Memphis Flyer 02/26/2023

SHARA CLARK

Editor

SAMUEL X. CICCI

Managing Editor

JACKSON BAKER, BRUCE VANWYNGARDEN

Senior Editors

TOBY SELLS

Associate Editor

KAILYNN JOHNSON

News Reporter

CHRIS MCCOY

Film and TV Editor

ALEX GREENE

Music Editor

MICHAEL DONAHUE, JON W. SPARKS

Staff Writers

ABIGAIL MORICI

Arts and Culture Editor

RACHAEL DESAUSSURE, GENE GARD, COCO JUNE, FRANK MURTAUGH, IZZY WOLLFARTH

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 and Delivery Manager

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

Time doesn’t heal all wounds. Sometimes it causes them to fester. is week will mark 12 years since my friend, Jessica Nicole Lewis, was murdered in South Memphis. Twelve years of unanswered questions. Twelve years knowing the man who took her life was able to continue living his, freely and without consequence.

On February 20, 2011, Jessica’s body was found in Mt. Carmel Cemetery, an unkempt graveyard at Elvis Presley and Elliston, about three miles north of Graceland and as many miles south of the Stax Museum of American Soul Music. ere was evidence of a struggle; she’d been dragged through the grounds and shot in the head, the only clothing le on her battered body was underwear and a single sock.

We’d been close friends throughout high school and college, working two separate jobs together. We dated bandmates and arrived arm in arm to many concerts and parties during those years. She was the ery, beautiful blonde who took no shit, and I was more or less her sidekick. It’d be impossible to share in this short space how much she meant to me or, a er her death, how deep the need for justice would embed itself in me. A er weeks and months and years went by with no movement in her case, I’d spend countless hours researching, poking through arrest records and crime reports, going down Facebook rabbit holes, and talking to people who knew her in her nal days to try to nd a single thread that might lead to her killer.

NEWS & OPINION

THE FLY-BY - 4 POLITICS - 6

AT LARGE - 7

e following words are never easy to say: Jessica was a prostitute. In her last years, she was a drug addict, with arrests for possession of a crack pipe and solicitation. e last time I saw her, about two and half years before her death, she’d just gotten out of rehab, so I knew she had been struggling. But I had no idea how far she’d fallen. She had a pimp. She practically lived in shady hotels. She walked the streets. She walked the streets. I’ve yet to accept that this was her life and not a Lifetime movie. Jessica, who was 28 at the time, wasn’t the only victim. On January 27, 2011, a “known prostitute,” according to reports, 31-year-old Tamakia McKinney, was found dead in the middle of Hemlock Street, about a mile from Mt. Carmel. Four days a er Jessica’s death, another prostitute, 44-year-old Rhonda Wells, was found in the same cemetery. Two days a er the discovery of Wells’ body, a fourth victim was shot in the face and le for dead on nearby Ledger Street. She survived. Investigators believed the cases were connected. ey retrieved shell casings linking two of the victims, as well as DNA samples from each crime scene. e survivor was able to give a description of the shooter: a Black male, around 24 years old, hair in cornrows. He drove a dark-colored Dodge Charger or Chrysler 300. Even with evidence, even with DNA, no one was ever charged. How do you not nd a man who killed three women in a month’s time? I’ve formulated a few theories that I won’t get into here. And I’ve covered this case in news articles (within these pages) and a feature-length story (“A Voice for Jessica,” Memphis magazine, July 2016). I have met and interviewed the survivor. I worked closely with the cold case investigator, W.D. Merritt (who was almost as tenacious as I was about solving this case), before he passed from Covid in 2020. With so many murders in this city, I don’t expect much time to be spent investigating a 12-year-old case involving “prostitutes.” But had it been me? Had it been a school teacher, the daughter of a politician, a bank teller, or any other upstanding-citizen label you’d like to apply, these women would have had justice.

COVER STORY

“BRINGING IT ALL BACK HOME”

BY ALEX GREENE - 8

WE RECOMMEND - 12

AFTER DARK - 13

CALENDAR - 14

NY TIMES CROSSWORD - 15

NEWS OF THE WEIRD - 17

ASTROLOGY - 18

FOOD - 19

FILM - 20

CLASSIFIEDS - 22

LAST WORD - 23

Jessica is never far from my mind, but as the anniversary of her murder approaches, I can’t help but paint a picture of her last days, the nal horrifying moments before she was killed execution-style in a cemetery. I’ll never forget how the media sensationalized these killings, dehumanized the victims. Does time heal all wounds? Ask their mothers. Ask their children. Ask their friends. You’ll hear a resounding no.

Shara Clark

shara@memphis yer.com

Me and Jessica circa 2000

THE fly-by

ernet

Memphis on the internet.

TONY AND TYRE

Questions, Answers + Attitude

Edited by Toby Sells

2023

Legendary pro skater Tony Hawk announced on Twitter last week that half the sales of a photo of himself and pro BMX rider Rick orne will go to the Tyre Nichols Fund. e fund will build a skate park in Nichols’ memory.

“He was a talented skater among other admirable traits,” Hawk tweeted. “Let’s keep his legacy alive.”

CITY CLOWNCIL

{ENVIRONMENT

By Toby Sells

Toxic But Legal

Health o cials say there’s little they can do now about Sterilization Services’ harmful emissions.

e Shelby County Health Department (SCHD) is seeking state and federal help to study the health impacts of emissions from Sterilization Services but says the company is operating within its legal rights. e company uses ethylene oxide (EtO) in its South Memphis facility to sterilize medical equipment. e gas is odorless and colorless, and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) wasn’t aware emissions could raise cancer rates until 2016.

Now, the EPA says EtO emissions from the facility could pose a risk to those living in the neighborhood around it. e agency held public meetings in Memphis last year to warn the residents but said there was little they could do. While the EPA is working on new laws to reduce EtO emissions, companies like Sterilization Services will likely have up to three years to comply with it.

Last ursday, the SCHD said it is working with the EPA and the Tennessee Department of Health (TDH) to educate and inform the residents around the facility at 2396 Florida Street. It has asked for a public health assessment and a health consultation from the federal Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR).

Performers with the UniverSoul Circus attended last week’s Memphis City Council meeting. But u/Sho_nu _ wondered, “Why are the city council members sitting in the back row?”

Headline h/t to Shea Flinn.

DASHIKI SHAKE-UP

Newly elected state Rep. Justin Pearson (DMemphis) induced ulcers in Nashville last week.

“We literally just got on the state House oor and already a white supremacist has attacked my wearing of my Dashiki,” Pearson tweeted. “Resistance and subversion to the status quo ought to make some people uncomfortable. ank you to every Black Ancestor who made this opportunity possible!”

e department has also asked the TDH’s Cancer Registry to study the incidence of cancer around the facility. e review will determine cancer rates around the facility compared to those in other parts of Shelby County. Once complete, the study will be released to the public.

e department will also meet with residents to help them understand health risks and nd the health screening and treatment resources available to them.

SCHD will update the Shelby County Commission on the situation next month.

e department cannot, however, force the company to immediately reduce EtO emissions, it said last ursday. Sterilization Services now meets current federal, state, and local legal standards of emissions, the department said, and cannot be held to “legal standards higher than existing ones.” But the department said it is aware of the risks.

“ e people of South Memphis face inequitable health, social, and environmental conditions in comparison to many other parts of Shelby County,” said SCHD director Dr. Michelle Taylor. “Achieving environmental justice is a part of [SCHD’s] mission to promote, protect, and improve the health of all in Shelby County.”

e statement on Sterilization Services from SCHD comes a er the Southern Environmental Law Center (SELC) urged action on the matter last week in a letter on behalf of Memphis Community Against Pollution (MCAP). e letter says local laws allow the health department to act when air pollution creates an emergency situation and this situation is one.

“It has been six months since the [EPA] released updated information on the dangers of ethylene oxide to humans and almost four months since the EPA held public meetings in Memphis,” MCAP board president and co-founder KeShaun Pearson said in the letter. “Since then, the [SCHD] has yet to update the impacted community members about the status of Sterilization Services of Tennessee or engage with us in a meaningful way.

“South Memphis residents deserve to breathe clean air, and we demand immediate action from the [SCHD].”

SELC Tennessee O ce director Amanda Garcia said, “Nobody should be forced to live next door to an industrial facility that recklessly emits toxic, cancer-causing pollution.

“ e Shelby County Health O cer not only can act, but must act to protect South Memphis families from the dangerous ethylene oxide pollution coming from the Sterilization Services of Tennessee plant.”

POSTED TO TWITTER BY TONY HAWK

POSTED TO TWITTER BY JUSTIN PEARSON

POSTED TO REDDIT BY U/12FRETS

PHOTO: ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

A map from the Environmental Protection Agency shows the plume of toxic emissions around the Sterilization Services facility in South Memphis.

Trans Health { STATE WATCH

By Kailynn Johnson

A new law could criminalize healthcare for minors.

Tennessee medical professionals could lose their license if they provide gender-a rming care to minors with a new law now under consideration by the Tennessee General Assembly.

e proposed legislation says that these procedures can “lead to the minor becoming irreversibly sterile, having increased risk of disease and illness, or su ering from adverse and sometimes fatal psychological consequences.”

is legislation also allows civil litigation against a healthcare provider who performs such procedures. ese lawsuits could be brought within 30 years from the date the minor reaches 18 years of age, or within 10 years from the date of the minor’s death if the minor dies. It also allows relatives of a minor to bring a wrongful death action against healthcare providers in such cases under certain conditions.

Last October, the Flyer reported that Tennessee law currently allows for access to gender-a rming healthcare for youth.

Jace Wilder studies and teaches transgender policies for the Tennessee Equality Project.

“We really have to keep a critical eye on what is the goal of our legislature, and what initiatives or what funding they’re getting to really just continue to police and criminalize a minority group of people,” Wilder said.

e Flyer was able to talk with Wilder about gender-a rming care for minors.

— Kailynn Johnson

Memphis Flyer: Why would doctors choose not to delay care for minors who are transitioning?

Jace Wilder: So, one of the things that gets le behind a lot is the narrative of the e ects of delaying care. at includes suicide rates going up. at one has been proven over and over again. Lack of access to care, lack of actual equitable care, and — even more so — not having support from both family and from medical providers prove to have worse outcomes for those youth who have to delay their care.

When they see laws like this, that prohibit them from accessing their own care, they automatically can see that their state doesn’t really care about them, or

care about their healthcare access. So, when it comes to delaying care, you’re also reinforcing that isolation.

is bill will eliminate the ability to even have those conversations because it’s seen as coercion … and can be declared child abuse for a parent to just ask their doctor how to care for their trans kid.

Do you think any of these misconceptions about trans healthcare have contributed to the legislature pushing for this legislation to be passed?

A lot of times we get stuck in this narrative that it’s all this one giant conspiracy to speed up the process to transition people who should not be transitioned. e reality is people are

actually struggling to even access the care in the rst place, and when they do it takes a really long time to get through that process, if they even do by the time they’re 18.

What do you all think is next for trans healthcare in Tennessee?

We’re seeing this escalation to even saying that trans people who are 25 — legal adults who can vote, legal adults who can drink, who can serve for their country — these individuals don’t have the right to determine their own healthcare, based o of this weird idea that the state knows best. But this is only for this very small group that cannot be heard in their own legislature.

