TOWER - Mardi Gras is slated to begin this year with the annual Fresno celebration and parade at 2:00 p.m. on Sunday February 25th, 2001. The parade begins at the west end of Olive Ave. at Weber St. and will end at the intersection of Van Ness and Olive.
   The ritual of Mardi Gras began in New Orleans back in the seventeenth century, yet it mysteriously found its way to Fresno's Tower District in the late 1980's where it has become a locally adopted annual tradition.
    Mardi Gras, or Fat Tuesday, is February 27th and promises to be a street carnival to remember with colorful costumes, masks, live music, vendor booths, food, drink and festivity. Admission is $5 at the gate.
    In keeping with tradition, we offer a some history and background information for those party revelers who want to do it right!

MARDI GRAS HISTORY & TRADITION

     In Christian communities around the world, the 40 days preceding Easter comprise Lent, a period of fasting and penitence. It begins with Ash Wednesday, the day many Catholics go to church to receive the sign of the cross marked in ash on their foreheads, its purpose being to remind them of their own mortality. For much of the country the Tuesday before Lent is just that, a Tuesday. But in New Orleans that Tuesday is Mardi Gras or Fat Tuesday, representing the last gasp of decadence before a period of austerity.
      Mardi Gras was celebrated in the Christian countries of Europe long before the founding of the Crescent City. The day French-Canadian explorer Sieur d'Iberville and his men camped 60 miles south of New Orleans in 1699 happened to be Mardi Gras, March 3, so he named the place Pointe du Mardi Gras. It didn't take long for the French to start celebrating this holiday in the New World. Historians say that Mardi Gras was observed by masked balls and bawdy street processions in New Orleans as early as the 1700s.
     By 1806, the festivities had gotten so rowdy that Mardi Gras celebrations were forbidden, but by all accounts, this law was summarily ignored. In 1817, masks were declared illegal. But by 1823, the celebration that had been going on all along became legal again, and by 1826 even masking was legalized. "Bals masque" (masked balls), also known as "tableau balls," were so fashionable in the nineteenth century that by law the season was limited to January 1 through Mardi Gras Day in order to keep the population from celebrating all year long.
     In 1827, it was reported that John Davis' Theatre d'Orleans was such a glorious event that it continued straight from Mardi Gras until St. Joseph's Day (on March 19). By 1837, the "season" was lengthened to last from November 1 to June 1. There is much debate as to whether the first formal parade was held in 1835 or 1838, but no matter, the parades that traversed the muddy streets are said to have been wicked and satirical. The first krewe to parade was the Mystick Krewe of Comus (see "Krewes").
     Much of the pomp employed by the old krewes comes from the entertainments planned in 1872 when the Russian Grand Duke Alexis Romanoff came to New Orleans at carnival time in hot pursuit of actress Lydia Thompson. Forty businessmen got together and founded the Krewe of Rex, mounting a daytime parade in the archduke's honor. The city's upper-crust folks, always socially ambitous, decided to adopt the Romanoff household colors-purple (signifying justice), green (faith), and gold (power) - as the official Carnival colors. The local gentry also learned that the Grand Duke Alexis' favorite song was a regrettable ditty called "If Ever I Cease To Love" from the New York musical Bluebeard that starred Ms. Thompson. All these years later, it remains the official song of Carnival. (The song is indeed so forgettable that many a jazz band gives up on the melody and plays a tune akin to "Little Brown Jug").

