News and information from the New Orleans area
Carnival
Kern Family Feud Hits 4th Circuit Court of Appeals!!
113 years
Holy Moly, the Kerns are back at it, this time at the lofty level of the 4th Circuit Court of Appeals. It’s a little more than two months to Carnival, and that means float builders are in very high gear, especially the biggest float builder, the Kerns, who build Rex, Bacchus, Endymion, Muses, Orpheus, Alla and many other important parades.
Baccasaurus float from Bacchus parade at Mardi Gras World
It’s very obvious that both parties are very wounded by the process. The attorneys are thrilled, since they are getting all this free press again. Blaine Sr feels terrible, and his son Barry isn’t any happier. As I’ve said before, don’t sue your parents, no matter what! It kills your karma forever, practically. I’m not sure the 84 year old Kern Sr understands why his son has come after him in court of all places.
The Appeals Court could take months to rule, and Mardi Gras is a little more than 2 months approximately. However, Endymion Captain Ed Muniz says the Kern float building operation appears to running very smoothly. This is the most organized I’ve seen them in a long time. Barry was sired to do these things,” Muniz said. It’s kind of sad. Big Blaine had become the senior statesman. Now as far as I can see, he’s very isolated. It’s a a shame he just didn’t stay in that role. What he really deserves is all the krewes to thank him for the wonderful contributions he’s made.
Endymion long time Captain Ed Muniz
I’ve also said before, the reason this whole court debacle is occurring is because Pixie Naquin isn’t there to smooth over the hurt feelings for the sake of family unity. She was the founder’s executive secretary since he started out in business, and she never let past serious family disputes end up on court. She was the cat’s meow for Kern Enterprises, there’s absolutely no doubt about that.
RIP Pixie Naquin!
Blaine’s new wife loves him dearly, but Holly is a bit of control freak. This family feud has been festering ever since Pixie died. Barry Kern sued his father last year, claiming the family business had been damaged by his dad’s alleged fiscal irresponsibility.
Blaine’s statements outside of court were both telling and oh so sad. You have no idea, no idea, he said. My heart’s broken, but I want to see justice because I’ve created this, and for the last year I haven’t been able to go in my buildings.
Barry, Blaine Kern & biz partner Joe Jaeger
Barry’s statement was just as revealing. I love my dad, but we all continue to be confused and saddened by his actions. My primary responsibility is to our clients and employees. My sincere hope is that this can be resolved as quickly as possible….Mardi Gras 2012 is on track to be a blockbuster.
GRELA WON’T ROLL IN 2012 AFTER FAILING TO GAIN SPONSOR!
013 years
This is one sorry and sad feature.
For 2012, Gretna loses their most historic Mardi Gras Day parade, Grela, the West Bank’s only local celebration on Fat Tuesday.
Just last month, Grela announced their plan of cobbling together $60,000 from 3 Greta City Council members and a corporate sponsor but the corporation couldn’t pull off their commitment.
Krewe of Grela Doubloon
Grela logo
Gretna stopped funding Mardi Gras in April when officials had to choose between paying for Mardi Gras activities and giving money to the Gretna Heritage Festival.
Yes, Gretna Fest has grown into a really nice festival, but Grela is Jefferson Parish’s oldest Carnival krewe. Gretna Fest has a huge budget with the dozens of bands that play the several day festival. They have corporate funding, charge a cover charge to enter the Festival, and sell a lot of food, drinks, and beer. They certainly could have covered the $30,000 much much easier than Grela could, and this is an obvious fact the Council should have seen a mile off.
Therefore, a Carnival Jeer goes out to the Gretna City Council for backing the total wrong horse with this poor decision in April 2011. The krewe was founded in 1947 as a men’s club, but it changed its name to Grela, an acronym for Gretna, La.
