Arthur Hardy's Mardi Gras Guide contains 164 colorful pages of facts, photos, features, and fun, including more than 50 individual parade profiles and maps. The award-winning magazine includes a history of the event; answers to the 25 most frequently asked questions; an illustrated glossary of Mardi Gras terms; and articles on New Orleans personalities, traditions and happenings. For more than three decades, the city's top writers and photographers have worked together to create a publication that has achieved genuine collectible status. With more than two million copies sold, Arthur Hardy's Mardi Gras Guide is recognized as the program to the event.

Mardi Gras 2010 is February 16, 2010!

 

To order current or back issues, visit our online store.

SUPER PARADE
Posted: January 31, 2010

The Saints appreciation parade will likely roll at 5 PM on Tuesday, February 9 from the Superdome and will travel down Loyola, to Howard, around Lee Circle, up St. Charles Avenue to Canal, making a loop on Canal Street to Convention Center Blvd, ending near the Morial Convention Center. All plans are tentative.

DUVIEUX REVIEW
Posted: January 31, 2010

Saturday's Krewe DuVieux parade rolled quickly and seemed a bit smaller than usual. The costumes were much improved and the float themes were generally less raunchy, with more political satire and less sexual and scatological innuendo (generally). Poor C. Ray Nagin was skewed by more than a few floats and walking groups. I missed the new Krewe Delussions parade but one Carnival veteran whose judgment I trust said he was expecting a more formidable procession, what with all the publicity the group's first parade received.

BACCHUS DOES IT AGAIN
Posted: January 31, 2010

Former Saint John Gilliam, who ran the opening kickoff back for a touchdown in the team'S 1967 NFL opener at Tulane Stadium, will appear in the Bacchus parade in a convertible bearing a sign that reads, "I've returned to finish what I started."

MORE FROM MUSES
Posted: January 31, 2010

Look for Muses to feature a float bearing the wives of several Saints players. Mary Matalin will also be honored as a special muse aboard the special shoe float.

WHAT ABOUT THE PRO BOWL?
Posted: January 31, 2010

We all know that the Super Bowl in New Orleans in 2013 is scheduled on "Carrollton" Sunday, February 7. It is likely that the first weekend's parades will be pushed back a week, to Feb 1. This is what happened in 2002 when the NFL championship game in New Orleans was moved to accommodate a change in dates caused by the event of 9/11, which affected the entire NFL schedule. But, WHAT ABOUT THE 2013 PRO BOWL? This year's event is set in the host city-Miami. Where will the 2013 Pro Bowl be played? It's going back to Hawaii in 2011 and 2012. It wasn't part of the bidding process for the 2013 Super Bowl. So what happens if the NFL wants the game in New Orleans? Would parades be pushed back two weeks? Say it isn’t so!

THIS WEEKEND's PARADES
Posted: January 29, 2010

Jan 29
7 PM - Brid (Lakeview) marching club

Jan 30
10 AM - Choctaw river parade aboard Natchez-Gretna Ferry landing
Noon - Bilge (Slidell) boat parade
6:30 PM - Krewe duVieux (Marigny-French Quarter)
follows - Krewe Delusions

Jan 31
Noon - Little Rascals (Metairie)
1 PM - Perseus (Slidell)

Mardi Gras News
Posted: January 26, 2010

* The Mardi Gras Guide has learned that a special Mardi Gras-style parade will be held to honor the Super Bowl-bound New Orleans Saints—win or lose—on Tuesday, February 9 mid-day or on Wednesday, February 10 in the early evening preceding the Druids parade. The Saints appreciation parade is in the conceptual stage at this time with details forthcoming.


* Former New Orleans Saint Ricky Jackson will ride as grand marshal of the Zeus parade on Lundi Gras.

Mardi Gras News
Posted: January 23, 2010

* For the second year in a row, GLADIATORS has canceled its parade scheduled for Fat Tuesday in Chalmette.

