In a joint press conference Monday, mayors Willie Herenton and A C Wharton announced that the Memphis Sexual Assault Resource Center will move under the health department’s jurisdiction. For more, see Mary Cashiola’s In The Bluff blog.
Mayors Herenton and Wharton are currently giving a joint press conference at the county Health Department, where they’ve announced that MSARC will be moving under the health department’s management starting July 1st.
In the early 1960s, a new form of entertainment opened all across the country, and Memphis wasn’t immune to this crazy fad. Called “trampoline pits,” these were essentially big rubber trampolines stretched over rectangular holes in the ground …
Vance Lauderdale has details on another weird chapter in Memphis history.
In the early 1960s, a new form of entertainment opened all across the country, and Memphis wasn’t immune to this crazy fad. Called “trampoline pits,” these were essentially big rubber trampolines stretched over rectangular holes in the ground. You paid a quarter (I seem to recall) and bounced and bounced for 10 minutes or so.
They were usually low-rent affairs, set up outside abandoned gas stations and drive-ins. At first, the trampolines were mounted on steel frames above the ground, but to avoid disasters the owners eventually placed the mats over shallow holes surrounded by sand, just like in the pictures here — so somebody wouldn’t bounce off the things and break their necks, you see. And that’s why they were called trampoline PITS.
Still, there were casualties. Kids would hop and leap and tumble and suddenly bounce off the side of the mat and land smack on their little heads. Schools across this great land were filled with poor little children, their faces battered black and blue, their heads swathed in thick bandages, groaning in agony as they shuffled down the hallway, dragging their broken legs behind them. You’d see them and think “Another senseless trampoline tragedy.”
When driver meets ball this Thursday at Southwind for the St. Jude Classic, it will mark the 52nd straight year the PGA has made Memphis home for a week. Phil Cannon has been tournament director since the 2000 event. He paused last week just long enough to answer a few questions from Frank Murtaugh.
When driver meets ball this Thursday at Southwind for the St. Jude Classic, it will mark the 52nd straight year the PGA has made Memphis home for a week. Phil Cannon has been tournament director since the 2000 event. He paused last week just long enough to answer a few questions.
How did you and other tournament officials approach the aftermath of the Stanford Financial crisis?
From a legal standpoint, it was a period of uncertainty. We were kept in the dark for 30 days or so. We heard bits and pieces of news through various media sources, some insider information that led us to believe that we’d be able to conduct the tournament. We weren’t sure about title sponsorship, what the name would be, what the logo would be.
Toward the end of March, we were informed by the PGA Tour that the tournament would be operated as the St. Jude Classic. They turned us loose to swing into action, and to implement the plan we developed over that 30-day dark period. We had our vendors lined up for various signage opportunities. We developed a logo and marketing plan. We intentionally designed a logo that would roughly replicate the dimensions and shape of our former logo, so it would fit our signage. We intentionally went with a one-color logo to simplify printing. It’s been an unusual 90 days for sure.
With the tournament benefiting St. Jude and Phil Mickelson’s wife battling cancer, Lefty will be a great story the moment he tees off on Thursday.
(This will be Mickelson’s second Memphis appearance, and first since 2001.)
I’ve seen it for 20 years now — St. Jude miracles every year. We’ve become firm believers in the power of that brand. It’s been amazing to watch it take shape. We can empathize with what Phil’s going through, and at the same time be very encouraged that the prognosis [for his wife] could be positive.
In terms of the PGA calendar, is the St. Jude Classic where it needs to be, a week before the U.S. Open?
This has historically been a prime date on the PGA Tour’s schedule. One anomaly that’s popped up recently is that U.S. Open qualifying is on the Monday of our tournament week. Out of 156 players in our field, 108 of them are engaged in a 36-hole Bataan Death March on Monday of tournament week, and 70 of those are qualifying outside of Memphis. The number of withdrawals early in the week is a source of concern. It takes its toll on the players.
Local fans will be seeing a talented group of international players: Retief Goosen, Padraig Harrington, Sergio Garcia, Jose Maria Olazabal. How much do they add to the tournament?
They add a mark of distinction. We’ve got five of the top 11 players in the world, and there aren’t too many tournaments that can say that. If you look at the top 10 now, it’s dominated by foreign players. It’s indicative of the state of golf in the world now, and we’re the beneficiaries.
