Month: July 2019

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News News Blog

Spin Scooters Hit Memphis Streets

CREDIT: Spin

Spin

Spin scooters hit the Memphis streets this week

Expect to see more electric scooters on the streets here after a new operator launched Monday.

Spin, a San Francisco-based operator, dropped 48 dock-less scooters in the city today and plans to add 100 more on Wednesday. The company’s goal is to bring 500 scooters to town over the next four weeks.

Like Bird and Lime, which currently operate in Memphis, Spin lets riders access and rent scooters via an app. Riders are charged $1 to get started and then 15 cents for each minute. 

Spin, currently in 50 cities, differs by providing an option for riders without smartphones, mobile location services, or credit cards through its Spin Access program.

The Spin app

The program also allows riders who are enrolled in a city, state, or federal support program requiring low-income requirements to rent scooters at a discounted price. The discounts vary by city.

Dan Shoman, Spin’s operations manager in Nashville, said the company is still working out the details of how the Access program would look in Memphis.

Spin uses geo-fencing technology to slow scooters down in certain areas that are pedestrian heavy.

The scooters also have built-in technology that disables their acceleration in certain off-limit zones, such as Beale Street between Second and Fourth. Riders who repeatedly ride in these zones could have their accounts suspended.

Shoman said Spin is “very safety-oriented” and prefers a hands-on approach. That’s why the company is in the process of hiring a full-time work force to service, charge, and maintain its scooter fleet here. The company will hire 10 to 15 full-time employees here over the next month, he said.

Shoman said the company is “excited to get into the Memphis market.”

“Tennessee in general is a good state for us,” he said. “We’re ready to grow our footprint and serve the community.”

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Film/TV Film/TV/Etc. Blog

Music Video Monday: Joe Restivo

Music Video Monday is getting jazzed.

You’ve probably seen Memphis guitarist Joe Restivo playing with the Bo Keys, or the Love Light Orchestra, or in any of the other ensembles where he regularly provides six-string support. But he’s more than a sideman. His new album Where’s Joe?, released last week on Blue Barrel Records, shows off more than just his raw chops. His melodic sense is on full display in this music video for “Starlight Motel”. Directed by Andrew Trent Fleming and Jason Lee, it’s an ode to the seedier side of the hospitality industry, ending with a confab in front of every Midtowner’s favorite dive, The Lamplighter. Take a tumble.

Music Video Monday: Joe Restivo

Joe Restivo will be playing at the Green Room in Crosstown Concourse on Thursday, August 1.

If you’d like to see your music video featured on Music Video Monday, email cmccoy@memphisflyer.com

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Politics Politics Beat Blog

Memphis City Election: The Contenders Are On the Line

CREDIT: JB

JB

Cohen got off a shot at political consultant Brian Stephens, who, said Cohen, was interested in making money, not the welfare of the city, and had talked one of Warren’s opponents into moving from the Position 1 race, where Stephens already had a client, in order to maximize his potential profit.

It’s not quite a done deal. There’s still a withdrawal deadline of Thursday, July 25th, to be reckoned with — and rumors abound of dramatic changes of mind between now and then. But the filing deadline for places on the October 3rd Memphis city election ballot has come and gone, and (pending those potential changes) we know what the lineups are for the various races.

After this week’s filing deadline, at noon on Thursday, July 18th, here’s what the races looked like. (County election coordinator Linda Phillips stressed that these results were “preliminary.”)

MAYOR’S RACE
This one is pure carnival. To understate the case somewhat, incumbent Jim Strickland, with a $1 million budget for the race, is in good shape. Three challengers have at least the trappings of a campaign: former Mayor Willie Herenton, activist and Shelby County Commissioner Tami Sawyer, and Lemichael Wilson. For the record, the other candidates are Terrence Boyce, Leo Awgowhat, Pamela Moses, Michael Everett Banks, DeAngelo Pegues, David Walker, Steven Bradley, Robert “Prince Mongo” Hodges, and Sharon A. Webb.

MEMPHIS CITY COUNCIL
District 1: Rhonda Logan and Sherman Greer. This is a straight-out, one-on-one between Logan, whose candidacy for an appointment to the council was pushed vigorously but unsuccessfully last year by various north-side political figures, notably state Representative Antonio Parkinson, and the eventually named incumbent, Greer, a former long-time aide to former Congressman Harold Ford Jr. Greer has widespread support from other members of the political establishment.

District 2: Incumbent Frank Colvett is on the ballot. Two would-be challengers, John Emery and Marvin Louis White, were having their supporting signatures checked. Should they qualify, that is likely the closest they’ll come to having a success.

