Memphis Flyer - 1.12.23

SHARA CLARK Editor

SAMUEL X. CICCI Managing Editor

It started with a backache in October. It seemed like a muscle pull or pinched nerve but it wouldn’t stop hurting. I went to two noted local clinics, each of which suggested di erent possible causes but o ered no real relief from the pain. Finally, I tried acupuncture, which alleviated the symptoms enough that I thought maybe I’d turned the corner.

en things got scary. On December 13th, I was walking my dogs when I noticed my le foot felt weak and a little oppy. I called my physician, Dr. Warren, and got an appointment for three days later. My wife Tatine accompanied me. A er a brief check of my vitals and listening to me describe my symptoms, Warren said, “You’re going to the emergency room at Methodist right now.” And so the holiday festivities began.

A er an hour, I was wheeled into a CT scan and then returned to a hallway to await results. Two hours later, the ER physician came out and said, quickly, “It’s cancer. You have a small mass in your chest. We’ll need to biopsy it and see what we’re dealing with.”

JACKSON

BAKER, BRUCE VANWYNGARDEN Senior Editors TOBY SELLS Associate Editor

KAILYNN JOHNSON News Reporter CHRIS MCCOY

Film and TV Editor ALEX GREENE Music Editor

ABIGAIL MORICI

Arts and Culture Editor

MICHAEL DONAHUE, JON W. SPARKS

Staff Writers

GENE GARD, MELANIE MORTON, FRANK MURTAUGH

Contributing Columnists

SHARON BROWN, AIMEE STIEGEMEYER Grizzlies Reporters ANDREA FENISE Fashion Editor

KENNETH NEILL Founding Publisher

CARRIE BEASLEY

Senior Art Director

CHRISTOPHER MYERS

Advertising Art Director NEIL WILLIAMS Graphic Designer

JERRY D. SWIFT

Advertising Director Emeritus KELLI DEWITT, CHIP GOOGE, HAILEY THOMAS Senior Account Executives

MICHELLE MUSOLF Account Executive

CHET HASTINGS

Warehouse Facilitator

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

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 FOGLE

Chief Executive O cer

LYNN SPARAGOWSKI

Controller/Circulation Manager

JEFFREY GOLDBERG Chief Revenue Officer

MARGIE NEAL Chief Operating Officer

KRISTIN PAWLOWSKI

Digital Services Director

MARIAH MCCABE Circulation and Accounting Assistant

Well, merry dang Christmas. Tatine and I sat for a bit, like tornado survivors in a split-open house trailer. What the hell?

e next couple of days were a blur. Family and friends came and went and I put up a smile and a thumb. I then experienced the hospital’s panoply of tubular machines that inhale your body and look at its interior. e cacophonous MRI experience was an hour of bangs and audio distortion that I’ve yet to quite understand. But the good news was that the cancer seemed isolated to a single spot.

We began a series of meetings with doctors from cardiology, neurology, and oncology.

e tumor was a thumb-sized growth that had attached to the front of my spine. e plan was for the neurologists to stabilize the spine from the backside with pins, and then when that was done, a treatment protocol for the tumor — once the biopsy came back and we knew what kind of cancer we were dealing with — would be created. So, on the h day of Christmas, I got major back surgery and a new Franken-spine. Two days later, the biopsy results indicated that I had a “curable” stage I lymphoma that could be treated with chemo, a gi for which I’m obviously quite thankful.

e next three days were what I’ve come to recall as my “disco dreams” period. I was in the ICU and had access to a handy little pump that would allow me to give myself a nice pain-killing sedative every hour during the night. I was taking lots of other pills and the interaction was somewhat psychedelic. My sleep was full of ashing lights and rolling trains and groove music, interrupted on the hour, every hour, sadly, by nurses giving me meds, checking my vitals, taking my blood. My night visitors kept breaking up the party.

A er ICU, I was moved to another room to begin my “plugged-in” phase, wherein bleeping tubes dripped medicines into my body and other tubes removed liquids from my body and I felt like a tank being simultaneously drained and lled.

Meanwhile, in the outside world, pipes were freezing, water was being boiled, blackouts were rolling. My family was gathering for meals and holiday rituals and I was watching movies on my laptop, my choices purely whimsical: My Man Godfrey, e Tender Bar, Slap Shot, e Man in the High Castle, some Harry Potter thing. I wanted out. Christmas was coming.

NEWS & OPINION

THE FLY-BY - 4

POLITICS - 7

COVER STORY

“FREE YOUR MIND (AND YOUR EARS WILL FOLLOW)”

Christmas Eve arrived and a er my family le , it was down to my favorite nurse Vitarn and me. I was feeling melancholy. We wished each other merry merry and I turned out the lights. (It was only later that I was gently told that “Vitarn” was really Vita, who signed her name on the white board as “Vita rn.”) Anyway, Vita and I had a lovely Christmas morning together, before Dr. Warren came in, checked me over, and said if neurology approved, I could go home.

BY ALEX GREENE - 8

FINANCE - 11 SPORTS - 12

WE RECOMMEND - 13

AFTER DARK - 14 CALENDAR - 15

NY TIMES CROSSWORD - 16

NEWS OF THE WEIRD - 17 ASTROLOGY - 18 FOOD - 19 FILM - 20

CLASSIFIEDS - 22

LAST WORD - 23

By midday, I was good to go and stepping gingerly into the front seat of our car. I will not soon forget the odd pale daylight, how strange it felt being outside for the rst time in 12 days, how quiet the tra cless stretch of Union Avenue seemed to be on this, the strangest Christmas ever.

Bruce VanWyngarden bruce@memphis yer.com Editor’s note: Flyer writers will occasionally share this space.

PHOTO: PHOTOGRAPHERLONDON | DREAMSTIME.COM

THE fly-by

MEM ernet

Memphis on the internet.

WHO TO FOLLOW

{WEEK THAT WAS

By Flyer staff

Questions, Answers + Attitude

Edited by Toby Sells

Landlords, Growth, & Conservatives

A new registry for renters, U-Haul says state is growing, and record “political polarization.”

FIND YOUR LANDLORD

“Aye man, say mane, what we drankin’ today, mane?”

at’s how Memphis YouTuber @JusBeTrippin opens each of his Brew Review videos. e channel started two months ago and consists, mainly, of the YouTuber trying beers at his inhome bar. His rating system couldn’t be more Memphis. For example, he gave Crosstown Brewing’s Spacebird Donut Stout three out of ve manes.

DOING IT WITH FLAIR

WWE SmackDown Women’s Champion Charlotte Flair made the nights of some young wrestling fans over the weekend. Flair greeted a group of fans outside FedExForum a er SmackDown on Saturday.

“Most wrestlers just give a wave and just drive o but you made this night special for many Memphians that we will never forget!” tweeted @JRman99. “A true queen!”

MEMPHIS HEARTS HOLLY

Renters across Shelby County could easily nd contact information for their landlords on a new registry proposed by state Rep. Dwayne ompson (D-Cordova).

e bill would require property owners and landlords to publicly list all the rental property they own or manage.

ompson said the list would help ensure that renters would be able to contact their landlord or their agent, helping to eliminate absentee landlords who hide their identity and try to avoid renters seeking maintenance, security, or other services.

A possible new registry would help eliminate absentee landlords;

remained a top growth state last year, ranking sixth in the nation, according to U-Haul.

“ is is a fairly simple consumer protection bill that could streamline renters’ access to their landlords and hopefully give them the means to avoid a long legal battle,” ompson said in a statement. “My hope is that this will o er more peace of mind to the hundreds of thousands of Shelby County residents who rent or lease their home.”

U-HAULIN’ ASS TO TENNESSEE

Tennessee remained a top growth state last year, according to U-Haul, but Memphis didn’t help much.

e state ranked sixth in growth, according to the company’s data. But that is down from the top spot Tennessee earned in 2020 and last year’s third-place nish.

is year, people arriving in Tennessee in one-way UHaul trucks dropped 7 percent from 2021, while departures fell 6 percent, as overall tra c slowed. However, do-ityourself movers arriving in Tennessee still accounted for 50.3 percent of all one-way U-Haul truck tra c in and out of Tennessee (49.7 percent departures) to keep it a top-10 growth state for the third consecutive year.

Germantown was the only Shelby County city to make UHaul’s growing-market list.

SO CONSERVATIVE

Tennessee and Indiana tied for the second-most conservative group of state lawmakers in 2021 during a “new level of political polarization,” according to the Center for Legislative Accountability (CLA), a conservative think tank.

In 2021, Tennessee’s GOP-controlled House and Senate were just barely less conservative than top-ranking Alabama. Tennessee’s lawmakers voted “with the conservative position” (as CLA puts it) 73 percent of the time. Alabama topped the state by one percentage point with 74 percent.

e CLA tracked dozens of bills in the Nashville Capitol that year, everything from bills regulating art therapists and homemade food to teaching Critical Race eory and carrying guns without a permit.

MEMernet juggernaut Holly Whiteld is leaving the I Love Memphis blog. Next month Whit eld will be the digital director at the Daily Memphian. For a decade, she glowed up the city to an international audience. ank you, Holly, and good luck.

“I think Tennessee dropped slightly in the U-Haul Growth Index because of the huge increase in tech jobs that became remote during the pandemic, and some of those people being called back to their California and New York o ces in 2022,” Chris Hardin, U-Haul Company of South Nashville president, said in a statement. “But we continue to have a beautiful state that a lot of people want to make their home.”

Tennessee’s top growth city for 2022 was Nashville. Other growth cities included Maryville, Ooltewah, and Mt. Juliet.

e CLA’s highest (most conservative) score went to state Sen. Paul Bailey (R-Sparta) who voted by CLA’s de nition of conservative 87 percent of the time. Former state Sen. Brian Kelsey (R-Germantown), awaiting sentencing a er a conviction on election fraud charges, scored 85 percent. e lowest-ranking lawmaker (19 percent) in 2021 was former state Sen. Katrina Robinson (D-Memphis) who lost her seat a er wire-fraud convictions in 2021.

While the state tied for second in 2021, it ranks at the top of the list for all of the years CLA has been collecting this data.

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

POSTED TO YOUTUBE BY @JUSBETRIPPIN

POSTED TO FACEBOOK BY HOLLY WHITFIELD

POSTED TO TWITTER BY @JRMAN99

PHOTO: AARON SOUSA | UNSPLASH; U-HAUL

Tennessee

By Kailynn Johnson

Abortion Blocked

The “Tennessee AbortionInducing Drug Risk Protocol Act” was passed on May 9, 2022, and took e ect on January 1, 2023.

