Native Orleanian Angus Lind is a weekly columnist for the Fox 8 WVUE-TV website and makes a regular appearance on the Fox 8 Morning News each week. In 42 years in newspapers, 39 at The States-Item and The Times-Picayune, the lifelong Uptowner covered the biggest stories of the 1970s – the Hale Boggs plane crash in Alaska, the Downtown Howard Johnson sniper incident, the Rault Center fire, the Upstairs Lounge fire, and the construction of the Superdome. But it was his major in handicapping racehorses and minor in advanced 8-ball – thinly disguised as a B.A. in English from Tulane University -- that gave him the background to be an offbeat columnist for the Living Section of The Times-Picayune for 32 years. “I pictured myself as a professional handicapper and pool hustler when I was running the Tulane pool hall, which made my family, as you can imagine, so proud. I turned out to be a decent handicapper and very mediocre pool player. Luckily I could write and those misspent youth experiences provided great fodder to become a columnist.” That role made Angus a familiar name with the New Orleans area for decades. The almost 6,000 columns he wrote captured the irreverent, often amusing stories chronicling the eccentricities, foibles and human comedy that is New Orleans. From Buddy D’s Dilibonics, Emperor of the Universe Ernie K-Doe, Abdul D. Tentmakur and Fair Grounds railbirds and characters to the wacky world of Dr. Morgus, the “erster” dialect of our lovable Yats, Saints fanatics and Carnival supersleuth Deep Float, he kept readers in touch with the city’s abnormal, unpredictable and often inexplicable pulse. Frequenting neighborhood bars, the racetrack, pool halls and yes, even churches, he concentrated on the characters, rogues and regular people he is so attracted to, their dialogues and dialects – and realized that almost everybody has a story to tell. As the city knows, Angus is a heckuva storyteller. He is the author of Prime Angus, a collection of readers’ favorite columns from the pages of The Times-Picayune. An Isidore Newman graduate, his career in newspapers began after Tulane as a sportswriter with The Meridian (Miss.) Star, where he covered the careers of Archie Manning at Ole Miss and Pistol Pete Maravich at LSU. He has been married to his wife Anne since 1972. They have two adult children who both live and work in New Orleans. His hobbies are horseracing, golf and listening to live local music and WWOZ. “Almost every day, I thank the Good Lord and my parents for the opportunity to live my life in New Orleans. Those of us who truly appreciate and love this architectural jewel, this food-worshiping, party-loving wacko city know that every day here is a good day. Some are just better than others.” Angus Lind can be reached at primeangus@fox8tv.net. CLICK HERE for more information on Prime Angus by Angus Lind - Published by Arthur Hardy Enterprises, Inc.
