Ask Vance Book Two

"You are not a Lauderdale and never will be."

Vance, the last descendant of one of our city's most powerful families, is fond of saying that.  But with the family fortune squandered on ill-conceived business ventures, being a Lauderdale isn't what it used to be, so Vance is still scribbling the answers to questions about local history and trivia submitted by the readers if Memphis magazine.

Vance's first book included more than 50 columns that originally ran between 1995 and 2003.  This volume picks up where that one left off, with 60 columns published between 2003 and the present day.  Fully illustrated and indexed, Ask Vance - Book Two explores such compelling curiosities as:

-The "Monster of Ceremonies" who became the most famous person in Memphis after Elvis.

-The mysterious crystal shrine tucked int a hillside in an East Memphis cemetery.

-The eccentric "monkey man" who terrified motorists in Midtown.

-The government's bizarre plan to protect citizens from atomic bomb attacks.

-The lawyer who adorned his Poplar Avenue restaurant with a 14-foot version of his own head.

-The humble Summer Avenue trailer park that played a role on one of the greatest novels in American literature.

-The go-go dancers who caused a sensation with a sexy movie called "The Gravy Train."


...and much, much more.