PHOTO: ALEXANDER GREY | UNSPLASH

POLITICS By Jackson Baker

Banquets & Bandwagons

Democrats rule the roost locally, but Republicans have better events. What’s up?

Here’s one for the riddle-me-this types: Why is it, at a time when the demographics of Memphis and Shelby County are demonstrably and overwhelmingly Democratic, that local Republicans are by far the more successful of the two parties in turning out crowds for their partisan events?

A case in point was the GOP’s annual Lincoln Day Dinner, held last Saturday night at the East Memphis Hilton. As is generally the case with this event, regardless of venue, the ballroom was lled to capacity, every table fully stocked, every seat taken and paid for. A veritable sea of people from wall to wall.

So is it ever at Lincoln Day, and the attendees normally include an impressive number of non-Republicans — especially among nonpartisan public o cials, judges, Memphis city o cials, and the like.

ere may have been a bit of fall-o among such attendees this year. Among declared Memphis mayoral candidates, there were only Sheri Floyd Bonner, Memphis City Councilman Frank Colvett, and former County Commissioner James Harvey; the latter two are self-described Republicans, while Bonner, a Democrat, not only ran with his party’s nomination in last year’s county election, but also had the formal support of the Republican Party, which did not eld a candidate of its own.

Assorted judges were also on hand at Saturday night’s GOP event, though perhaps fewer than usual, inasmuch as the members of the Shelby judiciary were elected en masse last year to brand-new eight-year terms, and their need to see and be seen is arguably not as great this year as perhaps it would be closer to reelection time.

Memphis Mayor Jim Strickland, who still identi es as a Democrat, is a frequent attendee at Lincoln Day, though he skipped this year.

e point remains that the Republicans’ annual local banquet customarily attracts partisan crossovers, a phenomenon that does not exist on the other side of the partisan scale. Unfortunately, there is no way to make e ective comparisons.

e fact is, the Shelby County Democratic Party has had very few party-sponsored dinner gatherings as such in recent years, opting instead for “roast” a airs featuring comedy acts or for a er-hours parties in bistros with bands.

Changes in political fashion over the years have altered the nomenclature of what has sporadically been an equivalent of sorts to the Republicans’ Lincoln Day banquet. What now goes by the name of Kennedy-Obama Dinner has happened only occasionally in recent years. Both local parties suspended their party banquets for at least a year during the pandemic, but the Republicans have resumed, and the Democrats haven’t.

As it happens, the Shelby County Democrats will be voting next month for new o cers and a new party assembly. One of the county’s best-known local Democrats is Dave Cambron, president of the Germantown Democrats, a wellorganized body that holds frequent and well-attended meetings, o en on generalinterest subjects, and welcomes guests.

“It’s time for us to start back holding regular annual party banquets,” says Cambron. “Why not? We are the majority party, and we need to keep our doors open.”

For the record, by the way, the keynote speaker at this year’s Lincoln Day banquet was former Congressman Lee Zeldin of New York, who made a spirited race for governor in 2022 and boasted Tuesday night that he had helped elect several Republicans to Congress from his state. He didn’t mention it, but one of them was named George Santos.

PHOTO: JACKSON BAKER

Among those attending the GOP’s annual dinner were (l to r) keynote speaker Lee Zeldin of New York, Mindy Fischer, Congressman David Kusto , Terry Fischer, and state Senator Brent Taylor.

What’s It All About?

Becoming conscious about the choices we make.

Songwriter Burt Bacharach died last week at 94. His songs were mostly oldschool paeans to romance — “Walk on By,” “The Look of Love,” “I Say a Little Prayer,” “This Guy’s in Love With You,” “Alfie,” to name just a few. Still, they popped up on the Top 40 charts for four decades, alongside the latest from the Stones, Donna Summer, Bruce Springsteen, the Temptations, the Cure, Elvis Costello, you name it. Bacharach left a musical legacy that made millions of people happy, even if only for three minutes at a time. You could do worse in this life.

I mention all this because I’ve been reading a lot about happiness lately, and the fact that we humans are essentially hard-wired for toxic or tonic thinking — stress or respite. It’s well-established now that how we process stress can either help our body heal or cause it to close itself off with anxiety.

I’m dealing with some health issues, so I’ve spent a lot of time recently consulting with Dr. Google. And even though my prognosis is pretty good, I still take heart from reading the vast trove of anecdotal “power of positive thinking” stories. These are genuine NIH medical histories, not hippie fantasies or Mexican-miracle-cures. For example, countless serious studies using placebos have demonstrated that if someone believes a medicine is helping, it will, even if it’s not medicine. Similarly, what were once considered “quack” remedies, including meditation and holistic practices, and even certain mushrooms long used in Chinese medicine, are now being tested with promising results. So that reishi mushroom tincture I take every morning couldn’t hurt, right?

Once, virtually every system of healing around the globe, from primitive jungle tribes to the kingdoms of Renaissance Europe, treated the mind and body as a whole. Then, 300 years ago or so, Western medicine started to see them as two distinct entities: The body came to be perceived more as a machine with replaceable, repairable, independent parts, with little medical connection to the mind’s influence. This led to great advances in surgery, trauma care, and pharmaceuti-

cals, but it ignored the vital connections between mind and body, the recognition that the mind and body are not separate, but one. Our healthcare system is still primarily geared to medicate and operate, but thankfully the recognition of holistic strategies has also re-emerged.

So, back to the mind: If there are two options, what mental habits are tonic? And which are toxic? Meditation is probably the purest form of tonic thinking — just focusing on breathing and clearing one’s mind. Listening to music is tonic, as is any activity that gets your mind and body into a cohesive flow. As for toxic thinking? It’s dealing with stress. It’s worry. It’s tossing and turning at night over unpaid bills or that fight with your spouse or the pain in your chest that won’t subside. Learning to recognize stress and how to counter it is as medically necessary as remembering to take that evening cholesterol tablet.

In my, er, research, I rediscovered a book by Norman Cousins called Anatomy of an Illness. This book was a big deal in the 1960s, mainly because it was one of the first accounts of someone who ignored the medical establishment and succeeded in curing himself — and because Cousins was a well-known writer and the editor of the then-popular national magazine, Saturday Review. (I should add here that I was briefly managing editor at SR in the 1980s and had occasion to work with Cousins for a few months.)

At any rate, in 1964, Cousins was told he had ankylosing spondylitis — a crippling and irreversible disease — and should get his affairs in order. Faced with spending the short remainder of his life wasting away in a hospital room, Cousins checked into a hotel, and with the help of a sympathetic doctor, took massive amounts of vitamin C and spent hours every day watching comedies by the Marx Brothers and W.C. Fields and reading humorous books, his thesis being that laughter would free his brain from worry and negativity. It was a good call. His illness disappeared and his book became a huge bestseller, and he ignored the raindrops falling on his head. You could do worse in this life, Alfie.

Bringing It All Back Home

When Tina Turner, retired in Switzerland after many decades as one of the most powerful voices in American pop, soul, and R&B, first heard the idea of rendering her life story as a musical, she knew exactly how she felt about it. “No, I’m not interested. No. No. No.” As she wrote of the experience in Rolling Stone in 2019, “I didn’t feel like talking about that stuff from the past because it gave me bad dreams. I was just settling into retirement, a newlywed, content to be Mrs. Erwin Bach, and the last thing on my mind was working anywhere but in my garden.”

But after meeting with the producers proposing the show, her position softened. She thought about “all the people who tell me that my story gives them hope and is my legacy” and ultimately gave the project her blessing. “Then,” she wrote, “I sat back to watch director Phyllida Lloyd and writer Katori Hall do what they do best.”

Those two names alone must have reassured her. U.K.-based Lloyd already had a stellar track record as director of the stage and cinematic versions of Mamma Mia!, which, in using the songs of ABBA, reaffirmed just how successful the “jukebox musical” genre could be. She’d also proven her skills with more serious material like The Threepenny Opera, La Bohème, an operatic version of The Handmaid’s Tale, and the Tony Award-

nominated Mary Stuart

At the time, native Memphian Katori Hall was less of a known quantity but had made waves with a play she’d begun while studying at The Juilliard School, The Mountaintop, which reimagined Martin Luther King Jr. on the night before his assassination. After opening in London and winning an Olivier Award in 2010, it went on to a successful Broadway run starring Samuel L. Jackson and Angela Bassett. But for Tina Turner, perhaps Hall’s greatest qualification was that she was “a Tennessee girl, just like me.”

Taking over from early drafts by Frank Ketelaar and Kees Prins, Hall crafted a compelling book for the show, titled Tina: The Tina Turner Musical, which opened in London in the spring of 2018 before moving to Broadway the next year. When that production was nominated for a dozen Tony Awards in 2020 and Adrienne Warren won in the category of best leading actress in a musical, Tina Turner’s instincts were vindicated. And when Hall won the 2021 Pulitzer Prize for drama for a later play, The Hot Wing King, it reinforced the impression that, despite the reputation of jukebox musicals for superficiality, Tina was cut from a different cloth.

Now the show has hit the road, making its Memphis debut on Valentine’s Day at the Orpheum Theatre and slated to

run there through February 19th. While there’s no denying the importance of the show’s success in London and New York, the current production in Memphis may be its most significant staging yet, in terms of its historical and cultural impact — because for both Hall and Turner, bringing the show to Memphis means

bringing it all back home.

Nutbush City Limits

As anyone who’s seen the 1993 Oscar-nominated film, What’s Love Got to Do with It, knows, Tina Turner was born Anna Mae Bullock in West Tennessee. Following Jackson Avenue some 50 miles to the northeast will bring you to the town of Nutbush, where a young Anna Mae grew up singing in the Spring Hill Baptist Church. Indeed, that may have been the most accurate thing about the film, which goes on to play fast and loose with the facts as it spins a fanciful version of Turner’s life. As Turner told Oprah Winfrey in 2018, “I watched a little bit of it, but I didn’t finish it because that was not how things went. Oprah, I didn’t realize they would change the details so much.”

As the musical was being created, Turner was determined to make it more true to life, and a crucial part of that was working with Hall. Even then, as Turner tells the Memphis Flyer via email, one shouldn’t assume that Memphis figured in her early life simply by virtue of its proximity.

“Memphis seemed another world away when I was growing up in Nutbush,” she writes. “Our town was so small and the access to the records coming out of Memphis was just from the radio. My

COVER STORY By Alex Greene

Katori Hall’s retelling of the Tina Turner story comes to Memphis.

PHOTO (TOP): VAN ZIMMERMAN | MURPHYMADE Zurin Villanueva performing “I Want to Take You Higher” as Tina Turner with the cast of the North American touring production of Tina: The Tina Turner Musical

PHOTO (ABOVE): CRAIG SUGDEN Tina Turner

life in Nutbush was very focused on my family and the church, and I suppose that was the music that I remember and how I started to sing. It wasn’t until I moved to St. Louis that I started to be more aware of the Memphis music through the local R&B scene.”

Nonetheless, Hall’s Memphis upbringing convinced Turner that she was working with someone who really understood her roots. “From the minute I met Katori I felt she was the right person to tell this story,” Turner says. “We talked so much about growing up in Tennessee and our families’ experiences. Katori understood immediately what it took for me to get to where I did, given where I started. e odds I had to overcome time and again.”

