What's So Special About New Orleans?

Saints fans keep their heads up!

2012-01-22T19:29:00.000-06:00

Mark Lorando, The Times-Picayune

So, New Orleans Saints fans. Are you still in a funk?
Yeah. Me, too.

The Saints' mind-blowing lossto the San Francisco 49ers last Saturday, preceded by LSU's stupefying BCS championship game loss to Alabama five days earlier, has been dubbed by some local diehards The Worst Sports Week Ever. A brutal blow. A death in the family. Like "Shark Week," if you're chum.

In the past, fans hid under paper bags.

Undoubtedly, today's NFC championship game between the 49ers and New York Giants -- The Team We Had in the Bag vs.The Team We Crushed Like a Bug -- will serve only to pour more pepper into the Who Dat Nation's bleeding heart.

Poor, pitiful us.

Really?

C'mon, man.

It took New Orleans 20 years to experience our first winning season, 33 years to celebrate ourfirst playoff win and 43 years to reach our first Super Bowl. Saints fans are the world's leading authorities on the agony of defeat. So we should know better than anybody:

This ain't agony.

Agony is having season tickets for a 1-15 team and trying to decide whether to wear a paper bag to the game.

Agony is a kicker named Erxleben and two quarterbacks named Billy Joe.

Agony is seeing Mike Ditka on "Saturday Night Live" and thinking: Oh my God. That's our coach. And we have a game tomorrow.

Agony is Ricky Williams in a wedding dress.

Agony is losing 20-17 to the Atlanta Falcons on a Hail Mary pass one week, 20-17 on a phantom pass interference call two weeks later, and 40-34 -- which is 20-17 times two -- on an overtime snap that sails over the punter's head to start the next season.

Agony is having the Dome Patrol to lead your defense ... and Steve Walsh to lead your offense.

Agony is trading the 11th pick inthe 1985 draft to the Houston Oilers for washed-up running back Earl Campbell, instead of using it to draft future Hall of Famer Jerry Rice, who is selected five picks later by ... well, you know.

Agony is Jim Finks dying of cancer. And Buddy D. dying of heart failure.

Agony is trading Archie Manning ... for Leon Gray.

Agony is Aaron Brooks passing the ball backward, and laughing about it on the sideline while you cry on your couch.

Agony is Jim Haslett starting an injured Brooks over Jake Delhomme. Who leaves New Orleans. And starts in the Super Bowl. For the Carolina Panthers.

Agony is being so bad that the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, a franchise that has never won a game, wins its first game ever against you -- in your home stadium.

Agony is when, 22 years later, another franchise that has never won a game, the new Cleveland Browns, does it again. On another Hail Mary pass.

How's that for progress?

Agony is Carl Smith calling your plays.

Agony is Bum Phillips refusing to let Morten Andersen attempt a field goal against the Rams to ice your first winning season and playoff berth ... and then, minutes later, watching barefooted Mike Lansford make the field goal to beat you.

Agony is failing to re-sign Bobby Hebert. Because you have John Fourcade.

Agony is Hebert in a Falcons uniform. Throwing a touchdown pass. Against the Saints. In the Superdome. And running to the sideline with his arms spread out. Like a dirty bird.

Ouch.

Agony is having so little success that for 20 years, the most celebrated moment in team history is a 63-yard, game-winning field goal that brings your record to 2 wins, 5 losses and a tie.

Agony is owning the first overall pick in the draft.

Again.

Agony is a hole in your stadium, 10 feet of water in your home, and your football team in San Antonio.

Agony is not a quarterback named Brees.

A tight end named Graham.

A running back named Sproles.

A linebacker named Vilma.

A coach named Payton.

Agony is not gaining more yards in one season than any football team in the history of the sport.

Photo credit: Ted Jackson, Times-Pic

Agony is not a record of 13 and 3. In that order.

Agony is not breaking so many offensive records, you set a record for broken records.

Agony is not playing one of the most exciting playoff games in NFL history.

Even if you lose it.

Agony is not missing out on the chance to see the Saints win their second Super Bowl in three years. It's thinking that you'll die before you see them win their first. Which, let us not forget, was how we felt every January from 1967 to 2010.

Remember the 1970s, and '80s, seeing the same teams in the playoffs every year, and wondering what that must feel like?

Well, we don't have to wonder any more. This is what it feels like. A higher high when you win, and a lower low when you lose.

Last week, we played at a high level, and we lost. It hurt. But we've had worse hurts. So, starting today, let's all agree to call off the pity party. Let's lick our wounds, ice down our beer, root for Eli, give Drew a raise, count the days to the 2012 regular-season 49ers rematch in New Orleans, and set our sights squarely on Feb. 3, 2013, in the Mercedes-Benz Superdome, site of the Who Dat Holy Grail:

A home Super Bowl.

Stay crunk and keep climbing, Saints fans. Maybe next year we plant the flag at the summit. Maybe we slip and fall again a few excruciatingly short steps from the top. Either way, it sure beats watching from the bottom of the mountain.

Features editor Mark Lorando can be reached at mlorando@timespicayune.com or 504.826.3430. Follow on Twitter @MarkLorandoTP.

Historic Joy Theater reopens as multi-use venue

2012-01-17T09:50:00.001-06:00

By Keith Spera, The Times-Picayune

During the newly refurbished Joy Theater’s Dec. 29 grand opening, Irma Thomas dedicated a cover of Etta James’ “At Last” to the contractors, owners and workers who toiled for months to remake the crumbling movie house into a live-entertainment venue. “When they nailed that last nail and put in that last chair,” Thomas said, “I’m sure they said, ‘At last!’”

John McCusker / The Times-PicayuneThe Joy Theater welcomes Cowboy Mouth, Percy Sledge and the Little River Band this month.

And how. The “at last” moment arrived only minutes before show time, when the Joy’s dressing room was finally painted and stocked with furniture. Between a private, afternoon preview party and that night’s concert, Joy staffers also replaced tables and chairs on the theater’s ground level with rows of seats.

Opening night was an unqualified success. All 658 tickets — 405 removable chairs downstairs, plus 253 permanent seats in the balcony — were sold out in advance. Patrons marveled at the reborn theater, with its black, red and silver décor harkening back to the original, futuristic 1947 design.

Thomas, resplendent in a green Harold Clark evening gown with sparkling blue accents, delivered a typically radiant set of her classics. The sound system was first-rate, loud but clear. Video monitors flanking the stage were almost unnecessary, given the room’s intimacy.

But the Joy’s other two opening-weekend shows did not sell out. Sales for the Soul Rebels Brass Band and Cyril Neville’s Tribe 13 on Dec. 30 were especially soft.

Competing with holiday activities is never easy. “This time of year is a tough time to open,” acknowledged Bill Johnston, the Joy’s talent buyer.

The Joy’s identity is a work in progress. Over the coming months, Johnston and the venue’s four owners must suss out what works and what doesn’t.

Johnston’s decades-long entertainment industry resume includes co-founding legendary concert venue The Warehouse and long-ago management stints with the Neville Brothers and Gino Vannelli. He was set to open his own entertainment venue at 601 Tchoupitoulas St. before Hurricane Katrina scuttled those plans. He subsequently spent four years as the entertainment director at Harrah’s New Orleans Casino.

Johnston anticipates that private events — wedding receptions, dance recitals, touring theatrical productions, corporate parties, etc. — will fill the bulk of the schedule. “We’re getting calls from all around the country to rent the venue for a variety of uses,” he said.

Private events, in which the venue is rented for a set fee, are far less risky than concerts, which require a band be paid a guarantee regardless of ticket sales. Given the economic risks, the Joy “cannot be a place that just books concerts,” Johnston said. “There is no question that it should be a multi-use venue.”

Concerts will remain part of the mix. The Joy presents the “Joint’s Jumpin” New Orleans rhythm and blues revue Friday, Jan. 13; Cowboy Mouth on Saturday, Jan. 14; the Little River Band on Jan. 26; and Percy Sledge on Jan. 28.

That initial slate skews toward an older audience. The plan is eventually to cater to “all age groups, all genres of music,” Johnston said. Seats on the venue’s floor can be removed to accommodate a standing, general-admission audience. At least three promoters have inquired about presenting concerts at the Joy during the New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival presented by Shell.

How concerts are priced will partially determine whether they succeed. Tickets for Irma Thomas were $40, but her show was something of a novelty: It was the Joy’s opening night, and she rarely performs in sit-down settings. Her hometown appearances are mostly at festivals and special events. Fans jumped at the chance to see her in a theater.

The $35 ticket price for the Soul Rebels may have been too high, given that fans are accustomed to paying around $10 for the band’s frequent club shows. Tickets for New Year’s Eve with Kermit Ruffins and Big Sam’s Funky Nation started at $75, but included an open bar.

Looking ahead, Cowboy Mouth is $35 and Sledge is $45. The Little River Band is $70. Essentially Australia’s answer to the Eagles, the Little River Band scored its biggest hits — “Lonesome Loser,” “The Night Owls,” “Lady,” “Take it Easy on Me” — in the late 1970s. Most dates on the band’s calendar are at casinos. Sledge, best known for “When a Man Loves a Woman,” is also a casino-circuit veteran.

“These (shows) were available immediately for us to try, so let’s take a shot and see what’s going to work,” Johnston said. “It’s an experiment to see what we can do. I’m going to reach out to everybody and anybody and see what’s out there.”

The Joy probably will welcome several acts Johnston booked at Harrah’s, including the female impersonator revue “Glitz,” which performed at the Joy on Jan. 7. He initially developed the “Joint’s Jumpin” revue, which features Luther Kent and other vocalists, for his planned Tchoupitoulas Street venue. Instead, he staged it at Harrah’s, and now the Joy.

Later this spring, Johnston plans to roll out a tribute to the music of The Warehouse. He has produced a similarly themed CD featuring local guitarists Cranston Clements and Jimmy Robinson.

Down the road, “we may develop one or two other house shows,” he said.

He’s confident that, given the merits of the venue, the Joy will find its place in the local entertainment firmament.

“No one knows what the true identity will be six or eight months from now. It’s going to be interesting to see how people react. Everybody so far has enjoyed the experience.”

••••••••

Music writer Keith Spera can be reached at kspera@timespicayune or 504.826.3470. Comment and read more at nola.com/music.

Louisiana coastal restoration 50-year blueprint released

2012-01-16T23:28:00.000-06:00

By Mark Schleifstein, The Times-Picayune

Declaring Louisiana’s loss of coastal wetlands “nothing short of a national emergency,” state officials today released a $50 billion, 50-year strategy for rebuilding land and increasing protection from storm surge for coastal communities that they say can be paid for with money the state is reasonably sure it will receive.

Master plan to protect and restore Louisiana's coast (click to enlarge)

The strategy is outlined in the Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority’s draft five-year master plan update, which for the first time contains maps showing the location and scope of proposed projects and maps showing what the state’s coastline will look like in 2061 if they’re built. Lists of the projects also show their cost.

The master plan was made available on the Web Thursday at noon at www.coastalmasterplan.la.gov.

