet folks who want to meet you. 21+. Saturday, August 15, 2 p.m. NOVEL

Sip and Stroll

Join an after-hours, walking tour of a highlighted specialty garden featuring themed cocktails. This fun, casual program will lead you from station to station to learn about a different topic and garden. 21+. $35. Thursday, August 13, 6 p.m. MEMPHIS BOTANIC GARDEN

Stargazing at Tom Lee Park

Sit back, relax and take in the magic of the night sky with sweeping rooftop views over the mighty Mississippi. Satur-

BEALE STREET LANDING

Seniors can join teaching artist Dawn Vinson to learn a basic calligraphic hand using a broad-edged nib and ink. Throughout the course participants also acquire foundational skills to continue studying and practicing calligraphy on their own. Friday, August 14, 2 p.m. LIBRARY

Lit at the Library: The Influence of the Past

William Faulkner once warned us that “the past is never dead. It’s not even past.” In this course, participants will explore fiction, non-fiction, and poetry that examine how the past continues to shape our lives. Thursday, August 13, 6 p.m. BENJAMIN L. HOOKS CENTRAL LIBRARY

Prime Practice: Watercolor with John Isaiah Kennedy

Your creative prime can begin at any age. You’re invited to get immersed into the artist process and build new skills through eight weeks of handson making. $250. Wednesday, August 19, 10 a.m. MEMPHIS BROOKS MUSEUM OF ART

The Tingey Painting with Parkinsons Program (TINCAN™)

A free art therapy program that supports people living with Parkinson’s. The weekly sessions encourage participants to freely explore art materials and work without interruption while listening to meditative music. Wednesday, August 19, 10 a.m. DIXON GALLERY AND GARDENS

COM EDY

Hops & Hahas

This monthly comedy series brings together the best local comedians alongside touring headliners and special guests from around the region. $25. Friday, August 14, 7 p.m. MEDDLESOME BREWING CO.

PHOTO: COURTESY CROSSTOWN ARTS

The Fall

Josh Fadem Does Standup

Join Josh Fadem of Twin Peaks and Better Call Saul, with Chris Crofton and local comedians Jana Whiteside, Prince Bobo, and Ryan W. Bush. $20. Friday, August 14, 7:30 p.m. LAMPLIGHTER LOUNGE

DAN C E

Magic Carpet: On Your Toes with the Sugar Plum Fairy

With the help of the Buckman Dance Conservatory, children will explore ballet and this

C A L E N DA R : AU G U S T 1 3 - 1 9 , 2 0 2 6 holiday classic with interactive storytelling and creative movement. Free. Saturday, August 15, 10 a.m.

BUCKMAN PERFORMING AND FINE ARTS CENTER AT ST. MARY’S EPISCOPAL SCHOOL

FAMILY

2026 Train Heritage Day

Enjoy a community-wide celebration of Collierville’s railroading legacy, with activities across multiple historic locations. Saturday, August 15, 10 a.m. TOWN OF COLLIERVILLE MORTON MUSEUM

Like You Children’s Film Festival Preview Party

Want a sneak peek at this year’s Like You Children’s Film Festival? Come celebrate at this free preview party. You’ll be among the first to see the full festival schedule, and watch trailers for the films. Sunday, August 16, 3 p.m.

and create space for mental clarity. Free. Friday, August 14, 4:30 p.m.

FedEx St. Jude Championship

SHELBY FARMS PARK

Reigning FedExCup Champion Tommy Fleetwood is headed back to the 901 to begin his journey to defend his title. Witness top PGA Tour stars battle it out right here in our backyard in the FedExCup Playoffs. Thursday, August 13-Sunday, August 16, 7 a.m.

Tai Chi-Qi Gong for Beginners

Join instructor Marjean Liggett for free tai chi lessons featuring gentle moves that will strengthen and calm body, mind, and soul. Free. Thursday, August 13, 7 a.m. | Tuesday, August 18, 7 a.m.

Bring the family out to make pop-up paper animals. Inspired by animals in the museum’s collection, draw, color, cut, and fold your drawn animal to make it stand up and come alive. For ages 5 to 12. Saturday, August 15, 10 a.m. MEMPHIS BROOKS MUSEUM

FESTIVAL

THEATREWORKS @ THE EVERGREEN

Murder for Two

When a famous novelist gets bumped off at his own birthday bash, small-town officer Marcus Moscowicz jumps at the chance to prove his detective skills before the official authorities arrive. Friday, August 14, 8 p.m. | Saturday, August 15, 8 p.m. | Sunday, August 16, 2 p.m.

TPC SOUTHWIND

OVERTON PARK CONSERVANCY

Memphis Redbirds vs. Jacksonville Jumbo Shrimp

LECT U R E

THEATREWORKS @ THE SQUARE

Tuesday, August 18, 6:45 p.m. | Wednesday, August 19, 6:45 p.m.

Munch and Learn: The Four Codes of Creative Energy

Speak, Salvation, Speak

A gripping family drama where faith is not just what you believe, it is what you inherit. Friday, August 14, 7:30 p.m. | Saturday, August 15, 2:00 p.m. | Saturday, August 15, 7:30 p.m. | Sunday, August 16, 2:00 p.m.

