Ask Vance

01/03/13

Mystery Photo: Where Was This Memphis Restaurant with the Strange Mural?

My history-buff pal Bonnie Daws Kourvelas, who has been mentioned here before, is stumped. And so am I. And considering that, between the two of us, we generate enough brainpower to light a small city the size of, oh, Forrest City, Arkansas, that doesn't happen very often. But looking through some old family scrapbooks, she turned up this photo of a dinner gathering, and neither she nor I can determine the location. The most obvious clue is the rather bizarre — if not downright appetite-killing — mural painted on the wall, showing some husky naked creature holding a large mug or beer stein, with his "naughty bits" covered by a fig leaf. Unfortunately, his head has been cropped off in the photo. Well, come to think of it, maybe that's a good...

Posted at 09:09 PM | Permalink | Comments: 15

12/30/12

Look! Rare Photos of the "Polynesian" Interior of the Luau

Look what my pal Bonnie Daws Kourvelas has turned up — some rare interior shots of the Luau, the Polynesian-themed restaurant that stood on Poplar across from East High School. Bonnie, who attended Sheffield High School, has been poring over some old Sheffield scrapbooks she acquired from the mid-1970s, and turned up these (and several more) snapshots of a high-school organization — we're not sure which one — that was having a luncheon at the Luau, and she passed the photos on to me. Note the woven-grass-covered walls (did this place pass the fire codes?), the somewhat bizarre decorations, and the "authentic" Polynesian attire of the waitresses. In some of the shots, the walls are rather plain-looking paneling, but until somebody tells me...

Posted at 11:00 PM | Permalink | Comments: 1

12/20/12

Take a Look at Union and Cleveland in 1949

A few days ago I received an interesting query from reader Cynthia Raleigh: "During the process of scanning my family's old photographs, I came across a collection of my Dad's photos taken while he was attending the Woodard School of Photography in Memphis (he graduated from there in 1949). One of these is a street scene in which, on the left, is a sign saying Studebaker - Klyce Motors. Progressing down the streeet is a Toddle House, B.F. Goodrich - Swayne Latham, and across the street is a Kroger and a small flower shop. I'm wondering where in Memphis this might be located." Her father was Don L. Boatright, and he took the photo shown here. I'm proud to say that, based on the buildings and businesses in the photograph, and my photographic knowledge...

Posted at 11:14 AM | Permalink | Comments: 1

12/16/12

"Let's Do Some Kissing / Let's Do Some Loving" — Clarence Saunders' Crazy Advertising For His New Keedoozle Stores

Flipping through the pages of the Memphis Press-Scimitar on a Friday afternoon in 1939, readers were probably surprised at the headline they encountered here: "Let's Do Some Kissing, Let's Do Some Loving, Let's Go See Keedoozle." What they'd encountered was a full-page ad for the brand-new Keedoozle store that Clarence Saunders was opening at Third and Jefferson. Saunders, as I hope you know, gets credit for inventing America's first self-service grocery store, when he opened Piggly Wiggly in 1916. He eventually lost his shirt in that business (thanks to a complicated stock-market mess), but years later, he tried again with a high-tech venture: a fully automated store. Customers didn't push carts, or lug groceries around. They just wandered...

Posted at 08:02 PM | Permalink | Comments: 1

12/11/12

Hugo Dixon Wartime Diaries Now Archived on Shelby County Register Website

My regular readers already know how fond I am of the Shelby County Register of Deeds website. Oh, sure, it contains plenty of great information about deeds. But it also features an entirely separate historical collection that includes photos of old Shelby County Schools, city directories from the late 1800s, court transcripts and photos from the trial of James Earl Ray, and just tons of other materials. It's an amazing resource for historians, and I for one am grateful for all the hard work they have put into it. And now they've added something new — the wartime diaries of Hugo Dixon, founder (with this wife, Margaret, of The Dixon Gallery and Gardens). It's really an amazing treasure trove of materials. I could try to describe the new collection for you, and...

Posted at 12:25 PM | Permalink | Comments

12/05/12

Lost Memphis: El Capitan Club

Regular readers of this blog — mainly mental patients and state prisoners these days, judging from the letters I receive — know that I have a peculiar fascination with the old clubs and discos that dotted the Memphis landscape in the 1960s and 1970s. I've written before about the notorious Whirlaway Club, and El Morocco, and Club Caesar, and others like that. But while perusing a 1968 issue of KEY magazine, which served as a weekly visitors guide for tourists, I came across this eye-catching ad for El Capitan club, which was located at 1354 Poplar. One thing about it greatly amused me. Take a look: If you go here, you can drink and smoke and stuff yourself with a "fabulous steak." Six days a week, you can hang out here until 1 in the morning. If...

Posted at 01:01 PM | Permalink | Comments: 5

11/27/12

A Newspaper Ad for Memphis' First Drive-In Movie Theater?

