How did New Orleans become the Big Easy?
Some say it may have been Betty Guillaud, a gossip columnist with the Times-Picayune, who used the name in the 1970s to compare life in New Orleans to life in the Big Apple. Then again, crime novelist James Conaway begs to differ. He says he overheard the phrase being used before he wrote The Big Easy in 1970. But even earlier, in 1966, Newsweek Magazine printed “Life in the ‘Big Easy,’ as the town’s Negro citizens sometimes call it……”
Various meanings have also been attributed to Big Easy.
Many people think it’s about how easy it’s always been for musicians to find work in New Orleans due to the sheer number of places to perform. Or because Prohibition never made it to NoLa, which allowed for a relaxed attitude to alcohol and the tradition of letting the good times roll. The city has long been known for its laid-back, easy-going attitude.
For Small Change it’s about a big city and making it better. It’s about changes that matter. And it’s easy. You can invest in New Orleans in one of the latest offerings on Small Change: an artist/worker-run and owned bed and breakfast in the Lower Garden District.
Image by InFrogmation of New Orleans licensed under CC BY 2.0 / modified from original