Also included is a map showing the wetlands loss that will occur by 2061 if the master plan isn’t implemented and the extent of flooding from storm surges that will accompany a 100-year hurricane in 2061 if the projects aren’t built.

The document makes clear that some smaller coastal communities, and some segments of rapidly eroding coastal wetlands, will be losers in the expensive race to restoration.

The state has lost 1,883 square miles of land during the past 80 years, an area three-quarters the size of Delaware, and authority Chairman Garret Graves said it is impossible to return the state’s coastline to its 1930s condition. Even having a coastline in 2061 that resembles the current one might be impossible, he said.

If nothing is done, what would happen to Louisiana's coast from a 100-year storm surge in 2061 (click to enlarge)

But if the projects outlined in the plan work, Louisiana would see more land gained than lost by 2042, with that gain averaging about 2.5 square miles a year by 2061. By then, the projects would have built 859 square miles of new land, although much of the gain will be offset by erosion elsewhere.

“We put together realistic parameters here,” Graves said.

‘Moderate’ take on future

The $50 billion that the plan requires over 50 years includes a share of fines from the 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil spill, congressional appropriations for levee and restoration programs, and a share of federal offshore oil money that will increase to about $200 million a year in 2017.

Improved levee protection and strategically placed restoration projects will decrease by $5.4 billion the average annual damage caused by flooding from storms after 2061, Graves said — though he estimates there will still be an average of $2.3 billion in damage.

View full sizeLouisiana Coastal Protection and Restoration AuthorityEast Grand Terre Island before a $31 million rebuilding program.

The report emphasizes that even with the additional improvements, people living along the coast will still face risk from flooding.

The damage estimate is based on a “moderate” view of future land loss, adopting midrange scenarios for the strength of hurricanes and the rate of sinking soils and sea-level rise.

View full sizeLouisiana Coastal Protection and Restoration AuthorityEast Grand Terre Island after rebuilding of the 2.8-mile, 620-acre barrier shoreline and marsh.

Those estimates are based on land loss rates ranging from 15 square miles to 51 square miles a year. The less-optimistic scenario would result in the loss of 1,756 square miles during the next 50 years, or almost as much land as was lost in the past 70 years.

Though it uses estimates based on the Army Corps of Engineers’ climate change-driven scenarios, the report itself does not include an explanation of climate change, or even use the words “climate change” or “global warming.”

The plan calls for allocating half the $50 billion to risk-reduction projects such as levees, and half to restoration projects.

Varying levels of strength

The master plan includes both 100-year and 500-year levee projects. A 100-year levee protects from surges caused by a hurricane with a 1 percent chance of occurring any year, similar to Hurricane Gustav’s effects in New Orleans in 2008. A 500-year levee protects from surges caused by a hurricane with a 0.2 percent chance of occurring in any year, a bit stronger than Hurricane Katrina as it went ashore in Mississippi.

View full sizeLouisiana Coastal Protection and Restoration AuthorityGoose Point Marsh along the northern shoreline of Lake Pontchartrain before a $20.8 million restoration project.

Restoration measures will include the use of sediment and water from the Mississippi and Atchafalaya rivers to maintain and rebuild land, including cypress swamps, marshes, ridges and barrier islands. Projects will include diversions that would pump as much as 250,000 cubic feet per second of sediment and water during high-river events, and much smaller amounts at other times. The sediment would build and maintain wetlands.

View full sizeLouisiana Coastal Protection and Restoration AuthorityGoose Point Marsh after 437 acres of new wetlands were created and and 114 acres of degraded wetlands were nourished in 2009.

Other projects will pump dredged sediment through pipelines to rapidly build land bridges and wetlands that would then be maintained with diversions. Similar methods would be used to build and maintain barrier islands and beaches.

New 100-year levees would be built during the next 20 years to protect Slidell and LaPlace. The Slidell levee system would cost $72 million, while extending the existing lakefront levees to LaPlace would cost $469 million. The levee at Alliance in Plaquemines Parish also would be upgraded to 100-year protection, for $510 million.

To the west, the proposed, 72-mile Morganza to the Gulf levee surrounding Houma would be built to 100-year standards, for $4 billion. The 100-year Larose to Golden Meadow levee would cost $258 million.

A new 100-year levee also would be built to protect communities in Iberia and Vermilion parishes, for $1.6 billion.

Major N.O. area upgrade

Between 2031 and 2061, the recently completed 100-year New Orleans area levee system would be upgraded to provide 500-year protection for $1.8 billion. A 100-year ring levee would be built at about the same time around the Lafitte area, for $856 million. A 500-year ring levee around Lake Charles also would be built, costing $1.1 billion.

View full sizeLouisiana Coastal Protection and Restoration AuthorityBarataria Basin Landbridge before dedicated dredging.

The report says $12.9 billion will be spent on “nonstructural measures,” including raising residential and commercial properties, “floodproofing” homes and businesses, and buying homes in the most at-risk areas. State officials say they expect only 70 percent to 80 percent of those eligible to participate, and they will continue to recommend that participation be voluntary.

View full sizeLouisiana Coastal Protection and Restoration AuthorityBarataria Basin Landbridge after dedicated dredging.

Those measures would be available to communities like Isle de Jean Charles, a village in Terrebonne Parish largely populated by members of the United Houma Nations. The Army Corps of Engineers, in approving that Morganza to the Gulf levee system, determined it was not cost-effective to extend it to include the village.

“Could you take $300 million to protect Isle de Jean Charles or some other smaller community? Yes, you could do that,” Graves said. “But what that means is a trade-off for maybe the 500-year level of protection for New Orleans, where you get the best bang for the buck.”

While it’s still unclear how the “nonstructural” projects would be paid for, state officials said state money would be used where necessary to elevate homes to levels required by the National Flood Insurance Program, which could be as much as 14 to 17 feet above sea level.

Parishes will be asked to incorporate nonstructural requirements in zoning ordinances and building codes, and the state also will be lobbying federal agencies, including FEMA and the Department of Housing and Urban Development, for financial assistance.

Investment in marshes

The biggest chunk of money set aside for restoration, $17.9 billion, will be spent on marsh creation.

In the New Orleans area, the biggest of these projects during the plan’s first 20 years will be the creation of 8,513 acres of marsh in the eastern New Orleans landbridge, which divides Lake Borgne from Lake Pontchartrain, for $2.448 billion.

A similar project creates 5,378 acres of marsh to the west of Myrtle Grove in the Barataria Basin for $1.7 billion.

Another $304 million will create 2,443 acres of marsh in the Golden Triangle area, sandwiched between the Gulf Intracoastal Waterway, the Mississippi River-Gulf Outlet and the northwestern edge of Lake Borgne.

In the plan’s last 30 years, the biggest project is the creation of 15,972 acres of wetlands in the Biloxi Marsh adjacent to Delacroix, for $1.6 billion. Another 2,009 acres of marsh will be built along the northern rim of Barataria Bay for $223 million.

While only $4.3 billion is set aside for diversions, they’re likely to be the most controversial projects in the master plan. There will be seven diversions along the Mississippi River, with all but one operating only during moderate to high river flows.

For instance, a $219 million diversion into upper Breton Sound on the east side of the river near Braithwaite would capture 8 percent of the river’s flow when it rises above 200,000 cubic feet per second, increasing with the flow. During high river events, the diversion would pump 250,000 cubic feet per second into the sound, about as much water as the Bonnet Carre Spillway is designed to move into Lake Pontchartrain during emergencies.

A diversion into lower Breton Sound would operate with a maximum of 50,000 cubic feet per second under a similar stepped scale.

On the western side of the river, similarly sized diversions would pump water into Barataria Bay at Myrtle Grove and at Empire.

In the southeastern region, the plan also includes $845 million for rebuilding barrier islands and headlands along the coast from just south of Port Fourchon in Lafourche Parish to Sandy Point, just west of Venice.

Residents’ voices to be heard

The public is being asked to comment on the draft plan through Feb. 25.

The restoration authority will hold three public meetings across the state. Each begins with an open house at 1 p.m., followed by a public hearing from 5:30 p.m. to 7:30: p.m.:

Jan. 23, New Orleans, at the Lindy Boggs Conference Center Auditorium on the University of New Orleans campus.
Jan. 24, Houma-Terrebonne Civic Center
Jan. 25, Lake Charles Civic Center.

Mark Schleifstein can be reached at mschleifstein@timespicayune.com or 504.826.3327.

WWOZ plays an offbeat Christmas

2011-12-31T10:37:00.000-06:00

A devoted Ozillian, I've been trying to think of something to write about my favorite radio station, WWOZ-FM, 90.7 on your dial. Its claim to fame is "bringing New Orleans music to the universe."

OZ's volunteer DJs have been playing some pretty quirky holiday music, even by New Orleans standards.

We've heard Boogie Woogie Santa Claus by Mabel Scott; What Will Santa Claus Say When He Finds Everybody Swinging? by Louis Prima; The 12 Drinks of Christmas by Frankie Ford; Zat You Santa Claus? by Louis Armstrong; Thanks for the Boogie Ride by Anita O'Day; Little Drummer Boy played by Kermit Ruffins; Dig That Crazy Santa Claus by Oscar McLollie & His Honey Jumpers; Irma Thomas singing Christmas Without the Creole; I'm Gettin' Nuthin' For Christmas on the Yule Be Miserable album by Spike Jones and What Child is This by the great Mahalia Jackson.

I can't remember which standard - maybe A Holly Jolly Christmas - was rewritten with the lyrics, "Christmas music is making me crazy," which, of course, it does after hearing it for two months everywhere you go from Walgreens to Target. So, these offbeat versions broke the monotony.

The WWOZ playlist is pretty cool. I've never tried to find a song before. I do especially love OZ's Latin shows, Tiene Sabor (You Got Taste) and Tudo Bem (Everything's Cool). You can search the playlist by date, artist, album title or DJ.

One of the DJs told a cute story the other day. A guy wandered into the studio, which is located in the French Market, asking for the title of the song he had heard on air a few days before. He was wearing a jogging outfit and introduced himself as Laurence. He couldn't recall which day, but the song played in the afternoon afternoon - a blues song, something about being depressed and losing his girlfriend. The dedicated volunteer struggled to identify the song, although all blues songs have similar themes.

When he left, she realized he was Laurence Fishburne.

Yoga before dawn

2011-12-30T09:34:00.000-06:00

Mr. Singh really wants me to be his protégé. I see him almost daily and he asks me to join him on the front porch the next morning for yoga.

I love the idea of greeting the sun with a pure and uncluttered mind. It is undeniable that such action would make the whole day go much better. Better than, say, watching the TV morning news or "The View." Talk about clutter!

Starting the day looking through e-mail cannot be good for the soul. First there are the job alerts for positions I cannot possibly qualify to apply. Then, there are the appeals - save the whales, save human rights, save the media, save democracy, etc. There are Linked In updates so I can take note of who has connected with who! New York Times headlines pop up as well as Truthout and New Orleans City Business updates. Do I need to know how far Michele Bachmann is sinking in the polls? There could be a couple more responses to the evite I sent. I might get a blog comment to approve - that's fun. And I do enjoy checking the stats to see how many people in Indonesia and the Ukraine are reading my posts. I'm not sure why.

