To celebrate the life of my young friend Craig Noone, I recently had supper with a group of around 75 folks at Parlor Market. Parlor Market was founded by Craig in 2010 and the night I dined there was 4 years to the day that the restaurant opened in downtown Jackson.
My perspective of the Parlor Market Journey began around 6 years ago. My son Austin and Craig had played baseball together and now as young adults they rekindled a bonding friendship. Through Austin I met, partied, and traveled with this young guy who was on a quest to open his own restaurant. Austin and Craig shared similar drives to be involved in the restaurant & beverage industry. Eventually, both succeeded with Craig opening Parlor Market Restaurant and Bar and Austin starting Cathead Vodka.
Craig’s light was bright and I had the luck to travel some with these young men, and they didn’t seem to mind as this old guy hung around. We lit out early one morning from Austin’s Fondren apartment (which I think at times was Craig’s home away from home) to go spend a weekend of celebrating food and wine in Charleston, SC. In Clarksdale at Ground Zero we all palled up for music, fun, beverages, and a weekend of endless partying. Craig was always welcome at my home and he crashed there on occasion as he and Austin worked to make their dreams a reality.
Craig’s desire was to open a downtown Jackson restaurant with an abundance of local and state influence. He discussed his ideas concerning food, beverage, and design concepts constantly, and had a creative, entrepreneurial spirit. He pushed himself and others to be their very best and for everyone to contribute in enhancing Jackson’s culture. Too soon for us all, Craig died tragically.
On the night I dined at Parlor Market, we were assembled to honor the “Rock It Out” Foundation established in Craig’s name. Seven chefs, all whom worked with Craig and now carry on his tradition in their own way, cooked his dishes and shared their stories about our friend:
Ryan Bell–Hal & Mal’s
Gary Hawkins–The Fairview Inn
Jesse Houston–Saltine Oyster Bar
Reynolds Boykin–Caet
Grant Hutchinson–The Pig & Pint
Karl Gorline
Whitney Maxwell
In just a short life, Craig contributed so much to so many. He brought people together and was a leader who instilled in young and old a passion to make our work better. It is only fitting that his legacy endures and his foundation encourages creative cooking in his honor.
Shocking personal disclosure: I didn’t do any drinking in college. It just wasn’t my thing. But I fell in love with a bar my freshman year at Millsaps.
To call the Cherokee a “dive” is an understatement. The décor is not hipsterish faux-decay, such as booths with gently worn canvas, mildly rusted signs, tattered artwork. The decay in the Cherokee is genuine—real holes in the Naugahyde, sports pendants fraying from age and cigarette smoke, a slight film ensconcing the tables. And I loved it. I loved every gross, slightly greasy stitch of it.
But I didn’t drink. However, if you take one look at me, it’s easy to see what my vice is: I eat.
A lot.
And the Cherokee catered to this as well as it did those who imbibe. The sausage and cheese plate is just that: smoked sausage with barbeque sauce, cheese cubes, and a few toothpicks. During poorer times for me, an order of their Comeback dressing and a basket of crackers would suffice. While my friends would down beer after beer there, I’d content myself with a cheeseburger and an order of fried green tomatoes. The roast beef blue plate remains a favorite, the hamburger steak dinner fills me to the point of food intoxication, and the buffalo wings are incredible. I have to stop writing now because I’m getting hungry and don’t want to start gnawing on my keyboard . . . but if I had some of their homemade ranch dressing . . .
But it’s more than the food. It’s always more than the food.
Bars are weird places for the nondrinker. I’ve had bartenders snub my order for a Coke or water because, frankly, the sober don’t tip as well as the tipsy. But not the Cherokee. When I frequented the place more than once a week, Lance (my favorite bartender, featured prominently in Ken Murphy’s picture of the place) would often pour me a water as I walked in, then hand me a menu without asking. Occasionally at parties on campus, I’d feel a little odd without a bottle or cup in my hand. At the Cherokee, though, I never felt out of place, even if the building itself was reeling from a collective beer binge that would make Faulkner himself blush.
When I heard that the Cherokee was moving from its original State Street location to its current Old Square Road one, I swatted down complaints from my friends that “it just wouldn’t be the same.” Nonsense, I’d say. And I was right. The new building might have fancy embellishments, like walls that are plumb or level surfaces, but it’s still the same. I have it on good authority that the cooking grease was moved. Even if this is legend, I’ll still buy it. And I’ll keep buying the burgers, the fried mushrooms, and now that I’m older and wiser, a beer.
