This year ‘ghosts’ of Elmwood can visit you at home
Actress Susan “Cookie” Swain portrays Geneva Barnes Ramsey Williams, who was the first wife of notorious gangster Machine Gun Kelly, during filming of Elmwood Cemetery’s annual fall "Soul of the City" tour on Friday, July 31, 2020. The cemetery’s annual fundraiser can be experienced virtually this year due to the pandemic. (Mark Weber/Daily Memphian)
Actor Terry Rogers, (middle) adjusts his hat while portraying civil rights photographer Ernest Withers during filming of Elmwood Cemetery’s annual fall “Soul of the City” tour on Friday, July 31, 2020. The cemetery’s annual fundraiser can be experienced virtually this year due to the pandemic. (Mark Weber/Daily Memphian)
Elmwood Cemetery Executive Director Kim Bearden, (middle) with help from husband Willy Bearden (right) places a microphone onto actress Susan “Cookie” Swain before filming at the cemetery on Friday, July 31, 2020. Swain portrays Geneva Barnes Ramsey Williams, who was the first wife of notorious gangster Machine Gun Kelly, as they film the cemetery’s annual fall "Soul of the City" tour. (Mark Weber/Daily Memphian)
Local historian Willy Bearden films a segment of Elmwood Cemetery’s annual fall "Soul of the City" tour on Friday, July 31, 2020. (Mark Weber/Daily Memphian)
Actress Susan “Cookie” Swain who is portraying Geneva Barnes Ramsey Williams, who was the first wife of notorious gangster Machine Gun Kelly, walks through tombstones during filming of Elmwood Cemetery’s annual fall "Soul of the City" tour on Friday, July 31, 2020. The cemetery’s annual fundraiser can be experienced virtually this year due to the pandemic. (Mark Weber/Daily Memphian)
Some of the Memphis figures buried at Elmwood Cemetery star in a film by Willy Bearden that will be streamed Oct. 10. Bearden's documentary includes a key role for himself as a former mayor of Memphis.
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Elmwood Cemetery Willy Bearden Kimberly Bearden E.H. Crump Ernest Withers Soul of the CityChris Herrington on demand
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Chris Herrington
Chris Herrington covers the Memphis Grizzlies and writes about Memphis culture, food, and civic life. He lives in the Vollintine-Evergreen neighborhood of Midtown with his wife, two kids, and two dogs.
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