WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 8, 2017
Music, theatre, arts and entertainment in Coweta & beyond... Read more page 5
Local considers penning second children’s book
PHOTO BY MAGGIE BOWERS
A bill that would allow small breweries, including Coweta’s Abide, to sell beer directly to consumers sailed through the state Senate Thursday.
Cheers! Beer bill passes Senate
By MAGGIE BOWERS maggie@newnan.com
Newnan resident Lynda Jackson never aspired to become a writer. In fact, when she initially stumbled upon the idea to create a book for her first grandchild, she considered the project to be merely a novelty gift meant only for her son’s first child. Like most grandmothers, Jackson shared the news of her family’s newest addition with everyone. She sent emails, posted photos on social
media and sent announcements. And, in a world of unique and uncommon names for children, it wasn’t surprising that many of her friends weren’t quite sure of how her granddaughter’s name, Maris, was meant to be spoken aloud. “I always answered the same way. I would say, ‘It’s Maris, like Paris,’ Jackson said. “Then one day I thought, ‘I should write a book about a little girl named Maris who visits Paris.’” The idea for a children’s book was
born. Writing and publishing a children’s book, however, is not as easy as it may seem. Jackson noted that, initially, she imagined the book would be very simple. “I thought I would probably write something very much like ‘See Jane run,’” Jackson said. “I figured it would be something cute, just for Maris.” Jackson’s idea evolved beyond the
BOOK, page 2
By SARAH FAY CAMPBELL sarah@newnan.com
A bill that would allow breweries to sell a limited amount of beer directly to consumers sailed through the Georgia Senate recently with only two “no” votes. Senate Bill 85 is supported by both the Georgia Craft Brewer’s Guild and the Georgia Beer Wholesalers Association. Georgia has long had a three-tier system that separates the activities of alcohol producers, distributors, and retailers. Some previous attempts to allow more direct sales by producers have been met with opposition from wholesalers. Under current law, small breweries can’t sell beer to consumers, but they can sell them tours that include beer drunk on site and a bit to go. Often, the consumers skip the tour and go straight to the drinking. SB 85 would allow producers to sell up to a caseworth of beer to go – either in bottles, cans, or in refillable “growler” bottles for brewers who don’t do their own bottling. Martin Smith, executive director of the Georgia Beer Wholesalers Association, said that Georgia’s alcohol laws continue to change over time. “The issue has always been about how to responsibly make changes that improve the system, not just change the system,” said Smith, a Newnan native. “In the past, there have been proposals that maybe everybody wasn’t comfortable with, that just adjusted it without improving it for the whole system.” SB 85 allows brewers to generate and reinvest revenue, and it also helps market the product. If someone buys a case of beer at a brewery and likes it, that person will probably then look for that beer in their local store, Smith said. “We see that as a sales leader,” he said. The resulting increase in retail sales would also benefit the wholesalers and the brewers, according to advocates. The bill that passed the Senate sets an effective date of Sept. 1. That’s to give the Georgia Department of Revenue time to get ready for the change, Smith said. “We’re definitely happy that it is all pretty much
BEER, page 2
PHOTO BY © 2016 PINEWOOD ATLANTA LLC
Pinewood Atlanta Studios is a full-service film and entertainment studio, located in neighboring Fayetteville on 700 acres.
Pinewood Studios expanding to accommodate film industry in Ga.
