Ozarks At Large
Tonya Lewis Lee helped bring Christopher Paul Curtis' novel The Watsons Go to Birmingham to Tv this month. Tonight the film is being shown, for free, at Bentonville High School and today we talked with Ms. lee about the project that premiered earlier this month on the Hallmark Channel.
Late last week, the federal Department of Health and Human Services accepted Arkansas's plan for Medicaid expansion. The city of Bentonville will give away compost and wood mulch this week. A couple of roads close or otherwise reroute in the River Valley starting today. And gas prices dropped slightly in Arkansas over the past week.
With this morning's montage, we say several goodbyes; to Summer, to a famed Yankees pitcher, and to one of our longest-tenured colleagues at KUAF. Here are our 10 pop culture references we used to say goodbye.
- "So Long, Farewell" from the Sound of Music
- Lou Gehrig's farewell speech
- "Goodbye my Lover" by James Blunt
- ET says his goodbye
- The famous words from Gone With The Wind
- "Hello, Goodbye" by The Beatles
- The Friends leave the apartment for the final time
- "Goodbye Yellow Brick Road" by Elton John
- Jim Carey tells his fare goodbye at the beginning of Dumb and Dumber
- Leaving Casablanca for the final time
- Johnny Carson bids his final farewell to the audience during his final time hosting The Tonight Show
The Arkansas Center For The Book this week made its selection for the 2013 If All Arkansas Read The Same Book Program. Kyle Kellams spoke with Vivienne Schiffer, the author of the novel Camp Nine, this year's selection.
State officials continue to seek a solution to the teacher insurance crisis in Arkansas. New numbers are out regarding Arkansas students' achievements on Advanced Placement tests. And, the Connecting Arkansas Internet Conference is being held in Little Rock this week.
You can go to a workshop at NWACC to learn about the state's Freedom of Information Act, or you can participate in one of many lake and other outdoor cleanups in the next few days.



Latest Edition of Ozarks at Large
Friday, May 9, 2014
Ahead on this edition of Ozarks, Michael Tilley talks about a new owner for some long-abandoned real estate in Fort Smith, and the official announcement of a Whole Foods in Fayetteville. Plus, Cletus Got Shot gets ready to perform at a few festivals in the next month.
The independent film Come Morning was filmed in Arkansas and will have a one-night only showing in Rogers next week.
Here are our 12 clips for the montage inspired by the 12 Days of Christmas.
The opening theme to the PARTRIDGE Family.
Alabama sings the TURTLE DOVEing lyrics from their song Dixieland Delight.
Foghorn Leghorn chats with a HEN (not French, true) in a Warner Brothers cartoon.
The Beatles sing Blackbird. Our research indicates COLLY BIRDS are blackbirds.
The Olympic Theme, representing FIVE RINGS.
GOOSE from Top Gun talks to Maverick.
The opening go Tchaikovsky's SWAN Lake.
Shirley Booth as the MAID Hazel in the television program of the same name.
Rosemary Clooney, a LADY, sings about DANCING.
LORD Grantham, for Downton Abbey, gets ready to go…perhaps to LEAP?
Rowdy Roddy PIPER yells at another wrestler.
Todd Rundgren sings Bang the DRUM All Day.
Apologies to Arkansas-born Goose Tatum of the Harlem Globetrotters, the cast of Black Swan and bagpipers everywhere (but Roddy Piper was louder). Maybe next year.
"December" by Tim Janis
Pete Earley's book Crazy: A Father's Search Through America's Mental Health Madness was this year's One Book, One Community selection at the University of Arkansas. Earlier this month Ozarks at Large's Kyle Kellams., talked to him about the book in front of a live audience at the Fayetteville Public Library.
"I Remember You" by Stephen Trask, and "If You Won't I will" by Daryl Shawn
This fall Eric Brace and Peter Cooper, both Grammy nominees, came to northwest Arkansas to play a few shows. Their tour included a session inside the Firmin Garner Performance Studio.
"Speedcat" by Alan Grubner
The Clarksville-Johnson County Chamber of Commerce, Main Street Rogers, and Nightbird Books are all participating in events designed to support local shopping this weekend including Plaid Friday and Small Business Saturday.