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A krewe is a social organization that puts on a parade or ball for the Carnival season. The term is best known for its association with Mardi Gras celebrations in New Orleans, but is also used in other Carnival celebrations around the Gulf of Mexico, such as the Gasparilla Pirate Festival in Tampa, Florida, Springtime Tallahassee, and Krewe of Amalee in DeLand, Fl with the Mardi Gras on Mainstreet Parade as well as in La Crosse, Wisconsin and at the Saint Paul Winter Carnival.
The Mistick Krewe of Comus, founded in 1856, is a New Orleans, Louisiana, Carnival krewe. It is the oldest continuous organization of New Orleans Mardi Gras festivities.
Rex is a New Orleans Carnival Krewe which stages one of the city's most celebrated parades on Mardi Gras Day. Rex is Latin for "King", and Rex reigns as "The King of Carnival".
The holiday of Mardi Gras is celebrated in all of Louisiana, including the city of New Orleans. Celebrations are concentrated for about two weeks before and through Shrove Tuesday, the day before Ash Wednesday. Usually there is one major parade each day ; many days have several large parades. The largest and most elaborate parades take place the last five days of the Mardi Gras season. In the final week, many events occur throughout New Orleans and surrounding communities, including parades and balls.
In Greek mythology, Comus is the god of festivity, revels and nocturnal dalliances. He is a son and a cup-bearer of the god Dionysus. He was represented as a winged youth or a child-like satyr and represents anarchy and chaos. His mythology occurs in the later times of antiquity. During his festivals in Ancient Greece, men and women exchanged clothes. He was depicted as a young man on the point of unconsciousness from drink. He had a wreath of flowers on his head and carried a torch that was in the process of being dropped. Unlike the purely carnal Pan or purely intoxicated Dionysos, Comus was a god of excess.
Fantasy Fest is a street party held annually in the last week of October in Key West, Florida.
Carnival Memphis, is a series of parties and festivals staged annually since 1931 in Memphis, Tennessee by the centralized Carnival Memphis Association and its member krewes during the month of June. Carnival salutes various aspects of Memphis and its industries, and is reigned over by current year's secretly selected King, Queen, and Royal Court of Carnival.
Krewe of Tucks is a New Orleans Mardi Gras krewe.
Owen Edward Brennan Sr., was a restaurateur in his native New Orleans, Louisiana. In 1946 he founded the original Owen Brennan's Vieux Carre Restaurant on Bourbon St. Owen relocated his operations to 417 Royal St. The Royal St restaurant would soon be known as "Brennan's Restaurant," and opened shortly after Owen's sudden death in 1955.
The first unofficial American Mardi Gras took place on March 3, 1699, when French explorers Pierre Le Moyne D'Iberville and Sieur de Bienville landed near present-day New Orleans, Louisiana. They held a small celebration and dubbed their landing spot Point du Mardi Gras. There were many other unofficial French celebrations on the Gulf and Atlantic coasts during the 17th century.
A mystic society is a Mardi Gras social organization in Mobile, Alabama, that presents parades and/or balls for the enjoyment of its members, guests, and the public. The New Orleans Krewe is patterned after Mobile's Mystics. The societies have been based in class, economic and racial groups. Mobile's parading mystic societies build colorful Carnival floats and create costumes around each year's themes.
Mardi Gras in the United States is not observed nationally across the country, largely due to the country's Protestant and Anglo roots. Mardi Gras and Carnival are mostly Catholic holidays, while the United States has a Protestant majority population. However, a number of cities and regions in the U.S. have notable Mardi Gras or Carnival celebrations. Most of these places trace their Mardi Gras celebrations to French, Spanish, and other Catholic colonial influences on the settlements over their history. The earliest Carnival celebration in North America occurred at a place on the west bank of the Mississippi river about 60 miles downriver from where New Orleans is today; this Mardi Gras on the 3 March 1699 and in honor of this holiday, Pierre Le Moyne, Sieur d'Iberville, a 38-year-old French Canadian, named the spot Point du Mardi Gras near Fort Jackson. The earliest organized Carnival celebrations occurred in Mobile, Biloxi, New Orleans, and Pensacola, which have each developed separate traditions. In addition, modern activities generally vary from city to city across the U.S.
The Krewe du Vieux is a New Orleans Mardi Gras krewe more fully known as the Krewe du Vieux Carré.
The Intergalactic Krewe of Chewbacchus is a science fiction–themed Mardi Gras krewe, religious and parade organization, that also features fantasy and horror groups, among other fandoms. Based in New Orleans, Louisiana, as of the 2019 parade, the Intergalactic Krewe of Chewbacchus has over 2500 dues-paying members who call themselves "ChewbacchanALIENs" or "Chewbs."
The Krewe of Cleopatra is an all female krewe and social organization.
Knights of Babylon is a New Orleans Mardi Gras krewe that was founded in 1939.
The Krewe of Armeinius is one of the private groups, krewes, that celebrate the annual Mardi Gras festival in New Orleans.
Howard Philips Smith (1956) is an American writer, novelist, and photographer, known primarily for his historical works, which focus on expanding the scope of gay history, especially in New Orleans. His books include Unveiling the Muse: The Lost History of Gay Carnival in New Orleans and A Sojourn in Paradise: Jack Robinson in 1950s New Orleans.
The Sons of Tennessee Williams is a 2010 American historical documentary film produced and directed by Tim Wolff. The film spans five decades documenting the gay carnival balls in New Orleans, and the efforts of the gay community to celebrate Mardi Gras, without being discriminated against and without fear of police intervention. It stars Charles Maddox, Tommy Dietsch, George Roth, Don Stratton, Jimmy Keyes, Mike Moreau, John Henry Bogie, Albert Carey, Bianca Del Rio and additional krewe club members that share their memories through interviews and archival footage.
References
- ↑ http://www.glbtqarchive.com/ssh/new_orleans_mgk_S.pdf [ bare URL PDF ]
- ↑ Smith, Howard Philips, Unveiling the Muse: The Lost History of Gay Carnival in New Orleans, 2017, (Jackson: University Press of Mississippi, pp. 2-12).