Grela Vice President Carmen Kass said she feels “rotten” about the krewe’s missed year, questioning whether the council ever really wanted to save Grela. She said initially the krewe was told it would cost the city $67,000 to host a Mardi Gras parade, but that number grew to $85,000. Kass said that amount would have been very difficult, if not impossible, for the krewe to raise in addition to the $150,000 to $165,000 price tag for the parade. More important, she said city officials told Grela that raising the money wouldn’t be a temporary fix until the city got back on its feet financially, but the new status quo.
After this slap in the face, Grela may end up returning in 2013 in Westwego. We’ll have to see.
Earlier this year Rhea, another Jefferson Parish krewe, called it quits. Rhea was formed in 1969, making this parade over 40 years old! It began as an all woman parade, but became coed in later years. Rhea was the first Jefferson parade to roll down Veterans Boulevard, and the one of the few Jefferson parades to hold their ball in the Municipal Auditorium in New Orleans.
Rhea logo
2012 New Orleans Area Mardi Gras Parade Schedule
013 years
| Saturday | Feb 4 | Krewe du Vieux | French Quarter | 6:30 pm (I’m in KdV!!) | |
| Sunday | Feb 5 | Lil Rascals | Metairie | 12:00 pm | |
| Friday | Feb 10 | Cork | French Quarter | 3:00 pm | |
| Oshun | Uptown | 6:00 pm | |||
| Cleopatra | West Bank | 6:30 pm | |||
| Excalibur | Metairie | 7:00 pm | |||
| Eve | Mandeville | 7:00 pm | |||
| Atlas | Metairie | 7:30 pm | |||
| Saturday | Feb 11 | Choctaw | West Bank | 11:00 am | |
| Adonis | West Bank | 11:45 am | |||
| Pontchartrain | Uptown | 2:00 pm | |||
| Nemesis | Chalmette | 2:00 pm | |||
| Olympia | Covington | 6:00 pm | |||
| Sparta | Uptown | 6:00 pm | |||
| Caesar | Metairie | 6:00 pm | |||
| Pygmalion | Uptown | 6:45 pm | |||
| Sunday | Feb 12 | Carrollton | Uptown | 12:00 pm | |
| Alla | West Bank | 12:00 pm | |||
| Dionysus | Slidell | 1:00 pm | |||
| Rhea | Metairie | 2:00 pm | |||
| Thor | Metairie | 3:00 pm | |||
| King Arthur | Uptown | 1:15 pm | |||
| Barkus | French Quarter | 2:00 pm | |||
| Wednesday | Feb 15 | Ancient Druids |
Uptown | 6:30 pm | |
| Thursday | Feb 16 | Babylon | Uptown | 5:45 pm | |
| Muses | Uptown | 6:15 pm | |||
| Chaos | Uptown | 6:30 pm | |||
| Friday | Feb 17 | Hermes | Uptown | 6:00 pm | |
| Krewe d’Etat |
Uptown | 6:00 pm | |||
| Selene | Slidell | 6:30 pm | |||
| Orpheus | Mandeville | 7:00 pm | |||
| Morpheus | Uptown | 7:00 pm | |||
| Centurions | Metairie | 7:00 pm | |||
| Saturday | Feb 18 | NOMTOC | West Bank | 9:45 am | |
| Tucks | Uptown | 10:00 am | |||
| Iris | Uptown | 11:00 am | |||
| Endymion | Mid-City | 4:15 pm | |||
| Isis | Metairie | 6:30 pm | |||
| Sunday | Feb 19 | Okeanos | Uptown | 11:00 am | |
| Mid City | Uptown | 11:45 am | |||
| Thoth | Uptown | 12:00 pm | |||
| Bacchus | Uptown | 5:15 pm | |||
| Napoleon | Metairie | 5:30 pm | |||
| Monday | Feb 20 | Proteus | Uptown | 5:15 pm | |
| Orpheus | Uptown | 6:00 pm | |||
| Zeus | Metairie | 6:30 pm | |||
| FAT TUESDAY | Feb 21 | Zulu | Uptown | 8:00 am | |
| Rex | Uptown | 10:00 am | |||
| Elks Orleans | Uptown | 11:30 am | |||
| Crescent City | Uptown | follows Elks | |||
| Argus | Metairie | 10:00 am | |||
| Jefferson Trucks | Metairie | follows Argus | |||
| Elks Trucks | Metairie | follows Jefferson Trucks | |||
| BES | West Bank | ||||
Is the King of Carnival Shrinking in Stature??
