http://metropulse.com/news/knoxville-culture/secret-history/?partner=RSSMetroPulse Stories: Secret History by Jack Neelyen-usknoxville-culture/secret-history/news/knoxville-culture/secret-history/?partner=RSShttp://metropulse.com/feeds/headlines/knoxville-culture/secret-history/2008-11-21T15:55:15.917768Copyright MetroPulse, 2008http://metropulse.com/news/2008/nov/19/them-ol-red-state-blues/?partner=RSSneely@metropulse.com (Jack Neely)Wed, 19 Nov 2008 22:00:00 -0000http://metropulse.com/news/2008/nov/19/them-ol-red-state-blues/?partner=RSSknoxville-culture/secret-history140182008-11-19T17:00:002008-11-19T17:00:00Copyright MetroPulse, 2008Just a little more about the election. I’ll get back to more important stuff next week, I promise.Knoxville, TNJack NeelyThem Ol' Red-State BluesMetroPulsethem-ol-red-state-blueshttp://metropulse.com/news/2008/nov/12/red-state-blue-state/?partner=RSSneely@metropulse.com (Jack Neely)Wed, 12 Nov 2008 22:00:00 -0000http://metropulse.com/news/2008/nov/12/red-state-blue-state/?partner=RSSknoxville-culture/secret-history139942008-11-12T17:00:002008-11-12T17:00:00Copyright MetroPulse, 2008I don’t know about you, but I suffered an unsettling spell, last Tuesday night, watching the returns. At about 9:30, when most of the states of the Eastern and Central time zones had been called, but the West was still blank, the news networks’ were all showing what looked like a Civil War map. It was right eerie: the North was colored in blue, as it is in Golden Book histories of the Civil War. The old slave states of the South were in red. They were exactly the ones that were rejecting the first black presidential nominee.Knoxville, TNJack NeelyRed State Blue StateMetroPulsered-state-blue-statehttp://metropulse.com/news/2008/nov/05/scene-shift/?partner=RSSneely@metropulse.com (Jack Neely)Wed, 05 Nov 2008 22:00:00 -0000http://metropulse.com/news/2008/nov/05/scene-shift/?partner=RSSknoxville-culture/secret-history139482008-11-05T17:00:002008-11-05T17:00:00Copyright MetroPulse, 2008First, a correction to my recent column about Knox County’s once liberal usage of the word Farragut. In our nation’s capital recently, I made my way, for the first time ever, to Farragut Square. It’s just a few blocks north of the White House, along K and Connecticut, but it’s off most of the tour-bus routes, unmentioned in many guidebooks. It’s mostly a 9-5 business section now, central to several major modern office buildings and restaurants, but it was once a stylish residential address.Knoxville, TNJack NeelyScene ShiftMetroPulsescene-shifthttp://metropulse.com/news/2008/oct/29/wallflower/?partner=RSSneely@metropulse.com (Jack Neely)Wed, 29 Oct 2008 21:00:00 -0000http://metropulse.com/news/2008/oct/29/wallflower/?partner=RSSknoxville-culture/secret-history138772008-10-29T17:00:002008-10-29T17:00:00Copyright MetroPulse, 2008The McCain campaign is so confident of Tennessee’s electoral votes next month that his statewide campaign appealed to Tennessee McCain supporters to leave home and campaign in states that really matter, like North Carolina and Florida. If they’re asking local campaigners to leave town, don’t expect any candidates to come here.Knoxville, TNJack NeelyThe WallflowerMetroPulsewallflowerhttp://metropulse.com/news/2008/oct/22/lets-pass-damn-charter-amendments/?partner=RSSneely@metropulse.com (Jack Neely)Wed, 22 Oct 2008 22:00:00 -0000http://metropulse.com/news/2008/oct/22/lets-pass-damn-charter-amendments/?partner=RSSknoxville-culture/secret-history138612008-10-22T18:00:002008-10-22T18:00:00Copyright MetroPulse, 2008I don’t know about you, but after studying the issue some, I’m voting for both charter amendments, #3 and #4 on your ballot. I can’t vouch for the projected $4.5 million in savings, but it seems obvious we’ll save something, and the changes make sense for other reasons.Knoxville, TNJack NeelyLet’s Pass the Damn Charter AmendmentsMetroPulselets-pass-damn-charter-amendmentshttp://metropulse.com/news/2008/oct/15/main-street/?partner=RSSneely@metropulse.com (Jack Neely)Wed, 15 Oct 2008 22:00:00 -0000http://metropulse.com/news/2008/oct/15/main-street/?partner=RSSknoxville-culture/secret-history138382008-10-15T18:00:002008-10-15T18:00:00Copyright MetroPulse, 2008When politicians talk about Main Street, it’s the all-American address where you and I and Joe Sixpack hang out and talk about our mortgages. Often contrasted with Wall Street, Main Street is an earnest, homey spot in the American imagination, a street of shops and cafes and homes where the Sixpacks are raising their kids. It’s a metaphor; I know that. But whenever I hear politicians talk about Main Street, I can’t help thinking about our own Main Street.Knoxville, TNJack NeelyOn Main StreetMetroPulsemain-streethttp://metropulse.com/news/2008/oct/08/our-favorite-depression/?partner=RSSneely@metropulse.com (Jack Neely)Wed, 08 Oct 2008 22:00:00 -0000http://metropulse.com/news/2008/oct/08/our-favorite-depression/?partner=RSSknoxville-culture/secret-history138152008-10-08T18:00:002008-10-08T18:00:00Copyright MetroPulse, 2008We’ve been gossiping about an imminent recession most years since the ’70s. Lately there’s been serious and informed talk, for the first time in my memory, of another DepressionKnoxville, TNJack NeelyOur Favorite DepressionMetroPulseour-favorite-depressionhttp://metropulse.com/news/2008/oct/01/our-auld-acquaintance-be-farragut/?partner=RSSneely@metropulse.com (Jack Neely)Wed, 01 Oct 2008 22:00:00 -0000http://metropulse.com/news/2008/oct/01/our-auld-acquaintance-be-farragut/?partner=RSSknoxville-culture/secret-history137852008-10-01T18:00:002008-10-01T18:00:00Copyright MetroPulse, 2008A few weeks ago, I was tagging along with participants in a photography project. One photographer, a newcomer to downtown, was amused that Gay Street has something called the Farragut Building—being, as it is, 20 miles away from Farragut, Tenn. The nine-story brick building is now home to Obama headquarters and an interesting-looking new crepes-and-coffee establishment called the French Market. To this neophyte, the fact that an imposing downtown building might be named for a low-tax suburban refuge some regard as the Anti-Downtown was worth a wry chuckle. As if, a little further down Gay Street, there might also be a Turkey Creek Building.Knoxville, TNJack NeelyOur Auld Acquaintance be FarragutMetroPulseour-auld-acquaintance-be-farraguthttp://metropulse.com/news/2008/sep/24/some-fall-notes/?partner=RSSneely@metropulse.com (Jack Neely)Wed, 24 Sep 2008 22:00:00 -0000http://metropulse.com/news/2008/sep/24/some-fall-notes/?partner=RSSknoxville-culture/secret-history137682008-09-24T18:00:002008-09-24T18:00:00Copyright MetroPulse, 2008A few weeks ago, I tried to triangulate the oldest bar in town, and my general conclusion was that it was probably the Bistro by the Bijou, with several asterisks and footnotes that obliged me to describe several other contenders, one of which was Manhattan’s in the Old City.Knoxville, TNJack NeelySome Fall NotesMetroPulsesome-fall-noteshttp://metropulse.com/news/2008/sep/17/roughest-place-town/?partner=RSSneely@metropulse.com (Jack Neely)Wed, 17 Sep 2008 22:00:00 -0000http://metropulse.com/news/2008/sep/17/roughest-place-town/?partner=RSSknoxville-culture/secret-history137442008-09-17T18:00:002008-09-17T18:00:00Copyright MetroPulse, 2008Old Happy Holler is hardly a mile from downtown, and not a bad walk on a nice day. North Central Street used to seem a desolate place unless you were looking for a prostitute or a thermostat, but today there are several new signs of life along the way. The well-known specialty baker MagPie’s opened early this month in the old Color-Ama building, adjoining the currently defunct Corner Lounge. You can tell it by the big birds roosting on the eaves. In back is a new business called The Glowing Body, a modern spot which combines yoga, massage, and gourmet health food in a sunny cafe