District 3: Incumbent Patrice Robinson will be heavily favored against Tanya Cooper.

District 4: Incumbent Jamita Swearengen, another in-office favorite, has one definite challenger, Britney Thornton, and two other potential challengers, Rodney A. Muhammad, and Russell R. Jones, whose qualifying signatures are undergoing verification.

District 5: Incumbent Worth Morgan is being challenged by John Marek. Morgan would seem to be sitting pretty, but there are those who credit Marek with a chance to make some mischief.

District 6: Former incumbent Edmund Ford Sr., regarded as a prohibitive favorite, has four definite challengers — Davin Clemons, Theryn Bond, Jaques Hamilton, and Perry Bond — and one potential challenger, Paul S. Brown, whose signatures are being checked. Two Bonds: That makes things interesting.

District 7: Incumbent Berlin Boyd, who routinely attracts controversy, has attracted a passel of opponents as well: Catrina Smith, Jerred Price, Larry Springfield, Michalyn C.S. Easter-Thomas, Thurston Smith, Jimmy Hassan, and Will “The Underdog” Richardson. Toni Green-Cole could join this entourage if her signatures, undergoing evaluation, hold up.

Super-District 8, Position 1: Vying for this position are: Gerre Currie, who is vacating her appointive District 6 seat to do so: J.B. Smiley, Jr; Pearl Eva Walker; Nicole Cleaborn, M. Latroy Alexandria-Williams; and Derrick Dee Harris.

Super-District 8, Position 2: Incumbent Cheyenne Johnson, who always won her races for Shelby County assessor, even during Republican sweep years, will be opposed by Craig Littles, Frank W. Johnson, Brian L. Saulsberry, and Marinda Alexandria-Williams.

Super-District 8, Position 3: Incumbent Martavius Jones has two known opponents — Roderic Ford and Cat Allen — and two potential challengers whose signatures are being checked — Pamela Lee and Lynette P. Williams. In any case, Jones is heavily favored.

Super-District 9, Position 1: Qualified candidates are: Erika Sugarmon and Chase Carlisle. It’s going to be a contested one-on-one between a well-regarded woman with political lineage and the scion of a development dynasty.

Super-District 9, Position 2: Incumbent Ford Canale has one definite challenger, Deanielle Jones. But Mauricio Calvo is in the race too, if his supporting signatures check out, and he could prove to be a sleeper.

Super-District 9, Position 3: Jeff Warren was an early candidate and has raised more cash than any other council candidate. He has three challengers — Tyrone Romeo Franklin, Charley Burch, and Cody Fletcher, the latter a transplant from his original ballot choice, Position 1. He might have been better off before the switch.

CITY COURT CLERK
There are several well-known names in the clerk’s race, it would seem, with former Councilman Myron Lowery and Democratic activist Lea Ester Redmond definitely in, and Joe Brown, another former councilman, and county Commissioner Justin Ford in the process of being approved for the race. Others are George D. Summers, Carl Irons, David Vinciarelli, Dorothy Jean Bolden, Dee Givens, and William Stovall, with Delicia DeGraffried undergoing final certification.

MUNICIPAL JUDGE
There are three positions on the ballot and at least one definite race.
In Division 3, incumbent Judge Jayne Chandler is being challenged by current Judicial Commissioner David Pool.

In Division 1, the recently appointed Teresa Jones, a former school board member, may have a challenger in Latrena D. Ingram, who is still undergoing certification.

Division 2 incumbent Judge Tarik Sugarmon will be unopposed.

JB

Council candidate Mauricio Calvo, running in the race for Super-District 9, Position 2, was flanked by family members at a Thursday afternoon rally in Midtown, as he delineated the neighborhoods in his district via a chart held by a supporter.

Categories
Music Record Reviews

Jack Oblivian Loses His Weekend, Not His Way

In our recent tribute to Memphis songwriters, Greg Cartwright singled out one local bard who single-handedly inspired him to a higher level of songwriting: Jack Oblivian. And that nod to his writing is borne out not only by his contributions to the Compulsive Gamblers and the Oblivians, but in his solo work. His streak of great songs continues unabated with this year’s spring release, Lost Weekend (Black & Wyatt), credited to Jack Oblivian & the Dream Killers.

Discriminating vinyl consumers may note a few duplicate titles between this release and the 2016 release, Lone Ranger of Love (Mony), namely “Boy in a Bubble,” “La Charra,” and “Lone Ranger of Love.” But lest this give you pause, fear not, for the tracks are very different beasts from their previous incarnations.

