Atlanta, GA
Atlanta museum honors Black beauty, music pioneers
![Atlanta museum honors Black beauty, music pioneers Atlanta museum honors Black beauty, music pioneers](https://images.foxtv.com/static.fox5atlanta.com/www.fox5atlanta.com/content/uploads/2023/01/1280/720/snapshot-2023-01-16T123834.357.jpg?ve=1&tl=1)
Atlanta museum devoted to black magnificence pioneers
The Madame C.J. Walker museum in Candy Auburn is a tribute to a twentieth century entrepreneur who took her magnificence enterprise world.
ATLANTA – There are a lot of unbelievable tales up and down Atlanta’s historic Auburn Avenue. And 30 years in the past, Ricci de Forest — identified professionally as Ricci Worldwide — uncovered one in every of them by chance.
“Using round in Atlanta…in my little convertible, I come up Auburn and switch the nook and I look to my left, and I see ‘Madam C.J. Walker’ on the glass,” he remembers. “Slammed on my breaks, parked the automobile, walked over to the glass window and simply began touching it.”
The profitable make-up and hair stylist says he instantly understood the importance of the identify.
“Madam C.J. Walker was an African-American magnificence pioneer — early 1900s — that established a system of promoting for her hair care merchandise that went world,” he says. “She was a worldwide model.”
Seems, that little store off of Auburn Avenue had been a licensed Madam C.J. Walker magnificence salon. And several other years later, as he looked for a brand new spot for his personal Ricci Worldwide salon, that identify within the window referred to as out once more. So, the entrepreneur obtained the lease and the important thing to the constructing…and far, way more.
“We began stumbling on to magnificence instruments left right here from the Nineteen Forties, simply scattered about,” he remembers. “Every little bit of historical past that I used to be getting began to change the course that Ricci Worldwide would take.”
And so plans for the salon obtained a makeover. At this time, indicators across the area denote it as The Madam C.J. Walker Museum, welcoming in guests to assist honor and protect the legacies of Black magnificence pioneers. The area can be crammed with cabinets of vinyl albums, paying homage to groundbreaking Black-owned radio station WERD, which went on-air in 1949 and was positioned in the identical constructing.
And, after all, the objective can be to coach new generations — like Johnathan Sims, who was so taken with the area that he got here on board as a associate.
“As a result of I’m an Atlanta native, rising up and not likely understanding in regards to the precise area, I felt like I had missed part of historical past,” says Sims. “So, as soon as I got here inside and truly regarded round, it was like, ‘This can be a goldmine. A diamond that almost all of Atlanta and the world must learn about.’”
A diamond gleaming within the coronary heart of Atlanta — and a reputation on the window that continues to encourage.
To donate to the museum’s mission of preservation and renovation plans within the upcoming 12 months, click on right here.
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Atlanta, GA
Shots fired into Atlanta home overnight, police say
![Shots fired into Atlanta home overnight, police say Shots fired into Atlanta home overnight, police say](https://gray-wgcl-prod.gtv-cdn.com/resizer/v2/SNRF3ALPYJC45A723QWWMB7B2Q.jpg?auth=f43085121a57a1f2624aea3fcbeeae34120b73fea6c843d7331a9c1678f5420c&width=1200&height=600&smart=true)
ATLANTA, Ga. (Atlanta News First) – Police are on the scene investigating a shooting that happened in Atlanta overnight.
According to Atlanta Police, gunshots were fired at a home on 268 Polar Rock Road SW around 2:14 a.m. Monday.
Officers arrived at the scene around 2:22 a.m., when they learned the shooter had run inside the house.
No one was injured, according to APD.
This is a developing story. Check back with Atlanta News First for updates.
Copyright 2025 WANF. All rights reserved.
