Updating “Mayberry Meets Berkeley” For the 21st Century
Decatur Metro | May 9, 2011 | 11:35 am
While never the official tagline of Decatur, “Where Mayberry Meets Berkeley” seems to continually insert itself into most articles about our city that introduce it to a new audience.
Whether the persistent presence of this rogue tagline in countless Decatur-centric articles says more about the PR limitations of the city’s official tagline of “City of Homes, Schools and Places of Worship” is a whole different conversation. For now, I’m hoping we might be able to suggest an update for the more popular, yet unofficial tagline.
If you were plugged into 1960s television culture, you’ll know that “Mayberry” was the fictional town where the Andy Griffith Show took place. And if you plugged into 1960s political culture, you’ll know that Berkeley was once a liberal hotbed of riots and protests.
But it’s now 2011. The 1960s are slowly passing across the 50 year mark.
So, I think it might be a good idea if we at least try and update this unofficial tagline to appeal to the large majority of the earth’s population not around 50 years ago. And who better suited to do that than the most unofficial of city blogs?
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The Very Best of the South.
As a book guy, I often say the Brooklyn of Atlanta.
“Dykes on bikes, tykes on trikes.”
I’m not sure the unofficial tagline is that outdated. Mayberry will live forever in reruns, and the reference to Berkeley is not about the 60s, but the fact that Berkeley is overwhelmingly liberal and geared toward a certain lifestyle. For example, you could make the argument that Watershed or Cakes and Ale is our equivalent of Chez Panisse. Also, there is the heavy influence of higher education that we share with Berkeley, with the proximity of Emory and Agnes Scott.
The Mayberry comparison is a stretch, though. A more accurate slogan, I think, would be simply “Berkeley in Atlanta.” But that is not very catchy.
I totally agree.
I, too, don’t think the “Mayberry Meets Berkley” tagline is outdated, but in the spirit of participation, I’ll offer “Southern Living, California Dreamin’…”
I always describe it as a small town in a the big city
If you want to continue to draw new businesses to Decatur, I would lay off the California comparisons.
Wow, didn’t take long for the snark to start. Since this isn’t exactly an official Chamber of Commerce exercise, I don’t think we’re too worried about whether the slogans proffered here are going to “draw new business”…unwind a little bit, sweetie!
Wow, didn’t take long for the school-teacher to come out and try to tell me how to think! All of my family is in CA from San Diego to Montecito to Gold Rush country. I hear the complaints daily. If we want to aspire to be as bankrupt as our western cousins then we should continue to compare ourselves. Instead of modeling or comparing ourselves to some other place, I would rather concentrate on the what may be unique.
Not trying to tell you how to think– just suggesting you not take this little exercise so seriously that you come off sounding dour & snarky. The phrase “California Dreamin'”, for a whole generation, doesn’t imply bankruptcy or financial peril, but a freewheeling way of life. Maybe you’re just a little too close to the subject, eh?
Maybe a little smiley face at the end of my sentence would have helped you recognize I wasn’t taking it so seriously in the first place, and now your continued attempts at analysis have again left you off the mark. I’m neither to too close nor too far from the subject, it’s just my opinion. Of all the thing you’ve called me (snarky, dour, uptight), the closest you have come to understanding me has been your passive-agressive use of “sweetie” and there I’ll tell you that you don’t know me well enough use that term of endearment. Okay, honey?
Jeez, get a room you two. The sexual tension is suffocating us.
That was awesome.
It was awesome & monumental.
Sad for you if that represents sexual tension.
Don’t judge me/us!
…nor us/me!
Get a room you two.
OK, children, let’s not all get frothy at the word “sexual”…and Keith, sugar-dumpling, do stop trying so hard. It ain’t that big a deal!
Just can’t help yourself, can you? Still giving advice.
LOL! No advice, but you seem to be taking it as bait…tell you what: you go ‘head & have the last word. You know you want it!
hu hu hu hu – beevis, she said “hard”
Hah! Now we know why you’re “South Side “X”!!!
Having lived near Berkeley (in SF but a frequent visitor) i think the only way you can have a berkeley/ decatur compare is too add a southern/small town/something else insert to balance that comparison. Decatur is NOT berkeley. Decatur has Berkeley-esq qualities but is so very different. From Brooklyn too (even MORE so).
