Murder Kroger is a pop culture theme and Internet meme

Internet meme

The term Internet meme is used to describe a concept that spreads via the Internet. The term is a reference to the concept of memes, although the latter concept refers to a much broader category of cultural information.-Description:...

 (viral concept made popular via the Internet) in the Atlanta area based on the Kroger

Kroger

The Kroger Co. is an American supermarket chain founded by Bernard Kroger in 1883 in Cincinnati, Ohio. It reported US$ 76.7 billion in sales during fiscal year 2009. It is the country's largest grocery store chain and its second-largest grocery retailer by volume and second-place general retailer...

 supermarket on Ponce de Leon Avenue in the Ford Factory complex. The store itself is considered a local landmark known for its nickname "Murder Kroger". The "Murder" reference may be due to a murder that took place in the parking lot in 2002, or due to its proximity only 3 blocks east of Boulevard

Boulevard (Atlanta)

Boulevard is a street in the Old Fourth Ward neighborhood of Atlanta, Georgia. The street runs east of, and parallel to, Atlanta's Downtown Connector. It is bordered by Ponce de Leon Avenue to the north , and McDonough Boulevard to the south...

, an area infamous for street prostitution and drug dealing (although the area surrounding the store, Poncey-Highland and Virginia Highland, is affluent).

Pop culture theme and Internet meme

The store has entered popular culture in Atlanta, reflected in a song about the store, several series of t-shirts, and an unofficial Facebook page.



Atlanta band Attractive Eighties Women recorded a song about the Kroger on Ponce with lyrics including "It's a good place to go if you wanna buy crack; But if you go there for groceries you may never come back; It's murder, Murder Kroger" and "It's a grocery store with a deadly twist; You'll get shot in the head for your shopping list; Murder Kroger!"

Whilst Murder Kroger remains the most popular name for the location, others affectionately call it "Killer Kroger," "Crack Kroger," or even "Freddy Kroger" to reference the villain of A Nightmare on Elm Street.

In April 2011 rumors circulated on Twitter that the store was to be renovated or demolished. The rumors turned out to be exaggerations based on a substantiated leak about a plan for a ramp from the store up to the BeltLine

Beltline

The Beltline is a region of central Calgary, Alberta, Canada. The area is located immediately to the south of Calgary's downtown , and is sometimes considered part of downtown...

. These plans were the basis for a darkly humorous cartoon.

2002 Murder

According to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution of August 2, 2002:

"The body of a man was found late Friday night in a car parked in the parking lot of a Kroger grocery store located in the 700 block of Ponce De Leon, authorities said. A passerby noticed a strong odor coming from the car and alerted police. Police did not release the man's identity."