Folio 2.0 Vol. 35, Issue 7

JULY 14, 2021

Artis Gilmore The NBA legend and Jacksonville icon discusses his career and the loss of his daughter.

By Isa Barrientos

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Ron DeSantis meets his biggest challenger yet: Title Nine

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Bob Saget’s ready for a full house at the Florida Theatre

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Take a ride with the North Florida Go Kart Club on 103rd Street 1

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I S S U E TA S T E T E S T 4

From the Publisher

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Community News

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The Cover Story

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Art and Culture

@ F O L I O W E E K LY

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F O L I O W E E K LY. C O M

V O L . 3 5 / I S SU E 7 / J U LY 2 0 2 1

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30 Horoscopes 36 Sports 38 Games 43 Dear Dumbs

Ron DeSantis’ crusade against trans kids.

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YEARBOOK

North Florida’s service shortage isn’t going away anytime soon.

In conversation with Bob Saget ahead of his show at the Florida Theatre.

Artis Gilmore reflects on his career and the loss of his daughter.

JOHN M. PHILLIPS

JOHN ALOSZKA

TERESA SPENCER

ISA BARRIENTOS

PUBLISHER

CREATIVE DIRECTOR

GENERAL MANAGER

STAFF WRITER

VINCENT DALESSIO

CASEY CRAIG

OMAROSA M. NEWMAN

TERRY JAYMES

WRITER // SALES

WRITER // SALES

CONTRIBUTOR

CONTRIBUTOR

SHELTON HULL

CASEY ALIXANDRA

HEATHER BUSHMAN

MOLLY BRITT

REBECCA HEWETT

CONTRIBUTOR

WRITER

WRITER

WRITER

PODCAST AND AUDIO

KERRY SPECKMAN COPY EDITOR

ROB NICHOLSON DIRECTOR OF SALES

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FROM THE PUBLISHER

We all contain multitudes.

JOHN M. PHILLIPS PUBLISHER

To some, I am the publisher of Folio Weekly. Based on that title alone, most may not realize the writing and distribution of this magazine actually has very little to do with me. While it’s nice to take credit for the brilliance of others, I invite you to read the masthead and see the crew working hard behind the scenes. The Folio survives because of them.

To others, I am a lawyer. I really love it. However, there are so many who want to cast that off or define lawyers by the worst in the profession. I have to remind myself that it is the opinions of our clients that really matter.

To myself, I am a husband and father. It is the most important title I hold. It is how I define myself. And when all is said and done, it will be up to my three boys to determine how and in what ways I truly mattered.

When a parent loses a child, it is not only heartbreaking, but it’s painfully unfair. Our cover this month is dedicated to Artis Gilmore and his daughter Priya Gilmore-Matthews. The story is written by Isa Barrientos, one of the brilliant writers behind Folio 2.0 I mentioned above.

Reading Isa’s article brought me to my knees. On the surface, Gilmore’s life is filled with amazing moments including taking Jacksonville University to the NCAA basketball championship, breaking down racial barriers at a time when segregation was the prevailing rule, excelling in the ABA and NBA and induction into the Hall of Fame.

Those were the things I thought about every time I saw him tower above me as his smile guided him into the room. But it is what’s underneath the surface of this amazing basketball player that shows us who Gilmore really is. Artis Gilmore is a father. He defines himself by the love he gives as a father and grandfather. At 7’2”, Gilmore stands taller than most, but his amazing soul stands even taller. My heart travels with him.

My interview with Bob Saget is another example of how we are all more than the moments that make up our lives.

Before my call with Saget, I wondered if he would be more like Danny Tanner, his character on Full House or his more raunchy, edgy self I had seen on television? As you will see on July 18 at the Florida Theatre, he is both and neither. We all are. We are all more than what any one person thinks of us. We are dynamic. We change. We can learn and grow. We are as our kids see us and more. Ultimately, we are the legacy of love we leave behind.

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BRICKBATS + BOUQUETS ALL SUMMER LONG JULY 1 TO SEPT. 6

WJCT PUBLIC MEDIA PRESENTS

BOUQUET TO MAYOR LEVINE CAVA

Miami Dade County Mayor Daniella Levine Cava, who has handled the tragic Surfside tower collapse with grace, firmness, and solemnity. No one could have expected this tragedy to have happened, but it’s how our leaders are handling it that counts.

BOUQUET TO DERRICK HENRY

Yulee native and Titans Running Back Derrick Henry continues to give back to his community, most recently by giving out backpacks and school supplies to over 200 kids. Even the most die hard Jags fans can applaud that.

BRICKBAT TO THE WEATHER

This can’t be serious. How many damn days of rain can we have in a row? I’m about to act up, except there’s nowhere to act up because it’s RAINING! How am I gonna be locked up in my house for over a year, and now when I’ve done everything right, there’s nothing to do!

BRICKBAT TO MAYOR CURRY’S BILLBOARDS

ON

ANTHOLOGY

A cheesy waste of 45k, the mayor’s face was plastered on billboards in major cities across the country, designed with all the care of an 80 year old woman attempting to use canva for the first time. It’s embaressing, for sure, but it’s also the least effective marketing strategy... ever heard of the internet?

LISTEN ON 89.9 HD3, JAXMUSIC.ORG, & THE WJCT APP

YELL AT US: MAIL@FOLIOWEEKLY.COM

Tune into "Summer Songs" all summer long on Anthology, part of the Jacksonville Music Experience from WJCT Public Media. We'll be spinning David Luckin's curated collection of breezy, beach-and pool-ready classics from now until Labor Day. Listen to all the hit songs we heard on the radio and played on our record players on Anthology 89.9 HD3, the WJCT App and online at jaxmusic.org.

YOU’RE ALREADY HERE. POTENTIAL CUSTOMERS ARE, TOO. With a reach of over 200,000 people each issue, Folio puts your business all over town.

TERESA@FOLIOWEEKLY.COM

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EVENTS

JAX SHARKS JULY 17 & 24

JAX TACO FESTIVAL

JULY 17

Just when you thought Jacksonville couldn’t get any more taco-er (have you been to 5 Points lately?), this one-day event celebrates the beloved Mexican dish with local restaurants and food trucks serving up their signature versions plus tequila/margarita stations.

TIAA BANK FIELD

The 2019 defending National Arena League champions play their last two home games of the season against the Columbus Lions and Carolina Cobras. But when you’ve got t-shirt cannons and fans literally dancing for pizza, does the score even matter?

VYSTAR ARENA

JAXSHARKS.COM

TICKETMASTER.COM

SPIRIT OF THE SOUTH AUG. 10

Dubbed a “celebration of Southern rock and roll music,” the event features headliners Blackberry Smoke with featured acts The Allman Betts Band and The Wild Feathers playing full sets. Plus an all-star jam finale with a “very special guest.” May I suggest a hologram of Ronnie Van Zant?

MS. SENIOR JACKSONVILLE

DAILYS PLACE

DAILYSPLACE.COM

JULY 24

Sure, it’s inspiring and heartfelt and empowering, but the annual competition for “mature women” (that leaves me out) is pretty dang entertaining too. The ladies compete in evening wear, words of wisdom and talent categories—and shattering stereotypes in the process.

SCAN THE QR CODE

FOR EVEN MORE EVENTS.

UNF UNIVERSITY CENTER

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ASEASONEDAFFAIR.COM

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The Return of the Quad City DJ’s The Jacksonville group is going for gold.

TERESA SPENCER

Originating from Jacksonville, the Quad City Dj’s, Jay Ski (Johnny McGowan), C.C. Lemonhead (Nathaniel Orange), and JeLana La Fleuer are back at it. Best Known for writing and performing the theme song in the animated basketball film “Space Jam” in 1996, they also are known for C’mon N’ Ride It (The Train) which went platinum and peaked at #3 on the Billboard hot 100 charts.

Fast forward 25 years and once again the group is riding the train to success, literally with a new song entitled a “Brand New Jam” recorded for the upcoming sequel to Space Jam, A New Legacy which is being released in cinemas July 16th.

We are pretty sure the group will slam dunk another billboard hit as that’s how they roll, the champions of rhythmic songs that become ear worms making you want to get on up and dance.

We give them a bouquet. Touche Quad City Dj’s!

Top Right: The front register of Music Matters Left: Music Matters Vinyl Collection / Heather Bushman

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Music Matters relaunches in St. Augustine A teenage dream saves a community vinyl shop.

HEATHER BUSHMAN

The paraphernalia crowding the corners of Music Matters Remixed yearn for every era of pop culture imaginable. Images of The Cure, Panic! At The Disco, Eminem and more greet you at the door, right before an Elvis cutout sneaks from the side and a 1989 Taylor Swift stands at the front. The stacks upon stacks of Star Wars memorabilia tucked in the back are impossible to count.

Eric Westrom, the store’s owner, looks like he walked right out of one of those posters. The outfit he’s donning during the Music Matters Remixed Grand Relaunch resembles a blend of Robert Smith and Aerosmith. He has a mop of hair that looks like it’s lost a battle or two with a super-charged balloon and a shirt printed with his heroes, ‘80s icons Dead or Alive.

“I was very that unique kind of ‘80s new wave kid who loved Boy George and Duran Duran,” Westrom said.

He’s nearing 50, but there’s a youthful exuberance to the way Westrom speaks about Music Matters Remixed. After over 30 years of ownership under Casey Kelber, the reins of the store are in Westrom’s hands, and he’s made a few changes. It’s undeniably inspired by vinyl’s heyday, but with a contemporary twist. For every Bowie, there’s a Britney; for every Grateful Dead, a Lady Gaga.

