The show was conceived of after creator Karen Carlson covered Hurricane Katrina while working for a television station in Los Angeles. At the time, she attempted to quit her 6-figure anchor job at the number one station in town to return to New Orleans and help in the rebuilding. Six months later, she was able to begin her project, which at the time had the working title of A Whole New Orleans. Carlson was an anchor and reporter at legendary CBS affiliate WWL-TV from 2001-2003, during which time she began to realize the importance of tourism in the economy of the city and the lives of its citizens.

So here’s what you didn’t know you didn’t know: there are more restaurants open now in the greater New Orleans area than before Hurricane Katrina! There are new hotels that have opened up since 2005, one in particular is featured in Season One, which was built from the ground up in the downtown area. Other hotels have been able to update or expand their properties since the storm. New restaurants are popping up, and those that were swept away by the storm are being rebuilt, sometimes in different locations, sometimes, right next door.

Be sure to watch Sunday June 1st as Fredrick Guess appears in the episode titled "Arts in Motion"! That episodes description, as it appears on www.foreverneworleanstv.com , begins "Walking down the street has never been as artistic as it is on one street, where art is a moving landscape filled with onlookers. There are artists who teach classes anyone can sign up for, and one man in particular who helped bring back hope to a city in need."

Visit the Forever New Orleans Website.