Month: September 2018

Categories
Sports Tiger Blue

Navy 22, Tigers 21

Navy recovered a Patrick Taylor fumble early in the fourth quarter Saturday in rainy Annapolis, Maryland, the pivotal play in erasing a 21-9 Memphis lead. Zach Abey’s three-yard touchdown run with 2:40 to play proved to be the game-winner, giving Navy a significant win in the race for the American Athletic Conference’s West Division title. A week after allowing 59 points in a loss at Hawaii, Navy dominated possession time (43:18) and held the Tigers to three Darrell Henderson touchdowns.

Henderson gave Memphis a 7-3 lead in the second quarter with his first score, a two-yard run. His 78-yard jaunt midway through the third quarter gave the Tigers a 14-9 lead and the junior All-America candidate raced 59 yards with 1:21 left in the third quarter to give Memphis that short-lived 21-9 advantage. Henderson finished the game with 212 rushing yards on just 13 carries, the first 200-yard game for a Tiger running back in nine years.

The Tigers committed four turnovers (three fumbles and a Brady White interception), contributing to the possession-time disparity. Navy ran 79 plays to the Tigers’ 49 and the Tigers still outgained their hosts, 378 yards to 316.

Navy essentially owns a two-game lead over Memphis with the win, as any tie-breaker in conference play will now go to the Midshipmen.

The Tigers (1-1) return to the Liberty Bowl for their next game, Friday night against Georgia State. Their next AAC contest will be at Tulane on September 28th.

Categories
Politics Politics Feature

Starting Over

The change has come. There is a new Shelby County Mayor, Lee Harris, and he will serve along with a Shelby County Commission that numbers eight new members on the 13-member body.

And all these newcomers will inherit some old business — two issues that were apparently resolved last Monday, on the final meeting day of the old Commission, but became unresolved late Friday when outgoing Mayor Mark Luttrell — timing his action for the last possible moment so as to avoid a possible override — vetoed two resolutions.

Shelby County Mayor Lee Harris

One of these resolutions gave the go-ahead to a 390-unit subdivision, to be built in the southeastern corner of the county, adjacent to Collierville. The other resolution served to restore some post-retirement benefits, curtailed a decade ago, for county employees who serve a minimum of eight years. (Perhaps not coincidentally, eight years is the amount of time in office just served by the outgoing term-limited members of the Commission.)

In conferring his veto, Luttrell cited the expenses to Shelby County government of the two resolutions — the unspecified costs of providing county services and infrastructure in the case of the subdivision, an estimated $6 to $10 million in direct annual outlays in the case of the post-retirement benefits. The financial sum was the estimate of Harvey Kennedy, Luttrell’s CAO, and Luttrell said that, at the very least, some actuarial study ought to be given the project before final approval.

That, in a public-policy sense, was the crux of the matter as Luttrell saw it. There was, additionally, a highly private side to the disagreement between mayor and commission, and, in taking his veto action, Luttrell had managed to strike the last blow in what had amounted to a nearly three-year power struggle between himself and the commission — one that, on Thursday of last week, only a day previously, had seen him conspicuously on the losing end.

That had been the occasion of the public swearing-in at the Cannon Center of mayor-elect Harris, along with the eight new commissioners and the clerks and charter officials who had been elected, along with them in the county general election of August 2nd. The ceremony had been pointedly organized and conducted under commission auspices, after, it was said, Luttrell himself had declined to commit resources to it from the county’s general fund.

Some confusion persists on that latter point. Luttrell later maintained that he had authorized a disbursement from the general fund to pay for the ceremony, while outgoing commission chair Heidi Shafer said that commission funds had paid for it and that Luttrell’s offer of funding had come too late and only after he had received inquiries from the media about responsibility for the event.

It was Shafer — who, along with Commissioner Terry Roland, had been the chief organizer of resistance to Luttrell over the years — who was front and center for the swearing-in ceremony, and who made it clear to the large audience that the event was a commission project. She identified the outgoing mayor only as “Mark Luttrell,” sans title, when, at the request of two of the new officials, he assisted in administering the oath of office.

