Changing of the Guard

Theatre Memphis says farewell to Ted Strickland, begins search for a new executive producer.

• by Chris Davis

HEADLINE OF THE WEEK

HEADLINE OF THE WEEK

• by Chris Davis

IT S HALLOWEEN, BABY

IT S HALLOWEEN, BABY

• by Chris Davis

Smart Growth?

A new residential development has some Cooper-Young residents up in arms.

• by Denise Parkinson

2003 FREEDOM AWARDS

HONOREES: Recipients of the 2003 Freedom Awards presented by the National Civil Rights Museum were former President Bill Clinton and Memphis civil rights legend Maxine Smith. They and U.S. Rep. Harold Ford (left), emcee for a Tuesday afternoon public forum at the Temple of the Deliverance, stood at attention for a singing of the Star Spangled Banner. The afternoon event was followed by an evening awards banquet at The Peabody.

• by Denise Parkinson

JAMIESON , ONLY GOP HOPEFUL, OUT OF RACE FOR 89

Apparently, the old phrase "tantamount to election"-- which in antique times applied to all local Democratic primary contests-- can be taken out of mothballs and applied to the forthcoming special election to succeed Carol Chumney in District 89 of the state House of Representatives.

• by Jackson Baker

Road Rules

Advice from a guy getting off the road to a guy getting on it.

• by Paul Gerald

HOW IT LOOKS

• by Denise Parkinson

Bin Laden, Cop Killer

Why is there no outcry from New York's finest?

• by Jimmy Breslin

HOW IT LOOKS

• by Denise Parkinson

MONEY CHANGES EVERYTHING

MONEY CHANGES EVERYTHING

CALUMNIES

SILLY STRING THEORY: SERIOUSLY,, FOLKS! Over the past few years, quantum physics has recognized something called string theory," which boils down to a sub-atomic model that unifies other theories, explains gravity, and describes tiny strands of wiggling energy at the heart of all existence. Fascinating stuff, in a Moebius-strip kind of way, but does it explain the full-on weirdness of Our World Today? I've been working on a variation that skips the complicated trigonometry. I call it "Silly-String theory."

• by Denise Parkinson

FROM MY SEAT

BOWL BOUND (?), FINGERS CROSSED "We're not going to go out and blow anybody away. Nothing's going to be easy." So muttered a forlorn Tommy West shortly after his Memphis Tiger football team lost a deflating contest to UAB October 4th in the Liberty Bowl. Considering his squad has beaten its last three opponents by a combined score of 127-47, West had better stick to coaching and leave the office pools to Rick Neuheisel.

• by Frank Murtaugh

DSC REPORT FINDS STATE FAILING

The Tennessee Department of Children's Services (DCS) received another blow to its already tattered reputation when a report released Tuesday found that the agency was failing to improve the care of children in its care.

• by Denise Parkinson

THE WEATHERS REPORT

THE RELEVANT QUAGMIRE American soldiers are dying daily, killed by fervent, faceless, loosely organized foes who wear no uniforms and melt into the landscape, or the cityscape, after they attack. American helicopters are being shot out of the sky by shoulder-mounted surface-to-air missiles. Back home, the American public begins to grow disenchanted with a military enterprise it initially supported. No wonder anti-war commentators are saying that the U.S. occupation of Iraq threatens to turn into a quagmire like Vietnam. But the commentators don't have it quite right. They have the wrong quagmire. WITH READER RESPONSES

• by Ed Weathers

City Reporter

Animal-rights group says U of M needs new mascot, and other news.

• by Flyer Staff

HOW IT LOOKS

• by Denise Parkinson

Reaching High

How good can the Grizzlies be this year?

• by Chris Herrington

CALUMNIES

HOME SWEET (NEW) HOME One of my favorite songs by one of my favorite bands goes like this: Tennessee, Tennessee, there ain't no place I'd rather be Baby, won't you carry me back to Tennessee... --The Grateful Dead And it is true, at least for me. Despite the poverty and crime in Memphis (as a letter writer pointed out after my last column), I love it here. There are simply so many folks in the same boat that the contrasts between rich and poor are not so glaringly evident as in some places I've lived.

• by Denise Parkinson

CITY BEAT

WEALTH INDEX From all the publicity about the loss of manufacturing jobs, layoffs, dire government budget deficits, and the need for tax incentives and other forms of corporate welfare, you might think former executives are out on the street selling apples. Relax, they're still buying bigger Bentleys.

• by John Branston

CITY BEAT

STEALTH NEWS There was a good piece on 60 Minutes last week about undercover or "stealth" marketing. The segment showed how marketers plant paid actors or hip young shills in coffee shops, bars, and Internet chat rooms to subtly tout video-game accessories, cigarettes, vodka, or new movies and create a buzz about the product.

• by John Branston

Short Cuts

Outkast's split-personality opus.

• by Chris Herrington

POLITICS: The Back Burner

THIS 'N' THAT: Once an insurgent, always an insurgent Although some of the major battles are over, skirmishes continue on the Shelby County Commission.

• by Jackson Baker

The Back Burner

Discontent simmers on the county commission; plus word from other news fronts.

• by Jackson Baker

POLITICS

POLES APART Probably nothing could better illustrate the degree of political polarity -- in the country, in general, and in these parts, in particular-- than the receptions accorded former President Bill Clinton and his successor, President George W. Bush, during visits to the area last week, a few days apart.

• by Jackson Baker

What's What

This week in the movies: murder, Elvis, and porn.

Postscript

Flyer readers respond.

• by Flyer Readers

Censure Cheney

As mentor and mouthpiece, the vice president has been venal.

• by Richard Cohen

Stealth News

A closer look at MATA's "savings" and the Civil Rights Museum's "awards."

• by John Branston