December 2, 2004 MR. KING GOES TO FARISH: Blues great B.B. King has submitted his plans for a B.B. King Blues Club/Restaurant to the governing historic district. If they approve the plans, the club should open in 2006, along with Wet Willie's Daiquiri Bar, Funny Bone Comedy Club, and King Biscuit Café and Blues Club. This, added to plans for the downtown convention center and Farish resort status to serve liquor till 4 a.m., would make B.A. proud to see a plan coming together. That doesn't mean, though, that we'll stop banging the drum to ensure that Farish has more black-owned businesses than Beale Street does. And the presence of Mr. King's club will not change that drumbeat.
BANG, BANG, BANG ON THE DRUM, BABY: The latest addition to the Jackson music scene isn't a garage rock band. It's the first-ever drum AND bugle corps in the city. Started by a group of former drum corp members, the Jackson Generals Drum and Bugle Corps will perform in local venues and competitions in 2005. For more info, go to http://www.JacksonGenerals.org
‘BOUT TIME: Former Rep. Robert G. Clark became the first black leader to have a Mississippi state office building named after him on Nov. 9. Clark was the first black Mississippian elected to the Legislature since Reconstruction. He retired last year. Here's to hoping this building will balance out some of that James O. Eastland Federal Courthouse karma.
GOODBYE, LARRY BROWN: Mississippi fireman-turned-author Larry Brown died of an apparent heart attack Nov. 24 at his Oxford home. Many will miss his work, which Brown admitted to the Associated Press in 1991 was on the bleak side although he himself loved life. He twice won the Southern Book Critics Circle Award. One of his novels, "Big Bad Love," (1991) was made into a movie in 2001. Mainly a writer of fiction often about the rural South, Brown also penned nonfiction, such as "On Fire" (1993), which chronicled his days on the job as a firefighter. Brown's survivors include his wife, Mary Annie Brown; two sons; a daughter; and his mother.
SPREAD THE WORD: Indie media is alive! Dry Bones, an arts and literary journal, is being started by three young artists and writers who say they want to be "a leading receptacle for quality art and writing in the Jackson area." The first issue, produced as a prototype to gauge interest and reader response, will be distributed at this week's ArtMix and will include only a few works by the creators of the journal. They'll be in the lot beside the Journey church and across the street from Gallery 119 during ArtMix with music and hot chai tea. To contribute, e-mail Melody Moody, Elli Williams or Joseph Williams at [e-mail missing]
SHAKE IT LIKE A POLAROID: Or, view it like the fine art that it is. The Mississippi Museum of Art has acquired some pretty fantastic photographs over the years, so now the museum is putting them all together for one exhibit. Picture Show: Photographs from the Permanent Collection explores the ever-changing approaches to photography that have been utilized from the early 1900s until the modern digital age. Works by Southern favorites like Eudora Welty will be on display with over 50 others. Call 960-1515 for hours.
REST IN PEACE: Despite renovations to the interior of the building, Soulshine Pizza has closed down. We've enjoyed their pizza on many a press night at the JFP, so we will certainly miss it. We hope another great business takes its place.
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