Chubby Checker headed to Newnan for a “Twist”-ed anniversary

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Contributing writer Kenneth R. Wilson:

Contrary to my uninformed assumption, Chubby Checker is not dead. However, it was an easy mistake to make considering he has slipped into the casino and theme park entertainment circuit, which allows him to perform exclusively for a captive audience. But for one solitary November night (11/22), Chubby Checker will take the stage at the old Alamo Theater in Newnan to celebrate the fiftieth anniversary of his iconic hit “The Twist.”

The Alamo, now a bar, will be Chubby’s only stop in Georgia as he shuttles between casinos in Florida and Mississippi. Tickets cost a steep $75, and only 300 will be sold. A portion of the proceeds will benefit the Boys and Girls Club of Metro Atlanta, which makes the price easier to swallow. Purchase tickets by contacting the Alamo (770-683-2526) or the Boys and Girls Club (678-423-0309). And if you are worried about driving OTP, know that rates for a hotel room in Newnan are comparable to cab fare from Buckhead to Decatur.

Nearly fifty years before teenagers were “jerkin'” to the New Boyz, their parents were twisting to Chubby. And although those parents have never heard of the New Boyz, chances are that their children know how to twist. With that in mind, it’s hard to tell if the show will end in a chaotic scene of shattered hips and MEDEVACed baby boomers or with their children twisting the night away as a sixty-eight-year-old musician gives a history lesson in pop culture. Either ending would be worth the price tag.

A little preview from back in Chubby’s heyday:

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