In the midst of all that are real communications. My graphic designer has sent revised layouts for review and editors sent assignments. An online bill is due. An actual friend might just be saying, hello.

Exactly how much information do we need? Or do we need any at all? Mr. Singh would probably go with the latter. Millions go blissfully through their day, knowing absolutely nothing about the Chinese economy - that is, until China buys Yahoo! (or cashes in its U.S. IOU). Many go to the polls knowing essentially nothing about the candidates. Yeah, Fox News! God help you if you pay attention to the financial pundits. They'll have your head spinning in no time.

I used to shun newspapers. Now, I pile up old ones I haven't read so I can catch up later - I might have missed something! I understand those who refuse to start a facebook page, sort of. Who cares what others are doing right now? Most of the people who "friend" me I hardly know. Occasionally, though, I do get to see a cute baby picture that might have escaped notice.

Mr. Singh wants me to wake at 5 a.m., as he does, and sit quietly on a woven mat for two hours. In theory, it sounds like a good idea, but it is really cold out there, especially squatting on the front porch with the dew still hanging in the air. By the time I rouse, he finished an hour ago and I've missed the yoga class again.

But I can't stop myself at night from reading another chapter or trying to get through the "The New Yorker" and then it is impossible to wake up for yoga.

I'll probably see him again today, strolling along, wearing a warm-up suit his son bought him. He'll clasp my hands in his and say, "I see" when I make my usual excuses.

Best po-boy a highly contested topic

2011-12-29T12:19:00.000-06:00

Johnny's serves up a delicious roast beef po-boy in the Quarter

By Brett Anderson, The Times-Picayune

Of the many camps that form the diverse Nation of Roast Beef Po-boy Connoisseurs, no two would appear to be more at odds than the toasted bread adherents and those who demand their bread as God/Leidenheimer intended/delivered it.

EnlargeDavid Grunfeld, The Times-PicayuneDAVID GRUNFELD / THE TIMES-PICAYUNE Johnny's roast beef po-boy at 511 St. Louis Street, New Orleans Monday December 26, 2011. $13,500 doesn’t sound like a lot of money today. But on June 30th, 1950 it was enough to buy the building at 511 St. Louis St. in New Orleans by Johnny and Betty De Grusha.Johnny's roast beef po-boy gallery (14 photos)

The battle lines were drawn in the comments section of a po-boy dispatch published this month on NOLA.com. “Toasted bread? It’s not a po-boy,” wrote “royrogers,” although he loosened the grip on that staunch position in a later post.

Another commenter, “slophry,” stuck harder to his/her guns, arguing that “toasted French bread is going to act different than non-toasted French bread,” particularly in the way it reacts to “the gravy and juices … I prefer a soft French bread over a crispy French bread especially for the roast beef. I love it when the bread gets soaked in the gravy. Point being that toasting the bread will result in a different experience over non-toasted bread.”

Slophry essentially makes an argument opposite to those proffered by members of the camp where I pitch my tent — a place that, thanks to the comparative resilience of toasted bread, requires a fraction of the number of napkins as its rival. In a nutshell, toasted bread fans like a sandwich that stands a chance of holding its shape to the last bite. For untoasted fans, sloppiness is pretty much the point of a roast beef po-boy.

All of which brings us to Johnny’s Po-Boys, the raucous, 60-some year-old breakfast-and-lunch hall. If there’s a better po-boy shop in the French Quarter, I haven’t been to it.

Johnny’s roast beef po-boys are, according to general manager (and grandson-in-law of founder Johnny De Grusha) Mike Cancienne, built from meat slow-boiled with garlic, black pepper, onions, bell pepper and celery, “kind of like you do with your crawfish or your crabs, so it takes on all that flavor.”

After it’s done, the beef is left to soak in a pot of gravy in the open kitchen behind the counter, waiting to be plucked by tongs. It’s delicious.

Johnny’s kitchen staff will gladly griddle-toast the Leidenheimer bread for your roast beef po-boy if you ask, but people who don’t specify receive their sandwich on untoasted loaves, which is how I tried mine. Shake your head no when asked whether your order is to go. It means your sandwich will be served on a plate, not steaming inside a cocoon of butcher paper.

The first half is a reminder that fresh po-boy bread can be crisp-skinned and sturdy, even untoasted. Because it has had longer to soak up the gravy, the second half comes closer to slophry’s messy ideal. The sum total is the best of both worlds, Switzerland in the shape-shifting form of a roast beef po-boy, a sandwich two opposing camps in the N.R.B.P.C. should be able to agree on.

The steamboat venerated

2011-12-28T06:00:00.001-06:00

Steamboat legacy to be celebrated in New Orleans

By Richard Thompson, The Times-Picayune

Two centuries ago, Capt. Nicholas Roosevelt set out to do something that no one had done before: Travel from Pittsburgh to New Orleans in the first steamboat to cross the country's inland waterways. With his wife, Lydia, a daughter, Rosetta, and a large Newfoundland dog named Tiger in tow, Roosevelt's journey started in October 1811. Three months later, the steamship New Orleans arrived in the Crescent City, as crowds gathered on the levee and watched the boat steam by.

Now, to mark the bicentennial anniversary of the historic voyage, the River Heritage Foundation and the Propeller Club of New Orleans are teaming up on Jan. 28, 2012, for a full day to reflect on the trip and the legacy of the steamboat, including a symposium at the Hilton New Orleans Riverside hotel, a reenactment of Roosevelt's voyage, a river parade and a horse-and-carriage parade in the French Quarter, followed by a Mass at the St. Louis Cathedral and reception at the Cabildo.

From 1812 on, steamboats began crowding the country's waterways, turning the inland river system into a main route for commerce and westward migration. The waterways establish their place as "the highway that makes the region's economy work," said Mark Fernandez, an associate professor of early American and Southern history at Loyola University.

Fernandez will be on hand to talk about legal hurdles that the burgeoning industry faced early on. Court challenges were filed almost immediately after that first trip, with steamboat operators trying to establish and compete against local steamship monopolies. About a decade later, the U.S. Supreme Court stepped in and ruled that Congress' right to regulate interstate commerce trumped legislation that individual states could pass, putting an end to localized monopolies.

"That really just kind of opened up the whole bonanza to the riverboats and independent companies and free trade on the river," Fernandez said.

Before Roosevelt's voyage, the main means for transporting freight and passengers on inland waterways was by flatboat. Developed during the late colonial era, flatboats easily floated downriver but struggled to move against the current, said Richard Campanella, a geographer and research assistant professor at Tulane University who recently wrote a book about teenage Abraham Lincoln guiding a flatboat down the Mississippi River to New Orleans in the 1820s.

"Steamboats solved that," Campanella said.

These days, outside of New Orleans, hoping aboard a steamboat can require some effort: Two are still in operation: the local steamboat Natchez, which offers cruises along the Mississippi River, and the Belle of Louisville, which is approaching its 100 year anniversary in 2014, said Chuck Parrish, a retired historian for the Army Corps of Engineers who is slated to discuss highlights since the steamboat New Orleans set sail at the symposium.

"We've seen the influence of steamboats in the culture of our country, especially through the development of music associated with the rivers," Parrish said. "Jazz music originated on steamboats, and Louis Armstrong got his start as a jazz musician on a steamboat."

American Cruise Lines, which specializes in small ship cruising, plans to debut its steamship Queen of the Mississippi next year, which will initially travel from New Orleans to Memphis with six stops along the way, including Baton Rouge and Natchez, Miss.

For his part, Parrish is betting that there's still a calling for it, likely from nostalgic travelers.

"I think many of them will jump at the chance again to experience that form of travel," he said. "Hopefully, if they do their marketing right, they will attract folks who will look at it as a new form of opportunity of tourism and travel as well."

Fernandez agreed, and said he hoped that the day's events could get others to stop and think about the history of the ships.

"I think, especially among younger generations, the awareness of steam and its power is probably not very well recognized. Ancient history, to them, is the floppy disk, and so much of our commerce today is on the Internet," he said. "I think a lot of Americans really don't think about it."

Richard Thompson can be reached at rthompson@timespicayune.com or 504.826.3496.

Quarterback Drew Brees sets record, wins crown

2011-12-27T13:56:00.001-06:00

Photo credit: Michael DeMocker, Times-Picayune

On the night after Christmas, New Orleans Saints quarterback Drew Brees broke an NFL record that had stood for nearly three decades, and New Orleans beat its archrival Atlanta 45-16 to clinch the fifth division crown in franchise history. The victory keeps the Saints (12-3) in the hunt for the No. 2 seed in the NFC playoffs, and its convincing nature offered further evidence no team in football is more explosive than New Orleans.

The Saints, undefeated at home this season, have now won seven in a row.

All of those heartwarming holiday milestones the team reached paled, however, to Brees breaking Dan Marino's record of 5,084 passing yards in a season. Brees threw for 307 yards in the game, but it was a 9-yard scoring pass to running back Darren Sproles with 2:51 remaining, and the Saints already holding a commanding lead, that gave him 5,087 for the season.

Brees thrust a fist into the air exultantly and then was mobbed by teammates led by guard Carl Nicks. Even referee Jeff Triplette came over and shook Brees' hand. The performance also left Brees as the only player in NFL history to throw for more than 5,000 yards in a season twice.

"It was a big win, a special night for us with all of it kind of culminating in one game," Coach Sean Payton said.

Brees' record overshadowed a more sustained assault the Saints are putting on the NFL's offensive record book, in an outing that left the already playoff-bound Falcons (9-6) completely outclassed by the divisional champ. For example, Brees also extended his streak of consecutive games throwing a touchdown pass to 42 as he chases a mark even older than Marino's -- Johnny Unitas' 47. Similarly, the Saints amassed 463 yards, leaving them with 6,857 yards for the season and 219 short of the all-time record set by the St. Louis Rams' "Greatest Show on Turf."

There's a lot still to be written, and we look forward to that," Payton said.

The Saints now host the Carolina Panthers on New Year's Day in a game that holds significance only if the San Francisco 49ers lose at St. Louis on the same day. In that case, a Saints' victory would give them the No. 2 seed and a bye in the playoffs before hosting a home game.

From the outset Monday night, a setting in which the Saints traditionally play superb football, it was clear New Orleans was a team on a mission.

While opening a 21-10 halftime lead, the Saints converted eight of eight third-down opportunities and scored touchdowns on three of their four trips inside the Falcons' 20-yard line. Running back Pierre Thomas began what would be the most points scored against Atlanta since 2004 with a 4-yard scoring run, and Atlanta sandwiched a field goal and touchdown around that to hold a 10-7 lead.

However, Brees then marched the Saints 81 yards in 10 plays, the last of them an 8-yard scoring toss to wide receiver Marques Colston, and though 70,086 in attendance didnt yet know it, the rout was on.

"It was a huge deal," Colston said of Brees' record and the win. "To be able to do it against the Falcons and for the division and on Monday night, all those things just make it more special. It was a huge win, and to be able to achieve that is obviously a great thing for us. But we've got higher places to go."