The variety is what Westrom said sets Music Matters Remixed apart. It’s now a one-stop shop — not just vinyl, but CDs, collectibles, clothing, even instruments.

When Westrom acquired Music Matters Remixed in December of 2020, it was the fulfillment of a teenage pipe dream, one where all the music in the world was at his fingertips.

“I really only went into this to be the 15-year-old kid getting his record store,” Westrom said. “I

Westrom stands at the relaunch, friends and family by his side and a steady stream of shoppers browsing the shelves, absorbing the result of what he’s built over the past six months. A friend hugs him and proclaims the day a miracle.

A community staple revitalized, a teenage dream turned into reality — it certainly feels like a miracle.

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JOIN A COMMUNITY MAKING A DIFFERENCE. Become a North Florida Green Chamber member today!

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BE BOLD. GO GREEN. TO LEARN MORE, VISIT NORTHFLORIDAGREENCHAMBER.ORG 9

Political Trans Action Ron DeSantis kicks off pride month with a kick in the face.

SHELTON HULL

Pride Month 2021 was cause for celebration nationwide, officially certified by the White House for the first time ever, but it was not all gumdrops and gorgonzola in the larger fight for equality. As is so often the case, in so many different ways, Florida played the role of spoiler. Governor Ron DeSantis is famous for being extra, but never more so than in recent weeks.

As the Democratic establishment begins building their arsenal to move against an incumbent who’s already being touted as a possible Republican presidential nominee in 2024, the chief Florida Man has sought to bolster his defense by burnishing his conservative bonafides.

That has made for quite an interesting year so far. That is the larger context into which the trans athlete controversy can be situated.

Barely a week goes by without hearing the shrill trill of DeSantis’ dogwhistle act, but that process has seemingly accelerated as spring swings into summer. Perhaps the most extreme example of this tactic so far took place on June 1, when the governor chose the first day of Pride Month to launch a legal fusillade against Florida’s LGBTQIA+ community. The “Fairness In Women’s Sports Act” is, in classic right-wing style, blatantly designed to have the opposite effect of what its title implies.

Sponsored by rising star Kaylee Tuck, HB 1475 passed the Florida House on a straight party-line vote of 77-40 on April 14. (Interestingly, Rep. Tuck’s father Andy chairs the state Board of Education, which is now in charge of interpreting and implementing the new law.) SB 2012 was written off as “dead” by the Orlando Sentinel just a few days later, but its corpse was reanimated and slipped into the margins of an education bill, SB 1028, which then passed by a margin of 77–39 on April 28, a mere two days before the end of the legislative session.

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Rather than sign the bill immediately, which is what normal people do, DeSantis let it marinate for over a month, red meat for his base, dry-aged and sliced thick, blood-rare, for the consumption of conservatives. He picked June 1 because it was the first day of Pride Month, and he picked Trinity for reasons that might not be obvious to those unfamiliar with the site.

“He couldn’t find a public school in Duval County that would have him” explained attorney and activist Jimmy Midyette, a driving force behind the HRO process that forced the governor’s hand, as far as the venue he chose. “The policy in Duval County, of course, is that transgender students are treated with dignity and respect, and aren’t discriminated against. So he had to go to a school that is attached to a church that has a long history of sexual assault of young people by a former pastor at that church. He couldn’t even find an athlete to stand by him––he had to bring in someone from Connecticut.”

With fewer than a dozen trans athletes known to exist in all of Florida, and none in Jacksonville, the sense of urgency behind the law, and the relevance of signing it here, was not immediately clear. DeSantis defenders claim that he had no knowledge of the history of Trinity in that regard (despite there being a very good book about it by local author Tim Gilmore), and they also claim the connection to Pride month was entirely coincidental. But still, DeSantis followed up, on the second day of Pride, by vetoing mental health funding for LGBTQIA+ people, right before the fifth anniversary of the Pulse nightclub massacre. Put it all together, and the patterns are easy enough to discern.

“I think it’s a terribly discriminatory and hateful bill,” says Dan Merkan, Director of Policy at the Jacksonville Area Sexual Minority

Youth Network (JASMYN). “There was really no merit to this bill. There haven’t been any real cases or concerns that have been brought up in Florida.” The bill was created at the behest of a group called the Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF,) whose ambiguous name belies a very specific agenda––namely, standing athwart the movement for LGBTQIA+ equality, yelling “Stop!” Local observers may recall their role in herding sheep in a failed effort to block our HRO a few years ago.

Based in Scottsdale, Ariz., the group has branches in four other states, as well as Washington D.C., not to mention loyal supporters scattered across the country, one of whom is currently governor of Florida. (I should have probably reached out to them for comment, but nope. I know what they think, and I have no interest in speaking to them, or anyone who supports them.) They took the lead in seeking to expel a trio of trans girls running high school track in Connecticut. Having seen their efforts rejected by the courts over the last couple of years, they’ve modulated their methods in favor of legislating morality.

Supporters of the new law parrot the ADF’s main talking point: that trans female athletes have a competitive advantage over their cisgender competition. These are the same folks who assert that trans women pose a direct physical threat to biological women in shared spaces like bathrooms, which is what led to the infamous North Carolina “Bathroom Bill,” HB2, in 2016. That law led to widespread boycotts of the state, and that seems to be in Florida’s future, as well. Already Gavin Newsome, the governor of California (and a potential competitor to DeSantis down the road), has ordered a halt to all official state travel to Florida, as a direct result of this legislation. It’s unclear what the pro sports leagues will do, let alone the NCAA itself, but the fact that speculation has already begun is bad news for sports tourism.

At the very least, any discussion of ever having the Olympic Games in, say, Miami, is off the table, forever, as well as any type of Olympic trials. Events like March Madness and the NIT are also in jeopardy, given the general center-left orientation of most key sanctioning bodies. The state of Florida boasts top-level talent in an array of women’s sports including golf, soccer, tennis, lacrosse, softball and, of course, swimming.

The potential for ostracism is quite strong.

All this is going on at a time when the Tokyo 2021 Olympics, which runs from July 23 through August 8, will be the first ever (as far as anyone one knows) to include trans athletes among the participants.

Laurel Hubbard of New Zealand qualified for powerlifting in the 87kg category making her a cause celebre, for all the wrong reasons. Her performance will be the world’s first major test case for trans athletes on the international scene.

One person who knows what it takes to compete on such an elite level is Nancy Hogshead-Makar, who won three gold medals and one silver in swimming at the Los Angeles Olympics in 1984. Today, she serves as CEO of Champion Women, a non-profit organization that advocates for inclusion and representation for women across the spectrum of amateur sports. She currently finds herself walking a fine rhetorical line between the warring extremes on either side of this issue. “It is a crazy mix of politics, what’s going on right now,” she said. “The bill was passed as a way to shame trans people, to deny their existence, to use it as a way to raise money for the Republican Party.”

As a founding member of the Women’s Sports Policy Working

Group, she’s found herself having to push back against the perception that this is something she might support. “Our position is not that position,” she said. “For the vast majority of society, there is no reason to not have sex discrimination be the same thing as gender identity discrimination. When it comes to employment, education, marriage, adoption, it makes no difference whatsoever. There are a few places where biology is really important. Sports are intentionally sex-segregated, across the world, except in sports where the male puberty advantage doesn’t make any difference--things like equestrian, sailing, motorsports.

We say that you can recognize the reality and have a fair playing field for everyone that doesn’t shame trans people or deny their existence.”

Hogshead-Makar is an attorney herself, and her husband is an appellate judge in the First District of Florida, so she has a pretty threedimensional view of the situation. Like most people who were following the issue, she was shocked to see the language attached to SB 1028, and she immediately recognized the precarious legal ground on which it stands.

Days after the signing of SB1028, the Justice Department reiterated that gender identity is protected under Title IX, which sets the stage for legal challenges in the years ahead. John Phillips, the publisher of Folio, is also an attorney, and he is of the general opinion that this dispute will ultimately be settled by the Supreme Court. Prescient as always, he said as much to me mere days before the first official legal challenge was made, and now that process is well underway.

Human Rights Campaign (HRC) filed a suit in late June one behalf of a 13-year-old trans girl in Broward County. Known as “Daisy,” her real name is being kept secret, largely due to fear of death threats, if not indeed actual death. At a time when murder of trans women around the country has reached epidemic levels, all precautions must be taken.

HRC is taking the lead against this law, in part because it’s basically a trial balloon, with similar initiatives slowly floating upward across the country; extending the metaphor, consider this challenge the first shot from their BB gun. “There are so far more than 250 anti-LGBTQ bills under consideration in state legislatures across the country,” according to HRC. “Of those, more than 120 directly target transgender people and at least 66 of those would ... ban transgender girls from participating in sports consistent with their gender identity.” The Tampa Bay Times notes that such legislation is pending in “at least 30” states.

The resistance to this law is rooted not only in concern for the trans community, but also for biological women who have already been heavily preyed upon by men in the sports world. If the gender status of an athlete is questioned, they bear the responsibility of proving they are “real” women, either through a blood test or a physical examination.

If an opposing coach raises any objection to a girl’s presence on the field, or the track, or in the pool, they will simply have no choice but to give their blood, or else drop their pants. This should be alarming in a country whose entire national women’s gymnastics organization were systematically molested by their own doctor with no recourse, for years.

It’s unclear how this situation will ultimately resolve itself, or what complications it will present for Florida, its citizens and its athletes of all genders. But there’s one effect that has been immediately apparent: utter chaos, legal and political. And that, more than anything, is the point.

