Performing Arts

More than 50 years ago, with the flip of a switch and the turn of a dial, local television became an unforgettable part of New Orleans culture. For many viewers, the memories remain vivid, even if much of what they saw was in black and white. This collection of vintage photographs highlights the history of popular programs and personalities, beginning with the city's first station, WDSU-TV. After signing on the air in 1948, Channel 6 introduced favorites like Mrs. Muffin, The Great MacNutt, and Midday while building a news team that included local icons Mel Leavitt, Nash Roberts, and Alec Gifford. In 1957, WWL-TV took to the airwaves, developing a reputation for quality local programming and dominant news coverage. Channel 4 made household names out of Morgus the Magnificent, Hap Glaudi, John Pela, Phil Johnson, Bill Elder, and Angela Hill.

From humble beginnings in a physics lab on the campus of Loyola University came the sounds of the first radio station in the lower Mississippi River Valley when WWL Radio signed on in 1922. The little station would grow into a national powerhouse, with its morning Dawnbusters show and nightly broadcasts from the Blue Room of the Roosevelt Hotel. The city's second oldest station, WSMB, with studios in the Maison Blanche Building, developed its own cast of favorites, including "Nut and Jeff." Later, in the city known as the birthplace of jazz, radio played a key role in popularizing early rock and roll. Disc jockeys at leading stations WTIX and WNOE helped develop the Crescent City sound, along with local personalities with colorful names like "Poppa Stoppa," "Jack the Cat," and "Dr. Daddy-O."