013 years
Quite possibly, as they are going after the smallest parade in all of Carnival, the ‘Tit Rex parade!! This cool little parade is composed of shoe box sized floats, and they throw miniature doubloons, beads, etc. As to their name, ‘tit is short for the french word for small, ‘petit’.
Now ‘tit Rex wasn’t as well known as the King of Carnival, but now that the Times-Picayune newspaper has thrown a big picture of the diminutive krewe on the front page of today’s paper, along with a nice story covering these developments, ‘tit Rex’s popularity has soared.
‘Tit Rex parade float
Rex King float
Rex has asked them to stop using their name, as the King of Carnival, in all their wisdom, think the name ‘tit REX will confuse the public. Rex attorney Andrew Rinker Jr said that allowing ‘tit Rex to keep their name would embolden other groups to follow suit, diminishing the uniqueness of the name. ‘Tit Rex doesn’t have an attorney at this point, but if Rex files suit, they will surely obtain one.
Based on these facts, I think Rex is making a mountain out of mole hill. I don’t think anyone in their right mind would confuse a few shoe box sized floats in the Bywater neighborhood with the mighty King of Carnival, which heads down world famous St. Charles Avenue on Fat Tuesday morning at 10:00 am sharp.
This kind of baloney can only happen in the Crescent City!
Blaine Kern Loses Challenge to Keep Mardi Gras Float Empire
113 years
Blaine Kern, Rickey Jackson, Holly Kern on Superdome Floor
Once again, suing your aged dad, granted he’s under the spell of his much younger wife, never is a good idea. It doesn’t matter if you win in the Appeals Court, which the son, Barry, did. Karma works against you when you sue your dad, especially if he’s over 83 years old!
The Kerns build REX, BACCHUS, ENDYMION, MUSES, ORPHEUS, ALLA, CAESAR, and many, many other parades around the metro area, region, and world. Therefore, lots of money and responsibility come with the territory, and the Mardi Gras crowds annually depend on the Kerns via REX, etc.
A state appeals panel has upheld the court-ordered transfer of control over Blaine Kern Artists Inc. to the Mardi Gras magnate’s son, Barry Kern.
The one-sentence ruling Tuesday denied the elder Kern’s challenge to an April ruling by Civil District Court Judge Kern Reese that enforced a father-son deal convected last year. That deal was intended to quell a family rift that threatened float production for a number of the largest Carnival parades.
The deal, brokered by three prominent Carnival captains, called for Blaine Kern Sr. to sell all of his shares to his son and for the board of directors to turn over management control of the 54-year-old Mardi Gras giant to Barry Kern, 48, at a shareholders meeting. But Blaine Kern stood pat, and no such meeting or vote took place.
At issue, Barry Kern argued, was the financial stability of the company. He twice filed suit against his father during the past year, saying the 83-year-old Kern Sr. had meddled with management and sapped its cash reserves.
Barry Kern cast blame on his father’s fourth wife, Holly Brown-Kern, claiming his father’s spending on houses, cars and other luxuries had ballooned since his marriage to Brown-Kern, while his debt had mounted and he began seeking cash advances from the company.
Blaine Kern’s attorney, William Wessel, could not be reached for comment late Wednesday on the 3-0 decision by a panel of the 4th Circuit Court of Appeal, finding “no error” in Reese’s ruling.
In ruling for Barry Kern in April, Reese called the need to safeguard Mardi Gras “way bigger” to the world than a father-son rift.
Under his order, the company’s four shareholders — Blaine and Barry Kern and Barry’s siblings, Brian and Blainey — met April 25 at Blaine Kern’s Mardi Gras World to elect three directors who, in turn, named Barry Kern president.
Blaine Kern, 2010 People's Health Champion