With just 24 seconds left in the first half, Jimmy Graham collared a 9-yard touchdown pass from Brees, a catch that made Graham the first Saints tight end to have 10 touchdown catches in a season.

In the second half, Brees added a 24-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Robert Meachem and then the record-breaker to Sproles, giving Brees four scoring strikes in the game.

Brees said that, after the Meachem score, he overheard a voice on the sideline saying, "you're really close," and it struck him as an improper vibe.

"Like jinxing a no-hitter," Brees said. "I mean, we were rolling at that point. Like a pitcher -- don't talk to him, leave him alone."

Yet, from a purely statistical standpoint, it wasn't his finest effort. Brees also threw two interceptions, one of them a bizarre pass to the end zone that Falcons safety William Moore batted high in the air and back toward the goal line, where it was caught by cornerback Dominique Franks.

The first of those picks ended a streak of 233 passes by Brees without an interception, the longest such streak of his career, and the second helped hold his quarterback rating for the game to 96.8. But all of that could not blemish the uncontestable fact Brees was commanding one of the best offenses football has ever seen.

Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan, who completed 34 of 52 passes for 373 yards, managed to move the ball at times against a Saints defense that appeared to play with more and more emotion as New Orleans' lead widened and Brees closed on Marino's mark. Despite the Falcons best efforts, they managed two field goals by Matt Bryant in the second half -- the first a 51-yarder that made the score 28-13 and the second a meaningless 30-yarder that finished Atlanta's scoring.

The Saints' defensive spirit burst into flower after Bryant made that second field goal. After the Saints, playing conservatively with the big lead, went three-and-out, linebacker Scott Shanle stripped Falcons wide receiver Julio Jones of the ball. New Orleans safety Malcolm Jenkins scooped up the bouncing ball and raced 30 yards untouched for a touchdown that made the score 38-16.

That score also provided Payton the cushion he needed to give the green light to Brees push for the yardage record in the closing minutes. With the game and the divisional crown in hand, the team cast its steely gaze at Marino's venerable achievement when they took over on downs at the Atlanta 33 with 5:08 left.

Brees insisted he didn't know the exact number he needed at that point. Leading up to the game Brees said he strove to compartmentalize the record and the game itself, and that mindset carried over into the fourth quarter.

On a third-and-9, Brees went to Colston on the left side for 12 yards, then hit Devery Henderson for 11 more. After a bullet to Henderson on the next snap went incomplete, Brees and Sproles hooked up for the memorable touchdown.

"That's when I knew I had done it," Brees said. "Just an amazing feeling."

Nicks said the pretzel he put his quarterback in when he "bum- rushed" him after the record was set was a labor of love.

"If Hollywood were to make a movie I don't know if Tom Cruise could play him," Nicks said. "This guy is out of this world. Probably one of the best guys I know, period. If I could put him on my shoulders and parade him around the whole stadium I would have done that."

Afterward, even the media broke into applause when Brees entered the postgame interview room.

"Not as tough a crowd as I thought," Brees joked, before immediately turning to the rewards the team had reaped. "It feels great to be division champs. It feels great to have done what we just did, especially on Monday night before a national audience."

But he did permit himself a personal note.

"I haven't had a whole lot of time for reflection," he said. "For now, I just feel like there's still so much to be done. I do feel life his short and you have to enjoy these things. I'm never going to take it for granted."

James Varney can be reached at jvarney@timespicayune.com or 504.717.1156.

Mardi Gras History: the rise of the superkrewe

2011-12-26T18:00:00.002-06:00

By The Times-Picayune

In the 1960s, Endymion and Bacchus emerged as a new kind of krewe. Emphasizing enormous floats and celebrity guests, these superkrewes set themselves apart from the more traditional Carnival organizations by allowing anyone who was willing to pay annual dues to join.

With thousands of riders and a celebrity-studded lineup of special guests, Endymion quickly rose to the rank of superkrewe after its maiden voyage through Mid-City in 1967. Endymion set itself apart from the traditional krewes with generous distribution of throws, animated floats and identifiable themes.By the 1980s, both krewes had throngs of loyal fans flocking to see them. A third superkrewe, Orpheus, began parading in 1993.

As the parade has grown, staking out a viewing spot for Endymion has become as much a tradition as the event itself. Spectators armed with ladders, lawn chairs and refreshments set up camp, sometimes days before the parade rolls.

Bacchus, which was formed in 1968 by restaurateur Owen “Pip” Brennan Jr., was the first Carnival krewe to invite celebrity guests to serve as king each year. In 1969, Bacchus rolled for the first time with Danny Kaye as its king. The list of Bacchus kings has since expanded to include celebrities such as Bob Hope, Henry Winkler, Charlton Heston, Dick Clark, Larry King, Drew Brees and Val Kilmer.

The Krewe of Orpheus is the most recent addition to the superkrewe trio. Founded in 1993 by a group that included Harry Connick Jr. and Harry Connick Sr., Orpheus was the first superkrewe to open its membership to both men and women.

Times-Picayune captures the year in pictures

2011-12-26T14:38:00.000-06:00

The Times-Picayune recaps the year in photographs.

Birds flock to New Orleans

2011-12-26T10:22:00.000-06:00

Louisiana's Christmas Bird Count is full of surprises

By Ashley Crawford, The Times-Picayune

What does a Green-tailed Towhee, Great Kiskadee and Say's Phoebe have in common? They are rare birds in Louisiana circles and have been spotted during the ongoing Audubon Christmas Bird Count.

View full sizePhoto by David RingerThe burrowing owl is a western bird that is rarely found along Louisianaâs coast in the winter, so Grand Isle Christmas Bird Count participants were excited to see it.

Bird lovers across the nation are taking part in the annual census this holiday season, a census that seeks to identify and collect data on species types and population trends for scientific research.

In its 112th year, the Christmas Bird Count runs through Jan. 5. Each tally takes place in a 24-hour span and all bird sightings within a 7 ½-mile radius are recorded, according to David Muth, state director for the National Wildlife Federation's Mississippi River Delta Restoration Coalition.

In Louisiana, there are 28 count circles, including one in New Orleans.

Melanie Driscoll, director of Bird Conservation for the Gulf of Mexico and Mississippi Flyway for the National Audubon Society, said the Christmas counts allow for fun incentives such as trying to discover and observe rarities in the field.

"The fun for birders is in seeing rare and endangered birds," she said. "It's a neat way to go out and pursue a hobby and a passion."

Last year, Louisiana boasted the highest number of species in the nation, Driscoll said.

"You get to see amazing spectacles here, spectacles like water birds, and we take pride in our nature here," she added.

The counts are not only fun for birders, but they also provide a valuable index of information for scientists.

Photo by David RingerDavid Muth and Melanie Driscoll count Roseate Spoonbills and a flock of sandpipers and other shorebirds.

Data collected during the Christmas counts are housed in the Audubon database and will be used for analysis and scientific research, said Erik Johnson, Audubon's conservation biologist for the Gulf Coast and Mississippi Flyway.

The counts also provide useful habitat information for Audubon's bird preservation program, Important Bird Areas, Driscoll said.

"It's always a thrill seeing exciting species and identifying important bird areas, one of the key conservation programs," she said.

So far, this year's Louisiana count has been full of surprises.

"This has been an amazing winter, full of rarities," Johnson said. "So many exciting birds have been found."

Johnson said that one rare bird he has observed is the Green-tailed Towhee. It is easily recognized by its gray chest and bright green upperparts and is typically found in the West.

"It hasn't been spotted in Louisiana for about 15 years," he said.

Another rare find was the Great Kiskadee. Known for its distinct voice, this tropical bird is usually found in Texas.

"That's what's so great about the Christmas Bird Count," Muth said. "You'll see patterns and trends and be able to compare them from past years."

Johnson and Muth attributed the rare sightings to droughts in other parts of the country and population changes.

But the yearly ornithological census is not just for experts and experienced bird watchers.

Novices are always welcome to join count circles and no experience is necessary, Driscoll said.

"There are always opportunities for people to enjoy and learn without fully knowing," she said. "It's really a great way to just get out and enjoy the outdoors and learn a little more about birds."

To participate, beginners can simply observe and count birds in their own backyards.

Johnson said the best way to attract birds is to put out feeders and take note of the different birds that come by. Information gathered can then be turned in to local count compilers.

"The count really provides valuable knowledge," Driscoll said. "It is good for not only the birds, but also for people."

To learn more about the count, or to get involved, visit Audubon's website at http://birds.audubon.org/get-involved-christmas-bird-count.

Ashley Crawford can be reached at acrawford@timespicayune.com or 504.826.3784.

Some New Orleans residents finally get 'home for the holidays'

2011-12-25T12:00:00.005-06:00

Photo: John McCusker, Times-Picayune

Snaking down Lake Forest Blvd. in New Orleans East, a black SUV driven by a chauffeur passed visual reminders of Hurricane Katrina – a vacant school surrounded by a chain-linked fence and the deserted Methodist Ambulatory Surgery Center with a "for sale" sign posted out front.

Cast members from the NBC daytime serial, “Days of Our Lives,” were determined to make the detour last week, bringing a touch of glamour to the neighborhood.

They wanted to see Sharon Taylor in her newly renovated home they’d helped to rebuild. Last spring, several members of the cast and crew contributed much-needed funds and sweat equity to finish its reconstruction.

“Wow – six years later — it’s still pretty barren,” Arianne Zucker, the actress who plays Nicole DiMera, said after touring the previously flooded areas earlier this year.

But traveling a couple more blocks down the Lake Forest Blvd., Zucker would notice many homes cheerfully decorated for the holidays, including the modest brick house Taylor owns.

The stars’ unlikely connection came through Zack Rosenburg, cofounder of the St. Bernard Project, a nonprofit organization whose mission has been helping families, senior citizens and disabled residents return home after Hurricane Katrina.

Zack met the show’s co-executive producer Greg Meng, in Los Angeles and explained New Orleans’ continuing need for assistance. The cast had already been involved with building homes with Habitat for Humanity in other parts of the country.

“I never thought I would get back in my house,” Taylor sighed. She slept there Saturday for the first time in more than six years. Though the rooms have only a few pieces of furniture, she proudly displayed framed photographs saved from more than 8 feet of floodwater.

New kitchen cabinets and appliances, immaculate floors and freshly painted walls lent the 25-year-old house the appearance of a model home. Taylor had lived there most of her married life, raising the couple’s three children.

“I’m so happy that I’m back,” she said, acknowledging neighbors who took care of the property and mowed the grass the entire time she was gone.

Taylor hung Christmas stockings by the fireplace and placed an ornamental tree in the almost empty family room. She is one of many beneficiaries of St. Bernard Project’s “Home for the Holidays” campaign.

"There are many reasons to celebrate during the holiday season, but at SBP we are also thinking about the thousands of families who are still not able to celebrate the season at home with their loved ones,” Rosenburg said.

"We have 132 families on our waiting list and our goal is to raise over $300,000 as the year ends so that more families like Sharon's can celebrate the holidays at home in 2012," he added.