setting. Some have already remarked that it reminds them of San Francisco, but to me it seemed a little like one of Frank Capra’s depictions of Heaven.Knoxville, TNJack NeelyThe Roughest Place in TownMetroPulseroughest-place-townhttp://metropulse.com/news/2008/sep/10/continuity/?partner=RSSneely@metropulse.com (Jack Neely)Wed, 10 Sep 2008 22:00:00 -0000http://metropulse.com/news/2008/sep/10/continuity/?partner=RSSknoxville-culture/secret-history137182008-09-10T18:00:002008-09-10T18:00:00Copyright MetroPulse, 2008Walking around New Orleans earlier this year, I was taken with an irony. I’ve been visiting New Orleans irregularly since I was a teenager in the ’70s. Now, my 23-year-old son lives there. In spite of one of the worst municipal catastrophes in the last 100 years, the hurricanes of three years ago, and the floods and attendant fires and looting—plus other hurricanes, and decades of careless administration and corruption at the city and state level, the New Orleans that I’d known since I was a teenager was still there.Knoxville, TNJack NeelyContinuityMetroPulsecontinuityhttp://metropulse.com/news/2008/sep/03/progressive-age/?partner=RSSneely@metropulse.com (Jack Neely)Wed, 03 Sep 2008 22:00:00 -0000http://metropulse.com/news/2008/sep/03/progressive-age/?partner=RSSknoxville-culture/secret-history136922008-09-03T18:00:002008-09-03T18:00:00Copyright MetroPulse, 2008No one was using the word “postracial” in 1876, but William Francis Yardley challenged the usual categories. He looked like a black man, though his mother was allegedly white. He was raised and educated by whites, but he regarded himself as black. A Maryville College graduate, he’d studied law, and was, before he was 30, a full-fledged member of the Knoxville bar, an elected city alderman, and a justice of the peace.Knoxville, TNJack NeelyA Progressive AgeMetroPulseprogressive-agehttp://metropulse.com/news/2008/aug/27/ed-and-al/?partner=RSSneely@metropulse.com (Jack Neely)Wed, 27 Aug 2008 22:00:00 -0000http://metropulse.com/news/2008/aug/27/ed-and-al/?partner=RSSknoxville-culture/secret-history136672008-08-27T18:00:002008-08-27T18:00:00Copyright MetroPulse, 2008Two old friends have passed in the last week, one day apart. I got to know Al at Pete’s Coffee Shop, in their old location in the Sprankle Building, mainly thanks to his extraverted nature and our shared interest in local history. I feel as if I knew him well, and he’s helped me with more than one column over the years, but come to think of it, except for a few phone conversations, that popular lunch spot on Union Avenue accounts for nearly 100 percent of my acquaintance with Al Heins. He was known as the Chairman of the Board, even to the other chairmen of boards who eat lunch there every day.Knoxville, TNJack NeelyTo Ed and AlMetroPulseed-and-alhttp://metropulse.com/news/2008/aug/20/home-economics/?partner=RSSneely@metropulse.com (Jack Neely)Wed, 20 Aug 2008 22:00:00 -0000http://metropulse.com/news/2008/aug/20/home-economics/?partner=RSSknoxville-culture/secret-history136472008-08-20T18:00:002008-08-20T18:00:00Copyright MetroPulse, 2008In the last couple of years, we’ve witnessed some stark examples of the hazards of patronizing chain restaurants. As my family and friends will attest, I’m almost pathologically opposed to chains, so you may want to take what I say with a grain of sea salt. Some of them do serve pretty good food, especially if you like various sorts of colorful and savory hot goo drizzled atop it. But to me, no restaurant meal is, in itself, worth what I pay for it. I mean no disrespect to professional chefs, but I don’t mind saying I can make an excellent meal of a can of beans and a piece of toast, plus a few herbs and spices and maybe some onion or fresh tomato, for less than a dollar. When I go out, I go for the whole experience, and accept that most of what I pay for a meal is an investment in my city, and a vote for some establishment—some permanent place—that I think