A piano of note

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THE COMMERCIAL APPEAL ❘ THURSDAY, JULY 13, 2006
Weller
easing
up after
35 years
Co-founder of Morgan
Keegan is promoted
By Rob Robertson
[email protected]
After more than 35 years of
daily duties at the company he
co-founded and helped develop
into one of the most successful
businesses in Memphis history, Joe Weller
says he’s ready
to ease off a
bit.
On Wednesday,
Weller
was
introduced as the
new
vice
chairman of
Joe
Morgan KeeWeller
gan & Co., the
brokerage and
investment firm he started
with chairman Allen Morgan,
James Keegan and Robert
Gooch in 1969.
“I’m at a point in my career
that I need to step back and let
other people handle more of
the day-to-day operations,”
said Weller, who most recently
served as Morgan Keegan’s
chief financial officer, secretary and treasurer. “I’m looking forward to it; the firm is in
great shape and looks to continue to grow nicely.”
Weller will continue to serve
on the firm’s executive management committee. He will also maintain a supervisory role
over several affiliates.
“We need Joe to be around
for us because we need his
wisdom,” said Morgan, who
has known Weller since the
two men served together in the
Tennessee National Guard in
the late 1960s. “He’s one of the
key people responsible for our
success.”
Weller’s promotion is one of
several changes being made
within Morgan Keegan’s executive management structure.
Charles D. Maxwell and R.
Patrick Kruczek were also
named chief financial officer
and chief administrative officer, respectively, and will join
the firm’s executive management committee.
Maxwell, a 20-year veteran
with the firm, will succeed
Weller as chief financial officer,
secretary and treasurer. He
will be responsible for all financial reporting, accounting
and finance.
Maxwell most recently
served as assistant secretary
and treasurer.
Kruczek will be responsible
for oversight of operations,
technology and human resources. He most recently held
the position of chief operating
officer and director of equity
research.
Elkan Scheidt will replace
Kruczek as director of equity
research and assume responsibility for oversight of the
company’s equity research department. Scheidt previously
FedEx wants OK to expand
Seeks rezoning; plans office
building on Express campus
By Jane Roberts
[email protected]
FedEx Corp. is before the Land Use
Control board today, seeking a zoning
change that will allow it add an office
building to its Express World Headquarters at Hacks Cross and Winchester.
The company plans to build a 172,000square-foot, three-story building — identical in size and architecture to the rest of
the campus — on 13 acres it purchased
from Jostens Inc. in 2001.
While most of the site is zoned light
industrial, about 200 feet along Winchester is zoned single-family residential.
“The building would allow us space at
the headquarters to consolidate employees from outlying offices,” said FedEx
spokesman Jim McCluskey.
If the Land Use Control board approves the change, the issue will then go
to the City Council.
FedEx did not say which offices it
would consolidate or how many people it
intends to move to the headquarters.
“We hope to start building in October
or November,” McCluskey said. “The
building is scheduled to be completed in
April 2008.”
FedEx has signed a contract with gen-
eral contractor Grinder, Taber & Grinder
Inc., based in Memphis.
Construction will include demolition
of an office and warehouse FedEx got in
the Josten’s acquisition.
FedEx opened the world headquarters
in May 2000. By 2001, it realized it needed more land.
The project under consideration now
will use up the last space on the campus.
“There are plenty of land opportunities
to expand the campus that would not be
unrealistic, including across the street on
vacant land zoned for offices,” said
Michael Lightman, who just finished developing 375 apartments in the Fieldstone development north of Winchester,
for a total of 700 units.
“Commercial growth started in the
area about seven years ago,” he said.
“The restaurants came in after that for all
the office workers.”
Lightman will also unveil the second
phase of Centennial Place Center in early
August when Best Buy opens. Gordmans
department store will follow in September.
“It’s good to hear FedEx is expanding.
They are a very good neighbor,” he said.
FedEx employs 3,100 people at the Express headquarters, and 2,800 at the
World Technology Center several miles
away in Collierville.
—Jane Roberts: 529-2512
A piano of note
Photos by Dave Darnell/The Commercial Appeal
Stax legend David Porter adds his name to the Grammy Foundation’s touring Baldwin grand piano at the Memphis Hilton Hotel.
Local music icons add names in grand style
By David Williams
Porter’s name
is prominent
just above
the keyboard
of the
Baldwin
grand piano,
below the
name of
Stevie
Wonder.
[email protected]
ANY MUSICAL INSTRUMENT
is a font of songs — those already
created and those yet to come.