Hall feels the same way about their shared experience. “I grew up listening to Tina’s music because my mom was such an avid fan,” she says. “My eldest sister is named a er her! So Tina’s in uence and impact on my life has been ever-present. I do think, being a Southern gal myself, born of the Tennessee soil, really helped me step into her shoes a bit, in terms of thinking about everything she had gone through. ough we grew up through completely di erent times and di erent eras, the seeds of racism, planted so long ago, unfortunately bloom over and over again in that Tennessee soil. So both her lived experiences and mine inspired me to create this character of Tina that is in the show.”

We Don’t Need Another Hero

Hall is careful to point out that she took great pains to represent Turner’s character with as much nuance as possible. “ e beautiful thing about Tina the person,

or Anna Mae Bullock, is that she very much is still Anna Mae,” says Hall. “She has lived her life so bravely, and there’s a erce transparency to her. I feel as though the character I’ve created based on her and her life is very much closely aligned with the actual Tina. And it’s because we had this icon who was so honest about everything she went through, whether it was her highs or her lows. We have really gone on this journey with her just because of how open she’s been about sharing her story with the world.”

In spite of Turner’s public openness, Hall felt she needed to engage with the star more directly, telling writer Julie Vadnal in 2019 that, in preparing to write the book, she did “several interviews over a few years. I’d been working on [the musical] for almost ve years. And of course, there’s her autobiography — I, Tina — and a movie out there. But for me, it was very important to talk to her again about all the

things she had already told the world. Now she had some distance from it and was able to retell it and actually revise parts of our story that had gotten out of her hands.”

Part of that, Hall says, was decentering Turner’s abuse by ex-husband Ike. “Her story characterizes her as a survivor,” says Hall, “like this ultimate survivor, particularly of domestic abuse. And I don’t think people realize that she’s a survivor in other ways. She’s a survivor in terms of her family. She didn’t have the greatest relationship with her mother — in fact, there was quite a toxic relationship there. She was a survivor in terms of the entertainment industry. I think all these dragons combined created an opportunity to really show, yes, there’s a great amount of resilience there when it comes to domestic abuse, but there are other things she had to slay. Whole systems.”

Yet even that broader view of the obstacles Turner faced wasn’t enough,

according to Hall. “O entimes we don’t allow people who are that powerful and that strong their vulnerability. For me, that was one of the greatest joys of this creative process. I was really allowed inside these complicated feelings she had toward her mother, toward Ike. I’m really grateful she allowed me that opportunity to weave that into her story and into the musical. I think a lot of people are going to be really touched by how cracked-open we get to see Tina be in the musical.”

Blow Your Horn, Raymond!

One especially egregious omission in the Hollywood version of Tina Turner’s life was her relationship with a member of Ike Turner’s band long before Ike claimed her hand in marriage. As pro led in the Flyer in 2021, saxophonist Raymond Hill rst appears in the history of recorded music when the singer in Ike Turner’s Kings of Rhythm, Jackie Brenston, shouts “Blow your horn, Raymond! Blow!” on the breakthrough R&B hit, “Rocket 88.” Hill was with Ike’s band in St. Louis when young Anna Mae Bullock joined the group, and Hill and Bullock were involved long before Ike had any romantic inclinations toward his singer.

In the musical, Hill’s role in Tina Turner’s young life is at last being recognized; and that, Turner says, is deeply meaningful to her. “My relationship with Raymond was a very signi cant relationship in my life, especially because of our son, Craig. Raymond and I met when I was very young, and I had just started working with Ike when our romance began. Raymond had so many years of experience and I

continued on page 10

PHOTO (ABOVE LEFT): MATTHEW MURPHY AND EVAN ZIMMERMAN | MURPHYMADE Zurin Villanueva as Tina Turner and Ann Nesby as Gran Georgeanna

PHOTO (ABOVE RIGHT): MATTHEW MURPHY | MURPHYMADE Naomi Rodgers as Tina Turner

PHOTO (BELOW): MATTHEW MURPHY AND EVAN ZIMMERMAN | MURPHYMADE Garrett Turner as Ike Turner

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.

2022-2023 SEASON

continued from page 9

feel calling him an unsung hero of Black music is very true. I was very happy that the relationship has found its moment in the musical.”

BIG FISH THE MUSICAL

Big Fish tells the story of a traveling salesman, who lives life to its fullest. His larger-than-life tales thrill everyone around him, leading his son on an adventure to fi nd the truth. Based on Academy Award-nominated fi lm

For Hall, including Turner’s romance with Hill was crucial to the story. “When we talked,” Hall says of her interviews with Turner, “there was still this kind of girlish giddiness about Ray! So many years later! It became super apparent that I would need to not only include him, but also make him part of the narrative structure and drive of the show. Just because of how much he meant to her. As we all know, rock-and-roll is messy. Yet she was able to find love and have a child that she adored. She adored Craig, and it was so heartbreaking when he died in the past few years. So she’s just a woman who, even today, continues to experience so much tragedy.”

A Second-Hand Emotion

If What’s Love Got to Do with It cuts quickly to Tina Turner’s relationship and troubled marriage to Ike Turner, skipping Raymond Hill altogether, it also arguably oversimplifies Ike’s character. That was also something Hall was determined to correct as part of getting the Tina Turner story right.

of vulnerability in the show. Even though things didn’t change afterwards, there were still moments of vulnerability where you could remind yourself, ‘Wait, maybe this was the moment Tina forgave him for a quick second.’”

Villanueva agrees. “In scene work, you have to find the love. You can’t just hate someone. It’s not where the interest is. Because you stayed with someone for a reason. If there was no love, you’d walk out the door and that would be the end of the story. So it’s always about the duality, the love and the hate.”

“It Breaks You, Then It Builds You Up”

Such a duality shapes the entire musical, especially as it’s appearing on a Memphis stage. As Hall notes, part of relating to Tina’s roots in the Tennessee soil was recognizing the seeds of racism. The show opens here just as Memphis dominates international headlines for the trauma of police-sponsored terrorism, the latest instance in a long history of such trauma. The idea is not lost on the musical’s two lead actors.

phone: (901) 552-3737

www.wrigthdermatology.com

9045 Forest Centre Dr, Ste 103 Germantown, TN 38138 @wrightdermatology

“I knew that was going to be a huge task,” says Hall of complexifying what’s perhaps the most famous abusive marriage in history. “Ike’s pretty much the villain in her story. That’s just the truth. However, as we all know, people are people. People make mistakes. People are a balance of bad and good. I did not ever want to excuse Ike’s behavior, but I wanted people to understand. So I felt that giving the psychological, the social context of where he grew up and what made him who he was so important. That to me allowed for the nuance. There’s a scene where they try to get into a hotel and can’t because of the color of their skin. They have to sleep by the side of the road, and so you have this man who created rock-and-roll, and is an icon himself, still feeling like he’s invisible. I felt it was important to show that psychological complication so people could understand why any human being would displace their anger and try to control another person, especially when that other person is flying higher than you are, when you are just as deserving of recognition and credit. That’s something I really felt proud about. Because I don’t think we’ve gotten that in any story, whether it’s journalistic articles or previous tellings of her story. It felt like a necessity, especially knowing that this may be one of the last retellings of Tina’s life, particularly from a musical perspective.”

The actors who portray Tina Turner on alternate nights of the touring show, Zurin Villanueva and Naomi Rodgers, appreciate this nuance as well. “We have to respect every single character in this show,” notes Rodgers. “Katori did such an amazing job of giving Ike a moment

“You can never forget watching your people, your community, in pain, especially a wound that’s been reopened multiple times,” says Villanueva. “It’s really difficult, but we are here to uplift and inspire and give strength as we continue to try and get results, and change our policies so this stuff doesn’t happen. We’re just there to give strength.”

Or, as Rodgers puts it, “It breaks you, then it builds you up, and it comforts you, and then it reminds you of who you are. Because that’s what we went through. And it hits! It shows the most important parts of [Tina Turner’s] life; it includes the hard parts and how you get through it. This is a story for such a time as this, especially for Memphis.”

Ultimately, for Hall, that’s both the irony and the power of having one’s own writing debut on the Memphis stage. “It’s a dream come true, as a hometown girl, to have your work grace a Memphis stage. I definitely feel like I’ve checked something off my bucket list. And I’m overjoyed that in this moment of Tina’s life, after she’s struggled for so much, we’re able to be in the room with her in this figurative way. I just hope that Memphians love and enjoy it just as much as we, as a creative team, have loved and enjoyed bringing her story to the world.”

Turner underscores how deeply having the show debut in Memphis has affected her. “So many forms of music have their roots in Memphis, and my life and career have circled the city so many times,” she writes. “To bring my show to Memphis has huge meaning to me. If you had told me all those years ago as a small child picking cotton in Nutbush that this would happen, I definitely wouldn’t have believed you, and thought you were telling me a fairy tale! It does feel almost like a full circle, to be returning home and to be able to tell my story in such an amazing way.”

by Tim Burton, this Broadway musical has riveting music from Addams Family composer Andrew Lippa.

Direct from Ireland, Dervish has played the globe. Their charismatic stage presence includes traditional modern Irish music. Get

Irish fi x with

Holly Wright, MD, FAAD Board Certified Dermatologist

february 17th

steppin’ out

We Recommend: Culture, News + Reviews

Food for Thought

By Abigail Morici

When Black Panther hit the big screen in 2018, it broke records and became the highest grossing lm directed by a Black lmmaker. Before then, local lmmaker and director William Edwards says, “ e running thing in Hollywood was that you couldn’t have a Black lm with a Black director, with a Black cast, and a Black story line and it make money. And with Black Panther, it shattered that myth.”

Coincidentally, that same year, Edwards founded the Global Black Film Consortium, with headquarters in Memphis. Of the organization, Edwards says, “A er I wrote a couple of lms, I was doing some research on global lm, and what I found interesting was that people all over in the global lm industry did not feel that the whole continent [of Africa] or the Caribbean or the Black community within the United States were viable lm markets. And so what I wanted to do was to gure out a way of creating a platform that would give Black lmmakers on a global level the opportunity to express themselves and get that support.”

From that mission, in early 2020, the Global Black Film Consortium founded the Mid-South Black Film Festival showcasing feature lms, short lms, documentaries, and other video media submitted by Black lmmakers from around the world. is weekend, the group is gearing up to celebrate its 2022 festival winners with a ceremony on Sunday, featuring a special presentation by internationally award-winning lmmaker Basira Mohammed from Ghana.

“ e other component of what I do is I try to get people from all walks of life to just see each other as people as human,” Edwards says. “And I see lm as a medium that is very powerful and helps shape society.”

At this moment, especially a er the case of Tyre Nichols, Edwards says, “Memphis as a whole is at a very serious crossroads, and how the city leaders and citizens and the police o cers handle things, it could either splinter the city further or cause it to come together as one.”

For his part, Edwards hopes to bring people together, so in addition to the awards ceremony this weekend, the group is also hosting a Global Black Taste of Memphis & Youth Expo, where local and global vendors will serve up the cuisines of the African continent, the Caribbean, and the United States.

e day will also feature live music, free activities for youth, and food competitions. And, Edwards adds, “We’re gonna send out an appeal to the police department, to the re department, to the sheri department, to educators, to clergy, to youth, to Black Greek organizations, and we’re going to have a eating contest with representatives from the various groups. And so that’s just something that we wanted to do, kind of fun, to get the city more connected.”

