Krewe of Thor

2015 Orleans Parish Mardi Gras Parade Schedule!!

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We are roughly four months before Fat Tuesday. As we approach Halloween, the Mardi Gras drumbeats are getting louder. I’ve already heard a bunch from my own Carnival krewe, the Krewe du Vieux. We roll throughout the Marigny and French Quarter on January 31, 2015. I LOVE Mardi Gras and always have. Getting older hasn’t dulled my appetite for all things Carnival!

I used to see parades in all the surrounding parishes. I don’t anymore. I guess I don’t feel the need to dash around from parade locale to parade locale anymore. Seeing parades in Orleans, Jefferson and St. Bernard parishes in a single night was no biggie. Seeing the same parade in different spots

Rex Jester Float

Rex Jester Float

Day Date Krewe Route
Sunday January 6, 2015 Phunny Phorty Phellows Uptown Streetcar Route
Sunday January 6, 2015 Krewe of Jeanne d’Arc French Quarter
Saturday January 31, 2015 Krewe du Vieux Marigny/French Quarter
Friday February 6, 2015 Krewe of Oshun Uptown
Friday February 6, 2015 Krewe of Cleopatra Uptown
Saturday February 7, 2015 Krewe of Pontchartrain Uptown – Napoleon
Saturday February 7, 2015 Krewe of Choctaw Uptown – Napoleon
Saturday February 7, 2015 Krewe of Freret Uptown – Napoleon
Saturday February 7, 2015 Knights of Sparta Uptown – Napoleon
Saturday February 7, 2015 Krewe of Pygmalion Uptown – Napoleon
Sunday February 8, 2015 Krewe of Carrollton Uptown – Napoleon
Sunday February 8, 2015 Krewe of King Arthur Uptown – Napoleon
Sunday February 8, 2015 Krewe of Alla Uptown – Napoleon
Sunday February 8, 2015 Mystic Krewe of Barkus French Quarter
Wednesday February 11, 2015 Krewe of Ancient Druids Uptown – Jefferson
Wednesday February 11, 2015 Mystic Krewe of Nyx Uptown – Jefferson
Thursday February 12, 2015 Knights of Babylon Uptown – Napoleon
Thursday February 12, 2015 Knights of Chaos Uptown – Napoleon
Thursday February 12, 2015 Krewe of Muses Uptown – Jefferson
Friday February 13, 2015 Krewe of Hermes Uptown – Napoleon
Friday February 13, 2015 Le Krewe d’Etat Uptown – Jefferson
Friday February 13, 2015 Krewe of Morpheus Uptown – Jefferson
Saturday February 14, 2015 Krewe of Iris Uptown – Napoleon
Saturday February 14, 2015 Krewe of Tucks Uptown – Napoleon
Saturday February 14, 2015 Krewe of Endymion Mid-City
Sunday February 15, 2015 Krewe of Okeanos Uptown – Jefferson
Sunday February 15, 2015 Krewe of Mid-City Uptown – Jefferson
Sunday February 15, 2015 Krewe of Thoth Uptown – Henry Clay
Sunday February 15, 2015 Krewe of Bacchus Uptown – Napoleon
Monday February 16, 2015 Krewe of Proteus Uptown – Napoleon
Monday February 16, 2015 Krewe of Orpheus Uptown – Napoleon
Tuesday February 17, 2015 Krewe of Zulu Uptown – Jackson
Tuesday February 17, 2015 Rex, King of Carnival Uptown – Claiborne
Tuesday February 17, 2015 Elks Krewe of Orleanians Uptown – Claiborne
Tuesday February 17, 2015 Krewe of Crescent City Uptown – Claiborne
Baby Kong, Krewe of Bacchus

Baby Kong, Krewe of Bacchus

Baccasaurus float from Bacchus parade at Mardi Gras World

Baccasaurus float from Bacchus parade at Mardi Gras World

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Jefferson Loses Another Parade for 2014!!

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Financial difficulties killed another old line parade in Metairie, making the total three who called it quits in 2014. Another historic krewe, Thor and a new parade Atlantis, won’t roll in 2014 either. That is one poor record. Two of the three parades have been around for decades. Both were major Metairie parades for decades. They anchored their own nights and made Mardi Gras in Metairie a better place by far.

Atlas Logo

Atlas Logo

I tend to think something isn’t right in Jefferson. It’s not a poor parish, it should support the krewes and not lose them three in a year. Financial difficulties, or not enough members, is the stated culprit.

The West Bank portion of Jefferson isn’t thriving either. Another historic parade, Grela, has decided not to parade for 2014.

 

Grela Cloisonne Doubloon

Grela Cloisonne Doubloon

It says something not very good about Mardi Gras in New Orleans when the major parish bordering New Orleans, an economic force in its own right, loses three parades in a year. That’s a bit alarming and shocking.  Parades cost more every year, and that will continue for the foreseeable future. When a parade cancels after the season starts, after Twelfth Night, it means they were either very close to coming off this year and just failed, or they just couldn’t accept the fact that their parade wasn’t destined to roll in 2014 and kept it a secret too long.

Another factor in the decline of parading in Jefferson is the lure of St. Charles Avenue as the premier parade route in the New Orleans area. Virtually all parades in Orleans Parish roll down St Charles (except Endymion, Krewe du Vieux, and Chewbaccus).

Slidell has all parades intact this year, and Orleans seems to be in similar shape.

2 More Jefferson Parades Won’t Roll in 2014!!

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Krewe of Thor Emblem

Krewe of Thor Emblem

Jefferson Parish’s Carnival is downsizing and changing for the worse in the last couple of years- one of the oldest krewes in Jefferson, the venerable Krewe of Thor, won’t parade in 2014, their 40th anniversary. Earlier this year, another old line Jefferson parade, Grela, called it quits. Jefferson Parish parades on both sides of the Mississippi River have been struggling even before these parades cancelled. It seems Jefferson parades are on a suicide march.

Grela Cloisonne Doubloon

Grela Cloisonne Doubloon

A new parade, the Guardians of Atlantis, won’t roll either. Membership concerns was the reason given.

Last year, some Carnival krewes in Metairie were fined for violating parade ordinances enforced for the first time.

“I was shocked. I felt like it was a slap in the face,” Krewe of Thor captain McKinley Cantrell said.

Cantrell, a 38-year captain and president of the Krewe of Thor, which was founded in 1974, said his krewe has been fined $400 for violating an ordinance prohibiting unmasked riders. The citation states that 60 of the krewe’s 500 riders did not follow the rules.

“I don’t have any control. I don’t have any control over that,” Cantrell said.

Cantrell said at least three Carnival krewes in Jefferson Parish were cited for violating parade ordinances. The Krewe of Atlas was fined $600 for two violations, member Daniel Murray said.

Smoking a joint on the float. The second violation is somebody on the float threw beads soaked in vomit, Murray said. That is really disgusting, they should have locked up the rider who threw vomit soaked beads.

There’s probably a link between last year’s fines and Thor throwing in the towel.

I cannot agree with Cantrell’s statement that he cannot control his members masking or not. If the Captain tells his membership to mask or else, they will mask. Orleans krewe members mask because there are well known penalties for disobeying. The truck floats on Mardi Gras Day have laxer rules than regular Orleans parades.

For decades, the Cantrell family was a major Mardi Gras float building company, building parades in the metro area for 60 years. Cantrell Sr. was Captain of the Krewe of Mardi Gras, and Jr. was Captain of Thor. Each was a pretty substantial parade back in their heyday. The Krewe of Mardi Gras ceased parading years ago.  Now that Thor has stopped, it’s the end of an era in Jefferson.

 

 

 

 

 

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