1 00:00:03,279 --> 00:00:06,200 Speaker 1: Welcome to Part Time Genius, a production of I Heart Radio. 2 00:00:11,600 --> 00:00:13,760 Speaker 1: I guess what, Mango? What's that? Well? All right, so 3 00:00:13,760 --> 00:00:15,800 Speaker 1: you know how New Orleans is famous for being this 4 00:00:15,920 --> 00:00:18,320 Speaker 1: kind of wild party town. You I hope you've heard 5 00:00:18,320 --> 00:00:20,400 Speaker 1: this before, right, like sort of the Vegas of the 6 00:00:20,400 --> 00:00:22,880 Speaker 1: Gulf Coast. I like that at the Vegas of the 7 00:00:22,880 --> 00:00:25,119 Speaker 1: Gulf Coast. I actually just went to New Orleans for 8 00:00:25,120 --> 00:00:27,200 Speaker 1: the first time this year, and I loved it, but 9 00:00:27,600 --> 00:00:28,960 Speaker 1: I was kind of thrown off by the fact that 10 00:00:29,000 --> 00:00:30,960 Speaker 1: you can just drink on the streets there. It's kind 11 00:00:30,960 --> 00:00:33,960 Speaker 1: of amazing. Well, actually, what's weird about that is technically 12 00:00:34,040 --> 00:00:36,760 Speaker 1: it's only in the French Quarter that you're allowed to 13 00:00:36,840 --> 00:00:38,440 Speaker 1: do that, you know, as long as your drink isn't 14 00:00:38,440 --> 00:00:40,800 Speaker 1: in a glass or a metal container. But you know, 15 00:00:40,800 --> 00:00:43,559 Speaker 1: if you go into other areas that are pretty close by, 16 00:00:43,800 --> 00:00:46,280 Speaker 1: it's not a law that really gets enforced that often, 17 00:00:46,320 --> 00:00:48,560 Speaker 1: as I think you probably saw when you were there. 18 00:00:48,600 --> 00:00:51,640 Speaker 1: And this is a city where the official motto is 19 00:00:51,800 --> 00:00:54,440 Speaker 1: let the good times roll A pop quiz for you? 20 00:00:54,720 --> 00:00:56,880 Speaker 1: Do you know how to say that in French? Mango? No? 21 00:00:57,160 --> 00:00:59,840 Speaker 1: I do not, okay me either. I think it's some 22 00:01:00,040 --> 00:01:03,920 Speaker 1: thing like les le bon temp roulet. Maybe I just 23 00:01:04,160 --> 00:01:07,920 Speaker 1: butchered it completely, like I can't even imagine for all 24 00:01:07,959 --> 00:01:10,839 Speaker 1: those who speak French, and for even for those who don't, 25 00:01:10,959 --> 00:01:12,600 Speaker 1: they just know that I butchered it. I feel like 26 00:01:12,640 --> 00:01:15,520 Speaker 1: you're just saying, like the line from that Lady Lady 27 00:01:16,240 --> 00:01:20,360 Speaker 1: song or maybe from the Little Mermaid, I just stole 28 00:01:20,360 --> 00:01:23,840 Speaker 1: a line. But you know, it is kind of amazing that, 29 00:01:23,959 --> 00:01:27,759 Speaker 1: like New Orleans, it's such a good times town. But 30 00:01:27,760 --> 00:01:30,280 Speaker 1: but I'm curious, like, like, are you just telling me 31 00:01:30,319 --> 00:01:32,080 Speaker 1: that like New Orleans likes to drink? Is that? Is 32 00:01:32,080 --> 00:01:33,760 Speaker 1: that what is all about? Now? I'm pretty sure the 33 00:01:33,840 --> 00:01:37,000 Speaker 1: drinking is common knowledge at this point. It was you know, 34 00:01:37,040 --> 00:01:38,959 Speaker 1: the thing that caught my attention when we were talking 35 00:01:39,000 --> 00:01:41,399 Speaker 1: to Gabe about the research for this week was that 36 00:01:42,160 --> 00:01:44,559 Speaker 1: it's really more like what the residents used to treat 37 00:01:44,600 --> 00:01:47,720 Speaker 1: the hangover that comes after all the drinking. And that's 38 00:01:47,720 --> 00:01:51,720 Speaker 1: a big steamy bowl of yaka Maine soup, as you know, 39 00:01:51,760 --> 00:01:54,720 Speaker 1: also known as old sober. It's a soy sauce flavored 40 00:01:54,760 --> 00:01:58,360 Speaker 1: broth with noodles, beef, chicken, shrimp, hard boiled eggs, and 41 00:01:58,480 --> 00:02:01,720 Speaker 1: chopped onions. It actually sound, it is pretty good. And 42 00:02:01,760 --> 00:02:04,160 Speaker 1: the amazing thing that sets this hangover cure apart from 43 00:02:04,200 --> 00:02:07,040 Speaker 1: all the others is that it actually works. So there 44 00:02:07,040 --> 00:02:09,720 Speaker 1: were some researchers that looked into this from the American 45 00:02:09,800 --> 00:02:13,040 Speaker 1: Chemical Society, and what they've found is that the traditional 46 00:02:13,120 --> 00:02:16,080 Speaker 1: soup contains all the right ingredients to help the body 47 00:02:16,160 --> 00:02:19,240 Speaker 1: recover from a hangover. So the hardwalled eggs have this 48 00:02:19,360 --> 00:02:24,200 Speaker 1: compound that helps expel toxic substances. The salty broth helps 49 00:02:24,240 --> 00:02:28,079 Speaker 1: replenish sodium and potassium, and the beef and shrump helps 50 00:02:28,120 --> 00:02:30,640 Speaker 1: slow down the absorption of alcohol. So it's like a 51 00:02:30,680 --> 00:02:34,200 Speaker 1: one stop shop for this hangover cure. So how did 52 00:02:34,320 --> 00:02:37,280 Speaker 1: dish called yakamine with all this soy sauce flavor, How 53 00:02:37,320 --> 00:02:39,320 Speaker 1: that end up becoming a signature dish here? Like it 54 00:02:39,360 --> 00:02:42,560 Speaker 1: doesn't sound super southern, Yeah, that's true. And actually, according 55 00:02:42,600 --> 00:02:45,000 Speaker 1: to local legend, the dish came to the Big Easy 56 00:02:45,040 --> 00:02:48,240 Speaker 1: by way of local soldiers that had been stationed in Korea. 57 00:02:48,320 --> 00:02:50,799 Speaker 1: This was back during the nineteen fifties, and so when 58 00:02:50,800 --> 00:02:53,680 Speaker 1: the war was over, they brought this soup of this 59 00:02:53,800 --> 00:02:56,520 Speaker 1: yakamine soup back home with them and it's been the 60 00:02:56,560 --> 00:02:59,679 Speaker 1: city's surefire hangover cure ever since, and that's pretty neat. 61 00:02:59,720 --> 00:03:02,120 Speaker 1: So I've definitely heard before that New Orleans is one 62 00:03:02,120 --> 00:03:04,720 Speaker 1: of the most culturally diverse cities in America, and it's 63 00:03:04,800 --> 00:03:07,040 Speaker 1: kind of fun to see how it extends into food 64 00:03:07,040 --> 00:03:10,000 Speaker 1: as well. Yeah, it's that's definitely true, and it's always 65 00:03:10,000 --> 00:03:12,760 Speaker 1: been this huge cultural melting pot, going all the way 66 00:03:12,760 --> 00:03:16,280 Speaker 1: back to the beginning of that highly unusual three hundred 67 00:03:16,400 --> 00:03:20,080 Speaker 1: year old history and all of those years mingling cultures. 68 00:03:20,240 --> 00:03:22,760 Speaker 1: It's really turned New Orleans into this super fun and 69 00:03:23,440 --> 00:03:26,079 Speaker 1: very unique American city. And that's why I thought we 70 00:03:26,080 --> 00:03:28,600 Speaker 1: should focus on this today, like this all of these 71 00:03:28,639 --> 00:03:31,240 Speaker 1: one of a kind customs and traditions that make the 72 00:03:31,280 --> 00:03:35,040 Speaker 1: city unlike any other out there. So with three centuries 73 00:03:35,080 --> 00:03:37,440 Speaker 1: of stories to pull from, there's obviously a lot to 74 00:03:37,440 --> 00:04:01,520 Speaker 1: talk about. So let's dive in. Yeah, Hei, their podcast listeners, 75 00:04:01,560 --> 00:04:03,840 Speaker 1: welcome to Part Time Genius. I'm Will Pearson and as 76 00:04:03,920 --> 00:04:06,800 Speaker 1: always I'm joined by my good friend Manes Ticketer. And 77 00:04:06,800 --> 00:04:09,000 Speaker 1: then the other side of the soundproof glass, dressed to 78 00:04:09,160 --> 00:04:14,000 Speaker 1: impress as always, that is our friend and producer Loell Berlante. 