"?" "city council, district c ?" " ?" "DJ Davis ?" " Davis: ?" "vote for me ?" "?" "we all have this feelin'... ?" "Ladies and gentlemen," "D.J. Davis in the house!" "Remember, Davis can save us." "Watch the candidates' forum tomorrow night on w.Y.E.S." "Remember my platform:" "Pot for potholes," "Hos for schools, always for pleasure," "Break all the rules!" "Give me that ass." "Slap it." "Pat pat pat pat." "Right here stripper spank." "Ooh, I almost forgot my newest campaign promise:" "If elected, I will introduce legislation" "That will rename Lee circle." "From this day forth it will no longer be in honor" "Of that sainted Robert e." "Lee." ""walking with mister lee" circle" "Will honor Mr. Lee Allen," "The greatest tenor sax-man this city has ever produced." "So buy my c.D." " That's right." " For sale right here." "Ooh, and for all my friends in the gay community" "And district "c" is the gay district," "Uh-huh" "Remember, all crimes against nature" "Will be naturalized in the Crescent city." "I give you my sacred oath." "We will reform the Napoleonic code." "?" "vote for me... ?" "?" "hangin' in the treme ?" "?" "watching people sashay ?" "?" "past my steps ?" "?" "by my porch ?" "?" "in front of my door ?" "?" "church bells are ringin' ?" "?" "choirs are singing ?" "?" "while the preachers groan ?" "?" "and the sisters moan in a blessed tone ?" " ?" "mmm-hmm ?" " ?" "yeah ?" "?" "down in the treme ?" "?" "just me and my baby ?" "?" "we're all going crazy ?" "?" "while jamming and having fun ?" "?" "trumpet bells ringing ?" "?" "bass drum is swinging ?" "?" "as the trombone groans ?" "?" "and the big horn moans ?" "?" "and there's a saxophone ?" "?" "down in the treme ?" "?" "it's me and my baby ?" "?" "we're all going crazy ?" "?" "while jamming and having fun ?" "?" "down in the treme ?" "?" "it's me and my baby ?" "?" "we're all going crazy ?" "?" "while jamming and having fun. ?" "Whoo!" "Make Sofia some leftovers." "There's a half a meatloaf on the top shelf." "This gray thing in saran wrap?" "You can pop it in the microwave" "Or slice it cold for sandwiches." "Do we have any more creole mustard?" " Who puts creole mustard on meatloaf?" " I do." "I put creole mustard on everything." "Where are you going again?" "Port sulphur?" " Port Arthur." " That's in Texas." "No, you swore a solemn oath." "I didn't." "What's Sofia up to?" "Oh, she's working on her costume." "Make sure she does her homework too." "Promise?" "Cray, listen, I" " I gotta drive here." "I'll see you tomorrow." "Love you." "You too." "?" "you never would call ?" "?" "while I had the blues you were having a ball ?" "?" "you thought that I'd be here to run to ?" "?" "now I'm gonna do to you what I was done to ?" "?" "too bad about you, my friend ?" "?" "it could've been great ?" "?" "but I was a little too lonely ?" "?" "and you were a little too late. ?" "?" "won't you come along with me... ?" "Yeah, dance, white boy." "?" "to the Mississippi?" "?" "?" "we're going down to the land of dreams ?" "?" "from down the River down to new Orleans... ?" " Yeah, you know why?" " Man:" "Why?" "Because... ?" "basin street is a street ?" "?" "where all them white and black characters from them first precinct meet ?" "?" "in new Orleans... ?" " ?" "the land of dreams... ?" " man:" "High as a kite." "?" "you never know how nice it seems ?" "?" "until you get down South to new Orleans ?" "?" "I'm proud to be, yes siree ?" "?" "rebel rebel free, baby ?" "?" "Orleans with me, right?" "?" "Learn the words, motherfucker." "Et toi?" "Give it up, Phoenix." " Man #2:" "Oh, yeah!" " Man #3:" "Yeehaw!" "Now that's traditional." "The banjo ain't my bag, but this dude can play." "Don Vappie?" "Oh, yeah." "I've always been down with traditional myself." "Yeah, I noticed, but you old school" "And cutting edge at the same time." "That's new Orleans, young man" "Many styles, many traditions." "Yeah, but for me traditional is bird and Diz" "Playing "salt peanuts" at Massey hall" "With bud Powell and x roach." " And Charles Mingus on bass." " Right, exactly!" "One, two, three." "Yeah!" "Come on, y'all." "Come on,come on!" "I'll tell you what, let's go up here and do our set," "But end with a little something from home." "Like what?" ""iko," "Mardi gras mambo,"" ""saints."" "You gotta give the good people of Arizona" "A little of what they came to hear." "Just play our set, man." "Mr. Dietrich?" "Jim Dietrich?" "I'm Toni Bernette." "I'm a lawyer from new Orleans" "And I need to talk to you for a minute if I may." "It's not about n.O.P.D." "I'm looking for somebody who's