Article by Jana Hoops originally published in the Clarion-Ledger on Saturday, October 4 2014.
New York Times best-selling author S.C. Gwynne will mark the release of his highly acclaimed “Rebel Yell: The Violence, Passion, and Redemption of Stonewall Jackson” with a stop at Lemuria Books at 5 p.m. Tuesday.
S.C. Gwynne (Photo: Special to The Clarion-Ledger )
This is Gwynn’s second venture with Scribner and his first release since the extraordinary reception of his “Empire of the Summer Moon” in 2010. It was the success of “Empire,” which earned him a spot as finalist for the Pulitzer Prize and the National Book Critics Circle Award, that enabled Gwynne to make that fortunate transition to full-time book writer.
He has spent most of his career as a journalist, working as a magazine writer and editor for both Time and Texas Monthly; and as a reporter for two daily newspapers. He is also the author of “Selling Money” and “Outlaw Bank.”
Gwynne holds a bachelor’s degree in history from Princeton University and a master’s degree in writing from Johns Hopkins University. He lives in Austin, Texas, with his wife and daughter.
“Rebel Yell” is a sweeping 672-page biographical narrative of the personal and military life of an enigmatic, brilliant Civil War general, and a detailed account of the conflicts Stonewall Jackson commanded for the Confederacy. You have included your extensive research efforts for this book in 60 pages of notes, bibliography and photo credits. How long did it take you to write this book?
About four years.
What inspired you to take on a project of this magnitude?
I have been fascinated by the Civil War for a long time and finally just decided to take a shot at it. What interested me most about Jackson was the idea of personal transformation — how an obscure, eccentric physics professor could, in 14 months, become the most famous military man in the world.
Tell me about the title of the book.
Thomas J. Jackson got his nickname “Stonewall” for his remarkable performance at the Battle of First Manassas, or First Bull Run, in 1861. After making a spectacular defensive stand against Union assaults, he ordered his men to charge, and “Yell like the Furies.” What the men of his five Virginia regiments then did was what later became known as the “Rebel Yell.” Since Jackson and his men invented it, I thought it would be a good idea for a title.
Who should read this book?
I have spent my career writing for general audiences, and I have written “Rebel Yell” the same way. I wanted it to be accessible to as many people as possible. I would assume my readers would have at least some interest in and familiarity with the Civil War, but they don’t have to be buffs or fanatics. I would hope that buffs would like it, too.
As a long-time journalist writing a biographical work about a historical figure, was it hard to keep your objectivity about your main character when you had “spent” so much time with him?
You bring up a good point, and as a reporter you understand the phenomenon. Over the years Jackson books tend to fall into two categories: either the writer loves him unconditionally and believes he can do no wrong or, more recently, the writer’s goal is to tear the Jackson myth down, expose his flaws.
My own feeling is that Jackson was a great and tragic American hero. He was a great man. I fully embrace his flaws. They are part of him and part of his greatness. I think that in many ways his idiosyncrasies are the most interesting things about him. You may have seen the movie “Patton.” What makes General George Patton interesting are his flaws — his vanity and ambition. And, what makes General Douglas MacArthur interesting — to me, anyway — are his flaws as much as his amazing talents. They are all American heroes.
Your accounts of Jackson’s personality show a dichotomous figure who was at once a devout Christian and a violent crusader for the cause of the South. Your book also describes him as a serious and eccentric leader, yet devoted to his family and his soldiers. In two years’ time, he rose from an obscure school teacher to a military leader of legendary proportions. Describe the figure you discovered through your vast research.
Jackson is a phenomenally complex character. I found him to be something of a dual personality. In public he was a stiff, odd, silent man with all sorts of eccentricities. In private with his two wives (he remarried after the death of his first wife) and sister-in-law he was joyous, sometimes boisterous, and loving. He loved Shakespeare and Gothic architecture, gloried in sunsets, was a first-rate gardener, and taught himself to be completely fluent in Spanish. This side of him was unknown to the public.
Why is Stonewall Jackson important in American history?
He was one of the most important factors in the first two years of the Civil War. His amazing partnership with Robert E. Lee changed the course of that war and very likely extended it. Without their victory at Second Manassas, Richmond might have fallen.
Jackson represented what the South considered to be the best of itself. He came along just when hopes were at their lowest. What the Confederacy had desperately needed, in a war that it was obviously losing at that point, was a myth of invincibility, proof that their notions of the brave, chivalrous, embattled Southern character were not just romantic dreams, proof that with inferior resources they might still win the war. Jackson gave them all that.
