Exhibit shines spotlight on Apollo Theater

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Exhibit shines spotlight on Apollo Theater

Atlanta History Center exhibit shines spotlight on Apollo Theater -- exhibit featuring James Brown, Ray Charles at Atlanta History Center from Oct. 7, 2011.

A Stevie Wonder-James Brown concert poster is on display. Georgia native James Brown James Brown is represented in photos and by objects including a plush black jumpsuit bejeweled with rhinestones spelling out "SEX" across the chest (as in his suggestive smash hit "Sex Machine").

Jones pointed out how the exhibit also credits a former Atlanta University professor and editor-writer, W.E.B. Du Bois, for his central contribution to the Harlem Renaissance.

Curator Gordon Jones stands in front of a display of James Brown's wardrobe and BB King's guitar. "The Apollo is such an icon of American music, and a lot of it springs out of the South, out of the African-American tradition," Jones says.

Cab Calloway's well-broken-in baton and white dress shoes that bring memories rushing back of the band leader's animated dance movements.

Michael Jackson's hat and photo are on display inside the Atlanta History Center exhibit "Ain't Nothing Like the Real Thing: How the Apollo Theater Shaped American Entertainment," running through March 4, 2012.

Leigh Massey-Besalke looks at two photo collages displaying photos of those who performed at the Apollo.

On display: A dress worn by members of the girl group The Supremes, Ray Charles' music case and Smokey Robinson's suit.

A photo shows then-President Richard Nixon shaking hands with James Brown.

India Arie, whose acoustic guitar, with yellow flowers and ladybugs hand-painted on the front, lends a rare hippie vibe.

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A Stevie Wonder-James Brown concert poster is on display. Georgia native James Brown James Brown is represented in photos and by objects including a plush black jumpsuit bejeweled with rhinestones spelling out "SEX" across the chest (as in his suggestive smash hit "Sex Machine").

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