moments in gay new orleans history by Professor Frank Perez E-mail: [email protected] Photo by: Larry Graham, GrahamStudioOne.COM

Southern Decadence: More Than Meets the Eye In town for Decadence? Great! You’re going to have an amazing time. If you’ve attended Decadence before, you know the drill. If you’re a Decadence virgin, you’re in for a weekend you’ll never forget (depending, of course, on how much you drink)! This year over 200,000 people are expected to be in New Orleans for the annual Labor Day weekend festival—the largest crowd Southern Decadence has ever enjoyed. You already know you’re going to have a good time. What you may not know is how much money and work it takes to put on Southern Decadence. What do you mean? It’s just a big street party, isn’t it? Well yes and no. But mostly no. Southern Decadence has a long and storied history dating back to 1972. Some quick facts about Southern Decadence: > Southern Decadence did not begin as a “gay” event > The first “Southern Decadence” was a house party for about 50 people in 1972 > The first Southern Decadence Parade was in 1973 > The SD Parade is always the Sunday before Labor Day > The first Grand Marshal was named in 1974 > From 1973 to 1980, the parade began at Matassa’s Deli > Since 1981, the parade has started at the Golden Lantern > Southern Decadence is NOT New Orleans’ version of Pride > In 1997, the New Orleans Metropolitan Convention and Visitors Bureau began tracking Southern Decadence > This year, SD is expected to have an economic impact of over $200 million > Since 1996, SD has had an economic impact of over $1.7 billion > Of the forty-two times Grand Marshals have been named, thirty have been single individuals > Two Co-Grand Marshals have been named seven times > Three concurrent Grand Marshals have been named three times > Five Grand Marshals reigned in 2015 > This year, SD is led by four Grand Marshals > Since 1987, the Grand Marshal(s) have selected an official theme, color, and song > This year, the GMs have introduced the first official SD shot, the Skyy 42 What’s all this Grand Marshal business, you ask? Who wants to watch a parade? We just saw / marched in our city’s Pride Parade, you might say. Oh, honey. You just don’t know. Southern Decadence is not, nor

has it ever been, New Orleans’ version of Pride. We celebrate LGBT Pride in June just like everyone else. Whereas Pride Parades are essentially a political expression, no such agenda is associated with Southern Decadence. Southern Decadence is a party for partying’s sake—and at the heart of that party is the parade. And the parade is led by the Grand Marshals. The title of Grand Marshal is not, I repeat, not, a ceremonial one. As SD grew, the city began requiring fees for parade permits and security, sanitation, etc. Typically, producing the SD Parade costs anywhere from $12,000 to $15,000. Who pays for that? Local individuals and a handful of businesses. From the time the Grand Marshals are named in the spring, the fundraising begins. As of yet, no “Southern Decadence Angel” has stepped up and written a check to underwrite all the fees the city charges. There are official sponsors but the bulk of the money comes from a host of small fundraisers. These events range from drag shows to pot luck dinners. This year, there have been no less than 25 SD fundraising events. Whatever is left over from all the fundraising is donated to charity. The Grand Marshals are responsible for raising the money; hence, the title of Grand Marshal could easily be called “Fundraiser.” In the early years, before there was a need to raise money, the title was little more than ceremonial; the Grand Marshal, who was almost always drunk, led an informal bar crawl. In recent years being Grand Marshal has become a part-time job (and yes, the GMs are still usually drunk by the time the parade starts.) Grand Marshals are selected by and at the sole discretion of their predecessors. There are no requirements, qualifications or any other criteria necessary for selection. There is no application process. One of the most anticipated events of the year is the Grand Marshal Announcement Party. Excitement, anticipation, and speculation builds in the weeks and days following up to the climactic announcement. Sometimes, the choices are predictable, other times they are not. A few weeks after the announce-

