Tag: George Herbert Walker Bush

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Letter From The Editor Opinion

It Was 30 Years Ago Today …

It was 30 years ago this week — February 16, 1989 — that a stalwart band of dreamers snuck out in the pre-dawn darkness, setting up newspaper boxes all over Memphis and filling them with the first issue of the Memphis Flyer. Later that morning, thousands of Memphians woke up to find a new voice had come to town — one that was progressive, provocative, edgy, and much more free-wheeling than traditional local print media.

It was a year that certainly needed a new voice. The remnants of ’80s music still dominated the pop charts — Paula Abdul, Roxette, Fine Young Cannibals, Bobby Brown, Milli Vanilli (Fake Music!), Madonna, Richard Marx. The grunge years were just around the corner.

On the political stage, Ronald Reagan had just exited, stage right, making way for the transitional four-year presidency of George Herbert Walker Bush. Americans had no idea what was to come. The Clinton years were just around the corner.

The new paper was a melange of serious news, trivial stuff (celebrity birthdays, anyone?), gossip, movie reviews, art reviews, record reviews, a nightlife column, sports, News of the Weird, and video reviews. Remember when we rented videos? Yeah, that was cool.

Many of the contributors to that first issue are still around and still doing good work: Dave Woloshin, Tom Prestigiacomo, Tim Sampson, Joe Mulherin, Cory Dugan, to name a few. There was a column by former Commercial Appeal editor, Lydel Sims, who quoted legendary ad-man John Malmo as saying all Memphians should “think outrageous thoughts” about their city. I just saw John on the elevator this morning. He’s still around and no doubt still thinking outrageous thoughts. The editorial cartoon was by now-noted actor and illustrator, Chris Ellis.

The cover story, by David Lyons, took a hard look at a local chemical company, Velsicol, and its alleged sales of a banned chemical to third-world countries.

The advertising staff back then, led by Jerry Swift, even managed to sell a few ads: Opus 2 Computers, Breakaway Athletics, Zinnie’s, Flashback, 1910 Frame Works, Huey’s, R.P. Tracks. Is it a coincidence that all those businesses are still around? I think not, my friends. Behold the power of Flyer advertising!

There was also a letter from publisher (then and now) Ken Neill, explaining just what the heck Memphians were holding in their hands. Literally. “Right now you hold in your hands the first edition of the Memphis Flyer, the city’s new weekly newspaper,” Neill wrote. “We hope this first issue gives you a feel for what the Flyer will be: bold, sassy, controversial, entertaining, and informative … ”

Thirty years later, I’d say mission accomplished. We’ve weathered five presidents (though the current one has been something of a strain), at least twice that many mayors and county mayors. We’ve survived where other print media have fallen prey to the digital revolution. We’ve seen the city of Memphis boom and grow in ways we couldn’t have imagined in 1989. And we’ve seen some of the city’s intractable problems endure.

We’re planning to celebrate the Flyer‘s 30th anniversary throughout the coming year with promotions, events, a spectacular Best of Memphis party this fall, and a special anniversary issue on April 25th. (If you’re a business or organization interested in becoming part of that issue, contact our ad director, Justin Rushing. If you’re an individual who’s just looking to support our journalism, check out our Frequent Flyer program on the Flyer’s website.)

As always, we’re looking ahead — and looking forward to another 30 years. We believe the Flyer is an essential part of the news fabric of this town, a necessary progressive voice at a time when regressive and xenophobic policies are being pushed at the highest levels of our government. The way in which we get our news and information may change, but we plan to stay “bold, sassy, controversial, entertaining, and informative.” And we hope you’ll stick with us.

Categories
Letter From The Editor Opinion

When Notoriety Backfires

Notoriety is a funny thing, and when it comes, you’d better be prepared to roll with the flow. Get your people ready. When the public turns its eyes to you, anything can happen. Andy Warhol famously said that in the future everyone will be famous for 15 minutes, but these days fame does not arrive and depart with such tidal efficiency. It sloshes and roils like choppy surf. One day, you’re on top of the news cycle; 24 hours later, no one remembers your name, as you sink beneath the waves. (See, Scaramucci, Priebus, Hicks, Tillerson, McMaster, Spicer, et. al.)

When you’re a corporation, like, say, United Airlines, notoriety can eat your lunch. A couple bad PR moments — a passenger dragged off a plane, say, or a dog dying in an overhead bin — and your reputation is shot. The only good news is that expectations are lowered, as in, “Oh, we were on the tarmac for three hours and they sent my bag to Milwaukee, but what do you expect? It was United.”

There are ways around this peripatetic cycle, of course. One way is to become president. When you’re president, you can be famous 24 hours a day, if you want to be. You can be famous every 15 minutes, nonstop. You can turn every news cycle into your own reality show, filled with people talking about what you said and how you said it, where you went and what you did. It can be all about you. Which is how President Donald Trump appears to like it.

But this week, Trump is having to take a seat in the gallery and watch as the nation pauses to remember President George H.W. Bush, who passed away at 94 last weekend. Bush 41 was not without flaws during his presidency; some of his domestic policies, his “Willie Horton” ads, and his ignoring of the AIDS crisis were marks against him. But Bush and Russian President Mikhail Gorbachev together engineered the end of the Cold War and brought down the Berlin Wall, a monumental achievement that will remain his enduring presidential legacy. Bush was, by most accounts, a decent and honorable man who loved his family and served his country with dignity.

During Bush’s presidency, he was plagued — unfairly, given that he was a World War II combat pilot and played college baseball — by what was called the “wimp factor.” He was compared, on occasion, to George McFly, the hapless character played by Crispin Glover in Back to the Future, to whom Bush bore some resemblance. George McFly’s nemesis was the evil bully, Biff Tannen, who delighted in giving George noogies and shouting, “THINK, McFly!”

It’s not a stretch to see the parallels between blowhard Biff and Trump, who, at a rally just a few weeks back, took great delight in making fun of the elder Bush’s volunteer program, “a thousand points of light.”

“A thousand points of light. What the hell was that?” Trump smirked to his adoring cult. “Can somebody explain that to me? I don’t think anyone ever understood that.” He might as well have added, “THINK, McBush!”

Ha. Ha. Nothing says class more than making fun of a dying 94-year-old former president and war hero for a cheap laugh. But time has a way of evening scores. In Back to the Future, George found his courage, gave Biff a shot to the jaw, and won the girl, demonstrating that the fearsome bully was all bluster and bravado. Time may do the same to Donald Trump.

I believe the next few weeks will test the country’s resolve — and the rule of law — as Robert Mueller’s Russian investigation brings to light more unsavory connections between the Trump organization and Russian intelligence during the 2016 campaign. We’d best batten down the hatches. Trump’s American reality show will reach new heights of drama and intrigue — and maybe even a season finale.

But no matter what happens, it helps to remember that notoriety fades in a flash and history is written in indelible ink. If Donald Trump lives to 94 and his body is brought to the Capitol Rotunda, I suspect the years will not be as kind or as forgiving as they have been to George Herbert Walker Bush.