According to the state of Tennessee, this act states that abortion-inducing drugs must be provided only by a qualied physician in a medical facility. is prohibits the distribution of the drug, even by pharmacies, physicians, and quali ed physicians, through delivery and mail services. is does not ban Plan B or other emergency contraceptives.

Recently, the Food and Drug Administration announced that they would be expanding access to abortion-inducing drugs. is means that pharmacies such as CVS and Walgreens will be able to provide pills such as Mifepristone.

As of December 1, 2022, the Guttmacher Institute says that medical abortions account for 54 percent of all abortions. While this law took e ect this year, abortion is still illegal in the state of Tennessee. Governor Bill Lee signed the Tennessee Abortion-Inducing Drug Risk Protocol Act into law in May of 2022, prior to the Supreme Court’s overturning of Roe v. Wade

Many were thrilled regarding the FDA’s announcement, as it marks a monumental step in abortion access. In a statement, the American Civil Liberties Union said, “ e FDA’s decision comes at a crisis moment for reproductive freedom, as access to abortion has plummeted nationwide in the wake of the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision overruling Roe v. Wade.”

However, Tennesseans, such as state House Majority Leader William Lamberth (R-Portland), did not share this excitement. In regards to abortion-inducing pills, Lamberth recently tweeted, “In Tennessee we value the lives of mothers AND their children. It isn’t just a pill, this pill kills a child.”

On August 25, 2022, a Tennessee law went into e ect that made providing abortions a felony.

As we reported in August, the Human Life Protection Act “was passed in 2019 just in case the U.S. Supreme Court ever overturned the landmark Roe. v. Wade.” e current law does not allow abortions in cases of rape, incest, or any fetal abnormality that could prove fatal to the

baby. e law only allows an abortion in Tennessee if giving birth would kill the pregnant woman or would prevent “serious risk of substantial and irreversible impairment of major bodily function.” e text of the bill de nes abortion as “the elective use or prescription of an instrument, medicine, drug, or other substance, or device, with the intent to terminate the clinically diagnosable pregnancy of a patient, with knowledge that the termination by those means will, with reasonable likelihood, cause the death of the unborn child.”

According to the text of the bill, a quali ed physician has the “ability to identify and document a viable intrauterine pregnancy” and “assess the gestational age of pregnancy and inform the patient of gestational age-speci c risks.”

Among other duties, a quali ed physi-

cian must also “supervise and bear legal responsibility for an agent, employee, or contractor who is participating in any part of a procedure, including, but not limited to, pre-procedure evaluation and care.”

e bill also de nes an “abortioninducing drug” as a “medicine, drug, or other substance provided with the intent of terminating the clinically diagnosable pregnancy of a patient, with knowledge that the termination will, with reasonable likelihood, cause the death of the unborn child.”

is also includes drugs “known to have abortion-inducing properties that are prescribed speci cally with the intent of causing an abortion.” Some of these drugs are Mifepristone, Misoprostol, and Methotrexate.

Violation in this act results in a Class E felony, and the individual can be ned no more than $50,000. e patient, however, will not receive any criminal penalties.

PHOTO: CHRISTINE SANDU | UNSPLASH Tennessee state law bans mailed abortion drugs.

A Tennessee law blocks federal expansion of access to abortioninducing drugs.

Movers and Shakers

Gone from Memphis on a new professional mission that is an advance itself which may lead to more is Liz Rincon, who is heading to Chicago to become the new director of development for the Chicago Philharmonic.

Rincon, a longtime activist, has been the proprietor of the Rincon Strategy Firm for, lo, these several years in Memphis and has shepherded many a candidate in a city and county election. She is well-known as an expert in “cutting turf,” i.e, mapping out and organizing neighborhood doorto-door actions, and for her e orts in assisting the city of Memphis in encouraging residents of impoverished areas to accept Covid vaccinations.

• Greg Blumenthal, who long considered being a candidate for the 5th District council seat, has opted instead to join two other activists, John Carroll and George Boyington, in forming a new political consultancy. e trio is assisting Memphis mayoral candidate Van Turner (who is also helped by the rm run by Matt Kuhn and Mike Lipe), as well as District 86 state House candidate Justin Pearson.

• Justin Pearson,who came to fame as the leader of the successful 2021 campaign against a proposed oil pipeline to be routed through South Memphis, is running with the same vigor for the District 86 seat which was made vacant by the death in November of 93-year-old Barbara Cooper.

Anyone who remembers Pearson’s stewardship of the successful battle against the pipeline knows that he has a way with campaigns and a knack for dramatizing issues. His task of late is more personal. He is attempting to convince the voters of District 86 to vote him in as Cooper’s successor rather than any of several opponents. is past weekend, Pearson turned his birthday party into a fair-sized rally. He has door knockers aplenty at work, has collected a pile of endorsements, and is said to be ready to send out mailers.

• John Marek, the activist and cannabis entrepreneur who ran for the city council’s 5th District seat four years ago, losing to current incumbent Worth Morgan, may try it again, depending on the nal shape of the council districts (the bluer the better, from the point of view of Democrat Marek). Alternatively, he is considering a challenge to incumbent Chase Carlisle for the Super District 9-1 seat.

Likely candidates for the 5th so far include Nick Scott, owner of the Alchemy restaurant at Cooper-Young, and Meggan Wurzburg Kiel, an organizer at MICAH (Memphis Interfaith Coalition for Action and Hope) and former director of support for Soulsville Charter School.

As no doubt are others. Nine other candidates are competing, several with good chances, especially considering that, as in the case of any other special-education vote, the turnout is likely to be low.

Among the contenders: Tanya Cooper, Barbara Cooper’s daughter and an educator in her own right; Julian Bolton, a longtime member of the Shelby County Commission and other public endeavors who is well remembered among the somewhat elderly voters who regularly vote in this district; Will Richardson, who ran up a decent vote in his August primary challenge to Rep. Cooper; Rome Withers, son of the well-remembered photographer Ernest Withers; Dominique Frost, employee of Shelby County government and an insurance entrepreneur; and Cli ord Lewis, son of a well-known activist.

PHOTO: JUSTIN J. PEARSON | FACEBOOK

Justin Pearson

No dearth of talent or energy among these upwardly mobile Memphians.

FreeMindYour

ugust 17, 2018, was a historic night in the Blu City. A new space in the newly renovated Crosstown Concourse, e Green Room, was about to enjoy its inaugural concert — the culmination of years of planning. A sizable audience had gathered to hear the music of celebrated avant-garde pioneer John Cage, and a hush fell over the room as the lights dimmed. en Jenny Davis, a utist in the genre-defying Blueshi Ensemble, stepped up and began to play … a cactus.

Around her was a scene from a gardening shop. Cacti of di erent sizes were arrayed on a table, and Davis was systematically plucking the thorns of each plant as if it were a drum. Each movement resonated over the sound system; the cacti were out tted with microphone pickups. It was as if we’d all shrunk to the size of geckos, immersed in a world of desert greenery, every brush of the needles an arpeggio.

For lovers of unusual sounds and textures, Davis’ performance was captivating. But it also marked the beginning of an avant-garde renaissance that is putting Memphis on the map of all that is strange and fascinating in 21st century music. It

was only tting that Davis was making the sounds, as that night foreshadowed the extent to which she, as programmer of Crosstown Arts’ musical performances, would be making waves. As it turns out, she’s only one of a host of players and presenters who are introducing Memphis audiences to sounds well o the beaten path. Beyond that, she sees no need to de ne what the music is. It’s here to stay, whatever you call it. “ e avant-garde realm is hard to describe,” Davis says. “It becomes kind of tricky. Maybe it’s not even necessary to always describe something as being in one genre or another.”

e Cactus in the Room: A State of Mind

As Davis notes, playing Cage’s “Child of Tree” that night was a prescient grand opening. “ at was the rst concert we ever did in e Green Room,” she notes, “which I love. We christened the room with some John Cage!” In keeping with that, the space has become a key venue for musicians who want nothing more than to be listened to, and it’s likely rooted in the context of that rst show. As part of the 2018 Continuum Festival, also organized by Davis, attendees could learn of the di erent states of mind that most avant-garde music demands, with

talks on “Suggestions on How to Listen to Contemporary Classical Music” or a “Mindful Listening Workshop” based on composer Pauline Oliveros’ sound and meditation activities.

e seriousness suggested by such presentations is o en belied by the sheer playfulness of the music. Beyond cacti, for example, the John Cage tribute also included his “Imaginary Landscape No. 4,” in which players adjusted the frequencies and volumes of 12 transistor radios. Whether whimsical or disturbing, the one thing that most avant-garde, experimental, or “out” music has in common is the need for deep listening. While B-Side Memphis or the Lamplighter Lounge have also cultivated scenes for strange music, e Green Room and its big sibling, Crosstown eater, have set the standard of spaces that encourage silence.

Art Edmaiston, a veteran saxophonist of more conventional R&B, soul, and rock ensembles, has played enough noisy bars in his storied career to really appreciate silence. “You know, people wander into bars just to have a drink, and then they’ll say, ‘What is this? Why is a guy dragging a music stand across the oor? What’s going on with the ame thrower?’” he says with a chuckle. Such a crowd may not be tuned in to the subtleties of experimental

music, and that can impact the playing itself. “ e other thing is how quiet some of the music can be,” he notes. “We’re all listening. If you’re not in a listening environment, which means the crowd has to be quiet, then it’s hard for us to communicate, almost telepathically, and everybody’s going to miss what’s going on.”

What’s Going On

Edmaiston is a key gure in the local music landscape, and his involvement in the free improvisational group SpiralPhonics is indicative of just how much is happening on the cutting edge here. As he describes it, just having a venue for avant-garde music has made all the di erence. “It’s hard for our little group to nd places,” he says. “Revenue and venue, it’s all kinda in there together. You’ve got to nd people. Listeners needed!” at has usually required staying on the more accessible side of the street. “Playing commercial music, you have a structure and vocabulary applicable to that situation. If you come in playing like Albert Ayler on [a track like] ‘Take Me to the River,’ you’re not going to be called back. So throughout most of my career, I was trying to assimilate, trying to be a studio musician. I’ve had a life of doing that, but never lost my desire to be on the more artistic side

PHOTO (RIGHT): ALEX GREENE Frog Squad plays Satie.

PHOTO (LEFT): COURTESY KHARI WYNN Misterioso Africano

of things.”

When drummer Terence Clark proposed collaborating in a more improvisational context, and they joined forces with guitarist Logan Hanna to form SpiralPhonics, the mere existence of a venue helped them to manifest their vision. “We only played sporadically,” he recalls. “So we booked e Green Room in order to make us get our stu together.” Ultimately, the gig not only brought their group into focus; it led to their debut album. “ e Green Room being a listening room, that’s the spot to do it,” says Edmaiston. “ at’s where we recorded our Argot Session. It was a live performance that we recorded there, and we couldn’t have done it anywhere else. It would take a lot more tries to get good takes and a quiet environment somewhere else. Your head space has to be right.”

