Presentation on Louis Armstrong’s Birthday by Sam Irwin

Sam Irwin, the author of The Hidden History of Louisiana’s Jazz Age, will examine the controversy over Louis Armstrong’s 4th of July birthday.

New Orleans-born jazz trumpeter Louis Armstrong, one of the world’s biggest and most recognizable celebrities of the 20th century always celebrated his birthday on July 4, America’s Independence Day.
In 1988, 17 years after Armstrong died, a baptismal record was discovered in a Canal Street church, blocks from Armstrong’s Jane Alley birthplace. It indicated Pops was born on August 4, 1901. The August date is now accepted by researchers as Armstrong’s real birthday.

In his discussion of Louis Armstrong’s birthday, Irwin will explore the customs of a different era, one in which Independence Day was celebrated in Louisiana as a black holiday, and Jack Johnson’s heavyweight championship win, civil rights and other momentous occasions that shaped the man Armstrong would become.

In addition to The Hidden History of Louisiana’s Jazz Age, Irwin is the author of Louisiana Crawfish: A Succulent History of the Cajun Crustacean and It Happens in Louisiana: Peculiar Tales, Traditions & Recipes From the Bayou. www.SamIrwin.net

This event is free. Refreshments will be served.