missing," "And I drove all this way" "Hoping you'd be able to help me." " Hey, Angie." " Hey, Antoine." " How you doing?" " Good, baby." " How are you?" " I'm good." "What you got there?" " It's a little something for your daddy." " Oh, yeah?" "He's inside." " Both:" "Mwah!" "That's a real fine hn." "To replace the one you lost in the flood." "It's beautiful, daddy." "I can't." "This must have cost a fortune." "See, I didn't buy it." "Somebody bought it for you." "Yeah, a jazz fan." "Japanese cat." "Come through town, looking to do good for new Orleans musicians, right?" "I told him about your situation and he knew all about you." "Yeah, big fan." "He said it was the least he could do," " An honor." " I don't know." "I ain't felt much like blowing, you know?" "That's because you ain't had one to blow." "Now look here, maestro, that thing needs to make noise." "I don't know what to say." "Like you always told me" "Straight ahead and strive for tone." "Spoken to every officer from the second district" "Who worked the midnight to 8:00 shift that Sunday." "Well, everybody except for you" "And Bobby Foskett." "why second district?" "A young man I'm looking for lived on valence street," "And the restaurant he worked at is at Laurel and Webster." "Okay." "Well, his boss asked him to do something at the restaurant" "That morning just before the storm blew in." "He never showed." "My best guess-- he was stopped on the way there." "That's thin." "That's what I've got." "So you talked to everyone else in the 12:00 to 8:00," "And it's down to me and Bobby Foskett." " And Bobby Foskett's dead." " You heard?" "Ate his gun a month after the storm." "Still don't know how you found me." "You had your last check sent to your sister's here in port Arthur." "After that it was easy." "I just called the utility company." "Only had a couple of traffic stops that morning." "When the storm blew in, we had our fuckin' hands full." "I pulled over a black male about this guy's age," "Blew through the light at Nashville and Tchoupitoulas." "Blew through it right in front of me," "So I had to hit the blue tops," "Give him a ticket." "This young man?" "Could be." "I don't know." "This matters." "I need a positive I. D. For the habeas." "I need you to be sure." "That was five months ago." "And let's be honest" "He looks like a lot of guys I've written up over the years." "I'm sorry." "I wish I could help." "But that was another life." "I'm done with n.O.P.D." "Done with new Orleans too, for what it's worth." "That's me." "You don't have to take that." " Cray, it's on wheels." " No problem." "We're just across the way, short-term parking." "You didn't need to pick me up." " I'd have taken a cab." " Don't be silly." "My Agent comes all the way from New York..." "I'm so glad to see you, Cray." "You should come to New York more often." "How long has it been?" "Carla, level with me, will ya?" "They want their advance back, don't they?" "I know they haven't forgotten about it." "I know it's just gnawing the guts out of some Bean counter." "There are a couple of things I wanna talk to you about," "But it's all good." " Oh." " I love the band." "The best airport music ever." "Why'd you quit?" "If you don't mind my asking." "Ma'am, I worked eight straight days after that storm," "All of it out of my car." "I wore the same uniform, stank like a dog." "I ate and drank what I could scavenge." "At some point I just had to wonder why?" "My house was underwater, everything I owned with it." "It ain't like I'm too old to do something else, you know?" "Mm." "I just had enough." "What are you going to do now?" "My brother's in corpus with the union," "Gonna get me some work offshore." " Good luck." " You to" "Sorry I can't put a face to that Tchoupitoulas stop." "I feel bad it was me who got your friend lost in the sauce." "The young man on Tchoupitoulas who ran a red light" "You said you wrote him a ticket." " I had to." "He blew through the light right in front of me." "But you didn't lock him up, right?" " Yeah, he got locked up." "Wait wait." "You arrested him for running a red light?" "No, for the warrant." "The warrant?" "Guess we're not done." "Carla, I thought random house wrote me off a long time ago." "Maybe they did to a certain extent," "But Katrina has put new Orleans" "Back on the map in a certain way." "It nearly wiped it off the map, actually." "The near-death of an American city" "And now my publisher's hot for a book" "They couldn't care less about six months ago." "Actually, they're not only interested in bringing" "Your novel out on next