Good Day Atlanta viewer information: July 5, 2022

ATLANTA - Football pioneer reflects on 1956 Sugar Bowl controversy: 

Considering Georgia Tech made such a big impact on the life of 89-year-old Robert "Bobby" Grier, Sr., it’s kind of astounding that he took his first-ever steps on the campus just last month.

Now an Air Force veteran and cancer survivor, Grier was a University of Pittsburgh football player back in 1956, the year Pitt was set to take on Georgia Tech in the Sugar Bowl. For context, the January game was to be played only a month after Rosa Parks refused to give up her seat on a Montgomery bus. Tensions were high in the Deep South, and then-Georgia governor Marvin Griffin opposed Tech playing in an integrated bowl game.

"It was really unheard of that a governor would come out and say that is the ‘South’s Armageddon,’ and then forbid Georgia Tech to play," reflects Robert Grier, Jr., the football player’s son. "But the beautiful thing is that it’s a story of people coming together. Because the Georgia Tech players and the campus students weren’t having it. They basically told the governor to stay out of it. And they marched to the governor’s mansion and burned him in effigy. And then they walked to the statehouse, broke through the Georgia Bureau of Investigations, went into the statehouse and trashed it. All over this game."

Asked if he was aware of the controversy swirling around him at the time, Bobby Grier replies, "Back then, we didn’t care much about that stuff. All we wanted to do was play football."

Georgia Tech president Blake Van Leer also demanded his school’s team play the game, and in the end, Bobby Grier was on the field, playing in the Sugar Bowl on January 2, 1956 and unintentionally becoming a sports pioneer.

"It makes me feel great," says the former football player. "That I could help [other players] get started … no matter what their color is, they can play."

The event also bonded the Grier and Van Leer families; members of the families are currently working together to get a feature film made based on the events surrounding the 1956 Sugar Bowl.

Says Blake Van Leer, great-grandson of the former Georgia Tech president, "I think if people can come together in the 1950s in that type of climate, understanding that climate, and unify around sports and football…then you can do that at any time, right?"

Powerhouse cast headlines Apple TV+ series "Black Bird":  

It’s a seemingly impossible choice for Jimmy Keene, a man sentenced to 10 years in a minimum-security prison: stay and serve your term, or​ be transferred to a maximum-security prison for the criminally insane, befriend a suspected serial killer and get information from him, and possibly get out early.

Not only is Keene’s compelling story true, but it also serves as the inspiration for the new Apple TV+ series "Black Bird," developed, written and executive produced by bestselling author Dennis Lehane. Golden Globe-winning actor Taron Egerton stars as Keene, and also executive produced the project.

"You know, it’s a really difficult one. I think in vacuum, I would probably not do it because it’s so dangerous," says the actor about his character's dilemma. "You know, maybe if I was in a situation where I thought a loved one was going to be unwell if I didn’t get out, maybe I would take the deal. But, in a vacuum it would be unlikely, because it’s so dangerous."

Of course, Keene takes the deal, and ends up behind bars with Larry Hall, played in a transformative performance by Paul Walter Hauser.

"It was definitely a team effort," says Hauser. "I had this hair stylist/designer named Kathrine [Gordon], and these two women who did makeup, Nana Fischer and Galaxy [San Juan], and these three women really helped construct that look and get me ready every day. And I had Dennis’s dialogue, which was so rich. There’s a lot of texture there, and sort of clues as to how to play Larry."

Also featured in "Black Bird" is the late actor Ray Liotta, appearing in one of his final projects. For Lehane, working with Liotta was the fulfillment of a longtime dream.

"I was a huge fan, I wrote the part directly for him, he responded to the material in ways beyond my wildest dreams," says the writer. "He never did the same take twice."

The six-episode "Black Bird" premieres with the first two episodes this Friday, July 8th Apple TV+, followed new episodes every Friday through Aug. 5.

Ike Reighard President and CEO of Must Ministries talks desperate need for food for group's summer lunch program: 

Never in 27 years of feeding hungry children has it been so difficult to obtain food, sources at MUST Ministries say as they work to provide 550,000 meals to eight counties during the summer school break. If foods are purchased and made into Kids Kits, those can be dropped off at the MUST Donation Center at 1280 Field Parkway, Marietta. 

An Amazon wish list on the MUST website under the Summer Lunch tab is available for those who want to ship food to the donation center where volunteers will pack the kits. 

"We are also looking for anyone who has a unique idea on how to buy the items we need in bulk. Just message us on Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn or Twitter and we will respond," Reighard said. Click here for details on food needed and how to make the Kids Kits.

Rodney Bullard and Goodwill Vice President of Career Services Jenny Taylor: The Beloved Benefit, a community impact event that galvanizes the city of Atlanta, aims to inspire positive change through greater economic mobility. The event focuses on raising awareness, securing funds, and inspiring action to help shape Atlanta’s legacy – with a vision of cultivating a community free of poverty, hunger and homelessness, where racism and prejudice are replaced with love and brotherhood. This year’s event will also include a special tribute to the late Congressman John Lewis. For more information on the event, click here.

Christina "Ms. Basketball" Granville gives the latest in entertainment news: Wendy Williams is still a hot topic, as fans are talking after her show clips have been taken down from YouTube. Essence Fest returned to New Orleans this year, and the event was star-studded. Christina Ms. Basketball Granville gives the details on both of these topics. To keep up with her follow her on social media @Msbasketball1

 

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