The grand piano that’s in
Memphis as part of the national
Hilton Harmony Tour has been
autographed by the likes of Bruce
Springsteen and Kanye West. But
it’s all about those songs to come,
by artists whose names we don’t
know — yet.
The eight-city tour is raising
awareness and funds — $1,000 per
autograph, thanks to Hilton — for
Please see PIANO, C2
Please see KEEGAN, C2
COFFEE BREAK
Triumph Bank headquarters, bell tower rising on site of old Ridgeway Inn
WELL SAID
Walter Elliot:
“Perseverance
is not a long
race; it is
many short
races one
after
another.”
Bank, call 820-4500 or go online to
www.triumphbank.com.
The Commercial Appeal
CONSTRUCTION HAS STARTED
on Triumph Bank’s headquarters in
East Memphis.
The bank is building a two-story,
$2 million office at Poplar Pointe, a
retail and business development of
Belz Enterprises near Poplar and
Interstate 240 where the Ridgeway
Inn used to be.
The 12,000-square-foot building,
with its bell tower, should be open
in March.
The new office will serve as the
corporate headquarters for the
fledgling institution, which
received state regulatory approval
for its charter Jan. 31.
Triumph officials expect the
Elite Trophy for Classic
Rendering of new Triumph Bank headquarters building to be built at
I-240 and Poplar, site of the former Ridgeway Inn.
office to open in March. Three
more offices are also planned.
Organizers of Triumph
Bancshares Inc., the bank's holding
company, have raised more than
$20 million in capital for the project
since August 2005.
For more details about Triumph
The Southern Heritage Classic
announces that an old business
friend — Elite Trophy Company of
Memphis — is the exclusive
provider of SHC merchandise. That
includes caps, T-shirts, polo shirts,
blankets and tote bags.
Elite Trophy has provided
plaques and trophies for the Classic
since it began in 1990.
Events for this year’s Classic run
from Sept. 14-16.
Architects to hold forum
The American Institute of
Architects Memphis is sponsoring a
forum at 6:30 p.m. today about how
collaboration between architects,
developers and government can
help solve urban problems.
The event, which is free and
takes place at Bridges at 477 N.
Fifth St., is the first in a series of
forums to engage the public in the
formation of a new Memphis
Regional Design Center.
The AIA — as part of its 150th
anniversary — gave the local
chapter a $10,000 grant to start the
design center, which will promote a
coordinated, community-based
approach to addressing urban
design and community issues like
sprawl and sustainability.
For more information, call 5253818.
C2
★
Thursday, July 13, 2006
The Commercial Appeal
DAILY BRIEFING
REGIONAL
on commercialappeal.com
Wal-Mart CEO touts environmentalism
Wal-Mart chief executive Lee Scott, whose company claims to
be the world’s largest private user of electricity, called the
retailer’s new focus on the environment a “higher purpose” in line
with founder Sam Walton’s vision of the company.
Just before former vice president Al Gore arrived to talk to WalMart about global warming, Scott told executives, Wal-Mart
vendors and outside experts advising the company that Wal-Mart
must use its size to improve environmental standards in-house
and among its 60,000 suppliers.
Scott, who launched an environmental sustainability drive last
October, said the effort was consistent with Sam Walton’s desire
to help people achieve a higher standard of living by lowering
prices.
He spoke during a daylong conference at company
headquarters that included Gore presenting his anti-global
warming documentary “An Inconvenient Truth.” The former vice
president also planned to talk about climate change with the
audience, estimated at more than 2,000. A company auditorium
was filled and a nearby cafeteria handled the overflow crowd.
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Dave Darnell/The Commercial Appeal
Dow drops 121 on Dell, oil worries
Stocks plunged Wednesday as a broker’s downgrade of Dell Inc.
and higher oil prices aggravated Wall Street’s worries about a
shaky start to second-quarter earnings. The Dow Jones industrial
average sank more than 121 points.
An analyst’s reduced outlook for Dell drove concerns about the
impact of a slowing economy on tech companies, whose shares
led the broader market lower and gave the Nasdaq composite
index its biggest one-day drop in a month. Meanwhile, rising oil
prices intensified the market’s inflation jitters.
The Energy Department reported that oil inventories dropped
by a larger-than-expected amount last week. The news sent crude
oil futures up 79 cents a barrel to settle at $74.95 on the New York
Mercantile Exchange.