Atlanta, GA
NFL Tackling Data Shows How Far Atlanta Falcons Falcons Fell Under Jimmy Lake
![NFL Tackling Data Shows How Far Atlanta Falcons Falcons Fell Under Jimmy Lake NFL Tackling Data Shows How Far Atlanta Falcons Falcons Fell Under Jimmy Lake](https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/c_crop,w_4447,h_2501,x_0,y_0/c_fill,w_1440,ar_16:9,f_auto,q_auto,g_auto/images/ImagnImages/mmsport/falcon_report/01jm7ebdjk65dqh831ys.jpg)
Often when you dig a little deeper into the data available, the key decisions to cut ties with established veteran players becomes much more clear.
For example, Atlanta Falcons general manager Terry Fontenot is universally expected to let veteran former Pro Bowl safety Justin Simmons leave as a free agent after only one season playing in the NFC.
The 31-year old’s performances were decidedly middling to average when lining up in a Falcons uniform.
NFL.com provides detailed numbers which break down tacking data, and it all points fairly conclusively toward Simmons’s recurring struggles.
The Falcons were 24th in the NFL in tackling percentage after ranking 11th in 2023. Jimmy Lake’s passive scheme put players in acres of space and gave ball carriers and receivers more area work. No one suffered more in Lake’s defense than four-time All-Pro Simmons who was routinely 15 to 20 yards off the line of scrimmage at the snap.
“Newly acquired safety Justin Simmons missed 21.5% of his tackle attempts after logging an elite rate below 10% in his previous six straight seasons in Denver,” wrote the Next Gen Stats Analytics Team. “With Simmons set to hit free agency, the Falcons may choose to move on from the veteran.
Fontenot’s $7.5 million one year gamble on Simmons clearly flamed out. Simmons missing on 21.5% of his tackle attempts was never going to cut the mustard for head coach Raheem Morris. With few ties in Atlanta, Simmons will likely end up being a victim of Lake’s ineffectiveness as the NFL level and be allowed to walk in free agency.
The correlation is clear, because the entire unit slumped from being the 11th most efficient tackling unit last year to being the sixth least effective in 2024. That wasn’t all on Simmons.
While most folks have fixated upon the critical deficiencies when it came to rushing the passer, which did much to unravel the Falcons playoff chances last season, nothing the defense really did gave off the vibe that they were a tough tackling football team.
Consequently, retooling on the defensive side will be the primary objective of Fontenot and Morris when free agency starts next month and the draft rolls around in April.
The Falcons need an injection of toughness this offseason. They’re hoping new defensive coordinator Jeff Ulbrich is up to the task.
Atlanta, GA
3 key questions as the Atlanta Braves begin spring training
NORTH PORT, Florida — The man whose absence defined his team’s 2024 has been delightfully unavoidable so far in spring training.
Ronald Acuña Jr., the Atlanta Braves’ franchise man, a power-speed dynamo of the highest order, had his season derailed last year by a torn ACL on May 27. That injury, his second ACL tear in a four-year span on two different legs, sent him to the surgeon’s table and the Braves a’reeling. His unavailability — coupled with a seemingly never-ending cavalcade of other injuries that, most notably, included an elbow surgery to flame-throwing ace Spencer Strider — stymied Atlanta’s quest for a seventh straight NL East crown. A carousel of survivors and fill-ins admirably clawed the club into a wild-card spot, but the undermanned outfit didn’t manage to win a single playoff game.
In the Braves’ clubhouse on Friday, four days ahead of the team’s first full-squad workout, Acuña spoke for nearly 10 minutes. With an ear-to-ear smile plastered on his face, the 27-year-old addressed his recovery, his mindset, his road back and his time away. He called Atlanta’s outfield “the best outfield in baseball.” He laughed and joked, clearly overjoyed to be back in the mix. And, impressively, he did it all in English. It was, according to those regularly around the club, the longest and most engaging interview Acuña has ever given in his second language.
And he wasn’t the only notable Brave to speak on an overcast Florida morning. Alex Anthopolous, the team’s president of baseball operations, conducted his first in-person question-and-answer session of this calendar year. His eyes hidden behind a pair of dark sunglasses, the elusive and secretive exec peeled back a few layers about a franchise coming off its most disappointing season since 2017.
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Here’s an overview of what Acuña and Anthopolous had to say and how their comments intersect with the biggest questions facing the Braves as they seek to dethrone the Phillies in the NL East.