* The reviewing stands at LAFAYETTE SQUARE are also being erected and should be ready in time for the first parade of the season on Friday, February 5.

*Look for BARKUS to move its parade from February 7 to Jan 31 if the Saints with their NFCChampionship game.

* A new krewe called DELUSION may follow the Krewe du Vieux this year.

PRESS RELEASES FROM THE KREWES OF MUSES & BRID
Posted: January 22, 2010

ARE YOU GODDESS ENOUGH TO ROLL WITH THE MUSES?

Looking for a riding spot? This is a chance to bypass 500+ women on the waiting list, ride in the best parade at Mardi Gras and donate to a good cause at the same time! The krewe has set up an online auction through eBay featuring a riding spot in the 2010 parade, with the proceeds benefiting House of Ruth. This is a great opportunity for all of the wannabe Goddesses out there that want to ride this year. The minimum bid for the ride is $1,000 and the rider must be a woman over the age of 18.

Prize includes priceless ride plus costume, mask, entry to the riding member only pre-party beginning at 2:00 and the post-parade aMUSEment party featuring the B-52s, plus a small package of throws (not enough for the ride). Additional throws for the ride, which cost approximately $1,000, must be purchased separately. Some Muse throws may still be available for purchase.

The House of Ruth New Orleans is an organization located in Algiers, Louisiana that helps families, largely women and their children, who are homeless or on the brink of homelessness by providing assistance with rent, utilities, and childcare. The House of Ruth Learning Center is now open, offering individuals training in word processing to enhance their ability to pursue employment. The nonprofit aims to stabilize families in crisis without creating more dependence, "a hand up, not a handout."

Click Here to Place Your Bid On eBay! Bidding ends on January 29th!

Please contact Jeanne at info@kreweofmuses.org or (504) 269-1422 with any questions.

Contact: Mary Hogan, High Priestess, Krewe of Brid
(c) 504/460-5776; (e) kreweofbrid@yahoo.com

Brid Marches as “Pothole Patrol”

The Krewe of Brid, Lakeview’s own carnival marching club, pays homage to the city’s streets with its 2010 theme “Pothole Patrol.” Brid will march 7:00 p.m. on Friday, January 29. The route begins on Milne at Conrad (near Mount Carmel Academy), heads south to Harrison Avenue, then turns east on Harrison Avenue to end at Gen. Haig (near the site of Hynes Elementary).

The krewe is named in honor of three ancient Celtic goddesses each named Brid. Three local women have been selected to represent the Three Brids:

Melanie Ehrlich, Brid of the Forge - Goddess of Strength & Justice Dr. Ehrlich is a professor of genetics, whose Tulane Medical School lab does research on muscular dystrophy and cancer. She is the founder of CHAT - Citizens' Road Home Action Team. By successfully advocating for many improvements in the Road Home PRogram, CHAT has helped thousands of Louisianaians rebuild their homes.

Stephanie Bruno, Brid of the Spirit - Goddess of Arts & Letter Stephanie is a champion of New Orleans’ neighborhoods. She writes a weekly series in the Times-Picayune spotlighting the cultural and architectural features of our neighborhoods. Stephanie has dedicated her energy and spirit to preserving our traditions for future generations.

Laura LeBon, Brid of the Hearth - Goddess of Home & Hearth Laura is mother of two boys and an architect. She was caught mid-move from Old Metairie into West Lakeview when the levees failed in 2005. Laura rebuilt both homes, and volunteered for the Gulf Coast Information Center and CHAT. She is currently working on the Dream City community center, which will provide a safe environment for at-risk youth in the Greater New Orleans area to learn and play.

Krewe members will be dressed in construction worker outfits, each customized with a feminine flair for fun. Other groups marching with Brid this year include crowd favorites Egg Yolk Jubilee Music Band, McTeggart Irish Dancers of Louisiana, and the Big Easy RollerGirls. Special guests are the 610 Stompers – New Orleans’ newest all-male dance troupe.