What was it that lay behind this schism? Political partisanship? That wouldn’t seem to be the case; while the commission’s Democrats quite often voted against the mayor’s will on particular cases, there was no doubting that the rebellion against Luttrell, a Republican, was led by Shafer and Terry Roland, both GOP members. Nor were personality differences the reason, though they existed. Ditto with govermental ideology. True, Luttrell’s main concern as mayor seemed to be that of debt retirement über alles, while commission members tended to be freer spenders. But beyond all that, what separated mayor and commissioners in recent years seemed to be honest disagreement about the balance of power between branches of government. The Commission saw itself as entitled to a greater degree of oversight, especially over financial matters, while Luttrell saw his executive responsibilities to be dependent on the kind of strong-mayor role that the county charter, as currently constituted, may not fully license.

It seems clear that, as county government goes forward with a new mayor and new commissioners, the argument is likely to rear again. Further change may be called for, and not only in two leftover resolutions.

Categories
Food & Wine Food & Drink

Bud Light Orange? Just Say No

With football season upon us — after nine months of it not being upon us — so are the football gatherings. Unlike hanging out for a couple of beers after work or on the weekend, tail-gating really isn’t the place for craft beer. For one thing, you are drinking for too many hours on end; and for another, when it comes to filling the cooler, these things usually have a community chest rule. Tail-gating is the time for that old standby: Cheap Domestic Beer.

Fortunately, the explosion of craft beer has made the major brewers reflect on the variety of taste profiles they offer. In theory, that’s a good thing, but in practice, they might want to stop thinking so hard.

Over the summer, I had a Schöfferhofer, a German grapefruit shandy that looks like a Fanta in the bottle but tastes light and refreshing and is just a little different. Leinenkugel’s, out of Wisconsin, makes a popular shandy that’s widely available in town. This, I think, is what Budweiser was attempting with the release of its Bud Light Orange. Given how tightly the Germans regulate beer production, Schöfferhofer doesn’t use artificial flavoring. Budweiser isn’t quite so picky, however. This is what happens when traditional brewing meets economies of scale and double entry corporate bookkeeping.

BLO wasn’t even on my radar until the underage child of a friend (both will remain nameless) suggested I review the new Bud Light Orange.

“Is it good?” I asked.

“Oh, no,” she said. “It’s awful.”

This piqued my interest because I remember my own comically low standards at 19. Being a professional at this by now — and something of a masochist, I thought, why not?

If you are expecting a burst of warm Florida sunshine and wholesome Vitamin C from BLO, go elsewhere. This tastes like a watery Tang, but without the childlike faith in its country’s space program — or future. The orange flavoring is thin and industrial, almost Orwellian. Like Big Brother has already crushed our will to live and now he’s just toying with us. Bud Light Orange is the Room 101 of beer.

I do like a hint of orange in a cocktail. Once, while having drinks with the Commander at Hog & Hominy, I thought up a concoction involving gin, a dash of simple syrup, and orange bitters. Served with a twist. We explained it to the bartender and called it a Comedian, because that made sense at the time. They were great, and we drank too many. As far as I know, the Comedian isn’t on the H&H drinks menu; the bartender was just being amiable.

Bud Light Orange, however, failed to capture the same humor. The long-suffering Mrs. M. — a fan of regular Bud Light — was dubious when I showed her the six-pack, so I resorted to subtle and complex psychological warfare to get her to test this stuff with me. And some obvious pouting. After I’d pulled my shirt over my head, she looked down and said, “Okay, Chubs, get up off the floor and pour me that orange beer.”

I used our wedding crystal because I’m such a romantic.

Mrs. M. thought it tasted like a Jolly Rancher and beer. I quote: “This isn’t even a college girl beer. This is what a four-year-old would want with his Happy Meal.”

Wise lady, that one. In fact, it doesn’t taste like a Jolly Rancher and beer — just a Jolly Rancher. Were it not a Budweiser product, you’d be hard pressed to call it beer. Picture orange-flavored children’s medicine without the benefit of the medicine.

I paired it with Brim’s Seasoned Pork Cracklin’ Strips (small on carbs, big on hypertension), not so much for a salty/sweet thing but to get the taste out of my mouth. Now we have four left in the fridge. If you want them, swing by; they’ll still be here.