Big

february

February

Shakin’ the Mess Outta Misery Hattiloo eatre, performances through February 26, $30-$35 is timeless coming-of-age tale explores passage into womanhood, race, and rituals in the 1960s South.

e play follows “Daughter,” the main character and 25-year-old narrator who shares memories of being raised by a community of women a er losing her mother as a child.

Performances run ursdaysSaturdays 7:30 p.m. with Saturday and Sunday matinees at 2 p.m.

Meet the Artists Reception

e Dixon Gallery & Gardens, ursday, February 16, 5:30 p.m. Meet the artists Johana Moscoso, Karla Sanchez, and Danielle Sierra, as featured in the “Who Is at Artist?” exhibition, and Jeanne Seagle, as featured in “Of is Place.”

In the “Who is at Artist?”

showcase, visitors can explore interactive components created speci cally for the space, that speak to Latinx identity, intersectionality, and transcendence. Each section features a window to the artist’s life, work, and creative process.

In “Of is Place,” Seagle turns a careful eye to her surroundings. e drawings in the exhibition re ect signi cant time spent observing the landscape in nearby Arkansas, depicting the wilderness of the MidSouth.

Meet the Author: Kristin

Chenoweth

Novel, Sunday, February 19, noon

Novel welcomes Emmy and Tony Award-winning actress, singer, and NYT bestselling author Kristin Chenoweth to celebrate the release of her new book I’m No Philosopher, But I Got oughts. e

high-design, colorful book features philosophical-ish musings on connection, creativity, loss, love, faith, and closure.

is is a signing line only, no presentation. Line tickets are required to meet the author and are free with the purchase of Chenoweth’s new book. ough there will be no posed photos with her, photos taken from the signing line will be allowed.

WILD WILD WEST: A Variety Show

Lamplighter Lounge, Sunday, February 19, 7-9 p.m.

Ready to be dazzled by burlesque, drag, hula hooping, and musical performances by local up-and-coming queer artists? is show is for you! is is a surprise bene t show, so bring your dollars and get ready to donate.

GLOBAL BLACK TASTE OF MEMPHIS & YOUTH EXPO, HICKORY RIDGE MALL, SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 18, NOON-7 P.M., $2-$5. MID-SOUTH BLACK FILM FESTIVAL AWARDS CEREMONY, VIP ENTERTAINMENT CENTER, SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 19, 4-6 P.M., $20.

PHOTO: COURTESY MID-SOUTH BLACK FILM FESTIVAL Basira Mohammed

Lucky 7 brass band

Marcella & Her Lovers

AFTER DARK: Live Music Schedule February 16 - 22

Andrew Cabigao

Saturday, Feb. 18, 3:15 p.m.

TIN ROOF

Bobby Weir & Wolf Bros

$59.50-$129.50. Tuesday, Feb. 21, 7 p.m.

THE ORPHEUM

Evan Farris, Davy Ray Bennett, Titus Waldenfels

Friday, Feb. 17, 7 p.m.

SOUTH MAIN SOUNDS

Grape.

Saturday, Feb. 18, 9 p.m.

EARNESTINE & HAZEL’S

Jarred Kingrey

Friday, Feb. 17, 6:30 p.m.;

Saturday, Feb. 18, 6:30 p.m.

TIN ROOF

Jay Jones

Wednesday, Feb. 22, 5:30 p.m.

TIN ROOF

John Easton

Sunday, Feb. 19, 3:30 p.m.

TIN ROOF

Knight Cab

Friday, Feb. 17, 6 p.m.; Saturday, Feb. 18, 6:30 p.m.

TIN ROOF

Max Muscato & Sonny

Muscato

Wednesday, Feb. 22, 7 p.m.

HARD ROCK CAFE

Memphis Songwriters

Series

Hosted by Mark Edgar Stuart

$5. ursday, Feb. 16, 7 p.m.

THE HALLORAN CENTRE

Party Down

Friday, Feb. 17, 10 p.m.; Saturday, Feb. 18, 10 p.m.

TIN ROOF

Pure Guava

Ween cover band, featuring surprise special guests. Saturday, Feb. 18, 8:30 p.m.-12:30 a.m.

HIGH COTTON BREWING CO.

Rodell McCord

Sunday, Feb. 19, 7 p.m.

TIN ROOF

Roxi Love

Wednesday, Feb. 22, 8 p.m.

TIN ROOF

Scratch and Snare

Every ursday night join Tin Roof for Scratch and Snare with DJ Stringbean and Matt the Drummer. ursday, Feb. 16, 10 p.m.

TIN ROOF

Sonya Ann

Tuesday, Feb. 21, 7 p.m.

TIN ROOF

Star-Crossed Love:

Romeo and Juliet

Experience two Russian masters’ musical interpretations of e Bard’s eternal tale of star-crossed lovers. Saturday, Feb. 18, 7:30 p.m.

CANNON CENTER FOR THE PER-

FORMING ARTS

Trevor Berryhill

Saturday, Feb. 18, noon

TIN ROOF

901ROX

Saturday, Feb. 18, 9 p.m.

T.J. MULLIGAN’S

Deep Roots

Tuesday, Feb. 21, 5 p.m.

T.J. MULLIGAN’S

The Amber McCain Band

Friday, Feb. 17, 8 p.m.

NEIL’S MUSIC ROOM

Amber McCain Band

Friday, Feb. 17, 6 p.m.

LAFAYETTE’S MUSIC ROOM

Aquanet

Saturday, Feb. 18, 10 p.m.

LAFAYETTE’S MUSIC ROOM

Bailey Bigger

Friday, Feb. 17, 8 p.m.

BAR DKDC

Damned to Earth, Seeing Hell, Discard

Wednesday, Feb. 22, 9 p.m.

HI TONE

Devil Train

ursday, Feb. 16, 9:30 p.m.

B-SIDE

Dirty Streets with Arc of Quaser

Friday, Feb. 17, 9 p.m.

B-SIDE

JD Westmorland Band

Monday, Feb. 20, 10 p.m.

B-SIDE

Jeremy Stanfill with Bailey Bigger

Tuesday, Feb. 21, 9 p.m.

B-SIDE

Joe Restivo 4

Saturday, Feb. 18, 11 a.m.;

Sunday, Feb. 19, 11 a.m.

LAFAYETTE’S MUSIC ROOM

Karaoke of Love

Sing, drink, and dance with karaoke master Good Ole’

Tevin. ursday, Feb. 16, 7-11:30 p.m.

MEMPHIS CURRENT

Leyla McCalla

$30. Friday, Feb. 17, 7:30-10 p.m.

CROSSTOWN THEATER

Louder Than Bombs

Saturday, Feb. 18, 10 p.m.

BAR DKDC

Lucky 7 Brass Band

Friday, Feb. 17, 10 p.m.

BAR DKDC

Mad Zach “Potential Energy Tour”

$15-$20. Friday, Feb. 17, 8 p.m.

GROWLERS

Mardi Gras in Memphis: George Porter Jr. with Magnolia Boulevard

Saturday, Feb. 18, 8 p.m.

RAILGARTEN

Mardi Gras in Memphis:

Lucky 7 Brass Band, Marcella & Her Lovers

ursday, Feb. 16, 8 p.m.

RAILGARTEN

Culture Bender

Memphis Fest

Cult Fiend, Sumotre, Seeing Hell, Killbozby, Ash Leon, Kill Command, Adaje, Glorious Abhor, and Risky Whispers.

Friday, Feb. 17, 7 p.m.

HI TONE

Shakermaker

Sunday, Feb. 19, 8 p.m.

B-SIDE

Smells Like Nirvana

Tribute

$17-$20. Friday, Feb. 17, 7 p.m.

GROWLERS

Sooperflat

Saturday, Feb. 18, 9 p.m.

HI TONE

Sound Fuzion

Saturday, Feb. 18, 7:30 p.m.

THE GREEN ROOM AT CROSSTOWN ARTS

Star-Crossed Love: Romeo and Juliet Experience two Russian masters’ musical interpretations of e Bard’s eternal tale of star-crossed lovers. Sunday, Feb. 19, 2:30 p.m.

SCHEIDT FAMILY PERFORMING ARTS CENTER

Star & Micey, Jombi, Daykisser

Saturday, Feb. 18, 9 p.m.

HI TONE

The Bartenders Ball: Spirited by Old Dominick

Sunday, Feb. 19, 9 p.m.

HI TONE

The Project H

$15-$20. Tuesday, Feb. 21, 7:30-10 p.m.

THE GREEN ROOM AT CROSSTOWN ARTS

Thin, The Wind in the Trees, Circuit Circuit, Lachance

Monday, Feb. 20, 8 p.m.

HI TONE

Tits Dicks Ass (NYC) with Little Baby Tendencies, Fake!

Wednesday, Feb. 22, 9 p.m.

B-SIDE

Vibes

An installment from the vibes crew: DJ DY3, DJ Mala Leche, and Don Twan. 21+. $10.

Friday, Feb. 17, 9 p.m.

CANVAS

Whiskey South

Saturday, Feb. 18, 6-9 p.m.

LAFAYETTE’S MUSIC ROOM

Yellow Nymphos, Robots! Attack!, The Wirms

ursday, Feb. 16, 9 p.m.

HI TONE

2023 Ameripolitan Awards

e Ameripolitan Music Awards returns in 2023 with some big names, old favorites, and rising stars playing showcases during the long weekend of festivities.

ursday, Feb. 16-Feb. 19.

GUEST HOUSE AT GRACELAND

Big Sandy & Dale

Watson’s Tequila & Teardrops

$10. Monday, Feb. 20, 7 p.m.

HERNANDO’S HIDE-A-WAY

Daddy Yankee and Wisin y Yandel

A night lled with the hits of Daddy Yankee and Wisin y Yandel for you to dance and sing! Celebrating the trajectory of the pillars of the reggaeton genre! 18+. $15, $20.

Friday, Feb. 17, 9:30 p.m.

MEMPHIS COLISEUM

Grassfire Bluegrass Band

Tuesday, Feb. 21, 6-9 p.m.

RANCHO GRANDE MEXICAN RESTURATANT

Nate Fredrick and The Wholesome Boys

$15. Wednesday, Feb. 22, 7 p.m.

HERNANDO’S HIDE-A-WAY

The Bar-Kays

Saturday, Feb. 18, 7:30 p.m.

EAST ARKANSAS COMMUNITY COLLEGE

Germantown Symphony Orchestra Presents Americana: An Evening with Randal Rushing

Saturday, Feb. 18, 7:30-9 p.m.

GERMANTOWN PERFORMING ARTS CENTER

Jazz in the Box: Samara Joy Jazz in the Box gives you an opportunity to get up close and personal with live jazz. Cabaret seating and drinks for purchase make this a perfect way to kick o your weekend. $35. Friday, Feb. 17, 7-9 p.m.

GERMANTOWN PERFORMING ARTS CENTER

Memphis Funk n Horns’ Mardi Gras Party

Saturday, Feb. 18, 6:30 p.m.

ST. BENEDICT AT AUBURNDALE HIGH SCHOOL

Songwriters at The Stack

Wednesday, Feb. 22, 7 p.m. THE HAYSTACK CAFE

PHOTO: COURTESY PYRAMID ENTERTAINMENT GROUP e Bar-Kays

CALENDAR of EVENTS: February 16 - 22

ART AND SPECIAL EXHIBITS

“2023 Mid-South Scholastic Art Awards”

Exhibition featuring more than 135 artworks by area public, private, and independently schooled youth.