Wednesday’s slump was another in the recent string of wildly
erratic sessions on Wall Street. Investors have been cautious
about trading amid fears that rising energy prices could bring
more interest rate hikes at a time when the economy already
appears to be cooling off.
Gannett 2nd-quarter earnings dip
Gannett Co., the largest newspaper publisher in the country,
reported an 8.3 percent decline in second-quarter earnings
Wednesday on stock compensation expenses, softness at papers it
owns in Britain as well as higher costs for newsprint and interest
payments.
Gannett, which publishes 90 daily newspapers in the United
States including USA Today, the largest-selling daily, earned
$310.5 million in the 13 weeks ending June 25, down from $338.6
million in the comparable period a year ago.
The company earned $1.31 per share, in line with the estimates
of analysts polled by Thomson Financial and below the $1.37
reported a year ago. The company’s shares fell $1.29, or 2.3
percent, to close at $55.62 on the New York Stock Exchange.
Toyota, Nissan announce recalls
Toyota Motor Corp. is recalling 367,500 Toyota and Lexus
sport utility vehicles in the United States because a piece in the
front console area could come loose and interfere with the gas
pedal.
In a separate announcement Wednesday, Nissan North America
Inc. said it would recall nearly 201,000 Altima and Sentra sedans
from the 2003 model year to fix a faulty sensor that can cause the
engine to shut down.
Toyota’s recall involves 2004-05 models of the Toyota
Highlander and Lexus RX 330 and early 2006 models of the
Highlander hybrid SUV and the RX 400h, the hybrid version of
the RX 330, said Toyota spokesman Bill Kwong.
A clip could come loose and allow a small trim piece of the
console, located on the center-left side of the front compartment,
to interfere with the accelerator.
The company has received seven complaints and two reports of
accidents, Kwong said. No injuries have been reported, he said.
INTERNATIONAL
Microsoft hit with another big EU fine
The European Union levied a second massive fine on Microsoft
and threatened greater penalties in the future unless the world’s
largest software company obeys a 2004 antitrust order to share
technical details of its Windows operating system with rivals.
Microsoft Corp. was fined $357 million on Wednesday for
allegedly flouting the earlier order, on top of the record 497
million euros ($613 million) fine it paid at the time. It also faces
new penalties of 3 million euros ($3.82 million) a day beginning
July 31.
Microsoft — which in comparison earned $2.98 billion in the
quarter ended March 31 — said it would appeal, claiming the
“unprecedented” amount was unfair.
Microsoft General Counsel Brad Smith said the company would
ask the EU’s second-highest court, the Court of First Instance, if
its compliance efforts have been sufficient, claiming that the EU
had never been clear about what it wanted.
Citgo to cut gas distribution in U.S.
Venezuela-owned Citgo Petroleum Corp. has decided to stop
distributing gasoline to 1,800 independently owned U.S. stations,
shedding a lackluster segment of its business while forcing the
owners of those stations to find other suppliers.
While it may create some logistical headaches for gasoline
retailers in the short term, the move should not have any impact
on the nation’s overall fuel supply.
Citgo, which is wholly owned by Venezuela’s state oil company,
currently has to purchase 130,000 barrels a day from third parties
in order to meet its service contracts at 13,100 Citgo-branded
stations across the U.S. This is less profitable than selling
gasoline directly from its refineries.
Instead, the Houston-based company has decided to sell to
retailers only the 750,000 barrels a day that it produces at three
U.S. refineries in Lake Charles, La., Corpus Christi, Texas, and
Lemont, Ill., according to a statement late Tuesday.
As a result, the Citgo brand will disappear entirely from 10
states and be less common in four additional states by March
2007.
As the piano tours the country in its fund-raiser for the Grammy Foundation, it has collected
the names of many music luminaries.
Continued from page C1
THE HILTON HARMONY
TOUR
PIANO
What: A grand piano,
autographed by dozens of
musicians as a fund-raiser
for the Grammy Foundation,
on public display.
Where: Hilton Memphis, 939
Ridge Lake Blvd.
When: Until July 25
the Grammy Foundation and
music education.
“The whole premise of
developing the creative talent
pool for the future is what any
artist needs to be about.
Because that just continues the
legacy,” said Stax legend David
Porter, who added his
autograph on Wednesday and
left a place for his songwriting
partner Isaac Hayes, with
whom he wrote “Soul Man,”
“Hold On! I’m Comin’” and
other classics.
The Baldwin piano, with 94
autographs and counting, will
be on public display until July
25 at the Hilton Memphis, 939
Ridge Lake Blvd.