I’m going to go make myself a Comedian.

Categories
Music Music Blog

Listen Up: Wine Witch

CREDIT: Michael Donahue

Michael Donahue

Wes Brown and David Shull of Wine Witch

David Shull got serious about guitar after someone heard him play and said, “David sucks.”

He was in the eighth grade at the time.

“I swear to God that has been a driving force,” says Shull. “I was like, ‘I don’t want to suck.’”

About the same time he was told he sucks at guitar, Shull discovered Wolfmother. “Everything I’d been listening to before that just seemed really contrived. I had never heard anything like that. It was kind of Led Zeppelin-y. It was like old school rock, but with this new feel and this power behind it. You know. Just driving. You want to bang your head to it.”

Shull, 26, now is guitar/vocalist with drummer Wes Brown, 21, in Wine Witch.

Brown says he was “always that annoying kid that wanted to play music.”

He chose drums as his instrument. “I had that energy and those rhythms in my head.”

Slipknot, Rage Against the Machine, and System of a Down were among Brown’s favorite bands.

He dated Shull’s sister for a time, but he didn’t know Shull. “The first time I met him I was scared,” he says. “She warned me. She said, ‘He might have to feel you out a little but don’t worry if he’s a dick.’”

“I kind of was known for being a fucking protective brother,” Shull says.

Brown was nervous when he knew he had to meet Shull one night at LBOE. “I knew I was going to have to come meet my new girlfriend’s scary older brother who I’d heard all the horror stories about. Like if I say one wrong thing I might get a quick uppercut to the jaw.”

So, Brown just “played it cool.”

“We were cool,” Shull says.

Brown was surprised when Shull called him to jam after he stopped dating his sister. “I thought I did so horrible because I hadn’t really been playing as much as I needed to and I hadn’t been playing with other people,” Brown says. “I had like half of my drum kit and I was just trying to make something happen. I didn’t think it went well at all. I thought, ‘He’s never going to hit me up again. I blew it.’”

“I knew he was good,” Shull says.

Shull was in another band when he approached Brown about starting another project. “I was like, ‘Yo, man. Why don’t we do something on the side? I’ve got all this music that we’re not going to use and I want to play it. It can be a little heavier. Something’s that going to be just fucking fun to do.’”

Brown liked Shull’s music. “Just the driving force of it,” he says. “I’m always more into hard hitting, rhythmic stuff. I like melodies that are good. He can write a really damn catchy melody and hook. He just writes good songs. I’ve known people who could listen to a Jimi Hendrix song or just an insanely difficult song to play and and play it note for note. But they can’t write their own music. He’s always writing. Always coming up with stuff. Just stuff that is genuinely catchy. My parents like it. That’s catchy.”

“My biggest influences are like Queens of the Stone Age and all of Josh Homme’s projects,” Shull says. “Because he falls in this place where it’s driving. It’s heavy. It’s not your regular rock. It’s something between metal and rock. Something that falls and sinks.”

Shull and Brown played their first show as “Amberlamps.”

Shull wasn’t a fan of that name. “I thought it was too memey,” he says.

“The first thing you learn about a two piece band is there’s a lot of empty space,” Shull says. “And every mistake you make is amplified a thousand fold because there’s only two dudes to look at. So, if you fuck up, they’re going to know it.”

Their first show together also was the first show Brown ever played. “Ever played ever,” he says. ‘So, I had the first show jitters bad.”

Shull came up with the idea of the two of them covering their faces that night to conceal their identities. “I was like, ‘It’ll be cool, man. I’ll wear this bandana on my face.”

He wanted Brown to wear a ski mask. “I was like, ‘Get a ski mask, dude. Wear a ski mask. It’ll be cool, man.’”

Brown brought a ski mask, but it wasn’t what Shull wanted. “It had this little bill on it. And I was like, ‘That doesn’t look intimidating! 

It looks like you got back from the mountains.”

He thought it looked like Brown had been snow skiing. ”

I was going for more like robbing a bank kind of vibe. We missed the mark on that, really.”

Shull ended up discarding his bandanna. “He – like halfway through the first song – got too hot and just ripped that shit off his face anyway,” Brown says.