Through Feb. 19.

MEMPHIS BROOKS MUSEUM OF ART

“AI Artificial Intelligence: Your Mind & The Machine”

Learn how AI touches lives — now and in the future.

Through May 6.

MUSEUM OF SCIENCE & HISTORY

“All Power to All People”

Hank Willis Thomas’ eightfoot tall Afro pick with a power fist cast in aluminum.

Through May 7.

FOURTH BLUFF PARK

“American Made: Paintings and Sculpture from the DeMell Jacobsen Collection”

Exhibition of more than 100 works from the DeMell Jacobsen Collection, spanning 250 years of American history.

Through April 16.

THE DIXON GALLERY & GARDENS

“As It Is, As It Could Be”

A solo exhibition featuring new paintings by Ethiopian artist Dereje Demissie, whose paintings explore history, memory, and humanity’s place in the natural, physical, and cultural landscapes. Through Feb. 28.

UREVBU CONTEMPORARY

“Atmospheric Conditions”

Complete, imperfect, and narrative, Bill Killebrew’s narrative scenic paintings elevate something as commonplace as daylight, making it the unifying component in a painting.

Through April 1.

DAVID LUSK GALLERY

“Black Alchemy: Backwards/Forwards

Revisited”

A solo exhibition by photographer Aaron Turner that explores the depths of music through visual art. Through March 18.

TONE

“Community Art Gallery: Southern Buildings”

This series of small-scale watercolor paintings by artist David Rawlinson gives new life to abandoned buildings and homes found in Tennessee, Arkansas, and Mississippi. Through March 4.

MORTON MUSEUM OF COLLIERVILLE

HISTORY

“Every Girl’s Got A Secret”

Exhibition of work by Stephanie Albion in conjunction with Playhouse’s ROE. Through Feb. 19.

CIRCUIT PLAYHOUSE

“Evocative Moments”

Exhibition of work by Marc

Wheetley. Through March 31.

MEMPHIS BOTANIC GARDEN

“Extending the Potential: The Art and Techniques of Bill Helwig”

Explore the beauty and techniques of enameling through the work of the late Bill Helwig and current enamel artists. Sunday, Feb. 19-May 21.

METAL MUSEUM

“Gentle Awakenings, The Art of Keith Burns”

Exhibition of woodwork by Keith Burns. Through April 22.

MORTON MUSEUM OF COLLIERVILLE

HISTORY

“Global Glimpses”

Exhibit of snapshots from the travel scrapbook of Will and Sarah Bettendorf. Through Feb. 22.

ST. GEORGE’S ART GALLERY AT ST.

GEORGE’S EPISCOPAL CHURCH

“Jet Lag”

An exhibition of works from 16 of the artists comprising the new art collection at the airport’s Concourse B. Through Feb. 24.

THE MARTHA AND ROBERT FOGELMAN GALLERIES OF CONTEMPORARY ARTS

“Mending in a State of Abundance”

Exhibition of work by Katrina Perdue exploring the emotional and physical labor of repairs. Through March 5.

CROSSTOWN ARTS

“Never Done Making History”

Installation highlighting the legendary Tennessee State

University’s (TSU) Tigerbelles track team. Through Feb. 28.

NATIONAL CIVIL RIGHTS MUSEUM

“Of This Place”

Jeanne Seagle’s perceptive drawings portray the landscapes surrounding Memphis.

Through April 9.

THE DIXON GALLERY & GARDENS

Original Works by Denise Rikard

Original paintings by Denise Rikard. Through Feb. 28. GALLERY 1091

“Salmon Skin Fried … and Other Delicacies”

Exhibition of work by Sharon Havelka who constructs mixedmedia quilt sculptures from old clothing and other found objects. Through March 5.

BEVERLY + SAM ROSS GALLERY

“Shared Spaces: Works by Rob Gonzo & Collabs with George Hunt”

This colorful, fun show features pieces that were sketched by Hunt before his death and later finished with paint and collage by Gonzo. Through March 4.

BUCKMAN ARTS CENTER AT ST.

MARY’S SCHOOL

“Summer in Shanghai”

A three-part video series of reflections and meditations during the hottest time of the year in China’s biggest city.

Through March 5.

CROSSTOWN ARTS

“Tarred Healing”

A photographic exhibition by award-winning Black photographer Cornell Watson. Through March 20.

NATIONAL CIVIL RIGHTS MUSEUM

Send the date, time, place, cost, info, phone number, a brief description, and photos — two weeks in advance — to calendar@memphisflyer.com.

DUE TO SPACE LIMITATIONS, ONGOING WEEKLY EVENTS WILL APPEAR IN THE FLYER’S ONLINE CALENDAR ONLY. FOR COMPREHENSIVE EVENT LISTINGS, VISIT EVENTS.MEMPHISFLYER.COM/CAL

Danielle Sierra featured in the Interactive Gallery, and Jeanne Seagle featured in the Mallory/Wurtzburger Galleries.

Thursday, Feb. 16, 5:30 p.m.

THE DIXON GALLERY & GARDENS

Desayuno on Libros: Building & Strengthening

Community through Literacy and Food

The lecture series features presentations by local artists, scholars, and Dixon staff sharing their knowledge on a variety of topics. Wednesday, Feb. 22, noon-1 p.m.

THE DIXON GALLERY & GARDENS

“Remedy” Reception

Exhibition of work by Mikayla Washington. Friday, Feb. 17, 5-7 p.m.

1910 FRAME WORKS & GALLERY

“Sentiments” Art Show

Opening Night Exhibition of work by Sami Roth. Friday, Feb. 17, 6-9 p.m. OFF THE WALLS ARTS

BOOK EVENTS

Dixon Book Club

This month’s book is The Personal Librarian by Marie Benedict and Victoria Christopher Murray. Thursday, Feb. 16, 6 p.m.

“Tend To”

A flora-filled group exhibition featuring works from Joel Parsons, Sarah Elizabeth Cornejo, and Verushka Dior. Through May 7.

URBAN ART COMMISSION

“The Art of Friendship”

Featuring artwork by Danny Broadway, Wanda Donati, Leatha Frost, Lou Hoover, Laurie Samuels, and Vicki Shipley. Through Feb. 28.

MEMPHIS JEWISH COMMUNITY CENTER

“The Ecstasy of Influence: Mid-South Artists Centering the Margins”

Featuring Ahmad George, Maritza Davila, Tommy Kha, Richard Lou, and D’Angelo Lovell Williams. Through March 10.

CLOUGH-HANSON GALLERY

“The Making of Elvis Movie Exhibition”

Exhibition looking at the creative process for Baz Luhrmann’s film and following it through its journey to the big screen. Through Sept. 4.

GRACELAND EXHIBITION CENTER

“Those Who Hold Dominion Here”

Exhibition of work by Sarah Elizabeth Cornejo that takes inspiration from serpents in Incan mythology and Southern snakes. Through March 5.

CROSSTOWN ARTS

“Tommy Kha: Eye is Another”

A site-specific, photographybased installation by artist

Tommy Kha exploring themes of identity, (in)visibility, and sense of place. Through May 7.

MEMPHIS BROOKS MUSEUM OF ART

“When Arrows Meet” Exhibition of work by Nick Canterucci. Through Feb. 18.

MEDICINE FACTORY

“Who Is that Artist?”

Visitors can explore interactive components created by Johana Moscoso, Karla Sanchez, and Danielle Sierra, who speak to Latinx identity, intersectionality, and transcendence. Through April 16.

THE DIXON GALLERY & GARDENS

ART HAPPENINGS

Art, Lyrics, & Beats

Collect fine art while enjoying a delicious cuisine, wine, and hella Blackness! There will be live body painting by Pashun Baptiste, spoken word, musical performances, and more. $33.

Saturday, Feb. 18, 6-9 p.m.

ORIJENNAL ART

From the Dnipro to the Mississippi: A Conversation with Four Ukrainian Artists

Four internationally acclaimed Ukrainian graphic artists join live (via Zoom) from Kyiv for a conversation about Ukrainian art, culture, and society before and since the full-fledged Russian invasion.

Friday, Feb. 17, 11 a.m.

UNIVERSITY OF MEMPHIS

Meet the Artists

Reception

Meet the artists Johana Moscoso, Karla Sanchez, and

THE DIXON GALLERY & GARDENS

Meet the Author: Kristin Chenoweth

Novel welcomes Emmy and Tony Award-winning actress, singer, and NYT bestselling author Kristin Chenoweth to celebrate the release of her new book I’m No Philosopher, But I Got Thoughts. Sunday, Feb. 19, noon.

NOVEL

Our Stories Matter

6th Annual African American Read-In Readers of all ages can participate! Choose from a selection of poems provided by Black Children’s Books and Authors or bring one from your favorite Black poet. Saturday, Feb. 18, 3-5 p.m.

BENJAMIN L. HOOKS CENTRAL LIBRARY

CLASS / WORKSHOP

Afro-Colombian Dance Workshop

Join Cazateatro for this special workshop exploring traditional Afro-Colombian dances. $10. Wednesday, Feb. 22, 6:30-7:30 p.m.

CAZATEATRO OFFICE

Celebrate Black Artists: Romare Bearden Students will learn about Romare Bearden, his art and create their own Bearden inspired art. $30. Saturday, Feb. 18, 10 a.m.-noon. ARROW CREATIVE

In the “Atmospheric Conditions” exhibit at David Lusk Gallery, Bill Killebrew’s narrative scenic paintings elevate something as commonplace as daylight.

Floral Arrangement

Still Life with Amy Hartelust

Create your own floral arrangement and use it to paint a still life. $65. Friday, Feb. 17, 5:30-8:30 p.m.

ARROW CREATIVE

Hobby Kick-Start:

Introduction to Homemade Tinctures and Salves with Amanda Hicks (21+)

Learn how to use herbs like basil and rosemary in tinctures and salves. $15$25. Thursday, Feb. 16, 6-7:30 p.m.

THE DIXON GALLERY & GARDENS

Master Gardeners Present Gardening in the Ever-Changing Environment

Join the Memphis Area Master Gardeners and the Memphis Botanic Garden for this program on gardening in difficult times. $10-$15.

Saturday, Feb. 18, 9 a.m.-noon.

MEMPHIS BOTANIC GARDEN

Winter Planning 4 Spring Planting

Winter is the perfect time to start planning your spring garden, so grab your journal and pen and start envisioning the perfect spring/ summer garden that’s just right for you.

Thursday, Feb. 16, 6 p.m.

FRAYSER CONNECT

Women and Business Seminar 2023

Be inspired and motivated by leading women business professionals who are impacting change within their respective industries. $25.

Thursday, Feb. 16, 3:30-5 p.m.

MEMPHIS BOTANIC GARDEN

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, Feb. 22, 8:30 p.m.

LAMPLIGHTER LOUNGE

Grind City Comedy

Monday, Feb. 20, 7 p.m.

B-SIDE

COMMUNITY

Blacks-N-Tech

Join MoSH in partnership with Code Crew this Black History Month to celebrate some of the leaders and up-and-coming superstars of the Memphis tech field. Saturday, Feb. 18, 11 a.m.-3 p.m.