Krewe of Brid’s third annual after party, Party with the Goddess, starts up at 9p. The party features dancing, food, and Golden Goddess cocktails and burlesque girls. Tickets are $15 at the door.

The Krewe of Brid honors the women of New Orleans who are using all of their talent, wisdom, love and strength to rebuild the neighborhoods of New Orleans. For more information about the parade, the party and the krewe, check out the Krewe of Brid’s web site, www.kreweofbrid.org

MARDI GRAS NEWS
Posted: January 18, 2010

WHO DAT!
The Saints playoff game on January 16 caused the movement of the Pygmalion ball from Saturday to Friday, and delayed the start of the Excalibur ball from 8 PM to 9 PM.

HAIL ENDYMION
Patrick Russo was selected king by random draw at Saturday night’s coronation ball at the Convention Center.

GALLIER HALL STANDS RISING
On January 11 the construction of the Gallier Hall reviewing stands finally began. The race is on to finish in time for the first parade on February 5. Apparently the stands at Lafayette Square will not be erected this year.

TWELFTH NIGHT REVIEW
The January 6 opening of the Carnival season began with a morning press conference and king cake cutting ceremony at Gallier Hall. The krewes or Rex and Zulu made special presentations to Mayor Ray Nagin, who announced that the Mardi Gras reviewing stands would be erected in time for the parade season.

That evening the second annual St. Joan of Arc procession rolled through the French Quarter, while the Phunny Phorty Phellows rolled uptown for the first time since Katrina. Meanwhile, the historic Twelfth Night Revelers (founded 1870) held their 141st annual ball at the Ritz Carlton.

COMING EVENTS
The East Bank Regional Library will host a King Cake Tasting Wednesday, January 27th, at 7pm in the library Meeting Rooms. Library users can come and sample king cakes made by the region’s best bakeries, including Haydel’s Bakery, Gambino’s Bakery, Antoine’s Famous Cakes and Pies, Frances’ Bakery, Hi-Do Bakery, Tastee Donuts (now the home of McKenzie’s king cakes), and Breaux Mart – and it’s all free. Errol Laborde, author of Krewe: The Early Carnival from Comus to Zulu, will kick off the event with a talk about the early history Mardi Gras and how the king cake fits into the Carnival experience. The tasting will follow. Jefferson Parish Library is committed to making the library a family destination and continuously offers new programs and services that educate, entertain and expand interaction with users. For more, go to www.jefferson.lib.la.us.

CAPTAINS CORNER
The Jefferson City Buzzards present the Buzzard Ball Sat., Jan 30, 8PM
Southport Hall, featuring Charmaine Neville, Omega 3 and The Joe Krown Trio. $20 advance, $25 door. Costumes preferred, 504-982-4927, 504-319-0391.

The Krewe of Dionysus will be starting Noon in Slidell on Sunday, February 7, instead of their normal time of 1pm.

Krewe of Argus Update
Posted: January 05, 2010

The Krewe of Argus announced today that Rachael Ray will ride as grand marshal in their Fat Tuesday parade in Metairie.

Mardi Gras Guide Update
Posted: January 02, 2010

Time changes since the magazine went to press:

Alla has confirmed its move to Saturday, whose schedule now is set on the West Bank as:

Choctaw 10:15 a.m.

Adonis 10:45 a.m.

Alla 11:30 a.m.

Carrollton and King Arthur have moved their Sunday parade times up to:

Carrollton 11 a.m.

King Arthur noon

OOPS
Iris starts at 11 a.m., not 11 p.m. as published

Mardi Gras News
Posted: January 02, 2010

Endymion founder and Captain, Ed Muniz, announced celebrity riders and performers for Mardi Gras’ Main Event, the KREWE OF ENDYMION at the Louisiana Superdome! 2010!

