Saturday, March 3, 2012

Farewell to MBJ's Amy McCullough

Farewell to Amy McCullough. I hate writing these posts but its time to say goodbye to the star reporter of the Mississippi Business Journal as she moves on to better things in Texas. She's one of the best and most unheralded reporters in the Jackson area.

I first met her when I broke the Evans case. I'd been writing about it for several weeks when she contacted me. She wanted to meet me and learn about the case. So we met one afternoon and went over the details. Then I said if you really want to learn how to report this case, you need to know how to look up deeds and the like. So what was going to be an hour meeting turned into a trip to the courthouse in Canton where she learned how to read deeds of trust, do title searches, and other nuances of digging through land records. I'll never forget sitting outside the office building where Chris Evans hung out early in the morning with her so she could get a picture of him and quiz him about what were then accusations of fraud. He was surprised but kept on walking, stone faced, trying his best not to notice her. She moved on to the energy beat where she gave Haley, Entergy, and those behind the Kemper plant heartburn more than a few times. Needless to say, they are probably glad to see her go. She last wrote about the charter school fight in Mississippi.

She graduated from Jackson Academy and then from Texas. Probably the smartest reporter at any of the newspapers in Mississippi and she will be sorely missed. Here's to Amy McCullough and best wishes for bigger and better things.

3 comments:

Ben Allen said...

Amen Kingfish. Amy is the best I EVER dealt with, and one in-depth conversation with her is all you need to know her passion and talents.

She has an acute acumen for "where our state, our city and our culture is and why, and the gut check" needed to illuminate these facts and address them.

I am sorry, but not surprised Amy is leaving. She is a gerbel in a spinning wheel here.

She will be greatly missed by DJP and the business community, because we KNEW, when she did a column regarding Jackson (I refuse to call her stories "stories" because they weren't. They were "truths"), that they would be factual, well researched and accurate, win, lose or draw.

Amy all the best. Austin is getting a gem.

NOT Tim Bennett said...

A wise person who is moving on to BIGGER and BETTER before having to endure the (myth of the) pain and agony of Mississippi losing another Congressional seat.

It will be a challenge to watch JACKUSTAN creep into further DISREPAIR and massive DEBT-fueled bankruptcy from afar but easier to fully understand the causes removed from the prodigious Creative Classatron and RINO smoke blowing penchants for hype, hyperbole, falsehoods and outright fabrications.

Good luck Amy!

Pugnacious said...

Good luck, Amy.

It's too bad, though, that she never picked up the cold case file on the Jake Horton assassination.

The pilot and co-pilot of Horton's cooperate jet were Mississippi Gulf Coast residents.

She could've could win a Pulitzer on that one.



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Trollfest '07 was such a success that Jackson Jambalaya will once again host Trollfest '09. Catch this great event which will leave NE Jackson & Fondren in flames. Othor Cain and his band, The Black Power Structure headline the night while Sonjay Poontang returns for an encore performance. Former Frank Melton bodyguard Marcus Wright makes his premier appearance at Trollfest singing "I'm a Sweet Transvestite" from "The Rocky Horror Picture Show." Kamikaze will sing his new hit, “How I sold out to da Man.” Robbie Bell again performs: “Mamas, don't let your babies grow up to be Bells” and “Any friend of Ed Peters is a friend of mine”. After the show, Ms. Bell will autograph copies of her mug shot photos. In a salute to “Dancing with the Stars”, Ms. Bell and Hinds County District Attorney Robert Smith will dance the Wango Tango.

Wrestling returns, except this time it will be a Battle Royal with Othor Cain, Ben Allen, Kim Wade, Haley Fisackerly, Alan Lange, and “Big Cat” Donna Ladd all in the ring at the same time. The Battle Royal will be in a steel cage, no time limit, no referee, and the losers must leave town. Marshand Crisler will be the honorary referee (as it gives him a title without actually having to do anything).


Meet KIM Waaaaaade at the Entergy Tent. For five pesos, Kim will sell you a chance to win a deed to a crack house on Ridgeway Street stuffed in the Howard Industries pinata. Don't worry if the pinata is beaten to shreds, as Mr. Wade has Jose, Emmanuel, and Carlos, all illegal immigrants, available as replacements for the it. Upon leaving the Entergy tent, fig leaves will be available in case Entergy literally takes everything you have as part of its Trollfest ticket price adjustment charge.

