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Today in New Orleans History |
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November 11
On November 11, 2013, the On November 11, 2012, New Orleans Saint Marques E. Colston tied Deuce McAllister's team record for total touchdowns with his 55th career touchdown.
Born in New Orleans on June 4, 1931, John Petitbon was a three-sport
star in baseball, basketball, and football at Jesuit High
School. He was named the Louisiana All-State Most Valuable Player in football in 1946, and led Jesuit with 18 touchdowns
in 1946 and 17 in 1947. He played college football at Notre Dame under
coach Frank Leahy, and was a member of Notre Dame's 1949
national championship team as a sophomore safety. Moved to halfback for his final two years, he amassed 1,432 yards of total offense
and 10 touchdowns during those seasons, and was named a Collier's
Weekly All-American in 1950. He was chosen to play
in the College All-Star Game and the East-West Shrine Game after his senior season in 1951. Petitbon was selected as a defensive back in the
seventh round of the 1952 NFL Draft by the New York Yanks, who became the Dallas Texans for the 1952 season. Petitbon, however, joined the United States Marine Corps and served in the Korean
War. Before the 1953 season, the Texans, who had become the Baltimore
Colts, traded him to the Cleveland Browns as
part of a 15-player deal, the second-largest trade in NFL history, in which the Colts received, among other players, defensive
back Don Shula. After returning from the Marines, Petitbon
played for the Browns and was a member of their 1955 NFL championship team. Petitbon was traded to the Green Bay Packers in 1957 and retired after that season. Petitbon was selected for the Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame and the Louisiana High School Sports Hall of Fame, as was his younger brother Richie Petitbon, a former NFL player and coach. After leaving football, John Petitbon
entered the insurance business. He died of Alzheimer's disease in
New Orleans on November 11, 2006. (Wiki)
The Liberty ship Joseph Weydemeyer was launched on November 11, 1944 by Delta
Shipbuilding Company. Fictional character Benjamin Button was born in New Orleans on the evening of November 11, 1918, Charles Genois, a native of New Orleans, was the
city's ninth mayor whose administration ran from May 12, 1838 -- April 6, 1840.
Improvements under his adminstration included the paving of Royal Street, improvements made in expanding
the city toward the lake, and the initial digging of the Carondelet Canal. Mayor Genois died
on this day in 1866 after a long illness, at the age of 73. He is buried in St. Louis
Cemetery Number 2.
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A New Orleans native, he was a Jesuit graduate who entered the Navy at age 17, then attended Johns Hopkins University on
the GI Bill. His early professional years included working for the Houston Post, a radio stations in Baltimore and
Texas before moving back home. His father, Alexander Gifford, was a political reporter for the Times-Picayune who covered
the administration of Governor. Huey Long. His great-grandfather, Numa Dufour, published the French-language newspaper L'Abeille
de la Nouvelle-Orleans (The New Orleans Bee). 
In 1966 he took a job with NBC News in New York City. He returned home a year later to become news director, anchor,
and reporter for WVUE-TV were he worked with Nash Roberts and Buddy Diliberto. After 13 years there he moved back to
WDSU in 1980 where he remained until his retirement after 26 years with Channel 6. He held an exclusive, sit-down interview
with Senator John F. Kennedy on the night Kennedy announced his bid for the White House and covered his presidential campaign.
His roles included morning and "The Midday Show" news anchor, public affairs host, political reporter and
cooking show host. He was also news anchor for the “Midday” show, with Terry Flettrich, Wayne Mack,
Bob and Jan Carr, Nash Roberts and Al Shea. He covered all major news stories including racial desegregation, the Howard
Johnson Hotel sniper incident (1973) and, of course, Hurricane Katrina. He also reported news from around the world
-- visiting Germany in the 1960s, Israel in the 1970s, and Japan. 