79 00:04:14,760 --> 00:04:17,680 Speaker 1: Now he's picked up this mantle from where Tristan left 80 00:04:17,720 --> 00:04:20,520 Speaker 1: off of course, and today he's wearing a shirt with 81 00:04:20,600 --> 00:04:23,400 Speaker 1: a crawfish on it. He's really stepping up his game 82 00:04:23,480 --> 00:04:25,880 Speaker 1: to try to to to keep up with Tristan and 83 00:04:25,880 --> 00:04:28,359 Speaker 1: and for some reason, the crawfish has one claw in 84 00:04:28,400 --> 00:04:31,440 Speaker 1: the air and he's asking where you at? You know, 85 00:04:31,520 --> 00:04:35,560 Speaker 1: it's why apostrophe a t. I'm not sure what that means, 86 00:04:35,640 --> 00:04:38,160 Speaker 1: but that's what the shirt said, so I I do 87 00:04:38,240 --> 00:04:41,760 Speaker 1: think the crawfish is probably self explanatory. But that phrase 88 00:04:41,800 --> 00:04:44,600 Speaker 1: where yet is actually something I was reading about this week. 89 00:04:44,800 --> 00:04:47,280 Speaker 1: Apparently it's a pretty common greeting in New Orleans, kind 90 00:04:47,279 --> 00:04:49,240 Speaker 1: of a how are you doing? Of the region. But 91 00:04:49,560 --> 00:04:51,919 Speaker 1: one of the best things about the region has to 92 00:04:52,000 --> 00:04:54,160 Speaker 1: be the way the people talk. It's kind of this 93 00:04:54,320 --> 00:04:57,440 Speaker 1: hodgepodge of different languages and dialects, and you can go 94 00:04:57,480 --> 00:05:00,440 Speaker 1: into any given neighborhood and here half a dozen different 95 00:05:00,480 --> 00:05:03,159 Speaker 1: accents and idioms depending on who you're talking to and 96 00:05:03,160 --> 00:05:06,320 Speaker 1: where you are in the city. And then there's the pronunciation, like, 97 00:05:06,400 --> 00:05:09,479 Speaker 1: according to the official New Orleans website quote, we say 98 00:05:09,520 --> 00:05:12,960 Speaker 1: the street name Burgundy, not Burgundy, just because that's the 99 00:05:13,000 --> 00:05:17,360 Speaker 1: way it is. As for Calliope, say Calliope and you'll 100 00:05:17,400 --> 00:05:20,000 Speaker 1: pass for a local, so they're giving all this advice 101 00:05:20,160 --> 00:05:23,960 Speaker 1: on the site. Uh. But and you know this happens everywhere, 102 00:05:24,040 --> 00:05:28,120 Speaker 1: right Like in Chicago people call Gothe Street and in 103 00:05:28,320 --> 00:05:32,560 Speaker 1: uh in New York, Houston Street is called Houston But uh. 104 00:05:32,920 --> 00:05:34,760 Speaker 1: You know what what's interesting about New Orleans is how 105 00:05:34,760 --> 00:05:39,359 Speaker 1: so many little French idioms wound up kind of endearingly mistranslated. 106 00:05:39,680 --> 00:05:42,200 Speaker 1: For instance, in New Orleans, they don't say I gotta 107 00:05:42,240 --> 00:05:45,960 Speaker 1: go grocery shopping. They say I gotta make groceries, which 108 00:05:46,279 --> 00:05:49,120 Speaker 1: actually comes from the French expression for grocery shopping. It's 109 00:05:49,480 --> 00:05:53,320 Speaker 1: uh fair la marche. I guess the verb fair can 110 00:05:53,360 --> 00:05:56,520 Speaker 1: I either mean to do or to make, and you 111 00:05:56,520 --> 00:05:59,320 Speaker 1: wouldn't include that in your translation normally unless you're in 112 00:05:59,360 --> 00:06:02,640 Speaker 1: New Orleans. And another fun pull from the French language 113 00:06:02,680 --> 00:06:05,479 Speaker 1: is land yap, which I guess basically means a little 114 00:06:05,520 --> 00:06:07,800 Speaker 1: something extra. So maybe you go out to eat and 115 00:06:07,800 --> 00:06:09,839 Speaker 1: the waiter brings you a free dessert, or maybe the 116 00:06:09,839 --> 00:06:12,680 Speaker 1: hotel you're staying at upgrades you to a riverfront view, 117 00:06:13,160 --> 00:06:15,960 Speaker 1: and in either case you were given a land yap, 118 00:06:16,000 --> 00:06:19,000 Speaker 1: which is an old New Orleans way to foster friendship. 119 00:06:19,040 --> 00:06:21,560 Speaker 1: And and maybe some return business as well. Actually, no, 120 00:06:21,640 --> 00:06:23,880 Speaker 1: since we're talking about the way French has woven into 121 00:06:23,920 --> 00:06:26,159 Speaker 1: the language and the culture of the city, I do 122 00:06:26,200 --> 00:06:28,040 Speaker 1: feel like we should talk a little bit about how 123 00:06:28,040 --> 00:06:30,560 Speaker 1: that influence got there in the very first place. So, 124 00:06:30,760 --> 00:06:33,000 Speaker 1: as you mentioned upfront that New Orleans has a three 125 00:06:33,040 --> 00:06:35,280 Speaker 1: hundred year history, and and that's true. The city was 126 00:06:35,320 --> 00:06:39,039 Speaker 1: founded in seventeen eighteen by the French governor of Louisiana, 127 00:06:39,080 --> 00:06:41,919 Speaker 1: a guy named Jean Baptiste Bienville, and it was named 128 00:06:41,920 --> 00:06:44,200 Speaker 1: for the French head of state at the time, this 129 00:06:44,320 --> 00:06:47,640 Speaker 1: was Philippe Day Orleans. But of course, and I'm sure 130 00:06:47,680 --> 00:06:49,760 Speaker 1: I'm saying all of these words wrong, but that's what 131 00:06:49,880 --> 00:06:52,440 Speaker 1: it says. But the reality is that the French settlers 132 00:06:52,440 --> 00:06:55,240 Speaker 1: were far from the first people to live there. So 133 00:06:55,360 --> 00:06:58,400 Speaker 1: Native American communities called the place home at least six 134 00:06:58,480 --> 00:07:01,640 Speaker 1: hundred years before Being Bill got there, and many of 135 00:07:01,680 --> 00:07:03,799 Speaker 1: them are said to have lived right where the French 136 00:07:03,880 --> 00:07:07,240 Speaker 1: quarters sits today. Yeah, it's funny that that word I 137 00:07:07,240 --> 00:07:10,760 Speaker 1: mentioned a minute ago, which I probably also mispronounced land yap. 138 00:07:11,040 --> 00:07:15,120 Speaker 1: It's technically considered Louisiana French, but it's actually barred from 139 00:07:15,160 --> 00:07:18,360 Speaker 1: the Spanish language, which had taken it from Quechua, which 140 00:07:18,400 --> 00:07:21,120 Speaker 1: is spoken by Native South Americans. So I feel like 141 00:07:21,160 --> 00:07:23,960 Speaker 1: that's exactly the kind of like dense cultural overlap that 142 00:07:24,000 --> 00:07:27,119 Speaker 1: you find in almost every aspect of New Orleans. They're 143 00:07:27,280 --> 00:07:29,560 Speaker 1: all these different ethnic groups that have called the city 144 00:07:29,560 --> 00:07:32,320 Speaker 1: home over its long history, and every one of them 145 00:07:32,400 --> 00:07:34,680 Speaker 1: left its mark in ways that you can still see today. 146 00:07:35,040 --> 00:07:37,000 Speaker 1: That's right. And they don't call it the most haunted 147 00:07:37,040 --> 00:07:40,160 Speaker 1: city in America for nothing, right, Yeah, that's not exactly 148 00:07:40,160 --> 00:07:42,440 Speaker 1: what I meant. But you know, after reading up on 149 00:07:42,520 --> 00:07:45,000 Speaker 1: New Orleans history this week, I can definitely see how 150 00:07:45,040 --> 00:07:48,400 Speaker 1: the city got such a spooky reputation. It sounds like 151 00:07:48,440 --> 00:07:50,480 Speaker 1: it was a pretty rough place to live in during 152 00:07:50,520 --> 00:07:53,120 Speaker 1: the colonial era. Yeah, you know, Benville and his men 153 00:07:53,240 --> 00:07:55,480 Speaker 1: certainly had their work cut out for him, and and 154 00:07:55,560 --> 00:07:59,760 Speaker 1: France had claimed that Louisiana territory in but then didn't 155 00:07:59,760 --> 00:08:02,600 Speaker 1: do that much with it for at least a decade 156 00:08:02,760 --> 00:08:05,200 Speaker 1: or so. So you had the War of the Spanish Secession, 157 00:08:05,280 --> 00:08:07,760 Speaker 1: which began just a couple of years after the French 158 00:08:07,800 --> 00:08:10,720 Speaker 1: colony was established, and the fighting kept most of the 159 00:08:10,720 --> 00:08:13,560 Speaker 1: country's resources tied up for I guess it was the 160 00:08:13,600 --> 00:08:16,080 Speaker 1: next thirteen years or so, and so by the time 161 00:08:16,160 --> 00:08:20,040 Speaker 1: the war finally ended, France's outpost in Louisiana were pretty 162 00:08:20,080 --> 00:08:22,240 Speaker 1: much empty by that point. What was the mood like 163 00:08:22,360 --> 00:08:24,360 Speaker 1: in France during all of this? Were they so cast 164 00:08:24,360 --> 00:08:26,520 Speaker 1: strapped after the war that they couldn't fund their own colony? 165 00:08:26,800 --> 00:08:28,560 Speaker 1: I mean, they sort of were, Yeah, I mean, it 166 00:08:28,560 --> 00:08:31,720 Speaker 1: turns out that thirteen years of war can be quite 167 00:08:31,760 --> 00:08:34,000 Speaker 1: a drain on the old treasury. And you know, when 168 00:08:34,040 --> 00:08:37,120 Speaker 1: you also lose that thirteen year war, it's even worse. 169 00:08:37,760 --> 00:08:40,840 Speaker 1: That tends to drain the morale, of course, and that's 170 00:08:40,840 --> 00:08:44,560 Speaker 1: exactly the problem France was facing back in seventeen fourteen. 