In our November issue, I tell the story of the old, and original, Summer Drive-In, which opened in 1948 at the corner of Summer and White Station. I'd tell you more, but I certainly expect you to buy the magazine and read the article, dang it all. Anyway, I implied that this might have been our city's first drive-in movie theater, though I had always suspected that the Lamar Drive-In actually preceded the one on Summer. But where was the proof? Well, I finally found it when, alone in the Lauderdale Mansion Library one night this week, I was looking over a July 3, 1940, edition of the Memphis Press-Scimitar (it's true!) and noticed the tiny ad you see here. Back then, the newspapers would devote an entire page to their movie listings, so this two-inch notice...

Posted at 10:25 AM | Permalink | Comments: 7

11/26/12

One of Those "Hey, What a Minute" Tombstones — This One in Calvary Cemetery

In my ramblings through local graveyards, I often come across tombstones with carvings or family names that make me stop and think, "Hey, wait a minute." And so it was with this marker in Calvary Cemetery. Just one question: Shouldn't it be carved in the past tense — DIED?

Posted at 01:09 PM | Permalink | Comments: 2

11/20/12

Another Maysie Dimond Mural Mystery: What Happened to the Dyess Colony Mural Given to Eleanor Roosevelt?

Just a few days ago, I wrote about the wonderful murals that local artist Maysie Dimond had painted across the walls of Ellis Auditorium. I'm sure you remember that charming story, and told it to your children as you tucked them into their beds at night. At the time, I didn't have any photos of the actual Ellis Auditorium murals, but ran a photo of Maysie standing in front of a nice mural (above) she had painted of the historic Dyess Colony in Arkansas, which — so the newspapers reported — she planned to present to Eleanor Roosevelt. This was back in the 1930s, you understand. Well, we know the Ellis Auditorium murals bit the dust. And now it seems the Dyess Colony mural (above) has gone missing, too. Good grief. Has nothing by Maysie Dimond been...

Posted at 11:08 AM | Permalink | Comments

11/18/12

Rare Photo: Gladys Presley's Original Gravesite at Forest Hill Cemetery — Mother of Elvis Presley

Digging through a box of dusty 35mm slides purchased at a Memphis estate sale, I found the usual stuff — family photos, shots of Christmas trees, lots of living rooms and kitchens, and lots and lots and LOTS of pictures of flowers in somebody's garden. And then I found this — a rare photo of Gladys Presley's original gravesite in Forest Hill Cemetery, taken in 1958, judging from the date scribbled on the slide mount. Most people vaguely familiar with the life of the King of Rock-and-Roll know that his beloved mother died while Elvis was stationed in Germany Texas after being drafted into the Army. But after that, they're not so sure about things. Here's what happened. Gladys, in poor health for years, died of heart failure on August 14, 1958....