The fun begins Saturday, February 13th at noon as The Samedi Gras Festival comes to life on Orleans Avenue, featuring area favorites Contraflow, the Topcats, and The Bucktown All Stars! Endymion rolls after Samedi Gras at 4:30pm

New Orleans Saints owner and business leader Tom Benson is this year’s Grand Marshal! Joining Mr. Benson will be his wife Gayle. In addition, his granddaughter Rita Benson LeBlanc, as well as a contingent of Saints players and staff, will also ride. Mr. Benson is celebrating his 25th year with the Saints.

CAPTAIN’S CORNER
Posted: January 02, 2010

(open to all krewes)
The KREWE OF PONTCHARTRAIN wants everyone to know that this year’s parade will feature the U.S. Naval Academy Drum & Bugle Corps. Special Black & Gold Fleur de Leis Beads will be thrown by the members during the parade. Pontchartrain is a member of the New Orleans Metropolitan Convention & Visitors Bureau and out-of-town Pontchartrain parade riding packages are available to those visiting New Orleans during Super Bowl weekend. (see www.kofp.com.)

The JEFFERSON CITY BUZZARDS will be celebrating 120 years as a Mardi Gras marching club this Carnival season in 2010. The “buzzard ball” will take place on Saturday January 30, 2010.

ADVERTISERS CORNER
Posted: January 02, 2010

(open to Mardi Gras Guide advertisers)
David Magri, formerly of Lawrence’s Bakery in Gentilly, has opened a new shop at 2625 Paris Road in Chalmette - MR. KING CAKE (see www.mrkingcake.com)

ENOCH’S FRAMING & GALLERY is closing. For more than two decades the shop at 4001 Baronne Street has been a favorite with Mardi Gras collectors who have bought rare Mardi Gras memorabilia there. Owners Marilyn, Enough and Celeste Bordelon are selling everything in the shop, including rare posters, pins and back issues of the Mardi Gras Guide and the first three out-of-print editions of Mardi Gras In New Orleans. Call for 504-897-2603 for store hours.

Carnival News
Posted: December 29, 2009

At a meeting of the Mayor's Mardi Gras Coordinating committee Tuesday afternoon, the group unanimously passed a resolution "urging the Mayor and the City Council to immediately reinstate the traditional services associated with Mardi Gras, especially the 154-year old tradition of toasting at Gallier Hall. In light of the recent economic impact study which concluded that for every dollar the city spends it receives a return of more than four dollars, the proposed cuts seem ill-timed and send a negative message about the health of Carnival to our citizens and to potential visitors."

Carnival News
Posted: December 28, 2009

* Distribution of the 2010 Mardi Gras Guide has begun. Starting January 1 parade profiles will appear on this site, along with links to our advertisers. Our new iPhone app will also be fully operational then.

* Don’t believe recent postings on NOLA.Com about the Knights of King Arthur not parading in 2010. According to their captain with whom I spoke today, KA will roll on Sunday, February 7 following the Carrollton parade, although starting times have been moved one hour earlier. Alla has moved its parade one day earlier and will roll behind Choctaw and Adonis on Saturday. That means the mayoral primary will compete with four day parades in Orleans Parish.

* The Mayor’s Mardi Gras Coordinating Committee meets tomorrow to discuss the Mardi Gras 2010. One hot topic of conversation will surely be the mayor’s ill-advised decision to cut back on services this Carnival season, including post-parade clean up. This move sends a message to visitors that the city cannot afford to maintain its crown jewel celebration at the same level as previous years. Tourists will not understand the intricacies of the 154-year tradition of our Gallier Hall toasts and the importance of reviewing stands for krewe courts and dignitaries. Might private industry and/or the City Council step up to fund part the stand at Gallier Hall.

Stay tuned.