AUTOZONE PARK

Zack Orsborn, founder of Like Really Creative, says, “My vision has become my vow: to foster a world where creativity isn’t just respected but recognized as essential medicine.” Wednesday, August 19, 12 p.m.

T HE AT E R

Bluey’s Big Play

When Dad feels like a little bit of time out, Bluey and Bingo have other plans. Join them as they pull out all of the games and cleverness at their disposal to get Dad off that bean bag. Saturday, August 15, 11 a.m. | Saturday, August 15, 2 p.m. | Sunday, August 16, 11 a.m. | Sunday, August 16, 2 p.m.

DIXON GALLERY AND GARDENS

STOMPING GROUNDS

Super Saturday — Pop-Up Creatures

that will change everything. Friday, August 14, 8 p.m. | Saturday, August 15, 8 p.m. | Sunday, August 16, 2 p.m.

S P OR TS

SPECIA L E V E N TS

Southern Lodging Summit

HATTILOO THEATRE

The Music Man

Harold Hill, a charismatic con man, marches into River City and gets more than he bargained for. This masterpiece is a heart-stealing tribute to the power of community and unexpected romance. Friday, August 14, 7:30 p.m. | Saturday, August 15, 7:30 p.m. | Sunday, August 16, 2:00 p.m.

The summit brings together hotel owners, THE ORPHEUM THEATRE operators, sales executives, financial institutions, architects, attorneys, hotel company Dragysty representatives, and industry leaders for The air conditioning is broken. The wine is THEATRE MEMPHIS networking and conversations about the future open. And the Cross family of Texas, a quickof hospitality. Tuesday, August 18, 7 a.m. | empire with too many rooms and even The Newlube York Times Syndication Sales Corporation Wednesday, August 19, 7 a.m. more secrets, has gathered for a will reading

620 Eighth Avenue, New York, N.Y. 10018 For Information Call: 1-800-972-3550 For Release Monday, August 12, 2019

RENASANT CONVENTION CENTER

Zoo Brew

After years away, this favorite returns with local, regional, and national breweries, live music, lawn games, photo ops, and after-hours zoo fun. 21+. Friday, August 14, 7 p.m. MEMPHIS ZOO

Learn about the origins of paleontology and see early reconstructions of dinosaurs which first caught the public’s imagination. The event will conclude with a screening of the 1925 silent classic, The Lost World. Free. Saturday, August 15, 1 p.m. A. SCHWAB

Crosstown Arts Film Series Presents: The Fall

Tarsem Singh’s visually astonishing fantasy epic unfolds through the imagination of a young girl listening to fantastical stories told by an injured stuntman in a 1920s hospital. Thursday, August 13, 7 p.m. CROSSTOWN THEATER

Dive-In Movie: Zootopia 2

A free movie at Hickory Hill Pool. Inflatable floats will be provided. Proper swim attire, (swimsuits, swim trunks, or dry-fit clothing) is required. Saturday, August 15, 10 a.m. HICKORY HILL COMMUNITY CENTER

Elvis: From Hollywood To Burning Love

The evening begins with Elvis in Hollywood, featuring the unforgettable movie classics that made Elvis a silver-screen sensation, including Jailhouse Rock, Teddy Bear, Loving You, and more. Saturday, August 15, 7 p.m. THE ORPHEUM THEATRE

FOO D AND DR IN K

Culture & Cocktails

Dixon members at the Young at Art and Cosmopolitans levels can have a drink and enjoy an exclusive tour of “Café Society: Art and Sociability in Paris, 1855 – 1914.” Thursday, August 13, 5:30 p.m. DIXON GALLERY AND GARDENS

Trivia at Celtic Crossing

Enjoy prizes, drinks, food, and fun. Wednesday, August 19, 7 p.m. CELTIC CROSSING

HEALTH AND F IT N E SS

Get Outside Fitness: Mat Pilates

Pilates will lengthen and strengthen your core muscles, build body awareness and balance,

ACROSS 1 Al who created Li’l Abner 5 Chatting online, in brief 10 Almost any offer that’s too good to be true 14 Doozy 15 “I swear!” 16 Robe in old Rome 17 The “A” of U.A.E. 18 *Basketball position for Magic Johnson or Steph Curry 20 *Level on the military wage scale 22 Player in front of a net 23 What sailors and beachgoers breathe 24 Uncouth person 25 Colorado summer hrs. 26 *Alternative to a brush when coating the side of a house

30 Things coiled on the sides of houses 33 With 44-Across, onetime British slapstick comic 34 Single-stranded genetic molecule 35 ___ and crafts 36 Consumer products giant, for short … or a hint to the answers to the eight starred clues 37 Tylenol target 38 “You got it now?” 39 Toyota hybrid 40 North Pole resident

49 ___ Field, former home of the Seattle Mariners 52 *Shade akin to olive 54 *Sorority types who go out a lot 56 Eugene O’Neill’s “___ Christie” 57 Help with a crime 58 Letter-shaped fastener 59 “Veni, ___, vici” 60 Hellmann’s product, informally 61 Daytime or Primetime awards 62 Holler