MUSEUM OF SCIENCE & HISTORY

Candid Conversations with Entrepreneurs: Black History Month

Edition

This will be a candid conversation about real estate. Thursday, Feb. 16, 5 p.m.

MUGGIN COFFEEHOUSE

Free Tarot Share

Tarot share is a fun evening of hanging out with other tarot readers, reading, and learning from each other.

Wednesday, Feb. 22, 7 p.m.

THE BROOM CLOSET

Great Backyard Birdcount

Join volunteers from the Memphis Chapter of the Tennessee Ornithological Society for this citizen science project that encourages everyone to get out and count birds. No experience is required.

Saturday, Feb. 18, 11 a.m.-1 p.m.

LICHTERMAN NATURE CENTER

Lunch and Learn: Know Your City

John Carroll, the executive director of City Leadership, will discuss the great happenings in the 901. Tuesday, Feb. 21, 11 a.m.-1 p.m.

MEMPHIS PUBLIC LIBRARIES

Pick Up for a Pint!

Volunteers will disperse across the neighbor-

CALENDAR: FEBRUARY 16 - 22

Emmy and Tony Award-winning Kristin Chenoweth heads to Novel for the launch of her new book.

hood to pick up trash and meet back at the brewery for a free beer. Saturday, Feb. 18, 12:30-1:30 p.m.

MEMPHIS MADE BREWING COMPANY

Practicing with Playback: Humor

Learn how to use the tools of Playback to approach life with humor and optimism.

$5-$15. Tuesday, Feb. 21, 11:45 a.m.-1 p.m.

UNIVERSITY OF TENNESSEE HEALTH SCIENCE CENTER

Shop Talk North Memphis: Male

Grooming Product Justice

Join Black Millennials 4 Flint for a DOPE conversation surrounding male grooming product justice — a movement to prevent men from exposure to harsh and toxic skin-care and products. Saturday, Feb. 18, 1-2 p.m.

SHOPOPEN

FILM

An Affair to Remember

A screening of the beautiful Academy Awardnominated ode to fate and chance encounters, starring the always charming and debonair Cary Grant and a passionate, soulful Deborah Kerr. 16+. Free. Tuesday, Feb. 21, 5 p.m.

BLACK LODGE

Cooley High

Cooley High deals with girl, school, and police troubles as a group of high school seniors prepare for post-high-school life. $5. Thursday, Feb. 16, 7-9 p.m.

CROSSTOWN THEATER

Haute Couture

Esther is at the end of her career as head seamstress, but soon she sees the opportunity to pass on her skills to a young Jade. Thursday, Feb. 16, 7 p.m.

MEMPHIS JEWISH COMMUNITY CENTER

All the Beauty & the Bloodshed

Rare footage and intimate interviews provide insight into the life and work of renowned photographer and activist Nan Goldin in this gripping Academy Award contender. Wednesday, Feb. 22, 7-9 p.m.

MALCO STUDIO ON THE SQUARE

Robots 3-D

and act like us, and how humanoids, through their successes and failures, are already changing the world. Through Feb. 22.

MUSEUM OF SCIENCE & HISTORY

The Jews and the Blues

The Jews and the Blues is a musical journey that along the way becomes something much more. Sunday, Feb. 19, 2 p.m.

MEMPHIS JEWISH COMMUNITY CENTER

Valiant Hearts

A gripping true tale of survival against all odds, Valiant Hearts tells the story of six Jewish children in 1942 who were hidden by the Resistance along with priceless artworks from the Louvre. Tuesday, Feb. 21, 7 p.m.

MEMPHIS JEWISH COMMUNITY CENTER

FOOD AND DRINK

5th Annual Hearts 4 HappiDog

Dinner and Auction

This event promises to be a night full of fun, prizes, food, a silent and live auction, shopping, and entertainment. Saturday, Feb. 18, 6-11 p.m.

MUSEUM OF SCIENCE & HISTORY

Drunk Spelling Bee

Test your spelling skills just slightly inebriated. Each round you pass you get another shot. The

ACROSS

1 The Mayflower had three of them

6 Rocker Lofgren 10

The New York Times Syndication Sales Corporation 620 Eighth Avenue, New York, N.Y. 10018

A fascinating and fun look at what makes us human, how far machines can really go to look

For Information Call: 1-800-972-3550 For

Crossword

continued on page 16

Edited by Will Shortz No. 1209

43 Actor who played Andy Bernard on “The Office”

50

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

PUZZLE BY ELLIS HAY

continued from page 15

last person standing wins $150 cash. Admission is $15 and $10 to participate in the spelling bee. Friday, Feb. 17, 8 p.m.

THE COMEDY JUNT

Egg-onomic Relief

A locally sourced poultry pop-up presented by Bring It Food Hub. Saturday, Feb. 18, 1-4 p.m.

ADVANCE MEMPHIS WAREHOUSE

Flowers and Chocolate

Annual chocolate and beer pairing featuring Dinstuhl’s Fine Candy and Wiseacre Brewing Company. Saturday, Feb. 18, 1-6 p.m.

WISEACRE HQ

Youth Villages’ Soup

Sunday

This year, Soup Sunday will feature 20 of Memphis’ best restaurants and caterers serving your local favorites that will top off your day of fun with delicious innovation. Sunday, Feb. 19, 11 a.m.-2 p.m.

THE KENT

PERFORMING ARTS

80th Anniversary Edition of the Al Chymia Shrine Circus

The Mid-South’s very own circus is back and celebrating eight decades of entertainment. This massive spectacular is affordable family fun for everyone and benefits

West Tennessee’s Al Chymia Shriners. $15-$25. Thursday, Feb. 16-Feb. 19.

AGRICENTER INTERNATIONAL, SHOWPLACE ARENA

Kristin Chenoweth: For the Girls

Emmy and Tony Award-winning actress and singer Kristin Chenoweth hits the stage for an incredible evening of live music. $65-$100. Saturday, Feb. 18, 7:30 p.m.

HEINDL CENTER FOR THE PER -

FORMING ARTS

Opera Goes to Mardi

Gras

Celebrate a tale of two cities with selections related to New Orleans and Venice, where opera and Carnival season go hand in hand! $25. Saturday, Feb. 18, 7:30 p.m.

THE DIXON GALLERY & GARDENS

Rainbow Rumble

Rainbow Rumble is a oncea-month drag competition hosted by Moth Moth Moth . Friday, Feb. 17, 8-11:30 p.m.

BLACK LODGE

The Boom Boom Effect

Aubrey Ombre and The Boom Boom Effect are ready too explode! Featuring Kiera Mason, Ashton Opulence, La Mixsi, Raven Kelly, Devon Davenport Phillips, and Sairen Strange! Saturday, Feb. 18, 10 p.m.

DRU’S PLACE

WILD WILD WEST: A Variety Show

Introducing … WILD WILD WEST: A variety show featuring up-and-coming queer artists!

Free. Sunday, Feb. 19, 7-9 p.m. LAMPLIGHTER LOUNGE

SPORTS

Memphis vs. UCF

Thursday, Feb. 16, 7 p.m. FEDEXFORUM

PBR: Bluff City Classic

Some of the best bull riders in the world will battle the sport’s rankest bovine athletes in the ultimate showdown of man vs. beast. Saturday, Feb. 18, 7 p.m.

FEDEXFORUM

THEATER

Cyrano de Bergerac Rostand’s Cyrano is a hero whose depth of love, humor,

Urban Art Commission’s flora-filled “Tend To” exhibit features work from Joel Parsons, Sarah Elizabeth Cornejo, and Verushka Dior.

courage, and vulnerability belies his outward appearance. But will his secret love, Roxanne, recognize this before it’s too late? Through Feb. 19.

TENNESSEE SHAKESPEARE

COMPANY

Macbeth

The powerful and dramatic William Shakespeare tragedy ascends to the stage at Theatre Memphis. $25. Through Feb. 19.

THEATRE MEMPHIS

Misery

Successful romance novelist Paul is rescued from a car crash by his number-one fan Annie and wakes up captive in her secluded home. $20-$25.

Through Feb. 26.

THEATREWORKS

Roe

Lisa Loomer’s play weaves the stories of multiple women and men involved in the movement leading up to the Roe v. Wade decision and its aftermath. Through Feb. 19.

CIRCUIT PLAYHOUSE

Shakin’ the Mess Outta

Misery

This timeless coming-of-age

tale explores passage into womanhood, race, and rituals in the 1960s South. $30-$35. Through Feb. 26.

HATTILOO THEATRE

The Loves II Temperatures rise, and relationships are turned topsyturvy and upside down on a television production with the charismatic husband and wife team of Greg and Liz. $30. Through Feb. 19.

THE EVERGREEN THEATRE

The Scottsboro Boys

A retelling of the landmark trial of nine falsely accused black teenagers. This case would eventually give rise to the Civil Rights Movement. Through Feb. 19.

ON

Tina: The Tina Turner Musical

A jukebox musical featuring the music of Tina Turner and depicting her life from her humble beginnings in Nutbush, Tennessee, to her transformation into a rock-and-roll star. Through Feb. 19.

ORPHEUM THEATRE

TOURS

Cemetery Walk

Shake off the dust midday and join one of Elmwood’s volunteer tour guides for a one-mile, 30-minute Cemetery Walk. Free. Wednesday, Feb. 22, noon-12:30 p.m.

ELMWOOD CEMETERY

PLAYHOUSE

THE SQUARE

NEWS OF THE WEIRD

By the editors at Andrews McMeel Syndication

Ewwww

Muscle Shoals, Alabama, experienced a thunderstorm on Dec. 10 that brought more than lightning and heavy rain, WHNT-TV reported. The city’s utility board manager, James Vance, said lightning struck controls at a sewer pump station, which allowed almost 2,000 gallons of sewage to flow into the streets of the Camden Cove subdivision. The sludge eventually flowed into a stormwater retention pond, and utility crews were able to clean up the mess. [WHNT, 12/13/2022]

New World Order

People. Can’t we all agree that fast food isn’t worth a human life? On Dec. 12 at a KFC restaurant in St. Louis, Fox2TV reported, a man in the drive-thru asked for corn with his meal. When the employee told him they were out of corn, he made threatening remarks, then drove up to the window displaying a handgun. A 25-year-old employee went outside to speak with the suspect, who allegedly shot him. The victim was hospitalized with his injuries. The suspect took off after the shooting; police are still looking for him. [Fox2, 12/13/2022]

Irony

Early on Jan. 14, in Monterrey, Mexico, Carlos Alonso, 32, allegedly broke a glass door at Christ the King Parish and entered, intending to rob the church, Catholic News Agency reported. But as he tried to flee with a statue of St. Michael the Archangel in hand, he tripped and fell on the angel’s sword, seriously wounding his neck. Passersby saw the injured Alonso and called for help; he is expected to be charged after he recovers from the fall. The statue was unharmed. [CNA, 1/17/2023]

Recent Alarming Headline

On Jan. 16, a drive-thru customer at a coffee shop in Auburn, Washington, wanted more than an extra shot, KCRA-TV reported. As the barista handed Matthew Darnell, 38, his change through the window, a surveillance camera caught him grabbing her arm and pulling her toward him as he fumbled with a zip tie. The barista was able to pull away from him and close the windows as his dollar bills went flying. He drove off, but a distinctive “Chevrolet” tattoo on his arm was

captured on video, along with his side profile. Police later reported that Darnell had been arrested at his home in Auburn and was held on $500,000 bail. [KCRA, 1/19/2023]

Molehill, Meet Mountain

After getting into a dispute with staff at Jinling Purple Mountain Hotel in Shanghai on Jan. 10 over a misplaced laptop, a 28-year-old man named Chen decided to escalate, CBS News reported. He crashed his car through the glass lobby doors and careened around the space, knocking over fixtures and terrifying other guests, who tried to get the driver out of the car. “Do you have any idea what you’ve done? Are you crazy? Are you?” onlookers screamed at him. As he attempted to exit the lobby, he hit a door frame and came to a stop, and police took him into custody. It turns out the laptop had been stolen and was found outside the hotel; no one was injured. [CBS News, 1/11/2023]

Fail

When Minnechaug Regional High School in Wilbraham, Massachusetts, was built in 2012, the district installed a high-tech lighting system that was intended to save on energy costs, NBC News reported. But the software that controls the lights failed on Aug. 24, 2021, and every light in the school has been on since then. Aaron Osborne, the assistant superintendent for the district, says the glitch is costing taxpayers “in the thousands of dollars per month on average, but not in the tens of thousands.” Teachers have removed bulbs where possible, and staff have shut off breakers to darken some of the exterior lighting. But help is on the way! Parts from China have arrived to fix the problem, which is expected to be completed in February. [NBC News, 1/19/2023]

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

News of the Weird is now a podcast on all major platforms! Find out more at newsoftheweirdpodcast.com.

