Edward J. Branley's Blog: Eloquent Profanity, page 13

MB POTW: Selling Hardware and Software in 1930

The Times-Picayune, December 12, 1930

We hear all the "new media gurus" talking about companies that both sell hardware and provide content. This is not a new idea! Maison Blanche was doing this as early as the 1920s. Here's an ad for the MB "Radio Department" at the Canal Street store. And why did you need such a nice radio? To listen to WSMB, of course! Notice the call letters of the station. The "S" was for Saenger, as in the Saenger Theater, and the MB was the department store.

Maison Blanche POTW: Carnival, 1908

Canal Street, looking up from St. Charles Avenue. Alexander Allison photo from the New Orleans Public Library. This is Carnival, 1908. Construction on the "new Maison Blanche" is underway. S.J. Shwartz's plan was to demolish the back of the Mercier Building (the "original MB") and build out the half of the new building closer to Rue Iberville first. The store stayed open in the front of the old building while the five stories of retail space and eight additional stories of office space were built. When the back tower was complete, the store was moved into the new space, and the rest of the old building was demolished.

It's Carnival Time! The crowd's waiting for a parade to go up Canal Street. This was likely shot on Mardi Gras Day, because the crowd spills over from the neutral ground (the streetcar zone) into the inbound auto lanes.

Mr. Allison worked for the New Orleans Sewerage and Water Board for years, and was quite the amateur photographer. Because his job took him all over the city, his photo collection spans decades and covers wide amounts of the city.

Maison Blanche POTW: Gentilly Store, 1948

Inside Maison Blanche's store in Gentilly, located on Frenchmen Street and Gentilly Road, 1948. This was a landmark year for MB. The store expanded out beyond Canal Street and the Budget Annex on Iberville into the 'burbs. MB opened the store on Carrollton and Tulane, followed just a couple of months later by this store in Gentilly.

MB converted this store to a Budget Store in the 1960s, when Gentilly Woods Shopping Center opened. The location is now an Auto Zone store.

Maison Blanche POTD - Santa's Arrival!

In 1951 and 1952, Maison Blanche partnered up with Eastern Airlines to "fly in" Santa and Mr. Bingle. The airline loaded up Santa on a plane and flew him and the little guy into Moisant Field (now Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport). The store had a big event, then a parade up Airline Highway to Tulane Avenue, to Canal Street and MB. This was one of the build-up ads run in the week prior to the arrival and parade, held on a Saturday.

Maison Blanche POTD - Da Budget Annex!

Right behind the MB building was the "Maison Blanche Budget Annex." The merchandise in the Budget Store was a mix of less-expensive (but nonetheless profitable) items the buyers didn't want to put side-by-side with the regular stock, as well as opened/returned items that could still be sold. I've got a couple of photos from the 1960s where Canal Street employees were given $10 or $20 and told to go buy an outfit for work at the Budget Annex which would fit the employee dress code. They could easily come up with nice stuff.

I remember, back in the 1980s, I had moved on from MB to teaching high school. I was working at Radio Shack, dealing with the whole "blue law" issue. Because the Budget Annex was technically in the French Quarter, it was exempt from the blue law (tourism, etc.) I'm told some of the buyers would move the "good stuff" from Canal Street back to the annex on Sundays in December to boost sales.

The Budget Annex was so popular that the chain expanded the concept as it grew. When the opportunity to open stores in Carrollton and Gentilly Woods shopping centers opened up, the stores on Carrollton and Tulane and Gentilly Road near Elysian Fields were converted to Budget Stores. Same for Airline, after the Clearview store opened.

Maison Blanche POTD: Mr. Bingle, 1948

From the Times-Picayune, November 11, 1948. Notice the "who is Mr. Bingle?" at the bottom of the ad--Mr. Bingle was barely a year old at this point, so naturally, he needed to be explained.

Maison Blanche POTD: The "Tire Store" on Airline Highway

The "Maison Blanche Tire Store," on Airline Highway, 1960. This Franck Studios photo shows MB's foray into automobile service. DH Holmes followed suit, opening an auto center at the Lakeside Shopping Center, and Sears' auto center at Clearview Mall is still open.

Notice the billboard for Brennan's Restaurant in the left background. The MB Tire Center was on the river side of Airine Highway (US 61). At the time, Airline Highway was, along with Jefferson Highway (US 90), the main approach to New Orleans from the west. US 61 connected New Orleans and Baton Rouge, long before Interstate 10 was constructed.

Books from Maple Street!

Well, you know I can't just go into a bookstore like Maple Street and not buy stuff. From left to right:

New Orleans City Park by Catherine Campanella - Cathy's third book for Arcadia. I was always more a "city park kid" than an "audubon park kid," having gone to school in Gentilly.

Render Unto Rome by Jason Berry - Berry was one of the best writers covering the clergy sex abuse scandals that rocked the Catholic church. His latest details some of the financial scandals plaguing Rome.

The Complaints by Ian Rankin. @beathhigh's lastest novel. It's a cop story, but not an "Inspector Rebus" tale. In Lothian and Borders police, "The Complaints" are the Internal Affairs cops. I was going to buy this one for the Nook. I downloaded the sample there, but when I saw it on the shelf last night, I couldn't resist. As much as I enjoy reading on my tablet, there are those times on planes when they tell you to turn off the electronics, or when the batteries go kaput on long flights.

Thanks to @FightTheStupids!

Thanks to Maple Street Book Shop for having me in last night to sign the book. It was a great time.

I stopped over at the used book shop, next door to the "original" shop, and was immediately challenged by one of the Guardians Of Used Books. :-)

While chatting with @brookssigler at the used book shop, I noticed this calendar on the counter. Being a UNO grad, I'm no big fan of Tulane, but vintage NOLA photos and memorabilia are wonderful!

Also, Veronica's got a great selection of moleskeines at the used shop. Buy local!

Book Signing Tonight!

Come up to Maple Street Book Shop TONIGHT at 6pm, and we'll talk about Maison Blanche, Mr. Bingle, and all sorts of New Orleans stuff! Maple Street Book Shop