PARADES

      There is no question that New Orleans' Mardi Gras is about parades. About 60 Carnival parades fill the schedule between January 6 and Ash Wednesday, particularly during the two and a half weeks before Mardi Gras. But the four-day Carnival weekend is when parading reaches its crescendo.
      Among those held during the four-day weekend in New Orleans are two super-parades. The first is the Endymion parade on Saturday, which bills itself as the largest non-military parade in the world. Endymion first paraded in 1967 and continues to make good its motto, "Throw 'til it hurts!" the second is the Bacchus parade on Sunday. Taken together, these krewes have a combined membership of 2,300 men, and each year toss to bystanders more than 1.5 million cups, 2.5 million doubloons, and 200,000 gross of beads.
      The crowds who attend these celebrity-studded parades tend to be denser, louder, and more aggressive than at other parades. Because these events fall on the weekend, people drive in from a 300 mile radius just for a chance to see the likes of Danny Glover or Vanessa Williams, and to have their tax attorney or former professor throw them handfuls of 12-inch pearl strands.
     Carnival Day (Tuesday) is more for families. Eager parade-goers wake up before dawn and stake out a spot along a parade route. By 7:00 A.M., St. Charles Avenue is blanketed with parade-watching equipment and essentials: special ladders, folding deck chairs, ice chests, generators; crockpots filled with red beans, barbecue pits, and buckets of Popeye's fried chicken; and video cameras and hand-held TVs. Out in Metairie, across the river, and in St. Bernard Parish, the scene is repeated for the suburban parades. By nine o'clock the streets are filled with paraders, dressed in costume and strutting their stuff. The parades begin snaking through the streets in earnest by 11:00 A.M. A lot of the local high school bands also march in parades. The good ones will march in many parades, and the money they earn goes a long way to support their schools.
     Anything goes on Mardi Gras Day. Everyone dons flamboyant costumes or bizarre make-up. Locals and out-of-towners stroll the streets dressed as packs of Energizer Rabbits, condoms, tap-dancing bottles of Chanel, the Rolling Stones, Nubian royalty, Oscar Wilde, the Romantic Poets, French Revolutionaries leading Marie Antoinette to the guillotine, and troupes of topless clowns. Transvestitism reaches the pinnacle of the art form, as the French Quarter hosts one of the most elaborate gay beauty-and-costume contests in the world. Usually, the costumes worn in the Quarter are a great deal more lascivious than those worn by the families in Metairie and along St. Charles Avenue.
     Each year New Orleanians fester with rumors concerning the goings-on at Carnival season. As the old-line krewes pride themselves on secrecy, getting the scoop on who is doing what becomes part of the fun. Good sources for the skinny on what's happenin' are limousine drivers who have been booked to tote the royalty around; the lunch crowd at Galatoire's on Friday; the noon street-corner crowd around Common and Carondelet; alteration staff at Town & Country on St. Charles Avenue; awning installers; and the maids who work on Palmer Avenue and shop at Langenstein's on Arabella Street. Perennial rumors include: one (or all) of the krewes are bankrupt; Schwegmann's Giant Supermarket has sold out of ice picks; a rider in Iris threw her three-carat diamond to the crowd by mistake; or the real queen of Comus got pregnant and the new one is a last minute replacement.
     The biggest gossip in recent times has occurred in connection with the new non-discrimination rules implemented by the city and aimed at the krewes. It all started in December of 1991, when Councilwoman Dorothy Mae Taylor co-authored an ordinance, MCS 14984, prohibiting race and sex discriminations by krewes. Those groups who had exclusive admissions policies were denied access to city services and parade permits. Of the 60 or so parade krewes, only three old-line krewes whose traditions stem from nineteenth-century elitist sensibilities viewed this as "cultural terrorism" and refused to comply: they were Mystick Krewe of Comus, the Knights of Momus, and the Krewe of Proteus.
     Krewe members aren't the only participants in the parades; marching or walking clubs feature prominently as well. The Jefferson City Buzzards is considered the oldest of marching clubs, as it was begun in 1890. They get going about 6:45 A.M. on Mardi Gras morning in the vicinity of Audubon Park and leisurely stroll toward the downtown madness. The Corner Club begins its day before 7:30 A.M. at the corner of Second and Annunciation streets. Pete Fountain's Half Fast Walking Club kicks off from Washington and Prytania streets about the same time.
     Truck parades also feature prominently on Mardi Gras Day, when five of them follow the parade of Rex downtown (they follow Argus in another neighborhood). These are comprised of over 350 decorated flatbeds with nearly 15,000 costumed maskers. The trucks are decorated by families and friends who meet on the weekends and do all the decorating and costume-making themselves. In preparation for the parades the riders must get up before dawn, drive to the starting point of the parade, and wait for up to four hours to roll.