Others note the resurgence of “out” music as well. Chad Fowler, a saxophonist, woodwind player, composer, and producer from Arkansas, studied at the University of Memphis in the 1990s, and the experimental music scene here at that time had a profound impact on him. Having then le town, he was surprised upon his return over a decade later. “I felt, when I rst moved back to Memphis six or seven years ago, like there was a real dearth of creative music happening. It was kind of disappointing. I felt it had been stronger in the ’90s. However, since then it feels like it’s changed. A lot of it is due to Jenny Davis and Blueshi . Crosstown and B-Side have made a huge di erence.”

e scene’s personal impact on Fowler is in turn re ecting back on the local environment. Having ultimately settled back in Arkansas, he’s nevertheless a regular in the avant-garde music world of Memphis, even as he also increases his pro le in the New York experimental scene. His Mahakala Music label, focused on experimental jazz, has built on associations he forged in the ’90s Memphis scene, with players like Marc Franklin, Chris Parker, and Kelley Hurt, and Anders Gri en o en appearing on Mahakala releases today. But he’s also used his and others’ connections to New York, Chicago, and New Orleans to create ensembles of world-class players from elsewhere, o en bringing them to Memphis.

As Fowler notes, “It’s kind of weird because the same people might be on, like, a New York Times best of jazz year-end list but then also playing in a room the size of a closet for a tiny crowd in Brooklyn. We might get better audiences in Memphis for the same music.” He points to a gig by one of Mahakala’s “all-star” groups, Dopolarians. “With the Dopolarians show, I think William Parker was blown away by how great the energy was when we were there in e Green Room — by how many people came out, how engaged the audience was. It was a good experience.”

Collaborating with William Parker, a highly respected free jazz bassist and co-organizer of the Vision Festival, “New York City’s premier live free jazz event,” according to e New York Times, has been a boon to Fowler and Mahakala, arising quite organically from Fowler’s earliest free jazz experiences. Parker played on the debut album of Memphian Frank Lowe in 1973, as Lowe’s star was rising. Ultimately, Lowe would join Alice Coltrane’s band and enjoy a solo career of some renown, yet would still return to Memphis and jam with the likes of Fowler, Franklin, Chris Parker, and other University of Memphis students. Now, Fowler carries that inspiration back to

provisation world since the ’60s, relocated to Memphis permanently. Edmaiston recently played with the drummer on a New Year’s Eve show and was surprised at his embrace of more traditional R&B. Edmaiston recalls, “Ra Kalam told us, ‘Hey man, that was ‘Cleo’s Back!’ I recorded that in 1967 with Larry Coryell and Jim Pepper. We used to play it all the time!’ So that was kind of wild. He can play inside, but he’s developed into something else. When he plays himself, he says, it’s like he’s got to be in Europe to be expressive. Over here, less people want to hear that. Over there, he’s celebrated for it.” Yet now, with improvisational

to bring their works to life. “I like to have some new stu along with some more familiar sounds, and that’s a nice way to introduce new things to audiences,” says Davis. “Blueshi ’s work with Iceberg New Music, the composer collective out of New York, encapsulates that idea, too, because it’s a group of 10 composers, some of them more on the experimental, avant-garde side of things and some whose works are more lyrical and tonal, so you have the whole spectrum of what’s going on in new classical music today.”

Other avenues have long been available for the edgier side of the classical world, though they tend to be tucked into programs that showcase more traditional works. Conrad

Tao’s “Spoonful,” commissioned in 2020 by the Iris Orchestra in honor of Memphis’ bicentennial, was a New Music tour de force, pivoting from cacophony to explosions of orchestral texture to delicate piano lines in a heartbeat and even a sample of Charley Patton’s “A Spoonful Blues.” It lost none of its power by being sandwiched between works by Haydn and Brahms. And many such experimental works continue to percolate out of the classical world.

A more hybrid approach was concocted by David Collins’ Frog Squad, when they premiered his arrangements of the music of Erik Satie at e Green Room in 2021. Turning the composer’s original sparse arrangements into showcases for a more jazz-oriented octet represented a perfect balance between accessibility and “out” music, as the players took solos with the abandon of a free jazz group, even as they remained grounded in the composer’s classic works. is year, they’re set to release a similar treatment of Horace Silver’s music and an album of all originals.

New York on a regular basis, o en playing with William Parker in various ensembles and recording projects. Mahakala’s star is now rising as well. “ e rst record we put out was on Rolling Stone’s end-of-year jazz roundup list,” says Fowler, “and since then, pretty frequently, we’ve been mentioned in Jazziz, JazzTimes, DownBeat, and all the go-to jazz publications. It seems the label is becoming one of the most respected of the genre, even though it’s very new.”

Lately, the links between Memphis and leaders of free jazz from the Northeast have only strengthened, as when drummer Ra Kalam, aka Bob Moses, who’s been on the cutting edge of the free im-

music on the rise here, that’s changing. On January 18th, Ra Kalam will be holding a master class and concert at Nelson Drum Shop in Nashville.

New Music, from Punks to P-basses to Piccolos

If there’s an uptick in free jazz and improvisational groups like SpiralPhonics and Fowler’s various projects, that’s just the tip of the iceberg. Indeed, since Jenny Davis and Jonathan Kirkscey founded Blueshi Ensemble, a loose collection of Memphis Symphony Orchestra players with a penchant for experimental music, an Iceberg has orbited them — for that’s the name of a composers’ collective that collaborates with Blueshi every August

Frog Squad’s bassist, Khari Wynn, is a virtuoso in his own right. While best known as one of Public Enemy’s go-to guitarists, his real passion is a kind of Afrofuturism rst pioneered by his hero, Sun Ra, yet channeled through a thousand other in uences he’s absorbed over the years as he plays under the name Misterioso Africano, or a few years back, e Energy Disciples.

But there’s plenty of experimentation coming from less-schooled musicians as well. Goner Records has long waxed enthusiastic for musical risk-takers, and in recent years they’ve brought many edge-walking groups to the city, from the surrealist big band sounds of Fred Lane to the free improvisational textures of Wrest to Tatsuya Nakatani’s Gong Orchestra. e latter wowed music fans gathered at O the Walls Arts last year, part of that gallery space’s increased staging of “out” musical events under its roof.

e label has also played host to some of the city’s more rock-adjacent groups

PHOTO: JACK T. ADCOCK Dopolarians at e Green Room

PHOTO: JAMIE HARMON IMAKEMADBEATS

at Continuum Fest with Delara Hashemi

EXHIBITS OPEN JAN

MEMPHIS MUSEUM OF SCIENCE & HISTORY

continued from page 9

who test the boundaries of conventional musical ideas through combinations of electronic music and guitar noise, from Aquarian Blood to Nots to Optic Sink, who all o er servings of noise and synth madness to variations on the big beat of rock. Yet other, less-punk groups are dipping their toes into strange waters at the same time. Salo Pallini’s new independently released album advises it be led under “Progressive Latin Space Country,” and while that obscures the heavy dollop of rock in their sound, it does capture their everything-but-the-kitchen-sink approach. ey’ll be playing a record release show on January 20th at — you guessed it — e Green Room.

Some of these artists are also featured in the annual Memphis Concrète festival of electronic and experimental music, also centered in and around Crosstown, set to resume this June a er some Covid-related setbacks.

Meanwhile, more hip-hop-adjacent sounds are percolating through the city. Unapologetic, who have long celebrated strangeness and vulnerability in their edgy hip-hop productions, now have a dedicated studio space, and producer IMAKEMADBEATS is enthused about the possibilities for combining traditional beat production with live players free to create new textures in a more spacious setting. “We’re all electronic/hip-hopbased producers who play instruments,” says IMAKEMADBEATS. “Finally having the kind of space that allows us to easily incorporate live instrumentation into our music is a game changer here. Because our minds are decades-trained to think of warping sounds in ways never done traditionally, but now we can combine that with traditional instruments in a space sonically set up to present it in an amazing way. Our producer engineers aren’t just band recording people or rap recording people. ey are that and everything in between. We just needed space. Now it’s time to take o .”

Of course, the kitchen-sink approach has also been perfected by MonoNeon, whose transpositions of Cardi B tirades into carefully pitched bass solos and whose jams in his YouTube o erings may

be the most experimental music of all. While he o en records at home, he’s also branched out with other producers, including his work with Unapologetic. Like most of these artists, he’s appeared at e Green Room and/or Crosstown eater multiple times. So it is that we must give credit where credit is due, as Crosstown Arts sits squarely at the center of the avant-garde revival. As Amy Scha lein, co-host of the Sonosphere podcast and radio show, notes, “Jenny Davis has been doing such an amazing job of getting great artists to come to Crosstown eater and e Green Room. She’s continued in that vein of ‘Let’s try to get folks to Memphis who may not hit us on their tour.’” O en recruiting acts on their way to or from Knoxville’s Big Ears Festival, Davis has brought a steady stream of experimental and jazz artists to town, the likes of which have not been seen in decades. is March and April alone, Crosstown will feature Deepstaria Enigmatica, Makaya McCraven, SpiralPhonics, e Bad Plus + Marc Ribot and the Jazz-Bins, Tarta Relena, Ami Dang, and Xiu Xiu.

All of which is making the city a richer, more connected community. As Davis says, “I like the challenge of hearing something new. And [it] can be jarring at rst. But then if you go back a second time, you start to see the patterns and it’s like learning a new language. I think that keeps things interesting.”

GIANT SCREEN THEATER

PHOTO: JAMIE HARMON MonoNeon and Daru Jones

PHOTO: JAMIE HARMON Jenny Davis

Sorting Out Distributions

An explainer for dividends, capital gains, and more.

This time of year, many investors have questions about distributions in their accounts. In short, a distribution is just an investment paying out cash for various reasons. To help explain what these payments mean, here are a few simple de nitions.

One of the most common types of distributions you’ll see throughout the year are dividend payments. Generally, these payments arise from the investments in the funds in your portfolio either earning interest (as in bonds) or paying a dividend (as in stocks). ese distributions are simply a way of making the cash that’s created by the underlying investments in your funds come to you directly as the owner of the fund. ese distributions are typically considered income and therefore taxed at income tax rates.

A capital gain generally occurs when you sell something for more than you paid for it. For example, if you bought a $100 investment and sell it later for $110, you incurred a capital gain of $10 which may be subject to taxes. e nice thing about capital gains is that they are only based on the gain ($10, not $110 here), and long-term gains (for positions held more than one year) might have a more favorable tax rate than rates used for short-term gains or ordinary income.

