Louisiana Insider

Secretive Men’s organizations –o such as the Free Masons, Elks, Odd Fellows and many more – did not originate just for the sake of privacy. In many cases they had a social purposes such as providing health and security benefits for themselves at a time when neither government nor private enterprise provided much of either. Some groups were also a source of business and social connections.

Jari Honora, an historian and genealogist who curated an exhibit for the Historic New Orleans Collection entitled Mystery and Benevolence: Masonic and Odd Fellows Folk Art, joins Louisiana Life Executive Editor Errol Laborde, along with producer Kelly Massicot, to discuss the organizations, which had a strong presence in New Orleans as well as globally.

In New Orleans and Mobile the structure of the groups even had an influence on Carnival krewes. The groups also left a strong architectural presence either through their lodges; office buildings and memorial sites. The interview offers a rare opportunity to peer inside the world of secrecy.

Gordon “Nick” Mueller once had a conversation with Stephen Ambrose, a history professor colleague at the University of New Orleans. What Ambrose had to say would make history itself. He proposed a project to build a museum focused on the Normandy D-Day invasions. Taking advantage of the university’s lakefront location – which would be used to test the Higgins landing boats used in the invasion – plus Ambrose’s volumes of interviews on the war, the idea seemed like a natural. From that day, Mueller’s career took a new track toward his own landing as the founding President and CEO of what would eventually be called The National World War II Museum.

Now regarded as one of the nation’s best museums and ranking high in attendance, the museum project that Ambrose envisioned, like the Normandy invasion, was a success tough with a heavy drama an obstacles along the way.

Mueller joins Louisiana Life Executive Editor Errol Laborde, along with podcast producer Kelly Massicot, to talk about the war and the new book he co-authored, along with research historian Kali Matin Schick, entitled “Building the National WWII Museum.”

There are lots of stories in the interview including that of Ambrose’s reaction the first time he saw a personal screening of his book, “Saving Private Ryan” having been made into a movie.

Chris Thomas King has been close to the blues all his life. His is the son of a legendary blues musician, Tabby Thomas, who operated a blues club in Baton Rouge. King has excelled not only on guitar, but also as a performer whose movie credits include the quirky “Oh Brother, Where Art Thou” and the biofilm “Ray” about Ray Charles in which King also served as a music consultant working with Charles. King joins Louisiana Life Executive Editor Errol Laborde, along with podcast producer Kelly Massicot to talk about his Grammy awards, blues style and most of all his book, “The Blues: The Authentic Narrative of My Music And Culture.”

He also explains why defining the blues might be different than from what you think.

Rubensteins New Orleans has always been a place to shop for quality clothes. Now, the New Orleans business provides a quality place to stay.

Located at Canal Street and St. Charles Avenue, Rubensteins has long shown a commitment to the city’s downtown. That support has been further expressed by combining some of its adjacent buildings into a new quality boutique hotel.

Family member Kenny Rubenstein, an owner and general manager of the store, talks to Louisiana Life Executive Editor Errol Laborde and producer Kelly Massicot about retail, urban downtowns and customer loyalty. He also explains the intricacies of running two businesses that not only provide a place to spend your day, but to end your day as well.

Suppose your job is to take care of a tiger – a real tiger with jaws and claws and that is physically fit. David G. Baker is a veterinarian who for several year had the responsibility of overseeing the most recent cats who have been the Louisiana State University mascot. This week, Baker joins Louisiana Life Executive Editor Errol Laborde, along with podcast producer Kelly Massicot, to discuss his book "Mike: The Tigers of LSU." He talks not just about the life of a mascot, but also offers fascinating insights into the animals themselves, such as how they differ in lifestyles and psychology from other wild felines including lions and panthers. He also describes Mike’s luxurious habitat on the LSU campus and the inside story of what it takes to feed a tiger.