To watch the full interview, scan the adjacent QR code.

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Celebration of Life Artis Gilmore on his storied basketball career, growing up during Jim Crow and the death of his daughter.

ISA BARRIENTOS

You never really know a man until you stand in his shoes and walk around in them.

At 7-foot-2 with size 18 feet, basketball legend Artis Gilmore has a stride that stands for itself. His footsteps are as light as air as he nods gracefully under each doorway. His presence is silent yet palpable.

Gilmore was born in 1948 in the small town of Chipley on the Florida panhandle. He grew up poor, living in a three-room house with dirt floors that he shared with his family of 11. For two years of his early adolescence, he was barefooted there and everywhere when his feet grew too large to get shoes from the local shoe store.

He said he’s uncomfortable speaking in general, but one can sense that recalling his early life before leaving Chipley to attend college is particularly painful.

Growing up in the Jim Crow era, Gilmore was all too familiar with segregation and income disparities. His family often didn’t have much to eat aside from the fish his father caught. His first love was actually football, but the segregated schools he attended required athletes to buy their own gear, which his family couldn’t afford.

He was lanky and thin from hunger.

That hunger turned into a hunger to succeed, to do something different from the previous generation, to build on the quiet strength he developed as a result of his upbringing. After high school, he moved to North Carolina to play basketball at Gardner-Webb Junior College. There he met the woman who would later become his wife.

In 1969, Gilmore—or the “A-Train” as he came to be known—transferred to Jacksonville University during a period of time after the Civil Rights era when he said things “casually, slowly became forward progress.”

As a JU Dolphin, Gilmore broke the record for average rebounds per game at 22.7, which he still holds to this day, and became a two-time All-American honoree. He also led JU, a small private college with little to no name recognition at the time, to the finals of the 1970 NCAA Tournament. They took on college basketball powerhouse UCLA for the national title, losing 80–69.

With the city’s overwhelming support of the team, Gilmore came to consider Jacksonville home and resolved to come back to Jacksonville after retirement to raise his family and contribute to the community.

In 1971, Gilmore was drafted by the Kentucky Colonels in the ABA.

“This was the first opportunity to receive some income. I was elated that for the first time I would be able to do something financially for my family. After all the earlier struggles, the things that we experienced as

Artis Gilmore holds a photo of his daughter Priya.

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Artis Gilmore dunks while his opponents watch in awe. Jacksonville University, Carl S. Swisher Library Archives

Artis Gilmore’s daugther, Priya Gilmore.

a family, signing that first contract was life-changing,” he said.

He quickly became known as one of the hardestworking players in the league and enjoyed great success in his first season, winning the Rookie of the Year and Most Valuable Player awards. Gilmore married Enola Gay after the season’s end. They began to build a family soon after.

Gilmore spent five seasons in the ABA until the league disbanded in 1976, and he was selected as the first overall draft pick of the NBA by the Chicago Bulls.

He kept his sneakers with the red swoosh when he was traded to the San Antonio Spurs in 1982, when players had less agency in choosing where to go and whether they would be traded. His shoes were so large, even for NBA standards, that he colored shoes with a black marker to play in that season.

After five years with the Spurs, he returned to the Bulls for a season and finished his 18-year American basketball career on the Boston Celtics.

Despite his accomplishments, including scoring

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15,579 career points, setting the NBA career record for highest field goal percentage at .599 and playing in six NBA All-Star Games, Artis Gilmore never did become a household name. Boundlessly humble, he remained quiet off court and treated his career as a craft to master rather than a pathway to fame. His family’s pride and the relative comfort that he’d built after coming from nothing was enough for him.

He played his final professional season overseas in the Italian league, making the European All-Star team before retiring and moving his family back to Jacksonville as planned.

At this point, he and his wife had four children who they raised with great care and dedication. He allowed them the freedom to choose their own paths and not feel the pressure of what he experienced in basketball.

“I wouldn’t push them, but I would have loved for them to be able to excel and enjoy the sport.

I excelled to the highest level—and it’s not like vicariously I had to see a different vision through their eyes of where I would want them to get to,” said Gilmore. “I gave them what I had. The mindset to be able to focus and develop.”

They all chose basketball anyway, but daughter Priya was the only one to take it to the collegiate level.

“Priya took my height and intelligence from my wife,” said Gilmore.

Known for her shining personality, sense of humor and great advice, Priaya started playing at Wolfson High School, where Gilmore said she had a funny style of playing. Much taller than the other young women on the team, Priya would toss the ball up as the other girls stood around.

Gilmore said, “She would just play volleyball, just toss the ball up until she was able to put it in the basket. She continued developing. She turned into a really outstanding basketball player.”

After leading the Wolfpack through some of their most successful seasons, Priya got a number of offers from schools around the country and eventually chose to attend Louisiana Tech. At 6’3”, she was a leader on the court and enjoyed several winning seasons.

She had big shoes to fill in following her father’s footsteps, and she did it with grace: Gilmore and Priya are the only father-daughter pair to have both made it to the NCAA finals.

Gilmore was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame in 2011. Soon after, Priya and her husband

“You cannot put into words what it’s like to experience the loss of a child.” welcomed twins Mark and Mia—with Payton arriving three years later. Though it was a time of great joy with the burgeoning new generation, there was also grief as Gilmore’s family slowly started to pass. Since his induction, he’s lost his mother and four brothers.

Then Priya’s sons Mark and Payton were diagnosed with autism. The family was told they would require special care, Mark for the rest of his life. Undeterred, Priya looked forward to raising her children, and giving them everything she had, as her father did for her.

She always said that her kids were her heart walking outside of her body. On June 8, she kissed them goodnight and started to get ready for the following day at her new job.

Priya Gilmore-Matthews, 44, passed away unexpectedly that night.

“Parents are never supposed to say goodbye to their kids first.” Artis said.

“I don’t know how you describe it, other than a ton of bricks just falling. And as soon as you think you’re breathing, it just absorbs all of the oxygen out of your whole system. You cannot put into words what it’s like to experience the loss of a child. And for my wife Enola and myself to lose our daughter.

You just can’t describe it.”

As expected, Priya’s family was fully unprepared for the sudden loss. Her daughter Mia, who her family describes as very sweet and smart, knows that her mother is with God and helps to take care of her brothers. But the boys, loving and energetic, have not yet fully grasped the impact of the loss of their mother.

Despite the characteristic strength Gilmore has demonstrated throughout his life, nothing could have prepared him for his daughter’s death. His family says it has taken some of the spark out of him, but he knows there are better days ahead.

“We’re gonna pull it together. We’re gonna move this family forward. Become stronger and better,” said Gilmore.

Referring to his book Here Comes the A-Train! The Story of Basketball Legend Artis Gilmore, he recalled being described as “tough, durable and consistent.”

“I’ll take that now,” he said.

Priya Gilmore-Matthews was her children’s primary caretaker. The family has set up a GoFundMe page for the children’s schooling, medication and clothing to ensure that their future is secured.

Artis Gilmore (53) Jacksonville University, Carl S. Swisher Library Archives

To donate to the family fundraiser, scan the adjacent QR code.

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First Toilet Paper, Now People?

For local restaurants, recovery includes coming to terms with a new service economy.

MOLLY BRITT

“It’s devastating because we want to be busy but we just don’t have the manpower to stay open later and get the food out fast enough,” said owner and operator Mary Jane Culhane. Culhane own’s Culhane’s Irish Pubs located in Atlantic Beach and Southside and 5 Sisters Spirit Vodka based in Atlantic Beach. She, among many other restaurant owners in the Jacksonville area, are facing a major shortage in staff.

Culhane has been making an effort to hire more staff for the past six months, spending lots of time and money using online hiring services.

While advertising that they are hiring costs up to $500 a week, it seems to be the best option for finding professional chefs and experienced managers after expressing they’ve shifted their focus towards hiring more “mature” chefs and “seasoned” managers.

The shortage does have repercussions on those currently working in the restaurant industry. According to Culhane, their staffing numbers have decreased by 25% in these last few months. They are among the many restaurants that have had to change their hours of operation by closing during lunch hours and dismissing late night hours as a result of their staffing shortage.

“We used to keep the kitchen open until midnight, but we’ve stopped serving food and closed the kitchen down at 10 p.m.,” says Culhane. The general manager of Burrito Gallery Downtown, Jennifer Lee, has faced similar difficulties. “There were literally four of us holding the restaurant together,” she said. Fortunately, Lee has been able to hire a full staff since then but the struggle to find “individuals who actually care about the job and performance” was something she faced often.

When asked what the biggest struggle was in relation to the hiring

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difficulty and shortage, Culhane said “service; stress of the customer waiting longer times and trying to explain that to them.” She goes on to say, “you don’t want to tell them your problems, but if you’re being up front saying ‘we’re going to have a 40-minute wait tonight because I just don’t have the manpower,’ I think if you’re up front it’s better than just letting them sit there and wonder why.”

In an effort to avoid blindsiding the customers on the extra long waits and service quality, signs and notices have been put up at entrances apologizing for the wait due to shortages of staff and even food. Culhane was taken by surprise when they began facing difficulty ordering things ranging from chicken to certain kinds of beer. With less employees, the manufacturing of certain products has decreased as a response and as a direct result, pricing on products like food has increased. Culhane’s local bakery is one example, with their prices increasing 10% every time she’s there. “We’re paying more for stuff, and we’re paying more for product, and unfortunately the consumer is going to have to be the one to pay,” expressed Culhane on the concern that restaurant prices will be forced to increase as a result. Restaurants are not alone in facing these issues, however. 5 Sisters Spirit Vodka is facing shortage issues, too. After becoming aware of a shortage in glass, the company redesigned and relabeled their bottles so that they could continue providing products to their customers.