Donna Ladd of The Jackson Free Press will give several classes on learning how to write. Smearing, writing without factchecking, and reporting only one side of a story will be covered. A donation to pay their taxes will be accepted and she will be signing copies of their former federal tax liens. Ms. Ladd will give a dramatic reading of her two award-winning essays (They received The Jackson Free Press "Best Of" awards.) "Why everything is always about me" and "Why I cover murders better than anyone else in Jackson".

In the spirit of helping those who are less fortunate, Trollfest '09 adopts a cause for which a portion of the proceeds and donations will be donated: Keeping Frank Melton in his home. The “Keep Frank Melton From Being Homeless” booth will sell chances for five dollars to pin the tail on the jackass. John Reeves has graciously volunteered to be the jackass for this honorable excursion into saving Frank's ass. What's an ass between two friends after all? If Mr. Reeves is unable to um, perform, Speaker Billy McCoy has also volunteered as when the word “jackass” was mentioned he immediately ran as fast as he could to sign up.


In order to help clean up the legal profession, Adam Kilgore of the Mississippi Bar will be giving away free, round-trip plane tickets to the North Pole where they keep their bar complaint forms (which are NOT available online). If you don't want to go to the North Pole, you can enjoy Brant Brantley's (of the Mississippi Commission on Judicial Performance) free guided tours of the quicksand field over by High Street where all complaints against judges disappear. If for some reason you are unable to control yourself, never fear; Judge Houston Patton will operate his jail where no lawyers are needed or allowed as you just sit there for minutes... hours.... months...years until he decides he is tired of you sitting in his jail. Do not think Judge Patton is a bad judge however as he plans to serve free Mad Dog 20/20 to all inmates.

Trollfest '09 is a pet-friendly event as well. Feel free to bring your dog with you and do not worry if your pet gets hungry, as employees of the Jackson Zoo will be on hand to provide some of their animals as food when it gets to be feeding time for your little loved one.

Relax at the Fox News Tent. Since there are only three blonde reporters in Jackson (being blonde is a requirement for working at Fox News), Megan and Kathryn from WAPT and Wendy from WLBT will be on loan to Fox. To gain admittance to the VIP section, bring either your Republican Party ID card or a Rebel Flag. Bringing both and a torn-up Obama yard sign will entitle you to free drinks served by Megan, Wendy, and Kathryn. Get your tickets now. Since this is an event for trolls, no ID is required. Just bring the hate. Bring the family, Trollfest '09 is for EVERYONE!!!

This is definitely a Beaver production.


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Trollfest '07

Jackson Jambalaya is the home of Trollfest '07. Catch this great event which promises to leave NE Jackson & Fondren in flames. Sonjay Poontang and his band headline the night with a special steel cage, no time limit "loser must leave town" bout between Alan Lange and "Big Cat"Donna Ladd following afterwards. Kamikaze will perform his new song F*** Bush, he's still a _____. Did I mention there was no referee? Dr. Heddy Matthias and Lori Gregory will face off in the undercard dueling with dangling participles and other um, devices. Robbie Bell will perform Her two latest songs: My Best Friends are in the Media and Mama's, Don't Let Your Babies Grow up to be George Bell. Sid Salter of The Clarion-Ledger will host "Pin the Tail on the Trial Lawyer", sponsored by State Farm.

There will be a hugging booth where in exchange for your young son, Frank Melton will give you a loooong hug. Trollfest will have a dunking booth where Muhammed the terrorist will curse you to Allah as you try to hit a target that will drop him into a vat of pig grease. However, in the true spirit of Separate But Equal, Don Imus and someone from NE Jackson will also sit in the dunking booth for an equal amount of time. Tom Head will give a reading for two hours on why he can't figure out who the hell he is. Cliff Cargill will give lessons with his .80 caliber desert eagle, using Frank Melton photos as targets. Tackleberry will be on hand for an autograph session. KIM Waaaaaade will be passing out free titles and deeds to crackhouses formerly owned by The Wood Street Players.

If you get tired come relax at the Fox News Tent. To gain admittance to the VIP section, bring either your Republican Party ID card or a Rebel Flag. Bringing both will entitle you to free drinks.Get your tickets now. Since this is an event for trolls, no ID is required, just bring the hate. Bring the family, Trollfest '07 is for EVERYONE!!!

This is definitely a Beaver production.

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