171 00:08:45,080 --> 00:08:47,120 Speaker 1: And then, of course, to make matters worse, there was 172 00:08:47,160 --> 00:08:50,160 Speaker 1: this stretch of bad weather that led to food shortages 173 00:08:50,320 --> 00:08:53,560 Speaker 1: and it sent many of the rural residents They're scrambling 174 00:08:53,600 --> 00:08:55,920 Speaker 1: to cities in order to try to find work, and 175 00:08:56,360 --> 00:08:59,640 Speaker 1: as a result of this, Paris was flooded with desperate people, 176 00:08:59,760 --> 00:09:02,560 Speaker 1: and of the country's capital city, it really became this 177 00:09:02,640 --> 00:09:05,120 Speaker 1: kind of den of crime and poverty at the time. 178 00:09:05,360 --> 00:09:08,160 Speaker 1: So it sounds like things are pretty dire in France. Uh. 179 00:09:08,360 --> 00:09:11,200 Speaker 1: The Louisiana colony is kind of a Wash, So how 180 00:09:11,200 --> 00:09:13,440 Speaker 1: does the monarchy end up turning all of this around? Right? 181 00:09:13,440 --> 00:09:15,960 Speaker 1: So the French king looked at everything going on and 182 00:09:16,000 --> 00:09:18,520 Speaker 1: he realized a couple of things. For one, the colony 183 00:09:18,520 --> 00:09:21,760 Speaker 1: in Louisiana could and should be making him more money 184 00:09:21,800 --> 00:09:24,600 Speaker 1: than it was. After all, Spain was rolling in the 185 00:09:24,640 --> 00:09:27,760 Speaker 1: dough thanks to its colonies in Mexico, so we thought, 186 00:09:27,920 --> 00:09:30,840 Speaker 1: why not France. But the biggest obstacle at that point 187 00:09:30,880 --> 00:09:34,120 Speaker 1: was that barely anyone was left in the Louisiana colony, 188 00:09:34,160 --> 00:09:36,839 Speaker 1: and very few people were lining up to live there, 189 00:09:36,880 --> 00:09:39,520 Speaker 1: no matter how much gold or how much land they 190 00:09:39,520 --> 00:09:43,240 Speaker 1: were promised. So second, he noticed that the prisons were 191 00:09:43,240 --> 00:09:45,559 Speaker 1: getting pretty full at the time, and this was thanks 192 00:09:45,559 --> 00:09:49,160 Speaker 1: to all the homeless citizens and petty criminals and some 193 00:09:49,240 --> 00:09:53,040 Speaker 1: prostitutes that have been just rounded up there in Paris. 194 00:09:53,120 --> 00:09:55,319 Speaker 1: And that's when the king hit upon what he hoped 195 00:09:55,360 --> 00:09:58,000 Speaker 1: would be the solution to both of his problems. He 196 00:09:58,000 --> 00:10:00,720 Speaker 1: would just force the prisoners to go and settle the 197 00:10:00,800 --> 00:10:03,400 Speaker 1: land in Louisiana. Yeah, which is kind of taking a 198 00:10:03,440 --> 00:10:05,560 Speaker 1: page from England, right, Like, isn't that what they did 199 00:10:05,600 --> 00:10:07,880 Speaker 1: in Australia? Yeah, but this was actually a good seventy 200 00:10:07,960 --> 00:10:11,160 Speaker 1: years or so before, England had turned Australia into a 201 00:10:11,240 --> 00:10:14,720 Speaker 1: prison colony, so if anything, they were the ones copying 202 00:10:14,760 --> 00:10:17,760 Speaker 1: the French. So at any rate, this is ultimately how 203 00:10:17,800 --> 00:10:21,160 Speaker 1: New Orleans was founded. It was a punishment for prisoners, 204 00:10:22,000 --> 00:10:24,800 Speaker 1: and so in January of seventeen nineteen, the King issued 205 00:10:24,840 --> 00:10:28,440 Speaker 1: a royal policy to the effects, saying, we believe that 206 00:10:28,480 --> 00:10:30,600 Speaker 1: we can do nothing better for the good of our 207 00:10:30,640 --> 00:10:33,880 Speaker 1: state than to condemn convicts to the punishment of being 208 00:10:33,920 --> 00:10:38,320 Speaker 1: transported to our colonies, which is not exactly a ringing 209 00:10:38,360 --> 00:10:42,360 Speaker 1: endorsement for Louisiana. No, I think they've changed the motto 210 00:10:42,440 --> 00:10:45,360 Speaker 1: at this point, and the word had gotten around about 211 00:10:45,360 --> 00:10:48,679 Speaker 1: how grueling it was to live in such an inhospitable region. 212 00:10:48,760 --> 00:10:51,360 Speaker 1: It was surrounded by these swamps and these marshes that 213 00:10:51,400 --> 00:10:54,280 Speaker 1: we sometimes think of with the region, and stories of 214 00:10:54,280 --> 00:10:57,000 Speaker 1: the heat and the stench and the threat of all 215 00:10:57,040 --> 00:11:00,400 Speaker 1: this disease. It, you know, it made it alan like 216 00:11:00,520 --> 00:11:03,160 Speaker 1: this trip was a death sentence, and it sort of was, 217 00:11:03,240 --> 00:11:05,800 Speaker 1: since most of the people sent there didn't live past 218 00:11:05,840 --> 00:11:08,320 Speaker 1: the age of forty. But it's not like these people 219 00:11:08,360 --> 00:11:10,360 Speaker 1: had a choice in the matter. So they were forced 220 00:11:10,480 --> 00:11:13,680 Speaker 1: onto ships and sent over a few hundred at a time, 221 00:11:13,760 --> 00:11:17,040 Speaker 1: and it wasn't until months later that someone realized they 222 00:11:17,040 --> 00:11:21,320 Speaker 1: had only been sending over male prisoners, which obviously wasn't 223 00:11:21,360 --> 00:11:24,600 Speaker 1: the ideal way to establish a thriving colony. Yeah, but 224 00:11:24,800 --> 00:11:27,160 Speaker 1: to be fair, like, no part of this sounds ideal. 225 00:11:27,400 --> 00:11:29,400 Speaker 1: It isn't just not having women that it does not 226 00:11:29,600 --> 00:11:31,880 Speaker 1: sound ideal in any way. But as bad as things were, 227 00:11:31,960 --> 00:11:35,600 Speaker 1: they only got worse from there. So pretty soon France 228 00:11:35,640 --> 00:11:40,640 Speaker 1: started sending shiploads of orphans and female convicts to Louisiana, 229 00:11:41,120 --> 00:11:43,840 Speaker 1: with many of them forced to marry male convicts in 230 00:11:43,920 --> 00:11:48,040 Speaker 1: these mass wedding ceremonies. It sounds so weird, that's horrible. 231 00:11:48,160 --> 00:11:50,320 Speaker 1: So how long did this force immigration go on for? 232 00:11:50,600 --> 00:11:55,439 Speaker 1: Till seventeen twenty two, so about three years total. And meanwhile, 233 00:11:55,480 --> 00:11:58,640 Speaker 1: the Louisiana governor, that Banville guy that we talked about before, 234 00:11:59,200 --> 00:12:02,560 Speaker 1: is trying to key this experiment from flying completely off 235 00:12:02,600 --> 00:12:05,760 Speaker 1: the rails. But he's obviously having a tough time keeping 236 00:12:05,760 --> 00:12:08,720 Speaker 1: a city of convicts and check and and he's not 237 00:12:08,800 --> 00:12:11,480 Speaker 1: exactly thrilled about the kind of settlers that France is 238 00:12:11,559 --> 00:12:14,320 Speaker 1: sending him. In fact, there's a good quote from his journals. 239 00:12:14,360 --> 00:12:17,079 Speaker 1: That really shows how frustrating it was, even for those 240 00:12:17,120 --> 00:12:21,120 Speaker 1: at the top. So Bnville rights, it is most disagreeable 241 00:12:21,160 --> 00:12:23,560 Speaker 1: for an officer in charge of a colony to have 242 00:12:23,720 --> 00:12:27,760 Speaker 1: nothing more for its defense than a bunch of deserters, contrabands, 243 00:12:27,800 --> 00:12:31,320 Speaker 1: salt dealers, and rogues who were always ready not only 244 00:12:31,360 --> 00:12:35,120 Speaker 1: to desert you, but also to turn against you. Both 245 00:12:35,200 --> 00:12:37,319 Speaker 1: Like having people who are ready to desert you and 246 00:12:37,440 --> 00:12:40,320 Speaker 1: turned against you sounds pretty awful. But I'm guessing most 247 00:12:40,320 --> 00:12:42,760 Speaker 1: of those people stayed right Well, yeah, they didn't really 248 00:12:42,760 --> 00:12:45,600 Speaker 1: have much of a choice. I mean, these were convicted criminals, 249 00:12:45,640 --> 00:12:47,680 Speaker 1: they were broke, they were stranded the middle of a 250 00:12:47,720 --> 00:12:51,360 Speaker 1: swamp and unknown country. It's hard to even imagine, so 251 00:12:51,880 --> 00:12:54,520 Speaker 1: leaving wasn't a real option. So most people just tried 252 00:12:54,559 --> 00:12:57,199 Speaker 1: to make the best of staying, and being a stranger 253 00:12:57,240 --> 00:13:00,800 Speaker 1: in a new world did have some advantages. For example, 254 00:13:01,240 --> 00:13:04,360 Speaker 1: nobody knew their names there, which meant settlers were free 255 00:13:04,400 --> 00:13:07,440 Speaker 1: to reinvent themselves and whatever way they wanted to, and 256 00:13:07,960 --> 00:13:11,240 Speaker 1: some people made up complex family histories for themselves or 257 00:13:11,240 --> 00:13:14,600 Speaker 1: added flourishes to their names to make themselves seem maybe 258 00:13:14,679 --> 00:13:17,400 Speaker 1: higher class, I guess, And there was no way to 259 00:13:17,520 --> 00:13:21,000 Speaker 1: prove or disprove any of this. So these false personas 260 00:13:21,080 --> 00:13:23,560 Speaker 1: just stuck and kind of became the new reality for 261 00:13:23,600 --> 00:13:26,160 Speaker 1: these people, which is kind of strangely fitting when you 262 00:13:26,160 --> 00:13:27,760 Speaker 1: think about some of the things that have gone on 263 00:13:27,800 --> 00:13:30,760 Speaker 1: to characterize New Orleans. Right, Like, I was actually skimming 264 00:13:30,800 --> 00:13:34,200 Speaker 1: a book this week. It's called The Accidental City, Improving 265 00:13:34,240 --> 00:13:37,000 Speaker 1: New Orleans, and there's one part where the author, who's 266 00:13:37,040 --> 00:13:39,280 Speaker 1: a native, is talking about what a fresh start this 267 00:13:39,400 --> 00:13:42,240 Speaker 1: experience was for so many settlers, and this is what 268 00:13:42,360 --> 00:13:45,199 Speaker 1: he writes, quote, we were a city of impostors in 269 00:13:45,240 --> 00:13:47,760 Speaker 1: a way. That's why Marty Graff fits so well with 270 00:13:47,800 --> 00:13:51,719 Speaker 1: our identity. We could always put on new masks. That's 271 00:13:51,760 --> 00:13:54,840 Speaker 1: pretty interesting. I actually hadn't really made that connection before. 