Access Atlanta > Blog > Archives > 2008 > August
August 2008
Are you affected by Gustav, giving shelter?
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Hurricane Gustav charged across the Gulf of Mexico on Sunday sending thousands of Gulf Coast residents from Texas to Florida to hotels and evacuation centers north. Are you or a loved one or friend affected by the storm? Are you worried about property potentially in the storm’s path? Have you been in touch with loved ones? What are they saying?
Also, if are you a metro Atlanta resident giving shelter we’d like to talk with you about your story. Send a message to newstips@ajc.com.
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Indie publisher Dark Horse makes most of Dragon*Con
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Jason is a proud “Trekkie” and Dragon*Con fan. He started watching “Star Trek” at four. His earliest memories are of Captain Kirk, phasers and green Orion slave girls. And, at seven, he watched “Star Wars” 19 times in one summer. “I was awed by the power and possibilities of the human imagination,” he said. His otherworldly interests include comic books, of which he has more than 4,000 spread over two states.
Marvel and DC sat out Dragon*Con this year, but indie Dark Horse was in the house.
Perplexed and searching for answers, I decided to speak to a representative from the independent publisher. At their booth, I talked to Matt Parkinson, who came all the way from the company’s home in Portland, Oregon to be here. And yet Marvel and DC can’t make the much shorter trip from New York.
Personally, I thought it was some kind of coastal bias. DC and Marvel show up in force to conventions in New York, San Diego and Chicago every year, and even attend conventions smaller than Dragon*Con’s 30,000 attendees in cities like Austin, Texas, Seattle and Philly. So, do they just not want to head into the Deep South?
Parkinson didn’t think so. He didn’t really want to try and second guess Marvel, DC or any other comic book publisher, but he says Dragon*Con has always been great for them. They started coming four years ago, and “It’s like a well kept secret. Each year it keeps getting bigger and bigger. It’s a very positive vibe, a great city”. He and I both thought that maybe it was because Dark Horse doesn’t specialize in traditional, mainstream superhero stories.
Their horror and fantasy comics—“Hellboy”, “Conan”, “Buffy”—seem to gel better with the type of dark, gothic folks who flock to Dragon*Con, and their merchandise and books apparently sell very well, and it’s also a great promotional venue for them. I don’t know. As a side note, Georges Jeanty, the artist on “Buffy, the Vampire Slayer” was at the Dark Horse booth when I stopped by there, and I think he goes to the same local comic book shop as I do.
I bumped into some family friends on the way to lunch, and kept crossing paths with them in front of the remote control, life sized mock-ups of R2 D2 and the robot from Lost in Space— complete with flashing lights and authentic sounds (“Danger, Danger Will Robinson”).
Their son loved the robots, and made them come book to the same spot six times. His dad was so impressed with the remote control robots that he took a brochure to build one of his own—only he wants to turn the bottom of it into a lawn mower. And he’s serious.
Are you happy with the comic book programming track as it is at Dragon*Con? Or would you like to see more?
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Dragon*Con: ‘The Joker’ and other sightings
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Jason is a proud “Trekkie” and Dragon*Con fan. He started watching “Star Trek” at four. His earliest memories are of Captain Kirk, phasers and green Orion slave girls. And, at seven, he watched “Star Wars” 19 times in one summer. “I was awed by the power and possibilities of the human imagination,” he said. His otherworldly interests include comic books, of which he has more than 4,000 spread over two states. He’s a graduate of Riverdale High School and Northwestern University’s School of Communication. After Northwestern, he moved to L.A. to start a film and television career. There, he worked as a writer’s production assistant on “Roswell” and other shows. Although back in Atlanta, Jason has worked as a writer and creative consultant on the non-fiction series “The Universe” for The History Channel. He hopes to move back to L.A. (another world to some) to create his own fantastic universe.
When you walk into a hotel lobby and the first people you see are Batman, the Spider-Man villianess the Black Cat and a dude spray-painted green to look like The Hulk, you know you’ve wandered off the beaten path.
