Even in a city full of eccentric characters, Ernie and Antoinette Kador aka K-Doe stood out. Ernie was best known for his Sixties hit songMother-in-Law. Like so many other musicians, he hit hard times but then he met Antoinette. She was a real pistol and, if anything, even more eccentric than her husband. They opened a bar/night club together in (where else?) Treme called (what else?) The Mother-in-Law Lounge where the self-styled Emperor of the World held court for until his death in 2001. It became more than a bar, it became an institution as well as a community gathering place.

Both K-Does have passed from this mortal coil and Antoinette’s daughter, Betty Fox, has tried to keep the MIL going but she’s quite simply worn out. She toldKevin Allman of the Gambit Tabloidthat running the lounge was her mama’s thing and that she’d tried keeping it open for the community but that she’ll be closing the place in July. This is sad news but I wish Betty well: running a small business eats one’s life and running a place like the Mother-in-Law takes an even bigger bite.

Here’s a video that I fortuitously stumbled into that features photos of the Mother-in-Law with a certain song playing:

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