DOWN 41 *The Beach Boys 1 Applauds or Backstreet 2 Enveloping Boys glows, old-style 43 Amusement 3 ___ del Rey, Calif. 44 See 33-Across 4 *Darts and snooker 45 Marx’s collaborator on 5 Somewhat “The Communist 6 An emoji may Manifesto” suggest it 7 1970s tennis ANSWER TO PREVIOUS PUZZLE champ Nastase I P A S S T A P E P D A 8 Writer Anaïs M O N A E I M A X B R U N 9 Dig into work D I D J A M O T O R B I K E 10 E. B. White’s “___ Little” O S H A T B S I B E A M W O O K I E E L P S S K I 11 Unwanted stocking stuffer N N W N A R C O L E P T I C 12 Prefix with P A B L O C A S A L S cultural D E C L A R A T O R Y 13 Prepared, as D A R L E N E L O V E dinner or a bed D O N E A N D D O N E L A S 19 Foolish, R T E I D S F I R E A X E informally O C C U R A F C S T I X 21 Frees (of) P O O P E M O J I A T I L T 24 Marching I M O N G U A C M E N L O halftime crews T S K M I R E T E X A N 26 Fence in

22 24

25 31

No. 0708

PUZZLE BY NED WHITE

27 Mom’s mom, for short 28 The “U” of I.C.U. 29 Mom’s mom 30 Lock securer 31 ___ O’s (breakfast cereal) 32 One of 12 in Alcoholics Anonymous 33 Oksana ___, 1994 Olympic skating wonder 36 What may precede Chapter 1 in a novel

37 *Roast accompaniment prepared with drippings 39 $$$$, on Yelp 40 Like choir music 42 Run-down area 43 Lavish meals 46 Counting-off word 47 1980s tennis champ Ivan 48 Creature that leaves a slimy trail

49 What an email filter filters 50 Rhyme scheme for Robert Frost’s “Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening” 51 Glenn of the Eagles 52 School event with a king and a queen 53 “For Better or for Worse” mom 55 Company that pioneered the U.P.C. bar code

Online subscriptions: Today’s puzzle and more than 7,000 past puzzles, nytimes.com/crosswords ($39.95 a year). Read about and comment on each puzzle: nytimes.com/wordplay.

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Beale Street Monster Club — A Lost World Rediscovered

Edited by Will Shortz

ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT

Crossword

FI L M

We Saw You. with MICHAEL DONAHUE

ee anybody you know? It’s another “People Around Town” edition of We Saw You. This week’s group includes folks from places (mostly eating establishments) I frequented. They include Cocozza American Italian in Harbor Town, Liquor & Wine Depot, Mosa Asian Bistro, Rosie’s Tavern, Earnestine & Hazel’s, Pete & Sam’s, Curry Bowl Indian Cuisine, and Malco Powerhouse Cinema Grill & MXT. PHOTOS: MICHAEL DONAHUE

August 13-19, 2026

above: (left to right) Jay Munn; David Hunt, Jaik Hunt, Teresa Hunt circle: J. B. Harvey below: (left to right) Myles Nall, Miller Sykes, Raffy Valenzuela, Cullen Ford, Patrick Van Epps; John Fox, John Andrew Fox bottom row: (left to right) Sierra DeRose, Hannah Tilley, Milan Bailey; Stanton Miller; Devin Faletto, Christopher Lemons, August Moon Stevens, Will Allen

FOOD By Michael Donahue

Roundup at Little Moo’s Byhalia’s ice cream parlor/eatery is a hit.

PHOTO: MICHAEL DONAHUE

the 1800s. I think first it was a doctor’s office back in the day. When we bought it, it was a barbecue place.” But, she says, “It looks completely different now. We amped up the place. Added onto the back a little and really cleaned everything up. Put some concrete down.” She painted part of it turquoise and added little “barn doors.” Brittany held a soft opening before they officially opened. “We only told our friends and a couple of family members about it.” But that day, she says, “The whole town of Byhalia was in line.” Business really took off after online food reviewer/food truck owner Kartavis “Big Tae” Buchanan did a video on them. “He’s really the one that put us on the map.” Little Moo’s features several types of hamburgers. “We have ‘Sunrise’ that comes with an egg, ‘Cowboy’ that comes with onion rings, bacon, and barbecue sauce; and we have a ‘Byhalian’ burger that comes with pimento cheese,” says Brittany. They cook the hamburgers on an open flame grill. “It’s connected to a smoker. So we flame grill them and smoke them as well.” Their hamburger patties are about an inch to an inch and a half thick. “We hand-pat them every morning. We do make them thicker. They hold better in the smoker when they’re thicker,” says Brittany. Little Moo’s also features hot dogs, Cajun smoked sausage, and vanilla, chocolate, and swirl soft serve ice cream. “We haven’t changed our menu since we opened. We just kind of added a few limited-edition items.” She credits her dad, Dennis Henson, and her fiancé, Kory Brown, for their support over the years. Little Moo’s “just worked,” Brittany says. “We’ve been very lucky. Everything flowed.”