is unique and worth keeping around.Knoxville, TNJack NeelyHome EconomicsMetroPulsehome-economicshttp://metropulse.com/news/2008/aug/13/long-term-parking/?partner=RSSSecret History by Jack Neely: Earlier this summer, a twin-front building on the 800 block of Market Street was demolished, without publicity, as demolishers prefer it. I didn’t know about it until I saw the backhoes biting into it one weekend. It was the first demolition on Market Street in 30 years, but no one raised a stir. Few cared much about the building, a drab little former law office, a one-story victim of the over-stuccoed ’70s, ineligible for National Register status. I saw it in mid-demolition, when the stucco had fallen off, but the front walls were still standing, and was surprised to see, for the first time in my life, its dignified circa-1920 facade. ]]>neely@metropulse.com (Jack Neely)Wed, 13 Aug 2008 22:00:00 -0000http://metropulse.com/news/2008/aug/13/long-term-parking/?partner=RSSknoxville-culture/secret-history136272008-08-13T18:00:002008-08-13T18:00:00Copyright MetroPulse, 2008<strong>Secret History by Jack Neely:</strong> Earlier this summer, a twin-front building on the 800 block of Market Street was demolished, without publicity, as demolishers prefer it. I didn’t know about it until I saw the backhoes biting into it one weekend. It was the first demolition on Market Street in 30 years, but no one raised a stir. Few cared much about the building, a drab little former law office, a one-story victim of the over-stuccoed ’70s, ineligible for National Register status. I saw it in mid-demolition, when the stucco had fallen off, but the front walls were still standing, and was surprised to see, for the first time in my life, its dignified circa-1920 facade.Knoxville, TNJack NeelyLong-Term ParkingMetroPulselong-term-parkinghttp://metropulse.com/news/2008/aug/06/art-afternoon/?partner=RSSSecret History by Jack Neely: If you want to take a break from all the political stuff, the hate stuff and the attack ads and the county political stuff—and I think we could all use a break—have a look at the upper left-hand gallery at the Knoxville Museum of Art. It’s called Higher Ground, sort of an episodic history of art in the Knoxville area, and the KMA’s first permanent exhibit ]]>neely@metropulse.com (Jack Neely)Wed, 06 Aug 2008 22:00:00 -0000http://metropulse.com/news/2008/aug/06/art-afternoon/?partner=RSSknoxville-culture/secret-history135872008-08-06T18:00:002008-08-06T18:00:00Copyright MetroPulse, 2008<strong>Secret History by Jack Neely:</strong> If you want to take a break from all the political stuff, the hate stuff and the attack ads and the county political stuff—and I think we could all use a break—have a look at the upper left-hand gallery at the Knoxville Museum of Art. It’s called Higher Ground, sort of an episodic history of art in the Knoxville area, and the KMA’s first permanent exhibitKnoxville, TNJack NeelyArt In the AfternoonMetroPulseart-afternoonhttp://metropulse.com/news/2008/jul/28/senselessness/?partner=RSSSecret History by Jack Neely: Many Knoxvillians heard Sunday morning’s awful news not from the Internet or television or even a phone call but oracle-like, from the pulpit, a shaken minister announcing a tragedy that would soon be known to the nation. ]]>neely@metropulse.com (Jack Neely)Mon, 28 Jul 2008 22:39:00 -0000http://metropulse.com/news/2008/jul/28/senselessness/?partner=RSSknoxville-culture/secret-history135502008-07-28T18:39:002008-07-28T18:39:00Copyright MetroPulse, 2008<strong>Secret History by Jack Neely</strong>: Many Knoxvillians heard Sunday morning’s awful news not from the Internet or television or even a phone call but oracle-like, from the pulpit, a shaken minister announcing a tragedy that would soon be known to the nation. Knoxville, TNJack NeelySenselessnessMetroPulsesenselessnesshttp://metropulse.com/news/2008/jul/23/harold-shersky-1919-2008/?partner=RSSSecret History by Jack Neely: If