Yes – We read. We walk. We have strollers everywhere. We have yummy food. But we are not a replica of either. I’m not saying not as good, I’m saying different.
For what it’s worth, I really disliked how Severson used this phrase in her article. She didn’t credit it as a common (even cliched) phrase here in Atlanta, but inserted it for New York readers like she made it up herself.
And yeah, like BrianC, I’m not sure I agree that the phrase is intended to be a reference to 1960s Berkeley. After all, Berkeley continues to be a city in California, you know. I lived there in the 2000s, so I know it’s still there, or at least it was.
I think it’s the foodie, liberal-political, bourgeois-bohemian, cafe-and-brewpub vibe that the phrase is intended to refer to.
Not as sure about Mayberry though. In what way is Decatur like Mayberry? Just because it’s the South?
I think of Mayberry as a place where people know their neighbors, recognize each other on the street, and have friendly word to share. They also get along even when one is a cop, one is Earnest T. Bass, and one is the town drunk.
Yes, I think it is intended to evoke an image of a small town in the South. Not really much truth to it though; there were no gays in Mayberry (ok, maybe Floyd the barber), no blacks, no pubs (at least not that I recall), etc etc.
Definitely, though, Decatur is a blue city in a red state, so rather than Mayberry I think of an actual city in NC when looking for a nearby comparison: Asheville.
People who live in Decatur actually work, so it can’t be compared to Asheville.
Good point. I was thinking about the downtown vibe and that it’s a great city for beer. Definitely a tourist/retiree/college town though.
ha! hilarious
Decatur: Incomparable. It’s not Atlanta and It’s like nowhere else in Georgia.
Jersey without the attitude.
Actually, Decatur is more like Mayberry meets Coronado. I lived on Coronado for 3 years and it was EXCELLENT….
Comparing Decatur with either Berkeley or Mayberry has always struck me as somewhat self-involved, ignoring as it does the fact that LOTS of other places share some of the same characteristics with each of those milieus that Decatur does. Might make us cool but doesn’t make us unique. Also, while Decatur does have a robust streak of foodie/coffeehouse/cafe-brewpub going on, that’s not all that’s here — so using that as a general characterization of our town seems a little bit not-seeing-past-the-end-of-your-nose.
Old branding rule of thumb says 95% of what you offer is identical to everybody else in your category, it’s the 5% nobody else does that sets you apart. Claiming that in a durable way needs to be both defensible — who we are now — and aspirational — who we want to become. And in my opinion, for Decatur, it needs to get beyond what we drive and what we wear and where we like to eat and drink; that stuff is not universal within the community, anyway, plus it’s transient. I think the thing that might really set us apart, if we are committing to it, is becoming ever more walkable — rising to our own ever-soaring standards, not settling for external endorsements like the one we recently received. If we do that, it means better qualify of life for the oldest and youngest among us, not just the strongest ones in the middle stages of life; and a host of other cultural and environmental benefits that have been articulated more eloquently elsewhere.
Decatur: Walk in our shoes and you’ll never want to leave
Decatur: Walk in our shoes and we’ll all have athlete’s foot!
Sorry – couldn’t resist!
Excellent post, STG. I’m all for “Most Walkable City in Georgia” being an aspirational slogan if it is not at present totally defensible.
I like “Mayberry Meets Berkeley.” Of course it is not meant to be an exact description of Decatur. Instead, as with any good tagline, it presents the reader (or listener) with an easily-understandable snapshot of the characteristics of Decatur that make it likeable and unique.
Mayberry. It’s a community-focused small town. Neighbors know each other and are nice and helpful to one another. The square and the old courthouse support the image of a nice Southern town.
Berkeley. Liberal, well-educated, free-thinkers. Sure there are lots of things about Berkeley that Decatur isn’t. But when you’re describing a Georgia town to an outsider, “liberal, well-educated, and free-thinkers” might not be the adjectives that first come to mind. So I think these are helpful images to add to the mix.
Also, I think that “Mayberry” and “Berkley” are descriptors that most people have heard of and can easily grasp.
Well put. D’accord!
“But when you’re describing a Georgia town to an outsider, “liberal, well-educated, and free-thinkers” might not be the adjectives that first come to mind.”
To put it mildly..
I actually Iike “Where Mayberry meets Berkeley”, having not realized that it’s considered a cliche. Mayberry implies friendly, small, safe–and a place where the Mayor regularly joins the K-3 crowd for storytime and the kids can walk home from school certainly fits that description. Berkeley implies educated, politically active, socially concerned which also fits a large number of Decatur residents. There’s a lot of small friendly towns where I would feel limited in terms of choice of activities and cultural environment and a lot of happening cities where I would feel anonymous and insecure. And the lattes and boutiques satisfy the shallower part of my psyche.
Would “Where Main Street meets Cambridge” work better for folks?
“Also, I think that “Mayberry” and “Berkley” are descriptors that most people have heard of and can easily grasp.”
“Would “Where Main Street meets Cambridge” work better for folks?”
—–
A referential tagline is problematic because there are NOT shared understandings about what the references mean. That leaves them open to interpretation, in which case we’re no longer projecting a specific message, we’re simply throwing up a screen on which people can project their own notions about who we are. Also, the meaning carried by that type of reference changes over time as the relevance and virtue of specific aspects of it wax and wane. Mayberry, Berkeley, Main Street and Cambridge each conjures different things for different people; and each means very different things now than it did 20, 30, 40 years ago. And so on.
Ok. You clearly know more about taglines than I do. (Honestly. Not being snarky.) I guess I’m ok with the tagline being referential. So Mayberry means different things to different people. I’m ok with that. To some, it might mean Andy Opie going fishing down a country lane. To others, it might mean a tidy, old fashioned downtown square. Others might think of neighbors who are modest and “just plan good folks.” I’m ok with any of those. It’s not going to conjure an image that it wildly inapposite of any of those, right?
I guess my aversion to having a literal tagline is that it feels limiting. Decatur – We walk. That’s it? What else do we do? Of course, thta’s an extreme example, but you get the idea. By emphasizing Decatur as a walkable city in something like, “Decatur: Walk with us” or whatever, it feels like we miss out on a lot of the imagery that comes with a referential tagline.
You don’t sound snarky at all, Soon to be Neighbor. I do know quite a bit about what makes a good, i.e., effective tagline, because of my work. Doesn’t mean I’m good at writing them, I just know something about what goes into them. Didn’t mean to come across as a know-it-all, though.
.
Anyhow, along with the positive things you mentioned, Mayberry can also conjure up racism, social complacency (limited opportunities for women, enabling alcoholism, cultural insularity, petty bickering (lots of plot lines hinged on fragile egos and intra-civic rivalries), not to mention cornball humor…it just depends. For me personally, nearly everything about it reminds me of how far we’ve come in 50 years and what a much better place we are in, for all of the problems that still plague us. But Barney Fife makes me laugh, so I still like to watch it sometimes.
In suggesting Decatur’s most powerful point of difference might be our commitment to walkability and all that entails, I did NOT mean to suggest incorporating “walk” (or any variation thereof) into a tagline in a literal way. IMO an effective tagline can’t be only literal, it has to have multiple layers of meaning in order to resonate. It’s not something any of us is going to come with off the top of our head. But this kind of brainstorming can generate the piles and piles of ideas and images that eventually inspire a powerful line.
The other description of Mayberry (that doesn’t apply to Decatur) is: single. Andy, Barney, Aunt Bea, Gomer, Goober, Floyd the Barber, Otis, Ernest T. Bass, Helen, Telma Lou, and each and every one of the Darlings. People dated, but never married.
Opie too. Hmmm. I think it was so they wouldn’t have to deal with the double vs twin bed issue. All the married couples in black and white TV had twin beds if they showed the bedroom at all.
When I was very young (early ’60s), I thought that a married couple sleeping in twin beds like they did on TV was desirable, maybe an upscale thing, because my parents were always complaining about each other snoring, stealing the blankets, etc.
Charlene Darling did get married. It about broke poor ol’ Ernest T.’s heart!
If including Berkely is intended to communicate a politically liberal and well-educated populace, why not get it over with and change the tagline to “Super Smart People Who Vote for Obama.” Then you’ve eliminated the potential for any confusion, if these are the things are are so very important for everyone to know. It seems to me, though, that a tagline maybe isn’t an excuse to hang a collective diploma on the wall, much less imply that political beliefs are so fundamental to the city that it’s one of the first things an outsider should know.
That’s why I like Smalltowngal’s post about looking for what distinguishes Decatur from the surrounding area. Walkability definitely separates Decatur from metro Atlanta. Pointing it out also would subtly speak to the political and lifestyle leanings of the city without hitting people over the head with them.