NEWS OF THE WEIRD

© 2023 Andrews McMeel Syndication. Reprinted with permission. All rights reserved.

ARIES (March 21-April 19): Aries director Francis Ford Coppola was asked to name the year’s worst movie. The question didn’t interest him, he said. He listed his favorite films, then declared, “Movies are hard to make, so I’d say, all the other ones were fine!” Coppola’s comments remind me of author Dave Eggers’: “Do not dismiss a book until you have written one, and do not dismiss a movie until you have made one, and do not dismiss a person until you have met them.” In accordance with astrological omens, Aries, your assignment is to explore and embody these perspectives. Refrain from judging efforts about which you have no personal knowledge. Be as open-minded and generous as you can. Doing so will give you fuller access to half-dormant aspects of your own potentials.

TAURUS (April 20-May 20): Artist Andy Warhol said, only half in jest, “Being good in business is the most fascinating kind of art. Making money is art, and working is art, and good business is the best art.” More than any other sign, Tauruses embody this attitude with flare. When you are at your best, you’re not a greedy materialist who places a higher value on money than everything else. Instead, you approach the gathering of necessary resources, including money, as a fun art project that you perform with love and creativity. I invite you to ascend to an even higher octave of this talent.

GEMINI (May 21-June 20): You are gliding into the Season of Maximum Volition, Autonomy, and Liberty. Now is a favorable time to explore and expand the pleasures of personal sovereignty. You will be at the peak of your power to declare your independence from influences that hinder and limit you. To prepare, try two experiments. 1. Act as if free will is an illusion. It doesn’t exist. There’s no such thing. Then visualize what your destiny would be like. 2. Act as if free will is real. Imagine that in the coming months you can have more of it at your disposal than ever before. What will your destiny be like?

CANCER (June 21-July 22): The ethereal, dreamy side of your nature must continually find ways to express itself beautifully and playfully. And I do mean “continually.” If you’re not always allowing your imagination to roam and romp around in Wonderland, your imagination may lapse into spinning out crabby delusions. Luckily, I don’t think you will have any problems attending to this necessary luxury in the coming weeks. From what I can tell, you will be highly motivated to generate fluidic fun by rambling through fantasy realms. Bonus! I suspect this will generate practical benefits.

LEO (July 23-Aug. 22): Don’t treat your allies or yourself with neglect and

insensitivity. For the sake of your mental and physical health, you need to do the exact opposite. I’m not exaggerating! To enhance your well-being, be almost ridiculously positive. Be vigorously nice and rigorously kind. Bestow blessings and dole out compliments, both to others and yourself. See the best and expect the best in both others and yourself.

VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22): Is there a bug in the sanctuary of love? A parasite or saboteur? If so, banish it. Is there a cranky monster grumbling in the basement or attic or closet? Feed that creature chunks of raw cookie dough imbued with a crushedup valium pill. Do you have a stuffed animal or holy statue to whom you can spill your deep, dark, delicious secrets? If not, get one. Have you been spending quality time rumbling around in your fantasy world in quest of spectacular healings? If not, get busy. Those healings are ready for you to pluck them.

LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22): There’s a weird magic operating in your vicinity these days — a curious, uncanny kind of luck. So while my counsel here might sound counterintuitive, I think it’s true. Here are four affirmations to chant regularly: 1. “I will attract and acquire what I want by acting as if I don’t care if I get what I want.” 2. “I will become grounded and relaxed with the help of beautiful messes and rowdy fun.” 3. “My worries and fears will subside as I make fun of them and joke about them.” 4. “I will activate my deeper ambition by giving myself permission to be lazy.”

SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21): How many people would fight for their country? Below I list the countries where my horoscopes are published and the percentage of their populations ready and willing to take up arms against their nations’ enemies: 11 percent in Japan; Netherlands, 15 percent; Italy, 20 percent; France, 29 percent; Canada, 30 percent; U.S., 44 percent. So I surmise that Japanese readers are most likely to welcome my advice here, which is threefold: 1. The coming months will be a good time to cultivate your love for your country’s land, people, and culture, but not for your country’s government and armed forces. 2. Minimize your aggressiveness unless you invoke it to improve your personal life — in which case, pump it up and harness them. 3. Don’t get riled up about vague abstractions and fear-based fantasies. But do wield your constructive militancy on behalf of intimate, practical improvements.

SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21): By the time she was 33, Sagittarian actor Jane Fonda was famous and popular. She had already won many awards, including an Oscar. Then she became an outspoken opponent of America’s war in Vietnam.

AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18):

Some people I respect regard the Bible as a great work of literature.

I don’t share that view. Like psychologist Valerie Tarico, I believe the so-called good book is filled with “repetition, awkward constructions, inconsistent voice, weak character development, boring tangents, and passages where nobody can tell what the writer meant to convey.” I bring this to your attention, Aquarius, because I believe now is a good time to rebel against conventional wisdom, escape from experts’ opinions, and formulate your own unique perspectives about pretty much everything. Be like Valerie Tarico and me.

Some of her less liberal fans were outraged. For a few years, her success in films waned. Offers didn’t come easily to her. She later explained that while the industry had not completely “blacklisted” her, she had been “greylisted.” Despite the setback, she kept working — and never diluted her political activism. By the time she was in her forties, her career and reputation had fully recovered. Today, at age 84, she is busy with creative projects. In accordance with astrological rhythms, I propose we make her your role model in the coming months. May she inspire you to be true to your principles even if some people disapprove. Be loyal to what you know is right.

CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19): Charles V (1500–1558) had more than 20 titles, including Holy Roman Emperor, King of Spain, Archduke of Austria, and Lord of the Netherlands. He was also a patron of the arts and architecture. Once, while visiting the renowned Italian painter Titian to have his portrait done, he did something no monarch had ever done. When Titian dropped his paintbrush on the floor, Charles humbly picked it up and gave it to him. I foresee a different but equally interesting switcheroo in your vicinity during the coming weeks. Maybe you will be aided by a big shot or get a blessing from someone you consider out of your league. Perhaps you will earn a status boost or will benefit from a shift in a hierarchy.

PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20): I suspect that arrivederci and au revoir and sayōnara will overlap with birth cries and welcomes and initiations in the coming days. Are you beginning or ending? Leaving or arriving? Letting go or hanging on? Here’s what I think: You will be beginning and ending; leaving and arriving; letting go and hanging on. That could be confusing, but it could also be fun. The mix of emotions will be rich and soulful.

FOOD By Michael Donahue

Sauce Boss

If you don’t know him already, meet Reuben Skahill, the new “sauce boss”/ managing partner at the upcoming Elwood’s Shack Park, which is slated to open in March, at 4040 Park Avenue.

Skahill, 30, co-founder of the Memphis Sandwich Clique and the old Clique HQ, will help cook at Elwood’s if need be, but he insists he’s not a chef.

“I just love food,” Skahill says. “I’m just so passionate. I feel like it’s a testament. If you really like something, if you just go for it 110 percent, you don’t have to be an expert.”

A native of Beverly, Massachusetts, Skahill says, “I lived in a Kosher household, so I had traditional Jewish food. Like chicken cutlets and matzo ball soup.

“I was a ‘competitive eater.’ I have two younger twin siblings. ere was always food.”

opened up the Holy Cow at the Memphis Jewish Community Center. It was just like a poolside grill.”

He and a friend served Kosher items, including chicken shawarma and Kosher hot dogs. “I was the register for the most part and he was the griller. And sometimes we would switch.”

Skahill moved to other restaurant jobs, including Amerigo Italian Restaurant, where he worked as a bartender. He ate “everything on the menu” at least once at Amerigo.

In 2019, Skahill “started getting into the nuances of sandwiches.” He co-founded Memphis Sandwich Clique, a Facebook group. “We would just encourage anyone to post sandwiches they like. Tasty things someone could get from a local place that doesn’t advertise.”

Skahill, who no longer is with the group, says, “We found an overwhelmingly zealous audience for sandwiches of all types.”

As for how many sandwiches they posted during the two years he was with the group, Skahill says, “I’m not exaggerating. Over 500,000 posts of sandwiches.” at led to co-founding Clique HQ, a “sandwich speakeasy” in East Memphis. “ at was our online pick up-only sandwich deli restaurant.”

And there was a strategy involved when sitting down at the table: “You get the biggest piece and you nish rst, you get more.”

Skahill’s family moved to Memphis in 2004 a er his dad, an air tra c controller, was reassigned. e move was “an incredible culture shock. In the best of ways.”

As a 12-year-old, Skahill had “never experienced the avors” of the South.

He ate pig for the rst time at a sleepover. “His mom made breakfast in the morning and we didn’t tell her we were keeping Kosher.”

And? “I don’t want to disrespect my religion, but it was amazing.”

He continued to experiment. “I felt like I had to make up for lost time. I did enjoy the freedom of these new options: fried chicken, spices, in general.”

Skahill, who prefers brisket over pork barbecue, still keeps a Kosher diet with some items.

He got his rst food-related job at 16. “I

He was working for Memphis Capital when Elwood’s Shack owner Tim Bednarski asked him to come to work for him at the restaurant’s second location. “Tim has been a huge supporter of me and things I have done over the last four or ve years. I’ve been a huge Elwood’s fan forever. It changed my life. I had never had a smoked anything.”

Skahill fell in love with Elwood’s Caribbean jerk wings. “Everything on this menu is gold.”

In his new job, Skahill says, “I’ll be in charge of operations for the front and the back of the house.”

He’ll help with cooking, but, he says, “Food wise, I’m helping create our highend co ee bar menu.”

Skahill is excited about the new place.

“Being close to the University of Memphis and being close to the new developments that are going on such as the renovation of the Audubon golf course and Le wich Tennis Center. And just being a part of the revitalization of the whole neighborhood.

“Anybody I’ve ever met in Memphis has either lived in or partied in or had some crazy experiences in the neighborhood.”

