The deal between the telecommunications giant AT&T and Time Warner, owner of CNN, will not affect the location of CNN headquarters. The news was announced by Jeff Zucker, President of CNN Worldwide during his lunch with the members of the Atlanta Press Club. “Atlanta is a part of CNN and CNN is a part of Atlanta, and we are committed to this city,” he insisted.
If somebody could personify the saying “from rags to riches”, this person for sure would be Madam CJ Walker. She started her life from the lowest possible point, on a cotton plantation in the deep South, to become a successful entrepreneur, social activist, and game changer for African Americans during one of the darkest periods in their history. Soon, she will make her way to Hollywood, too.
Continue reading “The Lady Who Created Opportunities; for Herself, and for Thousands Others”
Biltmore, the largest private residence estate in the USA, is located in the Blue Ridge mountains near Asheville, North Carolina. It was built by George Vanderbilt, member of one of the oldest, richest, aristocratic, and more influential American families. The castle opened to the public in the 1930s to increase area tourism during the Great Depression and to generate income to maintain the estate. Today Biltmore is still a family business, with the fourth and fifth generation of Mr. Vanderbilt’s descendants involved in day-to-day operations.
The building is famous for its French Renaissance architecture as well as for its size. The construction lasted 6 years, and involved 3 architects, and several trips to Paris. The unique facade is made by textured bricks and stones, and is decorated with gorgons and satires. It is combined with elegant copper domes and roof terraces with breathtaking views.
The interior design of the castle is as impressive as its exterior. Traditional French style furniture is combined with modern (for the late 19th century) country club tables and armchairs. Silk and velvet meet Flemish and American art, original china, mirrors and tapestries. Elegance is everywhere – in salons and banquet halls, in libraries and gardens, and even in the kitchen. The exquisite dresses that are displayed in the castle speak about refinement and sophistication that cannot be bought with money alone.
Throughout the 21st century, Biltmore continues to preserve and present the legacy of the Vanderbilt family. The estate is a popular place for tourists, and an elegant setting for weddings.
I should have read The Catcher in the Rye as a teenager, but I didn’t. I read it recently as a mother of a teenager, and I was a kind of disappointed. The story, the character of Holden Caulfield, and the language were far below my expectations, obviously influenced by the fame of the book, and the myth surrounding the life of its author, JD Salinger, or at least the way it is presented in the movie “Rebel in the Rye,” and the documentary “Salinger.” Ironically, the legend of Salinger’s writing talent, his stormy love life, and his dramatic escape from public, outlived the popularity and the controversy of his favorite “child”, Holden Caulfield.
Continue reading ““The Catcher in the Rye” in the Age of Snapchat and Instagram”
Being raised in a communist Eastern European country is a hard way to start somebody’s life. Permanent deficiency of food and proper clothing, arrogant authorities who oppress any kind of opposition and independent thinking, zero freedom of speech accompanied by fear of arrest and punishment, and very limited hope for change in your lifetime are just a few of the characteristics of life during Communism. How much harder could it be? This was the question many of us, including me, were asking ourselves.
Continue reading “The Chains of Communism Were Metaphorical, the Chains of Slavery Were Literal”
Although tens of miles away from the Path of Totality, Atlanta experienced the taste of the solar eclipse today. The shadow of the Moon covered between 95 and 97% of the surface of our Sun at 2,35pm and the marvel lasted for 2 minutes and 40 seconds. Velvet shadows covered Atlanta’s urban beauty. This was the first solar eclipse visible from the US soil since 1979.
This celestial spectacle came to remind us that we are a part of something bigger than our lives. We are a part of the Universe.
The issue with the Confederate monuments doesn’t have an unambiguous solution and must be approached with caution. The politicians and the generals of the Confederacy do not deserve to be celebrated as heroes; however, what they stood for is a part of American history and must not be forgotten. Racism is America’s original sin. The Union was founded upon Slavery, and the Founding Fathers of the nation were slaveholders who deeply believed in the supremacy of the white race.
At the end of World War II, , Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Chester W. Nimitz ordered the formation of a flight demonstration team to keep the public interested in naval aviation. The team was introduced as the “Blue Angels” at a show in Omaha, Nebraska, in July 1946.
Maria S. Topalova Blog 