JOURNALIST GENE BELEY TO GIVE LECTURE SEPT. 30

JOURNALIST GENE BELEY TO GIVE LECTURE SEPT. 30

MARTIN, Tenn. – The J. Houston Gordon Museum, located in the University of

Tennessee at Martin Paul Meek Library, will host freelance journalist Gene Beley at 7 p.m.,

Thursday, Sept. 30, in the library’s Special Collections Reading Room. Beley’s lecture is in

conjunction with the museum’s current exhibit, “1968: A Folsom Redemption,” and will discuss

the stories behind Johnny Cash’s Folsom Prison concerts and behind developing the exhibit.

Beley’s writings for the exhibit come from his firsthand experience of attending the

concerts, his conversations with the Cash family before the concerts and his knowledge of the

background storylines of the era.

“Mr. Beley will share his experiences of a long friendship with Cash,” Sam Richardson,

head of special collections and curator of the museum said. “I hope (attendees) come away with

a larger knowledge of Johnny Cash as a person and an appreciation of his artistry and life.”

The museum is open to the public from 8 a.m.-4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday, with

no admission fee. Visitors are required to wear masks inside the library.

Parking for the lecture will be in the Paul Meek Library parking lot on Wayne Fisher

Drive off Mt. Pelia Road. Parking permits are available online at

www.utm.edu/departments/publicsafety by selecting the “Online Visitor Parking Permit” link.

The exhibit, which opened Sept. 1, is scheduled to run through Oct. 15. For more

information, contact Richardson at 731-881-7094.

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Pronunciation: Gene Beley’s last name is pronounced Be (long e and first-syllable accent) Lee

(long double ee).

Caroline Ideus, coordinator of the University of Tennessee at Martin’s Siena, Italy study-abroad program, explores the Johnny Cash exhibit, “1968: A Folsom Redemption,” in the J. Houston Gordon Museum, located in UT Martin’s Paul Meek Library, Thursday, Sept. 23. The museum will host freelance journalist Gene Beley at 7 p.m., Thursday, Sept. 30, in the library’s Special Collections Reading Room.