Carnival Courier: Breaking news from the New Orleans Mardi Gras

Because Mardi Gras is a highly dynamic phenomenon in which traditions are constantly being invented and reinterpreted, history writes itself anew every year. While making no claim to be a comprehensive source for news about the festivities, Carnival Courier will endeavor to offer the citizens of the realm incisive coverage of selection of noteworthy items. Stay tuned.
Krewe of Coleen 2000
	The Krewe of Coleen’s Mardi Gras 2000 outing was billed as “The Grand Finale.” Yet even before taking to the streets to spread good cheer and hilarity, the marching group’s legendary namesake, who rides around in a Grocery cart known as the Royal Chariot, was hedging. “I will roll when the band comes,” Queen Coleen vowed. Will this beloved Mardi Gras character ever give up her crown? more
The Crackdown that Wasn't
	When Playboy magazine, on the eve of Mardi Gras 2000, published an eight-page spread highlighting the risque side of French Quarter revelry, it unwittingly played into the hands of anti-nudist elements of the New Orleans establishment—and ignited a feeding frenzy in the local media. But in the end, a threatened crackdown on flesh baring and balcony bead tossing fizzled—demonstrating once again that when business and cultural considerations collide with the letter of the law, the famously laissez-faire city of Mardi Gras merriment has a way of bending. more
Carnival Time at the Louisiana State Museum
	The Louisiana State Museum’s new exhibition, Mardi Gras: It’s Carnival Time in Louisiana, convincingly demonstrates that there’s much more to the festivities than francy-dress balls, glitzy parades and flesh-baring exhibitionism on Bourbon St. More a cultural phenomenon/art form than an “event,” Mardi Gras in Louisiana encompasses a dizzying array of rituals and customs involving a broad range of ethnic and socioeconomic groups. The origins of Carnival, and how it has come to transcend its European roots, are revealed through a variety of video and interactive presentations, as well as displays of apparel and paraphernalia, including the “crown jewels” of generations of Mardi Gras royalty. more
Appreciation: Roy E. Glapion Jr.
	Hours before Roy E. Glapion Jr. passed away on December 28, at age 64, the Zulu Social Aid and Pleasure Club, by voting unanimously not to elect a replacement king, honored one of his dying wishes: to go down in the records as King Zulu 2000. Known among friends as “Glap” or “Coach,” he will be sorely missed not only by Zulu, an organization that benefited greatly from his leadership, but by the greater New Orleans community as well. more
Krewe of Elvis
	The Krewe of Elvis, which bills itself as the first "Cyber-based Marching Club, is an offshoot of http://mglinks.com, operated by Chip Curley of Nashville, Tenn., a.k.a. "Dead Elvis." Explaining how he came to adopt his Mardi Gras persona, Curley says, "I was just looking for something with humor and also with a little edge to it, and I thought, 'Well, I'll be Dead Elvis,' because there's always Elvises at Mardi Gras." Building on the sucess of its first outing in 1999, the krewe will honor its namesake with a "Larger than Life" theme, plus some hot throw items, for Mardi Gras 2000. more
Proteus Rolls Again
	The Krewe of Proteus, founded in 1882, was one of three so-called "old-line" Carnival organizations that stopped parading in the early 1990s, in the wake of a bitter controversy triggered by the New Orleans City Council's anti-discrimination ordinance. For Mardi Gras 2000, having made changes to its bylaws and articles of incorporation to come into compliance with the ordinance, the krewe will return to the streets for its first public presentation since 1992. Its wooden-wheeled floats, decorated by Royal Artists, will depict native birds and native of Louisiana, and the folklore associated with them. more
Zulu Lundi Gras Festival
	The Zulu Lundi Gras Festival began in 1993, after George Rainey, then vice president of the Zulu Social Aid and Pleasure Club, and Karen Noles, of the Audubon Institute, came up with the idea of providing a day of free entertainment on the riverfront that would include the Float Characters of Zululand—fanciful icons such as Witch Doctor, Big Shot and Province Prince—and culminate with the arrival of the Zulu king and queen. The festivities for Lundi Gras 2000, getting underway at 10 a.m., will include performances by Donald Harrison Jr., Kermit Ruffins and Wanda Rouzan, among others. more
Mardi Gras 2000 Highlights
	Mardi Gras in New Orleans always generates lots of fodder for the local media, but the Y2K festivities were nothing short of a bonanza. From the untimely passing of King Zulu to the battle over a parade slot between Bards and Orpheus, from the return of Proteus to the hue and cry over public nudity and the tossing of beads from balconies, news from Carnivaldom captured the public's imagination and, at times, took precedence over headlines from the "real world."
Mardi Gras 1999 Highlights
	Addressing his royal subjects at Spanish Plaza, Rex predicted that "Tomorrow is going to be a fabulous day for us all!" He wasn't kidding: It was as if spring had come early to city of Mardi Gras merriment, summoning forth a veritable cornucopia of sights and sounds to tickle the senses. more