The Pink Satin Suit documents the struggles, perseverance and discipline that go into the making of a Self-Made Man.

Over sixty years ago in New Guinea, a homesick New Orleans kid swore the Army would be the last employer he ever had. Today, Johnny Donnels’ photography is known all over the world. Johnny himself is an icon of the French Quarter, where he runs a gallery filled with his own art. Still successfully unemployed, he continues to produce a body of work that remains “vastly under-exploited.” Revealed in a lover’s embrace with the life that he has created, he is, to many, the last of the great Bohemians: a symbol of freedom and ease, who, by the sparseness of his demands, lives a life of luxury. Johnny crosses the intersection of art and commerce with humor and grace. On the way, he reveals the surprising discipline that underpins a life of freedom.

This film was shot before the flood and offers a view of the city that is very different from present day New Orleans.