A New Orleans Jazz History, 1895-1927. Even before jazz, for most New Orleanians, music was not a luxury as it often is elsewhereâit was a necessity. Throughout the nineteenth century, diverse ethnic and racial groups â French, Spanish, and African, Italian, German, and Irish â found common cause in their love of music.
Edward Herrmann. Edward Herrmann -- perhaps best known for playing Richard Gilmore on  Gilmore Girls  -- died this morning in a hospital in New York. He was 71. Herrmann's family tells TMZ he had been battling brain cancer and had been in ICU for the last 3 1/2 weeks.
British actor Alan Rickman has died, his rep confirmed. He was 69. Rickman was best known for playing villain Hans Gruber in Die Hard and Severus Snape in the Harry Potter franchise. Other notable films in which he appeared were Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves, Sense and Sensibility and Love Actually..