After Hurricane Katrina, Sharon and Melvin Taylor and their two daughters evacuated to Opelousas, La., where they lived almost a year in a house with 15 other people. Finally returning to New Orleans to begin rebuilding, Melvin died of a heart attack. Sharon later fell in the FEMA trailer and instantly became paralyzed. Before the storm, she had been employed by the school district in facility planning, but was then disabled.

Following months of difficult physical rehabilitation at Touro Infirmary, she slowly regained her mobility. “I am a miracle,” she said last week. A cousin heard about the St. Bernard Project and told her:

“Take this number. These people might be able to help you.”

She applied to St. Bernard Project’s program March 2011. “Days of Our Lives” staff and crew surprised her the following month, agreeing to fund the project.

St. Bernard Project sent volunteers from “here, there and everywhere,” to help out, Taylor said. The TV show’s cast and crew also spent time, sanding and painting walls.

The TV personalities came to understand why New Orleans residents wouldn’t just move to other cities; they longed to return home.

“I was born and raised in Southern California and never realized how much you (in New Orleans) live with your family – so close, so tight, generation to generation,” Zucker said.

Observing the bonds among family members and neighbors helped the actress decide to place more value on her own relationships with friends and family.

Taylor and her extended family welcomed the TV crew with home-baked praline, fresh from the oven.

After “six years, four months, 10 hours and 35 seconds,” Taylor said jokingly, she’s finally back home. Her two daughters will graduate from college this spring – one from Louisiana State University and the other from Xavier University.

“I was so determined,” she said. “You have to be determined and focused.”

NOLA letter to Santa

2011-12-24T19:11:00.000-06:00

Dear Santa, help us heal and grow

Seventeen months after Katrina, I wrote a letter to Santa that was published in The Times-Picayune. Looking back through my personal Katrina book, I found that letter and thought I would share the requests made and the results.

Cecile Tebo

Things asked for: Road Home money, fair insurance settlements, affordable housing. Street lights so Santa could find his way and street signs so he could find our homes. New streets so Santa's reindeer were not consumed by large, gaping potholes. Gas lines fixed for heat so Santa's fanny was not burned on his descent down the chimney.

And, of course, good ole peace on Earth.

Six years post-K this is my assessment of how Santa fared with these requests.

I think it is safe to say that the majority of the claims for Road Home have wrapped up. Affordable housing is still scarce. From what I understand, rents are still exorbitantly high -- often due to higher insurance costs after the disaster. However, many of our new housing developments are wrapping up completion, and I would venture to say they will assist with the city's ever-growing housing needs. Federally funded vouchers have finally made their way into town, and many of our disabled residents are being placed into their own apartments.

Streets are lighted, and street signs are much improved. However, navigation without a GPS can still be tricky. I find it funny how one street miraculously turns into another without a single turn.

As for potholes, every now and then you still hear of a car disappearing into the bowels of the earth. Lakeview, Uptown and Broadmoor streets still give your vehicle a bit of a shock as you travel these roads. Gas lines, though, seem to be working well.

Peace on Earth, an ongoing challenge, unfortunately is not one we have mastered.

Given all that, I've written a new letter for 2012.

Dear Santa,

Thank you for the gifts you have brought to us over the years, but a few pressing needs are still on our wish list.

We have a terrible problem with crime and gangs of people who have no concept of quality of life who are terrorizing those who do. Often these people have limited resources to help them in understanding what healthy living is all about. They simply go through the revolving doors of the justice and mental health systems.

My first wish, a rather large one, to say the least, is to bring us a wealth of community-based programs that will take these people as theirs. The programs would offer them mandated counseling, education, job skills training, substance abuse treatment, mental health awareness and treatment -- which will help them understand how awesome it is to be a productive member of society. Families need to learn how to instill basic concepts such as responsibility, morality, honesty and clean living.

Second, I am wishing for adequate in-patient mental health care for residents who suffer from this chronic disease. The numbers of homeless folks continues to rise, and their in-patient mental health needs are in dire need of attention.

My third wish is to bring adequate transportation to our area. Getting from point A to point B can be very time consuming and almost impossible for many commuters. We are seeing the beginnings of bike paths, but we need more to make this an adequate option for commuting.

Fourth on my list is to continue to offer employment opportunities for young leaders across the country to find their way to this city to make it their home. We have had a wonderful surge of youth who discovered New Orleans as they volunteered in rebuilding, many who never left. They are our future.

My fifth wish is to keep our political leaders strong and honest. Help them to stay motivated as they work toward making our city one that rises to the top of the rankings for a clean, healthy, smart, affordable and safe community.

And my final wish is to get the Saints back to the Super Bowl. This proved to be a catalyst for change for this precious city, and one more win would put us forever in the playbooks!

Thanks, Santa, and Happy Holidays.

••••••••

Cecile Tebo is a licensed clinical social worker who has worked extensively in crisis management. She can be reached at Cecile@Crisis504.com.

Mr. Singh is back

2011-12-24T09:09:00.000-06:00

I heard clapping the other morning and then loud laughing coming from across the street. I took a quick look as I took out the recycling, but saw nothing. Mr. Singh was sitting cross-legged on a rug, hidden behind the porch railing.

Mr. Singh had returned to Mumbai, but now he's back. When he first arrived, he made a tour of the block, saying hello to all the neighbors. Of course, Ralph is gone now, so he missed his last chance to take tea with Mr. and Mrs. Singh. (Ralph thought the invitation weird and made a face.)

Thursday morning, I joined him for yoga on the porch. "It is very important that you do this every day," he said. "If you do so, you will avoid every disease," he added. Mr. Singh is 74.

Somebody passed on a bicycle and waved. Do you know him, I asked. No, but it is important to greet everyone anyway. We generally do that here and apparently they do in India, as well.

We pressed the middle of our palms to help our hearts and squeezed the places between each finger. Then we followed our thumbs left to right to exercise peripheral vision. We threw our arms straight up over our heads and to the side like cheerleaders.

We shared big, belly laughs - which were easier than you'd think without any provocation.

Later, we sat quietly in the lotus position with our fingers in a position to open the root chakra.

Sitting silently, I really noticed sounds. Trucks rumbled along Tchoupitoulas Street and boats blasted their horns. I was aware of being very close to the river. Exposed power lines crisscross our street like the Third World and crackled under the morning dew. Doves blissfully perch there as if thousands of watts of electricity weren't passing beneath their feet.

Mrs. Singh does her yoga poses indoors because it wouldn't be proper for her to sit outside like us. Mr. Singh gets a government pension that allows him to trip around the world. He wonders at my constant activities. Women in India who do not marry never leave the family home. Why doesn't the government provide assistance to independent women? My brothers should be helping me, he said.

Well, that doesn't happen here. Brothers don't help. You have to purchase your own health insurance, which doesn't actually cover anything anyway unless you are mortally ill. You pay taxes toward social security, which supposedly will help later on, assuming the system doesn't collapse before you get there. It's the American way! and we love our freedoms. Like the Danes I met a couple of weeks ago, Mr. Singh thinks we need a new system. Yup.

Mr. Singh noted that the U.S. has a close relationship with Pakistan. I said I thought that was just temporary to have a place to land planes so we could raid Afghanistan.

He said we all have responsibility to care for each other - no matter what religion. And we must care for the little animals, too. I said I still miss Sami and he nodded. We should all be vegetarians, he said.

Quarterback Drew Brees may set record for passing

2011-12-23T19:07:00.000-06:00

Three years ago, when New Orleans Saints quarterback Drew Brees became only the second quarterback in football history to throw for more than 5,000 yards in a season, he spoke with the first one to do so and the only one to ever throw for more than Brees, Dan Marino. The topic, understandably, was Marino's single-season yardage record of 5,084, which has stood since 1984.

Ted Jackson/The Times-PicayuneNew Orleans Saints quarterback Drew Brees is 305 away from 5,085 passing yards this season and he is averaging 341 yards per game.

"We talked about it after the '08 season," Brees recalled Thursday. "And at the time it was kind of just like, OK, we made our run at it, and the chances of that happening again are probably really, really slim."

Those chances are looking fat right now. The two might have a different conversation quite soon.

Brees is 305 away from 5,085 passing yards this season and he is averaging 341 yards per game. Consequently, in what has by every measure been an extraordinary season for him, it is Marino's mark that will be squarely in the spotlight when Brees leads the Saints (11-3)against division archrival Atlanta (9-5) on "Monday Night Football."

In truth, Marino's record is imperiled regardless of whether Brees breaks it against the Falcons. Should the Saints have much on the line New Year's Day when they host the Panthers, Brees will be in the lineup and it would be almost impossible for him not to surpass the mark by the end of that game.

Nor is Brees the only quarterback who will be after Marino's record. New England's Tom Brady, with 4,593 yards thus far, also has a good shot at it. But neither Brady nor Green Bay's Aaron Rodgers, whose yardage (4,360) total trails Brees and Brady, are likely to catch Brees.

All of which means the 2012 edition of the NFL record book is likely to show, on that line, "most passing yards, season," one entry, "Drew Brees, New Orleans."

New Orleans Saints' Drew Brees talks about breaking Marino's recordIn his weekly press conference, New Orleans Saints quarterback Drew Brees talks about what it would mean to break Dan Marino's passing record and clinch the NFC South division with a win over Atlanta.Watch video

Brees, having gone through this record chase before, has always sounded the same note. He would like the record, he considers the records important, but he wants to win more.

"Honestly, I've really tried to just kind of numb my senses to the whole thing right now," he said. "And just think about winning football games, executing this offense, being as prepared as I can be, focusing on the process and then knowing the result will just take care of itself. I haven't talked with Dan yet here, this season."

Brees has a chance Monday night to etch his name in the record book and clinch the NFC South division crown.

"Does it get much better than that?" he asked.

Records are made to be broken, as iconic athletes who set them from Jack Nicklaus to Nolan Ryan are generally the first to attest. Yet despite changes to football, particularly on offense since Brees was 5 years old in Austin, Texas, and Marino set the single-season yardage record in Miami, the single-season mark has remained.

Saints Coach Sean Payton employed a classic version of the modern football staple -- "it is what it is" -- when asked if the longevity of Marino's record surprised him.

"I don't know that anything really surprises you," Payton said. "Our game has evolved. I think you're seeing very good quarterback play, which is exciting. I think you're seeing over the last 20 years colleges who throw the ball much more effectively; all the way to the high school level, and that's carried over to our game in a number of ways. Typically, I think, these records in our league all get broken, and some of them just have a longer shelf life than others."

Brees has his own perspective. Like many great players, Brees is something of a football historian. On Thursday he reflected on the various high-octane offenses that helped shape his approach.

"Also one of my favorite quarterbacks of all time, Joe Montana, and the West Coast offense," he said in a discourse that touched on the 49ers, the Chargers, the Bills, the Oilers and the Rams, who set the single-season record for total yardage by a team, which the Saints are likely to shatter in 2011.

