The “Ask Vance” system is an imperfect one. People write in (by email and “real” mail) to me at Memphis magazine with an astonishing assortment of queries. Then they sit back and wait for me to provide them with the answer they so eagerly desire — in the form of dates, names, addresses, photographs, and other information.
Unfortunately, some of these people have been waiting a rather long time. The problem is that I now have far more questions than I can ever answer — not at these pitiful wages, anyway — and right now I’m looking at a box on my desk filled with some 300 queries from readers. Some of these epistles are more challenging than others (heck, sometimes I’m not even sure of the question), so I thought I’d pick out just a few and post them here, in hopes that you — dear readers — can help with the answers:
• I would like to know where GAY-OLA Bottling Company of Memphis was. — W.K., Memphis
• What was the date that two very unhappy elephants escaped from the Memphis Zoo and caused great excitement in the residential neighborhoods north of Overton Park? — R.H., Gadsden, Alabama