272 00:13:55,440 --> 00:13:57,600 Speaker 1: All Right, Well, we're just scratching the surface of New 273 00:13:57,760 --> 00:14:00,800 Speaker 1: Orleans long storied history, so I feel like we should 274 00:14:00,800 --> 00:14:02,720 Speaker 1: take a quick break and then we'll jump right back in. 275 00:14:16,840 --> 00:14:18,880 Speaker 1: You're listening to Part Time Genius, and we're talking about 276 00:14:18,920 --> 00:14:21,560 Speaker 1: the chain of events that turned a French penal colony 277 00:14:21,560 --> 00:14:25,280 Speaker 1: into one of the most amazing cities in America. All Right, Mango, 278 00:14:25,400 --> 00:14:27,480 Speaker 1: So what's the next piece of New Orleans history? You 279 00:14:27,480 --> 00:14:29,600 Speaker 1: want to touch on. So we've talked a lot so 280 00:14:29,640 --> 00:14:31,720 Speaker 1: far about the French influence on the city, but there's 281 00:14:31,760 --> 00:14:34,240 Speaker 1: one part of the city they really can't claim credit for, 282 00:14:34,560 --> 00:14:38,120 Speaker 1: and strangely enough, it's the French Quarter. So despite what 283 00:14:38,160 --> 00:14:40,080 Speaker 1: the name suggests, most of the buildings in the famous 284 00:14:40,080 --> 00:14:44,080 Speaker 1: neighborhood were actually influenced by Spanish architecture, not French. So 285 00:14:44,160 --> 00:14:47,080 Speaker 1: you're saying that the French Quarter didn't exist when Binville 286 00:14:47,200 --> 00:14:49,960 Speaker 1: founded the city. It did, but it wasn't called that 287 00:14:49,960 --> 00:14:52,160 Speaker 1: at the time, and it also looked a whole lot different. 288 00:14:52,240 --> 00:14:54,480 Speaker 1: So as the city took shape under French rule, it 289 00:14:54,800 --> 00:14:57,560 Speaker 1: gradually organized around the highest patch of dry land in 290 00:14:57,600 --> 00:15:00,000 Speaker 1: the area, which was still only about ten to fifteen 291 00:15:00,080 --> 00:15:02,760 Speaker 1: feet above sea level. But what I'd kind of forgotten 292 00:15:02,960 --> 00:15:06,000 Speaker 1: was the sway that Spain had over New Orleans. So 293 00:15:06,160 --> 00:15:10,320 Speaker 1: following the Revolutionary War, France actually gave the Louisiana territory 294 00:15:10,360 --> 00:15:12,960 Speaker 1: to Spain, mostly as a way to keep England from 295 00:15:12,960 --> 00:15:14,600 Speaker 1: taking control of it. I mean, it's kind of a 296 00:15:14,640 --> 00:15:16,360 Speaker 1: long story, but you can look up the Treaty of 297 00:15:16,400 --> 00:15:20,080 Speaker 1: Fountain Blue if you're interested. But you know, Spain took 298 00:15:20,080 --> 00:15:23,960 Speaker 1: possession of New Orleans in seventeen sixty two, and they 299 00:15:24,040 --> 00:15:27,160 Speaker 1: held onto it for just under fifty years, and then 300 00:15:27,360 --> 00:15:30,840 Speaker 1: in eighteen o one a different treaty placed Louisiana back 301 00:15:30,960 --> 00:15:34,240 Speaker 1: under French rule until two years later when Napoleon sold 302 00:15:34,240 --> 00:15:35,680 Speaker 1: the whole thing to the US as part of the 303 00:15:35,760 --> 00:15:38,320 Speaker 1: Louisiana Purchase. All Right, so you're saying New Orleans has 304 00:15:38,400 --> 00:15:41,480 Speaker 1: changed hands a lot over the years, and it definitely 305 00:15:41,480 --> 00:15:43,960 Speaker 1: tracks with the cultural mishmash, and you know that you 306 00:15:44,040 --> 00:15:46,440 Speaker 1: kind of think about when you think of the characterization 307 00:15:46,480 --> 00:15:49,000 Speaker 1: of the city. But what it doesn't do, Mango, is 308 00:15:49,040 --> 00:15:52,560 Speaker 1: explain how the French quarter got so Spanish Like? Could 309 00:15:52,560 --> 00:15:55,200 Speaker 1: we get to that part? Basically, nearly all of the 310 00:15:55,240 --> 00:15:58,640 Speaker 1: original French colonial buildings in New Orleans were destroyed during 311 00:15:58,680 --> 00:16:01,480 Speaker 1: Spain's rule in the late eventeen hundreds. They weren't knocked 312 00:16:01,480 --> 00:16:04,560 Speaker 1: down on purpose, though. Basically there were these two massive 313 00:16:04,680 --> 00:16:07,880 Speaker 1: fires that laid waste to the city. And the first 314 00:16:07,880 --> 00:16:11,440 Speaker 1: fire took place in and it actually might not have 315 00:16:11,440 --> 00:16:14,000 Speaker 1: been that bad except that it happened to occur on 316 00:16:14,120 --> 00:16:17,360 Speaker 1: Good Friday, and because of that, the city's priests wouldn't 317 00:16:17,360 --> 00:16:19,960 Speaker 1: allow the church bells to be rung as fire alarms, 318 00:16:20,200 --> 00:16:23,120 Speaker 1: which made it nearly impossible to organize, like, you know, 319 00:16:23,240 --> 00:16:26,520 Speaker 1: help during all the chaos. So the fire burned unchecked, 320 00:16:26,600 --> 00:16:29,680 Speaker 1: and within five hours it had consumed eighty percent of 321 00:16:29,680 --> 00:16:31,960 Speaker 1: the city. Good, Lauren, And you're saying the same thing 322 00:16:32,040 --> 00:16:34,040 Speaker 1: happened just a few years later. Yeah, I mean, it 323 00:16:34,080 --> 00:16:37,360 Speaker 1: didn't happen during Good Friday this time. But after six 324 00:16:37,440 --> 00:16:40,760 Speaker 1: years of rebuilding, they had another fire and it was 325 00:16:41,040 --> 00:16:43,360 Speaker 1: extinguished a little bit faster, but it still took out 326 00:16:43,440 --> 00:16:46,080 Speaker 1: I guess two buildings. I don't know. It's still a 327 00:16:46,200 --> 00:16:48,520 Speaker 1: terrible thing, but but not as bad as the first one. Yeah, 328 00:16:48,560 --> 00:16:50,440 Speaker 1: that's tough luck for Spain there. And it sounds like 329 00:16:50,440 --> 00:16:54,320 Speaker 1: their entire reign in Louisiana was just fires and reconstruction. 330 00:16:54,360 --> 00:16:57,720 Speaker 1: It was like burn, build and repeat. But you know, 331 00:16:57,800 --> 00:16:59,880 Speaker 1: Span left a deep impression on New Orleans in the 332 00:17:00,040 --> 00:17:03,000 Speaker 1: little time it took over. So after that second fire, 333 00:17:03,080 --> 00:17:05,879 Speaker 1: the Spanish government started handing out loans for citizens to 334 00:17:05,920 --> 00:17:08,880 Speaker 1: rebuild their houses. But the only catch was in order 335 00:17:08,880 --> 00:17:10,520 Speaker 1: to get the money, you had to agree to build 336 00:17:10,520 --> 00:17:13,640 Speaker 1: according to the government's newly developed guidelines. And so this 337 00:17:13,720 --> 00:17:15,800 Speaker 1: is really smart. The idea was to make the city 338 00:17:15,840 --> 00:17:18,879 Speaker 1: a little more fireproof, including the switch to brick and 339 00:17:18,920 --> 00:17:22,920 Speaker 1: plaster town homes instead of those wooden cottages. And uh, 340 00:17:22,960 --> 00:17:24,960 Speaker 1: as you probably guess, this is when the French quarters 341 00:17:24,960 --> 00:17:27,680 Speaker 1: started to look a little more Spanish, you know, even 342 00:17:27,720 --> 00:17:30,919 Speaker 1: if the streets were still named for French royalty and nobility. 343 00:17:31,040 --> 00:17:33,400 Speaker 1: And the transformation proved to be a real turning point 344 00:17:33,440 --> 00:17:36,480 Speaker 1: in New Orleans history. And that's something this author Lyle 345 00:17:36,560 --> 00:17:40,000 Speaker 1: Saxon touches on in his book Fabulous New Orleans. As 346 00:17:40,000 --> 00:17:42,919 Speaker 1: he puts it, quote, the city that fell before the 347 00:17:42,920 --> 00:17:46,640 Speaker 1: flames was a congested French community of wooden houses, badly 348 00:17:46,760 --> 00:17:50,600 Speaker 1: arranged and irregular. A stately Spanish city rose in instead. 