Jackson Free Press

Verbatim release from the Mississippi Development Authority:

Exclusive Screening of Universal Pictures and Imagine Entertainment’s

Get on Up to Be Held Sunday, July 27, at Grandview Cinema in Madison, Miss.

Tickets on Sale Now, with proceeds to benefit Mission Mississippi

Jackson, Miss. (July 2, 2014) – On Sunday, July 27, Universal Pictures will hold an exclusive red carpet screening of the James Brown biopic Get on Up at Grandview Cinema in Madison. Mississippi native and Get on Up director Tate Taylor and Chadwick Boseman, the film’s star, will be in attendance.

In his follow-up to the four-time Academy Award®-nominated blockbuster The Help, Taylor directs 42’s Boseman as James Brown in Get on Up. Based on the incredible life story of the Godfather of Soul, the film will give a fearless look inside the music, moves and moods of Brown, taking audiences on the journey from his impoverished childhood to his evolution into one of the most influential figures of the 20th century. Boseman is joined in the drama by Nelsan Ellis, Dan Aykroyd, Viola Davis, Craig Robinson, Octavia Spencer, Lennie James, Tika Sumpter and Jill Scott.

Academy Award® winner Brian Grazer (A Beautiful Mind, 8 Mile) produces for Imagine Entertainment, with Mick Jagger and Victoria Pearman (Shine a Light) producing under their Jagged Films banner. Imagine’s Erica Huggins (Flightplan) also serves as a producer on Get on Up, while Taylor produces under his Wyolah Films label. Peter Afterman, Trish Hofmann, Jez Butterworth, John Butterworth, John Norris and Anna Culp serve as executive producers.

Get on Up was filmed over a 60-day period in various Mississippi locations—including Jackson and Natchez—with additional time allotted for pre- and post-production. Producers of the film worked with the state’s WIN Job Centers to hire Mississippians as extras and as qualified crew members.

The red carpet event begins at 2:00 p.m. with screenings starting at 2:30 p.m. Tickets are on sale now and available for purchase in two packages:

The Director’s Package includes a reserved seat for a private screening of Get on Up with Taylor and Boseman, refreshments during the movie, a limited-edition commemorative poster and a post-screening reception hosted by Governor Phil Bryant and First Lady Deborah Bryant. Tickets for the Director’s Package are $200 per person.

The Individual Screening Package includes the screening of Get on Up, refreshments during the movie and a limited-edition commemorative poster. Tickets for the Individual Screening Package are $50 per person.

There are a limited number of tickets available, and proceeds from ticket sales will benefit Mission Mississippi (www.missionmississippi.net). To purchase tickets online, please visit www.getonupjackson.com. Tickets are also available for purchase by cash or credit card at the Mississippi Coliseum in Jackson. For more information, please call (601) 353-0603 or visit the Coliseum Box Office.

To see the official movie trailer for Get on Up, visit www.getonupmovie.com.

All Citizens for Mississippi, the super PAC created by Bishop Ronnie Crudup of New Horizon Church International, bought radio advertisements at Jackson stations WKXI, WJMI, WOAD on June 20 to air June 21-24. The ads encouraged black voters to turn out to the polls in support of Sen. Thad Cochran and suggested Sen. Chris McDaniel, if elected, would hurt race relations in Mississippi.

The super PAC bought 52 radio spots for each of these stations, which cater to black audiences, amounting to $9,825. Bishop Crudup told The Clarion-Ledger he helped raise nearly $200,000 for All Citizens for Mississippi, which was mostly spent on campaign advertisements for Cochran.

Federal law permits super PACs to raise and spend unlimited sums of money, but they cannot give directly to candidates' fundraising committees nor coordinate with campaigns and must report their activities each month or quarter. For any expenditures over $1,000 from June 4 though June 23, including for advertising, Crudup's PAC was also required to file 24-hour reports with the FEC. A search of federal campaign-finance records yields no filings by All Citizens for Mississippi. Federal law requires the PAC to file a report with the FEC by July 15, detailing all donors to the PAC. The paperwork to set up the PAC, signed by Vann, indicated that it was filled out May 30, 2014, and not received and stamped by the FEC on June 6.

The All Citizens for Mississippi ads were placed by the media buying firm, American Media Advocacy Group, which also placed ads at WLBT for the super PAC Mississippi Conservatives, another campaign group in support of Cochran.

Jon Ferrell, a buyer from National Media Research Planning & Placement, bought the ads through American Media Advocacy Group for both Jackson TV and radio stations.

The National Republican Senatorial Committee filed $175,000 with the Federal Elections Commission on June 19 to the payee National Media Research Planning & Placement for the purpose of phone calls and media supporting Cochran; however, we have found no advertisements in Mississippi that are attributed to the NRSC or the media-buying firm they gave money to.

