536. Johnette Downing and Scott Billington

536. We chat with Johnette Downing and her husband, Scott Billington. "Musician and author Johnette Downing and three-time Grammy® winner Scott Billington are the foremost children’s music performers from New Orleans. Their Swamp Romp program is a Louisiana dance party that brings the sounds of Cajun music, zydeco, traditional jazz, Isleño culture, swamp pop and New Orleans rhythm and blues to life for young ears. It is a toe-tapping, interactive, and authentic roots music experience that both children and parents will enjoy and long remember. Johnette’s gift for communicating with children is matched with smart musicianship and songs that make this tour of Louisiana’s rich cultural landscape fun for all in attendance" (Johnette and Scott).

1. This week in Louisiana history. August 18, 1769. O'Reilly arrives in N.O. with 24 ships and 2,600 Spanish troops to take possession of Louisiana for Spain.
2. This week in New Orleans history. Elizebeth Smith Friedman, born on  August 26, 1892, "America's first female cryptanalyst" [code breaker].  Her testimony in cases in Galveston, Houston, and New Orleans in 1933 resulted in convictions against thirty-five bootlegging ringleaders who were found to have violated the Volstead Act. Ringleaders were directly linked with suspected shipping vessels as a result of the information arising out of her analysis. She died on October 31, 1980.
   
3. This week in Louisiana.
   Jean Lafitte Scenic Byway
   178 miles — Take 2 days to fully experience the roadway.
   Website
   This byway crisscrosses through the heart of central Acadiana and has so many points of interest that you could easily spend a week on it and not see everything there is to see. So, your best bet is to cover the trail in segments over a period of time, possibly on a two- or three-day trip.
   
4. Postcards from Louisiana. Single Malt Please with Maude Caillat at the BMC Bar on Decatur St. in New Orleans.

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