HELLO DOLLY! Country Music Hall of Fame member Dolly Parton is set to bring her Pure & Simple 2016 tour to Verizon Arena in North Little Rock on Aug. 13.
This musical superstar has sold 100 million records worldwide; achieved more than two dozen certified gold, platinum and multiplatinum awards; and had more than two dozen No. 1 songs on the Billboard Country charts. She's also won numerous awards, including seven Grammys and the Country Music Association's Entertainer of the Year. She's also appeared in numerous films, including 9 to 5 and Steel Magnolias; opened the Dollywood theme park in Pigeon Forge, Tenn.; and established the Dollywood Foundation, which funds Dolly Parton's Imagination Library across America and in Canada. The library gives 60 million preschool children each a book each month from the time they are born until they enter kindergarten.
In 2004, the U.S. Library of Congress presented Parton, who has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, with its Living Legend Awards for her contribution to the nation's cultural heritage.
Concert tickets, ranging from $66 to $120.50, go on sale at 10 a.m. Monday. Tickets are available via all Ticketmaster outlets, online via ticketmaster.com or livenation.com, and by phone at (800) 745-3000.
SPIRITED SCORE: A product of Rock Town Distillery of Little Rock recently landed a rating of 91 in the spring 2016 issue of Whisky Advocate magazine. The 25.4-ounce bottle of liquor, Rock Town Arkansas Single Barrel Reserve Rye Whiskey, is aged for a little more than 26 months, is sold only at the distillery in downtown Little Rock and retails for about $60. The artisan craft distillery, which uses grains from Arkansas, was founded by Phil Brandon in 2010 and was Arkansas' first legal distillery of any kind since Prohibition.
SEE FOOD, JUDGE IT: Lt. Gov. Tim Griffin will choose an executive-level Arkansas chef to represent the state in Louisiana's 13th annual Great American Seafood Cook-Off. Griffin was invited to make the selection for the Aug. 6 competition by Louisiana's Lt. Gov. Billy Nungesser. The event, co-hosted by the Louisiana Seafood Promotion and Marketing Board and the Louisiana Restaurant Association, will feature top executive-level chefs from around the nation. A panel of nationally recognized chefs and members of the media will comprise the judging panel selecting the winner.
"Arkansas has some great chefs and restaurants that specialize in freshwater fish and seafood dishes," Griffin says. "The Great American Seafood Cook-Off will be a great opportunity to showcase Arkansas' extraordinary culinary talent at no cost to the taxpayer."
Those who would like to suggest a chef for consideration are asked to contact Griffin's office at (501) 682-2144 by close of business on June 16. Visit greatamericanseafoodcookoff.com to see a complete list of the official entry guidelines.
Contact Linda S. Haymes at (501) 399-3636 or lhaymes@arkansasonline.com
SundayMonday on 06/05/2016