Actor John Larroquette Arrives in New Orleans to Receive UNO Honorary Doctorate
Emmy and Tony Award-winning actor John Larroquette arrived in New Orleans on Wednesday for an honor-filled five-day visit that includes an honorary doctorate from the University of New Orleans.
University President Peter J. Fos, college officials and the Pocket Aces Brass Band, a band made up of mostly University students, greeted Larroquette and his wife Elizabeth as they deplaned at Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport. The New Orleans native and esteemed actor waved to crowds and spoke with reporters, clearly touched and surprised by the welcome.
"I'm sad that my mother isn't alive to see me get a honorary doctorate degree," the Ninth Ward native kidded a reporter from Fox8 WVUE New Orleans. "But I think it is OK because she would probably ask me why I'm not seeing patients afterward...So it's OK."
Larroquette will receive an honorary degree at the University of New Orleans 2013 spring graduation ceremony. Commencement will be held at 7 p.m. on May 17 at the UNO Lakefront Arena.
Honoring a Preeminent Talent and Native Son
Larroquette, who has received five Emmys and a Tony Award, will receive an honorary doctor of humane letters from UNO. President Fos called the honor "definitely one of the highest honors we have at the University."
Larroquette is the voice behind UNO's recent "Heartbeat of the Crescent City" commercial series, which debuted in fall. President Fos and University officials honored the actor on Thursday in a private reception on campus.
That morning, Larroquette made television appearances on WWL-TV and Fox 8 WVUE New Orleans and met with television writer Dave Walker of The Times-Picayune.
Larroquette will also receive this week an honorary diploma from Holy Cross High School, where for two years he was a student.
"One thing I'm really thankful to Holy Cross for is they opened my eyes to literature," Larroquette told The Times-Picayune. "I remember being given a copy of 'Waiting for Godot' when I was a freshman in high school at Holy Cross, and it just exploded my brain.
"As I recall, it was given to me by an Irish priest who thought that somehow my personality would somehow identify with this writer, and it did. Samuel Beckett is my hero, in essence."
Adding to A Long List of Credits
Larroquette is best known for playing the role of Dan Fielding on Night Court, for which he won four Emmy Awards. A preeminent talent in film, television and theater, he has had other major television roles on The John Larroquette Show, McBride and Boston Legal.
He has also made guest appearances on shows including The West Wing, Boston Legal and House. Larroquette won his fifth Emmy playing a narcissistic psychopath on The Practice. Larroquette just finished a run on the television show, Deception, and is now pursuing stage opportunities, he told The Times-Picayune.
In 2011, he made his Broadway debut in the wildly successful revival of How to Succeed in Show Business Without Really Trying. Playing the role of J.B. Biggley, Larroquette won the Tony Award for Best Featured Actor in a Musical.
