Historical Hotties Bracket Bash
Vote on the biggest heartthrobs from HNOC’s holdings!
Our Collection Is Heating Up This Summer
This summer, we’re serving up 16 historical hotties from HNOC’s online catalog. Cast your vote each week on our Instagram feedOpens in new tab and watch your favorite vintage vixens advance to the final round for a chance to be crowned history’s finest.
The competition has ended! Thanks to all of our followers for playing along with the Bracket Bash this summer. Check out our contestants and final champion below.
Chart your own path: discover photographs, artifacts, artwork, and more, on HNOC’s online catalog!
Conrad Albrizio
Instgram has spoken: Conrad Albrizio has emerged victorious as our Historical Hotties round one winner, narrowly defeating the venerable Chris Owens!
Contestants
Chris Owens: Queen of Bourbon Street
Club owner and entertainer Chris Owens brought the heat to Bourbon Street with her legendary maraca mambo and glamorous custom outfits, sporting necklines that plunged like a tourist after too many Hand Grenades. Who wouldn’t fall hard for this iconic cha-cha queen?
View full image ›
Chris Owens: Queen of Bourbon Street
Chris Owens performance, Economy Hall Tent at New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival, 1988, by Jules L. Cahn. Jules Cahn Collection at HNOC, 2000.78.8.219
Conrad, Paint Me Like One of Your Murals
New Deal muralist and LSU art instructor Conrad Albrizio decorated Depression-era buildings across Louisiana, including the Shushan Airport (later known as the Lakefront Airport) seen here. He could fix our depression, too.
View full image ›
Conrad, Paint Me Like One of Your Murals
Mural at Shushan Airport, with artist, Albrizio, sitting in front, 1929–40, by Dan Leyrer. HNOC, gift of Allan Phillip Jaffe, 1981.324.2.347
Ravishing State Rep
Son of Louisiana’s first American governor, William Charles Cole Claiborne II represented Orleans Parish in the state House from 1841 to 1843. Nepo baby or nepo babe? You be the judge.
View full image ›
Ravishing State Rep
William Charles Cole Claiborne II, 1831, by Jean-Joseph Vaudechamp. HNOC, bequest of Clarissa Claiborne Grima, 1981.376.1
Swamp Siren
Pictorialist Eugene Delcroix’s gauzy, artistic snapshots of the French Quarter and Louisiana swamp scenes were popular souvenirs for New Orleans tourists during the first half of the 20th century. We’d certainly take this palmetto pin-up home with us.
View full image ›
Swamp Siren
Portrait of a woman posing in front of a palmetto, by Eugene A. Delcroix. HNOC, gift of Joel Jergins and Mrs. Eugene Delcroix, courtesy of the New Orleans Museum of Art, 1984.189.1872
Jeffrey Cook
Our followers said “let him cook” to Jeffrey Cook last week, as the professional dancer and sculptor clinched a decisive victory in round two of the Historical Hotties Bracket Bash!
Contestants
Submersible Studs
In 1878, this Civil War submarine was discovered and dredged up from Bayou St. John near Spanish Fort and put on display there in 1895. Eighteen hunky men then decided to put themselves on display as well.
View full image ›
Submersible Studs
Eighteen men with Civil War submarine, 1895–1905, by Ernest J. Bellocq. HNOC, 1988.19.2
Strong-Arm Stunner
Photographer George Dureau believed New Orleans was full of Greek gods that society overlooked, and model B. J. Robinson, with his long hair, strong arms, and over-the-shoulder smolder, dared viewers to disagree.
View full image ›
Strong-Arm Stunner
B. J. Robinson, ca. 1985, by George Dureau. George Febres Collection of Louisiana Art, gift of Dr. Jerah Johnson © HNOC, 1997.77.2.21
Spin Cycle Seductress
TFW you realize all your clothes are dirty right before you leave the house, but make it sexy. This beauty got all glammed up for a 1950s dry cleaning ad and we’re here for it.
View full image ›
Spin Cycle Seductress
Norge Dry Cleaning advertisement, 1945–55, by Charles F. Weber. HNOC, 2012.0208.2.142
Cookin’ Jeffrey Cook
Central City’s Jeffrey Cook toured the world as a professional dancer before returning to New Orleans to become an influential sculptor in the art world. As this portrait of the artist reveals, Cook was sculpture-worthy himself.
View full image ›
Cookin’ Jeffrey Cook
Jeffrey Cook, 1978–2010, by George Dureau. HNOC, gift of Donald Dureau © HNOC, 2015.0293.2.7.1.2
George Febres
Our followers went bananas for George Febres last week, propelling the smoldering surrealist to the final round of the Historical Hotties Bracket Bash. Round four is now open to voting below!
Contestants
A Model Docent
A New Orleans fashion model through the 1960s and a dedicated HNOC docent for nearly 40 years, Betty Killeen was an avid supporter of local arts organizations throughout her life—and a work of art herself.
View full image ›
A Model Docent
Betty Killeen modeling an outfit atop the States-Item Building, 1961, by James Perrier Guillot. HNOC, gift of Elizabeth Himel Killeen, 1991.154.1
So Steamy It’s Surreal
Ecuadorian-born New Orleans surrealist George Febres was celebrated for the absurd visual puns and phallic banana motifs that featured prominently in his pop art oeuvre. At HNOC, he is also celebrated for being absurdly good-looking.
View full image ›
So Steamy It’s Surreal
George Febres, 1981, by Mark Price. George Febres Collection of Louisiana Art, gift of Dr. Jerah Johnson, 1996.78.2.27
Pure Ssseduction
1950s exotic dancer Devilon—accessorizing with a very different kind of boa—has us charmed. We can see how “Her Satanic Majesty” would tempt anyone.