Now, Skahill says he wants to “try and get everybody back in the neighborhood and get some good food.”

Reuben Skahill is managing partner at Elwood’s Shack Park.

PHOTO: MICHAEL DONAHUE Reuben Skahill

FILM By Izzy Wollfarth

Star Light, Star Bright

Puss in Boots: e Last Wish continues the Shrek legacy in style.

DreamWorks has long been a force to be reckoned with in animation, with nancially successful properties like Kung Fu Panda and Trolls Shrek is DreamWorks’ most beloved franchise, and the company has been able to awlessly continue the ogre’s legacy by creating spin-o s centered around his sidekick, Puss in Boots. Puss in Boots: e Last Wish has proven to be a sleeper hit, with $555 million in box o ce earnings and an Oscar nomination for Best Animated Film.

is story follows Puss in Boots (Antonio Banderas), who has lived many lives as a fearless hero and, being that he is a cat, has had a few lives to spare. Inevitably, he takes a stunt too far and nds himself le with only one remaining life. With death always on his tail, he can no longer be the fearless cat he once was. Instead, he must live the life he has always feared: that of a domestic cat.

Exchanging boots for kitty mittens

and unlimited toilet privileges for a shared litter box, Puss prepares for a quiet retirement. en he hears about the Wishing Star, a magical object hidden somewhere in the Forbidden Forest that will make dreams real.

It is not long before Puss straps on his cape and rapier and quests for the star. During his journey, though, he encounters other iconic fairytale characters, such as Goldilocks (Florence Pugh) with her ree Bears (Olivia Colman, Ray Winstone, and Samson Kayo), Kitty So paws (Salma Hayek), and Jack Horner (John Mulaney), who are all out for the same prize. Diving back into his dangerous lifestyle, Puss has to team up and trust those around him to have any chance at another life. Jack simmers as the main antagonist, who is angry at the world for his lack of fame. Driven by this anger, he wants the Wishing Star to make him the most powerful and recognized creature in the world.

Even though Jack is evil, director Joel Crawford tunes the humor to

make sure he’s not too scary. Many jokes throughout the lm are geared toward adults, usually coming from Perrito (Harvey Guillén), whose dialogue is sometimes bleeped out for comedic e ect.

Aside from the feelings this movie elicits, the screenplay is as entertaining and interesting as the characters themselves. e animation style has a hand-painted look, similar to some scenes from Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse. e noticeable brush strokes and swirling color make the lm feel like watching a painting in progress. e landscapes are especially pleasing to the eye.

While I have praised Puss In Boots: e Last Wish heavily, I do have one

I Saw You Personals

worry. e lm ends with an overt suggestion that the future may yield another Shrek movie. DreamWorks, so far, has done a phenomenal job at upholding the Shrek legacy, but with so many sequels and remakes saturating the lm industry, I would hate to see another classic franchise driven into the ground. If Shrek 5 is your plan, DreamWorks, maybe slow your roll just a tad.

Puss in Boots: e Last Wish

Now playing Multiple locations

Antonio Banderas reprises his role in the Shrek franchise as the feline hero Puss in Boots.

Our critic picks the best films in theaters this week.

Ant-Man and The Wasp: Quantumania Paul Rudd and Evangeline Lilly star as the two tiniest heroes in the Marvel stable. This time, they’re getting small with Michelle Pfeiffer and Michael Douglas. How small? Like, quark small. And who or what is down there? Murder maniac Kang the Conqueror (Jonathan Majors). Will Ant-Man save the day by attempting the “Thanos Maneuver”? There’s only one way to find out, true believers!

Marlowe

Liam Neeson is Philip Marlowe, Raymond Chandler’s famous detective character who has been played by the likes of Humphrey Bogart, George Sanders, and James

Garner. He’s doing what hard-boiled detectives always do — chasing down wayward rich lovers and slugging whiskey.

Titanic: 25th Anniversary 3D

Leonardo DiCaprio and Kate Winslet try not to go down with the ship in this classic of class privilege, life drawing, and doomed love. Could Rose have saved Jack by making room for him on her makeshift life-raft? Now you can forensically examine the situation in stunning 3D!

Magic Mike’s Last Dance Channing Tatum, mostly nude and extremely sexy, returns with a legion of gyrating man-flesh to put on one last big show. Director Steven Soderbergh produced, directed, shot, and cut this celebration of the endangered wild himbo.

20 23 Awards Breakfast

Tuesday, March 7, 2023 at 7:30 a.m. At Memphis Botanic Garden, Hardin Hall 750 Cherry Road, Memphis, TN 38117

Join Inside Memphis Business as we celebrate the annual CEO of the Year award winners. Memphis is home to executives and leaders who possess tremendous talent, constantly striving to better their companies, organizations, and communities to become the best they can be. Our winners in 2023 are setting the standards for success in fields as diverse as hospitality, nonprofits, wealth management, museums, and advertising.

Join us Tuesday, March 7, 2023 as we honor:

Tickets are available for purchase for $30 per person and include breakfast. Tables of 10 are available for $250. Doors open at 7:30 a.m. and the program will begin promptly at 8 a.m.

Presented by eBiz Solutions and ProTech

Purchase your tickets today at tinyurl.com/memphisceo2023

David S. Waddell of Waddell & Associates

Russ Williams of Archer Malmo

Sally Jones Heinz of MIFA

Doug Browne of Peabody Hotels & Resorts

Dr. Russell Wigginton of National Civil Rights Museum

NOW PLAYING By Chris McCoy

901-575-9400

classifieds@memphisflyer.com

EMPLOYMENT

BUSINESS PROCESS

SPECIALIST

needed at Sylvamo Corporation in Memphis, TN. Must have bachin Supply Chain Mgmt, Logistics, Industrial Engr, or related & 2 yrs’ pulp & paper supply chain exp including:End to end supply chain processes; Supply chain applications within SAP; order to cash business processes; Understanding of pulp and paper product characteristics and hierarchy; Understanding of invoicing systems and returns and diversions transactions; Shipping processes for paper mill and paper converting operations; Understanding of warehouse management systems and interface with SAP; Exports: managing stakeholders and troubleshooting of transactional processes; SAP transactions,

modules, and submodules, including APO, SCEM, ECC. Email CVs to kimberly.paigesmith@sylvamo.com. Equal Opportunity/affirmative action employer including vets and disabled.

CREDIT CONSULTANT

First Horizon Bank (Memphis, TN):

Provides consulting and strategic services to Credit staff and line managers on Credit products and services and develop/implement programs that support the strategic plan. Serve as a project manager in one or more areas and handle all but the most complex problems related to applicable Credit area. Requires a Bachelor’s degree or foreign equivalent in Finance, Accounting or related field and 3 years of experience in the banking industry or related position. Apply via website: https:// www.firsthorizon.com/Careers.

Build Healthy Relationships

Not “normal” ones.

Healthy relationships, as a concept, are a lot like “normal” ones. at is to say, they exist on a spectrum and can be highly contextual.

People can struggle to imagine how both relationships and individual realities can be as subjective as they are, or how something that’s very true for one person is just as untrue for another. is is perhaps because we spend so much time grappling with the idea of what is “normal” or “not normal.” Hungarian-Canadian physician Gabor Maté has called that concept out for what it is — entirely mythical — even making it the title of one of his books.

Really, as long as the psychological, emotional, and safety needs of both people are being met within a relationship, it counts as healthy. To this end, there are a few guiding thoughts to keep in mind as you navigate through friendships and romantic connections, long-term partnerships and marriages, and even relationships with parents and family members.

Understand the burden of expectations.

It’s become common, partly thanks to Hollywood, to have an image of romantic relationships or partnerships where our partners are our everything. Movies and television sell us this idea of a near-perfect connection with another person, someone that lives and breathes us, and we them. Even scripted sitcom spats over dirty dishes and raising kids somehow have a glamorized sheen to them.

e underlying concept isn’t completely a myth, however. Relationships can and do get to that warm and fuzzy place. e scripted part is arguably the suggestion that two people can get there right away. It takes time, and a very great deal of work and mutual nurturing to support the commitment those people make to each other.

In a literal sense, even the most satisfying and kismet relationships don’t involve each person being the other’s “everything.” at’s too heavy of a burden. It doesn’t just take a village to raise kids, but to navigate through the world as healthy adults. Our families, whether it’s a family of origin or a chosen family, play an integral role in that support system, as do friends, religious gures and leaders, and even neighbors.

Here’s another thing that the most successful couples realize: A healthy relationship does not equate to being happy all the time. e relationship isn’t going to be perfect, and you will have disagreements. Take the time to appreciate the positives, make an active e ort to have lives outside of the relationship, say thank you, and support each other.

When unhealthy behaviors start slipping through and occurring more frequently, it’s important to note that these behaviors could start verging on abusive or toxic.

Appreciate the importance of independence. Some level of independence within any relationship is healthy. If you can’t function without another person, that can symbolize codependence or that the connection may not be healthy.

Having independence in a relationship, your own life and friends, is important. For romantic connections, on the other hand, it’s equally important to honor the things you enjoy doing together and that bring you closer. A relationship shouldn’t feel like two people living separate lives side by side.

e simple power of kindness. You can never go wrong with being a kind and nice person. Sometimes, when you get close to someone, it can be more challenging. Emotions run higher, and situations can become more intense. You might get angrier with your partner or a family member than you would with a friend or work colleague, sometimes because it feels safer to, and sometimes because having given yourself so much to someone, even small transgressions can start to feel like big betrayals.

On occasion, this can tip into problematic behaviors. Don’t assume that because a person is a family member or romantic partner, the rules about apologizing, accountability, and owning up when you get things wrong don’t apply or apply di erently. Always remember that your partner is human, too.

Relationships, ultimately, are a shared journey of learning more about each other and appreciating one another’s subtleties and personalities. is can be helpful to remember while navigating some of the ups and downs. Even hard times are a core part of the journey. Whatever you do, don’t beat yourselves up — and don’t chase a er “normal.”

Rachael DeSaussure is the assistant clinical director at Kindred Place, a hub to nurture strong, healthy relationships. Rachael specializes in helping clients with anxiety, depression, stress, domestic violence, trauma, PTSD, behavioral management, coping skills, family con ict, relationship issues, and boundaries.

PHOTO: KELLY SIKKEMA | UNSPLASH

choices for your child this

Coco

Midtown Lingerie Spice Up Date Night!

ALL SIZES SMALL – 3X!! New Styles at CocoandLolas.com

IG/FB/TW @CocoandLolas

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

DO YOU LIKE TO BUILD AND/OR CREATE?

FOURTEENTH COLONY LIGHTING

is a growing small business searching for new members to join our team and learn the art of handcrafting architectural lighting. Applicants must have strong math skills and fabrication knowledge is a plus!

A great fi t for a dedicated employee who appreciates a creative work environment, craftsmanship, and a diverse community. Employee benefi ts include vacation days, health insurance, and 401K.

Apply in person at: 797 Roland St, Memphis 38104 between 10am-12pm or email your resume to: info@fourteenthcolonylighting.com.

Jackson is 1½ years old, sweet, and extremely gentle with people and other dogs. He’s not a barker, loves playing with toys and wants to please you. He’s a lap baby and loves to snuggle. Jackson is neutered, current on shots, crate trained, heartworm negative, and ready for his furever home. CONTACT: