MACON, Ga. — Before his time in the halls of Congress, JD Vance — the vice presidential pick for GOP nominee Donald Trump — was an author.
It was his career that led the newly-selected Republican vice president nominee to his ties to Macon and Central Georgia.
Here's a look at who JD Vance is and how his path crossed, ever so slightly, with Macon.
Who is JD Vance?
Vance rose to prominence on the heels of his breakout memoir: Hillbilly Elegy.
The book tells the story of a depressed Midwest town and it became a New York Times bestseller.
The book tackles the plight of working-class people among other issues, and it played a role in Vance's meteoric political rise.
The book was published in 2016. Then, six years later, Vance took his first step into the political area: he ran for the U.S. Senate from his home state of Ohio.
That race, which he won with 53% of the vote, was in 2022, and Vance officially took office in 2023. His bid for Senate was Vance's first time running for public office.
Now, just after one year in Congress, Vance has the potential to move to a role in the White House if Trump wins in November.
JD Vance's Macon and Georgia ties:
But in 2019, before Vance even became a U.S. senator, film crews working on the movie adaption of Hillbilly Elegy descended on Macon for the film.
The movie, directed by actor-turned-director Ron Howard, transformed parts of Macon for days.
Macon storefronts were converted to look the part of a Midwest town down on its luck and, in 2020, the film hit the silver screen. But while filming in 2019, the film set up in Macon for days.
The film turned storefronts on Poplar Street into stores like Radio Shack and a cafe called "Weber's Cafe." The Terminal Station parking lot was filled with rows of trailers for movie actors and crews.
The film brought performer Amy Adams to Macon and other leading actors. Others were lucky enough to run into director Howard out and about, who became famous for playing Opie Taylor in the Andy Griffith Show as a child actor.
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13WMAZ reported at the time that actor Gerard Butler was also seen having a few drinks at the Hummingbird. However, it is unclear whether or not Vance came down to Macon with the film crews.
While some filming took place in the book's actual setting — Middletown, Ohio — most of it happened here in Georgia. Along with Macon, parts of the film were shot in Atlanta and Clayton, Georgia.