There are also going to be some local favorites: Shaun Micheel, David Gossett, Loren Roberts, and big John Daly. Based on what you’ve seen over the years, who’s the most popular native son?
John Daly has international appeal, and is arguably one of the top three draws in golf. He’ll be making his 2009 U.S. debut at our event. But from a purely personal standpoint, having Loren Roberts set the alltime mark for playing in Memphis — this will be his 25th year; Lou Graham played 24 — he’s become such a supporter and friend. There’s no better friend of this tournament than Loren Roberts. This could very easily be his swan song. He’d be welcome back anytime he wants to play, but I think he’ll probably be focusing on the Champions Tour in his twilight years.
Who are the lesser-known golfers fans should keep an eye on this year?
Chad Campbell has had an injury, and is a great player. J.B. Holmes has been at the forefront of his game lately. Will MacKenzie married a local girl he met here a few years ago. He’s got game.
Your web site actually offers tips on how to politely get a player’s autograph. Is this kind of exchange ever problematic?
Autograph hounds are one of our bigger spectator concerns. We’ve had players get poked in the hand or arm with sharp pencils. We’ve tried to keep it organized, but it’s organized chaos, at best. I personally would love to see all the tournaments have more of an Augusta National outlook, where a person is politely asked to leave the grounds if he asks for an autograph past a certain point.
Since 1970, the Memphis tournament has raised and donated over $21 million to St. Jude. Are the players aware of the significance?
We’ve had firsthand knowledge of dozens of success stories, and we’ve received secondhand knowledge of thousands more. We’ve watched the cure rate [for certain cancers] go from less than 10 percent to greater than 90 percent. We’ve been blessed with optimism and hope.
This is your 10th year as tournament director. Does anything still catch you by surprise?
There are so many things, to this day, that occur and I find out only after the fact. Several years ago, I learned that we’d been giving out fruit to players at the turn [after the ninth hole]. Some volunteer group had taken it upon themselves to put grapes in a cup, slice oranges, and have bananas ready for players at the turn. When I asked how long we’d been doing it, they said three or four years!
Now that the Tennessee legislature has begun the great transformation of our state into a perpetually armed camp, it’s time to ponder some of the more interesting ramifications of their zealotry. Restaurants in this state are now, of course, faced with a choice: whether or not to allow legally armed customers onto their premises. Writer Chris Davis interviewed a number of bar/restaurant owners for the Flyer’s recent cover story and discovered that there is no overwhelming consensus as to what most owners are going to do.
The choice is not a simple one. Restaurant/bar owners must consider several factors in making their decision, including insurance liability, what their customers might prefer, personal politics, the safety of their employees, etc. But the bottom line for most will be, well, the bottom line. When new, more restrictive smoking regulations were passed, restaurants had to figure out which option brought in more money — catering strictly to an over-21, smoking crowd or staying family friendly. Now proprietors must figure out what most of their customers will prefer — an armed or unarmed establishment — and act accordingly.
Similar choices will face consumers. Let’s say you’re a gun-totin’ smoker. You have to find a joint that allows both, or you’ll have to leave either your cigarettes or your gun in the car, where they’re sure to be stolen (at least, according to carry permit holders). People on both sides of the issue are saying they won’t patronize establishments that favor the other side. As for the often-cited Applebee’s, I don’t eat there anyway, but I wouldn’t worry much one way or the other during dinner hour at legitimate restaurants. Bars are the real issue for me. For the record, any late-night bar that allows guns won’t get my business.
Here’s an idea: Why not let bar and restaurants establish “Guns Allowed” and “No Guns Allowed” areas, just like they used to do with smoking? That way we’d at least know where the nuts are sitting.
Why can’t every morning start with a nice tall glass of Memphis Mary, the wickedly delicious breakfast cocktail that combines everything you love about a spicy Bloody Mary with the great taste of barbecue sauce?
Chris Davis ponders Eating Local.
A watered-down version of Commissioner Steve Mulroy’s proposed
antidiscrimination ordinance was passed by the County Commission on
Monday but only after several days of public histrionics … More at this week’s Letter From the Editor.