In addition to paying more, Culhane has had to increase wait times.

With a 350-seat restaurant at their Southside location, there is not enough manpower to fill every seat while ensuring the customer gets their food within a 20-minute turn-time. As a way to decrease servers’ stress and

Left / Right: Inside Culhane’s, where there’s been an employee shortage of 25%.

ensure quality for the customer, they have had to place holds at the door, offering up to hour-long wait times for parties. Culhane has gone as far as to cancel any third-party delivery services, which in turn is “hurting [them] because that’s another avenue to increase your sales, but you have to be mindful of the guest that walks in for the experience.”

With so many restaurants experiencing the same issues, many have made efforts to better the stressful environment for their employees.

Culhane was able to “reinvent how [they] hire” by using hiring services and word of mouth to hire more experienced managers who are now being paid salary and being given benefits, such as paid vacation. Other restaurants, like Burrito Gallery have had a bit more luck in the hiring department lately.

Lee said they now have 13 employees. In their own effort to better their morale they have improved the company compensation package.

While some restaurants seem to be faring better than others during the staffing shortage, it is clear that the restaurant industry has a way to go before they can get comfortable. After a shortage of staff has led to food shortages, glass shortages, and high stress environments, these restaurant owners’ goals don’t seem too far fetched. Culhane’s main goal is to be fully staffed by the middle of July with experienced workers who put in good effort. “We care. We’re known to be a family business and that’s big for us,” expressed Mary Jane Culhane. Meanwhile, Lee hopes that “everything is moving forward to provide a fun, relaxing place for our guests.” After all the stress the shortage brought on owners, operators, and employees, they just hope to create a comfortable environment, not only for their guests, but for the staff as well.

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The original FotoTechnika “old house”

Family Portrait The family behind FotoTechnika has never lost focus on their passion: film.

CASEY ALIXANDRA 16 18 18

Stop and think about what you are doing.

Life has a funny way of showing people clues to their possible futures. Call it destiny, fate or just coincidence, one’s life calling will make itself known to a person at some point. Some people are born knowing what it is, others will miss the clues throughout their lives and won’t grasp their destiny until later in life.

For the owners of FotoTechnika, life always left breadcrumbs to help them find their destiny.

John Howard, who owns FotoTechnika with his wife Saundra, was given a clue about his future way before he even knew what he wanted in life. Growing up, John would spend much of his time playing with two boys in the neighborhood whose fathers were both professional photographers. While playing with his friends, John would watch his friends’ fathers work in their dark rooms.

“It didn’t even dawn on us until years and years later, even after we started the business,” Saundra said. “Oh, well, no wonder [he] had an interest in photography. [He] grew up right next door to it.”

John and Saundra met at Florida Junior College (now Florida State College at Jacksonville) where they worked and sang together in the FJC chorus. Several years later, Saundra attended the University of North Florida to complete her degree in commercial art. In a black and white photography class, she practiced processing film in the school’s dark room while John watched. Immediately, it sparked his interest in photography again. However, John’s passion wasn’t in the taking of photographs. It was processing the film that he loved.

“We decided we wanted to be able to work together again and not have separate jobs. Not come home and compare notes,” said Saundra.

After Saundra graduated, John took a job at a local printing company as an estimator and gradually became their top graphic consultant. In the process, he gained invaluable experience in the printing industry and discovered that there was often a communication breakdown between photographers, who didn’t know what to do to give the printers, and printers, who didn’t know what to ask for from photographers.

In the midst of working for a printing company and with film development on John’s mind, all the little things came to fruition.

“We thought, you know, we understand photography. We decided we wanted to work together already, but we didn’t know what we could do,” said Saundra. “Until it dawned on us: Photography is the thing. We need to start a photo lab.”

Thus, their journey toward opening FotoTechnika began. “And so, we started it. We incorporated in 1981, and it was just a part-time thing,” Saundra recalled. “We would do little jobs. We could develop film. We could make some prints in the dark room—just black and white stuff.”

When not working at their current day jobs, they worked on their dream of creating a photo lab: in 1987 FotoTechnika opened its doors full time. They started in the “the old house,” a 100-year-old home they purchased together––they lived upstairs while the downstairs was their place of work. There, they were able to process film in their own dark room and raise their daughter under one roof. It was in 2013 when they moved to a new location near Mudville Grille. Then in 2020, FotoTechnika moved to Blanding Boulevard where they now share a building with Barnett’s Art & Frame Gallery.

What started as an idea between Saundra and John, FotoTechnika now serves as the only full-service photo lab in Northeast Florida with

Photos from the FotoTechnika archives.

hundreds of grateful customers.

“I am so gratified because so many of the film customers we have now are not just old school people that didn’t want to give it up. I mean there’s plenty of those, but the majority of our people who are bringing in film nowadays are younger. People who grew up digital have discovered that they really like the way film works,” said Saundra. “ One of the interesting things that I heard several people say is they like film because it makes them stop and think about what they are shooting.”

In a world where everything is moving too fast, stopping and taking a photo could make a memory more appreciated.

And who knows, maybe when stopping to appreciate the memory, you might find your life’s calling.

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DEAR RIVERSIDE RAT In this month’s column, what’s the best way to approach a friend in an abusive relationship?

CASEY CRAIG

I have a friend who’s in an abusive relationship and I’m worried for her. It’s been a scary whirlwind recently. From the start, he insisted on seeing her everyday and would get jealous of our friends spending time with her. Over time this has become way worse, and they also have since bought a house together. She is friends with some of her exes and guys she used to “talk” to. It’s really not a big deal or that often. He made her block them on all social media, their numbers, tells her she’s not allowed to talk to them. Sometimes he makes her cut off a guy if he just doesn’t like him. He tells her how late she can be out and always insists he joins us whenever another guy or even a friend’s boyfriend is with us. He’s at his worst when he’s drunk where he makes public scenes screaming and making her cry, threatening to fight other people and being kicked out of bars for it. He’s bombed some of our more low-key hangouts and made us feel unsafe, too.

We all love her and worry about her. There’s been rumors that he’s been abusive to other women, even physically, in the past and that scares all of us. We’ve tried to suggest leaving him to her, but I know that’s not always easy. She’s not the same. What can we do to help her?

- SilenceIsViolence

Dear SilenceIsViolence,

This was really difficult to read. I’m so sorry, my heart is with her in this. I agree, you have every right to be concerned for your friend. Everything about this guy is textbook abuse. Love is not about control or violence—period. It also makes my hairs stand on end to read there’s been whispers of other accounts of abuse—and I believe it’s true based on your question alone.

Your friend is in a potentially dangerous situation and needs help. If her boyfriend is comfortable enough getting drunk and violent in public, there’s no telling what he does at home and what she may be too afraid to come forward with. I would try to arrange a talk with her and your friends in a casual setting, maybe over coffee or a kickback at one of your houses—away from him. Make her feel comfortable, heard, and be nonjudgemental or confrontational. While she’s in an already highly volatile pressure-based situation, doing the latter may only shut her off or trigger her. If any of you can, offer her space to stay over whenever she needs to in order to escape this man. Come up with a codeword in case he’s around or monitoring her, and she can’t directly express she’s in trouble. If she feels safe enough to leave him or is at least considering it, try making a plan to help her transition out of the household. Buying a house together so soon is a big red flag and most likely makes

her feel trapped: This is a method of control for him and makes it difficult for her to leave, emotionally and financially. If he won’t let her out of the mortgage, does she have family or other financial resources she may be able to lean on? It sounds like they are not aware of her situation. I would encourage her to talk to them— whenever she’s ready. Right now, she may feel scared or ashamed to tell them, but let her know she is not alone.

In the meantime, try making time and space away from the guy as much as possible. If you can, work around a schedule where you know he won’t be as likely to stop in on her space and your plans together: Plan a girl’s vacation or sign up for women’s gym classes. He won’t be able to intrude, and it will give you all space to offer her support in a safe setting. I want to say it shows a lot of love to offer her your support through all of this and trying to find solutions for her. I wish her the best of luck in finding safety, support and recovery—and a life without him.

To SilenceIsViolence and my other readers this month: If you or a friend are experiencing abuse, speak up and get help as soon as possible. The Domestic Violence Support Hotline is a great place to start: 800799-SAFE (7233). As a fellow survivor, I want you to know you are not alone, and you deserve a healthy, loving relationship.

- RIVERSIDE RAT

Riverside Rat is a monthly column that deals with the pitfalls and politics of the Riverside social scene.

Submission can be sent to riversiderat@folioweekly.com.

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NEW MUSIC RADAR VAN NUYS TENNY RUDOLPH, INDY, LEO SUN

With Tenny Rudolph at the helm, music about the San Fernando Valley, home to Fleetwood Mac, Jenny Lewis and Haim, may never be the same. Aided by Leo Sun and Indy, Rudolph mourns (and belts out) a relationship gone sour over a lo-fi but intricate production. It’s as much a cathartic release as it is a slow jam, but it’s a jam nonetheless.

