#TCOT Coming to Charlotte for BlogCon CLT

Some of the nation's leading conservative (right-wing, Republican, and/or Tea Party supporters) bloggers and media personalities are converging in Charlotte this weekend for BlogCon CLT. Put on by FreedomWorks, a Washington, D.C.-based political organization that "fights for less government, lower taxes, and more freedom," this is the third BlogCon. The first was held in D.C. in 2010; the second was last year in Denver.

Dana Loesch is among the high-profile media personalities speaking at BlogCon CLT.

BlogCon CLT features two full days of speakers and training sessions this Friday and Saturday, April 20-21 at Hilton Charlotte Center City hotel. Notable scheduled speakers include Dana Loesch, contributing editor at breitbart.com, talk radio host, and CNN contributor; James O’Keefe, founder of Project Veritas who's most known for the undercover video that brought down ACORN; Stephen Moore, senior economics writer at The Wall Street Journal; Deneen Borelli, author of Blacklash: How Obama and the Left Are Driving Americans to the Government Plantation; Stephen Kruiser, comedian, writer, and host of Kruiser Control; and several others. They'll also pay tribute to Andrew Breitbart, who died unexpectedly last month at age 43.

Topics at the training and info sessions include: Data Visualization, Using YouTube Effectively, Slaying the Legacy Media, Pitching and Promoting your Work, Opposition Research: Digging up the Dirt, and more.

Some BlogCon CLT swag. Source: @TabithaHale.

For more details, visit blogconclt.com. And you can follow the action on Twitter with hashtag #BlogConCLT (some are also using #BlogCon12).

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'Nolimit' to His Reality

Many of you have listened to Nolimit Larry & The Morning Maddhouse on Power 98 (WPEG 97.9 FM) for years. The lead guy on the show, Nolimit Larry aka Noleezy, government name Larry Mims, is a well-recognized voice and face in Charlotte. You likely know his story, and if you've lived here for a decade or more, you've been along for the ride. He worked his way up from being a Johnson C. Smith University student interning at Power 98 in the late '90s to eventually hosting one of the top-rated radio shows in the Carolinas. And in this climate of more and more radio stations moving to syndicated programming, Nolimit is in rarefied air.

Last month, he launched a new website, nolimitlarry.com, where you can keep up with his many involvements, from hosting parties to lending a hand to charities. He's also working on a reality show, tentatively titled American DJ. In the three-minute video reel below, you get a look inside Nolimit's career. And in the process, it's a great look at Charlotte, with brief appearances by several celebrities and professional athletes that either live here or are from here. Plus, an ode to Charlotte's Anthony Hamilton with "Comin' From Where I'm From" playing.

You can follow him at facebook.com/NoLeezy and twitter.com/Noleezy.

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'Man v. Food Nation' Takes on Charlotte

Last night's episode of Man v. Food Nation on Travel Channel showcased Charlotte eateries that you've either made a beeline to often or at least have heard people rave over. Host Adam Richman and crew visited Charlotte a few months ago to try out popular or extreme menu items at The Penguin Drive-In (Plaza Midwood), Price's Chicken Coop (South End), and Jackalope Jacks (Elizabeth). The Penguin's Double Pounder (pictured below), with four half-pound patties (two pounds of beef), pimento cheese, and fried pickles, is the star of the show (and a cardiac event waiting to happen).

Source: travelchannel.com.

I can personally attest to the mouthwatering goodness served at The Penguin and Price's, but I've never eaten at Jackalope. If you missed the show last night, it re-airs this Saturday at 12 p.m. You can also watch a few video clips from the episode by clicking here.

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2012 Jordan Brand Classic this Weekend

The Jordan Brand Classic, one of the biggest, annual high school basketball events in the country, takes place this Saturday at Time Warner Cable Arena. It's a tripleheader, beginning with the International Game at 2:30 p.m., followed by the Regional Game at 4:30 p.m., and then the big show, the All-American Game at 7 p.m., which will be nationally televised on ESPN.

