By. Helen Lewis The handful of street poets perch on Frenchmen behind a row of bulky type-writers, acting as if they are sitting at the world’s most ironic banquet table. Music wafts over from the bars that line the street, audible beneath the sharp tapping of typewriters and banter of the poets. A drink sits… Read More Street Writers: A Whole New Chapter for Storyville
By. Owen Hurley On Tuesday, January 30th, New Orleans Parks and Parkways Director Ann Macdonald said the Parks department would be engaging in “constant sweeps” removing and disposing of ladders and other space-claiming devices left on parade routes more than 24 hours before a parade. FOX 8 quickly posted a video to their Facebook page… Read More It’s 24 Hours Before The Parade, Do You Know Where Your Ladder Is?
By. Joey Walner After Hurricane Katrina, Rene Brunet Jr., his son, Robert, and his granddaughters, Paige, Peyton, and Perrin, returned to New Orleans to do a deep cleaning of their family theatre. Due to the storm and its aftermath, no new movies were coming into New Orleans. When they opened the doors to first responders… Read More The Last Picture Show in Louisiana
By. Garrett Mack There’s a sanctuary in the French Quarter, and its shelves are stocked with beautiful things. The vibrant bodies of fountain pens shimmer inside their glass display cases. Little wooden boxes show off bottled inks. Special brands of paper, reserved only for calligraphy, are arranged by weight and size and stored in individual… Read More Da Vinci Isn’t Dead. He’s Making Fountain Pens on Royal Street.
By. Wynter Freeman It’s thrilling to take it all in. From the grandstands rising above the streets, eager parade-goers, decked out in their finest purple, green, and gold, can see the oncoming marching bands, their golden instruments and shiny buttons sparkling in the glint of the streetlights. Trucks loaded with enormous speakers follow behind dance… Read More The Great Bead Debacle
By. Jasper McGarey Riding down the St. Charles Ave streetcar, looking out on old money mansions while the scent of magnolia blossoms blows through the open windows, the Carnival Season is in full swing. People from all over have come to New Orleans to meet with friends, enjoy parades, and celebrate the days before Ash… Read More Amidst Mardi Gras Mania, Roman Chewing Candy Sticks to Tradition
By. Bronwyn Olstein In a city as vibrant as New Orleans, it’s interesting to wonder what ludicrous activities would be seen if there were street-facing cameras in the entrance way of every establishment that sells alcohol. New Orleans city officials recently proposed this plan, which would involve approximately 1,500 surveillance cameras being placed around the… Read More The Technological Quash of New Orleans Spunk
By. David Perkins There are places tattooed around the city of New Orleans that are intrinsically connected to the stories of people, both past and present. To walk up to The Club Ms. Mae’s, a local watering hole at the corner of Magazine and Napoleon, is like walking up to an old Sequoia, whose cracks… Read More Memories From the Bar
By. Chris Pennanen In the city of New Orleans, one in fourteen black men is missing—absent from home and work alike, never seen in public, gone from civil society. Parades are missing revelers; schools are missing students. Instead, this man is one of the 40,000 Louisianans behind bars. Louisiana holds the dubious honor of America’s… Read More Postmodern Prisoners
By. Patrick Hurd Following the Mardi Gras parade route downtown along St. Charles, just past the overpass, lies 60 foot pedestal holding up empty air, surrounded by a roundabout without a name. The street surrounding the circle is filled with people waiting for the night parade, Endymion, to roll through. In years past, the white… Read More Lee Circle Without Lee