If you are a mere mortal cruising down Peachtree Street, no doubt you do a few double takes. These folks are obviously not here for the Alabama-Clemson game.
But it’s a typical day like at Dragon*Con, which draws a multi-genre mix of sci-fi, fantasy and gaming fans. I ran into about a dozen Jokers from “The Dark Knight,” most obviously inspired by the late Heath Ledger’s take on Batman’s nemesis. Many Con-goers were walking around with real swords or battle axes looking like they were armed for medieval combat in downtown Atlanta.
The Con had everything from a space devoted exclusively to horror writer H.P. Lovecraft’s Cthulhu mythos to a stall specializing in imported Japanese video games (with Japanese packaging so it was kind of hard to tell what they were about) was open for business and being perused by eager fans. I was able to snag a 5-foot long carbon steel Batman sword that I had been looking searching for for three years.
Costume shops were a mainstay, with corsets being a popular item. And even Dragon*Con can’t escape politics. I saw several people sporting T-shirt featuring presidential candidate Barack Obama ripping open his suit a la Superman to reveal a stylized “O” underneath.
If you’re at Dragon*Con or just walking around downtown, what’s the best costume you’ve seen so far? As I walked around downtown I saw a number of Clemson and Alabama fans decked out in the schools’ colors. So, I just have to ask: Who’s more fanatical - the diehard football faithful who paint their faces every weekend in the fall or hardcore sci-fi/fantasy followers who go all out and dress up once a year?
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Send best wishes to pregnant panda Lun Lun
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Lun Lun, Zoo Atlanta’s 230-pound giant panda, is pregnant! (Story here) “We have confirmed a panda cub, and it appears to be fully formed with a nice heartbeat,” one zoo official said. “We are anxious to have something happen soon.” The zoo had been on 24-hour panda watch for about three weeks. Help us congratulate the mom-to-be.
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Dragon*Con arrives in Atlanta
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Jason is a proud “Trekkie.” He started watching “Star Trek” at four (“I distinctly remember Captain Kirk, phasers and green Orion slave girls”). And, at seven, he watched “Star Wars” 19 times in one summer. “I was awed by the power and possibilities of the human imagination,” he said. His otherworldly interests soon include comic books, of which he has more than 4,000 spread over two states. He’s a graduate of Riverdale High School and Northwestern University’s School of Communication. After Northwestern, he moved to L.A. to start a film and television career. There, he worked as a writer’s production assistant on “Roswell” and other shows. Although back in Atlanta, Jason has worked as a writer and creative consultant on the non-fiction series “The Universe” for The History Channel. He hopes to move back to L.A. (another world to some) to create his own fantastic universe.
This summer superhero movies have dominated the box-office from hugely popular and lucrative “Iron Man” to “The Dark Knight” and “Hellboy II.”
What better way to close out the summer then than with Dragon*Con, the pop culture convention for fans of sci-fi , fantasy, gaming and comics. I’ll bypass dressing as the Green Lantern this time. At 33, I’m slightly more conservative and will just wear an “Iron Man” T-shirt. No offense to the costumed players, however.
It is only appropriate that the Grand Marshall for this year’s annual parade is TV’s original “Batman”, Adam West himself and riding in the classic ‘60s Batmobile, no less! Keeping the bat-theme going, acclaimed Gothic Vampire novelist Laurell K. Hamilton will be another guest of honor at the parade, along with another 2000 costumed marchers.
I’m looking forward to seeing Edward James Olmos, who in another incarnation was a star on “Miami Vice”. He’ll be here to discuss the last season of “Battlestar: Galactica” and his role as the stalwart commander Admiral Bill Adama.
Gaming, of all stripes, is a big deal at Dragon*Con. While Dungeons and Dragons never caught me in its scaly claws, my imagination was captivated by the miniature action figure game Heroclix a few years back, and there are several tournaments focused around the superhero based game that might be worth checking out. As an avid video gamer, the “Call of Duty 4” and “Warcraft 2” competitions also sound attention grabbing.
