637. Kiona Walker LeMalle

637. It's been 20 years this month since Hurricane Katrina, and we're marking the anniversary this August and September. Today, we talk to Kiona Walker LeMalle about her Katrina-themed novel, Behind the Waterline. The novel takes readers to the home of a teenager and his grandmother in a New Orleans neighborhood on the eve of Katrina, where there are few resources and little warning of what is about to happen, in this novel that mixes magical realism with reality.

636. Frank Perez. *CORRECTED*

636. We talk to Frank Perez about the place of LGBTQ+ people in New Orleans history. “Want to learn about New Orleans’ rich and vibrant LGBT+ history? I can help with that! It has been my pleasure for the last several years to not only preserve and document that history, but also to be a small part of it.  I’ve written several books and hundreds of articles on local queer history and I’m proud to be a co-founder of the LGBT+ Archives Project of Louisiana.  In addition, I also founded and love conducting The Rainbow Fleur de Lis Walking Tour, which is a leisurely sashay the French Quarter’s rainbow history.” (French Quarter Frank).

636. Frank Perez.

636. We talk to Frank Perez about the place of LGBTQ+ people in New Orleans history. “Want to learn about New Orleans’ rich and vibrant LGBT+ history? I can help with that! It has been my pleasure for the last several years to not only preserve and document that history, but also to be a small part of it.  I’ve written several books and hundreds of articles on local queer history and I’m proud to be a co-founder of the LGBT+ Archives Project of Louisiana.  In addition, I also founded and love conducting The Rainbow Fleur de Lis Walking Tour, which is a leisurely sashay the French Quarter’s rainbow history.” (French Quarter Frank).

635. Kyle Crosby, Part 2

635. Part 2 of our talk with Kyle Crosby about his project, Louisiana Dread. "Louisiana Dread is a cultural project that shares and preserves stories of Louisiana history, culture, and folklore. Under the umbrella of Dreadful Productions, LLC, "Louisiana Dread" aims to bring awareness to important cultural aspects of Louisiana through several online series, such as LA Quick History, LA Drinks, LA Estates, LA Lingo, and LD Live. Each highlight  in Louisiana history that have otherwise been forgotten or misinterpreted, as well as share local horror stories that have been told for generations.

634. Kyle Crosby, Part 1

634. Part 1 of our talk with Kyle Crosby about his project, Louisiana Dread. "Louisiana Dread is a cultural project that shares and preserves stories of Louisiana history, culture, and folklore. Under the umbrella of Dreadful Productions, LLC, "Louisiana Dread" aims to bring awareness to important cultural aspects of Louisiana through several online series, such as LA Quick History, LA Drinks, LA Estates, LA Lingo, and LD Live.

633. Heidi Kim

633. We talk to Heidi Kim about her research into the novel, Vieux Salomon. "Set in Guadeloupe, New Orleans, the surrounding Louisiana plantations, and briefly in other areas of the South, this is a key text of the history of slavery in Louisiana and the Deep South. There is obviously a difference between memoirs and novels in terms of perception and claims to nonfiction.

632. Chip Lococo

632. Chip Lococo discusses his novel, The Devil’s Jazz:
A Gripping Historical Thriller of Murder, Music, and Madness in 1918 New Orleans, about the infamous Axman of New Orleans. “They have never caught me and they never will... I have been, am, and will be the worst spirit that ever existed either in fact or the realm of fancy.” — The Axman

       In the haunted heart of New Orleans, as World War I draws to a close, a sinister presence stalks the streets. A brutal serial killer—known only as the Axman—emerges from the shadows, targeting the city’s Sicilian immigrant community with chilling precision.