THROWS

      Throughout the parade, masked riders stand atop two and three papier-mache, tractor-towed from which they throw plastic cups, panties, and beads, as well as metal doubloons inscribed with the logo of the krewe, to the eager crowd. The riders often spend over $1,000. on their individual stock of "throws" to give out during the parade. In the early days of the festivities, merry-makers used to carry bags of flour that they would throw at each other. When a mischievous few mixed pepper with their flour, the practice had to be discontinued and safer things thrown. These days, the typical throws are beads, "doubloons" (fake coins), and, in recent years, Zapp's potato chips, which come packaged in Carnival colors. Probably the most valued throws are the hand-painted coconuts tossed by the krewe of Zulu. Onlookers vie energetically - sometimes boldly - to catch the most "stuff."
      In recent years, it's become more commonplace for women to expose their breasts than to shout the conventional phrase, "Throw me something Mister!" in return for a long strand of faux pearls. Be warned - many an ordinarily gentle, little old sterling-headed grandmother will stomp your knuckles bloody for that aluminum doubloon, and that bamboo and rubber spear. Most important, never ever put your hand on the ground to pick up anything! If you want those beads or that doubloon, put your foot on it and don't lift your toe until you have it firmly in your hands.
     Other tips for catching favors include taking a nun in habit with you, and standing under a street lamp: she'll be a favorite target for the good Catholics on the floats. Or make a posterboard sign that says "John" and hold it up at each float, figuring that there must be at least one guy named John on every float. Or cut a large bleach bottle in half and attach the spout to a broom handle so that you have a handy tool to hold up to the riders. Another version of this is to turn an umbrella inside out and hold it up to the riders. Some parade goers with kids use a special 8 to 10 foot ladder fixed with a bench at the top for the little ones, while parents stand below balancing them. These pre-made parade ladders can be bought at many local hardware stores and cost about $60. Ladders should not be hooked together, placed at intersections or against barricades, or left unattended - or the police will confiscate them.
     The estimated size of the Mardi Gras crowd is based on the amount of trash generated. A good crowd is one that has produced 2,000 or more tons of refuse. Each parade is followed by the Sanitation Department with its street sweepers, water and brush trucks, and blowers. Watching them is almost as much fun as watching the parade.

KREWES

      Krewes (pronounced "crows") are the masking and parading clubs for which New Orleans is both famous and infamous. Several of these are described below:

Babylon - Started by a New Orleans dentist, Frank Oser, in 1939, it remains one of the 10 oldest parading krewes in the city. Its membership is made up largely of physicians. The "flambeaux" are a Babylon custom. These burning "torches" - really tubes filled with chemicals that produce a brilliant, sometimes colored, light - are traditionally carried by African Americans who march alongside the floats.
     The image of the torch was inspired by the slave ritual of Bois Caiman, performed on August14, 1791, at the beginning of the Haitian War of Independence. After a fiery parade, the slaves swore allegiance to their priest leaders. (When the war ended in 1804, Haiti emerged as the second country in the Western hemisphere to gain its independence, and the first free black nation.)

Barkus - In 1993, a new krewe was founded with membership limited to dogs and headquartered in the vicinity of the "Flea Market". Krewe of Barkus rules include this warning, "Cats, while welcome, will not be provided with security;" as well as , "No dogs may be 'in season' and owners are responsible for their own dog's scoop." This annual French Quarter event is open to the public and is a benefit for local animal shelters and national humane societies.

Carrollton - A krewe founded in 1924 by an Oak Streetbusinessman as a neighborhood parade.

Comus - From the Greek komos, meaning revelers. They are the oldest parading krewe, having originally been called "The Mystick Krewe of Comus." In 1856, six men (all Protestant, white Americans) who had moved to New Orleans from Mobile, Alabama, met at Dr. Pope's drugstore to discuss introducing their brand of Carnival to the city (parades had begun in Mobile a few years earlier). They formed a secret society along with 13 New Orleanians and mounted a tableau for 3,000 at the Gaity Theatre. Their first parade included two floats lighted by flambeaux.
     In keeping with the early Masonic traditions of secrecy, the of Comus never reveal the name of their king. Comus members are the most discriminatory of the old-liners, and up until a generation ago, they wouldn't even admit Catholics to their ranks.
     In protests to the city council's anti-discrimination ordinance, some members of Comus have replaced their Carnival night parade with a procession from Antoine's restaurant to their ball at the Municipal Auditorium. The revelers ring cowbells in honor of the group that inspired them, the Cowbellion de Rankin Society of Mobile, Alabama.

Iris - A ladies-only krewe formed in 1917, this group held its first parade in 1959, and today has over 500 members. They parade during the day on the Saturday before Mardi Gras.

Mid City - Carnival's eighth oldest parade was formed in 1930 by a group of Mid City merchants. This krewe introduced animated floats in 1947.

Momus - Chartered soon after Rex in 1872, the was named after the god of mockery. Their motto is "Dum vivimus, vivamus" ("While we live, let us live"). Members come from the ranks of the all-white Louisiana Club.

Okeanos - A krewe founded in 1949 by a group of Ninth Ward businessmen who wanted to bring Carnival to St. Claude Avenue, Carnival's original parade route.