Cover Photo: Khalil Osborne

PASSING SUN LANEY TRIPP FEAT. JACOB CUMMINGS

EMPTINESS BIG BEST FRIEND

Morgan Motes of Big Best Friend lives in the space between darkness and light: a street light flickers, a full moon only lights the bare necessities, the sun is shining somewhere, but not where he is, and the harshest light of them all––the phone screen. It’s in the small ways we meet our fleeting desires that fuels this record, because as with all things fleeting, the recollection after saying goodbye is the hardest part.

Emptiness rarely deviates from a mid tempo guitar, an element that Motes’ uses to his advantage to create haunting spaces that could host funerals as much as they could host drunken walks home. Motes would most likely profess that some nights those are the same thing.

There will be music to come long after this era that deals with collective trauma––but the isolation, fury and anxiety that comes with loneliness is not anything new, just look at the jazz standards of Billie Holiday or Chet Baker. What sets apart the tunes of Motes, and other young artists tackling loneliness, is the way in which our modes of processing have changed: Trauma is now branded and posted as a trend itself, and there is no longer a seven-mile divide between artist and listener.

When everyone has the same ghosts, are they really that scary?

For fans of Neutral Milk Hotel, Phoebe Bridgers, and Leonard Cohen

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Transformation is the name of the game for Florida singer-songwriter Laney Tripp, and she delivers with a slow burn song that beams down like the rays of its namesake. What makes the song more than its parts is Jacob Cummings’ retro-gloss production, which supplements a strumming guitar and pedal steel with beeping synths, curated white noise and sharp harmonies.

BROOKLYN PASTEL PALMS

Pastel Palms return with an album of big sounds that asks you to listen closely. Written about lead singer Joel Roberson’s adopted father’s cancer diagnosis, it’s a post-grunge album full of passion and angst made with a good heart. For best results, listen loudly in your car or on a walk through a dark alleyway with headphones on.

PHOTO BY JOHN LAWLESS

BARTENDER OF THE MONTH: CHRIS LAMOUREUX It’s not everyday that the mayor will pour you a cold one, but that’s the Beaches way.

CASEY CRAIG

“In 1988, I served my first beer in Philly. I lived outside of [there], came down to visit a friend in the Navy who just got stationed here and I’ve been in Jacksonville ever since,” said Chris Lamoureux, resident bartender at Jacksonville Beach’s Philly’s Finest. The Philly-themed restaurant and bar—and Lamoureux’s home away from home— showcases delectable cheesesteaks and wings.

“The difference between living there and here is I have Philly here, but when it snows, I’m winning,” he said. Philly’s Finest has one of the few ice bars—if any—in the state, as well, which Lamoureux takes pride in. “I haven’t seen one outside of Vegas. It does all the talking: keeps the drinks cold in the summer,” he added. “I barely have to do anything.”

Lamoureux, who was voted Best Waiter by our readers in 2003’s Best of Jax, takes a minimalist, easygoing no-frills approach to bartending. “My signature drink is a draft beer and a shot,” he said with a smile, showcasing his trademark East Coast humor. With a full liquor bar in tow, he’s open to whatever the customer desires. But the bar does feature a tropical paradise in a glass and fan favorite, the Philadelphia Rum Runner,

which features a mixture of orange juice and three kinds of rum.

A familiar face in and outside of the bar, Lamoreaux carries a unique title as a long-stay resident that many may know. “I’m the Mayor of the Beaches,” he said. “Technically, there’s a mayor for each one, but I’m the mayor of all of them.” When he’s not serving beer during a Flyers game or acting as “mayor,” Lamoureux enjoys the company of his cat.

“I’m a pet lover. I was a dog lover, then my dog died,” he said. “I got a cat, then I became a crazy cat guy.”

Lamoureux will be around to serve up a smile and a tall glass for a while. “I’m very blessed to be waking up happy in this industry everyday—that’s very rare,” he said. “But for 33 years, I’ve been happy.” One can tell the love he has for his work, but the rewarding part of his job that makes his shifts brighter, he said, are his coworkers. “It’s the people you work with. The people you take care of,” Lamoureux said. “Your regulars are great, but it’s the people who are with you side by side.”

Bartender of the Month is sponsored by:

To view the full Bartender of the Month Video, scan the adjacent QR code.

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It’s been a year since our reintroduction as Folio 2.0. We came out from the top of the pandemic, with an aging publication and a 33-year old legacy in the palm of our hands.

Between John Phillips’ role in the community and Teresa Spencer’s lifetime of experience in media, a period of acquisition began in which they got everything from passwords to desk lamps to route sheets. With Spencer as manager and Phillips as publisher, they put together a small new team that was to find a fresh vision for the local, independent voice.

Boxes holding goldmines of local history, tales of Jacksonville’s culture, environment, and underground from decades past, were scrambled in a closet at the old Folio headquarters. Publisher John Phillips and his son, Bennett, spent the weeks before the first issue’s release sorting more than 1,650 Folios going back to 1987. They sought out missing issues with the help of the Jacksonville Public Library and scanned every cover. They placed them on shelves in the new Folio office to be referenced and revisited for the next 33 years and many more.

Angela Phillips designed the logo and John Aloszka got started on the magazine’s design. The first Folio 2.0 cover featured four prominent activists among a crowd of masked protesters, the story by Nikesha Elise Williams was on police

ISA BARRIENTOS

brutality in plain numbers and the global movement towards racial justice made local.

We brought back Brickbats and Bouquets, I Saw Yous (for a bit,) the games, Shelton Hull’s Weed column, and horoscopes (written in-house this time by me.) The rest of the content came out of a world that we couldn’t have imagined just months before, articles about a pandemic that we knew little about, a new civil rights movement that emerged from a viral video, on policing the police.

Black, white, and red all over, 20,000 copies hit racks across northeast Florida on July 14, 2020. After the first season-long hiatus since its initial release, Folio was back and here to stay.

Each of the 12 issues that we’ve released monthly since then have only gotten heartier and more impactful.

The archives have found a new life since they left the storage closet and now line the wall of the Folio studio for reference and inspiration. The new generation in northeast Florida, though more online than ever, can still enjoy the glory of finding a Folio on a rack.

It’s only going up from here, all in love for our community and staying true to its independent voice. Thank you for sticking with us. Cheers to many more!

Folio 2.0 celebrates one year anniversary, toots its own horn.

OUT WITH THE OLD, IN WITH THE TWO...

Folio’s first year of covers, starting in July 2020 and ending in June 2021.

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March 2021: The strong women of the Jacksonville Fire and Rescue Department, northeast Florida’s goth subculture, Vanilla Ice on culture and canceling, a local vinyl pressing plant turns tables, a new DIY skate spot.

April 2021: Mac Jones goes from Jacksonville to Alabama to the NFL draft, renaming schools to fix a racist past, history and controversy in Avondale, a conversation with singer-songwriter Conduit, models sport local swimwear.

May 2021: Silent Disco is the post-vax rage, three Black authors from Jacksonville become bestsellers, the legend of Skunk Ape, Malcolm Jackson’s photography comes to the Cummer, Darryl Daniels, vert skating, water polo.

June 2021: Local modeler brings old Jacksonville to life in small scale, undocumented immigrants on getting vaccinated, the Emerald Trail breaks ground, a local skater comes out as trans, break dancing, synchronized swimming.

July 2021: See table of contents. Thanks for picking me up

August 2020: Ax Handle Saturday’s 60th anniversary, Covid’s impact on weddings, live music, and education, a generous visual artist at the beaches, an eccentric producer on the southside, the environmental injustice of new developments, and local poetry.

September 2020: The serpent of the St. Johns River, dredging, twins who waited together until marriage, historic black colleges and universities, Jaguars speak on canceling traditions for the year, a paper gallery of local art, and the elections.

October 2020: A woman who scans the beach for junk to toss and keep, the new mural on the corner of Water and Bay, black cats, Pride celebrations alone and inside, the astrology of the presidential candidates, Duval County’s place in the election.

November 2020: Omarosa on Trump’s defeat, the Gen-Z vote, St. Johns County’s publicly-funded mosquito solution, the Timucua peoples’ history and erasure, the Jaguars’ sad season, and Brian Regan.

December 2020: The homeless’ voice on the pandemic, baseball returns to Murray Hill, the Cummer’s new and inspired CEO, a Hilliard man’s animal sanctuary in photos, the lonely landscape of the NFL during Covid, 2021 horoscopes.

January 2021: Best of Jax 2.0 highlights local businesses and personalities, Folio merges with EU Magazine, Riverside Rat on sleeping with the bartender, an open apology from Jaguars fans to the NFL, billiards, and sobriety.

February 2021: Jacksonville’s jazz renaissance, columnist Nate Monroe tackles local topics, consolidations catches up to Jacksonville’s subcommunities, rapper BennY RevivaL takes off his mask, pickleball.

July 2020: Local activism for racial equity, the lovers, bakers, and medical staff of the early pandemic, the powerful women behind local bail bonds, an offensive mural in the Baker County courthouse, and police budgets and reform.

Daddy’s Here for You After his “Dirty Daddy” book was released to acclaim, Bob Saget is now hitting the road with a stop at the Florida Theatre.

JOHN M. PHILLIPS

Bob Saget’s first words to me were, “So Carole Baskin killed her husband?” It was clearly a statement more than a question. Even though I was just a guy from Folio Weekly calling to do an interview for his upcoming performance at the Florida Theatre on July 18, he had done his homework. If you have ever had the chance to listen to his podcast, “Bob Saget’s Here’s For You,” you know he is a great interviewer (even during his own interview). For his podcast, he invited listeners to call in and included them in his show between celebrity guests. He talked with them, not to them. Literally, Bob Saget is here for you. He certainly was for me. After almost 80 minutes of shared laughter and perspective, I felt better. I left the interview a bigger Bob Saget fan than I was before the call and immediately bought tickets to his show.