349 00:17:51,080 --> 00:17:54,160 Speaker 1: Large fan shaped windows looked down into courtyards which held 350 00:17:54,200 --> 00:17:58,720 Speaker 1: banana trees and oleanders, and balconies railed with delicately wrought 351 00:17:58,760 --> 00:18:01,800 Speaker 1: iron overhung the streets. You know, it's interesting because I 352 00:18:02,080 --> 00:18:05,879 Speaker 1: actually never really noticed how non French the French Quarter is. 353 00:18:05,920 --> 00:18:08,040 Speaker 1: But when you break it all down, it's like, yeah, 354 00:18:08,040 --> 00:18:11,680 Speaker 1: of course these are all Spanish architectural features, I guess. Yeah. 355 00:18:11,840 --> 00:18:14,119 Speaker 1: And and and that Spanish style wasn't only limited to 356 00:18:14,119 --> 00:18:17,280 Speaker 1: where people lived it. It also influenced how the city's 357 00:18:17,320 --> 00:18:20,440 Speaker 1: dead were laid arrest, so when settlers first came to 358 00:18:20,520 --> 00:18:22,400 Speaker 1: the region, they had a tough time getting there dead 359 00:18:22,440 --> 00:18:24,960 Speaker 1: to stay put. Because the water table in the area 360 00:18:25,000 --> 00:18:27,679 Speaker 1: is so high, all the burial plots had to be 361 00:18:27,800 --> 00:18:30,399 Speaker 1: dug shallow, otherwise the grave would fill with water and 362 00:18:30,440 --> 00:18:32,639 Speaker 1: the coffin would just pop out of the ground. And 363 00:18:32,680 --> 00:18:35,040 Speaker 1: they tried everything to keep the coffins in place right, 364 00:18:35,040 --> 00:18:37,000 Speaker 1: like they would board these holes into the lids to 365 00:18:37,040 --> 00:18:39,479 Speaker 1: make them less buoyant. It was a huge problem. They 366 00:18:39,720 --> 00:18:42,720 Speaker 1: e didn't like, tried weighing down the lids with heavy stones. 367 00:18:42,840 --> 00:18:45,439 Speaker 1: But you know, if a rainstorm was bad enough in 368 00:18:45,480 --> 00:18:48,119 Speaker 1: the area, which if you know the area, they have 369 00:18:48,400 --> 00:18:52,320 Speaker 1: terrible rainstorms, the coffins would still float right out of 370 00:18:52,359 --> 00:18:55,159 Speaker 1: the graves. So all of that changed during the Spanish 371 00:18:55,160 --> 00:18:58,200 Speaker 1: period when the city's current system of these burial chambers 372 00:18:58,240 --> 00:19:02,280 Speaker 1: was introduced. So you know, Orleans starts stacking their vaults 373 00:19:02,320 --> 00:19:06,359 Speaker 1: and using these more ornate tombs and crypts for for 374 00:19:06,400 --> 00:19:09,320 Speaker 1: I guess, the wealthier families. But when taken all together, 375 00:19:09,400 --> 00:19:12,200 Speaker 1: the new cemeteries kind of looked more like miniature cities, 376 00:19:12,440 --> 00:19:14,880 Speaker 1: and they were complete with these like house like tombs 377 00:19:14,920 --> 00:19:19,720 Speaker 1: and almost like avenues or streets for pathways. And while 378 00:19:19,760 --> 00:19:22,240 Speaker 1: it might seem a little micabre to have so many 379 00:19:22,240 --> 00:19:24,760 Speaker 1: reminders of death and plain view like that, these so 380 00:19:24,920 --> 00:19:27,440 Speaker 1: called cities of the Dead were so much better than 381 00:19:27,600 --> 00:19:29,679 Speaker 1: you know, stepping outside in the storm and having to 382 00:19:29,920 --> 00:19:33,159 Speaker 1: walk over your your late grandfather's coffin or whatever it 383 00:19:33,280 --> 00:19:37,000 Speaker 1: was floating down the streets, so so morbid. So these 384 00:19:37,040 --> 00:19:40,359 Speaker 1: fire codes and graveyards, you know, they definitely improved under 385 00:19:40,400 --> 00:19:43,000 Speaker 1: Spanish rain, but I mean, from everything I've read, the 386 00:19:43,080 --> 00:19:47,359 Speaker 1: space and sanitation issues were still pretty major concerns, because 387 00:19:47,600 --> 00:19:49,000 Speaker 1: you know, you've got to keep in mind, like the 388 00:19:49,200 --> 00:19:52,359 Speaker 1: entire city was still pretty much confined to the French 389 00:19:52,440 --> 00:19:55,880 Speaker 1: Quarter at that point, and everything beyond that was seen 390 00:19:55,920 --> 00:19:59,639 Speaker 1: as uninhabitable, like swamp and marsh lands, and so to 391 00:19:59,680 --> 00:20:02,040 Speaker 1: make the land usable, the city would need to build 392 00:20:02,119 --> 00:20:05,560 Speaker 1: these levees and canals and pumps to drain the water 393 00:20:05,640 --> 00:20:08,159 Speaker 1: and the soil beneath all of that. And so that 394 00:20:08,240 --> 00:20:10,800 Speaker 1: really took more than a century to get this system 395 00:20:10,880 --> 00:20:13,919 Speaker 1: up and running properly. So in the meantime, all the 396 00:20:13,960 --> 00:20:16,439 Speaker 1: residents of New Orleans just had to squeeze together on 397 00:20:16,520 --> 00:20:20,040 Speaker 1: this only patch of upraised terrain that they had, yeah, 398 00:20:20,160 --> 00:20:22,720 Speaker 1: which is all surrounded by a horrible swamp. Yeah, and 399 00:20:22,760 --> 00:20:25,439 Speaker 1: that later proved a problem in itself. So the city's 400 00:20:25,440 --> 00:20:28,119 Speaker 1: poor sanitation and lack of running water proved to be 401 00:20:28,200 --> 00:20:32,200 Speaker 1: this perfect breeding ground for mosquitoes, who quickly developed a 402 00:20:32,320 --> 00:20:35,720 Speaker 1: taste for human blood. And so it wasn't long after 403 00:20:35,760 --> 00:20:38,880 Speaker 1: that horrific yellow fever epidemic broke out in the city, 404 00:20:39,320 --> 00:20:42,040 Speaker 1: claiming the lives of more than forty one residents. And 405 00:20:42,080 --> 00:20:46,120 Speaker 1: this happened between eighteen seventeen and nineteen o five, So yeah, 406 00:20:46,160 --> 00:20:48,159 Speaker 1: not a lot of love lost between those living in 407 00:20:48,200 --> 00:20:51,040 Speaker 1: New Orleans and the local wetlands in those days. And 408 00:20:51,280 --> 00:20:53,680 Speaker 1: in fact, I came across this amazing quote that one 409 00:20:53,720 --> 00:20:57,240 Speaker 1: observer made about the region. This was back in eighteen fifteen, 410 00:20:57,280 --> 00:20:59,679 Speaker 1: and I sort of think it captures the spirit of 411 00:20:59,680 --> 00:21:02,680 Speaker 1: what most residents would have thought of the place during 412 00:21:02,720 --> 00:21:06,199 Speaker 1: its first two centuries or so. So he says, the 413 00:21:06,200 --> 00:21:08,800 Speaker 1: boiling Fountain of Death is one of the most dismal, 414 00:21:09,000 --> 00:21:11,960 Speaker 1: low and hard places on which the light of sun 415 00:21:12,119 --> 00:21:15,919 Speaker 1: ever shone, and yet they're under it lies the influence 416 00:21:15,960 --> 00:21:19,560 Speaker 1: of a tropical heat belching up its poison and malaria, 417 00:21:19,920 --> 00:21:23,000 Speaker 1: the dregs of the seven vials of wrath covered with 418 00:21:23,040 --> 00:21:27,399 Speaker 1: a yellow, greenish scum. How bad is that? Yeah? It 419 00:21:27,400 --> 00:21:31,399 Speaker 1: makes me think Springbreak, New Orleans exactly. It does make 420 00:21:31,440 --> 00:21:34,240 Speaker 1: you wonder, like, how did the Native Americans fashion lived 421 00:21:34,240 --> 00:21:36,520 Speaker 1: there so long if the conditions were as bad as 422 00:21:36,560 --> 00:21:38,399 Speaker 1: everyone makes it up to be. Yeah, I was wondering 423 00:21:38,440 --> 00:21:40,359 Speaker 1: the same thing. But if you stop and think about it, 424 00:21:40,400 --> 00:21:43,119 Speaker 1: their lifestyle was a little more flexible than that of 425 00:21:43,200 --> 00:21:46,520 Speaker 1: the European colonists, so when the floods came, a tribe 426 00:21:46,520 --> 00:21:49,639 Speaker 1: could simply move to higher ground or maybe build a 427 00:21:49,640 --> 00:21:52,600 Speaker 1: couple of dams to keep the village dry. And things 428 00:21:52,640 --> 00:21:54,800 Speaker 1: got a little bit more complicated though, like when you 429 00:21:54,840 --> 00:21:57,879 Speaker 1: start trying to establish a permanent city for tens of 430 00:21:58,000 --> 00:22:01,480 Speaker 1: thousands of former prisoners. So life in the swamp was 431 00:22:01,560 --> 00:22:05,160 Speaker 1: exceptionally hard for settlers, but that's largely because they were 432 00:22:05,200 --> 00:22:08,400 Speaker 1: asking more of the region than anyone before them had, 433 00:22:08,880 --> 00:22:12,320 Speaker 1: so the civilization they wanted it. It did come together 434 00:22:12,359 --> 00:22:14,479 Speaker 1: a little by little, but it took a lot of 435 00:22:14,520 --> 00:22:16,639 Speaker 1: time and a lot of trial and error just to 436 00:22:16,680 --> 00:22:19,200 Speaker 1: get there. All right, Well, now we have the history, 437 00:22:19,359 --> 00:22:21,320 Speaker 1: but I feel like we should cover some more of 438 00:22:21,400 --> 00:22:23,760 Speaker 1: the only in New Orleans things, So why don't we 439 00:22:23,800 --> 00:22:40,159 Speaker 1: do that? For first a quick break? Welcome back to 440 00:22:40,160 --> 00:22:42,480 Speaker 1: part time genius. All right, Mango, So before the break 441 00:22:42,520 --> 00:22:45,480 Speaker 1: we talked about why New Orleans is a terrible place 442 00:22:45,520 --> 00:22:48,520 Speaker 1: to be a grave digger. So I didn't know that before. 