Thanks for the props, Brianc. If I may clarify, I actually think Decatur’s “category” — the communities among whom we want to distinguish ours — can include but also go beyond our immediate geographic surroundings, depending on who the message is intended to reach, e.g., new residents, new businesses, new customers for our restaurants and retailers (who will come here, spend money, then go back home!). So it isn’t enough to be different from nearby enclaves of Atlanta.
“So it isn’t enough to be different from nearby enclaves of Atlanta.”
True. But based on the reports here and elsewhere, CCP Games chose to move from Gwinnett to Decatur partly because of walkabiltiy and proximity to public transit. So in that case, at least, being different from the rest of metro ATL was vital.
“Pointing it out also would subtly speak to the political and lifestyle leanings of the city without hitting people over the head with them.”
Because straight conservatives are against walking?
The term lifestyle was not meant to indicate sexuality. And yes, unfortunately many conservatives are against policies that encourage walking instead of driving. All of the ones I know.
All of the ones you know? That just can’t be true as it would require the most sheltered of lives. Regardless, stop on by my place for a beer and conversation some time and then you’ll know at least one conservative who enjoys a town where walking is easy and encouraged. I live on Pharr in the house with the gas guzzling pickup truck AND a Prius! Just about blows the mind, doesn’t it?
“That just can’t be true as it would require the most sheltered of lives.”
Perhaps I should rephrase that to say all the ones I’ve discussed the topic with. But you are right; I tend not to associate with conservatives very much (outside of family in rural areas, who think any tax money used for anything other than roads is “trying to turn America into Europe.” Perhaps those relations have given me a distorted perception of conservatives.) Thanks for the invite. Maybe I will walk over sometime.
Looking Forward!
Can I borrow your truck? I have a huge stinkin’ pile of stereotypes in my backyard. It’s not even combustible.
It’ll burn…just need to throw more fuel on the fire! Besides, hauling them away and burying them doesn’t do any good either. Erosion is at its strongest when you try to cover up stereotypes.
I am loving your comments here and above.
and one
“Walk on into Decatur!”
“Decatur–We’re just a walk away!”
“When Decatur walks, people listen”
“Decatur: We walk the walk!”
“Decatur walks on water!”
Walk It Off
Aw, heck. Let’s mix all three ideas: (1) The existing Homes/Schools/Places of Worship tagline, (2) walking, and (3) Mayberry/Berklely. Here goes …
Decatur! Walk to schools, homes, and places of workship like those you’d see in Berkeley or, you know, Mayberry!
Ok, the problem with “Mayberry” seems to be that it conjures up hick and ignorant for some instead of the friendly, safe, small town I always thought it was. And Berkeley conjures up more than a college community but also radical politics,
How about “Lake WoeDecatur”? Doesn’t that conjure up small town, above average, but not too avant-garde?
“How about “Lake WoeDecatur”? Doesn’t that conjure up small town, above average, but not too avant-garde? :)”
Conjures up faux-folksy for me. I’d rather be considered politically radical hicks:)
“How about “Lake WoeDecatur”? Doesn’t that conjure up small town, above average, but not too avant-garde? :)”
For some. For others, it calls to mind tediously folksy commentary, too much gospel music and a worn-out running joke about catsup. See my post above re. referential taglines.
Interesting points on here, but didn’t we already have this discussion back last year during the “6 Words” exercise?
If we’re boring you, try a threadjack. (Be really entertaining about it, though, so we’ll just follow you instead of scolding you for trying it.)
Indeed. I wasn’t necessarily trying to steer the conversation in the same direction as “6 words”, but I ain’t gonna complain about a good conversation either.
Decatur: Self-Absorbed Since 1822
Well done. Laughed out loud at that one. We can be a little full of ourselves, can’t we?
+1
pencils down
how about Decatur- A smart place to live
I know! I know! “Decatur, Smart People. Smart Place”… then we would print it out in blue and green and put a little asterisk to the right to it looks like a Walmart sign….
Oh wait, I think that’s taken, isn’t it?
@Soontobeneighbor
“Decatur! Walk to schools, homes, and places of workship like those you’d see in Berkeley or, you know, Mayberry!”
This literally made me laugh out loud. And even snort a little bit.
I must say, @Brianc, being that I am labled as a “conservative” myself, I’d love to sit in on your convo with @Keith F.