2010 Preview from the pages of the 2010 Mardi Gras Guide
Posted: December 26, 2009

The Krewe of Pegasus announced last summer that it would not parade in 2010. The New Orleans-based club was founded in 1957 and started parading in 1966. Declining membership since Hurricane Katrina is the cause of the group’s demise. The Krewe of Pygmalion will move into Pegasus’s Saturday night parade spot on St. Charles Avenue on the first weekend of the parade calendar. After not going to post in 2009, Gladiators plans to parade on Fat Tuesday in St. Bernard, a first on Mardi Gras in that area since 1990.

NOPD reports that the drainage project on Napoleon Avenue between St. Charles and Claiborne Avenues will not commence until January 2010, and it should not affect the 2010 Carnival season. Dee Dee Lancaster has replaced Karen Wood as Director of Carnival Activities in Jefferson Parish. In April, the Slidell City Council passed an ordinance that bans riders from throwing sexually explicit objects from floats.

Mardi Gras lost a legendary figure on July 21 with the death of Edwin Hampton. The 81-year-old band director of the St. Augustine Marching 100 was an icon and a true gentleman. He will be missed. Let’s hope a parade or two will honor him in some fashion in 2010.

A fire in August at the Krewe du Vieux den damaged floats of four sub-krewes—the Krewe of Seeds, the Krewe of Lewd, the Krewe of Tokin and the Krewe of Crude.

The first major Mardi Gras Economic Impact Study in a decade was set to be released in late December 2009. Professor Toni Weiss and Dr. Paul Spindt of Tulane University spent one year collecting data that will produce a more standardized and more accurate way of measuring Carnival’s financial effect on the local economy. Early indications are that the survey will document that for every dollar the city spends to underwrite services associated with Mardi Gras, nearly $4 is deposited in the city’s coffers. Talk about a return on investment!

The historic New Orleans Municipal Auditorium, shuttered since Hurricane Katrina, may come back to life. Under an ambitious $80 million plan unveiled last November, the city-owned exhibition hall at the heart of Louis Armstrong Park would undergo a major renovation aimed at honoring the city’s jazz heritage, while creating new performance and production spaces to support expansion of the local entertainment industry. Although not officially announced, it is possible that the new configuration would permit Carnival balls to once again be staged there as soon as January 2012.

As the Mardi Gras Guide went to press in mid-December, the undefeated New Orleans Saints were the talk of the town. Might the four-decade dream of the “Boys in Black” appearing in the Super Bowl finally come true? Even before the Saints’ fast start, Centurions and Nemesis rescheduled their parades to avoid the conflict with the game. Rhea said it could not reschedule its parade, so it took a year off rather than roll on game day. The third annual Family Gras celebration scheduled in Metairie for February 5-7 was cancelled in early December. The official reason given by Jefferson Parish was that the conflict with Super Bowl weekend made it impossible to line up entertainment for the event. Should the Saints make it to the NFL championship in Miami on Sunday, February 7, all parades and related activities scheduled for that day will be affected in some way. The Alla parade will move to Saturday, February 6 and follow Choctaw and Adonis. The Krewes of Carrollton and King Arthur will move their start time up one hour, hoping that crowds will still turn out. Check our website for the latest information.

What about next year? For only the second time since 1859, Fat Tuesday falls on March 8. There will not be a later Mardi Gras until 2038, so get ready for a long Carnival season.

2009 Review from the pages of the 2010 Mardi Gras Guide
Posted: December 26, 2009

So what kind of Mardi Gras was it? Once one dismisses the tragic shootings on Fat Tuesday—admittedly, not an easy thing to ignore—the 2009 Carnival season was remarkable. This resembled a pre-Katrina Mardi Gras more than the 2006, 2007 and 2008 celebrations. Crowds were the largest since 2005 but were calm, continuing a post-K trend.