In fact, the first thing one notices on the back cover credits is the note, “All instruments and vocals by Jack.” The notes further indicate tracks where others contributed, but these amount to less than half of the album, often with just an additional guitar, saxophone, or keyboard supplementing the Oblivian’s performances. Only two tracks, “Good Time Bad Girl” and “Lone Ranger of Love, Part II,” mark a full return to his usual collaboration with the Sheiks. And the sound they conjure on the latter track contrasts starkly with the 2016 version, now featuring a slightly cleaner sound, fiercely strummed acoustic guitar, and an even more galloping gait.

Yet don’t imagine that this LP cleans up the wonderfully dirty guitar sounds of Oblivian’s earlier work. Guitar tones somewhere between molten lead and liquid gold still shine front and center. This is nowhere more apparent than on the drumless, three guitar weave of the instrumental “Stick to Me.” Such weaves dominate the record, conjuring Thin Lizzy or even Steppenwolf at times. Indeed, though Oblivian is often lazily referred to as “punk,” the full extent of his influences is quite apparent on this platter. Echoes of classic rock, soul, rock ballads, and, yes, punk, all are reflected here. While there is no reimagined MOR pop here akin to Lone Ranger‘s brilliant take on Christopher Cross’ “Ride Like the Wind,” all the detritus of rock ‘n’ roll radio culture is colliding here, with exhilarating results. 

“An unlonely poet with his use of random words/Yeah his mind is shot, thoughts scattered like birds,” sings Oblivian on the moody set closer, “Loose Diamonds.” But that can’t apply to Oblivian himself, for his pithy, tightly woven lyrics never fail to connect, yielding sharp observations at every turn. As for the overarching theme, the album title could not be more on point. There is an acute sense of loss to these tunes, not of a mere weekend, but loves just out of reach. Indeed, he says as much on the drum machine- and organ-fueled “Girl on the Beach,” who would seem unattainable. Other loves, like “Scarla” or “Sabine” have handed Oblivian even crueler fates. Yet through it all, he’s retained his sardonic humor and wit to step outside himself, even when playing alone, and flat out rock.

Categories
Film/TV Film/TV/Etc. Blog

Tired Of Good Movies? Time Warp Drive-In Has Got You Covered With The Return Of The Worst Movies Ever

I feel you. Now that you’ve fully absorbed the Cats trailer, you’re primed to watch some bad movies. Really bad movies. Absolute ineptitude. Movies that turn the old conceptual corner from bad to good. This weekend’s Time Warp Drive-In has got you covered with The Return of the Worst Movies Ever.

What makes a movie so bad it’s good? This is a question that has plagued fans of Mystery Science Theater 3000 for two decades. I think it’s impossible to intentionally make a film so bad it’s good. You have to really believe in what you’re doing, and have utter confidence in your creative vision. And no one had more misplaced confidence in his creative vision than George Lucas circa 1986.

And, hey, wouldn’t you feel the same way? He’d just come off of changing the entire film industry with the original Star Wars trilogy and two Indiana Jones movies. He could do no wrong. Time to tee up a really daring project — an adaptation of a cult comic book by Marvel that took a semi-satirical look at the medium. In 2019, that’s half the films greenlit in Hollywood. In 1986, that was Howard The Duck. Lucas produced and his friends Willard Huyck and Gloria Katz, who had written American Graffiti and punched up the dialog in A New Hope, directed and wrote. He cast Lea Thompson, who was so good in Back To The Future the year before. What could possibly go wrong?

This.

Tired Of Good Movies? Time Warp Drive-In Has Got You Covered With The Return Of The Worst Movies Ever

Feeling the burn? You ain’t seen nothing yet. In 1988, Steven Spielberg’s E.T. the Extra Terrestrial had held the title of the top-grossing film of all time for six years. McDonald’s, in their corporate wisdom, decided they needed to expand beyond just making TV ads and buying product placement segments, and produce their own feature film. What kind of movie did they want to make? One like E.T., of course. Everybody likes E.T. The result is Mac and Me, one of the most inept films ever made. There’s a reason it was chosen as the lead film for the latest season of MST3K. And that reason is this scene, which you should not watch if you value your sanity. 

Tired Of Good Movies? Time Warp Drive-In Has Got You Covered With The Return Of The Worst Movies Ever (2)

Also, there’s a four-and-a-half-minute long musical number, set — where else? — in a McDonald’s.

I said earlier that it’s not possible to make a truly bad/good movie if you set out to do so. But what if you know you’re making a bad satire of Hollywood sexism and capitalist alienation, but no one else involved in the project does? That’s what’s claimed of Paul Verhooven’s 1995 disasterpiece Showgirls. I’m not sure I buy that explanation for one of the most horrific and mean-spirited films ever made, but you can judge for yourself. The trailer oozes sleaze, and it only scratches the surface.

