At 4×3 feet, Tee Teddie is anything but tee. The painting, begun in 1995 and completed in 2013, first hung in Café Tee George, artist George Rodrigue’s original Lafayette restaurant, which was replaced by the Blue Dog Café after burning in 1997. Tee Teddie was the only painting to escape the flames, while interpretations ofContinue reading “Tee Teddie (Won’t You Be My Teddy Bear?)”
Category Archives: Musings
Rodrigue’s Cajun Mardi Gras
Mardi Gras is not just about New Orleans. Cities like Mobile, AL, Galveston, TX and my hometown of Fort Walton Beach, FL also celebrate. In Louisiana, dozens of small towns host Mardi Gras parades and celebrations every year. Long before his Mardi Gras posters, George Rodrigue painted the tradition on his own, recording favorite stories andContinue reading “Rodrigue’s Cajun Mardi Gras”
Life Lessons and an Art Contest
George Rodrigue entered two art contests in his life and failed at both. By ‘failed,’ I’m not talking about losses, but more significant that he was disqualified or learned a hard lesson about cheating. “Nothing in life is fair,” my mother used to say, and maybe she was right. But in the end perhaps that’sContinue reading “Life Lessons and an Art Contest”
King Marion
For sixty-five years, the Krewe of Louisianians, comprised of the seven congressional districts of the State of Louisiana, has hosted a private Mardi Gras for 5,000 people in Washington, D.C. The three-day celebration includes the best examples of Louisiana’s food and music, while honoring its young women as princesses and festival queens. The Mardi GrasContinue reading “King Marion”
Blue Dog, The Book
“To find her you must lose her. The Blue Dog knows the way.” –Blue Dog, 1994 In March of 1992 journalist Bridget O’Brian interviewed George Rodrigue for an article, front page, center column, in The Wall Street Journal. Although George had no control over the content, O’Brian allowed him one special request. Without hesitating, heContinue reading “Blue Dog, The Book”