fall's list," "But they want you to do something contemporary before then." "Contemporary?" " Yeah, those passionate editorials" "That you've been doing on the Internet?" "I showed a couple to your editor" "And, uh, Lisa loves that voice from you." ""fuck you, you fucking fucks"- nice title." "From serious novelist to cartoon" "In one single volume." "No, they'd bring the novel out after." "And if you can manage to make the novel contemporary," "Maybe set part of it in post-Katrina" "The novel is about the 1927 flood." "It speaks to the present situation only as metaphor." "Well, perhaps if you could bookend some older material" "Jesus Christ, Carla." "I thought you said they wanted the book." "They do," "But in the voice that you have become." "You're a spokesman now for this city." "I'm not trying to be the spokesman of the city." "New Orleans speaks for itself." "And the novel is what it is." "If they still want it, fine." "You haven't published in eight years, Cray." "And now because of the storm" "Yes, because of it" "Your publisher wants this book desperately." "This is an opportunity." "I'll finish the damn novel." "When?" "What can I tell them?" "I need a month, six weeks maybe." "But it's a novel about the '27 flood." "That's what they bought." "That's what I'm writing." "I checked for warrants" "On David when I first began looking for him." "There is nothing on record with a court." "You think I want to lock the man up with a hurricane coming?" "I was gonna let him roll with the traffic ticket." "But how am I gonna cut a guy loose" "When he's got a warrant on him for failing to appear?" "So you arrested him and took him to o." "P.P.?" " Radioed for the sergeant" "To meet me back at I.P.C. , sign off on the paperwork." "I waited for-- must've been an hour, maybe more." "Finally, I make phone contact with him." "Says he's out of pocket, shit's hitting the fan." "He'd come down at the end of the shift and sign off." "So I left the guy there." "They said they'd hold him for the sergeant." "And whatever paperwork you left for the prisoner" "Goes under 10' of water when the jail floods, huh?" "The affidavit from your citation book" "There'd be a carbon of it." " Left it in the car." " At second district?" " Lake Charles." " Lake Charles?" "When I left, I just crawled in my unit" " And drove out of town." " Why Lake Charles" "You think I was gonna take an n." "O.P.D. Unit out of Louisiana?" "I was in enough trouble taking it out of town," "Never mind across state line." "I drove it onto the Lake Charles p.D. Lot," "Left the keys at the front desk," "Told them to call new Orleans, let 'em know." "Then I got my brother-in-law to drive over and get me." "Take another look, please?" "Sorry." "I can't be sure it's him," "I mean, if you want me to be honest about it." "You gave him a drink?" "All he wanted was a Barq's." "It goes with everything." "Jacques, what am I gonna tell him?" "I can't run a restaurant without meat." "I don't even know how I'm gonna pay staff today." "You can't make payroll?" "Oh, shit." "Who's that?" " Seafood." "fuck me." "Give him a Barq's too." "What's up, Jacques?" "Uh, Janette had to run out for a few minutes." "It's funny how everybody all of a sudden" "Got all these errands they gotta run today." "She has a very busy afternoon." "But if you'd like to wait..." "I don't want to, but I will." "What would you like to drink?" "Scotch." "You too, huh?" "Hey, daddy." "Heard them talking about your Youtube stuff on the radio." "You're famous." "I'm mentioned." "There's a difference." "Was that your mom on the phone?" "She said she'd be home tomorrow morning for sure." "Are we out of milk again?" "Right." ""Davis can save us." "" what is that?" "Oh, it's the Davis bumper sticker." "He's running for city council." "Davis Mcalary?" "Our Davis who's teaching you boogie-woogie" "That bozo's running for council?" "?" "vote for me, I am faking' ?" "?" "I won't lose my shit like mayor Nagin. ?" " Hey." " Mom's not here." "It's not your language." "This isn't funny." "What's happening in new Orleans now is not a joke." "We're fighting for our lives, for our way of life." "People are dying." "People are homeless." "People are stuck all over the place." "They can't get back." "Everything is not a joke all the time." "You mean like krewe Du vieux?" "That's political satire." "This-- it's a long tradition." "This is just wrong." "Where's the gaffer?" " Can I help you?" " Yeah." "Davis Mcalary, here for the candidates' forum." "Mcalary, you are indeed a registered candidate." "Paid the fees with cash