As hard as the national media tried to predict that the U. S. recession would ruin our city’s premiere celebration, there was scant evidence of it on the streets of New Orleans. As one captain said, “Look, we survived Katrina. Do you think we’re going to fold our tents because of a downturn in the economy? No way. Nothing will take away our Mardi Gras! Nothing.” Naysayers point to the loss of three parades in 2009—Aquila, Gladiators, and Shangri-La. Truth is that these small parades had low memberships even before the storm and, while we are sorry for their absence, this is not the first time parades have ceased operations. In the 1970s, Mardi Gras lost 18 parades but gained 18 new ones. The 1980s saw the demise of 18 parades and the birth of 27 others. Such is the ebb and flow of parading krewes.

Unlike 2008, when rain ruined many parades, the weather was mostly good on all 10 parade days, with only one postponement because of rain that never materialized. I can’t remember a year when more parades rolled on time, with so few breakdowns. The one exception, and it was a big one, was Chaos, whose breakdown on Napoleon and Magazine delayed the mammoth Muses parade by nearly an hour. Zulu, and its float builder Barry Kern, deserve special praise for moving so well on Fat Tuesday. When Zulu is late, the entire day is thrown off schedule. Not this time. On their 100th anniversary, Zulu shined.

Satire continues to find creative vehicles in the parades of Chaos, D’Etat and Muses. Favorite targets included the William Jefferson family, Mayor Ray Nagin, U.S. Senator David Vitter, Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal, Mandeville Mayor Eddie Price and Archbishop Alfred Hughes.

Statistically speaking, 2009 was a good year. Hotel occupancy reached 97%. Tourism officials claimed that one million people lined the streets for the season’s biggest parades. The French Quarter was so crowded that Sidney Torres and his SDT team had to bring in extra garbage removal equipment to handle all the extra trash left by revelers. Arrests-almost all for non-violent crimes-were up 25%, a good sign of good police work.

One not-so-pleasant stat: 31,245 parking tickets were issued. I wonder how many of these citations were for safety-related violations and how many were of the revenue-generating “gotcha” variety. How many drivers openly defied the law and how many, especially tourists, were ignorant of it? I have personally witnessed meter maids waiting on side streets until dozens of cars are parked on the neutral grounds and then, when their drivers are off with their families to enjoy the parades, they ticket ($75) every one of them. What a way to ruin the day of a citizen or a money-spending visitor! Think they’ll be eager to return to the Crescent City or recommend a visit to their friends? There is a better way. Why not post NO PARKING signs every 10 feet on the neutral ground before the parades start? But that wouldn’t bring in any cash, would it?

The new West Bank parade route was well received, as was the addition of the Choctaw and Adonis parades to the New Orleans neighborhood of Algiers. Family Gras continued to thrive in Jefferson Parish. Officials there seem to have settled on a permanent Metairie parade route that pleases most people and allows for consistent parade planning. Some hotels on Canal Street were less than thrilled about the removal of the Canal Street loop since the parades of Druids, Babylon, Chaos, Muses, Hermes, D’Etat and Morpheus no longer passed in front of their properties. A much more popular route change was the new starting point at Jefferson Avenue and Magazine Street for Druids, Muses, D’Etat, Morpheus, Mid-City and Okeanos. Krewe members, merchants and neighborhood parade-goers seemed thrilled by the addition of these parades.

It was a good year for celebrities, with Kid Rock in Endymion, Val Kilmer as Bacchus, Jim Belushi, Bryan Batt, Carlos Mencia in Orpheus, and Olympic gold medal winner Nastia Liukin in Argus.

WDSU Channel 6 placed GPS units in all uptown parades and provided parade progress reports and streaming video on the web.

HALF-WAY TO MARDI GRAS
Posted: August 16, 2009

A look at summertime Mardi Gras news exactly six months from Fat Tuesday:

* The Krewe of Pegasus will not parade in the 2010 Mardi Gras season. The Krewe of Pygmalion will move from Friday into Pegasus's Saturday night 6:45 parade spot on St. Charles Avenue and will follow the Knights of Sparta.

* NOPD reports that the drainage project on Napoleon Avenue between St. Charles and Claiborne Avenues will not commence until January 2010 and it should not affect the 2010 Carnival season.

