Answers for the Week of 12/12/24:
Q: Where did the Memphis Enchanted Forest exhibit originate, and where does it take place today?
A: The Gayoso Hotel / The Pink Palace Museum
The Memphis Enchanted Forest began at the Gayoso Hotel before moving to Goldsmith’s department store in the 1950s. There it expanded into a grand display featuring elaborate scenery, woodland creatures, snowmen, Santa Claus, and numerous elves. In the late 1980s, the exhibit found a new home at the Pink Palace Museum, where it remains today.
Q: What holiday-themed show has the Orpheum Theatre hosted for over 40 years, and who performs in it?
A: Ballet Memphis’ The Nutcracker
For over 40 years, the Orpheum Theatre has hosted an annual performance of The Nutcracker during the holiday season, featuring Ballet Memphis and the Memphis Symphony Orchestra.
Q: What Memphis-based radio station is known for playing nonstop Christmas music during the holiday season?
A: WRVR 104.5 FM (The River)
WRVR 104.5 FM (The River) switches to all-Christmas music every November and lasts through the holiday season.
Answers for the Week of 11/7/24:
Q: What Memphis hospital was founded by and for African Americans in 1910?
A: The Collins Chapel Connectional Hospital
The hospital closed in 1980 but reopened in 2021. Through a partnership between the Christian Methodist Episcopal Church and Room In The Inn homeless ministry, the space now provides recuperative care and family housing for people experiencing homelessness.
Q: What Memphis-based company is one of the largest producers of hardwood lumber in the world?
A: International Paper
International Paper’s containerboard production capacity was 13.8 million tons annually as of 2023.
Q: Who bought the land around Beale St. in the 1870s, which eventually led to his becoming the first Black millionaire from the South?
A: Robert Church
Robert Church was born into slavery in 1839 in Holly Springs, Mississippi. After the Civil War, he earned significant wealth running businesses on and around Beale St. In the 1870s, a series of yellow fever epidemics led to a collapse in the real estate market. Church purchased land around Beale Street at a low cost, developed the properties, and over time became the first Black millionaire from the South.
Answers for the Week of 10/3/24:
Q: What Memphis park hosts the annual Memphis Italian Festival, and for how many years has it taken place?
A: Marquette Park. For 35 years, the Memphis Italian Festival, hosted by Holy Rosary Parish, celebrates Italian-American heritage with food, music, and more.
Q: What famous Memphis-born musician is known as the “Father of the Blues,” and why?
A: W.C. Handy is known as the “Father of the Blues” because he was one of the first people to publish blues music, which made it accessible to the wider public beyond the Delta region.
Q: When and why did the Commercial Appeal win its first Pulitzer Prize?
A: The Commercial Appeal won the 1923 Pulitzer Prize for Public Service for its coverage of and opposition to the Ku Klux Klan’s operations in the region.
Answers for the week of 9/5/24:
What year did Elvis Presley move to Memphis?
A: 1948
On November 6, 1948, 13-year-old Elvis and his parents packed their belongings in a trunk, strapped it to the roof of their 1939 Plymouth, and moved to Memphis, Tennessee, in search of a better life economically.
Q: What year was the Memphis Fire Department established?
A: 1846
The Memphis Fire Department was established in 1846, making it one of the oldest fire departments in the United States. Originally formed as a volunteer fire brigade, the department was created to protect the rapidly-growing city from the frequent and devastating fires that plagued many urban areas in the 19th century. The first fire company was known as the “Mississippi Fire Company,” and was quickly followed by others, as the city’s population increased.
What famous writer grew up right outside of Memphis and won the Pulitzer Prize in 1977?
A: Alex Haley
Alex Haley was a renowned American author and journalist raised in Henning, Tennessee, just north of Covington, near Memphis. He won the Pulitzer Prize in 1977 for his landmark book, “Roots: The Saga of an American Family,” which chronicles the story of his ancestors from their enslavement in Africa to their lives in the United States over several generations. “Roots” was praised for its vivid storytelling and meticulous research, which brought to life the struggles and resilience of enslaved African Americans. Haley’s work became a cultural phenomenon and earned him the prestigious Pulitzer Prize.