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Brittany and Alyssa Henson

ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT

soft “moo” means a cow is content. The same goes for humans after they finish “The Big Heifer,” “The Cow Patty,” or “The Southern Sunrise” hamburger at Little Moo’s Burgers & Treats. But instead of “moo,” they probably say “Ooh! That was good!” Brittany Henson and her daughter, Alyssa Henson, are serving up tasty fare at the little ice cream parlor/eatery at 73 Highway 309 South in Byhalia, Mississippi. Little Moo’s is housed in a little walk-up building with picnic tables and cow-print-dotted umbrellas in front. People have been parking their cars and ordering hamburgers, hot dogs, and ice cream since Brittany opened her to-go window four years ago. She quit her job as a dental assistant, which she held for 12 years, to open Little Moo’s. “We used to talk about cavity-free,” Brittany says. “Now I’m the one creating all the cavities.” Owning her own ice cream parlor was a dream dating back to her childhood. Her grandparents lived two blocks from Jerry’s Sno Cones when it was located on Wells Station Road. “I thought that was the coolest thing. Looking out of the window, I’d see people walking from their houses to get ice cream.” Brittany’s Jerry’s Sno Cones go-to was the “Rainbow” snow cone — “The one with all the flavors.” Meanwhile, “I’ve always been a ‘blue ras’ girl,” Alyssa says. Opening her own ice cream establishment was probably a midlife crisis, Brittany says. “The opportunity came along for this little building. And I just pictured a little Jerry’s Sno Cones. I guess it’s just memories of your childhood.” The dentists she worked with couldn’t believe she was quitting her job to open an ice cream parlor. “My doctors always messed with me about it. I’d just tell them I had to do it. It’s a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity and I’m going to take a chance.” They said, “You don’t even cook. What are you doing?” Brittany adds, “They thought I was crazy.” She had never worked at a restaurant. “I just kind of winged it,” she says, adding, “I’d never even touched a grill before.” But learning the ropes “just kind of came along.” The Little Moo’s building is about the size of a food truck. “It’s been several things. I think it goes back to

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NEWS OF THE WEIRD By the editors at Andrews McMeel Syndication

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Buddy for Hire In some parts of Russia, men are running personal ads, not to look for love, but to offer themselves for a different kind of connection: as a barbecue companion. Oddity Central reported on July 13th that the service is exactly what it sounds like — someone to come over and enjoy some barbecue, beer, and conversation. The cost ranges from $13 to $65, and can include services such as preparing the grill, cooking the meat, setting up the tent, and acting as a friendly companion. “I’ll help you organize barbecues and camping, keep you company, and grill some meat. Jokes and anecdotes are also included,” one person wrote in his ad. The ads are exclusively marketed to other men, and clearly state that the services aren’t meant to spark a friendship. If someone wants to engage the barbecue buddy’s services again, they will have to pay for it. “From a business perspective, this is absolutely natural: If there’s an unmet 6/22/26 4:41 PMneed, a service will emerge,” Russian restaurateur Evgeny Demchenko said. [Oddity Central, 7/13/26] Just What the Doctor Ordered At the advice of her doctor, an elderly woman consumed one and a half liters of Diet Coke to dissolve a mass in her stomach ... and it worked! Oddity Central said on July 9th that a team of doctors reported the case in the New England Journal of Medicine. An elderly woman presented with a bezoar, or a large mass, that resulted as a side effect of taking a GLP-1. She lost 40 pounds over the course of a year, but reported continued stomach pain. After an endoscopy revealed the bezoar, she discontinued her medication, and, in an effort to avoid surgery, doctors suggested drinking carbonated beverages to help dissolve the mass. “Existing evidence, largely from case series and anecdotal experiences, supports the administration of 3 liters of cola, either orally or through a nasogastric tube, within a 12-hour window,” the doctors said in the report. “It is not well understood whether acidity, carbonation, or another mechanism accounts for dissolution of the bezoar.” As the woman was diabetic, her “prescription” was adjusted to one and a half liters of diet cola. After just a couple of days on the cola regimen, the woman reported relief from her symptoms, and another endoscopy revealed

the mass had dissolved. See, soda can be healthy! [Oddity Central, 7/9/26] Something Old, Something New ... • After Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce’s July 3rd wedding at Madison Square Garden, one New York man made bank by collecting the trash outside the venue and selling the treasure to Swifties. “There’s garbage on the floor after the party. Collected from the edge of a love story outside Madison Square Garden, as close to Taylor and Travis’ big day as you could’ve gotten without an invite,” collector Justin Gignac wrote on his website. Items he found include cigarette butts, paper cups, plastic straws, scraps of fabric, an ovulation test kit, plastic bags, candy wrappers, and a single AirPod. Gignac wrapped each item in an airtight plastic cube — labeled “JUST&T MARRIED” — and marketed his wares as “Pocket Garbage.” He says he is sold out after Swifties bought up all 50 of his trash cubes. Each cube sold for $25. [UPI, 7/10/26] • In Ecuador, couples getting married in civil ceremonies now have more options for who can serve as their witnesses: their pets. Yahoo News reported on July 11th that when Diana Tupiza, 38, and Andres Alquinga, 31, got married, they brought their dog, Luna, who “signed” the marriage certificate with her paw print. Luna’s stamp is merely symbolic, and the document she signed says “Symbolic marriage certificate,” with a space that indicates “paw print of your furry friend.” The official certificate was signed by the couple and their [human] witnesses. [Yahoo! News, 7/11/26] • Robert, an office worker, recently married Matilda, a dancer, in Moscow’s Pushkin Library. The ceremony was the first of its kind in Russia, because Robert and Matilda are robots. The humanoid machines, made by the Russian company IT-Imperial, exchanged vows written by AI, MSN reported on July 13th. While their “marriage” has no legal standing, organizers say the goal of the event was to showcase the robots’ capabilities and foster more interaction between humans and humanoids. Videos and photos on social media show the “couple” dancing and visiting with human guests. [MSN, 7/13/26] NEWS OF THE WEIRD © 2026 Andrews McMeel Syndication. Reprinted with permission. All rights reserved.

