SteveSilver.net

In the ATL

I just returned from five days in Atlanta, my first-ever visit to the city. It was a fun time; a few observations on the city:

- I was there covering CEDIA Expo, an annual conference of high-end electronics professionals, home theater installers, integrators, etc. Sort of like CES, only an older and much more professional crowd. My coverage of the event can be found at Dealerscope.com and CustomRetailer.net.

- A very nice city, I was quite impressed. I stayed downtown and also spent some time in midtown and really enjoyed both areas, though I didn't make it to Buckhead unfortunately. I like the town, my longstanding Braves hatred notwithstanding.

- Speaking of which, after being in Philly for the first two nights of the Phillies-Braves series, I was in Atlanta for the third night when the Phils completed the sweep, and the devastation in Atlanta was just palpable. Just kidding. I didn't notice anyone caring at all.

I stayed at the Atlanta Westin- a beautiful hotel in a great location, with a real great view of the convention center, Centennial Olympic Park, the Georgia Dome and World of Coca Cola. CNN was right there too and has without a doubt the ugliest building of the three cable news channels. In a visit to the CNN Center gift shop, I nearly had to be restrained from strangling a life-sized cutout of Nancy Grace (and from playing the Larry King Game with Larry's cutout.)

And speaking of CNN, I passed none other than Ted Turner on the street, right outside my hotel. He was with a woman who looked to be, maybe, 25, as well as another couple. The last time I saw Ted in person was when he was he and his then-wife, Jane Fonda, sat in the front row as the Braves were losing the 1991 World Series to the Twins. (See third verse.)

Also across the convention center, next to CNN, was Philips Arena, former site of the Omni- which I remember most of all from all the NWA and WCW stuff that happened there. Rather than any basketball or hockey moment, my biggest memory of Philips Arena was Goldberg winning the WCW championship from Hulk Hogan in July 1998:

My favorite part of that- due to the storyline at the time, Dennis Rodman and Karl Malone both interfering.

Speaking of wrestling, I didn't make it to Abdullah the Butcher's House of Ribs. Maybe next time.

I got invited to an industry party Friday night and the musical guest, randomly, was the Gin Blossoms. The crowd was pretty into them considering they're about 15 years removed from their last hit.

And finally, Saturday, I paid a visit to the Martin Luther King Historical District. It's a beautiful facility, and very inspiring, and I'm so, so glad that Glenn Beck is around to keep MLK's legacy alive.

Atlanta is good, I like Atlanta. And now, Seattle, Houston, Phoenix and New Orleans are the only major U.S. cities that I haven't been to.

Posted by Stephen Silver at September 26, 2010 07:55 PM