For Harry Anderson, the New Orleans Magic Is Gone

The New York Times ^ | August 30, 2006 | JOHN SCHWARTZ

[mcg2000]

NEW ORLEANS — In New Orleans these days, even a magician can run out of tricks.

Harry Anderson, the illusionist, comic and former star of sitcoms like “Night Court” and “Dave’s World,” has lived in New Orleans since 2000, when he left Hollywood with his wife, the former Elizabeth Morgan. They rode out Hurricane Katrina in the French Quarter, in the building that houses Oswald’s Speakeasy, Mr. Anderson’s nightclub. Their home, whose ground floor was given over to Sideshow, their magic and curiosity shop, was in another building in the Quarter.

In the weeks after the storm, even before the power was back, Mr. Anderson opened his club for what he called French Quarter Town Hall meetings. The weekly gatherings, which at first offered little more than camaraderie by candlelight and warm beer, evolved into a de facto government for a part of New Orleans that had experienced little flooding but could not begin cleanup and rebuilding because of the city’s overall paralysis.

The meetings drew officials from the city, the Federal Emergency Management Agency and the Army Corps of Engineers — all of whom were given an earful — and bit by bit, things improved. Many locals, in fact, gave Mr. Anderson a lot of credit for kick-starting the Quarter’s recovery.

So it is especially poignant that the Andersons have now decided to leave. But their story is not unique: many in this city are suffering the same continuing loss and strain that led these two to their decision. So their departure raises the question of whether others who can afford to leave, those who have not sunk every penny into a now-moldy house or a devastated store, will also move on.

[mcg2000]

[mcg2000]

Good call, Moonmad27!

[proudofthesouth]

Have long been a fan of his. His experience with the NO government and comments on Nagin are especially interesting. Wish he and his wife the best of luck in their new home.

[Shimmer128]

I'd like to move to NC too. Or TN. We live in middle GA.
Trouble is, my husband is a jet mech.

[junta]

I wonder why they chose Asheville?

[proudofthesouth]

Have you considered Huntsville, Alabama? Its a great place to live!

[pepperdog]

bump for later reading

[Mamzelle]

Have you ever been to Asheville? I live in the rural mountainous south, but I'd rather drive to charming Asheville than Atlanta for the taste of city commotion. Asheville is not that big, has a lovely and funky downtown, is settled in a cove of surrounding mountains. It's leftwing, but so is anyplace bohemiam. Tugaloo Honey, Early Girl, Bluegrass, Malaprops, Haywood Inn, Grovepark Inn...Anderson may find that he fits right in, except for the fact that the Baptists surround him.

[axes_of_weezles]

no floods,maybe?

[Mamzelle]

Not to mention that Huntsville is conservative, and Asheville is like Austin Texas--a blue pimple in a red plain.

[ekwd]

Yes, it is.

[raybbr]

The city tried to more than double their $17,000-a-year property taxes. A lawyer had the amount reduced, but “that just meant that the lawyer got the money instead of the city,” Mr. Anderson said.

What the...???? The city needs more tax money after Bush sends them billions?

[Lokibob]

Sooo funny, just yesterday I was wondering what happened to Harry.

He sure has aged (havn't we all).

He had 3 or 4 walk-ons in "Cheers".

[Ole Okie]

My word! Judge Harry has put on some excess poundage.

I still think Night Court is one of the funniest series to ever appear on TV.

[mcg2000]

It's known as an artists' haven w/high tourism in a magnificent topographical setting. It's also in the midst of an urban renewal and construction/population boom (assuming family & friends aren't involved in the Anderson's decision).



Asheville Info Link

Situated in the gorgeous French Broad River valley amid the Blue Ridge and Great Smoky mountains, Asheville’s natural beauty sets the tone for a place you will remember with your heart. Selected by AARP magazine as a top 15 dream town, “one of the best places to reinvent your life,” it offers a little bit of something for everyone.

Gargoyles keep watch over an Art Deco skyline in a bustling downtown filled with high-tech and retail businesses. The great outdoors here are so spectacular that they netted Asheville the ranking of number 1 of 10 Great Adventure Towns by National Geographic Adventure magazine.

Asheville’s size makes it the largest city in Western North Carolina, but surrounding towns in Buncombe County offer small town flair and varied amenities. Asheville Regional Airport serves the region for air travel, and a professional hockey team and a minor league baseball team mean that sports fun isn’t hard to find.

Population is approximately 69,000 in the city and 215,000 in the county. Asheville’s MSA is currently estimated at 386,000. The four-season temperate climate with average snowfall of only 13 inches makes year-round living easy. Average elevation is 2,165 feet above sea level with surrounding mountain elevations of up to 6,685 feet with Mount Mitchell, the highest peak east of the Mississippi River. Because of this broad range of elevations and corresponding climates and plant growth, the area is one of the most biodiverse in the United States and the world.

The quality of life in Asheville is outstanding, with low crime rate, broad employment opportunities, incredible educational opportunities with two universities and many colleges nearby, and diverse housing markets for rental, purchase and retirement.

[Prospero]

I wonder why they chose Asheville?

Probably the foothold held in that city by the eclectic, the wiccan, the tolerance of deviancy. There is, to "magic" much of the forbidden and taboo, though that is not as it once was. You can find an incense and pewter dragon seller in almost any city with a population over 300,000.

Asheville, downtown in particular, is also a haven of "the Homosexual Community," it simply can't go without saying, as well as a hefty drug culture and nasty homeless community. What came first, I'll leave to someone else to analyze.

[wizr]

Me, too! "I'm feeling MUCH better, now!"

[Shimmer128]

No, I must admit, I never thought of Alabama. :D What's so great about it??
TN, we've lived in before (Memphis) TN doesn't tax military retirement, that's good.
We love the weather there and in NC, at least the few places we've seen in NC.
We stopped at a little town called Mebane a few weeks ago, to get a flat tire changed. Great little place. Then a week later we met another couple having dinner at the table next to us that were also from Mebane. (Letaka, you know where that was. I was eating mashed potatoes. wink)
Seems like fate, but husband needs to work you know!

[wizr]

Now, you done it!!! Everybody's gonna wanta move there!!!

[wizr]

Whew! That may slow things down a bit.