Mutual funds are creating capital gains and losses frequently as they buy and sell securities within the fund. From time to time, they must distribute the net capital gains to shareholders (usually in December). One reason for these distributions is that unless they were distributed, nobody would pay taxes on those gains, perhaps inde nitely. Mutual funds distribute these capital gains to you, so you likely have to pay the tax on

A distribution is just an investment paying out cash for various reasons.

these gains but also receive some cash to use for the tax.

Fund pricing around a distribution can be confusing because big drops in share price can occur, but there is nothing to worry about. Imagine a fund priced at $10 per share that is about to do a $2 capital gain distribution. Just before this distribution, the fund must hold $8 in actual securities and $2 in cash ready to distribute, which adds up to the $10 net asset value (NAV) of the fund. Just after the distribution, you hold the $2 and the fund now holds only $8 in securities, so its NAV went from $10 to $8. e fund didn’t really lose 20 percent of its value; it just gave it back to shareholders.

at’s why it’s important to consider total return (including all distributions) rather than just the change in the fund’s price over time.

When you receive your next statement, you will see these dividends and capital gains transactions have hit your accounts, which is welcome. Dividends in particular are a huge contributor to long-term total return in investment markets. ese distributions are a normal part of the process of owning mutual funds, and are just one more way your investments contribute to your secure nancial future.

Gene Gard is Chief Investment O cer at Telarray, a Memphis-based wealth management rm that helps families navigate investment, tax, estate, and retirement decisions. Ask him your questions or schedule an objective, no-pressure portfolio review at letstalk@telarrayadvisors.com. Sign up for the next free online seminar on the Events tab at telarrayadvisors.com.

Start the new year right with an extra $2,500. With a low rate of just 6% APR for 12 months and monthly payments under $216, it’s the perfect time to make a fresh start. Apply today online.

PHOTO: SHANE | UNSPLASH

SPORTS By Frank Murtaugh

Kendric’s Place

NOTICE

LEGAL NOTICES PERSONAL PROPERTY PUBLIC

As required by Tennessee Code Annotated Section 67-5-903, the Shelby County Assessor will be mailing Tangible Personal Property Schedules to all active businesses within Shelby County on Friday, January 13, 2023. The filing deadline is March 1, 2023. Please call the Shelby County Assessor’s office at 901-222-7002, if you need assistance.

ith every game the Memphis Tigers play, Kendric Davis adds a layer to what will be a one-year legacy for the program. e h-year guard was considered the best free-agent acquisition before the season tipped o in November. (And yes, let’s start calling players like Davis “free agents.” College basketball stars are going to be pursued with as much vigor as any pro at the end of a contract. “Transfer” is far too quaint in modern context.) But how would Davis t alongside veteran mainstays like DeAndre Williams and Alex Lomax? Could he adapt to a new culture under head coach/local hero Penny Hardaway? ( e best Tiger player under Hardaway will be, at best, the second-most popular man in the program.) Could he help other rookie vets — like Keonte Kennedy and Elijah McCadden — be better as Tigers than they were in other uniforms?

Davis is checking each box. rough Sunday’s action (16 games), the former SMU Mustang leads the American Athletic Conference in scoring (20.0 points per game) and, remarkably, assists (6.1). He’s third in the AAC in steals (2.3), a category topped by his current backcourt buddy, Lomax (3.0). In Saturday’s win over East Carolina, Davis struggled in the rst half, scoring only two points and taking a shot to the face that brie y sidelined him. e Pirates had the crowd at FedExForum on shock alert with an 11-point lead shortly before hal ime. But the Tigers — a pack of seniors, remember — stormed out for the second half and administered a 26-3 run that had ECU e ectively beaten with ten minutes still le on the clock.

It was not a good a ernoon for Davis. He missed 14 of the 20 shots he took, including all six three-point attempts. He committed a team-high ve turnovers. And the Tigers still won handily (69-59). When the reigning AAC Player of the Year is at his best, Memphis looks like a dangerous team come March. If they can win when Davis under-performs — he still played 33 minutes and scored 14 points last Saturday — the Tigers appear to have the roster composition of a champion.

• An AAC scoring title for Davis won’t be such a big deal for the player. He led the league a er both the 202021 season and 2021-22. But what about

such an achievement for the Memphis program? Going back a half-century, only four Tigers have led a conference in scoring (and none since Memphis joined the AAC in 2013). Keith Lee topped the Metro Conference as a senior in 1984-85, Elliot Perry led the Metro in 1990-91, Penny Hardaway paced the Great Midwest Conference in 1992-93, and Will Barton led Conference USA in 2011-12. Perry and Hardaway each nished second in assists the season they led their league in scoring. at is the company Kendric Davis is keeping this winter as leading man for the Memphis Tigers.

• Have you noticed any missing banners from the ra ers at FedExForum? Four NIT banners (from 1963, ’67, ’72, and ’77) have been taken down, along with a pair of NCAA (1986 and 2013). e NCAA banners need to be returned to their spots, of course, but I’ve long advocated the removal of NIT banners, except for those representing seasons Memphis reached at least the semi nals (1957, 2001, ’02, ’05, and ’21). How about nding room for a pair of banners to acknowledge conference championships (one regular-season, another for tournaments)? e NIT is no longer a goal for any program, like Memphis, that begins each season with Big Dance expectations. But a conference title? ose are all too rare, special teams that earned recognition for posterity.

PHOTO: LARRY KUZNIEWSKI Kendric Davis

Can one player make Tiger history in just one season?

steppin’ out

We Recommend: Culture, News + Reviews

The Long Goodbye

By Abigail Morici

Grief, as it o en does, struck Emily Rooker with a need to create, to shape something from the remnants of love and loss le behind. At rst, in 2017, this need brought her to songwriting as her Aunt Annie was in the hospital with acute liver failure. Soon a er, Rooker helped care for her grandfather in his nal stages of pancreatic cancer. “It was just a really di cult time,” she says, “and I was writing a lot about grief, not just around [physical] death but death of former versions of yourself and your life as things change.

“When people die there’s this profound sense of love that you didn’t get to give them — for me, at least, almost a sense of regret of things you didn’t say. So writing the songs was a way of expressing that and hoping that in some spiritual plane, those [songs] get to them.”

In total, over the course of the next year and a half, Rooker wrote 17 songs, which she later recorded a er the pandemic with the help of her husband/band director Nate Smith and sound engineer Kenny Carlsen. “We were having a hard time guring out what the genre was, and how we would tell people what it was,” she says. “It was conceptual, and we were inspired by dramatic theatrical music. A friend of mine was like, ‘It kind of reminds me of a rock opera.’ And I was like, ‘Oh my gosh, great idea.’” And thus began the next iteration of her project: e Long Goodbye: A Rock Opera

In July of 2022, Rooker launched a Kickstarter for $15,000 to fund the show that would follow the narrative of her album. By September, with a cast and crew assembled from friends and friends of friends with various artistic practices from pole-dancing to acoustic guitar and synth, e Long Goodbye made its debut. “It was honestly just a kind of a chaotic scramble,” Rooker says. “Several members of the cast helped with the choreography or helped with makeup, so it was really a product of so many people working so hard to get it to come together. Not only were we rehearsing the numbers, we were creating the numbers.”

Within the performance of song, movement, and other visual elements, Rooker’s three selves — the Present Self, the Young Self, and the Wicked Self — re ect on their past and attempt to make sense of one another and the grief, loss, and change they face. ough the story is very much autobiographical, it carries universal themes, Rooker says, with audiences claiming a sense of catharsis a er the show’s debut.

Even so, Rooker isn’t nished with the opera. “It’s this big body of work, and each time it evolves, it’s even better,” she says. “So I don’t think we’re quite at the end of what we can squeeze from this yet. Even this time around, now that we’re running rehearsals again, we’ve had time to like look more deeply at some of the characters and even wholly redoing some of the choreography, just making some revisions to make the show even tighter and even better.”

e Long Goodbye’s next performances will run Friday-Saturday, January 13th-14th, at 8 p.m. with a Sunday matinee at 2 p.m. More information and tickets can be found at emilyrooker.com. Rooker’s album of the same name is available for streaming.

Science of Beer

Museum of Science & History, Friday, January 13th, 6-9 p.m., $50-$70, 21+ e Science of Beer event is a combination of a beer tasting and an education workshop that raises money for education and programming for MoSH. Participants will sample some of the nest breweries and restaurants in the region while learning all about the science of beer, from aquifers to ales and carbonation to climate change.

Attendees will be able to talk to local brewers, attend mini-lectures, and participate in other interactive beer-themed activities. e event will feature beer stations (each with some educational components), food vendors, multiple science areas hosted by MoSH and local science groups, and games.

Each guest will receive a commemorative 16 oz. glass.

If

Pekin Is a Duck, Why Am I in Chicago?

eatreWorks, opens Friday, January 13th, $30

is play, written by Ann E. Eskridge, winner of the 2021 NewWorks@ eWorks Playwriting Competition, celebrates the origins of Black theater, weaving between the vaudeville and minstrel theater scene of the late 1800s and the preProhibition 1920s.

e story revolves around a gangster in 1920s Chicago who kidnaps a lyricist and a composer to win a bet saying he can nd two men to write music better than the music that is currently popular — all in an attempt to revive Chicago’s Pekin eatre, credited to be the rst Black-owned theater in the country.

Performances run through January 29th, ursday-Saturday at 8 p.m. with a 2 p.m. Sunday matinee.

A Celebration of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s Birthday National Civil Rights Museum, Monday, January 16th, 8 a.m.-6 p.m., free

For King Day, the National Civil Rights Museum is o ering free admission, a full day of activities, and live performances and entertainment.

Visitors will be able to view a new exhibition, “Tarred Healing,” which opens that day and features photography by Cornell Watson.

e museum continues its commitment to a day of service by encouraging guests to bring nonperishable food items to support the Mid-South Food Bank and to be prepared to give blood to support the Vitalant blood drive. Anyone donating blood will receive additional free admission for up to four people on any day in 2023.

THE LONG GOODBYE: A ROCK OPERA, EVERGREEN THEATRE, FRIDAY-SUNDAY, JANUARY 13-15, $30-$40.

PHOTO: JOHN SKLBA e opera debuted in September 2022.

After Hours Sundays

Karaoke, Afrobeats, hip-hop, and R&B. Music by NYCELYFE and friends. Sunday, Jan. 15, 10 p.m.

JERRY LEE LEWIS’ CAFE & HONKY TONK

Alexis Wilkins

Friday, Jan. 13, 8 p.m.

TIN ROOF

Denver Massey Wednesday, Jan. 18, 5:30 p.m.

