The Early Word: Richmond plans first 100 days; Memphis man turns 102
Hooray, you’ve made it to Friday! It’s Jan. 24, the start of a big weekend for female vocalists. A cappella group Sweet Honey in the Rock, which is made up solely of women, will play the Halloran Centre tonight, and Saturday brings a joint show by swamp-soul singer Marcella Simien and soul artist Talibah Safiya at Crosstown Theater.
If live music isn’t your thing, no worries: The sports will be a-sportsin’ this weekend. The Memphis Grizzlies will play the New Orleans Pelicans at home tonight. The Memphis Tigers women’s basketball team plays Tulsa in an away game on Saturday, and the Tigers men have a game against UAB on Sunday.
The Memphis Brooks Museum of Art is kicking off the Year of the Snake a little early with a Lunar New Year party (with dim sum!) on Saturday. Or you can sample Scottish delights (think haggis) at Bog & Barley’s celebration of Scottish poet Robert Burns. For more weekend fun, our To-Do List has your back.
As for the weather, well, things are looking up after 86 consecutive hours of sub-freezing temperatures earlier this week. 86 hours!!!
Memphis-Shelby County Schools’ new Interim Superintendent Roderick Richmond is already working on a plan for his first 100 days at the top. Richmond was named the district’s interim leader on Tuesday night, after former Superintendent Marie Feagins was terminated by the board. At a presser on Thursday, Richmond revealed his three major priorities for the district, including a commitment to getting students “the materials and resources that they so much need and deserve.” As for a long-term replacement to fill the “Feagins-cy” (our new office buzzword for the superintendent vacancy), the MSCS board has yet to determine a way forward.
Memphis man T.K. Tanner just turned 102 years old. Born in McNair County in 1923, Tanner was one of 10 kids raised in woods “so deep they had to pipe in sunshine.” He quit school in the eighth grade but went on to serve in the U.S. Army and later earned his high-school diploma and attended Memphis State. The Daily Memphian’s Geoff Calkins dropped in on Tanner after noticing his 102nd birthday yard sign, and the centenarian shared tales (some maybe tall) of Memphis celebrity encounters, the daily habit that keeps him fit and the “secret” to living past 100.
Plus, Shelby County Veterans Court gets a new judge, Memphis’ “mushroom queen” is moving and the Tigers earn an “embarrassing” win.
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Bianca Phillips
Bianca Phillips is a Northeast Arkansas native and longtime Memphian who’s worked in local journalism and PR for more than 20 years. She’s a diehard morning person who spends her free time running marathons and ultras. She’s the author of “Cookin Crunk: Eatin’ Vegan in the Dirty South.”
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