Noblesse
presents
An Evening At The Oscars
Krewe de la Noblesse hosted its 14th annual Mardi Gras pageant and ball Saturday, Jan. 26, 1999 in the Lake Charles Civic Center Coliseum.
Members and guests entered the coliseum decorated with iridescent pearl chandeliers, Boston ferns and marble columns draped with white netting.
Board members, their escorts and past court members entered through the doors of white limousines. Amid swarming paparazzi, they moved quickly to take their places in anticipation of the presentation of the night's winning titles.
Members of the 1999 Board of Directors presented were: Captain Keith
Jagneaux, President Mary Ann Holmes, 1st
Vice-President Joe Rabalais, 2nd
Vice-President Mike Giles, Secretary Barbara
Chiasson, Treasurer Carmel Fazzio, and Krewe
Representative Marilyn Breaux.
Making their final appearances were 1998 royal court of "Las Vegas Noblesse Style", King Gabriel XIII Rene Vera, Sr. and Queen Ashley Noblesse XIII Patricia Vera, and Dukes and Duchesses Romeo Vera and Gaynell Vera; Peter Vera and Sue Vera; Rene Vera, Jr. and Marie Fruge'; Clifford LeBeouf and Gilda LeBeouf. The entire court was made up of family members.
Debutantes presented were Megan Marshall daughter of Gayle and Ann Marshall, Geneva Breaux daughter of Richard and Marilyn Breaux, Christa Viator granddaughter of Teen Sigur, and Danielle Borgman granddaughter of Richard and Theresa Michels.
Oscar epitomizes the best of the best, the crown jewel of the
entertainment industry recognized around the world. With
pyrotechnics, swirling colored lights and overwhelming applause,
Mr. Oscar himself, the Captain of Krewe de la Noblesse, Keith
Jagneaux, began the festivities by entering through
the ceiling of the coliseum.
Known as
"Mr. Mardi Gras," the Captain serves as executive
director of Mardi Gras of Imperial Calcasieu. He and his wife, Ellen, have three sons, Adam, David, and Jason. The Captain
spends most of time operating the family business, Southern
Celebrations - Mr. Tux, and vigorously promoting Mardi Gras in
Southwest Louisiana.
Making their appearance as King Gabriel Noblesse XIV and his
Queen Ashley Noblesse XIV were Kenneth and Valerie
Norwood, representing the
sweeping epic "Dr. Zhivago," a sweeping look at life
and love in old Russia during the Communist revolution.
His Highness, a lifelong resident of Lake Charles, and Her Highness, a native of Pennsylvania, have four children, Stephen, Stephanie, and Sarah, all of Lake Charles, and Valerie of Washington, D.C., and four grandchildren.
The king,
a land developer, and queen are co-owners of Brother's
Construction and Giovanni Mini Storage and serve on the board of
directors for Mardi Gras of Imperial Calcasieu Inc. His Majesty
was elected as its second vice president. The Royal Couple were
co-chairmen of the 1999 12th Night Extravaganza.
Representing the 1939 epic "Gone with the Wind" were
Duke Don
Verrett, as Rhett Butler, and Duchess Betty
Verrett, as Scarlet O'Hara. The couple resides in
Lake Charles and has three children, Donnie, Keith, and Kathy, and eight
grandchildren. The Duchess is a homemaker and the Duke is
self-employed as an accountant.
Portraying the story that celebrates the liberation from
ignorance and the reality of potential, the story of rags to
riches, "My Fair Lady," were Duke Dave
Meacham and Duchess Dorothy "Dotie"
Malone Bowes.
The Duke,
an Ohio native, served in Vietnam and Alaska while in the
military. He is employed by Conoco, Inc. The Duchess, native of
Lake Arthur, is a graduate of McNeese State University and is
employed by Southwest Louisiana Health Counsseling Service. Her
son and daughter-in-law reside in San Antonio with their
daughter.
Costumed as Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and the lovely wife Constanze
Weber of "Amadeus" were Duke Jerry
Hillyard and Duchess Kay Vaughan. The couple
resides in Iowa and are owners of American Construction and
Equipment, Inc. The Duke, a native of Des Moines, Iowa, and
Duchess, who is from Abbeville, have two children, Suzanne and Michael, and three
grandchildren.
Duke Kenneth
Nichols and Duchess Carrie Boese Nichols represented a film
of undeniable power and winner of 11 academy awards, the epic
masterpiece "Ben-Hur." The couple has one daughter, Tara, and resides in
Moss Bluff, where the Duke is a land developer. The Duke attended
McNeese State University, and the Duchess is a graduate of MSU
and teaches at St. John Elementary School.
Master of Ceremonies was Jim Serra. The Pageant was written, choreographed, and directed by Bonnie Lee.
Web Page by John Richards
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