Mystikal: The 12th Ward's Most Dangerous Voice
The 12th Ward's Most Dangerous VoiceMichael Lawrence Tyler was born on September 22, 1970, in New Orleans, Louisiana, and grew up in the 12th Ward — deep in the heart of the city. Before he became ...
Pauley Perrette: The New Orleans Girl Behind TV's Favorite Forensic Scientist
The New Orleans Girl Behind TV's Favorite Forensic ScientistPauley Perrette was born on March 27, 1969, in New Orleans, Louisiana, and spent her childhood moving across the South — Georgia, Alabama...
Carl Weathers: From St. Aug to Apollo Creed
From St. Aug to Apollo CreedCarl Weathers was born on January 14, 1948, in New Orleans, Louisiana. His father was a day laborer, and Carl earned an athletic scholarship to St. Augustine High School...
Kermit Ruffins: The Trumpet, the Barbecue, and the Bywater
The Trumpet, the Barbecue, and the BywaterKermit Ruffins was born on December 19, 1964, in New Orleans and picked up the trumpet in eighth grade at Lawless Junior High School in the Ninth Ward. By ...
Frankie Ford: The Gretna Kid Who Caught the Wave
The Gretna Kid Who Caught the WaveVincent Francis Guzzo Jr. was born on August 4, 1939, in Gretna, Louisiana — just across the river from New Orleans and close enough to absorb every note of the ci...
Nick LaRocca: The Man Who Made the First Jazz Record
The Man Who Made the First Jazz Record (and Claimed He Invented Jazz)Dominick James "Nick" LaRocca was born on April 11, 1889, in New Orleans, to Sicilian immigrant parents. His father disapproved ...
Mary Landrieu: The Senator Who Fought for New Orleans When It Mattered Most
The Senator Who Fought for New Orleans When It Mattered MostMary Loretta Landrieu was born on November 23, 1955, in Arlington, Virginia, but she was raised in New Orleans — the eldest daughter of M...
Donna Douglas: Miss New Orleans Became America's Sweetheart
Miss New Orleans Became America's SweetheartDoris Ione Smith was born on September 26, 1932, in Pride, Louisiana — a tiny community north of Baton Rouge. She was a Louisiana girl through and throug...
Tom Dempsey: The Kick That Lasted Forty-Three Years
The Kick That Lasted Forty-Three YearsThomas John Dempsey was born on January 12, 1947, in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. He came into the world without toes on his right foot and without fingers on his rig...
Shirley Ann Grau: The Newcomb Girl Who Won the Pulitzer
The Newcomb Girl Who Won the PulitzerShirley Ann Grau was born on July 8, 1929, in New Orleans, Louisiana, and grew up between the Crescent City and Alabama. She attended Sophie Newcomb College at ...
Andrew Schally: The Nobel Laureate Who Processed 100,000 Pig Brains in New Orleans
The Nobel Laureate Who Processed 100,000 Pig Brains in New OrleansAndrew Victor Schally was born on November 30, 1926, in Wilno, Poland (now Vilnius, Lithuania). His father was a brigadier general ...
Philip Hannan: The Archbishop Who Eulogized a President
The Archbishop Who Eulogized a PresidentPhilip Matthew Hannan was born on May 20, 1913, in Washington, D.C. He became a priest, an Army chaplain with the 82nd Airborne who parachuted into Normandy ...
Matt Forte: Tulane's Gift to the NFL
Tulane's Gift to the NFLMatthew Garrett Forte was born on December 10, 1985, in Lake Charles, Louisiana, and grew up in Slidell — on the North Shore of Lake Pontchartrain, close enough to New Orlea...
Yahya Abdul-Mateen II: From the Magnolia to the Multiverse
From the Magnolia to the MultiverseYahya Abdul-Mateen II was born on July 15, 1986, in New Orleans, Louisiana. He grew up in Oakland, California, but New Orleans was first — and when you watch him ...
Dawn Richard: The Creole Girl Who Rebuilt Herself in Sound
The Creole Girl Who Rebuilt Herself in SoundDawn Angeliqué Richard was born on August 5, 1983, in New Orleans, Louisiana, to a family of Louisiana Creole and Haitian descent. She grew up in the cit...
Curren$y: The Jet Life from New Orleans
The Jet Life from New OrleansShante Scott Franklin was born on April 4, 1981, in New Orleans, Louisiana. As Curren$y — always with the dollar sign — he became one of the most prolific and respected...
Jay Electronica: Hip-Hop's Ghost Who Finally Showed Up
Hip-Hop's Ghost Who Finally Showed UpTimothy Elpadaro Thedford was born on September 19, 1976, in New Orleans, Louisiana. As Jay Electronica, he became one of the most mythologized figures in moder...
Jesse Duplantis: The Prosperity Preacher from the River Road
The Prosperity Preacher from the River RoadJesse Duplantis was born on July 9, 1949, in Destrehan, Louisiana — a small town on the River Road between New Orleans and Baton Rouge. He grew up in the ...
Étienne de Boré: The First Mayor and the Man Who Made Sugar King
The First Mayor and the Man Who Made Sugar KingÉtienne de Boré was born on December 27, 1741, in Kaskaskia, in what is now Illinois. His parents sent him to France at age four for education, and he...
Bernard de Marigny: The Creole Playboy Who Named the Streets and Invented Craps
The Creole Playboy Who Named the Streets and Invented CrapsBernard Xavier Philippe de Marigny de Mandeville was born in 1785 in New Orleans — a name so long and so French that it practically requir...
