Ask the Memphian: How did an Australian prime minister lose his pants in Memphis?
The Memphis Trousers Affair: One night in 1986, a former Australian prime minister endured his worst day in the Bluff City.
Topic: Ask the Memphian
RSSThere are 42 article(s) tagged Ask the Memphian:
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December 2025
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Ask the Memphian: How did the St. Jude marathon grow from a small race to a mighty behemoth?
How did such a small-time endeavor grow into a massive phenomenon that requires 4,000 volunteers and the cooperation of an entire city for a safe and well-organized event?
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Ask the Memphian: What in the heck is going on with the San Diego Cantina restaurant?
What’s the deal with the once-popular Mexican restaurant in East Memphis? Why is the giant sign still glowing even though the place has been closed for eight years?
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November 2025
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Did Prince ever play Beale Street?
Yes, and it was legendary.
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Ask the Memphian: Why is the U of M’s mascot a tiger?
Tigers and what is now the University of Memphis go back to around 1914, and the partnership eventually led to the school having a live feline on the sidelines during football games.
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Ask the Memphian: Has Memphis ever had an art heist like the Louvre?
Curios, statues, Albrecht Durer and Elton John: How have Memphis museums been victimized by thieves in the last century?
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Ask the Memphian: Your questions answered
The Daily Memphian’s “Ask the Memphian” series uncovers the stories behind some of the city’s myths, legends and downright weirdness.
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Is Earnestine & Hazel’s really haunted? That depends on who you ask, but the spooky stories are legion
This week, Ask the Memphian investigates reported sightings of ghosts at the South Main district bar. Oh, and we’ll also tell you about the abandoned cemetery right across the street.
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Ask the Memphian: What seasoning makes Memphis fries so good?
This week’s question comes to us from a reader who says she is obsessed with the seasoning on fries in Memphis. But is it all the same? The short answer is no.
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October 2025
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Ask the Memphian: Does a ghost named Mary really haunt the Orpheum?
Throughout the years, plenty of people have claimed to see a ghostly little girl roaming the historic theater. She even has a reserved seat. But is there a story behind the hauntings?
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Ask the Memphian: What’s the story of the Shelby Forest Pig Man?
In this week’s installment of a special Halloween-themed “Ask the Memphian,” we’ll tell you all about the Shelby Forest Pig Man. It’s up to you if you believe any of it.
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Ask the Memphian: Why do Memphians spend so much money and effort on Halloween?
In this week’s Ask the Memphian, we wondered why folks invest so much on their Halloween displays. The answers? Whimsy, fun and, for at least one person, revenge.
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September 2025
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Ask the Memphian: Why hasn’t Liberty Stadium had a concert in years?
For roughly three decades, the only musicians who played what is now the Simmons Bank Liberty Stadium were marching bands. But why?
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Ask the Memphian: Who is Prince Mongo? And he’s from where?
Robert Hodges, otherwise known as Prince Mongo from the planet Zambodia, has irked as many Memphians as he’s charmed throughout the years. But in an odd quirk of fate, he may well have changed Memphis history.
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Ask the Memphian: Why are there so many temporary tags in Memphis?
In the latest installment of “Ask the Memphian,” we try to answer why Memphis seems to be overrun with temporary tags on cars. But it’s not just a Memphis problem.
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Ask the Memphian: Who created barbecue nachos? It’s a question that will rile some folks up
Who created barbecue nachos? Well, it depends on who you ask, and be careful if you do ask because both sides are feisty about the answer.
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Ask the Memphian: Can Memphis bury its power lines?
Virtually any time Memphis gets enough wind, ice, rain or snow to disrupt the power, the howls start up again: Bury the power lines no matter the cost! But that cost usually dampens those howls.
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Ask the Memphian: To beat summer heat, where can you swim in Memphis?
Wherever you go, be safe, watch out for others and make sure to do at least one cannonball off the diving board.
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Ask the Memphian: The parkway system and its names? Make it make sense!
In this week’s “Ask the Memphian,” we answer a reader's question: How did the city’s parkways get their names, and why are parts of them so confusing?
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Ask the Memphian: Why are there so many potholes on area roads?
Everyone hates potholes. Here’s what they are and what you can do if you spot — or hit — one.
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Ask the Memphian: Are people really buried in Shelby Farms?
Shelby Farms is home to a herd of bison, 20 miles of trails and, unbeknownst to many, at least one cemetery. Here is the story of that lonely, forgotten graveyard.
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Ask the Memphian: Could parts of Memphis flood like Central Texas?
In April of this year, the Wolf River had its fourth-highest crest on record in Germantown, inundating parts of that city and areas of Memphis. But experts say fatal flooding is unlikely.
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Ask the Memphian: Did Union Avenue really change lane directions twice a day?
Union Avenue once reversed lane directions twice a day in a bold attempt to reduce traffic congestion. It may have worked for a while, but it became a confusing jumble that contributed to numerous accidents.
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Ask the Memphian: Is it safe to swim in the Mississippi River?
The Mississippi River is a treacherous, deceptive body of water that will kill you if you don’t know what you’re doing. That’s why many experts caution people to be very wary around the river, wear protective gear if you must but stay out of it if at all possible.
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Ask the Memphian: Why is there a Poplar viaduct?
For that matter, what is a viaduct, anyway?
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