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Dramatis Personae
- Louisiana State University Press
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Dramatis Personae I n what follows, I have usually referred to the players by name. Most were colorful and memorable characters who deserve better than the anonymity of “one member of the circle,” or “a young artist.” But it may be hard to keep this cast of dozens straight, so let me briefly introduce them before I turn to the set and the drama. (You may want to dog-ear this page for reference.) Here is an alphabetical list of all the Famous Creoles, followed by some other members of their circle who will make frequent appearances. I have provided approximate ages in 1926 and shorthand descriptions. The Famous Creoles’ names are followed by page references in brackets to the fuller biographical sketches beginning on page 99. 7 8 | Dramatis Personae Famous Creoles Conrad albrizio, twenty-seven [178] New York-born, serious artist, Spratling’s neighbor, Arts and Crafts Club stalwart. sherwood anderson, fifty [108] “Lion of the Latin Quarter,” éminence grise, generous to respectful younger writers. marc antony and lucille Godchaux antony, both twenty-eight [168] Love-match between heiress and lower-middle-class boy, both local artists. Hamilton “Ham” Basso, twenty-two [198] Star-struck recent Tulane grad, aspiring writer, good dancer. Charles “uncle Charlie” Bein, thirty-five [165] Director of Arts and Crafts Club’s art school; lived with mother, sister, and aunt. Frans Blom, thirty-three [116] Danish archeologist of Maya, Tulane professor, colorful resident of Quarter. roark Bradford, thirty [158] Newspaperman, jokester, hit pay dirt with Negro dialect stories. Nathaniel Cortlandt Curtis, forty-five [113] Tulane architecture professor, preservationist, recorded old buildings. albert Bledsoe Dinwiddie, fifty-five [223] President of Tulane, Presbyterian. marian Draper, twenty [175] Ziegfeld Follies alum, Tulane cheerleader, prize-winning architecture student. Caroline “Carrie” Wogan Durieux, thirty [216] Genuine Creole, talented artist living in Cuba and Mexico, painted by Rivera. William “Bill” Faulkner, twenty-nine [241] Needs no introduction, but wrote the one to Famous Creoles. Flo Field, fifty [104] French Quarter guide, ex-journalist, sometime playwright, single mother. louis andrews Fischer, twenty-five [201] Gender-bending Mardi Gras designer, named for her father. meigs o. Frost, forty-four [123] Reporter’s reporter who lived in Quarter; covered crime, revolutions, and arts. samuel louis “sam” Gilmore, twenty-seven [225] Greenery-yallery poet and playwright, from prominent family. moise Goldstein, forty-four [142] Versatile and successful architect, preservationist, active in Arts and Crafts Club. Weeks Hall, thirty-two [231] Master of and slave to Shadows-on-the-Teche plantation, painter, deeply strange. ronald Hargrave, forty-four [194] Painter from Illinois formerly active in Quarter art scene, relocated to Majorca. r. emmet Kennedy, forty-nine [192] Working-class Irish boy, collected and performed Negro songs and stories. Dramatis Personae | 9 Grace King, seventy-four [228] Grande dame of local color literature and no-fault history, salonnière. alberta Kinsey, fifty-one [204] Quaker spinster, Quarter pioneer, indefatigable painter of courtyards. richard r. Kirk, forty-nine [140] Tulane English professor and poet, loyal Michigan Wolverine alumnus. oliver la Farge, twenty-five [130] New England Brahmin, Tulane anthropologist, and fiction-writer; liked a party. Harold levy, thirty-two [213] Musician who ran family’s box factory, knew everybody, turned up everywhere. lillian Friend marcus, thirty-five [180] Young widow from wealthy family, angel and manager of Double Dealer. John “Jack” mcClure, thirty-three [162] Poet, newspaper columnist and reviewer, Double Dealer editor, bookshop owner. Virginia Parker Nagle, twenty-nine [145] Promising artist, governor’s niece, Arts and Crafts Club teacher. louise Jonas “mother” Nixon, seventy [137] A founder of Le Petit Theatre and its president-for-life, well-connected widow. William C.“Cicero” odiorne, forty-five [134] Louche photographer, Famous Creoles’ Paris contact. Frederick “Freddie” oechsner, twenty-four [148] Recent Tulane graduate, ambitious cub reporter, amateur actor. Genevieve “Jenny” Pitot, twenty-five [219] Old-family Creole, classical pianist living in New York, party girl. lyle saxon, thirty-five [208] Journalist, raconteur, bon vivant, host, preservationist, bachelor. Helen Pitkin schertz, fifty-six [185] Clubwoman and civic activist, French Quarter guide, writer, harpist. Natalie scott, thirty-six [125] Journalist, equestrian, real-estate investor, Junior Leaguer, social organizer. William “Bill” spratling, twenty-five [236] Famous Creoles illustrator, Tulane teacher, lynchpin of Quarter social life. Keith Temple, twenty-seven [189] Australian editorial cartoonist, artist, sometimes pretended to be a bishop. Fanny CraigVentadour, twenty-nine [155] Painter, Arts and Crafts Club regular, lately married and living in France. elizebeth Werlein, thirty-nine [172] Suffragette with colorful past, crusading preservationist, businessman’s...