Cup of Snarky

Kate Jackson is well known for portraying Sabrina Duncan on the popular television program “Charlie’s Angels” in the 1970′s, but she has had a successful career since then. This actress, producer and director was born in Birmingham, called “the magic city” because it appeared almost out of nowhere in 1871, after the Civil War was over. Birmingham experienced this formative boom as a steelmaking center, and later became an important stage for the civil rights movement. Many protests led by Reverend Martin Luther King were held here, and the Civil Rights Museum in Birmingham is a popular destination today.

Also from Birmingham, Alabama is Courteney Cox-Arquette, who found fame on the hit television show “Friends.” She grew up in the affluent suburb of Mountain Brook. Courteney became one of the highest paid actresses on television during the last two seasons of “Friends,” and of course is well known for her subsequent roles on both the small and big screens.

Nat King Cole, singer and jazz pianist, possessed one of the most well-recognized voices in American musical history. He was born in the state capital of Montgomery, which also served as the temporary Confederate capital during the Civil War. This is the city where Rosa Parks was arrested in 1955, sparking the boycotts that led to the desegregation of the entire country’s public transportation system.

Paula Poundstone is a comedian who had a successful stand-up show on HBO in 1990 and was a political correspondant for “The Tonight Show” and “The Rosie O’Donnell Show.” She has garnered several cable awards and voiced numerous parts in animated films. Poundstone was born in Huntsville, current home to the Army’s Redstone Arsenal and NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center.

Jim Nabors, born and raised in Sylacauga, is best known for his well loved role of Gomer Pyle on “The Andy Griffith Show.”

Other famous Alabamians include baseball players Hank Aaron and Willie Mays; teacher Helen Keller; actress Tallulah Bankhead; Zelda Fitzgerald, writer and wife of F. Scott; musicians Hank Williams and Emmylou Harris; Olympic Gold Medalist Carl Lewis and Harper Lee, author of “To Kill a Mockingbird.”