Thank goodness for this blog, by the by.
Deep conversation over good beer. Walk on over!
Awesome screen name!!!
Decatur…where small town friendly meets big city snarky.
Decatur: walk your children to their playdate at the nearest pub.
You win the intertoobes for the day!
Berkeley is 5x larger than Decatur, has a larger percentage of foreign born residents, and a larger percentage of residents with Bachelor’s degrees or higher. Decatur has more veterans, a higher home ownership rate, and a smaller percentage of residents living below the poverty line.
How about: Where Tucker meets Druid Hills?
That works.
If Atlanta is the ‘city too busy to hate’, perhaps Decatur could bill itself as the ‘neighbor too relaxed to notice’?
that works, too.
I always call us “Mayberry on steroids and organic food”. Not terribly catchy, tho!
Decatur: Where community planners come to play
Decatur: We like feet, not gas.
I don’t yet live in Decatur but will, after visiting several times. I like to think of it as looking more like the town in the movie Back to the Future. Smaller that a huge city, tight knit, town square (is there a clock?) and progressive. I have read the entire 5 year plan, the future. So when I can find a house (lliking for 3 months), I will move here. Decatur: Back to the Future–and Beyond!
PS: Didn’t the Professor in Back to the Future teach chemistry at Agnes Scott?
Ski Decatur!
What struck me about Severson’s variation on the phrase (http://www.decaturmetro.com/2011/05/08/cakes-ale-and-atlanta-get-ny-times-travel-treatment/) is that it suggests a revision of the original with a verb a little more explicit than “meets.”
Decatur – The Food Court
“Decatur: Where Huckleberry Meets Blackberry!”
It really doesn’t work that well, but, what the heck, it’s about the 93rd post, so won’t be seen anyway.
Huckleberry is intended to carry the rural, old-timey flavor, and Blackberry the progressive, modern angle. Admittedly, Twain’s Huck implies a boat load of other baggage, good and bad, and Blackberry isn’t very hip any more, and doesn’t get at politics, either…
But I REALLY wanted the (inverted) alliteration, so…
+ 1
Wasn’t there also Huckleberry Hound?
Sure was – and he had one heck-uv-a ‘Southern’ ac-cent goin’ on . He shows up (singing) about a minute into this film classic! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZjUicHjw0SM&feature=related
Pennsyltucky! Gotta love it!
Does the city still use the phrase “Decatur: The mall alternative” (or whatever it is) in its promotional materials? I don’t care for it, but I wonder what others think..
I don’t think this much helps Decatur’s image http://decatur.patch.com/articles/decatur-orders-oakhurst-resident-to-clean-up-relocate-coops
You wish, Decatur.
Hey DM — a little photo-illustration quibble. Your picture on the right above is not of Berkeley — it’s of Alamo Square in San Francisco (http://goo.gl/maps/slsJ). And although San Franciscans want out of Viet Nam just as much as hippies from Berkeley, they are different places. Now if you were going for where Mayberry meets the 1980s sitcom Full House you might be on to something. The Tanner family lived right around the corner from where this photo was shot.
I do not live in Decatur, but often visit family here. I live in a small town in another Southern state. Something I do envy about Decatur is the fact that it IS a walking city, but to concentrate on “walking” is to diminish what the city has to offer. Rarely mentioned here is the very important fact that one reason people walk is that there are so many wonderful places to walk TO–restaurants (especially those with outdoor seating), privately owned shops (not big chain stores), pubs (again, that outdoor seating), parks, tree-lined neighborhoods to walk through. Decatur has so much to offer. Enjoy it and don’t worry so much about image. Decatur is a wonderful place, I always look forward to coming.
from one annie to another–well said!
This is a good point. You increase the walkability/cyclability of a small town if there’s someplace folks want to walk/cycle TO! Otherwise, one begrudgingly gets in one’s car and drives elsewhere. When I first moved to Decatur as a single person, I walked/cyled around Decatur a lot less, not because I didn’t want to–in fact, I would DRIVE with my bike to somewhere fun to ride, but because there were less places in Decatur I wanted to go. I would walk into town with friends for the tree lighting or for concerts on the square or fireworks, but less for shopping and eating. On Sundays, one half of my days off, nothing was open. I’d drive over to Virginia Highlands or Little Five Points, or up to Toco Hill, or — gasp! — all the way to Midtown.