443 00:22:48,600 --> 00:22:51,800 Speaker 1: It's water table is so high that above ground interment 444 00:22:51,920 --> 00:22:55,440 Speaker 1: is really the only safe option. And you know, as 445 00:22:55,440 --> 00:23:00,240 Speaker 1: you might guess, that kind of concern extends beyond the cemetery. So, friends, things, 446 00:23:00,240 --> 00:23:03,080 Speaker 1: you'd be hard pressed to find an underground basement in 447 00:23:03,080 --> 00:23:05,320 Speaker 1: New Orleans for very much the same reason, like it 448 00:23:05,359 --> 00:23:08,880 Speaker 1: would flood any time it rained. But again, just like 449 00:23:08,920 --> 00:23:12,280 Speaker 1: with the above ground tombs, residents solve the dilemma by 450 00:23:12,320 --> 00:23:15,960 Speaker 1: getting pretty creative. So in the early twentieth century, these 451 00:23:16,040 --> 00:23:19,960 Speaker 1: new raised basement houses started appearing throughout the city. So 452 00:23:20,000 --> 00:23:23,560 Speaker 1: these homes consisted of these low ceiling basements built at 453 00:23:23,600 --> 00:23:27,040 Speaker 1: ground level and a higher ceiling living space on top 454 00:23:27,040 --> 00:23:29,199 Speaker 1: of those. So if you've ever seen a house in 455 00:23:29,200 --> 00:23:32,600 Speaker 1: New Orleans with an unusually long staircase leading up to 456 00:23:32,680 --> 00:23:35,800 Speaker 1: the front door, that's probably what's going on there. Like 457 00:23:35,840 --> 00:23:38,879 Speaker 1: these stairs go straight to the second floor because the 458 00:23:38,960 --> 00:23:41,920 Speaker 1: first floor is actually just the basement. You know. It's 459 00:23:41,960 --> 00:23:44,280 Speaker 1: neat to see all the different workarounds residents have come 460 00:23:44,359 --> 00:23:46,439 Speaker 1: up with over the years, like that first floor basement 461 00:23:46,480 --> 00:23:48,879 Speaker 1: set up. That works great for a private home, but 462 00:23:48,960 --> 00:23:51,800 Speaker 1: it's a little less practical for a shop in the city, right, 463 00:23:51,880 --> 00:23:54,560 Speaker 1: So customers need to be able to pop in easily 464 00:23:54,600 --> 00:23:56,680 Speaker 1: without having to climb a steep set of stairs or 465 00:23:57,119 --> 00:23:59,760 Speaker 1: navigate through the store's basements. And that's why if you 466 00:23:59,840 --> 00:24:02,200 Speaker 1: look up some of the older row homes in New Orleans, 467 00:24:02,280 --> 00:24:04,959 Speaker 1: the ground floor is taken up by retail space and 468 00:24:05,000 --> 00:24:07,879 Speaker 1: the basement is actually in the ceiling. Isn't that just 469 00:24:07,960 --> 00:24:10,040 Speaker 1: an attic? Yeah, I mean it sounds like it the 470 00:24:10,080 --> 00:24:11,960 Speaker 1: way I put it, but but actually that's not the case. 471 00:24:12,000 --> 00:24:14,919 Speaker 1: So it's actually more like a crawl space between the 472 00:24:14,960 --> 00:24:18,280 Speaker 1: first floor and the second story. So you'd open a 473 00:24:18,320 --> 00:24:21,120 Speaker 1: trapdoor in the floor, and rather than climbing up into 474 00:24:21,160 --> 00:24:24,240 Speaker 1: the ceiling like you wouldn't addict, you'd actually like sneak 475 00:24:24,320 --> 00:24:27,680 Speaker 1: down into the space between the store and your first 476 00:24:27,680 --> 00:24:30,000 Speaker 1: floor of a home. And it's a pretty clever way 477 00:24:30,000 --> 00:24:32,800 Speaker 1: to sneak some extra storage space into a rowhouse without 478 00:24:32,800 --> 00:24:34,920 Speaker 1: having to go all the way up to an attic. Yeah, 479 00:24:34,920 --> 00:24:36,720 Speaker 1: I guess that's true. So if you ask me, the 480 00:24:36,800 --> 00:24:39,840 Speaker 1: real historical must have for your New Orleans home is 481 00:24:39,880 --> 00:24:43,600 Speaker 1: a floor level mirror. So apparently a lot of the 482 00:24:43,640 --> 00:24:46,200 Speaker 1: plantation homes in and around the city at the time 483 00:24:46,240 --> 00:24:49,480 Speaker 1: feature these long mirrors, and they were mounted flush with 484 00:24:49,560 --> 00:24:51,520 Speaker 1: the floor, and and that was so that women could 485 00:24:51,600 --> 00:24:54,600 Speaker 1: check the links of their dresses to make sure that 486 00:24:54,680 --> 00:24:57,080 Speaker 1: their ankles weren't showing, because mago, if you if you 487 00:24:57,240 --> 00:24:59,880 Speaker 1: know this, like, the ankle is the gateway to all 488 00:25:00,040 --> 00:25:05,760 Speaker 1: impure thoughts and deeds, I think. So it does seem 489 00:25:05,800 --> 00:25:08,320 Speaker 1: strange that people actually freaked out about seeing an ankle 490 00:25:08,400 --> 00:25:11,320 Speaker 1: in public, considering that, like the summers in New Orleans 491 00:25:11,320 --> 00:25:14,240 Speaker 1: are so hot, it is tough to imagine like how 492 00:25:14,359 --> 00:25:17,240 Speaker 1: unbearable that would be. In in addition to ankle coverings, 493 00:25:17,240 --> 00:25:20,119 Speaker 1: folks in the region had another way to prevent scandals. 494 00:25:20,440 --> 00:25:24,280 Speaker 1: They would use this architectural cork called the Romeo catcher. 495 00:25:24,720 --> 00:25:26,640 Speaker 1: So if you've ever spent time in the French Quarter 496 00:25:26,760 --> 00:25:29,560 Speaker 1: or seeing pictures of it, you're likely familiar with the 497 00:25:29,640 --> 00:25:32,920 Speaker 1: second and third floor balconies. They're called galleries. When you're 498 00:25:32,920 --> 00:25:36,360 Speaker 1: in New Orleans, and these things line the historic streets 499 00:25:36,359 --> 00:25:39,520 Speaker 1: when you go visit there, and along these balconies, you'll 500 00:25:39,560 --> 00:25:43,960 Speaker 1: also see lots of ornate rod and cast iron railings, 501 00:25:44,000 --> 00:25:47,000 Speaker 1: as well as some metal support columns connecting the balconies 502 00:25:47,080 --> 00:25:50,040 Speaker 1: to the streets below. Now, on some of these buildings, 503 00:25:50,119 --> 00:25:52,640 Speaker 1: if you're near the top of the columns, you'll see 504 00:25:52,680 --> 00:25:55,520 Speaker 1: what looks like a ring of spikes or barbed wire 505 00:25:55,600 --> 00:25:59,040 Speaker 1: going all the way around the post. And on some houses, 506 00:25:59,080 --> 00:26:02,600 Speaker 1: the spikes might like nails sticking out in all directions, 507 00:26:02,640 --> 00:26:05,480 Speaker 1: while other houses might have spikes that look like coat 508 00:26:05,560 --> 00:26:08,520 Speaker 1: hooks or thorns or something like that. But you know, 509 00:26:08,520 --> 00:26:11,560 Speaker 1: in either case, the purpose of the spikes was the same. 510 00:26:11,600 --> 00:26:14,920 Speaker 1: It was to deter these would be Romeos from climbing 511 00:26:15,000 --> 00:26:18,440 Speaker 1: up to Juliette's balcony late at night. And I'm guessing 512 00:26:18,520 --> 00:26:21,600 Speaker 1: those still coming pretty handy during Mardigras, right, Like, if 513 00:26:21,600 --> 00:26:23,720 Speaker 1: someone has too much to drink, they'd probably think twice 514 00:26:23,720 --> 00:26:26,720 Speaker 1: about climbing that balcony once they see those spikes. Yeah, definitely. 