Long before social media commentary and late-night monologues, Mobile had the Comic Cowboys. For more than 130 years, this mystic society has rolled through the streets of Mobile during Mardi Gras with a wagon full of satirical signboards, poking fun at the year’s biggest headlines with a wink and, as members insist, ‘without malice.’
Each year, the group’s membership is divided into nine committees, each assigned a different topic such as politics or sports. Every committee is responsible for producing four signboards, all of which are mounted on a single float for the parade. The signboards themselves ride on wagons that are more than a century old, originally acquired by the Cowboys from the old GM&O railroad in the 1930s.
According to a longtime member who, in keeping with tradition, spoke without being named, the group’s brand of satire likely traces back to founder Dave Levi, who had a background in vaudeville comedy. In the group’s earliest days, in the early 1900s, a single sign would be hung on the side of a car and driven through the streets. Over time, the tradition evolved into wagons carrying two signs, then eventually the four-per-wagon format still used today.
Every year, the Cowboys’ targets range across the political and cultural spectrum, and members make no apologies for controversy. As one Cowboy put it, the group knows exactly where the line is, and where the community expects it to be drawn, while still making sure ‘there’s something in there that will suit every walk of life.’
The tradition remains a fixture of Mobile’s Mardi Gras season, with the Comic Cowboys parading each year on Mardi Gras Day at high noon, a slot that has become as much a part of the city’s Carnival calendar as any of the evening parades. For longtime Mobilians, catching a glimpse of that year’s signboards is as much a ritual as catching beads or moon pies.
Those interested in the deeper history of the Comic Cowboys and their place in Mobile’s broader Mardi Gras story can find archival material and exhibits at the Mobile Carnival Museum downtown, which chronicles the city’s claim as the birthplace of Mardi Gras in America and the mystic societies, including the Comic Cowboys, that have shaped its celebration for well over a century.