While this is my first time attending Atlanta’s premiere show, I have been to several similar gatherings around the country, including the San Diego Comic-Con, the nation’s largest at 130,000 registered attendees. Are you a Dragon*Con regular or are you a first-timer?
There are some panels that sound fascinating, including a discussion of the descent of the Sci-Fi Channel into mediocre horror and bad low budget movies. Why are they making so many horror and reality shows now? And talk about the summer blockbuster season: Why can’t Hollywood get “Wonder Woman”, “The Flash” and a better “Superman” off the ground?
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Coping with Borderline Personality Disorder
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
In his column on mental health, clinical psychologist Hap LeCrone offers information about Borderline Personality Disorder. It’s a problem that has been found in roughly 2 percent of the U.S. population.
People suffering from BPD typically experience chronic and intense patterns of instability. According to LeCrone, “this disorder is higher in females and usually begins in adolescence and early adult years. Symptoms often gradually diminish in middle and later life.”
Maintaining a relationship with someone who suffers from BPD also can be difficult. Loved ones often feel they are being manipulated or that they must walk on egg shells.
Have you dealt with BPD? What has been the best treatment plan?
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Affected by FAA computer problems?
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
The Federal Aviation Administration says a communication failure at a Georgia facility that processes flight plans for the eastern half of the U.S. is causing flight delays around the country. Has this problem affected your flight or one of a friend or loved one? If so, tell us about it. Be sure to include the airport involved.
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Songs for singing (along) in the rain
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
If the weather forecasters are right, Wednesday should be our fifth straight day of rain. In metro Atlanta, that’s rarer than five straight days of Braves wins, although not quite as rare as five straight days without a murder on local TV news.
Some are celebrating the rain, some are sick of it by now. But whichever camp you’re in, here’s a playlist of rain songs for your iPod, or just to hum to in your head as you drive to work through little lakes. And yes, we left out a lot.
“Umbrella,” Rihanna
The wind destroyed my umbrella, ella, ella.
“Rainy Night in Georgia,” Brook Benton
Rain as tears metaphor.
“Walking in the Rain,” The Ronettes
Rain as love metaphor. With thunderstorm noises.
“A Hard Rain’s a Gonna Fall,” Bob Dylan
He was actually worried about nuclear fallout more than flooding.
“I Wish It Would Rain,” The Temptations
Just not so much at the moment.
“Purple Rain,” Prince
For a good time, go to www.prince.org and watch the fans debate what the heck it means.
“It’s Raining Men,” The Weather Girls
Perhaps the only gay anthem about the weather.
“Don’t Rain on My Parade,” Barbra Streisand
Oops, spoke too soon.
“Raindrops Keep Fallin’ on My Head,” B.J. Thomas
It won’t be long till happiness steps up to greet you.
“MacArthur Park,” Richard Harris
It’s still unclear why someone would leave a cake out in the rain.
What are your songs when the rains come?
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Atlanta wakes up to wet and messy weather
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Metro Atlantans woke up to a wet and messy commute as Tropical Storm Fay continued to dump rain across the state.
Accidents were reported in Cobb and Fulton and the metro area remained under a flash flood watch. Commuters also faced the threats of a tornado.
While the flood watch, effective through the night night, was for the northern half of Georgia, the National Weather Service said the main area of concern is generally north of I-20 and west of I-85, according to an AJC article.
Did you have a nerve-wracking commute? Did traffic tie ups force you to find an alternate route? Did the rain cause any flooding in your area?
Send us you weather photos.
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What do you think of Biden on the Democratic ticket?
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Barack Obama selected Sen. Joe Biden of Delaware late Friday night to be his vice presidential running mate, according to a Democratic official, balancing his ticket with an older congressional veteran well-versed in foreign policy and defense issues. What do you think of his selection?
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Tyler Perry a next-generation billionaire
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Forbes magazine has named writer-actor-director Tyler Perry among its next-generation billionaires. At 38, the Atlantan was the oldest person on the list.
Perry made $125 million last year and “earned more than Jennifer Aniston, Tom Cruise and Bon Jovi combined,” according to Forbes.
