Fall is in the air on this Friday, Aug. 30. Okay, it’ll be 90 degrees today and probably humid as all get out. But the Delta Fair and Music Festival kicks off today at the Agricenter International, so get a funnel cake and eat it on the Tilt-a-Whirl. Live it up. 

If you’ve been ready for some football for weeks, Saturday is your day. The Memphis Tigers kick off the season with a game against North Alabama, and columnist John Martin has some predictions on how the game (and the entire season) may go. If you’d rather just listen to jokes about football, Jermaine “FunnyMaine” Johnson, the new multi-talented communications head for Memphis-Shelby County Schools, is putting on a comedy show Saturday. He’s best-known for his Alabama football comedy videos.

Sunday is 901 Day, and Memphis-themed parties abound. You can even get married on the cheap at Wiseacre Brewing Co. There are details on that and more in our 901 Day guide. 

Monday is Labor Day, but it’s also a grim anniversary: Sept. 2 marks two years since Memphis teacher Eliza Fletcher was killed on a morning run. 

THE NEED TO KNOW

Shelby County Judge Jennifer Fitzgerald raised Demarion Tackett’s bond. (Mark Weber/The Daily Memphian file)

More than a million: The bond for Demarion Tackett, the teen accused of killing a 76-year-old fruit vendor known as the “Watermelon Man,” was raised to more than $1 million on Thursday. Tackett allegedly shot John Materna during a robbery in May 2023, and he died from his injuries two weeks later. In raising Tackett’s bond, Shelby County Judge Jennifer Fitzgerald cited his failure to appear in court earlier this summer. He was ultimately captured by U.S. Marshals.

A mobile forge sat at a groundbreaking ceremony for the Metal Museum’s new home in the former Memphis College of Art building. (Patrick Lantrip/The Daily Memphian)

This is so metal: Rust Hall, former home of Memphis College of Art, is about to be a fenced-off construction zone. Beginning next week, renovation work will begin on the Metal Museum’s new International Metal Arts Institute, which will house art exhibitions and fully equipped studios. The space is much larger than the museum’s current blufftop home, and that means an expansion of apprenticeship and internship programs. Metal Museum leaders and supporters held a ceremony at the site on Thursday to mark the start of construction. But no worries for fans of the original space on the river; it’s sticking around, too.

Shelby County Mayor Lee Harris swore in Tami Sawyer as Shelby County General Sessions Court clerk on Thursday, Aug. 29. (Ziggy Mack/The Daily Memphian file)

Tami Sawyer takes an oath: The new Shelby County General Sessions Court clerk is official. Former Shelby County Commissioner Tami Sawyer was sworn into office on Thursday for her newly elected role as keeper of records and administrator of the largest court in the state. So, what exactly does the General Sessions Court clerk do, and what kind of cases does the court handle? Here’s your daily civics lesson from The Daily Memphian’s Bill Dries. 

MEET MEMPHIS

Chad Lovelace learned to ride at Southern Reins Center for Equine Therapy. (Patrick Lantrip/The Daily Memphian)

Call them gift horses, if you will. Because the horses at Southern Reins Center for Equine Therapy in Fisherville are certainly providing a gift to the people who ride them. The center’s clients live with a wide range of disabilities, including autism, cerebral palsy, trauma and developmental delays. And the nonprofit equine program supports their cognitive, physical, emotional and social wellbeing. Lessons are tailored to improve a riders’ life skills “so they have a more enjoyable time not only in the saddle but out of the saddle,” said Jill Haag, Southern Reins executive director.

THE NICE TO KNOW

Sweet LaLa’s Bakery owner Lauren Young assembled boxes, on Wednesday, August 14, that will be used in a nationwide fundraiser at Love’s Travel Stops. (Mark Weber/The Daily Memphian)

Love’s at first bite: If you’re road-tripping anywhere in the country this Labor Day, save your leg-stretching breaks for a Love’s travel stop. While you’re there, grab a cookie from Memphis-based Sweet LaLa’s Bakery. The bakery was chosen to make Love’s fundraiser cookie for September, so proceeds from every purchase will go to a good cause. In other food news, there’s a new ramen and tea bar in Germantown with a multi-level dining room that’s perfect for “looking down on society and enjoying food with a friend.” (Yas, queen!) And while we’re talking fancy, this week’s $10 Deal features an eclectic Midtown spot where two people can share a lamb shank for less than $10 a piece.

Developer Mason Jambon will open a New Orleans-style restaurant called Ragin Cajun Seafood & Po Boys in the former El Idolo at 2740 Bartlett Road. (Michael Waddell/Special to The Daily Memphian file)

All the Ragin: Loflin Yard partner Mason Jambon is looking to open a second Bartlett restaurant — before the first one is even open. Jambon recently bought the El Idolo restaurant, which is closing soon, on Bartlett Boulevard. And he plans to open Ragin Cajun Seafood & Po Boys, a nod to Jambon’s native New Orleans, where he worked under a not-yet-famous Chef Emeril Lagasse. Jambon is also opening Ramble On Summer, a Loflin Yard-style restaurant planned at the former home of the Bartlett Nursery. “I’m really bullish on Bartlett,” Jambon said.

DeAndre Brown, co-founder of Lifeline to Success, hugged Dawn Welch Kinard at a Thursday, Aug. 29, press conference. Kinard donated the deed to the Frayser house to Lifeline. (Patrick Lantrip/The Daily Memphian)

A lifeline for Lifeline: A Frayser-based inmate reentry program, Lifeline to Success, has helped more than 2,200 formerly incarcerated people transition back into society over the last 15 years. It does so by providing anger management and conflict resolution, a Frayser blight-control program and an after-school tutoring program. On Thursday, Lifeline celebrated its new six-bed transitional house for former inmates, as well as a recent $500,000 federal grant, secured by U.S. Rep. Steve Cohen, D-Memphis. Past participants, like Adrian Clyde, shared their success stories.

GOT GAME?

The Agricenter sees hundreds of cars drive by the sunflower field on weekends during peak viewing. (Mark Weber/The Daily Memphian)

I know I said fall was in the air earlier. But we’re still in summer for a few more weeks, and that means you’ve got some time to snap a last-minute summer profile pic in the Agricenter International’s sunflower field. Don’t have time for that? Maybe you can find a few minutes to put together this week’s Jigsaw instead.

May isn’t the only month for barbecue in Memphis. August was host to two barbecue cooking contents: the Patio Porkers on Beale and the ASBEE World Kosher BBQ Contest and Festival. Both provide some clues for this week’s Crossword.

And if you’re looking for something to do this weekend, you might check out Chris Herrington’s new movie column. He offers up plenty of options for what to watch on the big screen. But if little screens — like your laptop — are more your thing, this movie-inspired Word Search is for you. Bonus: You don’t even have to drop $20 for popcorn and a drink.

Have a great long weekend! The Early Word will be off on Monday, but I’ll be up with you early on Tuesday morning.

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