An early morning fire Friday gutted 116-year old First Methodist church and heavily damaged three vacant buildings next to Court Square that had been slated for a multi-million dollar renovation.

No one was injured, but the cost to downtown’s image and rebuilding could be substantial. The fire made CNN, and the complex of three buildings in the center of the city was scheduled for a groundbreaking a week from today. The Lincoln-American Tower, Lowenstein Building and the Court Annex — collectively known as Court Square Center by developers have spent several years making plans and finding financing to renovate them — were in flames Friday morning, closing streets for hours and keeping some government buildings closed until 10 a.m.

Read the rest of the story by clicking on the headline.

At the time of his death, was Elvis Presley contemplating becoming a Mormon? Had he set a baptism date? And is a copy of the Book of Mormon now housed in the archives of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Salt Lake City the very Book of Mormon reputed to have been in Presley’s bedroom the night he died?

Yes on all three counts, according Rob Diamond, director, screenwriter, and co-producer of Tears of a King, a film now in production in Utah and set to be released on the 30th anniversary of Presley’s death next August.

And yes, if you can believe a story that recently appeared in the Deseret Morning News. Consider yourself warned: The complicated story involves Alan Osmond (of the Osmond Family); a Mormon missionary (Cricket Butler); Presley’s father (Vernon); and Presley’s karate coach and bodyguard (Ed Parker).

According to Alan Osmond, “I did give the book to the LDS Church … . This was for safety’s sake, to protect Elvis’ privacy and to preserve the sacredness of this book! Several people that knew I had it were too anxious to see it and touch it. So I put it in a very safe place — The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints [archives].”

Diamond, for his part, says Tears of a King will be “entertaining and enlightening for all.”

Center City Commission president Jeff Sanford has issued the following statement regarding this morning’s devestating fire: “This is a major setback not only to the developers of the Court Square Center project, but to downtown’s revitalization efforts around Court Square. We have all worked long and hard to help this project become a reality, and through it, to dramatically change the face of the Court Square neighborhood. And now this… We have spoken with the Court Square Center project developers and are assured that the property is more than adequately covered by insurance. We do not want to rush to judgment on the condition of the two remaining buildings, but we will just have to see what can rise up out of these ashes. The loss of the historic First Church building is sad to say the least. But, knowing the spirit of its pastor and congregation, they will build back stronger than ever. The most positive thing is that apparently there has been no loss of life.”

Memphis Mayor Willie Herenton this week announced that — somehow — the city had acquired a budget surplus of $31 million.

Something about that particular figure seemed familiar to us, and sure enough, it seems to come up a lot in the news these days. Read all about it by clicking on the headline.

You couldn’t make up this headline: “Flying Elvis Suffers Broken Pelvis.” But alas, it’s true, much to the dismay of Paul Moran, the member of the 10-member skydiving team that “misjudged” his landing at the grand opening of the Glacier Peaks Casino in Browning, Montana. “The Flying Elvi” are 10 Elvis impersonators who also skydive. But don’t worry, Paul seems to be doing just fine.

Read all about it here.

The Pink Palace Crafts Fair starts today and runs through Sunday. Now in its 36th year, the fair features all types of artisans working in wood, wax, glass, metal, fibers, and more. There’s also live music, demonstrations, food, and other attractions.

For more information, go here.

Let no one accuse Wade Jones, “The Elvis Cup Guy,” of ever passing up an opportunity, however inane.

Jones’ claim to fame is styerfoam cup of water that he says Elvis took a sip from at one of his last concerts. Jones sold some of the water in an auction on eBay. Recently, he put up for auction a bagel he said looked like Mel Gibson.

Now this: a corndog that looks like scandal-ridden congressman Mark Foley. (As a bonus, he’s offering a photo of Foley and entertainer Wayne Newton.)

We can’t see the corndog’s resemblance to Foley. See if you can here.

The man who shot singer Marc Cohn last year during a carjacking in Denver was sentenced to 36 years for attempted murder. Cohn is best known for his 1991 hit “Walking in Memphis,” but he did not deserve to get shot in the head for it.

Read all about it here.

Music producer and sometime Memphian David Gest is planning to ring in the New Year with an All-Star Soul Spectacular in London. The inaugural event will include performances by Peabo Bryson, Bonnie Tyler, and Stax-man William Bell.

The London radio station sponsoring the concerts is also giving listeners a chance to win a “David Gest luxury Hollywood holiday” in which “David’s bodyguard will personally take them to Universal Studios for the tour.”

But if his bodyguard is with the winner, who will be protecting Gest from Liza?