NOLA Morgan meeting

 

An historic meeting of Morgan boys takes place over May 3-4 in New Orleans. Sundance suggested Betsy's Pancake breakfast diner on Canal Street. It was an ideal place to review a variety of topics including: 1. How we might get Sundance's TV working again 2. Is the Degas House worth a visit ? 3. Can Greg add Dan via facetime on his iPhone 4. Will our waitress, Katherine be amused by the comic sardonic wit of the Morgans ordering breakfast (after 10:30am when the specials are no longer offered). 

Edgar Degas, the French born Impressionist visited family in New Orleans for five months in 1872, a fact that is celebrated with in the New Orleans Museum of Art (NOMA) and a house that is among the Register of Historic Places. (Of course Greg and Wes visited both NOLA and Degas House).

I pondered Richard Diebenkorn painting of a woman on a porch at NOLA before Greg and I visited the remarkable Sculpture Garden adjacent to the museum on a beautiful day for viewing sculpture by Robert Indiana, Keneth Snelson, Louise Bourgeois, Deborah Butterfield, George Rickey, Claes Oldenburg/Coosie Van Bruggen, George Rodrique, Henry Moore, Robert Indiana...and More. (A truly amazing collection on view at the Sydney and Walda Bestoff Sculpture Garden)

 

 

We visited the WWII Museum, where we joined an audience, composed largely of seniors for a 4-D Movie complete with a 7 minute introduction by actor Tom Hanks. (The 4-D experience included jaring moving seats and noise and lights that includes being run over by a tank! War is Hell.) Of course I could not resist the display on the Hitler declared DEGENERAT ART (with appropriate inclusion of St. Louis favorite Max Beckmann).

We also caught a glimpse of the Ogden Museum of Southern Art (including a terrific exhibition of classic photos of Jazz legends including the singing great Billie Holiday. 

Greg rented a car so we covered a variety of Nawlins' vistas like the Bourbon Street, Lake Ponchetrain, and Loyola University. Greg doesn't mind driving. GPS allowed us to find Hansen's Snow Bliz shop and a brand extension of the Cafe Du Monde for coffee and beignets. 

We were well fed at the Fairfield by Marriot in Metierie breakfast fare (including a make your own waffles station and a variety of toppings). I lost my wallet on the floor at Metierie's Buffalo Wild Wings (which was fortunately returned to me by the festive group who were at our table after us).

Katherine, our server at Betsy's photo-bombed us at breakfast. A few minutes earlier a guy (Benny) carrying take out stopped for a moment to recognize Sundance. "My two girls took tennis lessons with you,,,They're doing well" (How wonderful is that random recognition of impact?) 

The famous quote from The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance (1962) is: "This is the West, sir. When the legend becomes fact, print the legend". It is spoken by newspaper editor Maxwell Scott to Senator Ransom Stoddard, deciding to bury the truth about who actually killed the outlaw to preserve a more inspiring narrative.