By KANDICE BELL kandice@newnan.com The film industry is booming in Georgia right now and it is not uncommon for locals to see celebrities hanging out at their favorite restaurants or other popular spots around town, mainly because big screen movies such as “Ant Man” and “Captain America” are being filmed right in their backyard. Pinewood Atlanta Studios is a fullservice film and entertainment studio, located in neighboring Fayetteville on 700 acres. The studio has 18 sound stages and is expected to grow even more, according to Brian 1 Xtra front
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Cooper, vice president of operations. Cooper was the keynote speaker at the Newnan Rotary Club weekly meeting on Friday, Jan. 27. Cooper talked about the history of the studio. April 26, 2013, Pinewood Studios became a reality. The original location for the studio was not favorable, but the acres of wheat on a family-owned farm off Veterans Parkway was the perfect place. The studio officially started filming in June 2014 and three years later, Pinewood is the second-largest film studio in the United States, behind Warner Brothers. “‘Captain America: Civil War’ , FEBRUARY WEDNESDAY
started filming with the opening Phase 3 on Jan. 1,” Cooper said. Cooper said Pinewood changed the filming industry in Georgia by having actual f ilming facilities instead of the utilization of old warehouses. As far as the studio itself, Cooper said the studio aims to be a one-stop-shop for films using their facility. The studio utilizes vendors for various needs such as props and equipment rental, and Cooper said many people working with the vendors live between Fayette and
PINEWOOD, page 4
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nce ique performa Centre offers un Arts NixonDec. 21, 2016
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COOK TAMARKUS RESULT FOR BAPTIST CHURCH NARY PHOTO BY IMAGE BEULAH MISSIO
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By KANDICE BELL kandice@newnan.com
Many families have different traditions they look forward to each holiday season, and the Ridley family in Newnan looks forward to their annual display of hundreds of snowmen. Linda Ridley has put her snowmen out for everyone to see for over 20 years. “She gets them out every year for the family,” said Buck Ridley, Linda’s son. “The family can bring over whoever they want to see them. She has one that’s 20 feet fall and some all the way down to an inch. She’s been collecting them for years.” Linda Ridley has snowmen made from glass, crochet, pillows, stuffed snowmen and fiber optic ones. Snowmen are also distributed to every room in the house, including the bathrooms. She begins the Friday after Thanksgiving by taking the books down from a bookcase where some will be displayed and getting the snowmen out of the storage of the family business, Coweta Car Care in Sharpsburg. It takes her about two weeks to put the snowmen in their respective places. “We call it the snowmen migration,”
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PHOTO BY KANDICE BELL
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multiple seizures throughout each day. The attacks come often and without warning and can lead to a number of complications. “We have really good weeks and really bad ones,” Erin Scharko-Fisk explained. “He could have a seizure just from being overly tired, anxious or even just excited.” Micah’s condition was discovered in his first month of life when the seemingly healthy baby began experiencing seizures that would stop him from breathing. As he grew, Micah’s seizures only became stronger and more frequent, occurring in clusters, or, sometimes in the form of absence R seizures which are short periods of “blanking out” or staring R A DISPUTE OVE AFTE into space. ANGRY MAN Doctors treating Micah have tried a number of treatments, LY though few yielded any long-term or significant results. As By CLAY NEE nan.com
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Dec. 21, 2016
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Family 770-683-1707 displays Fisk family 16 Jefferson Street • Newnan, GA 30263 20 ft. tall halfway to times-herald.com snowman By KANDICE BELL kandice@newnan.com Many families have different traditions they look forward to each holiday season, and the Ridley family in Newnan looks forward to their annual display of hundreds of snowmen. Linda Ridley has put her snowmen out for everyone to see for over 20 years. “She gets them out every year for the family,” said Buck Ridley, Linda’s son. “The family can bring over whoever they want to see them. She has one that’s 20 feet fall and some all the way down to an inch. She’s been collecting them for years.” Linda Ridley has snowmen made from glass, crochet, pillows, stuffed snowmen and fiber optic ones. Snowmen are also distributed to every room in the house, including the
fundraising goal
By MAGGIE BOWERS maggie@newnan.com Four-year-old Micah is a happy and active child, and, like most little ones his age, has recently begun attending preschool — a feat his mom was not certain he would be able to accomplish this year. Micah suffers from severe epilepsy and experiences multiple seizures throughout each day. The attacks come often and without warning and can lead to a number of complications. “We have really good weeks and really bad ones,” Erin Scharko-Fisk explained. “He could have a seizure just from