I went back to the Memphis Public Libraries’ e-collection yesterday to find a new book to read – and I found one I’ve been meaning to read for years: Team of Rivals: The Political Genius of Abraham Lincoln by Doris Kearns Goodwin. It’s about the intertwined lives of four men, all of whom wanted to be elected President of the United States in 1860:
- William H. Seward, full of joy for life, Senator from New York
- The pious Salmon P. Chase, governor of Ohio
- Edward Bates, elder statesman of Missouri politics
- The gangly and melancholy Abraham Lincoln from Illinois
Lincoln won, of course, and showed his wisdom by making his rivals his closest advisors as the Civil war began:
- He named Seward Secretary of State
- He named Chase Secretary of the Treasury
- He named Bates Attorney General
This is not a quick read – 944 pages in print – but if you’re into American history, I think you would love this book.
On to the news!
Disney’s Frozen kicks off an 11-day, 15-show run at the Orpheum this Thursday.
If you have kids, you might want to bring them to the Thursday, June 29 performance, when it will be Kids’ Night on Broadway. Starting at 6:30, there will be kids’ activities including an intro-to-the-theater packet, crafts, activities, and a photo booth. The performance starts at 7:30.
Happy Juneteenth everyone. On June 19, 1865, Union troops entered Galveston, Texas, where they informed thousands of slaves that they’d been emancipated.
Today is also Take Your Cat to Work Day. Yeah I’m sure that’ll go well.
Today is also National Martini Day. Just don’t order it “shaken, not stirred” as James Bond did – that’s a faux pas. Shaking dilutes the taste of the ingredients.
A 19-year-old was arrested Saturday night after gunshots were heard from the 250 Peabody Place parking garage near Beale Street.
St. Jude has been ranked the top trusted nonprofit for the second year in a row.
University of Memphis baseball has a new head coach: Matt Riser, who spent the last ten seasons coaching Southen Louisiana. Under Riser, that school made four trips to the NCAA tournament.
The Downtown Holiday Inn seeks a chief engineer.
The North American Grappling Association will hold its grappling championships at the Renasant Convention Center Saturday.
There’s free admission to the National Civil Rights Museum today for Juneteenth Community Day. Are you a museum member? Today is an Appreciation Day for you. Come by for your member gift, store discount, and express entry.
There will be a Tigers on Tour – Summer Social event at Grind City Brewing this Wednesday from 5:30 to 7:30 PM. Memphis Tigers head football coach Ryan Silverfield and women’s head basketball coach Alex Simmons will address the crowd at 6:30. There will be giveaways and lawn games.
MemphisWeather.net says this is the day this week Memphis is least likely to get rain. 87/71. Nice breeze coming in from the northwest.
That’s all I could round up for today. Back tomorrow with more news.