TIN ROOF

Rodell McCord Sunday, Jan. 15, 7 p.m.

TIN ROOF

Trevor Berryhill Saturday, Jan. 14, noon.

TIN ROOF

901/ROX Saturday, Jan. 14, 8 p.m.

SIDECAR CAFE MEMPHIS

Soja Da Bulldoza’s Single Release Party Friday, Jan. 13, 8 p.m.-3 a.m.

PINK SWEET DIAMOND BAR & GRILL

Thumpdaddy $10. Friday, Jan. 13, 8 p.m.

NEIL’S MUSIC ROOM

Alexis Grace Wednesday, Jan. 18, 6 p.m.

LAFAYETTE’S MUSIC ROOM

Alicjapop with Opossums Friday, Jan. 13, 9 p.m.

BAR DKDC

Bluff City Bandits Saturday, Jan. 14, 6 p.m.

LAFAYETTE’S MUSIC ROOM

Bonfire Orchestra Thursday, Jan. 12, 7 p.m.

LAFAYETTE’S MUSIC ROOM

Chris Travis Friday, Jan. 13, 8 p.m.

HI TONE

Devil Train Thursday, Jan. 12, 9:30 p.m.

B-SIDE

Frankie Hollie Saturday, Jan. 14, 2 p.m.

LAFAYETTE’S MUSIC ROOM

FRESH BVKED

FRESH BVKED makes his Tennessee debut, plus performances by Delyrius, Retnuh, and Defteros. $10. Saturday, Jan. 14, 8 p.m.

ZEN HOUSE

Ghalia Volt & Band

Phil Breen on keys, Dean Zucchero on bass, and Lee Williams on drums. Friday, Jan. 13, 7 p.m.

RAILGARTEN

James and the Ultrasounds Birthday Show

Featuring Velvetina Taylor. Saturday, Jan. 14, 9 p.m.

BAR DKDC

JD Westmorland Band Monday, Jan. 16, 10 p.m.

B-SIDE

Jeremy and the Drip Edges, San Salida Saturday, Jan. 14, 9:30 p.m.

B-SIDE

Jimmy Bruno with the Ted Ludwig Trio Jimmy Bruno combines a dazzling virtuoso technique with drive and swing to produce, in concert and on record, superb and inspired lyrical improvisations. Tuesday, Jan. 17, 7:30-10 p.m.

THE GREEN ROOM AT CROSSTOWN ARTS

Joe Restivo Saturday, Jan. 14, 11 a.m.

LAFAYETTE’S MUSIC ROOM

John & Kory Tuesday, Jan. 17, 6 p.m.

LAFAYETTE’S MUSIC ROOM

Kevin and Bethany

Paige Friday, Jan. 13, 10 p.m.

LAFAYETTE’S MUSIC ROOM

Lipstick Stains, Cherry Smoke, Killbozby Sunday, Jan. 15, 7 p.m.

MEMPHIS CURRENT

Mahogany Chamber

Music Series: “Music for the Soul”

Spotlighting Black and other underrepresented composers and performers. $10-$20. Sunday, Jan. 15, 6 p.m.

CROSSTOWN THEATER

On & Ohn, Turnt Friday, Jan. 13, 10 p.m.

B-SIDE

Salo Pallini

Listening event with a new Memphis band featuring Landon Moore, John Whittemore, Danny Banks, and Pat Fusco. Thursday, Jan. 12, 6:30 p.m.

MEMPHIS LISTENING LAB

Samantha Crain, Nehyzs $10. Saturday, Jan. 14, 9 p.m.

HI TONE

Scott Sudbury Monday, Jan. 16, 6 p.m.

LAFAYETTE’S MUSIC ROOM

Seeing Red Saturday, Jan. 14, 10 p.m.

LAFAYETTE’S MUSIC ROOM

Shakermaker901 Sunday, Jan. 15, 8 p.m.

B-SIDE

Take on Me: ’80s New Wave Saturday, Jan. 14, 8:30 p.m.

MINGLEWOOD HALL

The Hypocrites with El Chavos, The Lazy Mountains $10. Thursday, Jan. 12, 7 p.m.

GROWLERS

The Kickback

The quarterly tribute to classic hip-hop, R&B, funk, and go-go from the ’80s and ’90s is back. $20. Sunday, Jan. 15, 10 p.m.

HI TONE

The Pinch Sunday, Jan. 15, 8 p.m.

LAFAYETTE’S MUSIC ROOM

The Prof. Fuzz 63 (Dallas) with Stay Fashionable and Ben Ricketts

Lo-fi garage-rock, local power-pop, and local pop magic. Thursday, Jan. 12, 9 p.m.

HI TONE

The Schizophonics $10. Tuesday, Jan. 17, 8 p.m.

HI TONE

Wandering Wolves Tour 3 $7-$10. Friday, Jan. 13, 9 p.m.

HI TONE

Will Tucker Band Sunday, Jan. 15, 3:30 p.m.

LAFAYETTE’S MUSIC ROOM

Dallas Burrow Saturday, Jan. 14, 7 p.m.

HERNANDO’S HIDEAWAY

Short in the Sleeve with Ted Horrell Friday, Jan. 13, 7 p.m.

HERNANDO’S HIDEAWAY

Sweet Megg

Sweet Megg (Nashville) will be playing Western swing celebrating her new album My Window Faces the South Thursday, Jan. 12, 7 p.m.

HERNANDO’S HIDEAWAY

Heavy Meddle Fest Performances by Discard (33:45 p.m.), Chora (4-45 p.m.), Kill Command (5-5:45 p.m.), Epoch of Unlight (6-6:45 p.m.), Autolith (7-7:45 p.m.), Korroded (8-8:45 p.m.), and Process of Suffocation (9-9:45 p.m.). Saturday, Jan. 14, 3 p.m.

MEDDLESOME BREWING COMPANY

Memphis Funk Friday, Jan. 13, 7 p.m.

TONY’S TROPHY ROOM & ALL AMERICAN GRILL

Stacey Kent $30. Saturday, Jan. 14, 8-10 p.m.

GERMANTOWN PERFORMING ARTS CENTER

The Brian Johnson Band

Friday, Jan. 13, 9 p.m.

T.J. MULLIGAN’S CORDOVA

Tommy Emmanuel, CGP $30. Friday, Jan. 13, 8-10 p.m.

GERMANTOWN PERFORMING ARTS CENTER

ART AND SPECIAL EXHIBITS

“Cry Now”

Exhibition of work by Jesse Butcher. Through Jan. 21.

TOPS GALLERY

“Evicted”

An immersive experience bringing visitors into the world of renter evictions and its impact on the family and community. Through Jan. 21.

BENJAMIN L. HOOKS CENTRAL LIBRARY

“Fun and Games”

Exhibition of work by John McIntire. Through Jan. 21.

TOPS GALLERY

“Gentle Awakenings, The Art of Keith Burns”

Exhibition of woodwork by Keith Burns. Tuesday, Jan. 17-April 22.

MORTON MUSEUM OF COLLIERVILLE HISTORY

“Incognito”

Over 100 of the Mid-South’s beloved artists are creating a collection of original, unsigned works … incognito! Artwork will be on view in person with online bidding. Through Jan. 27.

MEMPHIS BOTANIC GARDEN

“Jeanne Seagle: Of This Place”

Jeanne Seagle’s perceptive drawings portray the landscapes surrounding Memphis with a remarkable precision. Sunday, Jan. 15-April 9.

THE DIXON GALLERY & GARDENS

“Looking Back”

Exhibition of Lynda Watson’s work creating a detailed 3D scrapbook of her memories. Through Jan. 29.

METAL MUSEUM

“Never Done Making History”

Installation highlighting the legendary Tennessee State University’s (TSU) Tigerbelles track team and one of the most triumphant Olympic stories. Through Feb. 28.

NATIONAL CIVIL RIGHTS MUSEUM

“Salmon Skin Fried … and Other Delicacies”

Exhibition of work by Sharon Havelka who constructs mixedmedia quilt sculptures from old clothing and other found objects. Saturday, Jan. 14-Feb. 25.

BEVERLY + SAM ROSS GALLERY

“Simple Pleasures: The Art of Doris Lee”

Rediscover one of the most popular figurative artists in American art history. Through Jan. 15.

THE DIXON GALLERY & GARDENS

“Summer in Shanghai” A three-part video series of reflections and meditations in China’s biggest city. Through March 5.

CROSSTOWN ARTS AT THE CONCOURSE

“Tarred Healing”

A photographic exhibition by award-winning Black photographer Cornell Watson. Monday, Jan. 16-March 20.

NATIONAL CIVIL RIGHTS MUSEUM

“The Making of Elvis Movie Exhibition”

Exhibition looking at the biopic’s journey to the big screen. Through Sept. 4.

GRACELAND EXHIBITION CENTER

ART HAPPENINGS

“Mending Things” Open House

Exhibition of Kelly S. Williams’ small tondos and diptychs. Saturday, Jan. 14, noon-3 p.m.

DAVID LUSK GALLERY

“Sons and Daughters” Open House

Exhibition of Anne Siems’ work featuring tattooed figures centered around the growing children who have all been deeply affected by mental health conditions. Saturday, Jan. 14, noon-3 p.m.

DAVID LUSK GALLERY

BOOK EVENTS

Book Signing by Joy Bateman

Author discusses and signs her latest book, Voices from the Soul Thursday, Jan. 12, 10 a.m.-4 p.m.

WOMAN’S EXCHANGE OF MEMPHIS

Lies Are Wishes, Hopes Are Prayers

Michael Warren reads from his book. Sunday, Jan. 15, 5-7 p.m.

OTHERLANDS COFFEE BAR

Celebrate the launch of The Unconventional Entrepreneur with the author. Thursday, Jan. 12, 6 p.m.

NOVEL

North Branch Friends of the Library Fundraiser Support the North Branch Library Friends group by purchasing reasonably priced, lightly used books! Staff will also be providing on-site library card sign ups. Thursday, Jan. 12, 8 a.m.-4 p.m.

CROSSTOWN CONCOURSE

You’re Leaving When?

Annabelle Gurwitch will regale the audience with her humor as she discusses her new memoir, You’re Leaving When? $10-$15. Thursday, Jan. 12, 7 p.m.

MEMPHIS JEWISH COMMUNITY CENTER

COMEDY

Comedy Open Mic

This is where new comedians come to learn the ropes, good comedians come to try out new material that’s not quite there yet, and where bad comedians come to do what they do. Free. Wednesday, Jan. 18, 8:30 p.m.

LAMPLIGHTER LOUNGE

Drafts and Laughs

Presenting some of the best stand-up comedians from the Mid-South free of charge. Saturday, Jan. 14, 7:30 p.m.