View full image ›
Pure Ssseduction
Devilon posing with boa constrictor. HNOC, gift of Margie Schwegmann Brown, 2004.0135.6
Slidell (Into Her DMs)
Marie Mathilde Déslonde Slidell (wife of the city’s namesake, John Slidell), slid on over to the garden and decided to drape the whole thing over her bust for this portrait. Honestly, it’s working for her.
View full image ›
Slidell (Into Her DMs)
Marie Mathilde Déslonde Slidell, 1857, by George Peter Alexander Healy. HNOC, acquisition made possible by the Clarisse Claiborne Grima Fund, 2014.0110
Baquet’s Beauty
Baquet’s bookish beauty blew the competition out of the water in the fourth round of the Historical Hotties Bracket Bash! All month long, our community has cast votes for their favorite vintage vixens. This week, the championship round will crown one winner as history’s finest. Cast your votes below!
Contestants
Balcony Babe
A Storyville sex worker in early-1900s New Orleans pairs her kimono with a Mona Lisa smile for renowned red-light district photographer Ernest J. Bellocq.
View full image ›
Flawless Finalists
If we could ever work up the courage, we’d hand flowers to these fabulous finalists from the 1984 Miss Ao Dai beauty pageant.
View full image ›
Flawless Finalists
Miss Ao Dai pageant finalists, 1984–85, by Mark J. Sindler. HNOC, acquisition made possible by the Laussat Society, MSS 1074.1.495.1
Pontchartrain Beach Bods
Where’s the beef? In midcentury New Orleans, it was at the Pontchartrain Beach amusement park’s Mr. New Orleans competition. Do we need a ticket to ride?
View full image ›
Pontchartrain Beach Bods
Herbert Hackley, Terrell Brunet, and Ray Simioneaux, 1955–65. HNOC, 1996.71.16
Baquet’s Beauty
Creole photographer Harold Baquet spent the 1980s documenting African American politics and life in New Orleans. He also documented this bookish cutie in the process.
View full image ›
Baquet’s Beauty
Unidentified woman, 1980–90, by Harold Baquet. HNOC, gift of Harold F. Baquet and Cheron Brylski, 2016.0172.2.128
Contestants
Conrad, Paint Me Like One of Your Murals
New Deal muralist and LSU art instructor Conrad Albrizio decorated Depression-era buildings across Louisiana, including the Shushan Airport (later known as the Lakefront Airport) seen here. He could fix our depression, too.
View full image ›
Conrad, Paint Me Like One of Your Murals
Mural at Shushan Airport, with artist, Albrizio, sitting in front, 1929–40, by Dan Leyrer. HNOC, gift of Allan Phillip Jaffe, 1981.324.2.347
Cookin’ Jeffrey Cook
Central City’s Jeffrey Cook toured the world as a professional dancer before returning to New Orleans to become an influential sculptor in the art world. As this portrait of the artist reveals, Cook was sculpture-worthy himself.
View full image ›
Cookin’ Jeffrey Cook
Jeffrey Cook, 1978–2010, by George Dureau. HNOC, gift of Donald Dureau © HNOC, 2015.0293.2.7.1.2
So Steamy It’s Surreal
Ecuadorian-born New Orleans surrealist George Febres was celebrated for the absurd visual puns and phallic banana motifs that featured prominently in his pop art oeuvre. At HNOC, he is also celebrated for being absurdly good-looking.
View full image ›
So Steamy It’s Surreal
George Febres, 1981, by Mark Price. George Febres Collection of Louisiana Art, gift of Dr. Jerah Johnson, 1996.78.2.27
Baquet’s Beauty
Creole photographer Harold Baquet spent the 1980s documenting African American politics and life in New Orleans. He also documented this bookish cutie in the process.
View full image ›
Baquet’s Beauty
Unidentified woman, 1980–90, by Harold Baquet. HNOC, gift of Harold F. Baquet and Cheron Brylski, 2016.0172.2.128
Cookin’ Jeffrey Cook
You let him cook—and Jeffrey Cook clinched a landslide victory as the champion of the Historical Hotties Bracket Bash! Cook won our followers over in a smoldering black-and-white photo from a series by fellow New Orleans artist George Dureau, now held in HNOC’s collections.
About Jeffrey
Cook was born in Central City and earned a BA in fine arts from Xavier University and an MFA from the San Francisco Art Institute. After touring the world as a dancer with the Los Angeles Repertory Company, he returned to New Orleans and opened an art studio in Central City. As an influential sculptor, he drew inspiration from found objects and African spiritual traditions.
Cook passed away in 2009, but the artist and his work continue to capture our hearts. One of his pieces, titled “Ancestral Guardian,” was featured in HNOC’s Art of the City exhibition in 2019.
“My art is about my past and present,” Cook wrote in the original artist statement for the piece. “I feel a need to help and protect every living creature I see suffering. It is healing for me to create art about the victims I care about.”
Discover More
Whether you‘re a researcher or just curious, HNOC’s online catalog—the origin of our voluptuous vixens—is ready to explore.
Check out more of Jeffrey Cook in our holdings or chart your own path below.
Our Collection Awaits
Online Catalog
Search or browse HNOC’s vast collections of photos, manuscripts, artifacts, books, artwork, and more in our online catalog.
Watch & Listen
Enjoy videos, podcasts, archival footage, oral histories, and more from HNOC.
Explore Our Content
Dive into Gulf South history with HNOC blog posts, collection highlights, virtual exhibitions, research tools, and more. Sort by topic or search for what you’re looking for.
Subscribe to Our Newsletter