Original Illinois Club - One of three old-line black that presents debutantes, the OIC was formed by several Creole-of-color community leaders in 1894. "Chicago Glide" is the dance unique to this club. Though the club has less than 50 members, they mount an elaborate ball for over 700 guests.

Phunny Phorty Phellows - This group of costumed men and women celebrates the official opening of Carnival season by riding a decorated streetcar along St. Charles Avenue. The group eats king cake as they toss throws to the spectators and serenade them with a jazz band. The name comes from a nineteenth-century krewe.

Proteus - Taking its name from the ocean shepherd Poseidon's seals, Proteus presented its first procession in 1882. One of the more stingy krewes in their parading days, they have now halted parading altogether due to MCS 14984, the ordinance that denies parade permits to discriminatory groups.

Rex - The main event parade of Mardi Gras Day. The King of Rex is the King of Carnival. He is always a civic and business leader, and generally a member of the old-line Boston Club (an old, conservative, Christian club). The krewe itself has the most liberal admittance policy of all the old-line groups, as they are a shade more interested in professional stature than in pedigree.
     When Frank Howard became Rex's King of Carnival in 1895, he ended up married to his queen, Lydia Fairchild, and it got tongues to wagging. Nowadays kings are old enough to be the grandfathers of queens. A feature of Rex parades is the boeuf , the fatted beef, bull, or ox that symbolizes the last meat eaten before the beginning of Lent. Rex calls the Queen of the Carnival and the Maids of the Rex Court the "Carnival Court". No other organization is entitled to use this designation.
     The charter name for the Rex organization is "The School of Design," the same group that presented the first daytime parade in the city in 1872. All Rex objects bear the motto, "Pro Bono Publico" ("For the good of the public").

Thoth - (pronounced "Toe-th"). This parading krewe was formed in 1947 to bring Mardi Gras to institutions for children and adults with disabilities.
Tucks - In 1969, two Loyola University students rag-tag parading krewe and named it for their favorite local hang-out, Friar Tuck's. Today the krewe maintains its Animal House reputation.

Zeus - The krewe that began the Metairie parade tradition in 1956.

Zulu - The Zulu Aid and Pleasure Club was founded in 1909, held its first parade in 1914, was incorporated in 1916, hosted its first celebrity monarch when Louis Armstrong became their king in 1949, and remains the most permeable of the old krewes. It has just under 400 members. Zulu is the only krewe in which the king gets to choose his own queen. During parade time, any friend of a member can pay a fee and ride in the parade.

MARDI GRAS TERMINOLOGY

BALL (ball masque, tableau ball) - a themed masked ball, where the krewe royalty is presented to the club members

BOEUF (French word) - this is a large bull or ox, which represents the ancient symbol of the last meal before the Lenten season of fasting

CAPTAIN - this is the leader of each Carnival organization

CARNIVAL (from Latin carnivale) - translated to be farewell to the flesh (the feast of Epiphany) to midnight on Fat Tuesday (the day before Lent)

COURT - this is the Mardi Gras King, Queen, maids and dukes of a Carnival organization

DEN - this is the location where the floats are built and stored

DOUBLOONS - aluminum objects resembling coins, which bear the insignia of the krewe on one side and the theme on the other; Rex krewe introduced the first one in 1960

FAVOR - these are souvenirs, given to friends or guests attending the krewe's ball by the members

FLAMBEAUX (plural) - Naphtha-fueled torches, which used to be the only source of light along the parade routes; now, they are carried along as part of the parade

INVITATION - this term refers to the printed request for attendance to a Carnival ball

KING CAKE - this is an oval pastry with a small plastic doll inside; the individual who finds the doll buys the next king cake

KREWE - (pronounced "crow") this is a term with Old English flavor, first used by the Krewe of Comus in 1857 to name a Carnival organization

LUNDI GRAS (French for Fat Monday) - this is the day before Fat Tuesday; the day is celebrated with Rex and Zulu.

MARDI GRAS - this is the day before the beginning of Lent called Fat Tuesday

MARDI GRAS INDIANS - these are groups of black men in New Orleans dressed as representations of American Indians; they are outfitted with wonderful handmade outfits, full of color.

PRALINES - Purely sweet handmade creole candy, found only in New Orleans -- a unique taste to the world.

THROWS - the items thrown from floats by the krewe members; these can be beads, plastic cups, doubloons, and toys.

   For more information about Tower Mardi Gras schedule of events, visit our TDN Mardi Gras Events page.

[Editor's note: Amy Williams contibuted to this story.]