Saturday, May 30, is going to be busy. There's the Memphis Italian Festival , a laser light show at Shelby Farms Park, dragon boat racing, a huge record sale and an Italo Disco night. There's also "Collective Rage: A Play in 5 Betties," a play that centers around Betty White, Bette Davis, Betty Ford, Betty Boop and Betty Friedan.

And, then on Sunday, you can walk around and see the cats of Cooper-Young.

Unfortunately, The AM/DM podcast encountered a technical problem this morning, and our conversation about all the wild, wonderful and just plain weird things happening this weekend did not meet our sound standards.

However, there is still plenty of news. Including:

• Chef Flavas' Bartlett location caught fire but its Downtown location is ready for business
• DA sues over state laws requiring Task Force reports
• Blackburn says Trump's $1.8B weaponization fund needs a revisit
• Memphis-area speller was eliminated in quarterfinals of national bee
• DeSoto County vets start a club for fellow disabled former service members

On Friday, May 22, CBS Radio News ceased broadcasting after nearly a century. At its highest, the news network provided reporting to more than 1,000 radio stations in the U.S. But this story is as much about Bill Dries is it is CBS Radio.

Today, we're joined by Dries, who spent almost a quarter of a century in radio news, to talk about what it was like back then and how journalism has changed over the years.

Plus:

• AutoZone earnings climb as new mega-hub stores beat sales expectations
• Judges uphold the map in a state redistricting lawsuit
• Sexton adds to McNally's takeover appointees and taps an education-policy leader
• MSCS approves a final budget before takeover oversight begins

Last week, NBA fans learned about a new detail within changes to the draft lottery rules. The new language would prohibit NBA teams from having a top 5 lottery pick in three consecutive years — and it would also apply to picks acquired in trades. That rule would also be applied retroactively to 2025.

Those three factors taken together would mean the team that could be most directly impacted by that particular rule would be the Memphis Grizzlies — even though Memphis hasn't picked in the top five since 2019.

Tomorrow, the NBA is scheduled to vote on the new guidelines. Before they do that, though, we've got Grizzlies beat reporter Drew Hill joining us today to walk us through it.

Plus:

• Le Bonheur's next pediatric chief bows out weeks before start date
• MPD officer is cited for a crash on Saturday that sent three to the hospital
• SpaceX buys a data center building for $185 million
• No Comment is staying '80s-themed but with a twist

With Memorial Day now behind us, you might think we've started the summer season. But, not so, newsletter editor Bianca Phillips tells us. It just means the start of the grilling season. Is that true?

It might be in the eye of the beholder as both the Shelby County Board of Commissioners and Memphis City Council continue their budget season. And for others, it's Memphis Italian Festival season.

Join us as we set the agenda for the short week ahead.

Plus:

• Most suburban school districts are seeing flat funding from municipalities despite rising property values
• A Memphis kid has performed in "Michael"
• The former Immaculate Conception high school buildings are being demolished
• TBI is investigating a second fatality involving the Task Force in a week
• A federal judge denied an injunction against TN's new congressional map
• County primary election results have been certified but there may be a challenge
• The Melting Pot returns to East Memphis

Two longtime Memphis events return this weekend, right in time for Memorial Day. The first is the Great American River Run, which is hosted by Memphis in May International Festival and starts and finishes Downtown. The second is the Sunset Symphony, now held at the Overton Park Shell, with the Memphis Symphony Orchestra.

In between, there's a show you can't bring your phone to and a festival for lemon-drop-lovers. Newsletter editor Bianca Phillips joins us today to talk about what you might want to do.

Plus:

• A Memphis man is granted a 1-year stay after his execution was called off
• The Memphis Airport is in the early planning stages of a new rental-car facility
• Novel bookstore workers approve a union
• An immigrant rights group sues the Tennessee Highway Patrol over traffic stops in Memphis and Nashville
• The Lakeland School System approves the 2026-2027 budget
• The Tsunami building goes on the market

More than a month ago, Marion police sergeant Darrell Prewitt became the victim of a high-speed collision on Interstate 40. The impact left his left leg hanging on by just a muscle. These days, however, he's back on two healthy legs, after being taken to the Regional Medical Center at Memphis and undergoing six surgeries. Today, health care reporter Steve Bohnel joins us to talk about this story.

And, a warning, this podcast contains graphic descriptions of a limb-threatening injury, so it may not be for the most squeamish of listeners.

Plus:

• John Isner and Sam Querrey will play a special exhibition in Memphis
• Whitehaven YMCA's public pool opens with a promise of free swim lessons
• NAACP calls for a college boycott
• Only MSCS third-graders at risk of retention are to retake the TCAP exam on the last days of school

At 516 Tillman St. in Binghampton, there's a mini Memphis. It's the Junior Achievement of Memphis and the Mid-South's Wang Experiential Learning Center, where fifth- and sixth-graders get to explore future careers and #adulting.

Today, writer John Klyce joins us to talk about JA Biztown, and why it's so important.

Plus:

• Outdoors Inc. is closing its landmark East Memphis store
• The DA releases footage of police spraying protestors and fellow officers during the No Kings march
• A jury convicts a man of manslaughter in a 2022 road rage stabbing of a Memphis chef
• New rules for county "community" grants heads to committee

After the Tennessee legislature redrew the state's congressional districts during a three-day special session, it left District 9 incumbent Steve Cohen and democratic challenger Justin J. Pearson living in District 5.

The two are still allowed to run in August's District 9 primary, for which they were both already certified. Pearson plans to do so. But Cohen announced last week that he was dropping out of the race, saying it was the most difficult moment he's had as an elected official.

Longtime political reporter Bill Dries joins us today to talk about Cohen's legacy and how the three congressional races are shaping up.

Plus:

• A former Grizz Girl is fighting cancer at Methodist University Hospital
• A lawfirm that helped reverse affirmative action may aid TN in defending new congressional maps
• Mississippi Governor Reeves calls off a special session but still says redistricting is expected before 2027 elections
• A Mississippi state Representative has been arrested in Hernando

As we prepare to go into our new work week, it's with summer on our minds.

The Shelby County Board of Commissioners will meet after having heard Shelby County Mayor Lee Harris' budget for the new fiscal year, which begins July 1. School ends for all Shelby County public school systems this week, though on different days. And the Memphis Hope Festival is Friday.

Newsletter editor Bianca Phillips is here today to tell us all about it.

Plus:

• Cohen calls off his congressional reelection campaign
• The final suspect in the Young Dolph slaying gets a 20-year sentence
• Memphis in May has a back-to-back winner for the first time in 42 years
• A federal judge rules against Tennessee Democrats in a suit over the new congressional map
• A man killed by a MSTF agent was wanted on aggravated assault and burglary charges
• A new artist lounge will help the Overton Park Shell preserve its past and plan for the next 90 years

It's another weekend to hit the great outdoors. There are garden tours, mushroom hunts and outdoor concerts. But, if none of that strikes your fancy, there's also a conference for sound-recording scholars, collectors, preservationists and creators (that locals can attend, too), Wrasslin' and Tasslin' at Wiseacre Brewing OG and a daylong event about Bigfoot.

Newsletter editor Bianca Phillips joins us to talk about all of those events, and more.

Plus:

• St. Jude receives $1 million for energy-saving projects
• Newby's is back from the dead again
• Germantown is not paying schools what voters were promised
• The Whiteside trial is pushed back again