“I couldn’t breath behind it,” Shull says.

“You couldn’t sing,” Brown says.

And their music? “Everyone said it was alright,” Shull says. “A big struggle for us has been gear. I’ve borrowed amps. I’ve used shitty amps. I’ve had amps go out on me. I just got a new bass amp.”

“Well, after that first show I pretty much was like, ‘I don’t like the name ‘Amberlamps.’ Fuck that,’” Brown says.

As Wine Witch, they began opening up for a lot of bands passing through town on the way to perform at South by Southwest. “They’re looking on Facebook like, ‘Who can play these last minute shows,’” Shull says. “So, I just started jumping on them. I think we played three in a week that month.”

“And we learned a lot at every show,” Brown says.

They’ve been developing a following. A boost was when a couple from Richmond, Va., passed through Memphis on their honeymoon. They Googled to find out what bands were playing that night, found Wine Witch, and listened to one of its videos on YouTube.

“We didn’t even know there was a video on YouTube,” Shull says.

“They came to see us and they were so stoked on it,” Brown says. “Just to know that those two people were so stoked on it.”

“It’s been little things like that,’ Shull says.

Wine Witch, which plays about three shows a month, recently played its first out-of-town show at Santos in New Orleans. They’d like to play out of town shows at least once a month.

They’ve also thought about adding a third member to the band. “I’d be able to do more on the guitar,” Shull says. “Instead of being the driving melody with guitar I could actually do a little bit more filling in. Lead stuff. And see how it goes.”

“We toyed with the idea of maybe doing a revolving door thing and jamming with one person one week on keys and background vocals and playing a show with them,” Brown says.

There is one advantage to being a two-person band, Shull said. The money. “You only have to split it with between two people. Fifty bucks between four guys is like, ‘Oh, cool. Gas money.’ But with two guys it’s like, ‘Hey, now. We’re going out tonight.’”

Wine Witch will play with Pink Suede and Geist at 8 p.m. Sept. 8 at 1884 Lounge at Minglewood Hall at 1555 Madison Avenue. Admission: $10.

Wine Witch also will play with Regulus and Late Night Cardigan at 8 p.m. Sept. 10 at Sounds Good Memphis, 831 Cooper. Admission: $6.

Michael Donahue

Wes Brown and David Shull of Wine Witch

Listen Up: Wine Witch

Categories
Intermission Impossible Theater

Newsies Is Good Entertainment: Weekend Theatre Roundup

Newsies at Theatre Memphis.

What does it mean when a musical about newspapers and unions is way more popular than newspapers and unions? I honestly don’t know. And I don’t really know where to start with my review of Theatre Memphis’ production of Newsies other than to say it’s a technically outstanding interpretation of the famously failed Disney film that found a more natural home on Broadway. The ensemble is first rate. The singing soars. The choreography is energetic and stunty. The kids (and baby-faced grownups) playing the “Newsies” are especially good and John Hemphill and Kent Fleshmen make perfect comic and villainous foils.

What’s not to love?

For me, it’s the irony. See, striking newspaper delivery kids were they primary means of distribution for afternoon papers. Their after-school labor helped to make Joseph Pulitzer very rich. Although the strike did win the newsies some concessions, they are all still crushingly poor when the curtain comes down. They’ll be paid no more for their labor. They still have to invest more up front. They still take a hit on every paper they sell. But Pulitzer, knowing a good deal when he hears it, subsidizes their risk and incentivizes productivity by agreeing to buy back unsold issues. Although the result was favorable and the Newsboy strike is an important moment in American labor history, in the post-labor 21st century it’s hard to see Newsies as anything but nostalgia. Or a cynical artifact of American capitalism celebrating values and systems we don’t officially like anymore. Values and systems our elected representatives had been busy starving and stamping out for more than a decade by the time Disney released the original flop film in 1989.

To be fair, Disney grabbed good headlines recently for making $15/hour the new minimum wage in its parks. It’s a good, overdue decision that’s earned praise from affiliated unions that, though diminished, continue to press for better wages and working conditions. Well, from the unions MouseHouse hasn’t stealth-busted, anyway.