* Dee Dee Lancaster has replaced Karen Wood as Director of Carnival Activities in Jefferson Parish.

* 2009's new uptown route for Druids, Muses, D’Etat, Morpheus, Mid-City and Okeanos now appears to be permanent.

* In April the Slidell City Council passed an ordinance that bans riders from throwing sexually explicit objects from floats.

* Mardi Gras lost a legendary figure on July 21 with the death of Ed Hampton. The 81-year-old band director of the St. Augustine Marching 100 was an icon and a true gentleman. He will be missed. Let’s hope a parade or two will honor him in some fashion in 2010.

* A fire in August at the Krewe du Vieux den damaged floats of four sub-krewes—the Krewe of Seeds, the Krewe of Lewd, the Krewe of Tokin and the Krewe of Crude.

* Tulane University is leading the first major Mardi Gras economic impact study in a decade. Dr. Toni Weiss and Dr. Paul Spindt are collecting data that should produce a more standardized way of measuring the financial effect on the local economy.

* The New Orleans Hornets plan a Mardi Gras Krewe Night on January 20th versus the Memphis Grizzlies and another “Mardi Gras Night at the Hive” in February. The January event will offer Carnival clubs the opportunity to win prizes based upon their attendance and participation. The Mardi Gras Night at the Hive will feature a full Mardi Gras-themed game with a Hornets Mardi Gras parade at halftime. More details will follow.


Krewe News
* The Krewes of Cleopatra and Thoth have launched websites. Check them out at www.kreweofcleopatra.org and www.thothkrewe.com.

* Choctaw stages its Halfway to Mardi Gras Party on August 23 at the VFW Post 3121, 475 Monroe St., Gretna at 11:00 A.M. New members are invited. Call Jace Pellegrin at 504-256-5077.

* Pygmalion has scheduled its Coronation Ball for November 7 at the Marriott Convention Center.

* Centurions’s Coronation Ball is set for the Marriott on September 19. The club holds its annual $10,000 raffle at the Jefferson Orleans South on October 17.

* Visit www.knightsofsparta.com for information on the club’s popular monthly Culinary Tour. Also scheduled is the Cardi Gras Car Show on September 12. This year’s Court Coronation presentation is set for November 13 at the Pontchartrain Center in Kenner.

MARDI GRAS IN NEW ORLEANS - An Illustrated History
Posted: August 16, 2009

Arthur Hardy’s
MARDI GRAS IN NEW ORLEANS
An Illustrated History
Fourth Revised 2010 Edition
Available November 1, 2009

Written for the casual Carnival observer as well as the veteran Mardi Gras fan, Mardi Gras in New Orleans: An Illustrated History is a concise and comprehensive pictorial account of the celebration. With 360 vintage and contemporary illustrations and 60,000 words of text, the hard bound volume is the ultimate resource on the celebration, past and present.

This updated fourth edition features an expanded reference section that provides details on nearly 600 Carnival organizations, including the identities of 5,000 kings and queens.

Pre-Publication Offer:

Order by October 1, 2009 and receive FREE SHIPPING

Krewe of Pegasus will not parade in 2010
Posted: May 28, 2009

The Krewe of Pegasus will not parade in 2010. The New Orleans-based club was founded in 1957 and started parading in 1966. Declining membership since Hurricane Katrina is the cause of the group’s demise. It is probable that the Krewe of Pygmalion will move into Pegasus’ Saturday night parade spot on St. Charles Avenue on the first weekend of the parade calendar.