Tired Of Good Movies? Time Warp Drive-In Has Got You Covered With The Return Of The Worst Movies Ever (3)

If you survive that long, you will be “rewarded” with Samurai Cop. Dig the magnificent mane on the titular character, who is…wait for it…a cop, trained as a samurai. Yeah.

Tired Of Good Movies? Time Warp Drive-In Has Got You Covered With The Return Of The Worst Movies Ever (4)

Time Warp Drive-In starts at dusk on Saturday, July 20th at the Malco Summer Drive-In. 

Categories
News News Blog

Friday Data Nerd-Out: Tennessee Power

TIL Tennessee gets one-seventh of its total electricity from renewables and most of that is from hydropower. Also, the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) generates 90 percent of the state’s total electric energy.

MLGW

A solar panel array at Agricenter International.

This is all according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA). Today, I also learned there was such a thing as the U.S. Energy Information Administration.

The EIA published a new data portal Friday packed with information about how the country — and each state in it — gets its power and how it uses it.

It’s not all about electricity, either. The data show that more than half of all power generated in Tennessee comes from petroleum. Electricity and natural gas come in second and third, respectively.

U.S. Energy Information Administration

When it does come to electricity in the Volunteer State, nearly half (42 percent) of ours comes from nuclear power, according to the EIA. Coal comes next (37 percent) and then renewables (10 percent).

U.S. Energy Information Administration

Some other fun facts from the EIA: “Tennessee’s one petroleum refinery, located in Memphis, can process about 180,000 barrels of crude oil per calendar day. The facility receives some its oil via a pipeline from Oklahoma.”

Nerd out on the data yourself here.

You like state rankings? The EIA database is full of them. Some of them are below. Tennessee is the yellow bubble. Its national rank is above the bubble. Blue bubbles are all the other states.
U.S. Energy Information Administration

U.S. Energy Information Administration

U.S. Energy Information Administration

U.S. Energy Information Administration

U.S. Energy Information Administration

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News News Blog

Beale Cover Likely to Generate $500K for Security Measures This Summer

CREDIT: Beale Street Merchants Association

Beale Street Merchants Association

Beale Street


Since the $5 cover charge to enter Beale Street has been reinstated, nearly $400,000 has been collected, but officials with the Downtown Memphis Commission (DMC) say none of the funds have been spent yet.

The Beale Street cover charge was reinstated in early May after a weekend of shootings and stampedes occurred on or near Beale Street.

The following Tuesday, Memphis Police Department Director (MPD) Michael Rallings, along with representatives with the DMC asked the Memphis City Council to put the fee back in place. It was originally slated to be in place only through Memorial Day weekend, but after more incidents occurred over the holiday weekend, Rallings returned to council again in June, asking that the fee stay in place through the end of September.

Between the second weekend in May and the second weekend in July, the entrance fee has been collected from 99,481 visitors totaling $382,460. But, none of that money has been spent yet, according to the DMC.

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Officials anticipate that the fee will generate $644,000 by the end of September if there are no rain days. Assuming there are some rain days, about $500,000 will be generated. This amount will be enough to cover the intended uses of the funds prescribed the city council, according to the DMC.

Per the council, the money will eventually be used for additional lighting and cameras on Beale, a new, non-climbable fence around Handy Park that will prohibit items from being passed through, bollards on Rufus Thomas and Second Street, and closer real-time monitoring of cameras on Beale.

The enhanced monitoring of Beale will cost $75,000 a year, while the fence will be a one time expense of $200,000, the additional lighting and cameras are a one time expense of $30,000 each, and the bollards $165,000. 

DMC officials say they are working to “maximize the utilization of these funds to further our security measures.” The commission is in the process of evaluating which sections of the street need more lighting and preparing the fence project for bid.

Jennifer Oswalt, president of the DMC, said by installing more and better lighting, safer street access, and other measures that promote pedestrian safety, the plan uses design elements to address some of the current security issues.


The goal is to “enhance the patron experience and change the way crowds moves through the street without creating an increase in the perceived level of security measures.”

“Memphis is the original American music city, and we owe so much of that to the authenticity of the Beale Street experience,” Oswalt said. “Working with the 24 security and safety recommendations determined by the consultant hired in 2018, we are developing a plan to create a truly welcoming and safe entertainment district.”