Theatre Memphis’ Newsies got a well-deserved standing ovation opening night, but looking around at all the gray hair, pale faces, conservative suits and Marsha Blackburn supercuts, I couldn’t help but wonder what this demographic was clapping for. It couldn’t possibly be for a story about disruptive, production-choking protest. The Newsboy strike famously shut down a bridge, after all, and we all know how Memphis’ privileged classes feel about that sort of thing. Maybe they were just applauding the unpaid talent sweating guts out to entertain? Or depictions of the use of law enforcement as the strong arm of big business, quelling dissent and making compromise more appealing? Or the plebe-appeasing triumph of capital inherent in the musical’s happy ending? Or maybe it was just habit.

See, in the current political and economic environment a proper telling of this story shouldn’t entertain, it should incite.

Allow me to double down on my opening comments. Theatre Memphis’ Newsies is perfect and polished in the ways musicals at the East Memphis playhouse often are. Fans of the film, and earlier iterations of the stage show won’t be disappointed. Voices are strong, the acting is professional and featured dancers (high) kick ass. Costumes are appropriate and scenic and lighting elements serve the material well. Even if the book and music underwhelm, the production may yet inspire.

That’s not nearly enough, but I’ll take it.
Junk continues…

For a different take on business in America, Junk continues its run at Circuit Playhouse. From the Review…

To build on an idea put forward by addict/philosopher William S. Burroughs, Junk needs swagger like a junkie needs junk. It also needs the raw, biological urgency of addiction. Though Ayad Akhtar’s script is a trope-eschewing, drug-free zone compared to most mythic tales of corporate greed in the 1980s, Circuit Playhouse’s earnest production joneses hard for the wild eyes and religious fervor so vividly described in the play’s opening moments.

We’ve seen stories like Junk before. Salesmen, The Maysels Brothers 1969 documentary about door-to-door Bible peddlers, was a study in the rich, racist language of predatory business in America. That inspired David Mamet’s prescient real estate drama, Glengarry Glen Ross. The Wolf of Wall Street was a blurry, sweat and semen-drenched Polaroid of excess and, in a similar post-party vein, The Big Short was quirky, disruptive, and as entertaining as it was educational. On stage, there’s been Enron and Serious Money and I can’t believe I almost forgot to mention Gordon Gekko’s succinct “Greed is good,” monologue from 1987’s Wall Street, an original period artifact that’s still as quotable as it ever was. But Junk, the story of game-changing junk bond king Robert Merkin, has no use for quirk, color, or succinctness. It’s all sprawling sincerity and shades of gray with one thing logically following another with all the intrigue and suspense of a single-file domino tumble. Junk‘s script leans on narration, biasing “tell” over “show,” and Circuit’s translation from page to stage does little to correct the imbalance.  (Continue reading).

Hattiloo takes a look at the “school to prison pipeline” with the play Pipeline.

From press materials: 

“Nya, an inner-city public high school teacher, is committed to her students but desperate to give her only son Omari opportunities they’ll never have. When a controversial incident at his private school threatens to get him expelled, Nya must confront his rage and her own choices as a parent.”

•The popular musical Nunsense opens at Germatown Community Theatre.
•Emerald Theatre Co. presents Gaydar, its third annual original 10-minute play festival
Gaydar.
•Tennessee Shakespeare opens Two Gentlemen of Verona. This is also the best bargain in town thanks to Tennessee Shakespeare’s Free Shakespeare Shout-Out Series which kicks off this month with 11 performances in nine different indoor and outdoor locations. It’s a 75-minute show and no tickets or reservations are required.
•Quark Theatre opens The Typographer’s Dream at Theatre South. You can read the preview here. 

Categories
News News Blog

Mud Island Dog Park Opens Saturday

CREDIT: City of Memphis

City of Memphis

Mud Island’s first dog park is set to open Saturday, September 8th at 9:30 a.m.

The near-$500,000 park sits in the Mississippi River Greenbelt Park directly south of the A.W. Willis bridge.

The new dog park spans 1.3 acres, housing separate fenced off sections for large and small dogs, water fountains, and benches. The space will be open every day from sunrise to sunset.

