Katrina jokes get Mencia pulled from parade

NEW ORLEANS — Comedian Carlos Mencia was yanked Thursday from a Mardi Gras parade’s list of celebrity riders for jokes made about Hurricane Katrina.

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That’s according to Krewe of Orpheus officials who on Wednesday announced Mencia as one of about a dozen celebrity guests slated to ride in this year’s parade, which rolls through New Orleans on Feb. 23, the night before Mardi Gras.

But Orpheus Captain Sonny Borey said in a statement Thursday that the club became aware of “certain remarks Mr. Carlos Mencia has made in regards to New Orleans and Hurricane Katrina.”

Borey said Mencia would not be riding because “our krewe is very sensitive to the feelings of our community and the way our city is viewed.”

Borey did not provide details about what the comic said, but a clip of Mencia making jokes about Katrina victims in a standup routine can be found on the Web site YouTube.

Besides riding on one of the parade’s 35 floats, Mencia had been scheduled to perform at the Orpheus ball after the parade.

Meanwhile, added to the celebrity list of riders Thursday was comic and television star Joan Rivers.

Borey said Rivers is not a replacement for Mencia.

“This is something that we’ve been working on for a while, and we are really excited we can finally announce it,” he said.

Joining Rivers as a celebrity monarch will be ABC’s “According to Jim” star Jim Belushi and AMC’s “Mad Men” star Bryan Batt. Also riding are former “American Idol” contestant Josh Gracin, daytime TV stars Christian LeBlanc of “The Young and the Restless” and Ricky Paull Goldin of “All My Children,” and the cast of the TV comedy series “Reno 911.”

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