MEMPHIS MADE BREWING COMPANY

Jeff Dunham: Still Not Canceled

Jeff Dunham has consistently delivered laughs and shattered ratings with his broadcast specials, global tours, and a best-selling autobiography. $53.50. Sunday, Jan. 15, 3 p.m.

LANDERS CENTER

Jeremy’s

GROWLERS

Luenell

She may be small in stature, but she more than makes up for it with her big personality, booming voice and infectious laughter. $30, $35. Thursday, Jan. 12-Jan. 14.

CHUCKLES COMEDY HOUSE

Top Comic Comedy Chattanooga brings its best to come battle it out with Memphis. Wednesday, Jan. 18, 8 p.m.

B-SIDE

FAMILY

Family Day at the Stax Museum

The Stax will offer special programming for young people including live music, arts and crafts, snacks, games, activities, and more for young people of all ages. Saturday, Jan. 14, 1-4 p.m.

STAX

MUSIC

FILM

Aguirre, The Wrath of God In the mid-16th century, after annihilating the Incan empire, Pizarro leads his army of conquistadors over the Andes in search of the City of Gold $5. Thursday, Jan. 12, 7 p.m.

CROSSTOWN THEATER

Ailey

Ailey traces the full contours of Alvin Ailey whose search for the continued on page 16

Meet the Author: Alexandra Nolan

Jeremy Scippio

unique upbringing led him to a life of comedy as a means of expressing his ideas and beliefs. $20. Friday, Jan. 13, 10 p.m.

MUSEUM OF AMERICAN SOUL

Sharon Havelka’s quilt sculptures will be on display at Beverly + Sam Ross Gallery, beginning January 14th.

truth in movement resulted in enduring choreography that centers on the Black American experience with grace, strength, and beauty. Free. Friday, Jan. 13, 7 p.m.

ORPHEUM THEATRE

North by Northwest

The legendary action suspense thriller of spies, murder, and mistaken identity. Free. Tuesday, Jan. 17, 5 p.m.

BLACK LODGE

Phantom

A special in-cinema HD presentation of Yeston and Kopit’s Phantom featuring K-pop star, Super Junior’s Kyuhyun. Sunday, Jan. 15, 1 p.m.; Tuesday, Jan. 17, 7 p.m.

MALCO CORDOVA

S**TFEST: Dinner & A Bad Movie edition - Howard the Duck

Enjoy (and survive) the legendarily awful action comedy and Marvel failure from 1986, from Star Wars creator George Lucas. Thursday, Jan. 12, 6 p.m.

BLACK LODGE

FOOD AND DRINK

Science of Beer

Sample some of the finest breweries and restaurants in the region while learning all about the

science of beer. $50-$70. Friday, Jan. 13, 6-9 p.m.

MUSEUM OF SCIENCE & HISTORY

The Wizards Beer Festival Hi Tone will be transformed into a wizarding universe of wonders full of areas to explore. The festival includes complimentary ales, ciders, and beers. $40. Saturday, Jan. 14, 1-4 p.m.

HI TONE

HEALTH AND FITNESS

Race for Reconciliation

Designed to showcase unity in Memphis, a portion of the proceeds will benefit the National Civil Rights Museum. Register to join the 5K walk/run or one-mile family run. Monday, Jan. 16, 11 a.m.

AUTOZONE PARK

Winter Off-Road Series 3K

The first of four trail races in the Winter OffRoad Series. Register for the full series or any races individually. Sunday, Jan. 15, 2 p.m.

OVERTON PARK

LECTURE

From the Beyond: Ghosts, Spiritualism, and Cemeteries (Online) Sharing the fascinating history of spiritualism in the United States, and how it ties into the abolitionist, temperance, and suffrage movements.

In her drawings, on display at the Dixon starting January 15th, Jeanne Seagle turns a careful eye to her surroundings.

$20. Tuesday, Jan. 17, 6-7 p.m.

ELMWOOD CEMETERY

Navigating Memphis’ Broken Rental System

Join MLK50: Justice Through Journalism to learn about resources for renters and work to build an equitable housing system in Memphis.

Dinner provided. Free. Tuesday, Jan. 17, 6-7:30 p.m.

BENJAMIN L. HOOKS CENTRAL LIBRARY

PERFORMING ARTS

Mike Super 2.0

They say lightning doesn’t strike twice in the same place … but Mike Super’s new magic show begs to differ! Saturday, Jan. 14, 7:30 p.m.

THE HALLORAN CENTRE

Season 2: Grand Rainbow Rumble Hosted by Moth Moth Moth and Season 1 winner Shiklina! Saturday, Jan. 14, 8 p.m.

BLACK LODGE

The Long Goodbye: A Rock Opera

An original experimental rock opera about death, grief, loss, change, and self-reflection. $30-$40. Friday, Jan. 13-Jan. 15.

THE EVERGREEN THEATRE

Sondheim Tribute

A concert presentation celebrating the body of work of Stephen Sondheim, covering every aspect of his career and contains some of the all-time musical theater favorite songs and orchestrations. Friday, Jan. 13-Jan. 29.

THEATRE MEMPHIS

SPECIAL EVENTS

A Celebration of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s Birthday King Day will kick off yearlong observances themed “Freedom Can’t Wait” as the museum focuses on major civil rights milestones with anniversaries in 2023. Monday, Jan. 16, 8 a.m.-6 p.m.

NATIONAL CIVIL RIGHTS MUSEUM

Most actors don’t hold real ones, informally

Language from which “Saskatchewan” comes

Part of an announcer’s home run call

Exhibit a male gaze, perhaps

Word with big or goat

Light on packaging

Tom’s partner

Opposite of calm

Manila Pact grp.

“I can confirm”

Device sold with a remote

What’s more

Barrier to entry

“May I help you?” DOWN

How a security guard might say goodbye?

Subjects of some relative clauses?

Reduplicative girl’s name

Mascot of the W.N.B.A.’s Mystics, e.g.

Biblical verb with “thou”

League leader, informally

E.U. alliance

Setting for a plastered cast?

Start of some juice portmanteaus

Makeup experts?

Bender

À la mode

Sticking points for vampires

2000s rock singer with the hit albums “Hell-On” and “Middle Cyclone”

Edited by Will Shortz No. 1207

Edited by Will Shortz No. 1203

Memphis TAYTAY Party

This themed party is Taylor-made for ultimate fans. Surrounded by friends and Swifties, you’ll dance the night away singing along to every song. $20. Saturday, Jan. 14, 7-11 p.m.

JERRY LEE LEWIS’ CAFE & HONKY TONK

Star Wars: Cantina Dance Party

Following the Star Wars original trilogy movie marathon beginning at noon, this party will bring all the space libations, cantina tunes, dancing, future foodz, lightsabers, and good times. Angel of Azarath will also be in attendance performing twilek belly dancing! Friday, Jan. 13, 10 p.m.-3 a.m.

BLACK LODGE

SPORTS

Memphis Wrestling

Memphis Wrestling’s first TV taping of 2023 featuring AEW/NJPW star Blake Christian, plus former WWE star James Ellsworth. Sunday, Jan. 15, 1:45 p.m.

MEMPHIS WRESTLING WRESTLECENTER

NBA Memphis Grizzlies vs. Cleveland Cavaliers

Wednesday, Jan. 18, 7 p.m.

FEDEXFORUM

NBA Memphis Grizzlies vs. Phoenix Suns Monday, Jan. 16, 5 p.m.

FEDEXFORUM

THEATER

If Pekin Is a Duck, Why Am I in Chicago?

A gangster in 1920s Chicago kidnaps a lyricist and a composer to win a bet saying he can find two men to write music better than the music that is currently popular. Friday, Jan. 13-Jan. 29.

THEATRE MEMPHIS

TOURS

Cemetery Walk

Shake off the dust mid-day and join one of Elmwood’s volunteer tour guides for a one-mile, 30-minute cemetery walk. Free. Wednesday, Jan. 18, noon-12:30 p.m.

ELMWOOD CEMETERY

PHOTO: COURTESY OF JEANNE SEAGLE

NEWS OF THE WEIRD

By the editors at Andrews McMeel Syndication

The Rules

In Tennessee, it is legal to collect roadkill for consumption, WJHLTV reported on Nov. 20. In fact, the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency encourages people to take home animals found on the road, with some strict rules in place. For example, deer and turkey must be reported to TWRA or local police within 48 hours of collection. But “bears, on the other hand, require that a TWRA agent come out and issue you a receipt for a black bear,” said spokesperson Matthew Cameron. That’s because the bear population is monitored, and the TWRA takes a tooth from the animal for the purpose of dating it. In addition, tracking bear kills helps the agency prevent the sale of bear parts on the black market. “It’s highly illegal to sell any kind of bear parts in the state of Tennessee,” Cameron said, “but it does happen.” Small animals such as rabbits, raccoons, squirrels, and skunks can be collected without notifying anyone. [WJHL, 11/20/2022]

Wiener War

A turf war of sorts broke out late on Nov. 19 in Downtown San Diego, CBS8-TV reported: Interloper hot dog vendors from Los Angeles had set up outside Petco Park stadium, where Duke Dumont was playing, and the San Diego vendors weren’t having it. A brawl involving 10 to 15 people ensued, with one 35-year-old man being stabbed in the back during the fray. Police arrested Yoni Yates, 21, in the assault, which resulted in non-life-threatening injuries. No buns were injured in the incident. [CBS8, 11/20/2022]

Stowaway

TSA agents at John F. Kennedy International Airport saved the day on Nov. 16 when they spotted an unusual item in a passenger’s checked baggage: a live cat. NBC2 News reported that the feline could be seen in an X-ray of the bag and was rescued before the suitcase went into the cargo hold. “The cat did not belong to the individual with the suitcase,” TSA spokesperson Lisa Farbstein said. “It belonged to someone else in the household.” [NBC2 News, 11/22/2022]

The Demands of the Job In Paris, a court has ruled in favor of

“Mr. T,” a former employee of Cubik Partners who was fired in 2015 for being “insufficient professionally” because he wouldn’t take part in “teambuilding” activities, i.e., going to the pub after work hours and on weekends. In his suit, Mr. T said the company encouraged a culture “involving promiscuity, bullying, and incitement to various excesses.” The Court of Cassation declared that Mr. T “could not be blamed for his lack of integration in the fun environment,” The U.S. Sun reported. Cubik was forced to pay him about $3,100 in compensation. [The U.S. Sun, 11/25/2022]

Extreme Measures

Jermaine Bell, 38, spent more than three years in jail fighting charges against him for an armed robbery in 2018, Local10-TV reported. When he heard the guilty verdict in a MiamiDade County, Florida, courtroom on Nov. 21, Bell guzzled a cup of bleach, becoming so sick that he had to be removed from the courtroom on a stretcher. He survived the self-imposed attack, but officials are unclear where he obtained the bleach. Rev. Jerome Starling, a distant cousin of Bell’s, saw him “drinking something that’s not right, and that his attorneys are letting him drink it, the corrections are letting him drink it. And all of a sudden, I see him collapse. And I’m like, ‘What just happened?’” Starling recounted. Bell’s family members are pursuing the matter. [Local10, 11/21/2022]

Oops

Japanese food shops rely on remarkably realistic plastic samples to showcase their offerings, but one Osaka shop mistakenly sold five plastic pastries to customers on Oct. 22, Gulf News reported. At Andrew’s Egg Tart, a worker immediately noticed the mistake, and the plastic treats were exchanged for the real thing. From now on, the shop will use stickers to distinguish real egg tarts from their doppelgangers. [Gulf News, 10/26/2022]

News of the Weird is now a podcast on all major platforms! To find out more, visit newsoftheweirdpodcast.com.

