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About Paul Stanley

Paul Stanley is a commercial insurance executive, writer and former journalist living in Memphis, Tennessee.

Memphis Open Pro Tennis Tournament Double Faults After 41-Year Reign In Memphis; Racquet Club Could Be Next

Former Commercial Appeal sports editor Phil Stukenborg was first to scoop the news the Memphis Open professional tennis tournament is divorcing Memphis after 41 years at the Racquet Club of Memphis. Like most long-term break ups, it didn’t happen overnight and small differences ultimately led to the fact losing lots of money far from home is well, just not fun. Unfortunately, the same fate may await the Club itself. In his column a few weeks ago, Geoff Calkins said no one is to blame for the tournament leaving and I agree. Many tennis fans were optimistic the event would continue even as tournament staff struggled to fill seats. Even the postcard placed on each seat at the end of this year’s tournament asking us to buy early and reserve seats for 2018 provided a glimmer of hope for one more year. I’ll pass on next year’s tournament because watching tennis in Long Island in February isn’t on my bucket list. You may ask why the tournament decided to leave? Here are a few oblivious reasons: FedEx wouldn’t bite on title sponsorship. They’ve sponsored most everything the Memphis business community has asked of them. Yet headlining the Memphis Open would have been [...]

By |2017-04-21T15:25:33-05:00April 21st, 2017|My Blog Post|Comments Off on Memphis Open Pro Tennis Tournament Double Faults After 41-Year Reign In Memphis; Racquet Club Could Be Next
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Senator Douglas Henry: A Tribute

Originally published at OneSouthernMan.com Two years ago I conceived the idea for OneSouthernMan as a way to highlight and showcase the lifestyle and interest of gentlemen who adore the South and all it has to offer. I wasn’t thinking of any one person when I imagined how to personify an image on the website, but rather a compilation of traits I believed characterized the ideal “Southern Gentleman.” It turns out that “ideal” Southern gentleman could have been Tennessee State Senator Douglas Henry. Senator Douglas Henry (Nashville City Paper) Senator Henry passed away late Sunday evening at the age of 90 in his Nashville home surrounded by family and close friends. He achieved many honors, one of the most notable being the longest-serving member of the Tennessee General Assembly, winning a seat in the TN House of Representatives in 1954. He was elected to the State Senate in 1970, and served until 2014 when the demographics of his district began to exceed the boundaries of his bipartisanship and tremendous knowledge of state government. His ability to forge relationships with people of all walks was legendary. In 1995 when I was the State Chairman of the Tennessee Young Republicans, we [...]

By |2017-03-07T06:10:11-06:00March 7th, 2017|My Blog Post|Comments Off on Senator Douglas Henry: A Tribute
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Book Preview: Chapter 7 – Deceit & Delivery

Editors Note: This is an excerpt from my forthcoming book, The Extortion of Forgiveness. The text messages contained in this chapter were taken from evidence the TBI obtained from cellular phone records and were given to the District Attorney's office for evidence. The individuals below are myself, Paul Stanley, McKensie Morrison, the intern who was assigned to my office and Joel Watts, her boyfriend at the time who later plea guilty to an extortion felony charge. TBI Director Mark Gwyn and Agent Doug Long are also referenced. Chapter 7 - Deceit & Delivery      It was time to move this process along and Agent Long and his team were waiting for me. Director Gwyn and I said good-bye and I thanked him for his help. Knowing this would most likely see the front page of a paper; I felt some sense of relief in realizing my options were clearly defined. Agent Long met me as I walked out of the director’s office and led me back to the same conference room we were in the day before. It was business as usual for the agents – just another sting operation that would likely result in an arrest and conviction. [...]

By |2017-02-16T11:11:43-06:00February 16th, 2017|My Blog Post|Comments Off on Book Preview: Chapter 7 – Deceit & Delivery
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Toxicity of American Political Culture Is Harming Our Nation and Communities

Never in my life have I seen the level of political hostility we have in our country today. Occasionally we see people riot and protest over what they believe or perceive to be an injustice, but what our country has experienced since January 20 is outright toxic and ultimately damaging to our nation. More disturbing is the damage it is creating in our own backyards. There has always been two or more sides with opposing views on controversial topics, and one can only imagine the chaos and fights from disagreements those town-hall type meetings in revolutionary war era taverns produced. I’m sure there were multiple causalities caused by the disagreement on whether American should seek full independence or remain loyal to Britain. Yet news traveled much slower 250 years ago and since Al Gore invented the Internet, today’s discourse, or lack thereof, is different, and much worse. When people state their reasons for protesting these days, most simply mention President Trump and what may or may not be his policy or political intentions. But I believe it goes much deeper. American has become increasingly divided along racial, gender and socio-economic levels and I see no end in sight. In the months [...]

By |2017-02-16T10:30:55-06:00February 15th, 2017|My Blog Post|Comments Off on Toxicity of American Political Culture Is Harming Our Nation and Communities
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Philip Meek: My ‘Pastor’ and My Friend

We have all heard life is precious and no one soaked up those precious moments more than my friend Philip Meek, the campus pastor at Love & Truth Church in Savannah, TN. “Pastor Philip” and his wife Joyce were solid fixtures at the church each Sunday and Wednesday as they enthusiastically greeted those coming and going through the front doors. He was a loving man, a forgiving man, small in frame – yet a frame large enough to showcase a huge smile and even larger heart. I’m glad he was my pastor; even more so that he was my friend. Philip & Joyce Meek At the time of our meeting I had been writing politics for The Christian Post. If you knew Philip at all it was no surprise that talking politics or religion with him was easy – almost as easy as talking Tennessee football or how peaceful the woods were the moments before dawn sitting in a tree stand. The only subjects I suspect he enjoyed more were talking about God’s infinite mercy, Joyce and his 3 wonderful daughters and their families. The first time I met Philip Meek was in late 2012 as I was [...]

By |2017-01-21T20:39:42-06:00January 21st, 2017|My Blog Post|4 Comments
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