Bob Saget is a damn good guy. He is also a damn good entertainer.

He is fun and hilariously funny. He is cerebral and has a wicked sense of humor. He is also incredibly talented. So much so, I was not sure who I would end up interviewing, the guy from Full House, America’s

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Funniest Videos, Entourage or one of his more raunchy sides as seen in the documentary The Aristocrats, Half Baked or other various roasts. We talked about anything and everything - from being carnivores to cancel culture, from publishing to perception versus reality, personal branding and scleroderma, a cause near to his heart.

We discussed the reaching impact of his longtime character, Danny Tanner (from Full House / Fuller House), something I haven’t seen much written about despite there being so much written about Saget. His portrayal of a single dad who lost his wife to a tragic car accident had an effect on viewers. People connected with Danny Tanner, whether it was because they lost their mother, like his daughters in the show Michelle, Stephanie and D.J., or because they used the show to escape their own reality and dreamed he was their father, even for a moment.

I conveyed that, similarly, Joe Exotic told me Bob Saget was his “first boyhood crush.” Bob said a number of former prison inmates he’s met over the years confess a unique bond with him because of Full House.

Another part of the conversation stemmed around the concept that, “you think you know someone.” People are not one-ply or one-dimensional beings. We all change. “I’m a 65 year old guy who doesn’t have a problem changing as the world changes,” Saget said. “I have respect for people, even the people I don’t agree with as long as they don’t come at me yelling.” Saget has fought that for part of his life. He is a dad. He is a husband. He is kind and compassionate like Danny Tanner. He is cerebral and analyzes sitcom history on an upcoming CNN documentary. He appeared in The Aristocrats a documentary about a joke comedians tell each other behind the scenes for shock value. He tells and has told some jokes throughout his career that would make your jaw drop. He has written a New York Times Best Seller. He has performed on Broadway. He has been nominated for a Grammy. Bob Saget is all of these things and more.

Let me be clear. Over the hour, I laughed more than I have laughed in a long time with a huge smile in between because the conversation felt good. I asked how important comedy is right now. Saget said, “I have a neighbor who built a monstrosity of a house. He had torches all over the back of his house at peak fire season. And I may or may not have called the fire department. After they did their job, seven firefighters stopped by my house for 10-15 minutes of comedy. I needed it. They needed it.” As they were leaving, Saget recognized to them that they are the real first responders, not comedians, but they needed to laugh which emphasized just how important comedy is right now, not only for that group of first responders but for all of us as a nation. “Getting to laugh with people is a gift, John. I feel like I have a major responsibility. I think comedy is going to be needed so bad (as we come out of this).”

So on Sunday, July 18, 2021, at 8 p.m. at the Florida Theatre, Bob Saget will be a stand-up comedian. He is excited to be coming back to Jacksonville. He is excited to be back on the road telling jokes and making people laugh. He was one of the first comedians to get back on the road, as he just had to feel people laughing again. Comedians live off of it. It isn’t just a performance with Saget, he was, “on a mission to do great stand-up” not just for himself, but because we all need to laugh more now than ever. “I’m emotional about it. I don’t get on stage to take a political stance about any of it. There was enough yelling before COVID shut us down. I just want to be entertaining and be funny and poignant. I believe in humanity.”

We need laughter. He is right.

“People will come to my show without having ever seen it, like the next one at the Florida Theatre, they will be delighted because they get to feel what it’s like to go out again and have fun with others. My stuff is universal at this point. I have been in front of audiences for over 40 years.” He tells stories, a guitar may make an appearance, but mainly it will be therapy for everyone in the Florida Theatre––from the audience to the person on stage telling the jokes. All Saget wants to do on July 18 is make sure everyone has a good time. He’s here for you.

He’s here for all of us.

TICKETS

ON SALE NOW

JULY 2021 24 FIREFALL AND PURE PRAIRIE LEAGUE 25 SUMMER MOVIE CLASSICS: BILLY MADISON 30 A CONVERSATION WITH BRUCE CAMPBELL PLUS A SCREENING OF

THE EVIL DEAD 31 DAVE KOZ & FRIENDS SUMMER HORNS LIVE

AUGUST 2021 1 7

SUMMER MOVIE CLASSICS:

THE USUAL SUSPECTS

SUMMER MOVIE CLASSICS:

CARL PALMER’S ELP LEGACY BONEY JAMES THE MUSIC OF BOSTON WITH TOMMY DECARLO (BOSTON SINGER SINCE 2007) 23 SQUEEZE 24 JIMMIE VAUGHAN 16 17

AT THE WJCT SOUNDSTAGE

25 KENNY G 26 GEOFF TATE

30TH ANNIVERSARY OF EMPIRE + RAGE FOR ORDER

30 SPYRO GYRA AT THE WJCT SOUNDSTAGE

30 TOM SEGURA

OCTOBER 2021 1

2 3

19 BLUES, BREWS & BBQ

22 SUMMER MOVIE CLASSICS: CLUELESS 23 ONE NIGHT OF QUEEN 27 GARY ALLAN 28 RANDY RAINBOW 29 IL DIVO

SEPTEMBER 2021 10 WHITNEY CUMMINGS

CROWDER LEONID AND FRIENDS PERFORMING THE MUSIC OF CHICAGO

A FLORIDA THEATRE BENEFIT

20 MEAT LOAF PRESENTS BAT - THE MUSIC OF MEAT LOAF

LITTLE RIVER BAND WITH SPECIAL GUEST THE LORDS OF 52ND STREET

APOLLO 13

15 SUMMER MOVIE CLASSICS: CASINO

ALAN PARSONS LIVE PROJECT FEATURING SPECIAL GUEST

PINK FLOYD’S THE DARK SIDE OF THE MOON PERFORMED BY

CLASSIC ALBUMS LIVE 8

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7

BENISE

8

PABLO CRUISE

20TH ANNIVERSARY TOUR AT THE PONTE VEDRA CONCERT HALL

9 10 16

NATE BARGATZE JIM JEFFERIES THE MONKEES FAREWELL TOUR WITH MICHAEL NESMITH & MICKY DOLENZ

21 MASTERCHEF LIVE! 22 TAYLOR TOMLINSON 23 LOL SURPRISE! LIVE

AT THE PONTE VEDRA CONCERT HALL

904.355.2787 | floridatheatre.com 128 East Forsyth Street, Downtown Jacksonville Follow us for the latest event news ACCESSIBILITY: Please inform the ticket office of any special arrangements you may require when purchasing tickets. An assistive listening system for the hearing impaired is available from the House Manager. Large print programs are available upon request. The wheelchair accessible bathroom is located to the right of the Entry Lobby Bar as you face the bar, to the left of the statue La Vergognosa. The theatre does not have its own parking lot. Disabled permit parking is available on the street.

27 07 July 2021 Ad - Folio.indd 1

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JULY-AUGUST

ON SALE NOW

ISA BARRIENTOS LEO Sit yourself down in your best chair for a Q & A. For better or for worse, and what’s it all worth? You’re the daylight shining on the earth, but what’s it for if you’re inside all day doing something you hate, what’s it about if you’re not being adored?

VIRGO Illusion’s a screen of blue skies and green hills that goes black. Turn it off, go outside, sit in the weeds alone for an hour to clear your mind of the toxic technicolor light. Through the loss life will be sweet. It will be true.

You will feel love.

LIBRA Who exactly are you to others, you ask yourself all the time. Perhaps it is better to just enjoy the moment with the people you love, and be yourself and talk too much. Party now and self care later, all in perfect balance like always.

SCORPIO You balance the brain in the depths of your gut, the saddest secrets, with the sheer power in the world that you hold. Your lover’s in middle ground. Do they stand in a meadow or a battlefield? Consult your friends for a laugh.

SAGITTARIUS You need to see the world, you need to get your message out. Your routine is pure chaos, maybe you like it that way, or it could get in the way. Either way, you’re sitting pretty at the desk of whatever weird job you work.

CAPRICORN Have fun exploring the dark, terrifying pits of your subconscious this month! Crawl out into the train station and take a ride to a place you don’t really know. Receive blessings from your creature comforts. Responsibility is so tempting, don’t take it.

JULY 2021 24 FIREFALL AND PURE PRAIRIE LEAGUE 25 SUMMER MOVIE CLASSICS: BILLY MADISON 30 A CONVERSATION WITH BRUCE CAMPBELL PLUS A SCREENING OF

THE EVIL DEAD 31 DAVE KOZ & FRIENDS SUMMER HORNS LIVE

AUGUST 2021 1 7

SUMMER MOVIE CLASSICS:

THE USUAL SUSPECTS

CLASSIC ALBUMS LIVE SUMMER MOVIE CLASSICS:

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PISCES Hidden enemies will come to light soon under a full moon. You need to invest more in those you’d like to keep around, but you’re under the spectre of ego. Ask around to see if anyone needs your healing energy.

Check your own head first.

19 BLUES, BREWS & BBQ

AT THE WJCT SOUNDSTAGE

25 KENNY G 26 GEOFF TATE

30TH ANNIVERSARY OF EMPIRE + RAGE FOR ORDER

30 SPYRO GYRA AT THE WJCT SOUNDSTAGE

30 TOM SEGURA

OCTOBER 2021 1

20 MEAT LOAF PRESENTS BAT - THE MUSIC OF MEAT LOAF 22 SUMMER MOVIE CLASSICS: CLUELESS 23 ONE NIGHT OF QUEEN 27 GARY ALLAN 28 RANDY RAINBOW

GEMINI Your filter’s moving at twice the speed of your legs, half the speed of your mouth. There’s trouble on your mind. Obtain the emotional comfort you need and keep it safe. You could find it in a mother’s arms.