Jordan Brand, a division of NIKE, Inc. and named after the legendary Michael Jordan, whose sneaker line is as popular today as it was during his playing days, puts on this event for the 11th year, showcasing the best amateur basketball players in the world. Many of them have gone on to become superstars in the NBA, such as Chris Paul, Carmelo Anthony, LeBron James, Kevin Durant, and Blake Griffin, among others. And two of the top five picks in last year’s NBA Draft were International Game alums Enes Kanter from Turkey (drafted by the Utah Jazz) and Jonas Valančiūnas from Lithuania (drafted by the Toronto Raptors).

Credit: facebook.com/jordanbrandclassic.

This year's squads in the All-American Game--there's an East team and a West team, each with 11 high school seniors from around the country--feature several members of ESPNUs top 100 players: No.1 Shabazz Muhammad (Las Vegas, NV/Undecided), No. 2 Isaiah Austin (Arlington, TX/Baylor), No. 3 Kyle Anderson (Jersey City, NJ/UCLA), and No. 4 Kaleb Tarczewski (Southborough, MA/Arizona). There are two Carolinas players on the East team: Brice Johnson, a power forward from Edisto H.S. in Cordova, SC, who's committed to UNC; and Rodeny Purvis, a point guard from Upper Room Christian Academy in Raleigh, who's committed to N.C. State.

If you want to see more talent from within the state, the Regional Game will showcase the top high school seniors from North Carolina. The players for the international and national teams are scheduled to arrive in Charlotte tomorrow, and will begin practicing Thursday. As was the case last year, I'm sure they'll make appearances around the city over the next few days. The best way to keep up with their movements is to follow Jordan Brand Classic on Twitter @JordanClassic. Plus, rapper Fabolous is scheduled to perform after the national game, and you can expect to see plenty of other celebrities in attendance.

And then, there are the shoes. The national team will wear the Air Jordan 2012 Deluxe on the court in special East and West team editions. The West team will wear a team orange/cool grey colorway while the East team will wear a university blue/white-obsidian colorway. Both sneakers feature the Jordan Brand Classic logo on the tongue. These special editions go on sale tomorrow, for a suggested retail price of $223.

Tickets to the Jordan Brand Classic can be purchased, from $10 to $125, on Ticketmaster. For more details, visit www.jordanbrandclassic.com.

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Carlton Hargro Is Creating 'The African American Superhero Anthology'

My friend, colleague, and 282 host Carlton Hargro is diving into one of his first loves: comic books. He's collected them since he was a kid and even used to write them before he got heavy into his journalism career. Now as a freelancer and with more time and flexibility, Carlton has began working on a new comic book tentatively titled The African American Superhero Anthology.

Carlton hangs out at local comic book stores--Heroes, to be exact--and attends conventions like Comic-Con, so he's never lost his passion for the art. But he feels now is a good time to strike with his venture because of the prevalence of comic book characters in pop culture. Just look at all of the Marvel Comics stories that have been made or remade into blockbuster movies in recent years, with several more on the way (The Avengers hits theaters next month).

But as Carlton points out, very few of these comic book characters, whether in print or on the big screen, are people of color. They're fictional, after all, so why not add more black characters?

Isis is a character by Image Comics artist Jimmie Robinson, scheduled to be featured in the anthology.

The African American Superhero Anthology is designed to introduce a bevy of new and divergent heroes of color to the comic landscape, Carlton says. And you can support his cause by making a financial pledge to his Kickstarter campaign for the project. If you pledge $5 or more, you'll receive a special edition of The African American Superhero Anthology, featuring a special cover and autographs from all the creative teams involved.

Carlton actually reached his fundraising goal of $3,000 today, after only eight days. But with a month left to go on Kickstarter, you have the opportunity to give to this project so that the creative teams will have a more ample budget to work with. Click here to make your pledge today.

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