“The planners say they want to revitalize Mud Island. The mayor says
he wants a family-oriented attraction. Excuse me, but isn’t Mud Island
already family-oriented? How do we make it more family-oriented? Maybe
some big cartoon characters — Mickey Memphis or Ricky Riverboat
or Cathy Catfish. I can visualize them greeting the hordes of squealing
little children at the doors of the already cartoonish Welcome Center,
skipping gleefully, hand-in-hand, across the new land-bridge to the
same old Mud Island theme park. …
“Before I go any further, let me go on record: I like Mud Island. I
realize that’s kind of like standing up in church and admitting you’d
like to boff the preacher’s daughter. More often. But, hey, Mud Island
is probably the only intelligent and well-designed piece of civic
architecture this city has come up with since … well, since. That
doesn’t mean it wasn’t a flawed idea to begin with, just a
well-designed flawed idea. Intelligent tourist attractions don’t work.
Tourists aren’t intelligent. If they are, they’re not in Memphis.
“You want a bold, innovative plan for Mud Island? Okay. Bulldoze it.
Level it. Tear down the damn park and give the silly airplane [the
Memphis Belle] to whoever is dumb enough to take it. Eat your
losses and chalk it up to experience.”
From “An Immodest Proposal,” a September 26, 1996, commentary by
Cory Dugan addressing yet more ideas to lure visitors downtown.
Dugan, former Flyer art director and art critic for the
paper, was known for his frighteningly smart style.
As for an update: Mud Island was not bulldozed; the idea for the
land-bridge may finally be dead; and the Memphis Belle was moved
to Ohio in 2005.
