2824 Highway 114 Hessmer, LA (318) 563-4795 ...
Dancehalls in Avoyelles Parish
Peacock Club
Dale Walker: “It was in the late 60’s and early 70’s and located on the Spring Bayou Road aka Bayou Blanc Community in Marksville, LA. It was a great place. I was in my teens but individuals of all ages went dancing there. It was owned by Mac Boudin. He would get bands from all over and in this sleepy little town it was a dream come true. I can remember some of the bands and I’m sure the family has pics of the place inside and out because at one point it was taken down for whatever reasons it closed I never found out why. The bands I can remember: John Fred and the Playboys, Joe Stampley and the Uniques both bands being from Louisiana. Now I remember the one hit wonders that came through and ended up being very popular bands Sly and the Family Stone, Cream, The Doors, Deep Purple, Creedence Clearwater Revival, Jefferson Airplane, Grateful Dead, Blood, Sweat, and Tears and numerous others. I cannot remember all of the bands but at times when I hear a song from that era I then remember that I saw them live when they were dance hall bands waiting to become rock stars and usually it wouldn’t be long and we would hear them make the top 10 or top 20. We were very fortunate. I can remember having a conversation one evening when I had arrived early and was asking the owner, Mac Boudin, where he would find all those bands. He went on to share with me that he had made contact with a really great band agent/manager that would send all the upcoming future hit bands to his place and the band agent would either call in and/or drop by to access the crowd and the performance of the band. All I can say is that I was happy to be born when I was born.” ...
LaVie
Boogie Kings played there ...
Cresent Club
Alton Dupuy: it was on Highway 1 between Marksville & Alexandria. It was nicer than Hill Haven. ...
Shep’s Club
Listed in “Readers recall clubs where they danced to Louisiana Music” from The Daily Advertiser, December 29, 1998: “Readers of The Daily Advertiser were asked to submit names of’ the clubs where they danced to Louisiana music in the 1930s, 1940s, and 1950s, with a brief recollection of what the club was like and who played there.” rough place ...
Pelican Club
Alton Dupuy: “It was on the corner- the address was on Spring Bayou Road. It was owned by Whitney Bordelon in the 1950s. You entered into the bar and there was a pathway straight through to the dancehall. You’d get your hand stamped when you paid to dance. It might have been the Moonlight Inn before that. My sister (Bruce Daigrepont’s mother), Jennie Rita Dupuy, danced with Hank Williams there. Boogie Kings played there too.” Dale Walker: “Right before the Peacock Club opened there was another club on the Spring Bayou Road also know as Bayou Blanc Community, Marksville, LA. The Pelican Club thrived for many years. It was owned by Whitney Bordelon. He was a great owner/manager but there were the occasional fights with a couple of fatalities involved. It brought down the club goers a bit but soon business would be back up and going. I would have to say it survived for many years because my dad talked about getting into a fight there with the well-known actor of those days Robert Mitchum and which had to be around the late 1940s and/or 1950s. I remember my sister going there in the 1960s. I, unfortunately, never got to go except the parking lot in the car with my mom to pick up my sister. It was a happening place but one night there was an explosion in the early morning hours that shook the entire town. The Pelican Club had caught on fire and with all the liquor in there it created an enormous explosion. The place burned to the ground. It never reopened after that time so I presume that’s why the Peacock Club ending up opening to have a dance hall in this area. I know there are pics around the Avoyelles Parish Area because I heard some individuals even had pics of it burning and of the next day when it was still smoking. It was a big loss and some frequent goers grieved the loss. I don’t know what bands would play there but I’m sure it was some of the best but I would think local bands. I believe two of the bands were The Boogie Kings and The Swing Kings which may have been a mixture of the two bands. The same owner and building before it was the Pelican Club aka The Moonlight Inn (not sure of the spelling). I know during the time my dad went it was the Moonlight Inn. When the Grand Casino aka The Paragon Casino opened up in Marksviile, LA some 20 years ago they had named the dance club in the casino The Pelican Club in honor of the one that had burned down years ago. Recently the Paragon Casino shut down the Pelican Club in the casino and now I grieve because having a dad that played in a band back in the 50s and 60s I have always enjoyed my dance halls and at an early age approximately 4 years old probably younger but that is the time I remember until my dad passed away when I was 12 years old, I was usually right next to the bandstand listening and dancing in a corner. At the age of 14 my grieving stopped because my mom allowed me to go back to my favorite places where I felt secure since the loss of my dad and that was Louisiana Dance Halls. Where there was music, dancing and bands I would forget my grieving and become alive. At 60 years old I still like to dance and I’m not too particular on my genre of music.” ...
Mac’s Country & Western Club/ Roller Rink
Listed in “Readers recall clubs where they danced to Louisiana Music” from The Daily Advertiser, December 29, 1998: “Readers of The Daily Advertiser were asked to submit names of’ the clubs where they danced to Louisiana music in the 1930s, 1940s, and 1950s, with a brief recollection of what the club was like and who played there.” Alton Dupuy: it was next to the Pelican club. Mac Baudin was the owner. ...
Hill Haven
Alton Broussard: It was on Hickory Hill Road. It must have opened around 1950. It was arough lumber, unpainted straight board type place in the woods. They had a live band on Saturday nights. The owner was Leonard Luneau, an English speaker from across Red River, who married a girl from Avoyelles. ...
Ellie’s Country & Western
No known information ...
Casino
Alton Dupuy: “It was on Highway 1- the nicest club in the area. It was a dancehall, gambling room, and bar. They had those long dice tables in the gambling room. This was in the WW2 era- it burnt down mid 1950s. When it burned down, people remarked ‘How I miss that beautiful big dance floor.’ It was low to the ground, with concrete steps leading up. There were big front doors that you’d go through- then on the left when you went in, there was a big half circle shaped bar. Past that was another big set of doors that led to the bid dancehall. As you went in, there was a door on the right that led to the big gaming room. They probably had girls (prostitutes) there when the club was in it’s heyday. The Todora family (Italians from New Orleans) owned it. I assume there was a Mafia connection.” ...