Happy Mardi Gras! Instead of showing gratuitous photos of girls flashing their boobs for beads on Bourbon Street, we've decided to look back at Mardi Gras celebrations of yesteryear. Below are photos we found from the 1910s-1960s featuring animal costumes, flappers and male and female drag. Laissez les bons temps rouler.
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Mardi Gras Revelers, New Orleans, 1938
Mardi Gras Revelers, New Orleans, 1938 (Photo credit: William Vandivert--Time & Life Pictures/Getty Images)
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Mardi Gras costumes, The Netherlands, 1931
(Photo credit: Nationaal Archief)
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Omega Mardi Gras, Washington DC, 1940
(Photo credit: Scurlock Studio Records/John Edwin Mason: Documentary, Motorsports, Photo History)
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Mardi Gras costumes, The Netherlands, 1911
(Photo credit: Nationaal Archief)
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YWCA Carnival Court, Louisiana, 1932
(Photo credit: University of Louisiana at Lafayette)
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Omega Mardi Gras, Washington DC, 1940
(Photo credit: Scurlock Studio Records/John Edwin Mason: Documentary, Motorsports, Photo History)
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Mardi Gras Parade, New Orleans, 1938
(Photo credit: William Vandivert--Time & Life Pictures/Getty Images)
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Mardi Gras Girl, Location Unknown, 1952
(Photo credit: The Circus Book: 1870-1950/Dominique Jando/Retronaut)
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Mardi Gras revelers, New Orleans, 1938
(Photo credit: William Vandivert--Time & Life Pictures/Getty Images)
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Orson Welles at Carnival, Rio de Janeiro, 1942
(Photo credit: Life Magazine)
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Mardi Gras Waiters Wearing Masks, Munich, Germany, 1933
(Photo Credit: Nationaal Archief)
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Mardi Gras, New Orleans, 1938
(Photo credit: William Vandivert--Time & Life Pictures/Getty Images)
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Omega Psi Phi Mardi Gras Celebration, Location Unknown, 1930s
(Photo credit: Scurlock Studio Records/Black History Album)
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Mardi Gras, Coney Island, c. 1910s
(Photo Credit: The Library of Congress/Flickr)
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Prince Carnival Attending a Boat Show, Amsterdam, 1963
(Photo Credit: Nationaal Archief)
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Mardi Gras Street Costumers, New Orleans, 1930s
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Mardi Gras revelers in costume, New Orleans, 1938
(Photo credit: William Vandivert--Time & Life Pictures/Getty Images)
Mardi Gras costumes, The Netherlands, 1931(Photo credit: Nationaal Archief)
Omega Mardi Gras, Washington DC, 1940(Photo credit: Scurlock Studio Records/John Edwin Mason: Documentary, Motorsports, Photo History)
Mardi Gras costumes, The Netherlands, 1911(Photo credit: Nationaal Archief)
YWCA Carnival Court, Louisiana, 1932(Photo credit: University of Louisiana at Lafayette)
Omega Mardi Gras, Washington DC, 1940(Photo credit: Scurlock Studio Records/John Edwin Mason: Documentary, Motorsports, Photo History)
Mardi Gras Parade, New Orleans, 1938(Photo credit: William Vandivert--Time & Life Pictures/Getty Images)
Mardi Gras Girl, Location Unknown, 1952(Photo credit: The Circus Book: 1870-1950/Dominique Jando/Retronaut)
Mardi Gras revelers, New Orleans, 1938(Photo credit: William Vandivert--Time & Life Pictures/Getty Images)
Orson Welles at Carnival, Rio de Janeiro, 1942(Photo credit: Life Magazine)
Mardi Gras Waiters Wearing Masks, Munich, Germany, 1933(Photo Credit: Nationaal Archief)
Mardi Gras, New Orleans, 1938(Photo credit: William Vandivert--Time & Life Pictures/Getty Images)
Omega Psi Phi Mardi Gras Celebration, Location Unknown, 1930s(Photo credit: Scurlock Studio Records/Black History Album)
Mardi Gras, Coney Island, c. 1910s(Photo Credit: The Library of Congress/Flickr)
Prince Carnival Attending a Boat Show, Amsterdam, 1963(Photo Credit: Nationaal Archief)
Mardi Gras Street Costumers, New Orleans, 1930s
Mardi Gras revelers in costume, New Orleans, 1938(Photo credit: William Vandivert--Time & Life Pictures/Getty Images)