2009 Review
Posted: March 07, 2009

So what kind of Mardi Gras was it? Once one dismisses the tragic shootings on Fat Tuesday—admittedly, not an easy thing to ignore—the 2009 Carnival season was remarkable. This was very much a pre-Katrina-like Mardi Gras more than the 2006, 2007 and 2008 editions. Crowds were the largest since 2005 but were calm, continuing a post-K trend. As hard as the national media tried to predict that the U.S. recession would ruin our city’s premiere celebration, there was scant evidence of it on the streets of New Orleans. As one captain said, “Look, we survived Katrina. Do you think we’re going to fold our tents because of a downturn in the economy? No way. Nothing will take away our Mardi Gras! Nothing.” Naysayers point to the loss of three parades this year—Aquila, Gladiators and Shangri-La—all of which say they will try to return in 2010. Truth is that these small parades had low membership even before the storm and, while we are sorry for their absence, this is not the first time parades have ceased operations. In the 1970s Mardi Gras lost 18 parades but gained 18 new ones. The 1980s saw the demise of 18 parades and the birth of 27 others. Such is the ebb and flow of parading krewes.

Unlike last year when rain ruined many parades, the weather was mostly good on all ten parade days, with only one postponement because of rain that never materialized. I can’t remember a year when more parades rolled on time, with so few breakdowns. The one exception, and it was a big one, was Chaos, whose breakdown on Napoleon and Magazine delayed the mammoth Muses parade by nearly an hour. Zulu, and its float builder Barry Kern, deserve special praise for moving so well on Fat Tuesday. When Zulu is late, the entire day is thrown off schedule. Not this time. On their 100th anniversary, Zulu shined.

Satire continues to find creative vehicles in the parades of Chaos, D’Etat and Muses. Favorite targets included the Jefferson family, Ray Nagin, David Vitter, Bobby Jindal, Eddie Price and Archbishop Hughes.

Statistically speaking, 2009 was a good year. Hotel occupancy reached 97%; arrests (almost all for non-violent crimes) were up 25%—a good sign of good police work. Tourism officials claim one million people lined the streets. The French Quarter was so crowded that Sidney Torres and his SDT team had to bring in extra garbage removal equipment to handle all the extra trash left by revelers.

One not-so-pleasant stat: 31,245 parking tickets were issued. I wonder how many of these citations were for safety-related violations and how many were of the revenue-generating “gotcha” variety. How many drivers openly defied the law and how many, especially tourists, were ignorant of it? I have personally witnessed meter maids waiting on side streets until dozens of cars are parked on the neutral grounds and then, when their drivers are off with their families to enjoy the parades, they ticket ($75) every one of them. What a way to ruin the day of a citizen or of a money- spending visitor. Think they’ll be eager to return to the Crescent City or recommend a visit to their friends? There is a better way. Why not post NO PARKING signs on sticks every ten feet on the neutral ground? But that wouldn’t bring in any cash, would it?

The new westbank parade route was well received, as was the addition of the Choctaw and Adonis parades to the New Orleans neighborhood of Algiers. Family Gras continues to thrive in Jefferson Parish. Officials there seem to have settled on a permanent Metairie parade route that pleases most people and allows for consistent parade planning.

Some hotels on Canal Street were less than thrilled about the removal of the Canal Street loop since the parades of Druids, Babylon, Chaos, Muses, Hermes, D’Etat and Morpheus no longer pass in front of their properties. A much more popular route change was the new starting point at Jefferson Avenue and Magazine Street for Druids, Muses, D’Etat, Morpheus, Mid-City and Okeanos. Krewe members, merchants and neighborhood parade-goers seemed thrilled by the addition of these parades.

MEDIA
On a personal note, I was particularly proud to again be associated with WDSU Channel 6, which expanded its coverage this year with a huge commitment of time, personnel and resources. My interviews with 47 krewe officials (40 at their dens) were shown on air and on the web. GPS units in all uptown parades provided parade progress reports and streaming video of those parades was shown on the web. Maps and throws were also featured on air and clips of almost every parade were shown on nightly, morning and noon newscasts. On Fat Tuesday WDSU was on the air from 8AM-5PM. The station also provided five hours of live coverage of the Bacchus parade.

Fat Tuesday 2010 is February 16. Let the planning begin.