NEWS OF THE WEIRD © 2023 Andrews McMeel Syndication. Reprinted with permission. All rights reserved.

ARIES (March 21-April 19): Nigerian author Wole Soyinka reworked the ancient Greek play, The Bacchae. In one passage, the god Dionysus criticizes King Pentheus, who is supposedly all-powerful. “You are a man of chains,” Dionysus tells him. “You love chains. You breathe chains, talk chains, eat chains, dream chains, think chains. Your world is bound in manacles.” The bad news, Aries, is that many of us have some resemblances to Pentheus. The good news is that the coming months will be a favorable time to shed at least some of your chains. Have fun liberating yourself! Try to help a few others wriggle free from their chains, too. Doing so will aid your own emancipation.

TAURUS (April 20-May 20): The coming weeks will be a great time to fill your journal with more intense ruminations than you have for many moons. If you don’t have a journal, think about starting one. Reveal yourself to yourself, Taurus! Make conscious that which has been vague, unnamed, or hiding. Here are assignments to help launch your flood of intimate self-talk. 1. Write passionately about an experience you’ve always wanted to try but have never done. 2. Conduct imaginary interviews with people who rouse strong feelings in you. 3. Describe what deity, superhero, or animal you are and how your special intelligence works. 4. Visualize a dream in which you appear as a bolder, more confident version of yourself. 5. Talk about a time you felt rousingly alive and how you plan to feel that way again.

GEMINI (May 21-June 20): A stranger approached me at Wild Birds Unlimited, a store that sells bird food and accessories. “You write the horoscopes, right?” she asked. “I’m a Gemini, and I want to thank you for helping me tone down my relentless fidgeting. You made me realize I have been secretly proud of tapping my fingers on the table while talking with people, and constantly darting my eyes around the room to check out the ever-changing views. I’d unconsciously believed that stuff was a sign of my incredible vitality. But you’ve been a steadying influence. You’ve shown me ways to settle down and focus my energy better. I can see how restlessness sometimes saps my energy.” I told the woman, “You’re welcome!” and let her know that 2023 will be a favorable time to do much more of this good work. Homework: Meditate on channeling your incredible vitality into being grounded and centered.

CANCER (June 21-July 22): According to Cancerian author Ronald Sukenick, the writer’s work is “to destroy restrictive viewpoints, notice the unnoticed, speak the unspeakable, shake stale habits, ward off evil, give vent to sorrow, pulverize doctrine, attack and uphold tradition as needed, and make life worth living.”

I believe 2023 will be an excellent time for you to carry out those actions, even if you’re not a writer. You will have abundant power to bless and heal through creative rebellion and disruption. You will thrive as you seek out interesting novelty.

LEO (July 23-Aug. 22): Psychotherapist Ryan Howes has wisdom you’ll benefit from heeding in the coming weeks. “We need to accept our age,” he writes. “We need to accept illnesses and addictions. We need to accept the past. We need to accept others as they are.” He goes on to say that this doesn’t mean we must like all these situations. And we can certainly try to make the best of them. But when we don’t struggle in vain to change what’s beyond our control to change, we have more energy for things that we can actually affect.

VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22): Here’s testimony from musician Pharrell Williams: “If someone asks me what inspires me, I always say, ‘That which is missing.’” Yes! This is an apt message for you, Virgo. The best way for you to generate motivation and excitement in the coming weeks will be to explore what is lacking, what is invisible, what’s lost or incomplete. Check in with your deep intuition right now. Do you feel a stirring in your gut? It may tell you where to find important and intriguing things that are missing.

LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22): “Every animal knows far more than you do,” declares a proverb of the Nimíipuu people, also known as the Nez Percé. Author Russell Banks provides further testimony to convince us we should be humble about our powers of awareness. “There is a wonderful intelligence to the unconscious,” he says. “It’s always smarter than we are.” These are good pointers for you to heed in the coming weeks, Libra. You will have a special power to enhance your understanding of the world by calling on the savvy of animals and your unconscious mind. They will be especially rich sources of wisdom. Seek out their educational input!

SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21): Psychologist Carl Jung said that the whole point of Jesus Christ’s story was not that we should become exactly like him. Rather, we should aspire to be our best and highest selves in the same way that he fulfilled his unique mission. So Jesus was not the great exception, but rather the great example. I bring these meditations to your attention, Scorpio, because I believe life in 2023 will conspire to make you, more than ever before, the hero of your own destiny. You will be inspired to honor only your own standards of success and reject all others’. You will clearly see that you are progressing at your own natural and righteous pace, which is why it makes no sense to compare your evolution to anyone else’s.

CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19): When he was 74 years old, Capricorn author Norman Maclean published his first novel, A River Runs Through It. It became a best-seller. Capricorn film director Takeshi Kitano directed his first film at age 42. Now 75, he has since won many awards for his work in his native Japan. Capricorn activist Melchora Aquino, who was a leader in the Philippines’ fight for independence from Spain, launched her career as a revolutionary when she was in her eighties. She’s known as the “Mother of the Revolution.” I hope these heroes inspire you, dear Capricorn. I believe that 2023 is the year you will get an upgrade in any area of your life where you have seemed to be a late bloomer.

SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21): A reader named Mary Roseberry describes her experience of being a Sagittarius: “I hate to be bored. I hate imperfections. I hate to wait. I hate sadness. I hate conflict. I hate to be wrong. I hate tension.” Wow! I admire Mary’s succinct understanding of who she doesn’t want to be and what she doesn’t like to do. I invite you to compose a similar testimony. You would benefit from getting clear about the experiences you intend to avoid in 2023. Once you have done that, write a list of the interesting feelings and situations you will seek out with intense devotion during the coming months.

AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18): According to my analysis of the astrological omens, you will soon be called upon to summon grace under pressure; to express magnanimity while being challenged; to prove that your devotion to your high standards is more important than the transitory agendas of your ego. The good news is that you are primed and ready to succeed at these exact assignments. I have confidence in your power to activate the necessary courage and integrity with maximum poise and composure.

PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20): “By dying daily, I have come to be,” wrote poet Theodore Roethke. He didn’t mean he suffered literal deaths. He was referring to the discipline of letting go of the past; shedding worn-out habits; leaving behind theories and attitudes that once served him well but no longer did; killing off parts of himself that were interfering with the arrival of the fresh future. I recommend his strategy to you, Pisces. To the degree that you agree to die daily, you will earn the right to be reborn big-time in a few weeks.

as Longshot stopped evolving?

Not by a long shot. e restaurant in the ARRIVE Memphis hotel has gone from serving homemade sausage and small plates to what executive chef David Todd calls “re ned, approachable bar food.”

“We re-did the menu with some internationally in uenced entrees. Some sandwiches. Some appetizers. ings like that.”

And, Todd adds, “As of January 1st, we’re open seven days a week. And we got lunch on Saturdays and Sundays.”

Longshot had its share of stops and starts a er it rst opened in November of 2019. “We opened about ve or six months before the pandemic hit. e whole hotel. We tried to do the whole togo food. What everybody did.”

It closed around April. “We opened for a few weeks around late June, early July. at would have been 2020.”

e restaurant was only open for a few weeks. “We had some people test positive for Covid.”

Longshot re-opened for the third time in April 2021. And stayed open. Todd kept a few items from the old menu but added more. Also, during those times the restaurant was open, Todd saw how “di erent food worked in the space.”

e restaurant had a de nite culinary direction in the beginning. “When we rst opened, we had nine di erent housemade sausages. We had small plates. It was really cool.”

But that “wasn’t robust and diverse enough to really capture a lot of repeat business.”

“One thing I’ve learned over the years opening restaurants, is you de nitely pick your vision and your direction. Go down the path you want to go. But as you’re going down that path, you learn what customers are responding to and what the space dictates.”

Longshot “went to a more robust, sandwich-oriented food menu. It covered more ground.”

Todd refers to his Longshot fare as “inspired, elevated bar food. And that means there are still burgers and chicken

sandwiches, and I’ve got nachos on the menu.”

But he also

includes items like Tuna Poke Nachos. “Raw tuna marinated in soy and di erent spices.” And Pollo Asado Nachos — a “marinated chicken thigh I roast. And we chop that o and make nachos with a house-made queso.”

“We’ve got vegetarian options. We’ve got a Smoked Mushroom and Shishito Philly. And then we’ve got a KFC [Korean Fried Chicken] Sandwich on the menu. We did a Diner Burger, a fun take on a classic burger. ere’s a crispy duck entree. A short rib entree.”

Last year, Todd also took over the pizza program upstairs at Hustle & Dough. He “rounded out that menu” a little bit. “I added a curry cauli ower dip, a quinoa salad.”

His philosophy was the same as for Longshot: “Lean into traditional things that people connect to and they enjoy.

And they might be presented to you in an international way.”

Longshot can be referred to as a sports bar, but it’s not a typical sports bar, Todd says. “You got the shu eboard tables in there, so when it’s busy it’s going to lend itself to a festive kind of fun, energetic atmosphere. So, it’s not quite like a sit-down dinner place.”

Todd adds, “If you’re in there having a sit-down dinner, you wouldn’t feel like a sh out of water. But if you want play shu eboard and drink some beer, you’re not going to feel like a sh out of water, either. It’s like a melting pot space in there on some levels.”

Longshot and Hustle & Dough are in ARRIVE Memphis at 477 South Main Street

PHOTO: MICHAEL DONAHUE Chef David Todd

David Todd’s Longshot appeals to everyone.

FILM By Chris McCoy

The Uncanny Valley of the Dolls

Just before M3GAN kills her rst human, the annoying neighbor Celia (Lori Dungey) asks, “What are you?”

M3GAN pauses. “I’ve been asking myself that same question,” she says, before blasting Celia in the face with a pressure washer.

