COURSEY HARRELLS FERRY MILLERVILLE OLD JEFFERSON PA R K V I E W SHENANDOAH TIGER BEND WHITE OAK
ADVOCATE THE SOUTHEAST
T H E A D V O C AT E.C O M
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W e d n e s d ay, A p r i l 1, 2026
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My parents sparked my musical interest with these artists I had a time picking someone in music to highlight for Women’s History Month, which runs through March 31. I could have picked the timeless Irma Thomas, 85, the Soul Queen of New Orleans. Another music royal is Queen Ida, the first Grammy winner Herman in zydeco. Now Fuselier 97 and long retired, Ida Guillory brought zydeco to “Saturday Night Live,” “Mister Roger’s Neighborhood” and beyond. Sheryl Cormier, of Lafayette, who just turned 81, still reigns as the Queen of Cajun Music. She opened the door for Amis du Teche, T’Monde, the Babineaux Sisters and the Holiday Playgirls, part of the current wave of females in their 20s and 30s playing French music. Ultimately, my music choice landed close to home with my mother, Matteal Fuselier. March 25 marks 20 years since she passed away. People always ask what sparked my interest in music. I have to give my mom, and dad, Herman, credit.
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Director Glen Pitre discusses a scene with Stephen McHattie, right, while Nancy Barrett looks on during filming of ‘Belizaire the Cajun.’
CULTURE ON DISPLAY
STAFF FILE PHOTO BY DAVID GRUNFELD
Irma Thomas performs the national anthem before the 2026 Allstate Sugar Bowl at the Caesars Superdome.
‘Belizaire the Cajun’ director sheds light on astonishing portrayal of La. history
Matteal and Herman weren’t musicians, but they played the hell out of the radio and record player. An endless rainbow of music, from Frank Sinatra to John Delafose and the Eunice Playboys, was on in the house and car. Family vacations often included stops at local record stores. I still remember how odd the little-me felt when the car radio was turned off during funeral processions. Where was James Brown, Aretha, Monk, Otis, Willie Nelson, DJ Paul Thibeaux and the House Rocker on KVOL 1300? I learned that a silent radio was the last show of respect for the person who had gone on to Glory. Matteal and Herman were married for 54 years. Some days, they didn’t speak to each other. There were many more days with the turntable spinning in the den. They were up and dancing to Duke Ellington, with Ella Fitzgerald singing
BY JOANNA BROWN
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raiteurs. Vigilantes. A doomed love affair — or is it? This is the drama that infuses “Belizaire the Cajun,” a critically acclaimed film about 19th-century Louisiana life by writer and director Glen Pitre. The 1986 movie was screened at international festivals like Sundance and Cannes, and received a positive review from Robert Ebert himself, who wrote, “What I liked about the movie was its unforced view of Cajun life, the rhythms of the speech as they move from Cajun French into English and back again, and the comic timing of some of the scenes, especially two where the local sheriff tries to temper justice with fairness.” Pitre grew up in Cut Off in the 1960s and ’70s, and in many ways, he wrote what he knew of life in south Louisiana — the relationships, the jokes, the hard work and gentle speed of life in bayou country. He said his grandparents never spoke English, and he spent more
ä See MUSICIANS, page 2G
The newspaper is reintroducing its Cookie Contest at the Baker Fair from 2 p.m. to 5 p.m. April 12 at the Main Library, 7711 Goodwood Blvd., in Baton Rouge. The first-place winner will receive a $100 gift card; second place, $75 gift card; and third place, $50 gift card. The winners and their cookies will be featured in The Advocate’s Living section. For details and to enter the contest, go to ebrpl.co/ advocatecookiecontest.
Staff writer
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Gail Youngs, left, and Armand Assante star in ‘Belizaire the Cajun.’
time on boats than on land. The lizaire’s cousin for murder. plot of “Belizaire the Cajun” unThe film is a look at the 19th-cenfolds in that world, but 100 years tury melting pot of Louisiana and before in the Louisiana frontier the traditions of the Cajun people. Belizaire Breaux is a traiteur — a of 1859, with French speaking Cajun people in conflict with Anglo ä See PITRE, page 2G vigilantes who have framed Be-
MR. NEW ORLEANS, LYLE SAXON
Was author ever awarded an honorary LSU degree? BY ROBIN MILLER Staff writer
Louisiana author Lyle Saxon once was considered the foremost expert on the state’s culture, traditions and history, especially when it came to New Orleans. In fact, he was nicknamed “Mr. New Orleans” and for good reason. Saxon spearheaded pres-
ervation efforts for the French Quarter in the early 20th century after the city declared it a slum and considered demolishing it. He also Saxon headed the Federal Writers Project’s documentation of everything Louisiana in the WPA-funded “Louisiana: A
Guide to the State.” Still, there’s one accomplishment Saxon didn’t achieve, as pointed out by Alexandria author and historian Michael Wynne. “He didn’t graduate from LSU,” Wynne said. “But he came so close.” Usually, Wynne is one of many sources in providing answers to
Curious Louisiana questions, but this time around, he steps into the role of the reader asking the question.
Why no honorary degree? “I started looking into it, and I found that he was only three hour-credits away from graduating,” Wynne said. “So my
ä See CURIOUS, page 2G