While becoming a billionaire in the entertainment industry is extremely rare, it isn’t impossible, especially when one diversifies the way Perry has. Steven Spielberg, who directs as well as owns part of DreamWorks, is worth an estimated $3 billion. George Lucas has an estimated $3.9 billion that has been accumulated through his films as well as ventures such as LucasFilms, motion picture visual effects company Industrial Light & Magic and LucasArts, which develops video games.
In addition to his movies, Perry has his television show, “House of Payne,” and is building a 30-acre space near Greenbriar Mall for his new studios.
One other notable name on Forbes list was Tiger Woods. The magazine predicted the golfer could reach the level “as soon as 2011 because of Tiger’s lucrative endorsement deals.” (To see the full story, click here.)
Do you think Perry or Woods will become billionaires? Are there others you think are missing from Forbes list?
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How to right customer service wrongs
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Ever had a contractor paint a room in your house the wrong color? Or have you ordered flowers for Mother’s Day and the bouquet never arrived?
We’ve all had our share of consumer horror stories and more often than not, we suffer in silence or don’t get the problem solved.
But that doesn’t have to be the case. An Atlanta lawyer and admitted serial letter-writer, wants to help right consumer service wrongs.
Rupert Barkoff , a lawyer at Kilpatrick Stockton in Atlanta, is collecting consumer horror stories for a book. AJC reporter Bill Torpy writes about Barkoff’s mission to collect 1,000 customer service stories.
The “self-appointed expert” on customer service has also created a website to collect stories for the book and to offer advice how to correct the problems.
Barkoff said most people don’t know how to complain in a way that gets results. Constructive complaining is a lost art, he said in the article.
Have you ever had extremely poor customer service? What did you do about it and did you get the results you wanted?
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Can you tell the two Birminghams apart?
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Those crazy Brits.
Once again, officials in Birmingham, England, have confused their city with its Southern namesake. In this instance, they handed out 720,000 leaflets that have a photo of Birmingham, Ala., rather than Birmingham, England. As this story details, the two cities have similarities — but their skylines are not one of them.
So what do you think? Innocent human oversight or is there some city envy going on here?
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As Madonna turns 50, we stroll down memory lane
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
The constantly evolving Madonna has done everything from singing and acting to writing and designing. Well, at least she’s tried to do everything.
Through many, many loves and losses, she has remained a pop superstar at heart. And while reading headlines about her and A Rod make it easy to forget sometimes, she has supplied her fair share of hits.
So what’s your favorite song by Madonna? Do you remember the wild ways of “Like a Virgin” or do you prefer the rebellious yet serious “Like a Prayer Days”?
Of course there are plenty out there who couldn’t care less … just remember it’s her birthday (Aug. 16) and we want to be nice.
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Bigfoot located in Georgia?
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
The search for Bigfoot, the maybe-mythical half-man/half-gorilla beast also known as Sasquatch, may have ended in Georgia.
According to a press release issued by “Searching For Bigfoot,” a California-based web site, two men have not only found the corpse of a 7-foot-7, 500-plus pound man-monkey, but they’ve also found a tribe of his brethren living at an undisclosed location in the North Georgia mountains. The men are to appear at a press conference in California with “DNA evidence and photo evidence” this Friday.
According the the press release, one of the discoverers is Matthew Whitton, a police officer on administrative leave for being wounded in the line of duty. The AJC recently reported a police officer with the same name was shot during the robbery of a Krystal restaurant, but we’ve been unable to contact Whitton to see if they are one and the same.
Curiously, Whitton, along with fellow big-game hunter Rick Dyer, a former correctional officer, are co-owners of bigfoottracker.com and Bigfoot Global LLC., a company that offers Bigfoot expeditions. The men are working with allegedly famous Bigfoot hunter, Tom Biscardi, and Biscardi’s Searching for Bigfoot, Inc., to present and conduct the scientific study of the evidence and information on this body, according to the press release.