TAURUS (April 20-May 20): The ancient Romans could be obsessive perfectionists in their approach to building stuff. They were extra thorough and scrupulous. That’s why some of the roads they constructed are still usable today, 2,000 years later. Workers dug deep foundations, then layered stones, gravel, and sand before placing the final surface. In the coming weeks, Taurus, I recommend that you, too, carry out meticulous groundwork as you upgrade your foundations and optimize your stability. Don’t you dare be lazy or hurried in doing this grunt work. Your dogged and ingenious attention to detail will make your future safety zone shatterproof and shockproof. GEMINI (May 21-June 20): I appoint you to be the Chief Role Model in charge of showing everyone how to be a smart lover in all situations. Yes, all situations, not only those involving romance. In addition, I bestow on you the title of Chief Administrator of Amazing Grace, hoping this will inspire you to make elegant interventions in every situation where you have influence. Finally, Gemini, I exhort you to be devoted to seeing the beauty in everyone you encounter, even if you must work hard to find it. In asking you to carry out these humongous responsibilities, I’m interpreting the clues offered by the astrological omens. They have revealed to me that cultivating a generous spirit is crucial to you attracting what you want most. CANCER (June 21-July 22): I confess I have succumbed to a very modern misdemeanor: tossing the word “sacred” around more often than it deserves. To be fair, I haven’t stooped to the tacky depths of New Age hustlers hawking “sacred email marketing” or “sacred dog-walking.” But still, I would prefer to invoke the word more sparingly, so that on the rare occasions I do, you will feel a genuine shiver of awe. Like now. I predict you will soon be stirred by marvelous encounters and realizations that flood you with reverent feelings and turn your inner life deliciously upside down.

VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22): Virgo mathematician Katherine Johnson (1918–2020) was known as a “human computer” who specialized in carrying out large volumes of intricate calculations. She also had an uncanny ability to translate complex problems into elegant equations, which was why NASA called on her help to guide its early space missions. She said she simply asked the right questions until the numbers disclosed their hidden patterns. Be like her in the coming weeks, Virgo. Instead of forcing quick and simple answers, focus on dreaming up the smartest questions. Well-crafted inquiries will unlock sweet insights that brute effort can’t. LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22): In the art of mosaic-making, tiny fragments of stone or glass are fitted together into intricate patterns. Each piece is insignificant and meaningless on its own, but together they compose luminous images. Let’s deploy the mosaic as a metaphor for your life, Libra. I invite you to consider the possibility that you are assembling minor details and small clues into a big, beautiful masterpiece. You may not even be fully aware of how exactly you’re doing it or what it will ultimately look like and do. That’s fine. Your higher self is in charge of accomplishing this minor miracle. SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21): Before launching a spacecraft, engineers perform countless simulations of situations they hope will never happen. They repeatedly practice failures so that success becomes more likely. This is a different version of your current assignment, Scorpio. Your task is not to worry about disaster but to rehearse courage. So I encourage you to use your imagination to strengthen your resilience. Visualize yourself responding with creativity, grace, and humor whenever life springs surprises and unexpected blessings. Your confidence will thrive because you will have lots of inner practice in collaborating adeptly with uncertainty. SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21): The horizon line is always the same distance away from you, about three miles at sea level. If you walk toward it, you will never reach it because it moves with you. Now I’d like to propose that some of your personal goals work like horizons. They are orientations, not actual destinations. You’re supposed to move toward them indefinitely, never arriving. In the coming weeks, I invite you to distinguish between your horizon goals and your destination goals. Some aims are meant to be reached, while others basically guide your direction without ever needing to be attained. CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19): Here’s my normally $600-per-hour advice, provided at a very low cost to you: Don’t

get back to where you once belonged. Instead, go toward where you must belong in the future. Maybe the old place feels cozier because it’s familiar, even if it no longer fits the person you are now. But I recommend that you heed the subtle pull of the life that’s calling you from ahead. Who exactly is the even more beautiful self you’re on your way to becoming? Visualize in detail the situation where that sovereign majesty will thrive. AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18): If you’re single, the coming weeks will be one of the most auspicious periods in ages for cultivating your own fan club of admirers. Your allure is turned up higher than usual, and the universe seems to have decided that what once might have counted as excessive is now perfectly appropriate. If, however, you’re happily ensconced in a lively monogamous bond, don’t sabotage it with daydreams of juggling multiple lovers. Instead, conspire with your partner to expand the range of flavors inside the relationship. Try stepping into different personas together: Adopt new names, experiment with strange accents, and imagine you’re living in 1453 Italy, or 1506 Spain, or 1685 Japan, or 1721 France. PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20): The speed of thought can zip along at over 200 miles per hour. That’s the rate at which signals travel through neurons. Electrical impulses in computers, on the other hand, may travel much faster, at half the speed of light. So your thoughts are very leisurely compared to machines. But they do what computers can’t. They’re creating meaning, not just moving data. Their slowness is where the richest reality unfolds. Remember that well in the coming weeks, Pisces. It’s extra important for your mental and physical health that you not imitate machines and algorithms. You need to ruminate and meditate and muse as gently and unhurriedly as you dare.

