Macon Magazine

In This Issue

Pick up your copy of the February/March 2012 issue of Macon Magazine for 23 pages of beautiful brides, wedding tips, touching love stories and more. This issue celebrates why we love this city, from the upcoming annual International Cherry Blossom Festival that attracts visitors from around the world, to famous Macon-natives who love coming back home. We explore the insides of a classic treasure renovated in the love and spirit of the old Neel Reid home by a longtime Macon resident, and speak to local farmers who have their sights set on making Middle Georgia the hub for olive oil production. A young track star shares her love for the sport, a local resident finds booming international business in backdrops, and Ovations is once again packed with all the best events you won't want to miss in the upcoming months.

Enjoy returning column Personal Style as writer and personal stylist Tiffany Davis Olson shares her fashion tips for a fresh spring season. Also featured in this issue is new downtown-focused column City Center, for festivals, markets, tours and much more. And of course, be sure to catch this issue's For the Love of Food, with unique and simple recipe ideas the whole family is sure to enjoy. Do something special this year for Valentine's Day with help from Entertaining: Cooking for your Valentine. Explore French-inspired cooking method sous vide with Men Who Cook's Tino Sheridan. And try DIY simple sushi for a quick meal that's kind to your wallet and waistline. Don't miss your regular favorite features in this issue, including Faces, Bits & Pieces, Editorial, On Religion and the Dining Guide. Explore this issue >>

About Us

Macon Magazine is an award-winning bi-monthly publication with more than 45,000 discriminating readers per month. Macon Magazine emphasizes local history, arts and cultural events, homes and real estate developments plus the people and places that make Central Georgia unique.

We also publish Midstate - Your Guide to Living in Central Georgia. Published annually, Midstate is a comprehensive directory offering newcomers entertainment, education, arts and economic development information. Midstate is distributed throughout Central Georgia at newsstands, apartment communities, the Macon Convention & Visitors Bureau, and many other locations.

Publishers James and Jodi Palmer are married and have four children. They both are journalists who have spent the last 20 years working for newspapers. They bought Macon Magazine in the Fall of 2000 and are committed to continuing the magazine's strong tradition of providing readers with useful, interesting stories about Macon and Central Georgia.

The Palmers enjoy hearing from readers and encourage input for new story ideas and opinions about Macon Magazine.

Subscribe to Macon Magazine

Subscribe today and you can get Macon Magazine for as little as $10 a year.

Advertise with Macon Magazine

Reach Macon's best and brightest. We have the best readers and rates in the business.

Weddings

Submissions are closed for the 2012 Wedding Album, but you can view this special section in the February/March issue, on newsstands now!

Ovations

Don't miss Ovations magazine – a partnership of Macon Magazine and Macon Arts Alliance – for the hottest tickets in town!

Jay Carson: On the National Stage

The Macon native who recently was portrayed by actor Ryan Gosling in the movie "Ides of March" is Fortune magazine's newest 40 under 40. Jay Carson spoke with Macon Magazine about his life on the national stage. He will return to his hometown for this year's Macon Film Festival. Don't miss your chance to meet Jay Carson at MAGA on Feb. 16-19.

read more >>

"Honeychile" Wilder: Macon's Own Princess

At the close of the 1930s, Patricia "Honeychile" Wilder was a household name. It had been five years since she left her parents' home on Second Street in downtown Macon in search of stardom. Today, Honeychile is remembered as the quick wit with the spoon-bread Southern accent who took New York by storm, won over a young Bob Hope, became Princess Alexander Hohenlohe and always thought of Macon as home..

read more >>

Made in Macon: Backdrops Fantastic

"Where are we going to go today: Paris, Italy, the Taj Mahal?" asked Charles McCullough, the vice president of Backdrops Fantastic, as he walked between his well-appointed office on Poplar Street and the warehouse in back. Since 2006, Backdrops Fantastic has run a brisk international business out of its headquarters at 552 Polar St. in downtown Macon, renting out a dizzying array of backdrops to casinos, dance companies, corporations and event planners, but the company traces its origins halfway across the globe, to the ambitious business plan of a young South African artist.

read more >>

Classic Neel Reid Treasure Restored

Some events in life can be explained only as serendipitous. Imagine hearing that a recent real estate listing is the dream house you have wanted to explore since you were 9 years old. Shannon Fickling really had no plans to move, but when Joe Adams, a friend and local real estate agent, called her to tell her that the Thomas Hall house in the Vineville neighborhood was for sale, she had to see it and explore every detail of the Neel Reid cottage. "When I finished the walkthrough of the house," Fickling said, "I knew I had to buy it."

read more >>

A New Cash Crop?

Take a look at that favored bottle of olive oil sitting on your kitchen counter. Chances are its country of origin is Italy, Spain, Greece, or maybe even Australia. If you're one of the select few who buy domestic, its label more than likely says California. Ninety-nine percent of the olive oil consumed in the U.S. is imported, and most of the remaining 1 percent is from West Coast producers. A small cadre of Georgia farmers wants to change our growing dependence on foreign olive oil.

read more >>

A Cross-Country Champion

In the beginning, running with her friends through the trees and fields, what was the big deal about winning a silly race? A sixth-grader shouldn't care so much about finish lines and ribbons, not when her legs ache and it's hot outside. "I wasn't very competitive," Tinkey said. "I didn't know the difference between all-out and normal running." But something happened in the months that followed, something even Tinkey can't fully explain. By the time she was an eighth-grader, she was a state cross-country champion.

read more >>

Check out the full issue - on newsstands now!

Macon Magazine takes a positive but clear-eyed look at our community, highlighting the many positive aspects of living in Macon. We strive to be honest, accurate and astute in our writing and reporting; to be above-board and honorable in our dealings with our advertisers and subscribers; to support local organizations that promote Macon whenever possible and to conduct all of our business with the highest professional standards. We hope you'll enjoy this issue of Macon Magazine - Macon's premiere arts, culture and living magazine.