NEW ORLEANS—Sandy "Pepa" Denton got a lesson this week on how to toss beads and an up-close look at the elaborate float she'll be riding on in Monday's Krewe of Orpheus parade with friend and rap partner Cheryl "Salt" James.
The women, stars of the 1980s rap group Salt-N-Pepa, brought their VH1 reality TV show to New Orleans this week to document their work helping a family rebuild after Hurricane Katrina, as well as their ride in the parade.
"It's so pretty," Denton said of the float, which has two winged horses and hundreds of decorative flowers. It will be among dozens rolling down St. Charles Avenue the night before Mardi Gras.
James, however, hasn't seen the float yet and has never been to Carnival. She's a bit nervous. "This is all new to me," she said.
For parade goers, celebrity watching will be as fun as grabbing the throws tossed from the floats as Carnival goes into high gear this weekend with Fat Tuesday just days away.
Likely absent, though, will be superstar Britney Spears. The native of Kentwood, northwest of New Orleans, was hospitalized Thursday in Los Angeles after a series of continuing crises.
But the headliners should not disappoint.
They include actor/director Kevin Costner as grand marshal of the Krewe of Endymion, one of the largest and glitziest parades. He'll be joined by the Doobie Brothers and Belinda Carlisle, former lead singer of the Go-Gos.
On Sunday, wrestler and reality TV star Hulk Hogan will reign as king of the Krewe of Bacchus. NBC's "Today" morning talk show correspondent Hoda Kotb and weatherman Al Roker will be grand marshals of the Krewe of Argus on Fat Tuesday in suburban Metairie. Also on Mardi Gras (which means Fat Tuesday), clarinetist Pete Fountain will lead a cadre of locals and celebrities for the annual trek of the Half-Fast Marching Club.
Orpheus, the glittery parade founded in 1993 by singer Harry Connick Jr., has one of the longest list of celebs. Besides Salt-N-Pepa, Lance Bass and Kevin Meaney—stars of the Broadway musical "Hairspray"—daytime television star Christian LeBlanc and two-time Indianapolis 500 winner Helio Castroneves will ride.
Castroneves, who with dancing partner Julianne Hough won last year's "Dancing with the Stars" competition on ABC, will be one of a batch of reality TV stars at Carnival.
Among them Monday night will be Bridget Marquardt, Holly Madison and Kendra Wilkinson, stars of E! cable network's Playboy-based reality show "The Girls Next Door." They'll be throwing a fundraiser on Lundi Gras, or Mardi Gras eve, for actor Brad Pitt's Make It Right Foundation at the House of Blues in the French Quarter. Pitt's charity is rebuilding homes in the Lower 9th Ward destroyed by Katrina in 2005.
South Louisiana's Carnival celebration dates back to 1699, when French explorers sloshing through the wetlands paused to mark the day before Lent.
But celebrities didn't become a regular highlight until the first Bacchus parade in 1969, when dancer/actor Danny Kaye reigned.
Since then, dozens have gotten into the spirit. "Sopranos" star James Gandolfini, for example, was last year's king of Bacchus and followed in the footsteps of such big names as Bob Hope and Ron Howard. John Goodman, Chuck Norris, Jason Alexander, Jim Belushi and Dan Aykroyd have served as past grand marshals for Endymion, and Glenn Close, Sandra Bullock, Forest Whitaker and Whoopi Goldberg are among those who've ridden in Orpheus.
Ardley Hanemann, an Orpheus spokesman, said a variety of factors made coordinating celebrities' schedules difficult this year. Among them: the Hollywood writers' strike and an earlier-than-usual Mardi Gras that competes with Super Bowl festivities.
Still, parade organizers say they are happy with their catch, and the riders are excited as well.
Endymion captain Ed Muniz said Costner has called him a number of times, not only excited about riding in the parade, but about also about dining at Emeril Lagasse's Delmonico restaurant and gulping sugar-coated beignets at Cafe du Monde.
"He's got an affection for New Orleans," Muniz said. "He's filmed movies here. He loves it here, and he's really excited about being a part of Mardi Gras."
Muniz said celebrity participation in Carnival has had a positive ripple effect.
"It gets the (krewe) members excited, it gets parade-goers excited. It's good for the organization, it's good for Mardi Gras, and it's good for the city and tourism," he said.
Salt-N-Pepa said they chose to come to New Orleans not only to take part in Mardi Gras but to keep the plight of the recovering city and its people fresh in the minds of Americans.
The first season of "The Salt-N-Pepa Show" ended in December. A second series of shows is scheduled to begin airing Feb. 11.
The New Orleans video won't be shown until late March and early April. It will include Salt-N-Pepa's work with St. Bernard Project, an organization that has helped more than 70 families move to St. Bernard Parish since the storm by raising money for building materials and recruiting volunteers.
"The main point for coming is to bring attention through the show to the fact that there's still a lot of devastation," James said.
http://www.mercurynews.com/travel/ci_8139290
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