money." "Come with me." "Hold that." "Enjoy that." " Sonny:" "It's pretty good." " Yeah." "Getting me a shitload of those, you know?" "That sounds good." " He's in Chicago now?" "Palmer house?" " Phil Frazier:" "Yeah." " And Troy's playing trumpet?" " Like I told you, man." " You're sure?" " Yeah, I got you." " All right, I'll call him right now." " Sure." "Thanks." " Honey, it's your turn to-- - shh shh." "Hold on now." "The Palmer house." " Can I speak to one of your guests?" "Sure." "What's the name?" " Yeah, uh, Dr. John." " Dr. John?" " The musician Dr. John." " Is there another name he goes by?" "Another name?" "I don't know." "That is his name." "Oh, I know what you're saying." "It's, um, Mac..." "Uh, Mac..." " Aw shit." " Sorry, sir." " No, pardon me." " No Mac." " You ain't got a Mac?" " Not registered." "hey, you remember his real last name?" " Rebennack." " Rebennack." " How do you spell that?" " Like it sounds, shit." "One moment." "you're welcome." " Dr. John:" "Yeah?" " Yeah, uh, Dr. John," "It's Antoine batiste calling from new Orleans." "Hey, Antoine." "What's happening?" "Uh, yeah, Philip Frazier told me I oughtta call you." "You might need a trombone to fill in on a tour you're making?" "Look, Antoine, I'd love to have you with the aggravation," "But we already got Troy playing slide." "I thought Troy was playing trumpet." "Charlie Miller is playing that..." " Charlie Miller, that motherfucker." "..." "This time around." "Wish I could hook you up." "Yeah." "Well, that's all right." "Thanks." "Hey, keep me in mind, you know?" " I could-- - yeah, you bet." "Don't worry, yeah." "You'll find something." "And, Peggy, that is why I'm the best candidate" "For city council, district c." " Mr. Mccleary." " Mcalary." "My apologies." "Mr. Mcalary." "Oh, um..." "Well, first I'd like to sing some of my campaign song." "?" "so just-- ?" " I have to ask you to stay within the format." "No singing." "You have two minutes for an opening statement." "Okay." "Thank you, Houston!" "Oh, man." "Loved that, man." "Loved that." "Donald's homage to bird, man." " Yeah, you know it?" " You better believe it, baby." " All right." " Beautiful!" "Thanks, don." "You guys did a great set too." " Looks like an encore." " Hey." ""iko."" " You ain't gonna quit?" " You know you like it." "Aw." "One more time, y'all." "Come on, let's hear it again." "?" "hey now, hey now ?" "?" "oh-oh... ?" "You want me to lock up?" "I don't know." "So it's official now." "I'm now on c.O.D. With every one of our suppliers." "C.O.D. Plus five with Harvey." "C.O.D. Plus 10 with Cusimano." "I can't write rubber checks and I can't cook without food." "The bank?" "I owe them a huge balloon payment." "And I can't go to my parents again." "And the thing is we're still putting out" "A menu every night that I'm proud of." "I mean, we're short, we're tight," "But push comes to shove" " You killed those chefs." " I buried 'em, didn't I?" "Oui." "You think the staff can hang in for a week?" "Till I can figure out how to deal with this?" "Come up with it somewhere?" "Without pay?" "You can ask." "One of my cornerstone programs is called" "Greased palm Sunday." "If we're gonna have corruption," "Let's just be honest about it." "So one Sunday a month," "We will have an official televised session" "In which the money be delivered and the deals made." ""real bribes in real time" will my motto." " You're right, bro." "Let's have some straight-up honest double-dealing." "Sunlight-- it's the best disinfectant." " Well, I'm on." " Peggy:" "Interesting." "Mcalary, you're whack." ""sunlight is the best disinfectant"?" "Yeah, I read that somewhere." " What, it's not true?" " Coco:" "Kill the t.V., Janice." "Well, it sounds true." "?" "when the time is right on a night in June ?" "?" "all the hoodoo dance underneath the moon ?" "?" "what goes on, child, you better believe ?" "?" "way down in new Orleans on st." "John's eve. ?" "Three damn hours on the phone." "I'm ready to play the goddamn zoo for elephants." "I might have something for you." " You can read, right?" " I can read flyshit on staff paper." "you're gonna need a tux." "Carnival time, bro." " Balls and all." " The Mardi gras ball?" " Yeah, like the bunch club." " Really?" "Well, Ladonna bought me a tux," "You know, for that tribute for Duke dejan and Olympia." " Yeah." "Still got it?" " Must be in a box somewhere." "Who else is on this gig besides me and you?" "Nah, man, I ain't on." "But you'll be cool." "Ah." "I played the m.O.M.S ball once," "Sitting in with the radiators." "It was wild, man, I'm telling you." "The