Mud Island Dog Park Opens Saturday

Categories
Music Music Blog

September Brings Cool Outdoor Music Galore

CREDIT: Michael Donahue

On good nights, the cool air of autumn is already whistling in. And other tones are floating in the air as well, with the fall outdoor concert season, already underway, really hitting its stride this weekend. Not only do we still have the Delta Fair & Music Festival, this weekend will see the launch of the fall season’s River Series at the Harbor Town Amphitheater and the Levitt Shell Orion Free Music Concert Series.

Of course, it all pales before tonight and tomorrow’s International Goat Days in Millington. There will be a classic “battle of the bands” and other live music, along with other family fair fun…plus goats! Meanwhile, if you really want to see dancing in the streets, check out the Orange Mound Parade, this Saturday morning at 8:00, where marching bands give it their all  from Melrose High School to the Lamar-Airways Shopping Center. It’s the grandest preamble that the Southern Heritage Classic could hope for. 

Memphis Pride Fest

Other fairs and parades ensue through the month, culminating in the 15th Annual Memphis Pride Fest, sure to bring a host of bands out to Tom Lee Park. For even more music with that street carnival flair, check out the diverse lineup of the Mid South Fair, September 20-30, now held at Landers Center in Southaven.

Los Kumbia Brothers

This year’s fair boasts a special celebration of Latino music, presented by Radio Ambiente, with six bands playing from noon til 10:00. And let’s not forget Memphis legends 8 Ball and MJG. That show, like most others, comes free with your fair admission.  

Meta and the Cornerstones

Meanwhile, back to the present, the weekend is exploding with sit-down outdoor shows. Not long ago, we gave you a rundown of the full fall lineup at the queen of outdoor venues, the Levitt Shell. If you missed last night’s Devon Gilfillian, there’s still time to plan on this weekend’s especially international sounds, with Havana’s Orquesta Akokán tonight and the Afro-pop/reggae/soul blend of Meta and the Cornerstones tomorrow. Reba Russell closes down the weekend on Sunday.

Earlier that day, there’s even more music, including a special pop-up sunset jazz event at Court Square with the Bill Hurd Jazz Ensemble. Meanwhile, the River Series at the Harbor Town Amphitheater, aside from being smartly curated, also boasts one of the most beautiful vistas of any outdoor music experience. Perched on the steps of an amphitheater in the style of Ancient Greece, you gaze on shores of the city and the hyper-reality of our gigantic metallic pyramid.

Harlan T. Bobo

Both of the artists jump-starting the River Series season on Sunday, Harlan T. Bobo and Paul Taylor, evoke the city very specifically in their music. Bobo, who recently captivated an audience at the Memphis Music Mansion, might even sing his instant classic, “Must Be in Memphis,” as the city floats out in the night; and Taylor may treat audiences to his new, and very groovy, Old Forest Loop music. The River series then continues with Cameron Bethany & Kid Maestro on September 23, and Teardrop City and the Limes on October 14.

Elsewhere around the city, the Live at the Garden series continues tonight, with the big, rich tones of Big & Rich echoing through the sublime environs of the Memphis Botanic Garden. Although that show will mark the end of the summer series, look for CMT Music Award winners Dan + Shay with special guest Michael Ray at the end of the month.

Of course, Midtowners are already readying for next weekend’s Cooper-Young Festival, and the event’s three stages will feature some choice performers. Highlights on the main stage include FreeWorld with the legendary Dr. Herman Green, followed by Fuzzie Jefferies. The other stages are great ways to check out the many and diverse sounds coming out of Memphis these days, from Laramie to the Switchblade Kid to the current
kings of Memphis hardcore, Negro Terror.
Michael Donahue

Negro Terror at Our Scene United

And finally, we can’t forget Gonerfest 15. While much of the music will happen in clubs around town, the festival does offer some choice opportunities for open air listening. Indeed, it’s bookended with performances at the Cooper-Young Gazebo, with D.M. Bob on Thursday, Sept. 27, and R.L. Boyce on Sunday, September 30. And, as usual, both the Murphy’s Bar interior and patio will be hopping with far out sounds all afternoon on September 29, culminating with a show by Robyn Hitchcock.
Laura E. Partain

Robyn Hitchcock

Fast on the heels of Gonerfest, of course, we’ll wake up and it’ll be October. Check the Flyer that week for a special report on the Mempho Music Festival, which will play host to the likes of Beck, Post Malone, Phoenix, Nas, and Janelle Monáe. But heck, that’s a whole month away. For now, dust off your camping chairs, pack your coolers, break out the bug spray, and get ready. The nights grow cool and the musical creatures are coming out to play.
 

