By Karim Shamsi-Basha Having been a huge fan of The Andy Griffith Show for many years, I did not know what to expect waiting for Andy Woods. The Barney Fife impersonator was meeting me at the Strand diner along the quaint Main Street in Fort Payne. I was expecting a fellow who had the looks […]

By Karim Shamsi-Basha Twenty-year-old Tony Harris walked into the Shell station on Third Avenue West in Ensley looking defeated, sweat dripping from his chin. He held a bag of clothes over his shoulder, the other arm cradling a skateboard resting on his waist. He slowly approached Birmingham Police Officer Heather Campbell and me. Campbell faced […]

Golden Flake will have a new owner but officials said to expect little else to change with the iconic Southern brand. Utz Quality Foods Inc. said today it is purchasing Golden Enterprises, the maker of Golden Flake snack foods, for $141 million, including $7 million in debt. The $12 per share purchase is expected to […]

Undefeated WBC Heavyweight Champion Deontay “The Bronze Bomber” Wilder will take on veteran boxer Chris Arreola on July 16 in Birmingham’s Legacy Arena. The event comes on the heels of a cancellation of Wilder’s last bout, which was scheduled for May 21 in Russia, when challenger Alexander Povetkin tested positive for the banned substance meldonium. […]

By Ike Pigott Lost amid the sound and fury of the upcoming SlossFest is a fairly clear signal that Birmingham and Alabama are poised for great things. Technology sage Robert Scoble would agree – as long as we keep the geeks from leaving. “You have to find a way to keep the nerds in your […]

By Alec Harvey Buck Johnson might be having a mid-life crisis. But it’s not like your run-of-the-mill find-a-sportier-car-or-younger-wife mid-life crisis. “Instead of buying a Corvette, I get to tour with Aerosmith,” says Johnson, the Alabama-born musician who turns 50 in November. Add to that this week’s release of a solo album, “Enjoying the Ride,” and […]

The motorcycle engines were loud, but they couldn’t drown out the American pride that beats in the chests of the Patriot Guard Riders of Alabama as they honored America’s fallen and veterans everywhere Wednesday. The American Veterans Traveling Tribute wall arrived in Fultondale after making a Patriot Guard-escorted trek from Birmingham’s Uptown Entertainment District next […]

Emotions can heat up when it is hot outside, says University of Alabama at Birmingham psychologist Josh Klapow, Ph.D. Numerous studies have shown heat is related to increased aggressive/violent behavior. “The discomfort caused by extreme heat can lead to increased anger and aggression in many people,” Klapow said. “Tempers get shorter as we get hotter, […]

(Video above: Alabama Medal of Honor recipient and patriot remembered fondly) By John Herr “The summer soldier and the sunshine patriot will, in this crisis, shrink from the service of his country; but he that stands it now, deserves the love and thanks of man and woman.” – Thomas Paine, The American Crisis, 1776 Betty […]

The United Kingdom’s historic referendum to exit the European Union last week sparked worldwide reaction. It is safe to say that world markets did not react positively to Britain’s future exit from the EU, which will be negotiated over the course of the next 24-plus months. Once the initial shock wears off, economists are mixed […]

Did two Alabama motorcycle makers just upstage Daryl from “The Walking Dead?” Well, no, but Motus Motorcycles and Confederate Motors did take center stage on the “Ride with Norman Reedus” television show featuring the actor who plays Daryl Dixon on the popular AMC network series. On the most recent episode of “Ride with Norman Reedus” […]

By Solomon Crenshaw Jr. Marquetta Hill-King admits she didn’t always understand her father, the man known as Birmingham’s Batman. When she was in school, Hill-King would sometimes accompany Willie James Perry as he drove around town in his souped-up 1971 Ford Thunderbird to aid people. “I thought people were laughing at us because of the […]

Just after winning first place in the 200 meter race at the New Balance Nationals on Sunday, June 19, in North Carolina, Woodlawn High School track star Jayla Kirkland had to get used to another new title: the second fastest female youth sprinter in the nation for 200 meters. Kirkland’s time of 23.15 at the […]

By Michael Tomberlin If you ever wanted a crash course in economic development, all you had to do was pay attention to the activity taking place in Alabama the past few days. Some of the truisms of recruiting and expanding industry have been held up as, well, truisms. For instance, “Confidentiality comes with the territory.” […]

The Birmingham Barons keep writing new entries in their record book when it comes to people passing through the turnstiles. The team has led the Southern League in attendance since moving to 8,500-seat Regions Field. Three times this season, the Barons have eclipsed their single-game attendance mark. The Barons set that mark at 8,577 on […]

Deontay Wilder says he never looks past an opponent. He looks through them. “Looking through them, that allows you to daydream a little bit,” he said Wednesday as he announced details of his upcoming fight. “All of my opponents, I’ve been able to look through them. That’s just how confident I am.” The Tuscaloosa native […]

Jake Boyd tried for years to get into the cast of “Wicked” before finally getting the role of Fiyero in the high-flying musical about the witches from “The Wizard of Oz.” “I had been going in for it on and off for about five years, honestly,” says the graduate of the University of Alabama and […]

Hunger is a solvable problem. You don’t hear many leaders declaring huge problems as “solvable,” but that is exactly what June Henton believes. As the dean of the College of Human Sciences at Auburn University, she has headed an effort to fight world hunger on the community, state and global levels. In 2004 and under […]

Apple CEO Tim Cook is from Alabama, but it’s still a pretty big deal when a Birmingham institution gets a shout-out when the world is watching the tech giant’s Worldwide Development Conference. Lakeshore Foundation was on the receiving end of such a shout out at the WWDC today. But even more significant is why Cook […]

Tracey Wilson, an instructor at Lawson State Community College, wants students to reach for the stars. But, she said, students have to know the stars are there. “It’s hard for them to reach for the stars when they don’t know what’s out there for them,” said Wilson, who chairs Lawson State’s Department of Natural Science. […]

A new solar energy generating facility to be built in east Alabama will help the world’s largest retailer move a step closer to meeting its renewable energy goals. Under a long-term contract with Alabama Power, Walmart will subscribe to a majority of the solar photovoltaic facility’s environmental attributes, also known as renewable energy credits (RECs). […]

The U.S. subsidiary of an Italian company is investing $1.5 million in a manufacturing plant in Bay Minette, creating 70 jobs. Morganton Pressure Vessels, the North American arm of parent company, Italy-based Baglioni Group SPA, produces compressed-air systems. Globally, the company has 11 locations and 800 employees in Europe, North America and China. The Baldwin […]

Officials from Alabama Power, the Army and other federal agencies gathered at Fort Rucker today to break ground on the company’s second, large-scale solar energy project. The 10-megawatt project, to be located on about 90 acres of land at the fort, is scheduled to be operational later this year. The photovoltaic solar generating plant is […]

Wayne Freeman was an All-American offensive lineman on Paul “Bear” Bryant’s second national championship-winning team at the University of Alabama and that’s something nobody can ever take away from him. But somebody did. Sort of. Freeman played guard on the 1964 team that won the national championship. The player from Fort Payne with the size […]