"So I think there's been these offenses kind of spread out all over the country," Brees said. "Some West Coast, some Northeast, some down South, yet everybody kind of has their own version and everybody's putting up points and putting up yards. Seems like they were throwing it a lot, maybe not according to today's standards, but it sure seemed like it."

In Brees' time, his analysis is largely correct. That would seem to augur regular assaults on Marino's record, yet before this season the only real threat was Brees in 2008.

"I am a little surprised," said Steve Hirdt, executive vice president of the Elias Sports Bureau, when asked about the longevity of Marino's record.

Statistically speaking, the big numbers in the passing game didn't emerge until the late 1970s. When the NFL had a 14-game season, only Joe Namath ever topped 4,000 yards passing in one season, barely breaking that mark with 4,007 in 1967.

A package of rules changes around 1977 and 1978 carved the first chinks in NFL defensive armor. Before that, the league's best teams usually featured a smash-mouth rushing attack, such as the Larry Csonka-led Dolphins or the Franco Harris-led Steelers. In response to that emphasis, and in an effort to make the game more exciting for fans, the NFL made two rules changes that had a dramatic effect.

The first was a blocking liberalization, essentially allowing offensive linemen more freedom of motion that reduced holding calls.

"Before that was changed, linemen couldn't even extend their arms," Hirdt said. "Afterward, protection got a whole lot better."

The second key change, he said, "was reining in bump-and-run coverage."

Thus, by the time the 1978 season commenced, the NFL had slightly tilted the field in a quarterback's advantage, but they remained level changes in the sense they applied to every team equally. What wound up radically changing the game was an intellectual and physical combination unique to San Diego, in which a coach and a quarterback put offensive football into overdrive.

Commanding an offense designed by Don Coryell, Chargers quarterback Dan Fouts broke Namath's single-season yardage mark in 1979. In 1980, Fouts broke his own record and then for good measure broke it again in 1981, throwing for 4,802 yards in a season. Within four years of the league expanding its schedule and tweaking its rulebook, the benchmark for passing yards in an NFL season increased by nearly 20 percent.

When Marino then broke the 5,000-yard barrier in 1984 his total was only a marginal improvement over Fouts'. Yet, remarkably, it has stood.

All of which can lead to only one conclusion, according to Hirdt:

"If Brees breaks the record, he will have earned it."

Saints players were more outspoken than Brees in saying they want him to break the record, but, like their quarterback, only in the context of victory over Atlanta.

"We talk about it amongst ourselves as far as offensive line goes, but I never heard coaches or him speak about it all, they're just trying to win games," guard Carl Nicks said. "He's so close, we definitely want him to get it. It's history, it's a record that might not last too long seeing how these quarterbacks are playing, but you're part of NFL history and it's a great honor and I would love to tell my kids about it 20 years down the road."

The receivers who gather in many of Brees' passes feel the same.

"We don't really get into it, it's never a deal where, 'he needs such and such yards'; we don't even know," Devery Henderson said. "Actually, we just go out and play. If it happens it happens, but it's good to be part of it."

Wide receiver Robert Meachem echoed Nicks' history reference, but pulled it back to the main task at hand.

"It would be a plus for him and a plus for us if he gets it, but at the same time all we want to do is get the 'w,'" he said.

One man who does know what's up is Marino. The NFL analyst for CBS recently approached Brees about a network segment on his teetering record.

"I respectfully just kind of said let's wait here and just kind of let everything fall into place the way it is and then we'll definitely sit down," Brees said. "I would love to do that."

James Varney can be reached at jvarney@timespicayune.com or 504.717.1156..

Philanthropist donates fir trees to Broadmoor

2011-12-23T18:04:00.001-06:00

Photo credit: David Grunfeld, Times-Picayune

"A blessing from God," said Alberta Augustus as she picked up an abandoned Christmas tree at the corner of Leonidas and Willow streets in New Orleans.

"I don't know who is leaving the trees in our neighborhood, but it is a blessing. I want to thank that person that has been dropping off the trees for at least three years," Augustus said.

Magazine is decked with holly

2011-12-23T14:59:00.001-06:00

Over the years, Magazine Street has gone from funky, antique row to upscale eclectic shopping and dining destination. It follows the curve of the Mississippi River and St. Charles Avenue about five miles from Canal Street to the River Bend in what was the town of Carrollton.

(Carrollton was named for Charles Caroll, one of signers of the American Declaration of Independence.)

Magazine, on the other hand, is derived from the French, "magasin," as the street was an early shopping district. It's been revived as such and makes a fascinating tour, block by block, when you have the time. Many entrepreneurs open up little shops and some succeed. In the meantime, they are all fun to check out.

At this time of year, you'll find retailers decorating to attract Christmas shoppers. Though not the Bloomingdale, Barney's nor Marshall Field variety of display, they are creative and colorful.

Secret Santas pay down layaway debt

2011-12-23T11:08:00.000-06:00

'Layaway angels' pay off accounts of customers in need

By Bob Warren, The Times-Picayune

Several times this holiday season, Mandeville Kmart general manager Eric Booker has been called to the checkout area by excited cashiers.

View full sizeBob Warren, The Times-PicayuneMandeville Kmart store manager Eric Booker, who has been with Kmart for 12 years, said he has never experienced anything like the layaway angels.

"They yell, 'Eric, we got another one. Eric, we got another one,' " Booker said. "We look forward to it."

It happened again on Tuesday.

"A gentleman came in and pulled out $2,000 in hundred-dollar bills," Booker said Wednesday from his busy store off U.S. 190. "He said he didn't have anything better to do with it and he wanted to help someone."

It marked yet another case in which an anonymous donor paid off the layaway account of a customer in need. Booker said 14 people have come to the Mandeville Kmart in recent weeks to pay off someone else's account, part of a nationwide phenomenon dubbed the "layaway angels."

News accounts from across the country this holiday season have chronicled the donations. Most appear to be happening at Kmart stores, although a handful of similar acts have been reported at Walmart stores as well.

A Walmart spokesperson said Wednesday that there had been similar incidents at Walmart stores, as well as some cases where shoppers as an act of holiday good will have simply offered to pay for the purchases of other shoppers. But she said she knew of no such incidents at New Orleans-area Walmarts.

A Sears/Kmart media representative said Tuesday that anonymous donors across the nation had covered more than $400,000 in layaway bills for other customers. The representative, who said he could not be quoted by name, said the first such case was at a Plainfield, Mich., store, and that it has grown so fast that store managers have been asked to alert company officials when such donations are made so the company can keep a tally.

Booker said he hasn't heard of "layaway angels" making an appearance at any other Kmarts around the New Orleans area.

He said anonymous donors at his store have donated about $10,000, enough to settle 40 to 50 layaway accounts. Booker said the store matches the donations to accounts for which customers are having difficulty paying.

Booker, who has been with Kmart for 12 years, said he has never experienced anything like it.

"I've seen things where someone helps cover somebody else's bill in the checkout line if their check is declined or something like that," he said. "But this is totally different."

He said the donors don't appear to be affiliated with any particular group and none has sought publicity.

Booker said he's had the pleasure of calling customers who were having difficulty paying on their layaway accounts to tell them they had been covered by an anonymous giver. The initial reaction is disbelief, usually followed by loud cheering, he said.

Love flowed through the clippers

2011-12-21T19:31:00.001-06:00

I-10 crash victim was a popular New Orleans barber

By Katy Reckdahl, The Times-Picayune

Mitchell Baptiste, 48, who died in a fiery hit-and-run crash Friday on the Pontchartrain Expressway, was on his way to pick up his brother at Louis Armstrong International Airport so the two could attend their mother's funeral Saturday.

View full sizeTed Jackson, The Times-Picayune archiveMitchell Baptiste is seen working as a barber in the background of this photograph taken at Danny's Divine Designs in August 2009.

Baptiste was a popular barber who in recent years had operated out of Danny's Divine Designs on South Broad Street near Cleveland Avenue. He always had more than enough paying customers to keep him busy, but he was big-hearted and would cut customers' hair for free when money was tight, friends said.

On Saturday morning, Darnell Prejean arrived at the visitation for Baptiste's mother, Brina Mae White Bond, only to hear that his friend had been killed Friday. Tears rolled down his cheeks as he tried to come to grips with the news. "I can't believe it," he said. "Mitch just cut my hair at 3 o'clock Thursday afternoon."

Because of his skills, kindness and wit, Baptiste kept customers forever, friends said. He had cut Prejean's hair since the 42-year-old was a college student. He was the only barber Richard George, 46, has ever had.

"He spoiled all of his customers: They didn't want to go nowhere but him," said Frank Clark, 60, who employed Baptiste for 15 years at Candy's Beauty and Barber Shop on South Broad.

"Every customer was special to him. Love just flowed from him through the clippers," said Errol Duvernay, 51, a friend and customer for nearly 25 years.

View full sizeDaniel Monteverde, The Times-PicayuneThe accident in the westbound lanes of the Pontchartrain Expressway caused the interstate to be closed in both directions Friday morning.

About 10:45 a.m. on Friday, Baptiste's Nissan was hit from the rear on the expressway by a driver in a black Nissan. The collision, which occurred near City Park Avenue, spun Baptiste's car into a concrete barrier and a light pole. Passers-by tried to break inside his locked car and pull him out, but it burst into flames with him trapped inside, burning his body beyond recognition.

The black Nissan that caused the wreck didn't stop. Interstate 10 was closed in both directions for hours while crews worked to clear the scene.

Word spread among some of Baptiste's friends and longtime customers Friday. Others, like Prejean, heard the news as they arrived Saturday at St. Stephen Full Gospel Baptist Church in eastern New Orleans, thinking they had come to help Baptiste bury his mother.

Baptiste, though a dapper dresser, had never owned a suit until this past week, when he bought one for his mother's funeral. The new suit had been a main topic of the week's conversation, said Prejean and Duvernay.

"Get a camera," he had told friends he knew would be at his mother's send-off. Duvernay was slated to sing a solo. And Baptiste had called George at 5:30 a.m. on Friday, asking him to be a pallbearer.

The two had spoken only briefly, just long enough to nail down the arrangements, said George, who lives on Broad near Baptiste's home. He saw his friend every morning as Baptiste walked his dog and put his young niece on the school bus, George said.

Bond's death wasn't unexpected, funeral-goers said. She had been sick, and doctors told her she likely would not survive surgery. So she called together the family to say goodbye, made out her will and planned her entire funeral -- down to the outfit she'd wear in her coffin.

"It was all planned," Duvernay said. "And then this happened."

George said the scene from the highway kept playing through his mind, first the crash and then the awful fire.

The friends wondered about the hit-and-run driver, who was going fast enough to push Baptiste's car into the light pole with such force it ignited. And who was the driver, they wondered, speculating that maybe he was young and scared, drunk, or driving a stolen car.

"It seems so cold that he kept going," George said.

Duvernay said that after the family's "double dose" of sorrow, everyone hoped for some closure.

"Whoever you are," Duvernay pleaded, "just do the right thing and come forward."

Katy Reckdahl can be reached at kreckdahl@timespicayune.com or 504.826.3396.