Its stay was kicked off
Wednesday with an afternoon
event that included a
performance by Australian
singer-songwriter Vassy and a
“Grammy Pro Session”
workshop with Memphis
keyboardist Tony Thomas
instructing young local
musicians.
One of those musicians,
Daniel King, 2006 valedictorian
at Overton High, said the piano
has “a beautiful sound,
wonderful tone.” It also has the
signature of one of his favorite
performers, Stevie Wonder.
The signing list also includes
Allen Toussaint, Elvis Costello,
Dr. John, Nelly, Sheryl Crow,
Tony Bennett, the Dixie Chicks
and “Hustle & Flow” star
Terrence Howard, who —
writing backwards — added
the message, “Must maintain
music education in schools.”
“We act as if there’s no
connection between the
teaching of history and the
teaching of music and the
teaching of science and the
teaching of math. And they’re
all inter-connected,” said David
Sears, Grammy Foundation
senior director of education
programs.
Sears said polls show
support for arts education in
public schools, but added,
“Where we get the disconnect
is from the ‘yes’ to the actual
funding and implementing in a
positive manner.”
Jon Hornyak, executive
director of the Grammy
organization’s local chapter,
said that’s less of a problem
here than in other cities.
“There’s definitely been
some battles we’ve had to fight
in recent years,” he said. “But I
feel, all in all, Memphis and
Shelby County are in pretty
good shape.”
The piano has been to Los
Angeles, San Francisco, New
Orleans and Austin, Texas,
with Chicago, Washington and
New York tour stops ahead.
“It was real important to us
to bring the piano to Memphis.
Memphis has such a rich
history and heritage in music,”
said Abby Spatz, Hilton senior
director, brand
marketing/advertising. “How
could we not come to
Memphis?”
— David Williams:
529-2310
KEEGAN
— Rob Robertson:
529-5888
Keep up with Memphis
properties in the Real
Estate section Sundays.
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To report Business news: 529-2321, or
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Thank You
• International Paper Foundation • Mid South Reads
For Sponsoring the Summer Reading Program
Which includes the serialized story, “Brain Freeze”
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Stocks rise in India despite bombings
The bombings that rocked India’s financial hub, Bombay, are
unlikely to slow India’s fast growing economy or harm investor
confidence, business leaders insisted Wednesday, saying the
world has learned to live with the risk of terrorism.
Their confidence was matched by the market Wednesday with
Indian stocks up 3 percent.
Foreign companies ranging from IBM Corp. to Merrill Lynch
joined Indian firms in denouncing the deadly bombings.
All assured nervous investors that the eight bombs that ripped
through Bombay’s commuter rail network during the evening
rush hour Tuesday would have little impact on India’s economy,
which has been expanding about 8 percent a year, making it one
of the world’s fastest growing.
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Continued from page C1
served as director of Morgan
Keegan’s Equity Strategies
Group.
Morgan and Weller, along
with Robert Gooch and James
Keegan, founded Morgan Keegan in Memphis in 1969 with
five employees and $500,000
in capital.
Today, as the securities brokerage arm of Birminghambased Regions Financial Corp.,
Morgan Keegan ranks among
the largest investment firms in
the nation, with 300 offices
across an 18-state footprint
and more than $800 million in
revenue.
In May, Regions announced
it was merging with Birmingham-based AmSouth Bancorp
to form one of the top 10 bank
holding companies in the United States.
“Our parent company’s
merger with AmSouth will create a lot of opportunities,”
Weller said. “I think we have
great future ahead of us.”
Fax resume & salary
requirements to
901-507-7062.
Contact: Anthony
Berryman
901-547-1351
fax 547-1354
Email: aberry@
searshomepro.com
Newspaper In Education sponsors discussed the summer reading program and “Brain Freeze” book serial with students recently
at Fox Meadows Elementary. Pictured are (seated, l. to rt.) Karen Mitchell, International Paper Business Analyst; Rickey Hines,
student; and Mark Sullivan, President, IP Foundation; (standing, l. to rt.) Bill Bailey, Educational Services Manager, The
Commercial Appeal; Kay Shelton, Executive Director, Mid South Reads; Helen Hawkins, Communications Coordinator, IP
Foundation, and Community Relations; and Kimberly Mayfield, student. Students receive newspapers several days of the week
during summer school. Twice a week the serialized story,”Brain Freeze” runs in the paper. It is a story of how a rap star helps
students try to save their school.
Indicate “SHIP Resume
Submission” in subject line
on commercialappeal.com