10/31/11

Errol Laborde: When Nick Saban Blocked For Me

I was aware that this was the afternoon that LSU would be playing Alabama in Baton Rouge and, even if I had not been, certainly all the passing SUVs with tiger tails attached to their antennas would have been a reminder. It was a Saturday back in 2008. I just had not expected the traffic to be building up so early that morning. I thought I would be going through Baton Rouge in the window of time between the tailgaters, who had probably been on the road by dawn, and the non-tailgaters, who had no reason to sit in the sun for an extra two hours before kickoff. But my estimation was wrong. Seemingly everyone was in a hurry to get to Baton Rouge that day as though they needed to stand in the shadow of Tiger Stadium while getting their game faces ready.

By the time I crossed...

Posted at 09:38 AM | Permalink | Comments: 0

10/24/11

All the Men's Kings: Errol Laborde Picks the 10 Most Critical Louisiana Elections of the 20th Century and Beyond

OK, this past weekend's statewide election were not very excitingl; still, the state has a legacy of other elections which were defining moments in the state’s political history. Here’s my list in ascending order.

One caveat: Those who are currently in office were not included so as to await the perspective of history, though there is certainly reason to believe that the respective elevations of Bobby Jindal and Mitch Landrieu were also historic moments.

If there is disagreement, it is well within in the spirit of Louisiana politics to question results. Let the bashing begin:

Posted at 08:34 AM | Permalink | Comments: 0

10/17/11

Errol Laborde: Learning from Morgus the Magnificent

Halloween approaching reminds me of the interview I did with Morgus the Magnificent two and a half years ago. During the 1960s Morgus was the rage in local television when, on each Saturday night, he would introduce horror movies on television. Between segments he would stage skits featuring his towering, hooded executioner servant, Chopsley, and a skull-headed computer named E.R.I.C. (Eon Research Infinity Computer). Morgus wore a tattered white lab coat and always looked a little ghoulish. Some thought him to be a spoof, others recognized him as the genius he claimed to be. After all, only he had the intellect to write a scientific book entitled Molecules I Have Known.

When I interviewed him, Dr. Momus Alexander Morgus still claimed to live in his laboratory...

Posted at 09:47 AM | Permalink | Comments: 2

10/10/11

Errol Laborde Ponders Lip Rings at a Pizza Place

Tell me if I am wrong, please.

I was ordering lunch at one of those pizza-and-panini places. The girl behind the counter was very polite, but I couldn't help but notice two things: first, the labyrinth of tattoos up her arms; and more than that, the three rings pierced to her bottom lip.

I have long since gotten used to excessive tattooing (I don't understand it, but I accept it) but I found the lip rings to be totally unappetizing, even gross, especially within the context of ordering food.

I know the rings, like the tattoos, are someone's idea of making a statement but this statement seemed totally unsanitary - for her, if not necessarily for me. It just doesn't seem healthy to have foreign objects dangling from lips. If she had...

Posted at 07:21 AM | Permalink | Comments: 11

10/03/11

Errol Laborde Recounts Tales of a Bishop and the Saints

Philip Hannan was archbishop of New Orleans from October of 1965 to December of 1988, roughly 23 years. There was a whole generation that knew of no other archbishop. However, the time since his retirement has also been 23 years. The archdiocese is now under the third bishop since he retired, so there is another generation that knew little about him.

He was a major player in the community, a classic “bricks and mortar” bishop who wanted to build a bigger church. One of the most moving tributes to him last week came from former Congressman Joseph Cao who recalled how Hannan, through his Associated Catholic Charities, took the lead in bringing dispersed Vietnamese into the community.

Other forums will evaluate the strengths and weaknesses of his...

Posted at 08:19 AM | Permalink | Comments: 1