Saturday April 21,
2012
50 cents
Daily Corinthian Vol. 116, No. 97
BY JEBB JOHNSTON Tickets go on sale today at Crossroads Arena for a concert by Luke Bryan, known for country chart-toppers such as “I Don’t Want This Night to End.” The box office is open today from 10 a.m. until 2 p.m. The concert is set for 7 p.m. on May 31 and includes a pair of opening acts — Craig Campbell and Chancie Neal. “We’re real excited about Luke Bryan coming and we feel like it will be a sellout crowd,” said Bill Strickland, the arena’s board chairman. In the box office, Cindy Davis said the arena is getting many phone calls and seeing much excitement about the show. A Georgia native, Bryan is considered a rising country star whose third major label album, “Tailgates & ■ Related Tanlines,” released last sumphoto. mer, has gone Page 2. platinum and produced two number ones on Billboard’s Hot Country Songs chart — “Country Girl (Shake It for Me)” and “I Don’t Want This Night to End.” He also topped the country chart in 2010 with “Someone Else Calling You Baby.” His current single, “Drunk on You,” is climbing the country top 20. Bryan, 35, was influenced as a youth by artists in his parents’ record collection such as Ronnie Milsap and Merle Haggard. He got a guitar at 14 and began playing with local bands at 15. He later moved to Nashville as he worked to break into the business. Bryan performed at the Academy of Country Music Awards show earlier this month and last week was featured in CBS’ “Lionel Richie and Friends” special performing Richie’s 1983 hit “Running with the Night.” Opening act Craig Campbell, also a Georgia native, released his debut album in 2011. He scored a top 20 country hit with “Family Man” in 2010 and also reached the country top 40 with “Fish” and “When I Get It.” Developing artist Chancie Neal is a 17-year-old singersongwriter from Calhoun, La. Ticket prices are $38.50 for pit (standing room only), $36.50 for floor and $32.50 for risers. Online purchases at crossroadsarena.com will have an additional fee. Visit the arena box office or call 287-7779.
Tonight
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“They should take the water out at least twice as fast if not three times better.” Jim Bynum Street commissioner
Luke Bryan to perform May 31 jjohnston@dailycorinthian.com
Today
• Corinth, Mississippi • 16 pages • 1 section
‘Time Wrap’
Tickets go on sale for singer
Showers
Photos by Kim Jobe / Corinth School District
Eighty-four seniors from Corinth High School will be hosting their version of Follies 2012 on Thursday, Friday and Saturday nights, April 26, 27 and 28. Reserved seat tickets are $7 each. The tickets will go on sale to the general public beginning at 7:30 a.m. on Monday in the CHS Office. Tickets will be sold from 7:30 a.m. until 4:30 p.m. daily in the office. This year’s theme is “Time Warp.” Quite by accident, CHS seniors travel back in time via music and skits. Songs from such musicians as the Beatles, Spice Girls, Etta James and Bruno Mars will be featured. Some of the selections will be “At Last,” “Vogue” and “Rhythm of Love.” Ann Woodhouse, Challenge teacher at Corinth Elementary School, is the director of Follies again this year. Kelly Treadway is serving as assistant director. Choreographers are Maria Fraser, Jennifer Taylor, Allison Woodhouse and Lexi Wade. The Follies once again feature a live band made up of Cindy Mathis, Ben Mathis, Allen Woodhouse, Brian Graham and Brandon Bingham. Getting some rehearsal time include (above) Molly Grace Williams, Hannah Avent, Catherine Coleman, Merrell McQueen, Tori Treadway, Meredith Wilbanks and Katie Knight, while Cullen Grantham (below) busts some ’70s moves. For more photos, see page 2.
City buys underpass water pumps Aldermen agree to upgrade to ease flooding BY JEBB JOHNSTON jjohnston@dailycorinthian.com
New pumps being purchased by the City of Corinth may help alleviate the familiar scene of flooded underpasses on Cass Street and Fulton Drive. Each of the underpasses has two pumps. One pump on Fulton Drive is currently inoperable. Street Commissioner Jim Bynum said it doesn’t make financial sense to sink more money into repairs when the pumps can be replaced for not much more expense. “That pump has probably been repaired eight or 10 times, if not more,” he said. The pumps in both underpasses were installed in the 1960s. In a special meeting on Friday, the Board of Aldermen agreed to upgrade both underpasses with the purchase of four pumps and two control panels from Southern Pipe at a cost of $34,465.76. Lackey’s Electrical submitted a bid of $6,850 for installation. The pumps are expected to be far more efficient at removing water from the underpasses, with 20 horsepower compared to 10 horsepower provided by the existing old pumps. “They should take the water out at least twice as fast if not three times better,” said Bynum. The freestanding, submersible pumps are also designed to resist clogging, which has been a persistent problem for the old pumps. Also, the control panels will be moved to locations that will reduce problems with moisture and heat. Bynum said water drained from the Fulton Drive underpass flows into Elam Creek, while water from the Cass Street underpass travels to behind the Southgate shopping center and ultimately into Phillips Creek. The board also accepted the resignation of William D. Smith, a detective with the police department, effective immediately.
Ricketts Memorial event includes bike, car show today BY BOBBY J. SMITH bjsmith@dailycorinthian.com
A day of activities to commemorate a fallen local soldier and raise money for wounded warriors will be held Saturday. Sign-up for the 2nd Annual SSG Seth Ricketts Memorial Poker Run, Bike and Car Show will begin at 8 a.m. this morning. It is held in memory of the 27-year old staff sergeant from
Glen who was killed near the end of February 2010 at Bala Murghab, Afghanistan. The main site for the event will be at Harper Square Mall on U.S. 22 East in Corinth. Vendors will sell a wide range of items and a day-long line-up of musicians and bands from diverse musical genres will provide entertainment all day beginning at 11 a.m. The entertainment line up
includes Maty Noyes, Brian Randle, R.T. Rinehart, Surviving Allison, Holy Ghost Electric Show Setup, Youth in Asia, Allison’s Rage, Every Other Wednesday, Southern Legend and a Taekwondo demonstration by the Corinth Taekwondo Karate Kids. The poker run — in which motorcycle riders collect playing cards from a number of checkpoints and the rider with
Index Stocks........7 Classified......14 Comics...... 13 Wisdom...... 12
Weather........5 Obituaries........ 3 Opinion........4 Sports...... 10
the best hand at the end wins — will begin around 11 a.m. Chris Grimes, a US Navy veteran and co-organizer of the event, said between 100 and 300 bikes are expected to hit the road for the poker run. Back at the site at Harper’s Square Mall, there will be a car and bike show. The car show will feature a People’s Choice award as well as a judged category. The bike show will be di-
vided into American and Metric bike classes. People’s Choice will continue all day. Winners will be announced after the bikes return from the poker run during the afternoon. Proceeds from the event will go to benefit the Fisher House, a home-like facility in Biloxi where wounded soldiers and Please see RICKETTS | 3
On this day in history 150 years ago Fresh from the victory at Island No. 10, Maj.Gen. John Pope’s Army of the Mississippi begin to arrive at Hamburg Landing near Shiloh. Three Union armies have gathered and are preparing a march against Corinth.