Categories
Film/TV Film/TV/Etc. Blog

Outflix 2018 Weekend Preview

Wild Nights With Emily, starring Molly Shannon (left) and Amy Seimetz, plays opening night at Outflix.

Outflix 2018 is in full swing this weekend. You can read about this year’s festival in this week’s film column. Here are some trailers and previews for movies playing at this weekend’s festival at the Malco Ridgeway Cinema Grill.

First up is Alaska Is A Drag, a fish out of water drama by Shaz Bennet about a transexual in the hyper macho world of the New Frontier, screening Saturday at 5:15 p.m.

Outflix 2018 Weekend Preview

Kill The Monsters, showing Saturday at 8 p.m., is director Ryan Lonergan’s polyamorous road trip epic. Shot in luscious black and white, this one looks like a winner.

Kill the Monsters – Trailer from Ryan Lonergan on Vimeo.

Outflix 2018 Weekend Preview (2)

At 10:30 p.m., former Doctor Who Matt Smith (who recently crossed the streams by landing a “key role” in the next Star Wars movie) stars as legendary photographer Robert Mapplethorpe. Director Ondi Timor’s biopic immerses the audience in the squalid glamour of 1970’s New York. Newcomer Marianna Redón co-stars as punk rock goddess Patti Smith, Mapplethorpe’s longtime partner in the 1970s.

Matt Smith as Robert Mapplethorpe in Ondi Timor’s biopic.

Sunday kicks off at 1 p.m. with an import whose title says it all: My Big Gay Italian Wedding.

Outflix 2018 Weekend Preview (3)

Then at 3:15 p.m., feel the squeeze of the gig economy while simultaneously navigating a lesbian marriage comedy with Freelancer’s Anonymous by Sonia Sebastian.

Outflix 2018 Weekend Preview (4)

At 5 p.m., Hollywood royalty Piper Laurie stars in Snapshots, a generational drama about love and loss.

Outflix 2018 Weekend Preview (5)

The final film of the evening is a documentary by director Caroline Berler about lesbian filmmakers, Dykes Camera, Action!, at 7:15 p.m.

Dykes, Camera, Action! 1 min Trailer from Caroline Berler on Vimeo.

Outflix 2018 Weekend Preview (6)

Watch this space for more coverage of Outflix 2018. 

Categories
News News Blog

Local Warehouse Workers File Complaint for Extreme Heat at Work

Employers working in a metal warehouse here with no air conditioning filed a complaint last week against their employer with the Tennessee Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) for what they say are extremely hot working conditions.

At XPO Logistics’ Verizon warehouse here, workers claim to have experienced “instances of extreme heat leading to dizziness, dehydration, and fainting,” according to the complaint. During a recent three-day period, the heat index near the warehouse exceeded OSHA’s “extreme caution” threshold during the majority of working hours, workers said.


Lakeisha Nelson, one of the employees, said she’s suffered from heat stress multiple times during her four years working at the warehouse. The first incident occurred in 2015 when Nelson allegedly fainted due to dehydration. Two years later, Nelson said she had to be rushed to the hospital for severe muscle cramps caused by dehydration. Most recently, Nelson said dizziness and nausea forced her to stop working.

“The working conditions at XPO are terrifying and making us sick,” Nelson said. “Think back to the hottest day this summer and what it felt like to be outside. Now crank it up 20 degrees and think of yourself doing back-breaking work with little ventilation, no fresh air, and no relief for hours and hours.

“Instead of offering electrolyte popsicles and half-hearted warnings about heat, the company should commit to providing breaks that don’t impact our production quotas, water, and medical attention so we’re not at risk of fainting during the average workday.”

On another occasion, an employee suffering from heat illness was allegedly penalized for visiting a doctor during work hours.