515 00:26:26,720 --> 00:26:29,720 Speaker 1: And that's actually where this story takes a little bit 516 00:26:29,720 --> 00:26:31,800 Speaker 1: of a dark turn, which seems like what we've been 517 00:26:31,840 --> 00:26:34,240 Speaker 1: doing a lot of in this episode, But because the 518 00:26:34,359 --> 00:26:37,560 Speaker 1: Romeo catchers weren't really meant to catch the late night 519 00:26:37,560 --> 00:26:40,480 Speaker 1: boyfriends on the way up, the hope was that the 520 00:26:40,520 --> 00:26:45,000 Speaker 1: side of the spikes would scare the boy off, but realistically, 521 00:26:45,040 --> 00:26:47,400 Speaker 1: if he wanted to get around the spikes badly enough, 522 00:26:47,520 --> 00:26:49,800 Speaker 1: it wouldn't be too much of a problem as long 523 00:26:49,840 --> 00:26:53,080 Speaker 1: as he was sober. The true danger of these spikes 524 00:26:53,119 --> 00:26:55,639 Speaker 1: was on the way back down, because even if a 525 00:26:55,680 --> 00:26:58,520 Speaker 1: suitor did make it up to the balcony, there was 526 00:26:58,560 --> 00:27:01,120 Speaker 1: still a strong chance that the girl father would hear 527 00:27:01,160 --> 00:27:04,080 Speaker 1: the commotion come charging in with a loaded shotgun, and 528 00:27:04,160 --> 00:27:07,119 Speaker 1: at that point the boy would usually make for a break, 529 00:27:07,160 --> 00:27:09,440 Speaker 1: you know, for the railing and trying to scramble down 530 00:27:09,520 --> 00:27:12,439 Speaker 1: and this what's happening so quickly, and in his panic, 531 00:27:12,520 --> 00:27:15,240 Speaker 1: the Romeo might forget about all the spikes, waiting to 532 00:27:15,320 --> 00:27:19,119 Speaker 1: snag whichever parts it might be able to. Uh, and 533 00:27:19,280 --> 00:27:21,480 Speaker 1: you're saying these Romeo spikes are still there today though, 534 00:27:21,520 --> 00:27:23,720 Speaker 1: Oh yeah, I mean they're all over the French Quarter 535 00:27:23,800 --> 00:27:26,080 Speaker 1: and a lot of people never notice them though, So 536 00:27:26,119 --> 00:27:29,360 Speaker 1: they're like these little remnants of the city's history, sort 537 00:27:29,359 --> 00:27:32,240 Speaker 1: of hidden in plain side. Is something worth looking for 538 00:27:32,400 --> 00:27:34,639 Speaker 1: when you're there, and it's funny. Before the show, I 539 00:27:34,680 --> 00:27:37,600 Speaker 1: was thinking about the crowds on Bourbon Street and thinking 540 00:27:37,640 --> 00:27:40,520 Speaker 1: it's not a city for everyone. But the more we 541 00:27:40,560 --> 00:27:43,320 Speaker 1: talk about it, it's really more the opposite, Like there's 542 00:27:43,359 --> 00:27:47,160 Speaker 1: so many things going on in New Orleans, both culturally historically, 543 00:27:47,280 --> 00:27:50,560 Speaker 1: that there really is something for everybody. Like you can 544 00:27:50,600 --> 00:27:53,879 Speaker 1: look and do basically any aspect of the city and 545 00:27:53,920 --> 00:27:56,720 Speaker 1: come away with some colorful bit of history that ties 546 00:27:56,800 --> 00:28:00,879 Speaker 1: together these five different cultures from food to music to whatever. 547 00:28:00,920 --> 00:28:02,840 Speaker 1: There's actually so much I feel like we should do 548 00:28:02,880 --> 00:28:05,199 Speaker 1: a follow up episode that's all joyful instead of just 549 00:28:06,000 --> 00:28:09,080 Speaker 1: disaster stuff. But you know, it's true, it isn't the 550 00:28:09,119 --> 00:28:11,960 Speaker 1: case with all American cities. Like that level of historical 551 00:28:11,960 --> 00:28:14,960 Speaker 1: scope and kind of the variety that is in New 552 00:28:15,080 --> 00:28:19,040 Speaker 1: Orleans is something we almost exclusively attribute to like cities 553 00:28:19,040 --> 00:28:21,520 Speaker 1: in Europe, where like the old and newer kind of 554 00:28:21,560 --> 00:28:24,280 Speaker 1: intermingled and and you can see the different phases of 555 00:28:24,320 --> 00:28:27,760 Speaker 1: civilization all at once. You know, New Orleans is is 556 00:28:28,000 --> 00:28:30,040 Speaker 1: kind of an exception in that way in America. It's 557 00:28:30,080 --> 00:28:32,120 Speaker 1: it's an American city that's been shaped by so many 558 00:28:32,200 --> 00:28:35,440 Speaker 1: different hands over the years, and it's impossible to pin 559 00:28:35,480 --> 00:28:38,560 Speaker 1: down if it's strictly Southern or French or Spanish or 560 00:28:38,600 --> 00:28:42,320 Speaker 1: Haitian or Creole. It's like all of that all at once. Yeah, 561 00:28:42,320 --> 00:28:45,160 Speaker 1: and I appreciate how innately weird the result of that 562 00:28:45,240 --> 00:28:47,600 Speaker 1: mash up is, Like you read about those efforts to 563 00:28:47,720 --> 00:28:50,600 Speaker 1: keep Portland's weird or keep Austin weird, which you're never 564 00:28:50,640 --> 00:28:53,160 Speaker 1: really going to need a public campaign like that in 565 00:28:53,200 --> 00:28:55,720 Speaker 1: New Orleans, Like there's no other option. The city can't 566 00:28:55,720 --> 00:28:58,440 Speaker 1: help but be itself. Yeah, well, I think that's a 567 00:28:58,440 --> 00:29:00,520 Speaker 1: good place to leave things right now. But since we've 568 00:29:00,520 --> 00:29:02,840 Speaker 1: been talking about the Crescent City, it's only fitting that 569 00:29:02,880 --> 00:29:05,480 Speaker 1: we end by offering a little land yaff of our own. 570 00:29:05,560 --> 00:29:17,280 Speaker 1: So why don't we do the fact off? All right? 571 00:29:17,320 --> 00:29:19,560 Speaker 1: I'll start us off. So New Orleans is the birthplace 572 00:29:19,600 --> 00:29:22,720 Speaker 1: of a few unexpected inventions, I think you'd say, And 573 00:29:22,760 --> 00:29:26,320 Speaker 1: this includes the game of craps, the modern version of poker, 574 00:29:26,520 --> 00:29:30,320 Speaker 1: and randomly enough, dental floss. But one thing that New 575 00:29:30,400 --> 00:29:34,400 Speaker 1: Orleans can't actually claim credit for is the Marty Gross Festival. 576 00:29:34,640 --> 00:29:37,000 Speaker 1: And that's because, believe it or not, the oldest Fat 577 00:29:37,000 --> 00:29:40,240 Speaker 1: Tuesday celebration in America dates back to seventeen oh three, 578 00:29:40,640 --> 00:29:42,800 Speaker 1: and it took place not in New Orleans but in 579 00:29:42,880 --> 00:29:46,320 Speaker 1: my own Mobile, Alabama. I guess I really can't say 580 00:29:46,320 --> 00:29:48,160 Speaker 1: my own I'm from Birmingham, but you know it's it's 581 00:29:48,200 --> 00:29:51,280 Speaker 1: in Alabama. So the Gulf coast of Alabama saw its 582 00:29:51,320 --> 00:29:54,320 Speaker 1: share of French explorers in the seventeen hundreds, just like 583 00:29:54,400 --> 00:29:58,000 Speaker 1: Louisiana did, and the more free spirited among them started 584 00:29:58,040 --> 00:30:00,800 Speaker 1: holding Marty Gross celebrations just like they had back home. 585 00:30:01,000 --> 00:30:03,640 Speaker 1: So I've got another bit of fun New Orleans lingo 586 00:30:03,760 --> 00:30:07,640 Speaker 1: for you. And the words are neutral ground, and that's 587 00:30:07,680 --> 00:30:09,760 Speaker 1: the term the locals used for that grassy strip of 588 00:30:09,800 --> 00:30:12,520 Speaker 1: brown do you find between two roads. We normally refer 589 00:30:12,600 --> 00:30:15,080 Speaker 1: to them as medians, but in New Orleans they're called 590 00:30:15,120 --> 00:30:18,640 Speaker 1: neutral ground. And the term apparently dates back to the 591 00:30:18,680 --> 00:30:22,160 Speaker 1: mid eighteen hundreds when there were these cultural and political 592 00:30:22,160 --> 00:30:24,680 Speaker 1: tensions and it was kind of an all time high 593 00:30:24,720 --> 00:30:27,560 Speaker 1: in the city. At that point. Things got so bad 594 00:30:27,640 --> 00:30:31,280 Speaker 1: that New Orleans was actually split into separate municipalities. Like 595 00:30:31,320 --> 00:30:34,120 Speaker 1: the French speaking Creoles and the supporters were on one side, 596 00:30:34,440 --> 00:30:37,360 Speaker 1: the Anglo English speaking populations were on the other. But 597 00:30:37,440 --> 00:30:40,040 Speaker 1: the dividing line for these groups was Canal Street, which 598 00:30:40,120 --> 00:30:42,800 Speaker 1: had a wide, grassy median running right down the middle, 599 00:30:43,160 --> 00:30:46,320 Speaker 1: and residents kind of half jokingly started calling the media 600 00:30:46,440 --> 00:30:49,200 Speaker 1: neutral ground, and before long the nickname was applied to 601 00:30:49,240 --> 00:30:51,880 Speaker 1: all the medians in the city. All right, Well, speaking 602 00:30:51,920 --> 00:30:54,120 Speaker 1: of ways to keep the peace in New Orleans, I 603 00:30:54,120 --> 00:30:57,080 Speaker 1: have to tell you about the