Mardi Gras Mambo: Krewe of Bacchus CLOSED

The Krewe of Bacchus parade was founded in 1968 by some New Orleans business leaders whose wished to revitalize Carnival season.

The original Krewe of Bacchus was thought of by Owen Brennan, Sr.. In the late 1940’s, he realized that a a lot of his tourist crowd was unhappy with Mardi Gras. At that time, Carnival balls at Mardi Gras were predominately closed to anyone outside of New Orleans’ society circles. So, In 1949, he decided to spend an enormous amount of money, and revolutionize the Mardi Gras. Brennan did this by creating the brand new Krewe Bacchus, which was open to tourists. Brennan was able to stage two Bacchus Carnival balls, one in 1949 and the other in 1950 before he passed in 1955. Regrettably, he did not live to see Bacchus form into what it would become.

In 1968, Carnival in New Orleans had been losing its luster slowly but surely. People were talking around town about what should be done to give a spark to the celebration.

Early in 1968, Owen Brennan, Jr., held a meeting to address this problem. What emerged was a rebirth of the vision his father conceived almost 20 years earlier: The Krewe of Bacchus.

It was decided that the Krewe of Bacchus would break with Carnival tradition by staging a Sunday night parade that would be the highlight of the Carnival season. Its floats would be bigger and more spectacular than anything previously seen in Carnival. Furthermore, Bacchus decided to have a national celebrity king lead its parade, breaking ranks with 113 years of Carnival tradition.

On Sunday, February 16, 1969, the Krewe of Bacchus staged its first Mardi Gras parade. The theme was "The Best Things In Life", and the procession was led by celebrity king Danny Kaye. The 250 member, 15 float entourage took to the streets of New Orleans showering thousands of spectators with over a million strings of beads and 300,000 doubloons. The new parade was a smashing success.

The Krewe of Bacchus had left a lasting mark on the City of New Orleans and had proven to be the boost that the Carnival season so desperately needed. Now, with more than 1,350 members and 33 animated super-floats, the Krewe of Bacchus is revered as one of the most spectacular Krewes in Carnival history.

This year's theme is "Creatures of the Imagination" and King Bacchus is Val Kilmer.

Bacchus, in Greek mythology, was the god of wine and vegetation. He showed mortals how to cultivate grapevines and make wine. So to show our love of wine and Bacchus, the folks over at d'Pholk designs has offered to sponsor this giveaway.

They are generously offering one lucky reader a Wine Bottle Serving Tray.

Their eco friendly serving trays are made from recycled wine bottles. They carefully clean each bottle and remove the label before placing them into a kiln. Once flattened, each tray is individually decorated and comes with its own cheese knife which is tied on with raffia. Perfect for use in your home or as a gift.

This tray is made using a green glass wine bottle and is decorated with a lovely round focal bead. It comes with a white cork cheese spreader. They follow strict fusing and slumping techniques to give you an original, one of a kind functional and decorative art.

If you would love to have one of these to use at your next party, just enter below.

Don't forget, you can DOUBLE your chances by visiting The Not So Blog.

How to Enter:

1. Head on over to d'Pholk Designs and tell me one other item you would love to have!

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Contest ends at 11:59 pm CST on February 21st. Prizes not claimed in 72 hours will be forfeited. Open to U.S. Residents only.
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