What do you think? And is there any way the Atlanta Falcons can get one of these guys to play defense?
did u hear the news?
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Did u hear the news?
People can sign up to receive a text message or email of Barack Obama’s vice presidential pick at the Democratic nominee’s Web site. The campaign says it wants its supporters to be the first to know.
All the political database-building aside, it’s a leap from the ultra-formal press conference announcements of the past, and a splashy new strategy for Obama’s tech-savvy campaign.
But, it seems way behind the daily life of the average Internet-using, MySpace-dabbling cell phone owner.
Tales of death notices via Facebook, marriage proposals by Twitter and baby announcements sent in a mass e-mail can clog water cooler conversation. Some people are offended; some are glad to be included.
Have Facebook, Twitter, text message or other technology clued you into major events in your friends’, co-workers’ and family members’ lives? Have you ever used technology to get the word out about important moments in your life?
Do you miss the days of phone calls, mailed announcements, hand-written letters or (gasp!) a face to face discussion?
Share your perspective in the comments, or e-mail reporter Jamie Gumbrecht if you’ve got a good story to share. She might contact you for a story.
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Bernie Mac memorial on Saturday
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
According to Chicago Tribune reports, fans and friends of Chicago comedian Bernie Mac are invited to a public memorial this Saturday. The event is scheduled for noon Aug. 16 at Chicago’s House of Hope.
The tough-talking comedian/actor died Saturday, Aug. 9, after complications from pneumonia in a Chicago-area hospital, his publicist, Danica Smith, said in a statement from Los Angeles.
Prominent Atlantans, including radio hosts Steve Harvey (102.5 FM) and Wanda Smith (V-103), remembered their fellow comedian with fondness.
“I am just numb,” Harvey said Saturday after doing a succession of interviews to CNN and other media while in Chicago. While on the Kings of Comedy tour together, Harvey said, “B Mac killed every night. Every night! He would close the show. He was the go-to guy.”
Mac is expected to be seen in the upcoming movie, “Soul Men,” featuring legendary singer Isaac Hayes, who died on Sunday, Aug. 10. The movie is due for release in November.
MORE INFO
Isaac Hayes Tribute
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Played Wordscraper yet?
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
It’s been several days now since Rajat and Jayant Agarwalla launched the word game Wordscraper game on Facebook and we want to hear from players.
By releasing a game with revised rules and others changes (such as circular, not square, tiles) the Agarwallas hope to avoid costly legal claims and trademark issues with Hasbro, which owns the North American rights to Scrabble. The brothers created the hugely popular Scrabble knockoff game, Scrabulous.
As explained on its Facebook space, with Wordscraper players can build their own boards and use combinations with high value squares. Reaction is generally favorable, although players have suggested a number of changes on Wordscraper discussion boards. For instance, smiley faces to take the place of blank tiles, which Wordscraper doesn’t use (for obvious reasons).
Have you played Wordscraper yet? What do you think of the changes? In a word…
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Hairstyle disasters. What do you do?
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Stylists and barbers from all over the country are in Atlanta for the annual Bronner Brothers’ International Hair Show, where they will learn about the latest styles and products.
All that hair under one roof got us thinking about some of the issues women, especially, have to deal with when it comes to their hair. There’s price, of course. And the style itself. A friend recently complained that her stylist had “jacked up” her ‘do and that lately she hadn’t been satisfied with her work.
Has that ever happened to you?
You walk into a salon with a picture of singer Rihanna with her fresh new haircut, but you leave looking like a mop head.
Now you have to endure those sympathetic looks from co-workers and the “it’s only hair, it’ll grow back” speech from your boyfriend.
The way we see it, there are just too many stylists around Atlanta to stick with someone who doesn’t do a good job. Most women spend over a hundred dollars a month for their crowning glory.
And when someone turns your crowning glory into a crown of thorns, it’s more than hair it’s personal.
So what to do next. Do you tell the person first and risk offending them and ruining a relationship. Do you just suck it out and pretend this is the next hot thing. Or do you have someone else try to fix it? Tell us about your hairs diasters.
