The New Orleans superkrewes will parade over the next few days. Endymion rolls Saturday night, Bacchus rolls on Sunday, and Orpheus parades on Monday.
According to one historian those superkrewes have redefined Mardi Gras in New Orleans.
"There were no major parades on the Sunday before Mardi Gras," Errol LaBorde said.
In fact, according to Laborde, the three days leading up to Mardi Gras were dead days before Endymion, Bacchus, and Orpheus came along.
Laborde says those krewes created a package of parades that continue to lure out-of-towners to the Crescent City every year.
"From an economic point of view, it created a tourist event," LaBorde said. "It created a four-night tourist package to come into town."
Those superkrewes, Laborde says, allows people who may not be able to stick around through Fat Tuesday to get the full Carnival experience.
"People, I think, can come and see Bacchus and Endymion, go home, and feel fulfilled in terms of seeing a lot of Mardi Gras," Laborde said.
LaBorde says part of the reason why locals and tourists flock to these parades is because they bring pop culture and celebrities into what used to be a highly traditional holiday.
"When Bacchus started, that was one of the selling points, to have a celebrity king, as opposed to the traditional parade with the old society king," LaBorde said. "The old krewes saw themselves as being more intellectual in their appearance. For example: for the Rex Parade this year, the theme is Lafcadio Hearn, who was, like, an early writer in New Orleans. Probably not a lot of people are familiar with him, but he wrote a lot of things about New Orleans, and people will learn about Lafcadio Hearn. That would be a Rex thing. An Endymion or Bacchus theme would be something like 'favorite movies,' that sort of thing--a more generalized theme."
While the parades are the main event, Laborde credits the superkrewes, especially Endymion, for spurring neighborhood pride, especially in Mid-City.
"When you're watching Endymion Saturday, it's like an all-day festival in the neighborhood," LaBorde said. "It brings people up and down the street. They're celebrating and all that into the night."
Endymion rolls Saturday at 4:15 p.m. along its Mid-City route. New Orleans Chief Administrative Officer Gilbert Montaño and NOPD Superintendent Anne Kirkpatrick will serve as co-grand marshals. "Entourage" actor Kevin Dillon will reign over Bacchus when it rolls down the Uptown route at 5:15 p.m. on Sunday. Orpheus rolls at 6 p.m. Monday along the Uptown Route. Actors Neil Patrick Harris and David Burtka will serve as the krewe's monarchs.