Posted at 08:47 PM | Permalink | Comments: 8

	01/03/13 Mystery Photo: Where Was This Memphis Restaurant with the Strange Mural? My history-buff pal Bonnie Daws Kourvelas, who has been mentioned here before, is stumped. And so am I. And considering that, between the two of us, we generate enough brainpower to light a small city the size of, oh, Forrest City, Arkansas, that doesn't happen very often. But looking through some old family scrapbooks, she turned up this photo of a dinner gathering, and neither she nor I can determine the location. The most obvious clue is the rather bizarre — if not downright appetite-killing — mural painted on the wall, showing some husky naked creature holding a large mug or beer stein, with his "naughty bits" covered by a fig leaf. Unfortunately, his head has been cropped off in the photo. Well, come to think of it, maybe that's a good... Posted at 09:09 PM \| Permalink \| Comments: 15
	12/30/12 Look! Rare Photos of the "Polynesian" Interior of the Luau Look what my pal Bonnie Daws Kourvelas has turned up — some rare interior shots of the Luau, the Polynesian-themed restaurant that stood on Poplar across from East High School. Bonnie, who attended Sheffield High School, has been poring over some old Sheffield scrapbooks she acquired from the mid-1970s, and turned up these (and several more) snapshots of a high-school organization — we're not sure which one — that was having a luncheon at the Luau, and she passed the photos on to me. Note the woven-grass-covered walls (did this place pass the fire codes?), the somewhat bizarre decorations, and the "authentic" Polynesian attire of the waitresses. In some of the shots, the walls are rather plain-looking paneling, but until somebody tells me... Posted at 11:00 PM \| Permalink \| Comments: 1
	12/20/12 Take a Look at Union and Cleveland in 1949 A few days ago I received an interesting query from reader Cynthia Raleigh: "During the process of scanning my family's old photographs, I came across a collection of my Dad's photos taken while he was attending the Woodard School of Photography in Memphis (he graduated from there in 1949). One of these is a street scene in which, on the left, is a sign saying Studebaker - Klyce Motors. Progressing down the streeet is a Toddle House, B.F. Goodrich - Swayne Latham, and across the street is a Kroger and a small flower shop. I'm wondering where in Memphis this might be located." Her father was Don L. Boatright, and he took the photo shown here. I'm proud to say that, based on the buildings and businesses in the photograph, and my photographic knowledge... Posted at 11:14 AM \| Permalink \| Comments: 1
	12/16/12 "Let's Do Some Kissing / Let's Do Some Loving" — Clarence Saunders' Crazy Advertising For His New Keedoozle Stores Flipping through the pages of the Memphis Press-Scimitar on a Friday afternoon in 1939, readers were probably surprised at the headline they encountered here: "Let's Do Some Kissing, Let's Do Some Loving, Let's Go See Keedoozle." What they'd encountered was a full-page ad for the brand-new Keedoozle store that Clarence Saunders was opening at Third and Jefferson. Saunders, as I hope you know, gets credit for inventing America's first self-service grocery store, when he opened Piggly Wiggly in 1916. He eventually lost his shirt in that business (thanks to a complicated stock-market mess), but years later, he tried again with a high-tech venture: a fully automated store. Customers didn't push carts, or lug groceries around. They just wandered... Posted at 08:02 PM \| Permalink \| Comments: 1
	12/11/12 Hugo Dixon Wartime Diaries Now Archived on Shelby County Register Website My regular readers already know how fond I am of the Shelby County Register of Deeds website. Oh, sure, it contains plenty of great information about deeds. But it also features an entirely separate historical collection that includes photos of old Shelby County Schools, city directories from the late 1800s, court transcripts and photos from the trial of James Earl Ray, and just tons of other materials. It's an amazing resource for historians, and I for one am grateful for all the hard work they have put into it. And now they've added something new — the wartime diaries of Hugo Dixon, founder (with this wife, Margaret, of The Dixon Gallery and Gardens). It's really an amazing treasure trove of materials. I could try to describe the new collection for you, and... Posted at 12:25 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	12/05/12 Lost Memphis: El Capitan Club Regular readers of this blog — mainly mental patients and state prisoners these days, judging from the letters I receive — know that I have a peculiar fascination with the old clubs and discos that dotted the Memphis landscape in the 1960s and 1970s. I've written before about the notorious Whirlaway Club, and El Morocco, and Club Caesar, and others like that. But while perusing a 1968 issue of KEY magazine, which served as a weekly visitors guide for tourists, I came across this eye-catching ad for El Capitan club, which was located at 1354 Poplar. One thing about it greatly amused me. Take a look: If you go here, you can drink and smoke and stuff yourself with a "fabulous steak." Six days a week, you can hang out here until 1 in the morning. If... Posted at 01:01 PM \| Permalink \| Comments: 5
	11/27/12 A Newspaper Ad for Memphis' First Drive-In Movie Theater? In our November issue, I tell the story of the old, and original, Summer Drive-In, which opened in 1948 at the corner of Summer and White Station. I'd tell you more, but I certainly expect you to buy the magazine and read the article, dang it all. Anyway, I implied that this might have been our city's first drive-in movie theater, though I had always suspected that the Lamar Drive-In actually preceded the one on Summer. But where was the proof? Well, I finally found it when, alone in the Lauderdale Mansion Library one night this week, I was looking over a July 3, 1940, edition of the Memphis Press-Scimitar (it's true!) and noticed the tiny ad you see here. Back then, the newspapers would devote an entire page to their movie listings, so this two-inch notice... Posted at 10:25 AM \| Permalink \| Comments: 7
	11/26/12 One of Those "Hey, What a Minute" Tombstones — This One in Calvary Cemetery In my ramblings through local graveyards, I often come across tombstones with carvings or family names that make me stop and think, "Hey, wait a minute." And so it was with this marker in Calvary Cemetery. Just one question: Shouldn't it be carved in the past tense — DIED? Posted at 01:09 PM \| Permalink \| Comments: 2
	11/20/12 Another Maysie Dimond Mural Mystery: What Happened to the Dyess Colony Mural Given to Eleanor Roosevelt? Just a few days ago, I wrote about the wonderful murals that local artist Maysie Dimond had painted across the walls of Ellis Auditorium. I'm sure you remember that charming story, and told it to your children as you tucked them into their beds at night. At the time, I didn't have any photos of the actual Ellis Auditorium murals, but ran a photo of Maysie standing in front of a nice mural (above) she had painted of the historic Dyess Colony in Arkansas, which — so the newspapers reported — she planned to present to Eleanor Roosevelt. This was back in the 1930s, you understand. Well, we know the Ellis Auditorium murals bit the dust. And now it seems the Dyess Colony mural (above) has gone missing, too. Good grief. Has nothing by Maysie Dimond been... Posted at 11:08 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
	11/18/12 Rare Photo: Gladys Presley's Original Gravesite at Forest Hill Cemetery — Mother of Elvis Presley Digging through a box of dusty 35mm slides purchased at a Memphis estate sale, I found the usual stuff — family photos, shots of Christmas trees, lots of living rooms and kitchens, and lots and lots and LOTS of pictures of flowers in somebody's garden. And then I found this — a rare photo of Gladys Presley's original gravesite in Forest Hill Cemetery, taken in 1958, judging from the date scribbled on the slide mount. Most people vaguely familiar with the life of the King of Rock-and-Roll know that his beloved mother died while Elvis was stationed in Germany Texas after being drafted into the Army. But after that, they're not so sure about things. Here's what happened. Gladys, in poor health for years, died of heart failure on August 14, 1958.... Posted at 08:47 PM \| Permalink \| Comments: 8