Technically speaking, M3GAN is the rst Model 3 Generative ANdroid, created by Gemma (Allison Williams), a roboticist working for the toy company Funki. Gemma is under pressure to update Funki’s Furby-like agship toy, but M3GAN is her passion project — not so much a talking doll as a fully realized android companion for a middle-schooler, what Douglas Adams would call “your plastic pal who’s fun to be with.”

When her niece Cady (Violet McGraw) is orphaned in a car crash, Gemma, an unapologetic career woman, is forced to take a crash course in single parenting. Ever the technologist, she sees the situation as an opportunity to test out her invention. A er a late-night crunch session, she introduces Cady to M3GAN. ey

bond immediately, thanks to M3GAN’s reactive learning so ware protocols.

One of the things I love about a wellmade horror lm is how it plays with the information imbalance between the audience and the characters. We all know that we bought a ticket to a killer robot movie, but Gemma doesn’t know she’s inventing a killer robot. When she boasts that M3GAN is programmed to prevent Cady from all harm physical and emotional, then teaches the robot what death is, then o andedly remarks that she didn’t have time to install the parental controls, we know what’s coming next.

But it is M3GAN’s question — “What am I?” — that shows M3GAN is smarter than a killer doll movie from the makers of Annabelle has any right to be. Screenwriter Akela Cooper cra s a dilemma for her monster that is straight out of Isaac Asimov. Gemma thinks of her creation only as a robot, but to Cady, she’s a real girl — a best friend to sing along to pop songs with, a friend who is also an excellent therapist. At one point, a tech says M3GAN is not sentient because

her speech is just a “curated word salad” designed to create the illusion of meaning in the listener. But when Gemma’s boss David (Ronny Chieng) asks for “a list of things I can say to the board to make me sound intelligent,” no one questions his personhood. And a er all, M3GAN’s belief that she can take better care of Cady is not delusional, since Gemma objectively sucks as a caregiver. It’s just that M3GAN’s vision of parental responsibility comes with a high body count.

Director Gerard Johnstone and producers James Wan and Jason Blum perform a tonal tightrope walk worthy of John Carpenter. ey admit the premise

Personals

I Saw You

Say goodbye to Chucky and hello to M3GAN.

is a little silly with a few sly winks at the audience; then they reel you in. Allison

Williams is pitch-perfect, pivoting from likable to cold on a dime, as the scene requires. e character of M3GAN is constructed with puppetry, Jenna Davis’ delightfully unhinged voice work, and an inspired physical performance by 12-yearold dancer Amie Donald.

Now if you’ll excuse me, I have to go work on my “M3GAN was right!” memes.

M3GAN Now playing Multiple locations

Hottie Buying Beer,

You were at the Madison Cash Saver last weekend picking up a six-pack of Meddlesome. Great choice! I was the dark-haired chick in the Spacer shirt eyeballing you from across the aisle. You had on a Memphis Tigers tee and were wearing socks with sandals. Weird flex, but okay! Would love to grab a pint with you.

Have you spotted a hottie around town? A missed connection been bugging you? Are you the one described in this ad?

For more info on how to submit your missed connections or replies, email isawyou@memphisflyer.com.

M3GAN the killer robot makes technoparanoia fun.

House Party

It’s a reboot of the cult 1990 hip-hop comedy classic produced by LeBron James, and, yes, Kid ’n Play are in it. So are Snoop Dogg, Lil Wayne, and a whole house full of celebrities who show up when cleaners Kevin (Jacob Latimore) and Damon (Tosin Cole) hijack King James’ crib for an epic throwdown.

Plane

Gerard Butler is Brodie, a pilot who crash lands in the Philippines with a planeload of passengers. He soon discovers that the jungle is ruled by a feral, anti-government militia that takes his survivors hostage, hoping to get big ransoms from their

families. Brodie must enlist a convicted murderer (Luke Cage’s Mike Colter) who was being extradited on his plane to help rescue the passengers.

Puss In Boots: The Last Wish

The cutlass-armed kitty cat from Shrek returns with Antonio Banderas in the lead voice role as a swashbuckler on a mission to restore eight of his nine lives. But Florence Pugh as Goldilocks, the leader of the Three Bears crime family, wants the Wishing Star, too.

Avatar: The Way of Water

This long-awaited sequel bested Top Gun: Maverick as 2022’s biggest box office draw, and it’s closing in on the $2 billion mark. It helps that there’s actually a decent story to go with the next-level visual effects.

LEGAL NOTICES

WHITE 2009 PONTIAC G6

# 1G2ZG57B694126719.

EMPLOYMENT

ENTERPRISE TECHNOLOGY

SR. CONSULTANT (Memphis, TN): The ET SR Consultant will drive the delivery and support of applications independently in support of our Treasury Management team.

This will include but not limited to, coordinate with developers on the project; coordinate with other enterprise technology teams on the dependencies; coordinate with line of business, project management office; and coordinate the full software development life cycle process.

Requires a Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, MIS or a related field. Must have 7 years of experience in the job offered or related position. Apply via website: https://www. firsthorizon.com/Careers. Reference Job #: FB1227

SALES POSITION

AT SIGNWORKS

Signage and large format digital printing company in Midtown has a career opportunity for an Account Development/Sales Representative, who is dependable and enthusiastic to join our team. General computer knowledge and skills including

Microsoft Office excel, etc., as well as fluent skills in Adobe Illustrator and design layout are required. Our office is fast paced, fun and is suited for someone that is quick thinking, and can multitask in a changing environment. We offer competitive compensation, good benefits package

plus working with people that appreciate and support your efforts.

Please call Dale at 272-3889 and/or Email your resume to dale@signworksmemphis.com and lsouthern@commtrans.com

SIGNWORKS

PRODUCTION TEAM

Signworks in Midtown is looking for a new member to join their production team! We are looking for the following skill sets:

Valid driver’s license

Comfortable on ladders

Committed to finishing work started

NUTRITION/ HEALTH

SHARED HOUSING

FURNISHED ROOMS

Bellevue/McLemore, Jackson/ Watkins, Airways/Lamar. Call 901485-0897.

APTS & CONDOS FOR RENT

COOPER YOUNG APARTMENT

FOR RENT

1980 Manila, #1. One bedroom, one bath apartment includes dishwasher, refrigerator,

CARPE DIEM 8a-10p. 1hr notice req. No textor blocked calls. 901.653.1197and @facebook. com/CarpeDiemMemphis.

AUTO

AUTO AUCTION Wanda C’s Towing, 3614 Jackson St. Memphis, TN 38108. January 16,2023 between 12 & 3 PM. 2018 Honda 300R Motorcycle, VIN: MLHNC5104J5400752.

Be a part of something big.

We’re hiring at the FedEx Express World Hub in Memphis.

Starting pay up to $22/hour. fedexishiring.com

Take a Side

I grew up in Memphis in a Jewish neighborhood. I’m embarrassed to say that it wasn’t until I was in high school when I realized that other cities in the South did not have as sizable a Jewish population as Memphis. Matzo ball soup and fresh challah bread were staples in my home. My grandparents lived in a well-established Jewish neighborhood of East Memphis. My grandfather would turn the lights o for his Rabbi neighbor on the Sabbath. Some of his neighbors were Holocaust survivors. I remember seeing the numbers tattooed on their arms when I was a child. At Christmas every year, dear family friends who were Jewish, the Segals, would make the entire Christmas dinner for my extended family so that we could spend more time with each other and not worry about cooking. It was an incredible act of kindness and generosity. is was just the wonderful community in which we lived.

Each day I see the rising anti-Semitism in the U.S., and I am horri ed. Recently, Kanye West has spoken publicly praising Hitler, supporting neo-Nazi white supremacists, and speaking negatively about Jews. In November, Dave Chappelle hosted Saturday Night Live and opened with a monologue giving Kanye advice on how to buy himself some more time by just saying that he denounces anti-Semitism. en there is Whoopi Goldberg’s constant denial that the Holocaust had anything to do with race, for which she was suspended from her television show, e View, back in February of 2022, yet still went on to make the same comments in December.

In 2018, we saw an even greater level of hate with the mass shooting at the Pittsburgh synagogue where 11 lives were taken. is is not the only mass shooting targeting Jewish people in the United States. It doesn’t help to have elected o cials such as Georgia Republican Marjorie Taylor Greene promoting anti-Semitic conspiracy theories which supported the story that the Rothschild family used “Jewish space lasers” to purposefully ignite the wild res in California to make way for a high-speed rail system. is is as ridiculous as it sounds. It seems that people have no fear of speaking negatively about Jewish people, no matter how outrageous or ignorant it may be. ey sadly have some constituency or fan base that is listening. is sort of hatred is sickening and should worry us all.

Elie Wiesel, Holocaust survivor and well-known author of Night, won the Nobel Peace Prize on December 10, 1986. In his acceptance speech he said, “We must always take sides. Neutrality helps the oppressor, never the victim. Silence encourages the tormentor, never the tormented. Sometimes we must interfere.”

We have a tendency not to care about things until they personally a ect us, but this is not how it should be. It is easy to think that as an individual, we cannot make a di erence with regards to anti-Semitism. We may not be able to change the whole world, but we can make a di erence to our Jewish neighbors and friends. In the sacred Jewish teachings of the Talmud it says, “He who saves one life, saves the world entire.” is is a reminder that a single act can have a tremendous e ect.

Memphis is the chosen home of a healthy Jewish population. Speak out against anti-Semitism. Stand up for your Jewish neighbor.

Here are some simple tips to show solidarity with your Jewish friends, coworkers, and neighbors:

• Support local Jewish-owned businesses.

• Don’t plan important events, meetings, rehearsals, classes on Yom Kippur.

• Don’t know when Rosh Hashanah or Yom Kippur are? at’s okay. Look them up and add them to your calendar.

• Having a party? Make sure you have acceptable foods for those who keep Kosher.

• Don’t support politicians, celebrities, restaurants, or other businesses that are anti-Semitic.

• Educate yourself about Judaism and anti-Semitism. If you need somewhere to start, Memphis has an incredible resource in the Bornblum Judaic Studies Department at the University of Memphis. A great resource that covers what is going on worldwide is e Tel Aviv Institute (check them out on Instagram or visit their website at tlvi.org), and check your local library for books by Elie Wiesel, Primo Levi, Simon Wiesenthal, and other Holocaust survivors.

Melanie W. Morton is a high school Spanish teacher originally from Memphis.

PHOTO: KRASIMIRANEVENOVA | DREAMSTIME.COM

A single act can have a tremendous e ect.

THE LAST WORD By Melanie W. Morton

“Neutrality helps the oppressor.” Side with your community and take a stand against anti-Semitism.