band was playing, you know." "Everybody was screwing every which way." "I guess I could use a little fun myself." "You know what I'm saying?" " Happy Mardi gras, batiste." " Happy Mardi gras." "There's no fuckin' reason why we gotta have potholes" "That can swallow your whole fucking car." "You feel me?" " He's obsessive about potholes." "Somebody's gotta call these motherfuckers out." "I agree." "You're right." "You agree?" "Really?" "Jacques morial, scion of a great political dynasty, agrees with me." "Man, that shit is funny." "Greased palm Sunday." "Pot for potholes." "Don't forget that one." "That's satire." "That's good." "But you have a chance to raise some serious questions" "That none of these other motherfuckers are gonna touch." "I do?" "Look, looking ahead here we got some serious challenges:" "We got public housing;" "we got expropriation of people's homes;" "We got when they're gonna reopen charity hospital." "And we got this big nasty question" "About who can come home and who can't come home." " Right." "Here's an idea:" "Why don't you be my campaign manager?" "Not gonna happen." "But look, what I can do is I can hook you up" "With some real effective public exposure" "So we can get these issues on the table." "That's if you really wanna kick it up a notch." " Hell, yeah." " You should go for it, Davis." "Do you really think I can win this?" "The election?" "No fuckin' way." "Right." "I was just checking." "It's about time they sent someone." "We've been calling n.O. P.D. About that vehicle" "For three months now, maybe longer." "The department's still in disarray, to say the least." "I mean, how does a cop leave his post" "And abandon his vehicle and just walk away?" "If it was up to me, they'd throw his ass in jail." "You had to be there, I guess." "After Katrina we got hit with Rita and we didn't loot," "Complain, go crazy or run away like y'all did." " it's open." "Keys are inside." "Have a nice trip." "What, you're not taking the car?" "Not my job, I'm afraid." "No?" "What the hell is it you do?" "Well, I'm from, uh, document retrieval." "Vehicle retrieval will be re" "And get that car, no problem." "Your whole damn town's crazy, you know that?" "You're preaching to the choir, officer." "Preaching to the choir!" "Got back in my house," "This was the only thing left." "This floated." "I took it as a sign, chief." "We gotta mask this year." "I started that one right before the storm." "Still don't got nowhere to hook up my suit though." "My daughter asked me to come back to Atlanta." "But what am I gonna do in Atlanta, Albert?" "You can park your van right here." "We can do an extra practice this week." "Who else back?" "George, Troy." "Ronnie coming from Memphis." "Ronnie?" "He don't have nowhere." " Calliope closed." " Yeah, I know." "I was over there." "Well, he can stay with me too." "So we're masking for Mardi gras, right?" "You're damn right." " Did we have a job that night?" " That's not the point." "Oh, yeah?" "What is the point?" "I'm saying that if you're playing" "With every fucking band on Frenchmen street," "It dilutes what we are doing." "It's just a gig at the spotted cat." "I want to play, Sonny." "You're not hearing a fuckin' word I'm saying." " I hear you." "You're saying I can't play any gigs except your gigs." "No, I'm not saying that." "I'm supposed to watch you get high all day" "And then say no when people want me on real gigs" "Because you're worried it might ruin what we're doing on the street?" "Passing around a fucking hat for spare change?" "Ann." "So good to be back in new Orleans. " "Yo, d., let's finish with a little something from home." "Nah, too easy." "I'm feeling like Coltrane, "giant steps." - okay." "You go back to Paris." "You couldn't even get me..." "I need something to blow up real soon." " Or a car Chase." " Shh shh!" " Hello?" " Dominique:" "Ladonna?" " Dominique?" "What's wrong?" " Your mama not doing well." "I" " I dropped by to look in on her" "What do you mean "not doing well"?" "She's having trouble breathing." "Did you call the ambulance?" "I thought to call you first." "Call the 911 now." " Can she talk?" " Yes." "She asked me for some water and I gave it to her" "Call the goddamn ambulance." "Have them take her to touro." "I'll be there as soon as I can, okay?" " All right." "Dominique, call them now," "As soon as I hang up the phone, okay?" "I will." "It's mama." "We gotta seriously talk about" "Moving her up here, Ladonna." "I'll call you when I get to the hospital." "Drive safe." "This was a great night." "I really felt like we were all