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): At the post office, I mischievously plucked a crumpled piece of red paper out of the trash can. I don’t usually do such things, but I sensed some horoscope material was lurking there. It turned out to be a handwritten love note addressed to “My Lush and Luminous Aries Laugh-Lover” and signed, “Your Flawed but Fiery and Funny Provocateur.” The Provocateur had written, “Let’s be rowdy investigators of wonders and miracles. Let’s hack our way through the frontiers to discover the wildest beauty and truth ever.” I was shocked that anyone would have discarded such a tempting proposal — especially an Aries. Please avoid making comparable errors in the near future, my dear.

LEO (July 23Aug. 22): Given how extra vibrant and refreshed you have been feeling, I would understand if you had zero interest in confronting The Dilemma That Refuses to Fade. Why deliberately tangle with that stale, long-term energy drain when your spirits are so high? Here’s why: At this moment, you possess a new and unprecedented advantage over The Dilemma That Refuses to Fade. You may not manage to completely vanquish it once and for all. But then again, you just might. At the very least, you can now sharply curtail its ability to siphon your energy and meddle with your life.

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FREE WILL ASTROLOGY By Rob Brezsny

TV By Chris McCoy

Everybody Wants to Rule the World Chaos reigns in House of the Dragon’s fiery third season.

August 13-19, 2026

ere’s the thing about war: It never goes as planned. Literally everybody who ever started a war of conquest thought they would achieve victory quickly and cleanly. They were all wrong. As the saying goes, no plan survives first contact with the enemy. Or, as Mike Tyson put it, “Everybody’s got a plan until they get punched in the face.” War has its own twisted logic, and that logic tends to take you to places you never contemplated before. Even when a war seems to go your way, as it did in the early days of George W. Bush’s invasion of Iraq, that doesn’t mean that you’ve really won. Because then you have to pick up the pieces of all the things you broke along the road to “victory.” That’s roughly where Rhaenyra Targaryen (Emma D’Arcy) lands in episode 3 of the third season of House of the Dragon, ironically titled “Rhaenyra Triumphant.” The spinoff, set a couple of centuries before the events of Game of Thrones, has taken a creaky two seasons to set up Rhaenyra’s ascension to the Iron Throne. Season three is where all of the courtly intrigue starts to pay off. Of course, if you were one of the common folk just trying to live their lives in King’s Landing or Tumbleton, you wouldn’t think things had “paid off ” so much as they had “degenerated into bloody chaos.” That’s the thing about interesting historical eras — they’re a lot less fun to live through than they are to read about. In the season’s first episode, “Salt and Sea, Fire and Blood” the various factions have all decided to pursue politics by other means, such as enormous fire-breathing dragons. Control over these flying weapons of mass destruction has been a major preoccupation for the Targaryens, as it is the source of their political power. But the biggest lesson Rhaenyra will learn this season is that you never really control a dragon, or a war. Quite the opposite, in fact. When her enemies in the Triarchy ambush the Valyrian fleet in a strait known as The Gullet, Rhaenyra tries to hop on her dragon Syrax to help her cousins. But her advisers and relatives can’t have their meal ticket risk her life in an actual pitched battle, so they lock her in her royal chambers while her son Jace (Harry Collett) takes the lead on his dragon Vermax. Meanwhile, Rhaenyra’s niece/ stepdaughter Rhaena (Phoebe Campbell), embarrassed by her failure to bond with a dragon from the family pit, tries to tame the wild dragon Sheepstealer. But 20 when she tries to ride it into the battle of The Gullet, Sheepstealer goes rogue and

starts sinking friendlies. In the chaos, Vermax is brought down and Jace dies. Rhaenyra’s family is in tatters, but her childhood bestie Alicent Hightower (Olivia Cooke) has convinced her himbo son Aemond (Ewan Mitchell) to flee King’s Landing, so she’s easily able to declare the horribly burned King Aegon II (Tom Glynn-Carney) dead and install herself as de facto queen. But she soon discovers that actually ruling is a lot more complicated than conquering. The blockade she has been enforcing on King’s Landing has made the smallfolk desperate for food. But because the fleeing Hightowers absconded with the treasury, there’s no money to help them, and the local nobles are in no mood to assist. Even worse, there are a lot of other claimants to the throne loose in Westeros. Unbeknownst to Rhaenyra, Aegon is not dead, but rather on the lam with his long-suffering adviser Larys (Matthew Needham). The remains of the Hightower army is holed up in Tumbleton, and Lord Ormund Hightower (James Norton) is minting coins with cousin Daeron Targaryen’s (Benjamin Evan Ainsworth) face on them. Aemond, meanwhile, is shacked up at the ruined castle of Harrenhal with the possibly immortal Alys (Gayle Rankin), although he doesn’t seem to have a plan beyond lots of hot witch sex. If all this sounds pretty convoluted, it is, and I’m still leaving a lot out. The labyrinthine plotting has always been