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The claims are under investigation by OSHA, who could issue citations or financial penalties for the company’s violations of standards or regulations.

This comes after the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) filed complaints on behalf of two female employees at XPO’s Disney warehouse here in June. One of the women claimed her supervisor made sexual passes at her, and on one occasion tried to kiss her. The other woman alleges that female employees were often pushed around by a general manager, who went unpunished.

This year alone, women at XPO’s three warehouses in Memphis have had a total of 12 complaints filed on their behalf by the EEOC. Complaints include reports of supervisers groping, grabbing, and making sexual comments.

XPO Logistics, a $15 billion company, packages and distributes products for major brands, such as, Verison, Nike, Disney, and Home Depot.


Categories
News News Blog

Report: State Historical Commission Lacks Legal Training for Statue Removal Laws

A new report says Tennessee Historical Commission (THC) members lack the legal training to properly administer the Tennessee Heritage Protection Act (THPA) and were left without a way to handle the media during the Memphis statue removal process.

An August audit by the Tennessee Comptroller of the Treasury’s office found that commissioners failed to “analyze its legal and administrative needs” for administering the THPA. The law bans relocation or removal of historical items on public property without a waiver from the THC.

The THC is “administratively attached” to the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation (TDEC). While some commissioners informally asked for the assistance of TDEC lawyers through the Memphis statue-removal process, the THC failed to formally ask for the department’s help, the report says.

”Without the services provided by (TDEC’s) Office of General Counsel, the commission would not be able to fulfill its duties under the Heritage Protection Act,” according to the audit.

Tennessee Comptroller of the Treasury

New commissioners are given an introductory handbook, the audit says, which has a section about the Tennessee Heritage Protection Act. But that’s about it.

“However, commission staff stated that they do not have the legal expertise to give commissioners training on legal aspects of the waiver process,” reads the report.

For this, the comptroller recommends formal training for all THC members.

”Members should have some training on legal aspects of their actions, as well as opportunities to ask questions about processes that are unfamiliar to them” reads the audit.

Part of the problem, according to the report, is that THC and TDEC have no formal contract to bind them. The last agreement was signed in 1987. So, THC has no standing to demand help from the department, according to the audit. This became important during the Memphis statue-removal process.

Justin Fox Burks

The now-gone statue of Jefferson Davis in Memphis Park.

[pullquote-1] ”In recent months, the commission experienced increased media attention as a result of the Tennessee Heritage Protection Act,” reads the audit. “Simultaneously, [TDEC] management decided to stop providing the commission communication services, including press releases, and media handling in 2017.

“Without a formal contract, the commission was left with no grounds to protest the department’s decision to stop the services that the commission needed.”

For all of this, the comptroller recommends a new contract for the two agencies. Apparently, that is just what they’re doing. The old agreement “no longer captures the scope of service and work provided to the commission by the department,” according to TDEC. “Conversations are currently in progress” on a new agreement, THC said.

TDEC has also now committed three attorneys to assist the THC.

HISTORICAL SITE OVERSIGHT

The audit also found the THC lacks proper oversight of 14 historical sites across Tennessee.

THC contracts that oversight to various nonprofits organizations. The audit found none of the organizations have disaster plans for their sites. Only five of them could show proof of insurance.

Only half of them have inventory lists of historic artifacts. Some that do have such lists are out of date.

“Specifically, we found that one inventory list was dated 1986 without indication of a more current list,” reads the audit. “In another case, we could not determine whether the inventory list was current as it was missing the date altogether.“

Without such lists, ”the historic site operators do not know what they have and would not know if an item was lost.”

THC management said “the commission maintains proper oversight.” The agreements with the nonprofits are not required by law, it said, and was advised to keep them informal by TDEC attorneys. But the commission will now make the agreements formal contracts, it said.

The agency said its nonprofit partners are now required to attend an annual meeting and enroll in professional museum programs. New entrance signs at all the sites all bear the THC name and logo to let guests know the sites are state-owned.

As for the lack of information in the files from the nonprofits, THC said it has only one staff member to oversee, 17 sites, 110 buildings, the allocation of maintenance funds, capital projects, and review the adminstration of the sites.

But THC said it is now gathering more information from the nonprofits.