working as a team." "We've all been through a lot" "And I know how hard everyone in this room has been working." "I'm gonna have to ask something now" "That I never thought I'd have to ask." "I know how hard it is right now." "I need to ask if you all" "Would be willing to go a week..." "I can't do it, Jacques." "I mean, even if I did, even if everyone agreed," "It wouldn't solve the problem, right?" "I'd just be putting it off, kicking it down the road." "I can't make expenses" "And 're gonna have to suspend operations." "Maybe for a couple of weeks, maybe" "Maybe for good." "I'm not gonna ask you to work without pay." "I can't." "I know y'all will find jobs again right away." "Everyone needs help." "I'll hope that when we get back up and running again" "You'll be able to come back." "I think I'm gonna be sick." "Excuse me." "The first set was on fire." "Hey, doing the best we n." "You know my daddy, right?" "Big chief Albert." "Big chief Donald, yeah." "Man, I had such a great time playing with your son," "Baby boy." "Yeah, y'all sound good together, real good." " Oh, you was listening?" " I heard every note." "Chief, you coming out this year?" "Well, whoever makes it, we'll be out there." "Mm, I'm in the same boat as you." "I know you're making that walk with your dad this year." "I leave first thing Monday." "All right." "All right, cool cool." "Holler you ready?" "Ck in New York." "Yeah, let's do it, man." "Chief." " And you, baby." " I'm looking for you." "Practice is at 8:00 tomorrow night." "You ain't gonna stay for the next set?" "I got work to do." "I'll see you then." "Hey, d." "Good to see you back." " I felt like I couldn't stand up." " She knows that." "We're trying to find out what other medicines you" "She was on the diabinese for diabetes." "Diabinese-- was she taking that daily?" " Yes." " Where's Dominique?" " I sent her home." "It's late." "How late is it?" "A quarter to 3:00." "We can go as soon as we finish here, mama." "They said you might have just had a little low blood sugar." " You're all right." " We can go?" " Just a while." " Does your pharmacy" "Have any record of your mother's medications?" "They're closed." "I don't know if they're coming back." "Hi." "May I take your order, please?" "Café Au lait and beignets, please." "Café Au lait and beignets?" "Thank you." "Excuse me, please." "Thank you." "Well, that's good news, right?" "I don't see how they can deny the writ now." "They'll have to find him." "The bureaucracy loves paper evidence, forms." "They get really wet if it's a triplicate." " Ladonna must be thrilled." " I haven't spoken to her yet." "I left a message, but I think maybe" "She went to Baton Rouge for the weekend." "Pretty great, huh?" "Wow!" "That's quite the getup." "She finished that costume yesterday." " Aw." " Guess what I am." " Um, a space alien." " No." " Oh, a pearl." "You're part of a pearl necklace." " Nope." "I have a tail, see?" " Um, do you know?" "Dad thought of it." "He planned the whole float." "Guess again." "That's all I got, sweetie." "I'm sorry." "I'm a sperm." "See?" "When we walk our tails move back and forth like sperm." "The centerpiece of the krewe Du vieux parade" "Is a giant paper mâché replica of our illustrious mayor" "In a semi-recumbent position pleasuring himself." "It's great." "And we all walk in front, waving our tails." "You're joking." " It's political commentary." "The mystic krewe of spermies." " The sperm lead the way." " Yeah, as sperm so often do." "And at what point did you decide to abdicate" "As the parent of a 15-year-old girl?" "She knows everything." "You know everything, right, Sof?" " Uh-huh, of course." " Creighton, this is over the top." "Considering the circumstances," "I think we're showing admirable restraint." "But this is just..." "Offensive." "The mayor's performance is offensive." "The indifference of the state" "And federal government is offensive." "Fuck 'em if they can't take a joke." "You parade as sperm on Saturday night" "And come Monday morning I have to go in to the city attorney" "And talk with him about what's going on at the jail" "Or with the police, and all they want to talk about" "Is how you used the mayor as a Mardi gras gag." "Don't take the fun out of everything." "We're making you one too." "We'll be the family of sperm." "Y'all do what you want." "You can count me out." "Suit yourself." "Annie?" "Listen, all I wanna know is are you all right?" "I don't even know what that means anymore." "I'm so sorry for yesterday." "That wasn't me." "I was high." "That's no excuse." "I'm sorry." "It'll