Checks from American Media Advocacy Group, signed by Ferrell, to Jackson’s radio stations show the same address as National Media Research Planning & Placement.

Sales orders for Cochran’s candidate fundraising committee, Citizens for Cochran, were not found in Jackson’s black radio stations' political public files. Citizens for Cochran did advertise in The Clarion-Ledger and distributed doorknob hangers in whiter parts of Jackson.

Calls to National Media were not returned. Read more here.

Mississippi State University star Malik Newman got some good news recently. He is one of more than 70 players to get an invite to the NBA Combine.

Nearly 120 underclassmen threw their hat into the NBA Draft ring. That is a lot of names for a draft that has just two rounds and 60 draft picks.

On top of the 120 underclassmen from college, another nearly 50 international players have also declared. The draft pool will also include every eligible senior.

The players in the NBA Draft Combine will travel to Chicago to take part in various basketball drills, have medical tests done, and meet with scouts, coaches and general managers. In other words, the basketball version of the NFL Combine.

Players will be there from May 11 to May 15. The NBA Draft Lottery is on May 17 during the NBA Playoffs.

A new NCAA rule allows players who declare but don’t hire agents to return to school after the NBA Combine. Players have 10 days after the combine to make a decision if they are going to stay in.

This week will be important for Newman’s draft hopes. If he has a poor showing at the combine, he will more than likely be back at Mississippi State this fall.

On the other hand, a standout showing from Newman could have him jump up the draft boards. NBA draft projections have him all over the place.

Some have the MSU star going late in the first round, and others have him not being drafted at all. That is a very big disparity on where a player will land.

That is why this week will be important for Newman and others who could be on the cusp of being drafted or not. NBA dreams could be squashed for a year with a bad combine.

It is still not the end of the world for players who need to return to school. They can still declare for the draft after next season without losing their eligibility. In fact, they can declare for the draft three times without losing their ability to play in college.

Players can also, at their expense, have one workout per NBA team. That gives them a chance to get another assessment of their skills and learn just how interested teams are in their services.

Players who don’t withdraw their name by May 25 will forfeit their eligibility, even if they don’t hire an agent. Players who stay in the draft and don’t hear their name called will have to catch on with the D-League or overseas.

Newman should get a good idea this week if he should return to MSU.

After the Washington Post released a 2005 video recording of Donald Trump and Billy Bush having a lewd conversation about permissible ways to treat women, several former Trump supporters backed away from their endorsements. Among these politicians were Alabama Gov. Robert Bentley and two Alabama members of Congress.

Mississippi political leaders, however, did not back off their endorsements. Lt. Gov. Tate Reeves did tweet his disapproval with Trump's remarks on Oct. 8.

"As a dad of girls, @realdonaldtrump's remarks on video are reprehensible and outside the bounds of decency. I hope his apology is sincere," Reeves tweeted on Oct. 8.

Trump issued an apology in a short video later, but defended the discussion as "locker room talk" in the second presidential debate on Sunday.

The Mississippi Democratic Party released a statement in response to Trump's views on sexual assault last Friday.

"It was revealed this afternoon that the Republican presidential nominee continues to hold astonishing views about how he can get away with sexual assault. Yet, not a single Republican statewide or legislative leader has called his actions deplorable," the statement says. "America deserves better leadership than this, and voters should remember his words when they vote on November 8th."

Following the debate, Gov. Phil Bryant did not back off his endorsement of Trump, and on Facebook, he said issues like repealing Obamacare and appointing judges to the U.S. Supreme Court were at stake in the election.

"Tonight, Donald Trump focused on issues important to the American people -- securing our borders, rebuilding our economy and repealing and replacing Obamacare. Bill Clinton was correct when he called it the craziest thing in the world. It was good to see most of this debate centered on things that are important to Americans," Bryant said in a Facebook post on Sunday. "Hillary Clinton spent the evening proposing the same policies that have failed for 30 years, including appointing liberal judges to the Supreme Court who would advance the Left's agenda rather than respect the Constitution. Most conservatives understand this election is about the United States Supreme Court and the future of our country."

Thus far, no state political leaders who formally endorsed Trump have swayed in their support of the Republican presidential candidate. The deadline for Mississippians to register to vote was on Saturday.

The following was sent to the Jackson Free Press in the form of a press release this morning, reprinted here verbatim: Virgi Lindsay to Run for Jackson City Council Ward 7

Expert in Neighborhood Revitalization Knows the Formula for Success

[Jackson, MS] Virgi Lindsay, a community leader and expert in neighborhood revitalization is running for Jackson City Council Ward 7. After filing her official statement of candidacy today, Ms. Lindsay remarked.