Santas survive the holidays

2011-12-20T21:12:00.000-06:00

Photo credit: Matthew Hinton, Times-Picayune

This blog post does not require a lot of explanation. A bunch of people dress in Santa outfits and run a race through downtown. We have Mr. Claus and Mrs. Claus - some not very convincing in their white beards.

Ready, set, go!

After the race, there is, naturally, a celebration.

Running of the Santas is not a uniquely New Orleans event, as there are 22 cities that host such a race, but we took the concept and ran with it, literally!

BP funds wetland restoration, oyster projects

2011-12-18T08:55:00.000-06:00

By Mark Schleifstein, The Times-Picayune

In a small nibble at what is expected to be a very large apple, federal and state officials announced approval Wednesday of the first $57 million for projects to reverse the damage caused by the 2010 BP oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, including $28 million for Louisiana projects. Louisiana's share will build more than 100 acres of wetlands in Plaquemines Parish, place oyster cultch on six public seed beds in several parishes, and upgrade an oyster hatchery on Grand Isle.

View full sizeRusty Costanza, The Times-Picayune archiveMarsh erodes into Bay Jimmy in February. Officials are concerned that areas such as this that lost grass due to the BP oil spill will erode faster that areas that still have healthy grass.

The money is part of a $1 billion "early restoration" payment that BP pledged as partial compensation for damage to natural resources caused by the oil from the catastrophic failure of its Macondo well.

The projects were approved by a committee of trustees representing the five Gulf Coast states and the federal departments of Interior and Commerce, and by BP. Under the Oil Pollution Act of 1990, the trustees and the parties responsible for the spill are required to complete a "Natural Resources Damage Assessment" that measures damage to resources and recommends ways to compensate for them. BP and other parties responsible for the spill may have to pay as much as $20 billion in damages.

Interior Secretary Ken Salazar announced the projects during a news conference called to announce the results of the first sale of federal offshore oil leases in the Gulf since the BP disaster.

The news conference was held at Al Sunseri's 135-year-old P&J Oyster Co. in the French Quarter, which was forced to dramatically curtail business in the aftermath of the spill because of both a lack of oysters and public fears that Louisiana oysters were contaminated.

EnlargeDavid Grunfeld, The Times-PicayuneDAVID GRUNFELD / THE TIMES-PICAYUNE Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar, left and Garret Graves, Chairman of the Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority for the State of Louisiana, watch Rachel Jacobson, U.S Department of Interior Acting Assistant Secretary for Fish and Wildlife and Parks, eat a raw oyster during a visit to P&J Oyster Company in the French Quarter Wednesday, December 14, 2011.Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar at P&J Oysters gallery (11 photos)

The oyster cultch will be placed on 850 acres of public seed beds at six locations: 3-Mile Bay and Drum Bay in St. Bernard Parish, Lake Fortuna and South Black Bay on the east bank of Plaquemines, Hackberry Bay in Lafourche Parish, and Sister or Caillou Lake in Terrebonne Parish. The seed beds are used as a source of oyster larvae by owners of private leases in several parishes, who make up the bulk of Louisiana's oyster harvesters.

The state's oyster hatchery at the Department of Wildlife & Fisheries laboratory on Grand Isle also will be improved as part of the project.

The oyster project is designed to offset the effects of oil contamination of some oyster beds, and damage to others during efforts to block oil from moving into Louisiana marshes.

The state opened numerous freshwater diversion structures along the Mississippi River in an effort to keep oil from moving into wetlands, and the freshwater hurt numerous oyster beds. Garret Graves, senior adviser on coastal issues to Gov. Bobby Jindal, said that because it was a step taken to fight the spilled oil, the damage it caused is considered by Louisiana to be the result of the spill.

View full size

Mike Voisin, owner of Motivatit Seafoods Inc. and a member of the Louisiana Oyster Task Force, said the state's oyster industry lobbied for inclusion of the oyster projects, adding that oyster production this year is down 65 percent.

"This is the trustees recognizing that damage to the oyster industry (from the spill) is an important issue, and BP also concurring that it's an important issue," Voisin said. "It's not the end, but it's a big step in the right direction."

The Lake Hermitage project in Plaquemines Parish will allow about 70 acres of marsh terraces that were to be built as part of an ongoing federal-state project to be replaced with 104 acres of unbroken marsh. An existing pipeline used to pump sediment mined from the Mississippi River will be used to fill in the project area, which is west of Pointe a la Hache.

Projects approved in other states include $11 million for oyster cultch and $2.6 million for an artificial reef in Mississippi; $9.4 million for marsh creation and $1.1 million for coastal dune improvements in Alabama; and $4.4 million for boat ramps and $600,000 for coastal dunes in Florida.

The projects are outlined in an early restoration plan and environmental assessment available at www.gulfspillrestoration.noaa.gov.

The public will have 60 days to comment on the projects, ending on Feb. 14. Public meetings will be held in Louisiana on Jan. 31, Feb. 1 and Feb. 2.

Mark Schleifstein can be reached at mschleifstein@timespicayune.com or 504.826.3327.

Archbishop reopens churches

2011-12-17T10:25:00.000-06:00

Photo credits: Rusty Costanza, Times-Picayune

The former Archbishop decided to close many Catholic churches after Hurricane Katrina, avowing budgetary issues, although he first bargained with parishioners to boost attendance in attempts to save their neighborhood churches.

Many succeeded, but their churches were closed anyway. Not only did this anger them; they refused to leave! Holding 24/7 vigils, they refused to allow church doors to be locked. Then, the police were sent in to remove them! Needless, to say, eviction was not a good public relations move - nor was it very charitable.

Photo: Rusty Costanza, T-P

Most New Orleanians are Catholic, many devout. They've attended the same churches their entire lives, made their first communions, confirmations, taken marriage vows there, etc.

After Hurricane Katrina, everybody needed to pray even more.

Four members filed a law suit in Civil court.

To make a very long story short, Our Lady of Good Counsel, one of the most hotly contested churches, is to be reopened by the new Archbishop.

Jazz Fest lineup announced

2011-12-15T21:21:00.000-06:00

2012 headliners include The Eagles, Tom Petty and Foo Fighters

Keith Spera, The Times-Picayune

The Eagles will land at the New Orleans Jazz Fest in 2012. So will Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers, the Foo Fighters, Jill Scott, My Morning Jacket, the Zac Brown Band, John Mayer, Ne-Yo, Florence + the Machine, Bon Iver, Herbie Hancock, Al Green, Yolanda Adams, Maze featuring Frankie Beverly and hundreds of Louisiana-based acts.

Check into 'Hotel California' when the Eagles touch down at the 2012 New Orleans Jazz Fest.

All are bound for the Fair Grounds for the annual New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival presented by Shell, April 27-29 and May 3-6, 2012.

"It's piled-up high, in every direction -- depth, width, height," Jazz Fest producer/director Quint Davis said. "It's the most stuff we've had, combined with the earliest we've gotten it out. The festival is growing artistically. It's growing talent-wise. It's bursting at the seams."

Click here to view the complete list of performers by weekend.

Two more major artists are confirmed, but cannot be announced before those artists reveal their own touring plans in the coming weeks.

More marquee acts translates to higher costs; Jazz Fest's talent budget runs into the millions of dollars, an expenditure that must be approved by the nonprofit New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Foundation, which owns the festival.

EnlargeMatthew Hinton, The Times-PicayuneMATTHEW HINTON / THE TIMES-PICAYUNE The Neville Brothers perform on the Acura Stage at the New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival or Jazz Fest 2011 Sunday, May 8, 2011 in New Orleans at the Fair Grounds.A look back at Jazz Fest 2011 gallery (30 photos)

The challenge facing the fest's co-producers -- Davis' Festival Productions Inc.-New Orleans and international entertainment conglomerate AEG Live -- was, "How do we generate more ticket income without raising the price?"

The solution was a "discretionary increase." Advance tickets bought before March 1 are the same price as the past two years: $40 a day when purchased as part of a limited number of weekend ticket blocks, or $45 for an individual ticket. Children's tickets remain $5.

This year, after March 1, advance single tickets will be $50. Tickets purchased at the gate will be $65, a $5 increase from last year.

"If you want to pay $5 more, you can," Davis said. "If you don't, you don't have to."

Many veteran Jazz Fest fans have wondered who would close out the Gentilly Stage in place of the now-disbanded Radiators. In 2012, it will be a one-off celebration of Preservation Hall's 50th anniversary with a parade of special guests.

"It wasn't just about the last set. It was about the whole day there," Davis said. "It was important to be deep New Orleans, and also not to initially tie (the closing slot) to one thing or one group. How can you get more heart and soul, hardcore New Orleans than Pres Hall?"

Florence Welch fronts Florence + the Machine at the 2012 New Orleans Jazz Fest.

Less hardcore New Orleans, but long sought for Jazz Fest, were Petty and the Eagles.

"We never were able to get one of them," Davis said. "To get both in the same year is a watershed. It was not easy. There were a lot of moving parts. The bottom line, beyond the money, beyond the availability and all the variables that go into booking somebody, is they wanted to do it."

The Eagles nearly committed to the 2011 festival, but ultimately passed. Bon Jovi filled that slot instead.

This time around, Eagles manager Irving Azoff greased the wheels. "If he had not gotten involved and moved this along," Davis said, "it wouldn't have happened."

So far, the Eagles have announced no other performances for 2012.

After the Eagles and Petty were confirmed, the festival received a call from the Foo Fighters camp. Ten years ago, Davis likely would not have considered a raucous arena rock band of such recent vintage. Pearl Jam's well-received set at the 2010 Jazz Fest paved the way.

"Pearl Jam opened that window," Davis said. "That was the first time we got on that ledge.

"We look at icons, people that are, besides talented and brilliant, important in a whole genre. We've always looked at it in the Santana sense, or the Al Green sense, or the Allen Toussaint sense. We saw that in (Pearl Jam's) Eddie Vedder. And you have to see that in (Foo Fighters frontman) Dave Grohl. He is a seminal figure in a few decades of American rock."

Indicative of the festival's drive to feature fresh talent, the roster includes Feist, Gomez, Iron and Wine, Grace Potter & the Nocturnals, Janelle Monae, fast-rising Texas blues guitarist Gary Clark Jr. and jazz bassist Esperanza Spalding, the surprise winner of the 2011 Grammy for best new artist.

Local heavyweights include Dr. John, the Funky Meters, Pete Fountain, Irma Thomas, the Neville Brothers and Allen Toussaint. Long-running local hard rock trio Zebra will make its Jazz Fest debut.

"All I can say is, 'Finally!'" Davis said of Zebra. "It's embarrassing that it took us this long."

Troy "Trombone Shorty" Andrews, the breakout local star of the past year, is featured for the Jazz & Heritage Foundation Gala on April 26 at the Hilton. The gala, which benefits the foundation's Don Jamison Heritage School of Music, also features Big Sam's Funky Nation, James Andrews and Glen David Andrews.

The Foo Fighters, led by Dave Grohl, second from left, are headed to the 2012 New Orleans Jazz Fest.