never happen again, promise." "Whoo!" "Sound good, maestro." "Embouchure is shot." "Got no wind at all." "Well, you know, keep shedding." "You'll be fine." " I can't play no gig, Antoine." " Sure, you can." "It ain't till next week or the week after." " Where'd you say it was?" " The airport." "It's one of them musicians' clinic gigs." "I'm putting together a good group," "Greeting folks as they're coming into town." "Hey, it's a bill a man." "All right, you talked me into it." "Ah." "The thing is to get the gig," "We gotta go in for a check-up" "Both of us this afternoon." "I figure as long as I was here," "We might as well run over." "All right, but you let me pay the cab." "How about we split it, huh?" "I think renaming the circle after" "A local musician is a marvelous idea." "Please, Mimi, don't be appalling." "All we need is for someone to point out the hypocrisy." "Well, Davis, you yourself are named" "For the confederate president to whom we are directly," "If distantly, related." "I tell people it's for miles, Sammy, Ossie or Angela." " Hah!" " Man:" "I loved Sammy Davis." ""candy man."" "But the question is, my darling boy:" "Do you want people to take you as a serious individual or not?" "Why would I do something that would violate" "The entire logic of my life as I have conducted it so far?" "You stick to your guns, Davis." " Thank you, aunt Mimi." " Thank you, aunt Mimi." "But I also feel compelled to take exception to the idea" "That there's nothing serious about what I can do with this." "Jacques Morial says that I have a chance to talk about issues" "That nobody else is talking about." "A Morial?" "What's next?" " Get over it, Ramona." " Ramona:" "The point is" "We finally have a chance to turn new Orleans around," "Now that certain elements are gone." "But raising money from selling marijuana" "Is not the way to do it." "Your carefully euphemized racist sentiments" "Are duly noted, my darling mother," "But even you might agree that the city needs" "Every stream of revenue it can get." "The city is broke and the city is broken." "And it can't stay broke and get fixed." "It's a contradiction in terms." "I always thought they oughtta have" "Blackjack tables on the streetcars." "Wait" " Blackjack on the track." "Excellent idea." "Ooh, I think it'time for another Martini." "How about a short one this time, Mimi?" "Oh, don't be vulgar," "Bro, I'll keep your mom out." "What time you want me to bring her back?" "" "I'll need to write you a prescription" " For your blood pressure." " Yes, ma'am." "And I just need to speak with your friend." "He's out of shape too." "Antoine." " Hey, miss Cathy." " You need to drop 20 lbs." " Woman, you always say that." " And it's always true." "It would lower your blood pressure though." "More gigs I get lower my pressure." "How's he doing?" "Well, I'll know exactly when his blood work comes back," "But he's not well and I think he's depressed." "Ain't we all?" "Darius is coming to practice tonight." "Well, the Indian thing is not for everybody." "But if it's for you, it can make you strong." "I know he's interested." "It seems like they're trying to make it impossible" "For folks to come back." "What folks?" "My gang." "They need someplace to live." "My second chief, he got no place to stay." "Living out there in his van." "Ronnie got a place in the projects." "It didn't flood, but they won't let him back in." "Half my gang living like refugees" "In their own country." "Somebody needs to make a stand, you know?" "Draw a line." "Can I do something to help?" "You know what I really need you to do..." "Tell me." "...Is cut." "Cut cut cut while I sew sew sew." "Ah, that was a nice nap." " Did you like that?" " Mm-hmm!" "I liked it so much, I was thinking" "We might wanna catch another 40 winks." " I thought you had a gig." " Mm-hmm." "What about 10 winks?" " Mm." " Go on, get outta here." "Mwah." "Where's the tux?" " I hung it on the closet door." " All right." "Hey, Desiree, why is the tux wet?" "It's just a little damp." "I didn't wanna let it set in the dryer." "You washed the tux?" "Well, how else am I supposed to get the mess out of the front?" "Big dried ugly stain like somebody threw up on it." "A tuxedo's supposed to be dry-cleaned." "Where am I supposed to find a goddamn dry-cleaner open?" " Pssh." " It's the goddamn weekend" "And we out here in the middle of who-gives-a-fuck nowhere." " Shit." "How the fuck did Kermit hear about this gig?" "?" "shallow water, oh mama ?" "?" "I talked to my baby, go down way ?" "?" "shallow water, oh mama ?" "?" "up in the