House of the Dragon season 3 starring Emma D’Arcy and Matt Smith author George R. R. Martin’s specialty. This season of House of the Dragon hits hard because we’re getting to the part of the story where events are spiraling out of control. After “Rhaenyra Triumphant,” everything the young queen tries to do to fix her problems, both large and small, only serves to make things worse. She puts the squeeze on King’s Landing’s rich families to help the starving poor, then lets her uncle/husband Daemon (Matt Smith) hunt traitors in the streets with his brutal Gold Cloaks, leaving all the classes mad at her. It’s a testament to D’Arcy’s performance that we find ourselves rooting for Rhaenyra to pull it together, right up until the point where she starts massacring priests. Former

Doctor Who Matt Smith is masterful as the arrogant Daemon, who believes every problem can be solved with the point of a sword. The season finale, “The Treasons at Tumbleton”, is among the best episodes this franchise has ever produced. Surrounded by enemies, and spooked by Aegon’s reappearance, Rhaenyra chooses violence. But Daemon’s attempts to force a final confrontation with the Hightowers at Tumbleton are once again thwarted by a rogue dragon. What would happen if we threw a war and everybody lost? I think we’re about to find out. House of the Dragon is now streaming on HBO Max.

N O W P L AY I N G B y C h r i s M c C o y

The End of Oak Street Ewan McGregor and Anne Hathaway

2026

PAW Patrol: The Dino Movie What’s that? You want MORE dinosaurs? Maybe with some dogs? And the dogs are like a secret heroic rescue unit, like Thunderbirds, only more canine? And the dogs are trapped on an island with a bunch of dinos? And you want Snoop Dogg, Bill Nye, and Paris Hilton in the voice cast? PAW Patrol has got you covered, dawg.

PARTYWITH THE BEST Wednesday, September 23rd, 2026 5:30pm - 8:30pm ■ Loﬂin Yard

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BLACK CREAM STAR & MICEY Tickets Available Now-Sep 22! 21+. Ticket includes entry, live entertainment, food, & drinks. For more info and to purchase tickets, visit bit.ly/BOM26 today!

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Elijah Peel This made-in-Memphis, faith-based film was produced by Gravity Productions and co-directed by Kevin D. Sepe and Memphian Nathan Ross Murphy. Robert Malcom Cumming stars as a rocker sidelined by a major heart attack. While he’s in the hospital, he meets Jessica (Evelyn Grace Kite), an eight-year-old girl with terminal cancer who convinces him to quit doing drugs and find Jesus. God’s Not Dead’s Kevin Sorbo co-stars as Elijah’s manager Rock. The film won Best Picture, Best Director, and Best Actress at the International Christian Film & Music Awards.

star as Greg and Denise Platt, a happily married suburban couple who awake one day to discover that their cozy neighborhood has been transported back in time to the age of the dinosaurs. Can they save their kids Audrey (Maisy Stella) and Brian (Christian Convery) from becoming T-Rex snacks? David Robert Mitchell (It Follows) wrote and directed this sci-fi adventure.

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HOUSING FOR RENT LAKEVIEW GARDENS AREA For rent is a house with three bedrooms and one bathroom. Included are some furniture pieces, appliances, and a w/d connection. Large backyard, central heating and cooling. $1,100 deposit and $1,100 monthly rent. Call 901-233-1790. SOUTH MEMPHIS 1 furnished room for a mature lady in a Christian home. Near the expressway and on the bus line. Non-smoker. $600 per month includes utilities and cooking/laundry privileges. Must be employed or retired. 901-558-0365.

REAL ESTATE

AUTO AUTO AUCTION Wanda C’s Towing, 3614 Jackson Avenue, Memphis, TN 38108. Friday, August 28, 2026, at 2 pm. 2013 Chrysler 300 VIN 2C3CCAEG2DH606308

GREAT HOME FOR SALE IN EAST MEMPHIS 3 bedrooms, 2.5 bathrooms, 2200 sq. ft., and a 2-car garage. This spacious home can be yours for $40,000 plus closing costs and an assumption of the $300,000 mortgage balance. This mortgage has a 2.250 interest rate. The P&I is $1318.75 per month. If interested, call me or have your realtor call me. Any realtor agent fee will be your responsibility. Property address: 207 N Goodlett St., Memphis, 38117. Call Allen C. Johnson, 615-430-6819.

BUY, SELL, TRADE

AUDI/VW/PORSCHE Factory Trained Experience Independent Prices

August 13-19, 2026

5331 Summer Ave. Memphis, TN 38122 (901) 761-3443 www.WolfsburgAuto.com

ANTIQUES & COLLECTIBLES

2152 Young Ave 901-722-0095 goner-records.com Voted Flyer’s Best of Memphis Since 2004

OPEN AT NOON

We Buy Records!