10 WHITNEY CUMMINGS

29 IL DIVO

SEPTEMBER 2021

LITTLE RIVER BAND WITH SPECIAL GUEST THE LORDS OF 52ND STREET

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CROWDER LEONID AND FRIENDS PERFORMING THE MUSIC OF CHICAGO

A FLORIDA THEATRE BENEFIT

TAURUS It might be the wheel of fortune or it might be the rack. Your dream job is right in front of you, if only you show up and do the work. There’s a weekend war against the ghosts in your home. Use your charm and sheer willpower for it all.

CANCER Come to the front of the class for show and tell! Finances are your friends, you’ll be surrounded with them, will they lift you up or drag you down? Think about it and slow down. Make a list, check it twice. Call it Christmas in July.

CARL PALMER’S ELP LEGACY BONEY JAMES THE MUSIC OF BOSTON WITH TOMMY DECARLO (BOSTON SINGER SINCE 2007) 23 SQUEEZE 24 JIMMIE VAUGHAN 16 17

APOLLO 13

15 SUMMER MOVIE CLASSICS: CASINO

ALAN PARSONS LIVE PROJECT FEATURING SPECIAL GUEST

PINK FLOYD’S THE DARK SIDE OF THE MOON PERFORMED BY

AQUARIUS In work and play, it’s all about those final touches. A subtle intensity will come out of you and draw someone in, you will ask if it was your charm or your luck. Go into yourself and find them. Two’s a crowd, you love those, and it’s better than one.

ARIES Your money keeps going up and down.You’re stuck between romance and friendship and you’re barely ever home. Venus and Mars are out just before sunrise, glowing sweet, waiting to come down and screw your head on straight.

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BENISE

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PABLO CRUISE

20TH ANNIVERSARY TOUR AT THE PONTE VEDRA CONCERT HALL

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NATE BARGATZE JIM JEFFERIES THE MONKEES FAREWELL TOUR WITH MICHAEL NESMITH & MICKY DOLENZ

21 MASTERCHEF LIVE! 22 TAYLOR TOMLINSON 23 LOL SURPRISE! LIVE

AT THE PONTE VEDRA CONCERT HALL

904.355.2787 | floridatheatre.com 128 East Forsyth Street, Downtown Jacksonville Follow us for the latest event news ACCESSIBILITY: Please inform the ticket office of any special arrangements you may require when purchasing tickets. An assistive listening system for the hearing impaired is available from the House Manager. Large print programs are available upon request. The wheelchair accessible bathroom is located to the right of the Entry Lobby Bar as you face the bar, to the left of the statue La Vergognosa. The theatre does not have its own parking lot. Disabled permit parking is available on the street.

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07 July 2021 Ad - Folio.indd 1

7/7/2021 4:14:17 PM

LISTEN LOCALLY ON THE FOLIO LOCAL PLAYLIST. Scan to Listen!

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P A P E R

Dimensional Rift Becky Lyons

Crystal Child Becky Lyons

paint on canvas

paint on canvas

Unitled 1 Collage Lorn Wheeler sketch 30

G A L L E R Y

memory theory Ana Boulineau 16x20 acrylic, pastel, pen on canvas

setting Ana Boulineau 16x20 acrylic, pastel, pen on canvas

page743 Lorn Wheeler

Octopus Devid Dudley

sketch

ceramic with glaze 31

Artists YOU NEED TO KNOW

From staples like Skynyrd to rising stars like YK Osiris, the River City has seen some serious talent, and the scene that produced some big names is in good hands. Starting everywhere from school plays to church stages and eventually graduating to some of Jacksonville’s most beloved venues, these acts have all made a name for themselves in the regional scene. Check out the local bands and artists you need on your radar.

HEATHER BUSHMAN

Hayden Miles A Nashville country crooner by way of Jacksonville Beach, Hayden Miles is as classic as they come. He was raised on southern rock giants like Lynyrd Skynyrd and The Allman Brothers and takes cues from country superstars like Garth Brooks, Willie Nelson and The Man In Black himself, Johnny Cash. He’s a smooth talker, even-toned with an unmistakable southern drawl decorating his every syllable. His voice, whether speaking or singing, draws you in, and when you listen, you’re bound to walk away with a story.

Q: You’re in Nashville now. Why did you make the decision to move out there?

HM: I grew up in Jacksonville Beach and went to Fletcher High School. Then I went to Florida State University for four years, and I dropped out like one credit before I graduated. Things were going on, I just felt like I needed to get out of Tallahassee. I moved back to Jacksonville for a month and ended up visiting Nashville, and I just never went back. I love Jacksonville Beach, but I just really feel like I can be myself here, playing music almost every night. It’s awesome.

Q: Your songs have this classic Americana/roots country feel to them. Was there anything you heard growing up that inspired you to try that style?

HM:I really liked Lynyrd Skynyrd because they did southern rock. It was rock ‘n’ roll, but they were still telling these stories like country music. Later on it was Johnny Cash and Willie Nelson, those are the best songwriters of all time. I love 90s country too — I’m a big Brooks & Dunn fan, and I love Garth Brooks.

Q: You write, you produce, you sing, you do it all. What comes first in the whole process?

HM: I just let all these ideas build up, and eventually they have to explode somewhere out of my mind. Then I just go to the guitar. My process is usually just to sit down on the couch with my dog, guitar in my hand, probably a beer, sports game on in the background, and I’ll just relax. If it comes to me, it comes to me.

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The Dog Apollo After a rotating lineup of members, Chris Rudasill and Joel Bernkrant were the last ones standing when the dust settled almost two years ago.

Since then, the two have been making music as The Dog Apollo, a duo inspired by the best of the British Invasion and 80s new wave with a classic alternative flair. With Rudasill taking the lead on songwriting and Bernkrant coming into his own as a producer, The Dog Apollo has made quite the name for themselves on the Jacksonville scene, playing shows with big names like of Catfish and the Bottlemen, Young the Giant and Cage the Elephant fronting the bill.

which is why “Brothers” has this big, vintage sound. Every record of his has that signature on it.

Q: “The Dog Apollo” is such an interesting name. How’d you come up with it?

Q: What comes first — music or lyrics?

CR: We were just putting different words together and seeing what stuck.

We went through a lot and it just wasn’t working — “The Dog Apollo” was born out of necessity. I just liked the way it sounded. “The Dog Apollo” just rolled off the tongue. It was easy to say, so I guess that’s why it stuck.

JB: Apollo’s a mythical Greek god, but a dog would be a negative, so “The Dog Apollo” is almost like an anti-hero. We love stuff that’s underground, so it’s very fitting.

Q: Any dream collaborations?

JB: For something more vintage-y sounding, like 60s throwback, I’d love to work with Danger Mouse. He’s such a neat producer, plays like everything. He was the production half of Gnarles Barkley, but he’s gone on to do tons of records. He did [The Black Keys’] “Brothers,” I think,

CR: There’s this new girl, Olivia Rodrigo, who’s super good and has a super good voice. She’s killer. I watched her SNL performance last night when she was sitting on the piano, she was like, ‘I got my drivers’ license.’

She’s so talented. I didn’t know she was so young either — she literally just got her drivers’ license, it’s not metaphorical. I’d collaborate with her for sure.

CR: It changes. I have pages full of lyrics, just one-liners that are kind of like soundbites. Sometimes those make it in the song, sometimes they don’t... on the new one we’re going to record next month, I think the lyrical hook came first. For me, I usually have to have a melody before I can write. I usually have to have some sort of musical hook before I can start writing lyrics. It changes, but typically that’s how it is.

JB: I feel like with our newest stuff, Chris brought me the lyrical line before we had the instrumentals. Here’s a really crude metaphor: instrumentation is like growing mushrooms. You have to have a lot of the right stuff in one place for it to grow out, because it won’t just pop up, but sometimes, a word kind of finds its way into an instrumentation. It can go either way.

CR: That was beautiful, Joel.

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The need for speed can be found beyond video games and television here in Jacksonville.

Not intended to be a secret, Jacksonville has a 0.5-mile asphalt go-kart racing track with a 1,000-ft straightaway. Free and open to the public 7 to 7 every day, the North Florida Kart Club hosts regional and national races each year on the grounds.

“It’s true to racing, it’s go as fast as you want, but there’s definitely rules,” said the North Florida Kart Club’s secretary treasurer, Rob Hindery.

Live out your childhood Hot Wheels fantasies with the North Florida Go Karting Club.

In the national races, prizes are bigger. “The most coveted prize in karting is called the Triple Crown. If you win three national championships in one year, you get a full sponsorship to go drive open wheel cars. The Karting Association basically pays you to race a racecar for one year,” said Rob.

Whether wanting to participate regionally or nationally, the doors are open for all at the North Florida Kart Club. In the go karting family, all are truly welcome.

“On a local basis we get on average about 50-60 competitors. But the bigger races, the national races, when they come to town here 2-3 times a year, they’ll draw near to 200-300,” said Jim.

However, not all join the track at the same time.

CASEY ALIXANDRA

THE NEED FOR SPEED

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When you enter the property at 10244 103rd St., there are five 4x8 inch signs that explain the safety rules and regulations before getting onto the tracks.