you didn’t know Harold Shersky, you know somebody who did. Harold could perplex those simple-minded enough to believe there’s such a thing as a typical Knoxvillian. A master of kosher cuisine and an observant Jew trusted with solemn rituals at Heska Amuna Synagogue, he was the son of a Russian refugee from the czar’s terror. Some preferred to believe he was an immigrant himself, or at least an errant New Yorker. In fact, he was born just around the corner on old Vine Street, and, except for his time in the service during World War II, never lived anywhere but Knoxville. He was more Knoxvillian than most of us, and no one has ever made such a positive contribution to a city without budging from one place ]]>neely@metropulse.com (Jack Neely)Wed, 23 Jul 2008 22:00:00 -0000http://metropulse.com/news/2008/jul/23/harold-shersky-1919-2008/?partner=RSSknoxville-culture/secret-history135372008-07-23T18:00:002008-07-23T18:00:00Copyright MetroPulse, 2008<strong>Secret History by Jack Neely:</strong> If you didn’t know Harold Shersky, you know somebody who did. Harold could perplex those simple-minded enough to believe there’s such a thing as a typical Knoxvillian. A master of kosher cuisine and an observant Jew trusted with solemn rituals at Heska Amuna Synagogue, he was the son of a Russian refugee from the czar’s terror. Some preferred to believe he was an immigrant himself, or at least an errant New Yorker. In fact, he was born just around the corner on old Vine Street, and, except for his time in the service during World War II, never lived anywhere but Knoxville. He was more Knoxvillian than most of us, and no one has ever made such a positive contribution to a city without budging from one placeKnoxville, TNJack NeelyHarold Shersky, 1919-2008MetroPulseharold-shersky-1919-2008http://metropulse.com/news/2008/jul/16/norths-second-big-win/?partner=RSSSecret History by Jack Neely: You do it, too. You overhear people talking, and you listen in. You can’t help it. Listen long enough and you’ll be able to predict what comes next; most conversations run in predictable patterns. The other day on the bus, I heard a couple of young graduate-student types, talking about life in Knoxville. One was from Chicago, the other from New York. One had lived here for a few years, the other for a few months ]]>neely@metropulse.com (Jack Neely)Wed, 16 Jul 2008 22:00:00 -0000http://metropulse.com/news/2008/jul/16/norths-second-big-win/?partner=RSSknoxville-culture/secret-history135162008-07-16T18:00:002008-07-16T18:00:00Copyright MetroPulse, 2008<strong>Secret History by Jack Neely:</strong> You do it, too. You overhear people talking, and you listen in. You can’t help it. Listen long enough and you’ll be able to predict what comes next; most conversations run in predictable patterns. The other day on the bus, I heard a couple of young graduate-student types, talking about life in Knoxville. One was from Chicago, the other from New York. One had lived here for a few years, the other for a few monthsKnoxville, TNJack NeelyThe North's Second Big WinMetroPulsenorths-second-big-winhttp://metropulse.com/news/2008/jul/09/quiet-man-studio/?partner=RSSSecret History by Jack Neely: I heard last week that my friend Lynn Westergaard died, at his home in Atlanta. He was 71. He hadn’t lived in Knoxville in 40 years, and his obituary didn’t appear in the daily, but he was once well-known here. ]]>neely@metropulse.com (Jack Neely)Wed, 09 Jul 2008 22:00:00 -0000http://metropulse.com/news/2008/jul/09/quiet-man-studio/?partner=RSSknoxville-culture/secret-history134892008-07-09T18:00:002008-07-09T18:00:00Copyright MetroPulse, 2008<strong>Secret History by Jack Neely:</strong> I heard last week that my friend Lynn Westergaard died, at his home in Atlanta. He was 71. He hadn’t lived in Knoxville in 40 years, and his obituary didn’t appear in the daily, but he was once well-known here.Knoxville, TNJack NeelyThe Quiet Man in the StudioMetroPulsequiet-man-studio