Expect more high-profile acts on the Fais Do-Do Stage this year. Steve Earle, Iron and Wine, Asleep at the Wheel, the Carolina Chocolate Drops and Ani Difranco are likely candidates.

"The Fais Do-Do has grown itself up," Davis said. "It's another evolution of a whole stage."

Also at the Fair Grounds, Levon Helm is slated to perform with special guest vocalist Mavis Staples. Saxophonist David Sanborn is paired with organist Joey DeFrancesco. Latin music star Paulina Rubio is slotted for May 5, aka Cinco de Mayo.

A tribute to the late Wardell Quezergue includes the Dixie Cups and Jean Knight, for whom he arranged classic singles.

Alex Chilton, the former Box Tops and Big Star frontman who lived quietly in the Treme neighborhood until his sudden death in 2010, is the subject of a tribute featuring Soul Asylum frontman Dave Pirner, Susan Cowsill, Alex McMurray and Iguanas bassist Rene Coman, a long-time Chilton sideman.

The "cubes" with the stage-by-stage, hour-by-hour schedule, won't be released until spring. As Davis tinkers with the giant puzzle, he hopes to alleviate the sort of scheduling conflicts that inevitably vex fest-goers.

"We can't keep having so many people that last hour," he said. "You'll see us break that up this year. We're going to play around with that and let more people see more people."

For the past few months, Davis and his team built the Jazz Fest schedule in secret, with no feedback from fans. He admits to a bit of trepidation just before their handiwork is revealed to the world.

But he's also confident fans will embrace the packed 2012 roster.

"This is not my first rodeo," he said. "I think they will like it."

Keith Spera can be reached at kspera@timespicayune.com or 504.826.3470. Read more music news at nola.com/music. Follow him at twitter.com/KeithSperaTP. Comment and read more at nola.com/jazzfest

'People Say' examines the business of making art

2011-12-14T18:55:00.000-06:00

By Alison Fensterstock, The Times-Picayune

Brian Boyles, the Louisiana Endowment for the Humanities' director of public relations and programs, had developed several successful panel talks and lectures since taking on management of the LHC's programming in 2006, including series of discussions on media in New Orleans, the city's mayors, and live interviews with brass bands. With People Say, which started in February, Boyles shifted the focus and the form of the traditional live artist interview.

Chris Granger / The Times-PicayuneGeorge Porter Jr., who has been on the music scene in New Orleans for decades, represents the voice of experience at the December People Say event.

For one, the talk is a conversation in the truest sense of the word. Although Boyles serves as moderator, each event features a pair of local artists who probably didn't know each other before sharing the stage. Spanning multiple genres - 2011's talks have featured filmmakers, musicians, visual artists, venue managers and exotic dancers - each talk includes one veteran and one up-and-comer, working in the same field but separated by decades.

The other, and key, component, fairly uncommon in discussions of art-making, is how the bills get paid. (Thus, the full title of the series: The People Say Project: Conversations on Culture and Money.)

The theme began to interest him, he said, when he returned to New Orleans in 2006 to hear the buzz-phrase "cultural economy" on everyone's lips. Those using it the most, it seemed, were coming from government, arts administration and tourism marketing. What was happening on the ground among the laborers in that economy, and how had it changed - or not - over the years?

"The original idea was to look at culture and money and ask if all the talk that we've heard about cultural economy and different business models for artists ... hasn't in a way been putting the horse before the cart," Boyles said.

In other words: There seemed to be an awful lot of politicking about the arts, and not a lot of talking to artists. The LEH wanted to change that.

"We started thinking about guests and a way to make it more original, and that's when we hit on the idea of intergenerational connections," Boyles said. "Because this is a city where traditions are passed forward from generation to generation, and it's also a city that's had a lot of different people and new energy injected into it in the last five years.

"So the idea was that bringing these people together might give a fuller picture of what artists face when they're trying to make a living."

Often, Boyles says, the cross-generational conversation reveals surprising things about what has changed and what's stayed the same in the business of creating culture in New Orleans over the decades.

Rapper Dee-1, who appears to be poised to break out nationally, will talk about breaking into the music business.

"We find that people have more in common than you might think," he said, "and also, the learning can go both ways."

Tonight, George Porter Jr. and rapper Dee-1 will talk about, among other things, taking New Orleans-honed music to a larger audience. Dee-1 appears to be on the cusp of a national breakout; Porter has been touring the world for more than 30 years.

The LEH's sponsorship of People Say ends in 2012, which Boyles believes is an opportunity for the series to grow outside of the academy setting. Tonight's event doubles as a holiday party and fundraiser for future People Say talks, with a buffet dinner and DJs spinning afterward. He hopes that this approach - a nightclub setting and relaxed, festive atmosphere - will be what the new People Say looks like, effectively making the context a part of the conversation.

The organizers considered choosing a permanent new home for the series, he said, but ultimately decided to let the theme of each talk reveal the appropriate venue. Bars, artists' studios, theaters and even retail spaces may play host to the series in 2012.

"There are historic spots and venues for music, and other organizations and festivals, that would be well served to have these kind of conversations in their programming," Boyles said.

"By taking it to other places, we're hoping to reach broader audiences, but we're also hoping to talk to artists in the settings that they work in. The idea is to put the conversation into different contexts and not limit it to a strict lecture setting. I really want to be able to take the conversation around the city."

PEOPLE SAY PROJECT

What: "Holiday Shakedown," featuring musicians George Porter Jr. and Dee-1, is the final installment in the 2011 series in which artists from different generations talk about the business of creating art and culture in New Orleans. A buffet dinner will be served, and DJs Maximillion and Yojimbo will spin after the discussion.

********

Alison Fensterstock can be reached at fensterstock@gmail.com. Read more music news at nola.com/music. Follow her at twitter.com/AlisonF_NOLA .

Heisman winner has New Orleans' roots

2011-12-14T08:15:00.000-06:00

Heisman Trophy winner's tale started in New Orleans

By John DeShazier, The Times-Picayune

The celebration for the Heisman Trophy winner might have stretched long into the New Orleans night Saturday after Baylor quarterback Robert Griffin III was announced as the 77th winner of the award, because the roots of Baylor's junior quarterback run directly to the Crescent City. His parents, Robert Jr. and Jacqueline, are natives who have many family members still living there.

Kelly Kline/The Associated PressRobert Griffin III, of Baylor University, holds the Heisman Trophy award after being named the winner Saturday in New York.

"I grew up in the 9th Ward, the 3rd Ward and the 4th Ward," said Robert Jr., who graduated from John F. Kennedy High School. "I started out in the Desire housing project and was in the Iberville project when I left."

"I grew up around the City Park area," Jacqueline said, "and graduated from St. Mary's Academy."

Saturday, they watched the son they raised - along with two daughters - raise the most prestigious individual award in college football, besting a five-finalist field that included New Orleans native Tyrann Mathieu, a sophomore cornerback at LSU.

Robert III won the award by 280 points; Stanford quarterback Andrew Luck finished second, with 1,407 points.

"I've always aimed for the stars," Robert III said. The Heisman "wasn't on any checklist, but it wasn't something I thought I couldn't do.

"This is huge. We'll bring it back home (to Waco, Texas) and hopefully, inspire people. Football is king in Texas. If your football team in your backyard is doing well, it gives you a little more pride."

It can do that if the backyard is in another state, too. Especially if that backyard is filled with supporters.

Robert Jr. and Jacqueline Griffin left New Orleans a couple of decades ago, after joining the Army in hopes of providing a better life for their family.

"I like the Mardi Gras thing and all of the seasons that we have in New Orleans, but I wanted to see something different," the elder Robert Griffin said. "I wanted to see mountains, I wanted to see snow."

Saturday, the retired sergeant and his wife, who also retired as a sergeant, got to see something else that might have been considered a dream a few years ago. Robert III became the first Baylor player to win the Heisman, giving the Bears a level of acclaim they never before have had.

"It's been a long journey, but he believed in everything we were teaching him," Jacqueline said. "I knew God was going to do something great in his life. I just didn't know it was going to be this.

"He's a great example for our family, for Baylor."

And, by all accounts, he's a pretty good football player, too.

Griffin III won the award after completing 267 of 369 passes for 3,998 yards and 36 touchdowns, with six interceptions. He also rushed 161 times for 644 yards and nine touchdowns.

Additionally, he led Baylor to the program's first-ever victory over Oklahoma and to a win over Texas.

"For Robert, it's the pinnacle of individual awards," Baylor coach Art Briles said. "It's a huge, huge individual award that he very much deserves."

And in a nod to Robert Jr. and Jacqueline, Briles said, "We got a person that was polished when he came to us."

In fact, Griffin III smoothly handled the entire Heisman process, eloquently crediting teammates and coaches along the way, stressing how the honor was a team award, emphasizing how much the recognition would help Baylor.

And he effusively praised his parents, too.

"The things they sacrificed for me, my two sisters, they don't go unnoticed," he said.

Some of the results were noticed in New Orleans on Saturday. There, a proud family toasted one of its own.

"Tell them thanks, for all their love and support," Jacqueline said. "Tell them thanks for supporting us and for supporting how we were raising our kids."

John DeShazier can be reached at jdeshazier@timespicayune.com or 504.826.3410.

What's So Special About New Orleans?

Saints fans keep their heads up!

Historic Joy Theater reopens as multi-use venue

By Keith Spera, The Times-Picayune

Louisiana coastal restoration 50-year blueprint released

By Mark Schleifstein, The Times-Picayune

WWOZ plays an offbeat Christmas

Yoga before dawn

Best po-boy a highly contested topic

Johnny's serves up a delicious roast beef po-boy in the Quarter

By Brett Anderson, The Times-Picayune

JOHNNY'S PO-BOYS

The steamboat venerated

Steamboat legacy to be celebrated in New Orleans

Quarterback Drew Brees sets record, wins crown

Mardi Gras History: the rise of the superkrewe

By The Times-Picayune

Times-Picayune captures the year in pictures

Birds flock to New Orleans

Louisiana's Christmas Bird Count is full of surprises

By Ashley Crawford, The Times-Picayune

Some New Orleans residents finally get 'home for the holidays'

NOLA letter to Santa

Dear Santa, help us heal and grow

Seventeen months after Katrina, I wrote a letter to Santa that was published in The Times-Picayune. Looking back through my personal Katrina book, I found that letter and thought I would share the requests made and the results.

Mr. Singh is back

Quarterback Drew Brees may set record for passing

Philanthropist donates fir trees to Broadmoor

Magazine is decked with holly

Secret Santas pay down layaway debt

'Layaway angels' pay off accounts of customers in need

By Bob Warren, The Times-Picayune

Love flowed through the clippers

I-10 crash victim was a popular New Orleans barber

Santas survive the holidays

BP funds wetland restoration, oyster projects

By Mark Schleifstein, The Times-Picayune

Archbishop reopens churches

Jazz Fest lineup announced

2012 headliners include The Eagles, Tom Petty and Foo Fighters

'People Say' examines the business of making art

By Alison Fensterstock, The Times-Picayune

Heisman winner has New Orleans' roots

Heisman Trophy winner's tale started in New Orleans

By John DeShazier, The Times-Picayune