heavens, that'll be the thing ?" "?" "shallow water, oh mama ?" "?" "I'm a bad motherfucker, I roll like that ?" "?" "shallow water, oh mama ?" "?" "I talk to my mommy and baby boy ?" "?" "shallow water, oh mama ?" "?" "say, man, your pa, he the real McCoy ?" "?" "shallow water, oh mama ?" "?" "they got a minuteman comin' and a minuteman go ?" "?" "shallow water, oh mama ?" "?" "a spy boy jumpin' at your front door ?" "?" "shallow water, oh mama... ?" " hold it over your head." "There you go." "No no." "You got to wave it." "?" "shallow water, oh mama... ?" "They got to see you." "They got to see you." "Hold it up." "?" "shallow water, oh mama ?" "?" "tell your mom that nobody's home ?" "?" "shallow water, oh mama ?" "Big chief!" " ?" "big chief ran for the Mardi gras ?" "?" "shallow water, oh mama ?" "?" "got second chief coming, he's jumping off, oowah... ?" " oowah!" "?" "shallow water, oh mama ?" " ?" "oh, second chief on Mardi gras ?" "?" "shallow water, oh mama ?" "?" "hey, lordy, have mercy, pour down rain ?" "?" "shallow water, oh mama ?" "?" "on Mardi gras day, the guardians of the flame ?" "?" "shallow water, oh mama... ?" "Hoo-rah!" "Let it come." "?" "shallow water, oh mama... ?" "Sounds like "take the z train" to me." "Little shiny-dome motherfucker." "Check it out." "Blow your horn, son." "That's how we do it in tremé." "That's right, motherfucker." "Where's this from?" "The arresting officer's ticket book." ""David m." "Brooks." there it is." "And from that ticket, Renée, I was finally able to pull up" "A complaint history from the police computer" "Which shows that David was arrested-- arrested" "And locked up at o.P.P. Just before the storm." " So what do you want me to do?" " Based on this new evidence," "I'm filing for an emergency rehearing." "Okay, yeah." "You could do the right thing and make it a joint motion." "We'll certainly sign the no objection." "Listen, Renée, you haven't even heard the topper." "The bench warrant that got David locked up" "That was a mistake." "That was an old warrant that was left in the police computer for months" "After David had satisfied his obligations to the court." "Everything that could fucking go wrong" "Went wrong for this guy." "I could really use a joint motion here." "No joint motions on emergency hearings for the time being." " Eddie's policy." " Eddie's policy?" "An innocent man lost in the system" "For nearly six months." " Albert:" "Who that?" " Chie" "Mr. Newsome." "How you doing today, sir?" "I'm good." "How you doing?" "I'm real good, real good." "Looks like you all are gonna mask for Mardi gras, huh?" " That's right." " I'll be damned." "What can I do for you, sir?" "Well, I come by to let you know" "We were able to work a few things on your behalf." "The councilman hadn't forgot about you, sir." " Well, that's good to hear." " Yes, sir." "Now don't spread this around too much." "We don't want half the city beating down our door," "But, uh, we were able to get a trailer for you, sir." " A fema trailer?" " Yes, sir." "Brand new." " How many trailers you got?" " Just the one, sir." "I believe I asked your boss about housing projects." "I believe that's what we discussed - no, chief." "The projects- that's not gonna happen." "Now, all of that is federal." "That's out of our control." "Now the councilman went the extra mile" "To make sure you got what you needed." "A trailer?" "Y'all want me to put my gang" "In one fema trailer?" "Get the hell out this bar." "Chief..." "Have it your way, chief." "I'd have took the trailer." "Then I'd have kicked his ass to the curb, me." "I'd have took it if it came with cable. " "Whoo!" "Oh, yes yes!" "Ashley Morris, I salute you!" "Great human being," "A true bohemian in every sense of the word." "I think that is a splendid idea, honey." "Can buy me back anytime." "Vive la France!" "Batiste!" "I dig the tux, bro!" "De-constructed!" "Hey, daddy." "Pop!" " Dad!" " Hey." " Hey, baby." " Daddy." "How you doing, Brantrell?" "How you doing?" "Doing good?" " Yeah, I'm fine, man." "You know." " How's your mama?" " She's good, she's fine." "Yeah?" "Tell her I said hi, your sister too." " Yeah yeah." "Come see us." " I will, I will." " All right, sweet then." " See you later." "Hey!" "Oh, thank you." "One of my students." "May I see that?" "Oh my goodness." "You never know." "On a night like this I might get lucky." "Might?" " You make a lovely sperm." " Thanks, I think." "May I ask what changed your mind?" ""fuck those fucking fucks."" "I second that emotion." "Whoohoo!" "Where else could we ever live, huh?" "No place else."