In early 2018, the city hired the firm Event Risk Management Solutions to find ways to control the crowd on Beale. The firm, led by Peter Ashwin, produced 24 recommendations for the city. Among them was the reintroduction of the entrance fee.

[pullquote-2]

The council voted then to reinstate the fee on an as-needed basis, despite push back from some members. Now, the fee will be in place through the end of September and will likely return next summer.

Other recommendations included setting the maximum capacity on the street to 20,000 people, restricting Beale Street to pedestrian traffic only, and redesigning the street’s entry points. All 24 recommendations have been implemented at this point.

DMC staff believes that the fee, working in conjunction with the other 23 recommendations, is leading to less overcrowding on weekend nights and reducing the overall risk of an incident occurring on the street.

This story has been updated with the latest admission numbers from the DMC.


Categories
News News Feature

Feds Debate Cannabis Laws While Arkansas Could Go Full Legal

CREDIT: NORML/Facebook

Memphis Congressman Steve Cohen, a longtime proponent for cannabis-law reform, pushed his record-expungement legislation during a “historic” federal hearing last week on marijuana laws.

The hearing, before the House Judiciary Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism, and Homeland Security, was called “Marijuana Laws in America: Racial Justice and the Need for Reform.”

The National Organization for the Reformation of Marijuana Laws (NORML) said the talks were historic, even though they didn’t yield any firm conclusions on current drug laws or next steps to reform them.

NORML/Facebook

NORML board member Rick Steves celebrated the “historic” House hearing.

“For the first time in a generation, there will be a candid conversation in the House Judiciary Committee that acknowledges the failures of marijuana prohibition in the United States, how this policy has adversely impacted tens of millions of Americans, and how it must be reformed at the federal level,” NORML political director Justin Strekal said in a statement.

Two main pieces of cannabis legislation sit before Congress. One would relax federal drug laws on cannabis in states that have legalized it in some way. Another would go further, seeking to give help to those communities disproportionately affected by current drug enforcement laws.

Cohen (D-Memphis) touted his Fresh Start Act, which, he said, he’s been pushing since his first year in Congress.

“It would say that if you have a non-violent offense and you had gone seven years without an offense in the federal system, you could get your record expunged,” Cohen said during the hearing.

Fully Legal in Arkansas?

Last week, a group announced plans for two 2020 ballot initiatives in Arkansas to allow recreational use of cannabis and to expunge the records of those with cannabis-related convictions.

The Drug Policy Education Group’s (DPEG) Arkansas Adult Use Cannabis Amendment would allow possession of the drug by those 21 and older for personal use. Adults there could possess up to four ounces of cannabis flower, two ounces of cannabis concentrate, and edible products containing cannabis with tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) content of 200 mg or less. They could also grow up to six cannabis seedlings and six cannabis flowering plants for personal use.

The group’s second proposal is called the Arkansas Marijuana Expungement Amendment. It would petition courts to release or reduce sentences and expunge the records of those convicted of cannabis offenses in the state.

Categories
News News Blog

‘Deadliest Catch’ Cast Member to Serve More Than Four Years

CREDIT: Deadliest Catch/Facebook

Deadliest Catch/Facebook

A former “Deadliest Catch” cast member was sentenced to 51 months recently on charges stemming from an arrest in West Tennessee.

Jason King, 43, was known as “Tennessee” on the Discovery Channel show. He appeared as himself as a deckhand on the Cornelia Marie.

Officers with the Hardin’s County Sheriff’s Office, the 15th Judicial District Drug Task Force, and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Explosives executed a search warrant and felony arrest warrant for King at his residence in Couce, Tennessee.

Officers found multiple bags of cannabis totaling over 14 pounds hidden under the house. They also found a fully loaded Smith & Wesson .38 caliber revolver in a kitchen drawer.

Officials said because King had an “extensive” criminal history and was a felon, he was given the maximum sentence within the guideline range for these offenses. United States District Court Chief Judge Thomas Anderson sentenced King to 51 months in federal prison followed by 3 years supervised release.

U.S. Attorney D. Michael Dunavant

“Convicted felons who possess firearms in connection with illegal drugs are inherently dangerous individuals,” U.S. Attorney Michael Dunavant said in a statement. ” Our outstanding federal, state, and local law enforcement partners were able to catch this outlaw, and his prior criminal record finally caught up with him. This conviction and sentence will remove a repeat offender from the community, and will protect public safety in West Tennessee.”

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News News Blog

Memphis Pets of the Week

[slideshow-1]Each week, the Flyer will feature adoptable dogs and cats from Memphis Animal Services. All photos are credited to Memphis Pets Alive. More pictures and more information can be found on the Memphis Pets Alive Facebook page.