Author Talk: "Zenith Man"

McCracken Poston Jr. will discuss his book "Zenith Man" May 22, 2025, at 7 p.m. Sponsored by Buckhead Heritage, this free event is open to the public. It will be held at the Cathedral of Saint Philip Gould Room. Please register at www.BuckheadHeritage.com.

In October 1997, the town of Ringgold in northwest Georgia was shaken by reports of a murder in its midst. A dead woman was found in Alvin Ridley's house--and even more shockingly, she was the wife no one knew he had.

Alvin Ridley was a local character who once sold and serviced Zenith televisions. Though reclusive and an outsider, the "Zenith Man," as Poston knew him, hardly seemed capable of murder.

Alvin was a difficult client, storing evidence in a cockroach-infested suitcase, unwilling to reveal key facts to his defender. Gradually, Poston pieced together the full story behind Virginia and Alvin's curious marriage and her cause of death--which was completely overlooked by law enforcement. Calling on medical experts, testimony from Alvin himself, and a wealth of surprising evidence gleaned from Alvin's junk-strewn house, Poston presented a groundbreaking defense that allowed Alvin to return to his peculiar lifestyle, a free man.

Years after his trial, Alvin was diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder, a revelation that sheds light on much of his lifelong personal battle--and shows how easily those who don't fit societal norms can be castigated and misunderstood. Part true crime, part courtroom drama, and full of local color, "Zenith Man" is also the moving story of an unexpected friendship between two very different men that changed--and perhaps saved--the lives of both.

The book will be available for sale at the event, and the author will be available to sign the book.