peacemakers sandwich, which is 604 00:30:57,120 --> 00:31:01,000 Speaker 1: basically the precursor to the city's famous Oh Boy. So 605 00:31:01,040 --> 00:31:05,200 Speaker 1: according to newspaper reports from the late nineteenth century, the peacemaker, 606 00:31:05,240 --> 00:31:08,360 Speaker 1: also known as the oyster loaf, was pretty much a 607 00:31:08,400 --> 00:31:11,920 Speaker 1: French loaf stuffed with these hot fried oysters. But this 608 00:31:12,000 --> 00:31:15,040 Speaker 1: wasn't a lunchtime staple like the po boy would eventually be, 609 00:31:15,280 --> 00:31:18,640 Speaker 1: and instead, the peacemaker was a sandwich for a very 610 00:31:18,640 --> 00:31:22,800 Speaker 1: specific occasion. So as the name suggests, peacemakers were usually 611 00:31:22,840 --> 00:31:26,240 Speaker 1: purchased by husbands as a way to preemptively smooth things 612 00:31:26,240 --> 00:31:28,520 Speaker 1: over with their wives after coming home late from a 613 00:31:28,600 --> 00:31:31,720 Speaker 1: bar or wherever else. And this was common and a 614 00:31:31,760 --> 00:31:34,560 Speaker 1: pretty well known practice in New Orleans that was actually 615 00:31:34,600 --> 00:31:38,040 Speaker 1: reported about in a San Francisco newspaper way back in 616 00:31:40,040 --> 00:31:42,720 Speaker 1: But the description of how the whole exchange plays out 617 00:31:42,840 --> 00:31:45,280 Speaker 1: is too good not to share, So I'm just gonna 618 00:31:45,440 --> 00:31:48,240 Speaker 1: read out this excerpt that I pulled from it. When 619 00:31:48,240 --> 00:31:51,200 Speaker 1: the sandwich has been wrapped in paper, the buyer flees 620 00:31:51,240 --> 00:31:54,160 Speaker 1: as a bird to his home. The little difficulty with 621 00:31:54,200 --> 00:31:57,880 Speaker 1: the keyhole overcome, he steps into the awful presence undismayed. 622 00:31:58,280 --> 00:32:02,160 Speaker 1: There she stands, grim as old yor but without an 623 00:32:02,200 --> 00:32:05,800 Speaker 1: apologetic word. The airing one climbs slowly up the stair 624 00:32:05,880 --> 00:32:09,800 Speaker 1: and holds forth the peace banker. She takes it, puts 625 00:32:09,840 --> 00:32:13,440 Speaker 1: down the lamp, and removes the cover. The deliciously flavored 626 00:32:13,440 --> 00:32:18,760 Speaker 1: steam ascends like sweet incense until it reaches her rigid knockles, 627 00:32:18,800 --> 00:32:21,840 Speaker 1: and then her features relaxed into something like a smile. 628 00:32:22,320 --> 00:32:25,080 Speaker 1: When her lord is banging his shoes and depositing his 629 00:32:25,120 --> 00:32:28,360 Speaker 1: hat carefully in the washbasin, she sits on one side 630 00:32:28,360 --> 00:32:32,040 Speaker 1: of the bed, eating the spoils of domestic war. That 631 00:32:32,240 --> 00:32:36,520 Speaker 1: is ridiculous. Is very ridiculous. I can't imagine working in 632 00:32:36,600 --> 00:32:40,560 Speaker 1: my house. But here's another food related fact. There's a 633 00:32:40,640 --> 00:32:44,120 Speaker 1: legendary restaurant in New Orleans called Dukey Chase's Restaurant, and 634 00:32:44,200 --> 00:32:47,520 Speaker 1: the long running executive chef there actually served as the 635 00:32:47,560 --> 00:32:51,160 Speaker 1: inspiration for the Tiana character in The Princess and the Frog. 636 00:32:51,680 --> 00:32:53,640 Speaker 1: So when the production team for that movie came to 637 00:32:53,640 --> 00:32:56,080 Speaker 1: New Orleans on a research trip, they met with the 638 00:32:56,160 --> 00:32:58,400 Speaker 1: chef at a restaurant and knew right away that she'd 639 00:32:58,440 --> 00:33:01,360 Speaker 1: be the basis for the main character. Now, the chef's 640 00:33:01,480 --> 00:33:04,840 Speaker 1: name is not Tiana, it's Leah Chase, and after reading 641 00:33:04,880 --> 00:33:07,000 Speaker 1: about her this week, she's kind of my new hero. 642 00:33:07,520 --> 00:33:10,280 Speaker 1: She and her husband's restaurant served as a crucial gathering 643 00:33:10,320 --> 00:33:13,160 Speaker 1: place during the civil rights movement in the sixties. Um 644 00:33:13,200 --> 00:33:16,240 Speaker 1: In fact, MLK and the Freedom writers frequently met there 645 00:33:16,280 --> 00:33:19,680 Speaker 1: to discuss strategies in her upstairs meeting rooms. And we 646 00:33:19,680 --> 00:33:21,160 Speaker 1: don't have time to go through her whole life, but 647 00:33:21,200 --> 00:33:23,760 Speaker 1: it's a really lovely story about a woman who came 648 00:33:23,840 --> 00:33:26,560 Speaker 1: from nothing and became this source of hope and pride 649 00:33:26,560 --> 00:33:29,280 Speaker 1: for a community. She passed away in June this year, 650 00:33:29,320 --> 00:33:31,200 Speaker 1: but right up until the end, she was still hard 651 00:33:31,200 --> 00:33:33,360 Speaker 1: at work in the kitchen of Dukie Chase, doing what 652 00:33:33,400 --> 00:33:35,520 Speaker 1: she loved most. You know, I don't feel like I 653 00:33:35,560 --> 00:33:37,920 Speaker 1: can top the sweetness of that fact, So I think 654 00:33:37,960 --> 00:33:41,760 Speaker 1: I'm gonna go the strange path instead. Alright, So, during 655 00:33:41,800 --> 00:33:45,600 Speaker 1: the nineteen seventies. Three of the first nine Super Bowls 656 00:33:45,680 --> 00:33:48,720 Speaker 1: were played at Two Lane University and the stadium there. 657 00:33:48,720 --> 00:33:51,560 Speaker 1: It was in New Orleans, and each of those games 658 00:33:51,640 --> 00:33:55,720 Speaker 1: was attended by two ancient Egyptian mummies who had lived 659 00:33:55,800 --> 00:33:59,520 Speaker 1: around nine hundred BC. So that is not where I 660 00:33:59,520 --> 00:34:03,720 Speaker 1: expected sentence dayhand. But how did two ancient Egyptian mummies 661 00:34:03,760 --> 00:34:06,040 Speaker 1: go to the Super Bowl? That's pretty easy, Maga. They 662 00:34:06,120 --> 00:34:08,640 Speaker 1: took the Sarkafa bus. I don't know if you've ever 663 00:34:08,680 --> 00:34:13,000 Speaker 1: heard this one. I feel like that's a terrible joke 664 00:34:13,040 --> 00:34:15,399 Speaker 1: you stole from yourself. Now I totally stole that joke. 665 00:34:15,440 --> 00:34:18,960 Speaker 1: But here's the real fact. Two ancient Egyptian mummies were 666 00:34:19,000 --> 00:34:22,440 Speaker 1: donated to Tulane University in eighteen fifty and so for 667 00:34:22,480 --> 00:34:25,600 Speaker 1: the next hundred years they were passed from one museum 668 00:34:25,600 --> 00:34:28,880 Speaker 1: exhibit to another until they ultimately made it back to 669 00:34:28,960 --> 00:34:31,719 Speaker 1: the school's math department. I don't know why, but that's 670 00:34:31,719 --> 00:34:34,840 Speaker 1: where they ended up. Then in the nineteen fifties, the 671 00:34:34,880 --> 00:34:37,960 Speaker 1: mummies were put in a storage room beneath the bleachers 672 00:34:38,120 --> 00:34:41,279 Speaker 1: of Two Lane Stadium, and that's where they stayed until 673 00:34:41,320 --> 00:34:44,640 Speaker 1: the mid seventies when the stadium was torn down. So 674 00:34:44,680 --> 00:34:48,240 Speaker 1: According to an article in the Tulane University magazine Quote, 675 00:34:48,280 --> 00:34:51,320 Speaker 1: the Mummies attended every two lane home game from nineteen 676 00:34:51,360 --> 00:34:55,120 Speaker 1: fifty five until the last wave appearance in Tulane Stadium 677 00:34:55,160 --> 00:34:59,000 Speaker 1: in nineteen seventy four. They were presented all three Super 678 00:34:59,040 --> 00:35:02,040 Speaker 1: Bowls and does of New Orleans Saints games waged on 679 00:35:02,200 --> 00:35:06,000 Speaker 1: two lane turf, and they never once complained about their 680 00:35:06,040 --> 00:35:09,920 Speaker 1: lousy seats. You know, I like that football loving mummies story, 681 00:35:10,040 --> 00:35:13,600 Speaker 1: but I really love the peacemaker sandwich story, which I 682 00:35:13,640 --> 00:35:15,799 Speaker 1: think earns you the victory of this dround. All. Well, 683 00:35:15,840 --> 00:35:18,080 Speaker 1: thanks for that, and from Gabe, little Mango and me, 684 00:35:18,320 --> 00:35:20,239 Speaker 1: thanks so much for listening. We'll be back soon with 685 00:35:20,280 --> 00:35:36,840 Speaker 1: another episode. Ye Part Time Genius is a production of 686 00:35:36,880 --> 00:35:39,520 Speaker 1: I Heart Radio. For more podcasts from my Heart Radio, 687 00:35:39,600 --> 00:35:42,280 Speaker 1: visit the I Heart Radio app, Apple podcast, or wherever 688 00:35:42,320 --> 00:35:43,600 Speaker 1: you listen to your favorite shows.