“There’s a noise ordinance that you have to adhere to, you have to wear a helmet, a neck brace, gloves, a jacket, closed toes shoes, and long pants,” said Jim Hindery.

This is not only a place for fun and adrenaline, but a place to always be mindful and responsible. Here, people can have fun and be a part of the go karting world.

“It’s free to the public. It makes it one of a kind in the country, where people can just come out here on a Wednesday or whenever,” said Hindery.

For the last five years, Hindery has been volunteering there with his son, Jim Hindery. Jim is also the club’s president and has been for past three years. Since Jim was a child, he and Rob have bonded together through the sport. Now, Jim has his own children, and he is passing on the legacy.

Today his five-year-old son and eldest, Blaise, has already won two races speeding at 35 mph. On 103rd Street, the Hindery family have created memories while making great opportunities for those that want to race there as well.

“We do them at least twice a month. Some of our races are during the day and some of the hotter months that we run, you know spring and mid early fall, we’ll even do night races with the lights on. Which is great, it adds the intensity to it,” said Rob.

There’s a fee to participate in these races, non-members are $45 and $35 for members––cash only.

“When we host our local events, it’s $35 (for members) an entry. It’s free to watch from the stands, but if you want to watch from the pits, all you have to do if buy the insurance armband. It’s $10 and that money goes to pay the track workers,” said Jim.

At the racetrack there are different classes based on age, weight, and engine type.

“Sets of tires, a jacket, hats, shirts, sweatshirts. We try to pay back with prizes to at least third place and if it’s been a real big club class, where over 30-35 people have participated, we will try to pay back all the way to 5th place,” said Rob.

“Normally there’s no more than 20-30 karts out there at the most,” said Jim.

And with all these people coming together and sharing one passion, they give back as well to the community.

“One of our biggest club charities is “The Spinal Bifida Association”. It’s a six-hour endurance race. Its company hosted and as part of our contribution to Spinal Bifida, we charge $900 to rent the track. For big events like that, $900 a day, we donated three of those days,” said Jim.

All the money that the property receives is always used for good and to keep the racetrack alive.

“We also pay into a trust with the city that allows us to basically have ownership of this place,” said Jim. “And that money that we pay into the trust every year goes into that trust fund. Then with that money, it gets used for the improvement projects.”

A loud, yet unintentionally unknown place like this, is being heard of around the country. It’s time for the locals to know as well. The North Florida Kart Club not only gives opportunities to those interested in the sport but helps the community around it.

“The city loves it because a lot of these people that come from out of state, they stay at the local motels, the restaurants, a lot of the people come in and actually stay at Jax Beach for a week when they come in for a national touring event,” said Jim Hindery.

It’s here, its loud, and its only getting bigger.

“On our website, we got our schedule posted. Just come and have fun. And it doesn’t even have to be a racing go-kart. You can bring a yard kart, something you ride around in someone’s backyard,” said Rob. “As long as you got the proper safety equipment, you’re good to go. And that’s what makes this track so, so cool.”

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Solve this puzzle like a regular sudoku, but instead of using numbers, use the letters M-O-R-G-A-N (in honor of the Jacksonville City Councilor Joyce Morgan).

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HERES THE DEAL:

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FOLIO-KU

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CLUES

H A R E M

M P E R W O S E

A R E B O M A N T

A B E T H A S S T V E U F T E E Z A M S

E D E N

R E L O

R O M A S

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S T R A M O O S U N D I R E E F F R O S S N P E N E I G Y R S E E

P E D I V I B A A H T O A Y D O O U R E S

S L O S I X N A I R R D A S E W R O P T S T R E E C O D E R E P E L

A L I T O

S L E W S

P E R O T

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M O N A R G

G A M R N O

N R O G M A

1 Phillips & Hunt lawyer org 2 Gov. Desantis 3 CPR expert 4 Aid in a crime 5 Blue man group?

6 Copier supplies 7 “Ain’t my first ____” 8 Fat Chance 9 Salon treatment 10 Fend off 11 ‘06 SCOTUS appointee 12 Oodles 13 Recieved over a million votes in ‘92 pres. election in FL

I N T E R

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DOWN

21 Waste maker 22 Itenerary Word 23 Kitten’s cry 24 Typical writing 25 Sultan’s women 30 Opp. of pos.

31 “Humbug!”

33 “Law & Order___” 34 JU frat letters 36 Duval Co. Court perjurers 37 Lime or rust 39 “Science Buy” Bill 40 Bards “before” 41 Whitney Houston’s “Run__” 45 A way to eat oysters 46 Shriner’s cap 47 Contradict 48 Loves a bunch 50 US Govt. security 51 Kitchen gadget 53 Jaguars & Panthers 54 Some tomatoes 57 Where fruit picking originated 58 Pull up stakes, briefly 59 UNF military org.

63 Timiquana Country Club instructory 64 US Rep. Deutch (from South Florida) 65 Observe

R I C E R

1 See 71 Across 5 Bikini Part 10 Carpentry Tool 14 Flop on stage 15 Bullwinkle, eg 16 Allure alternative 17 bestbet stake 18 Nullified 19 Jax Beach fishing spot 20 *Gainesville, Ocala, Spring Hill 23 Nascar stat 26 Big ‘do 27 Words of defeat 28 Shrimp pitching fig.

29 Flat tire sound 30 Magic Society, briefly 32 Jags in 2020 NFL standings 34 Certain brain size 35 ___ - mo 38 *MIA/Homestead/ Dural 42 Popular bird in crosswords 43 Jr. or Sr. at UF 44 WJCT studio sign 46 FL turnpike toll, eg 47 Sun-__ Cinema 49 Food label abbr.

50 Old hat

54 Ctrl+y on PC 55 Put in stitches 56 *Jax/Yullee, Starke 60 Tetra- doubled 61 Show reluctance 62 Chooses 66 Swarm 67 Make Merry 68 Grove unit 69 Has it wrong 70 Proboscises 71 With 1- Across, what the answer is for the cities with starred clues

T N O T E

ACROSS

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JJS-000075_2021JulyFolioAd-10x13_rsg.indd 1

6/16/21 2:11 PM

Introducing Folio’s new Podcast Series The Summer Podcast Series, Folio Gone Viral, will analyze cultural consumption and media.

Rebecca Hewett

Tune in to Folio 2.0’s new summer podcast hosted by Rebecca Hewett. In the series, she’ll discuss the extraordinary things we love about music and culture. On the second episode, Hewett talks about all things viral since 2000. Enjoy some trivia while you’re there.

To listen scan the adjacent QR code.

REBECCA HEWETT

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Katherine Stewart offers a rare look inside the movement that brought Donald Trump to power, taking readers inside the religious right's key gatherings and strategy meetings and introducing them to the movement’s most intriguing personalities.

“Inside the Dangerous Rise of Religious Nationalism” In this discussion, we’ll explore the increasing rise of religious nationalism in today’s political climate.

Monday, July 19, 2021 6:30 to 8:30 p.m.

(Virtual event via Zoom) For more info visit FCFS.ORG The FCFS Presents Katherine Stewart

Investigative Journalist and Author

Drew Bob's Farm

Control your Dog. 39

YOU’RE ALREADY HERE. POTENTIAL CUSTOMERS ARE, TOO. With a reach of over 200,000 people each issue, Folio puts your business all over town.

TERESA@FOLIOWEEKLY.COM

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ADULT ADVICE SHARI AND TERRY JAYMES

A DOG HOUSE DILEMMA He wants a dog, she doesn’t. Marriage is in the future, but is a canine?

2 REPLY: TERRY: I hate to say it, but I believe I have a foolproof solution for you Archie.

SHARI: And I hate to say it, but I can’t wait for this one.

TERRY: Well it’s quite simple. I’m a true believer that you need to come into a relationship with all the stuff you want.

SHARI: I think it’s a little late for that, no? I mean, they’re already together.

1 DEAR DUMBS: I think you guys are so fun and funny and I have a quick question.

I’m getting married in August. I can only hope our relationship is half as fun as yours. Anyway, we bought a house and will be moving in September. My issue is that I want a dog when we move in and when I bring it up I can tell she’s hesitant. Is there anyway I can get her excited about the possibility of having a little friend?

ARCHIE

JACKSONVILLE BEACH

TERRY: That’s the sticky point. Maybe that advice is for people who are about to be in a relationship. Get the dog, the motorcycle, the pet eight foot lizard now people. Love me for who I am and what I already have.

SHARI: Archie, please don’t do that. If you bring home a dog now without talking to your partner, you’re going to piss her off. If you still want to get married in August, I suggest not doing that!

TERRY: I totally understand that. However there’s a famous saying, “It’s easier to ask for forgiveness than to ask for permission.” You can go that route if you have the balls Archie. If not, the very least you can do is work on your salesmanship. For example, you can vocally set her up for the inevitable. “I need to fix the fence for when we get our dog.” Be relentless Archie.

SHARI: Well I hope you ask for permission, Archie.

Bringing a new pup into the house isn’t like buying a new car or a guitar amp. It’s a big responsibility that you’ll both need to share and if one person isn’t fully on board, you’ll be starting your partnership off on a bad note. On the other hand, I fully support buying that vintage Corvette!

TERRY: A Corvette with a puppy in it. You WILL get that dog Archie and I hate to say it, but Shari is right on many levels. That being said, let’s just say you walked into the house with a baby lab. Picture it. What type of person would say, “Get that thing out of here!” And if she did, who wants her anyway.

LISTEN ON APPLE MUSIC

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