ment, the new Grand Marshals host the Press Party to reveal their theme, colors, song, and poster. Soon, this poster will adorn the walls of just about every gay bar (all of which benefit from SD whether or not they help in the fundraising) and business in New Orleans. And then the work begins. Assisting the Grand Marshals are their lieutenants and entourages, who are also announced at the Press Party. Lieutenants’ and entourage members’ duties are whatever the Grand Marshal needs, basically everything from event planning to fastening sequins and feathers to costumes. It’s a lot of work. And so with all that in mind, allow me to introduce you to this year’s Grand Marshals: Anthony (Tony) Leggio has an extensive career in the hospitality community pertaining to event production as well as promoting New Orleans around the globe. Tony works for Hosts New Orleans and has been in the hospitality industry for over fifteen years. He has produced over 5,000 events locally and nationally during his tenure in the industry. Tony has won a number of awards for diligently promoting not only his company but New Orleans as a premier destination for convention groups. Besides his professional career, Tony has played an active role in the community. He has served as Event Chair of Art Against AIDS for the NO/AIDS Task Force and was honored as Humanitarian of the Year in 2010 by the organization. He has worked to help produce events for other noteworthy organizations such as the Cancer Crusaders, Julia Jump, NO/AIDS Task Force, National D-Day Museum, Zoo-To Do, Gambit Weekly, the Louisiana Philharmonic, The New Orleans Ballet Association, Southern Decadence, New Orleans Museum of Art and Children’s Hospital. He sits on the Board of the Gay Easter Parade and produces the successful Bunnies in the Big Easy event annually. He is also a freelance writer who has written for USA Today, several local publications, as well as contributing writer for Ambush Magazine. Tony has a blog NOLAOnReview and is part of Gambit’s Big Easy Theatre Committee. He participates in Mardi Gras extensively and has been Captain of the Mystic Krewe of Satyricon carnival organization for three years as well as King of the organization once. He has also been a past Grand Marshal for the Gay Easter Parade in 2009 and New Orleans Pride in 2012. Jeffrey Palmquist is an Assistant Manager and long-time bartender at Café Lafitte in Exile, the oldest continually operating gay bar in the United States. Jeffrey has won the Gay Appreciation Award for Bartender of the Year four times. He is also the coauthor of In Exile: The History and Lore Surrounding New Orleans Gay Cul-

ture and Its Oldest Gay Bar and coeditor of My Gay New Orleans: 28 Personal Reminiscences on LGBT+ Life in New Orleans. Jeffrey is also an active member of the LGBT+ Archives Project of Louisiana. He earned a B.A. in Health, Physical Education and Recreation from Dakota Wesleyan University in Mitchell, South Dakota and a M.A. in Sports Medicine/Athletic Training andAthletic Management from South Dakota State University in Brookings, South Dakota. In addition to working in the fields of hospitality and sports medicine, he has also worked in the airline industry. He and his partner currently live in the French Quarter. Derek Penton-Robicheaux is a native of Mississippi and a longtime resident of New Orleans. He is a national LGBT and community activist, as well as a freelance writer who has contributed to multiple publications. He is a Founder and Executive Director of the Louisiana Equality Foundation. Derek and his husband, Jon PentonRobicheaux, were legally married in Iowa on Sept. 23, 2012, and led the successful challenge to Louisiana’s same sex marriage ban as lead plaintiffs in the Federal Lawsuit, Robicheaux et al. v Caldwell et al., securing Marriage Equality here in Louisiana. Hailing from Beaumont, Texas, Felicia Phillips is the drag persona created by Philip Palumbo, more than a few years ago. Felicia’s career in Texas includes being named Miss Gay Golden Triangle and Miss Gay Beaumont as well as several bar titles. This led to being a pageant promotor and to date the longest running show director and emcee in the city. He was actively involved in organizing many fundraisers during the beginning of the AIDS crisis and continuing through 2005. His male career was that of a costume and theatrical makeup shop owner of over 20 years. Later becoming a general manager of the oldest gay bar in southeast Texas. After relocating to New Orleans in 2010, he worked first as manager of Krazy Katz on Bourbon, which became Bourbon Pride, then a Hotel Manager until joining the staff of GrandPre’s bar. After a 12 year absence from the stage, Felicia returned to help as a lieutenant for Reba Douglas, one of the Grand Marshals of Southern Decadence 2014, and has continued on with fundraising, performing, as well as gaining notoriety as The Cheese Queen, writing “The Real Cheese” column in Ambush Magazine. Without the Grand Marshals, there would be no Southern Decadence—an amazing phenomenon that makes LGBT+ life in New Orleans so unique. Cheers, and enjoy the parade!

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Gia GiaVanni Wins Miss Louisiana Leatherette 2017 @ Oz ~ New Orleans ~ Photos by Rip Naquin

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Decadence Gets Dirty raises $1,053 for Southern Decadence @ The Phoenix ~ New Orleans ~ Photos by Tony Leggio

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