Tuesday News Update: Toy Truck Success, Sundance, Tigers Win...Ain't It Good?!

Tuesday News Update: Toy Truck Success, Sundance, Tigers Win...Ain't It Good?!

We Want Your Happy Memphis Stories!

Do you have good news to share? Something truly excellent and big that happened this week in the Mid-South? Tell the world...or, at least I Love Memphis readers. Email us all the info (links are very helpful) to [email protected] with the subject line "Ain't It Good".** Your submission could appear on a future blog post!

And now, on to the good news. Turn up this Stax tune and keep reading.

It's not all rainbows and butterflies, but when it is, I Love Memphis wants to hear about it! Photo by Raphael Tenschert

Good News In Memphis + Bragging Rights:

Toys For Kids
Porter-Leath's Toy Truck program provides gifts for kids in need every holiday season, but all the uncertainty of 2020 had organizers wondering if the donations would be lower this year. Instead, the Mid-south stepped up and made Christmas extra merry for local kids and teens!

Due to additional community donations and grants, they also fulfilled the wish list of more than 40 teens in foster care. A Porter-Leath associate told me that 2020 was "especially rough" on these young people with decreased activities and family visits, so the "wish list items went a long way to restoring a sense of joy."

"Every year we're so grateful for the individuals, groups , and businesses that come together for our preschool children," said Rob Hughes, Vice President of Development at Porter-Leath, "but this year, Memphis really showed up." Way to go Memphis, and way to go Porter-Leath!

Congrats to the Memphis Tigers and Brady White
The Memphis Tigers football team won their first bowl game since 2014 on December 23, 2020 against Florida Atlantic at the Montgomery Bowl in Alabama. Go Tigers Go!

It was also the final game for quarterback Brady White, whose school record-setting college football career led the Tigers to 28 wins. And now, he's headed for the NFL. More from the Commercial Appeal: "Memphis snapped its five-game bowl losing streak dating to 2015 [at the Montgomery Bowl] and White finished his career with 10,690 passing yards, 90 touchdowns and 28 wins." You love to see it!

 

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New Trailer For Coming 2 America
A sequel to the hit/cult classic Coming To America starts streaming in March, it's directed by Memphis native Craig Brewery (Hustle & Flow), and a new trailer was released in December.

Watch it:

Sundance Partners With Indie Memphis
Big-name film fest Sundance is going virtual this year, and they're partnering with Indie Memphis to screen some of the world's top films. The movie lineup will be announced on IndieMemphis.com on Thursday, January 7—members can buy immediately and save 20 percent—and tickets will go on sale to the general public on January 11. Way to go Indie Memphis!

Volunteering Ideas Guide Is Live For January!
Show your love for Memphis with some quick and easy ways to give back this month, courtesy of Volunteer Odyssey. We publish this list every month, and the new one—first one of 2020!—is now live.

Hot Memphis Hotels
Travel pros shared their favorite boutique hotels with Uproxx, and not one but two Memphis spots landed on the list: Central Station Hotel and ARRIVE Memphis.

Photo via Central Station. The hotel was named a top hotel by Uproxx's travel pros.

Tune in! WYXR Featured in Forbes
Have you listened to the newest Memphis music station? WYXR broadcasts live from the Crosstown Concourse with well-loved and obscure Memphis tunes. Forbes online has taken notice with the recent piece, "Memphis Has The Cure For America’s Stagnant Airwaves Once Again"—give it a read!

More Memphis News Of The Positive Variety

Last Call for Earnestine & Hazel's Buyers
If you want to buy (read: save) the beloved haunted dive bar, you have about ten days left—offers are being accepted until Jan. 15th. I'm including this as positive because I'm optimistic about a local buyer who respects the spirits of E&H and its future re-opening, but I have to be honest: I'm also nervous.

Looking Back and Looking Ahead
ICYMI, Kevin Cerrito and I recapped last year (yes some good thinks happened...Ja Raffe anyone?) and previewed 2021 in Memphis. You can watch or listen to the shows here and here, respectively.

Best Of Memphis Music 2020
Alex Greene of the Memphis Flyer put together his list of top tunes from 2020 in Memphis. The ten tracks hit all the big genres, so there's something for everyone from classic soul, blues, and rock to hip hop, acoustic, and beyond. Check out the list here, and be sure to look out for our Memphis Music Features most Thursday on this here I Love Memphis Blog Dot Com.

Streaming Concerts
While we're on it, don't forget to check out the Flyer's weekly list for streaming concerts and FB live shows.

HBD, King!
Elvis's 86th birthday is this Friday. Check out the guide to Elvis Birthday: 2021.


** More about submitting: We're looking for nonprofit successes, random victories, acts of kindness, rescued baby animals, positive national news coverage of Memphis...any thing that brings joy and brags a little on the people of our city. Send it in, and your story could appear on a future blog post!

Ed. Note: Special thanks to Kevin Brewer for the "Ain't It Good" song suggestion and to Elizabeth Hornor for her assistance with this article.

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