Q: There’s been a lot of activity at the old Sears offices on Hugh Howell Road and Mountain Industrial Boulevard in the Smoke Rise area. Looks like they are filming. If so, what movie are they working on?
—Marty Bryan, Stone Mountain
A: "Coma," an A&E miniseries starring Richard Dreyfuss, Ellen Burstyn, James Woods and Geena Davis, is being filmed there, casting director Bill Marinella told the AJC. "Coma" was a best-selling novel and was turned into a 1978 film starring Michael Douglas. The miniseries is being filmed all over the metro area, including Decatur, Midtown, Sandy Springs, at Southern Regional Medical Center in Riverdale and in a Castleberry Hill loft. The four-hour miniseries will be shown over two nights.
Q: I was reading about the young girl who just sailed around the world. How did she keep the boat on course while she slept?
—Richard Morris, Newnan
A: Laura Dekker's yacht, named "Guppy," was equipped with an electric autopilot and a wind-steering device that kept it on course during her solo trip around the world, her manager, Gerard van Erp, told Q&A on the News in an email. The yacht's radar included an alarm that was activated when another vessel came within 6 miles, and Dekker, who is 16, also woke up at regular intervals to check her course and make corrections, if necessary. "She will never rely 100 percent on electronics," van Erp said. Dekker began her journey on Jan. 20, 2011 and finished it on Jan. 21, 2012.
Andy Johnston wrote this column; Jennifer Brett contributed. Do you have a question about the news? We’ll try to get the answer. Call 404-222-2002 or email q&a@ajc.com (include name, phone and city).
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