“I love Jackson and have spent decades working to make it safer, cleaner and a more vibrant place to live and work. Now I want to use this experience to help all the neighborhoods in Ward 7.”

Virgi has spent 15 years directing the Greater Belhaven Foundation, one of Jackson’s most successful improvement groups. She understands how the city operates. Under her leadership property values improved and new businesses brought more jobs to the city.

Virgi’s accomplishments led to Greater Belhaven’s designation as one of America’s Top Ten Neighborhoods in 2014. Experts in Mississippi neighborhood and downtown revitalization chose her as statewide Main Street Director of the Year in 2015.

Virgi Lindsay’s skillset extends beyond her successes in urban and community development.

Before managing the Greater Belhaven Foundation, Mrs. Lindsay was a reporter for the Clarion-Ledger. She later served as Public Relations Director for the Jackson Public Schools and Communications Director for the Mississippi Arts Commission. This combination of experiences make Virgi Lindsay uniquely qualified to represent Ward 7.

Mrs. Lindsay has identified four areas of focus. She considers them all critical and of equal importance in making Jackson better. They are: • Repair our streets, water lines and other infrastructure • Make Jackson safer • Restore leadership in Jackson Public Schools • Improve and protect housing for all

Mrs. Lindsay has begun an extensive series of meetings all across Ward 7. She explains her intentions “There are shared issues that unite Ward 7 –for example we all have concerns about streets, water, sewer and drainage. But I also have tremendous respect for the uniqueness of every neighborhood in Ward 7 and the people who call it home. I know that in every neighborhood there are champions who are working to protect and improve their community.

These are the dedicated residents who are willing to do the hard work to make things better. I already know some of these leaders, but I want to know them all, and work alongside them to make things better. I want to partner with our neighborhoods and use my experience in community development to help them succeed.”

Virgi Lindsay has lived in Ward 7 for 32 years. She and her husband Chuck have two grown children, Chaz and Mary- Michael. The family has attended St. Richards Catholic Church for 34 years. Virgi currently serves on the Board of Directors for the Jackson Zoo and New Stage Theatre.

College-basketball fans are in for a treat tonight, Feb. 13, as the No. 1-ranked women’s team, the University of Connecticut, hosts the No. 6-ranked University of South Carolina. This game is a possible Final Four preview with March just around the corner.

The South Carolina Gamecocks enters the matchup with a 21-2 overall record and a 9-1 record on the road, and the Huskies enter with a 24-0 overall record and 11-0 record at home, with a 60- home-game winning streak.

One more thing: UConn is also on a 99-game winning streak overall. A victory against the Gamecocks would bring the Huskies to their 100th win in a row.

UConn’s 99 consecutive wins surpassed the school’s previous record of 90 wins from 2008 to 2010. The Huskies own two of the top-three winning streaks in Division I history, with the University of California, Los Angeles men’s team in third place with 88 wins from 1971 to 1974.

Winning 100 games is hard at any level, and every team that the Huskies face gives them its best shot. UConn blows out most of the teams it plays, but those teams come in looking to make history by winning. UConn hasn’t lost a game since a double-overtime to Stanford University on Nov. 17, 2014.

Even Mississippi State University is a part of the streak. UConn defeated MSU 98-38 in the 2016 NCAA Tournament. The victory sparked more commentary on whether the Huskies are bad for women’s college basketball.

If UConn is able to win tonight, the 100th victory will likely result in the same kind of debate. UConn wins year in and year out, but at the very least, the Huskies bring attention to the women’s game. South Carolina beating the Huskies would be a huge story. It would make the women’s NCAA Tournament more interesting, as some would tune in to see if another team could knock off the Huskies.

If the Gamecocks win, it will make for huge ratings for a Final Four or National Championship Game, but if UConn wins, it isn’t bad for women’s college basketball. UCLA didn’t ruin the men’s game with its winning streak in the ’70s, and UConn isn’t destroying the women’s game now.

The Huskies are making every team that wants to win a title pick up its game. Teams practice harder, run drills longer, shoot more shots in practice, and work more on dribbling, free throws and every part of their game. Opposing coaches and players known they will make history by being the team that beats the Huskies.

But history is getting made one way or another tonight. Either South Carolina breaks UConn’s winning streak, or the Huskies win for the 100th time in a row. As viewers, we all win.

Tune in to ESPN2 at 8 p.m.

Due to newly projected expenses not incurred in the past, important logistical decisions could not be made in a timely fashion, resulting in the cancellation of the annual nighttime parade.