Midtown Lingerie

WANTED: OLD WINDUP Victrolas & old 45 & 78 records. Call Paul 901-734-6111.

SPECIALIZING IN

New/Used LPs, 45s & CDs

MEET OZZY!

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

Show what you wear!

Ozzy is a handsome white and brown Staffordshire Bull Terrier mix with a gentle soul. He’s a largesized boy who was born on August 10, 2022, and is fully house-trained and neutered. Ozzy enjoys quiet walks, playtime, and relaxing with his people. He’s incredibly loyal and affectionate and would thrive in a calm, loving home where he can feel safe and appreciated. Let’s get him a home for his birthday! To adopt Ozzy, visit:

CocoandLolas.com

dogs2ndchance.org/ adoption-application-form

710 S. Cox | Mon-Sat 11:30-7:00

ALL SIZES SMALL → 3X! New Styles at

IG/FB/TW @CocoandLolas

Memphis’ Top Lingerie Shop

THE LAST WORD By Jesse Davis

The Price Ain’t Right

THE LAST WORD

Everything is too damn expensive these days, and that’s not simply a matter of opinion. From the Associated Press, “Buying food to eat at home has gotten 33 percent more expensive in U.S. cities since the beginning of 2019, according to government figures. In the 7 1/2 years before that, prices rose 6.4 percent.” Take a look at that figure again and let it really sink in. Food has gotten 33 percent more expensive since 2019, up over 26.6 percent over the seven preceding years. Of course, there have been a few contributing factors — a global pandemic, Russia’s war in Ukraine’s effect on oil and fertilizer supplies, President Donald Trump’s asinine tariffs, and a world-trade-disrupting “conflict” in Iran, for starters. Still, our leaders are, at least ostensibly, adults, professionals even, with a wide array of tools at their disposal. So, why hasn’t more been done to alleviate the strain on Americans’ wallets? (We both know that the answer is, “Because it’s making a lot of wealthy people much, much wealthier,” but entertain the thought experiment for a moment please.) Well, at least our intrepid elected officials are working hard to ensure that our increasingly expensive food doesn’t poison us. Right? Right? Nope. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is actively investigating 10 foodborne illness outbreaks. The two Cyclospora outbreaks linked to iceberg lettuce and other leafy greens have affected people in 41 states, even leading to some hospitalizations and deaths PHOTO: JP VALERY | UNSPLASH in severe cases. That’s just the Cyclospora, though. The FDA is also investigating outbreaks of Salmonella, Listeria monocytogenes, E. coli, and Clostridium botulinum affecting everything from frozen blueberries to powdered infant formula. Some readers may wonder what anyone is supposed to do about my litany of complaints. Should the government really get mixed up in the free market? In regulating what we eat? To this, the only answer can be a resounding yes. Look at the alternative. Shoppers are paying almost 35 percent more for food that might send them to the hospital, or at least running to the nearest bathroom. This is exactly what the government exists to do — regulate the increasingly complicated and interconnected system that connects us all. Before the publication of Upton Sinclair’s The Jungle, before striking workers went toe-to-toe with Pinkerton agents, before the (not even 100 years old) Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938, children under 14 years old might work 12-hour shifts in unsafe conditions and go home to eat bread made from flour thinned with sawdust as a price-saving measure. That’s what a world of small government looks like, an unregulated hellscape where everyone has the individual right to slowly die of malnutrition from eating wood pulp masquerading as sourdough. Though a mom-and-pop business might use healthy ingredients because it’s the so-called “right thing to do,” or because they believe in the antiquated concept of ensuring customer loyalty by delivering a consistently high-quality product, the same cannot be said for the giant megacorporations responsible for an increasing share of what’s available on grocery store shelves. There are simply too many chances to pass the buck, as is evidenced by the strangely high number of foodborne illnesses popping up in the wake of Trump and DOGE’s cuts to the agencies built to protect Americans. So, what is to be done? As a place to start, we should return the FDA, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, the Centers for Disease Control, the National Science Foundation, and the National Institutes of Health to pre-Trump levels of staffing and funding. Outlaw personalized pricing (also called surveillance pricing, for the reason that it depends on an un-American and Orwellian level of surveillance to institute it). Surge pricing might be on the chopping block as well. Of course, the federal minimum wage of the laughably insignificant $7.25 per hour should be raised for the first time since 2009. Those measures simply help to ameliorate the harm done in recent years. A truly progressive person might also suggest some law requiring companies reporting record-breaking profits to freeze price increases for a time. Heck, maybe we even reconsider whether or not corporations are people. These problems and these potential solutions may not be romantic or exciting. Though they don’t get the blood pumping the way talk of culture war and international defense does, they are problems that affect every working American, and, as such, they are vital. Remember, the primary job of government is the profoundly unsexy work of making sure no one dies of a preventable and explosive bout of diarrhea. Jesse Davis is a former Flyer staffer; he writes a monthly books feature for Memphis Magazine. His opinions, such as they are, have become professional penny pinchers.

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

Consumers’ wallets are feeling the pinch as prices skyrocket for the same old goods.