POP/ROCK - March 12, 1987

A Memphis, Tenn., newspaper column calling former Beatle Ringo Starr “yesterday’s news” drew a protest Tuesday by 50 people, a complaint from the mayor and a city council resolution inviting the drummer back for a visit. The demonstration at the Commercial Appeal, the city’s morning daily, was led by producer Chips Moman, who has been recording an album in Memphis with Starr. “We bring an artist to town and he gets slandered the minute he gets here,” Moman said. The column, by Rheta Grimsley Johnson, said: “An aging Beatle is yesterday’s news.” Mayor Dick Hacke1953767540about the column, which he said could hurt the city’s music industry, and the council passed a resolution praising Starr.