“Rebel Yell: The Violence, Passion and Redemption of Stonewall Jackson”By S.C. Gwynne
Scribner, Hardback, 672 pages, $35.
S.C. Gwynne will be at Lemuria on Tuesday, October 7 at 5:00.
Written by Minnie Watson, curator of the Medgar Evers Historic House
For those visiting Mississippi, Jackson is fast becoming the most popular place to be in terms of good food, great entertainment, wonderful historical sites to see, and fantastic service–all delivered with warm welcomes and friendly smiles. How do I know this? Well, this is what I hear on a daily basis from tourists who visit the Medgar Evers Historic House. No matter what state or country they call home, they tell me, “People in Jackson are some of the friendliest people we’ve ever met. Everybody speaks to you, give directions as to the best places to eat, shop and sites you need to visit.” They usually end their comments with “This is my first time in Jackson but it certainly won’t be my last.” I simply smile and say, “We’ll welcome you with open arms and a big smile.” When the Medgar Evers’ Historic House opened its doors to visitors some 17 years ago, one could not have not imagined nor understood the impact that this modest house, home to Medgar, his wife, and their three children, would have not just on Jackson and Mississippi, but the entire world.
As curator of this Historic House, it has been my pleasure to welcome visitors from basically every State in the United States and other countries as well as. I cannot tell you the impact that this position has had in my life. People come to see where “Medgar Wiley Evers, Field Secretary for the Mississippi NAACP, lived and died.” Contrary to what they may have heard about Mississippi in general and Jackson in particular, while visiting the House they get a chance to see the South, Mississippi, and Jackson through my eyes and experience, as one who has lived in Mississippi all of my life. We share experiences, both good and bad, that happened during our growing up in a world perplexed with many problems. We usually come to the agreement that no matter what state we lived in, problems existed then and still do in some form or fashion. The difference, perhaps, is how we dealt and/or deal with the problems. As curator, I cannot tell you how many repeaters I have welcomed to Jackson and to the Evers House. As time goes on, I am sure there will be many, many more in the future. After all, Jackson’s “Welcome Mat” is always out and the Medgar Evers Historic House doors are always open.
Jackson: photographs by Ken Murphy is available now for purchase. To order a copy, call Lemuria Books at 601.366.7619 or visit us online at lemuriabooks.com.
Originally published in the Clarion-Ledger in September 2014
Greg Miller turns his discerning eye outward in his newest collection of poems, The Sea Sleeps, translating experience into finely wrought verse. A scholar of the Welsh metaphysical poet and Anglican priest, George Herbert, Miller draws from Herbert’s use of form to contain expansive ideas.
Selected from several previously published collections, as well as a large selection of new poems, The Sea Sleeps reveals Miller’s range over nearly a decade of published work. Undeterred by experimentation, Miller’s poems are of a refreshed formalism. “Forgiveness” sprawls across the page in shattered lines, while other poems fall into a regimental meter.
To Miller, poetics is a system of calculating and finding value, of showing the relationships between things, both internal in the poem itself, but also in the external world. Where structure is stable, the subject matter is fluid.
The strength of Miller’s work is in the humanness of the narrator. Like the Psalmist, he struggles with his faith, with the brokenness of the world. Throughout the collection, the speaker moves from a France steeped in its past, to war-torn South Sudan, to his window overlooking “one tree in white bloom.” No matter the locale, Miller’s careful selection of detail is transporting.
Greg Miller’s cultural contributions extend beyond his poetry. The Janice B. Trimble Professor of English at Millsaps College, he was featured in a 2011 article in Oxford American, highlighting his work with Sudanese refuges. Poems addressing Miller’s work with these refugees are included in his collection. Also included are several translations.
Miller makes the familiar unfamiliar. In “Capital Towers,” he turns his attention to Jackson:
the Governor’s mansion, Statehouse,
the decaying, grand
King Edward, and the Electric Building—
the last gutted like a fish,
its art deco scales intact and buffed
lustrous against brown marble.
My eye, intent ever
on artifice, wanders. I am a crow
with an eye for shiny things
The Sea Sleeps is a wonderful poetic grab bag, showcasing the breadth of Miller’s experience and insight.
Adie Smith is a poet and bookseller at Lemuria Bookstore. The 2014 winner of the Tennessee Williams Festival’s Poetry Contest, she is a regular contributor to Relief Journal’s blog. Her poetry has appeared in Ruminate Magazine and Rock and Sling, among others.