When will Acuña and Strider come back?
On this, Anthopolous didn’t mince words: Neither player will be on the Opening Day roster.
Acuña, who has been taking batting practice, won’t appear in any Grapefruit League games, per Anthopoulos. His biggest hurdle remaining is full-gas cutting and planting, vital movements in the outfield. Anthopolous also shared that Acuña won’t slot in at DH whenever he’s back.
But the major takeaway is that the swashbuckling Venezuelan is on schedule and in good spirits.
“The priority is that I feel great — that’s the most important thing,” Acuña shared. “When they tell me I need to play that day, I’ll be there.”
Strider, who threw a bullpen Friday, might make an appearance or two in late March, but he isn’t expected back in the bigs until late April. He hasn’t yet faced live hitters but should do so in the coming weeks.
These two players, obviously, are absolutely crucial to the 2025 Braves. The calculus of the 2024 team was equally straightforward and, thus, unfortunate. Acuña and Strider, a top-five position player and pitcher in the world, hardly played. All-Star third baseman Austin Riley missed the last month and a half. Starting catcher Sean Murphy was hurt for the first two months. Second baseman Ozzie Albies and center fielder Michael Harris II were also out for extended stretches.
But it all starts with Acuña and Strider. That the team is slow-playing this duo in spring makes sense. Setting low expectations about their return dates represents a simpler path forward, one with less opportunity for fan disappointment. So while their paths to full health will remain a huge story this spring, it was smart for Anthopoulos to be definitive and unwavering about their timelines.
Why weren’t the Braves more active over the winter?
Atlanta’s biggest offseason addition came just a few weeks ago, with the signing of outfielder Jurickson Profar. The big-grinning Curacaoan enjoyed a breakout campaign in 2024, earning a starting nod in the All-Star Game and, now, a sturdy, three-year deal with the Braves.
But besides that, the typically active Anthopolous was notably trigger-shy. The team’s most significant offseason trade was a salary dump in November that sent Jorge Soler to Anaheim. Meanwhile, a cadre of established players departed in free agency. Longtime ace Max Fried signed a hefty deal with the Yankees. Rotation stalwart Charlie Morton is now an Oriole. Atlanta opted to not pick up an option year on clubhouse leader and veteran catcher Travis d’Arnaud, who is now with the Angels. The only other remaining Braves who were meaningful contributors in the 2021 World Series are Austin Riley, Ozzie Albies and Ian Anderson.
It’s difficult to argue that the arrivals outweigh the departures. This inactivity has elicited agitation among some Braves fans, who, understandably, want the club to take full advantage of its competitive window. But Anthopolous pushed back against the idea that his team, currently carrying the eighth-highest payroll in the game, was acting purely out of frugality.
“I think the biggest difference is we’ve spent a lot on our own players,” he said. “I think we have the most, probably, long-term contracts of the majority of teams. You start looking around the roster, not necessarily in the rotation, but we have long-term contracts all over the place. We didn’t have that many holes.
“Now we’ve lost free agents — no doubt about it. But we have some people we’re going to give opportunities to.”
Who are the temporary fill-ins for Strider and Acuña?
The most likely Opening Day outfield alignment features Profar in left, the fleet-footed Michael Harris II patrolling center and former top prospect Jarred Kelenic in right. Kelenic was underwhelming in his first year as a Brave in 2024 and figures to spend most of his time as a bench bat once Acuña returns.
With Strider on the shelf, two of the five rotation spots are up for grabs. Reigning Cy Young Chris Sale, All-Star Reynaldo Lopez and breakout rookie Spencer Schwellenbach are locks. Grant Holmes, a well-traveled vet who enjoyed a bounce-back 2024, is the favorite for the fourth spot. And Ian Anderson, who shined as a youngster with the Braves before he suffered a bout of injuries, seems primed to grab the temporary fifth spot.
It’s a group that, until Strider returns, looks a little light, but Anthopolous explained that he didn’t want to crowd the pitching situation by adding another free-agent arm.
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