Various Internet sites provided vintage Tahoe photographs and details on criminals, geography, Vietnam, buildings, school colors, the 1970s, and even Sam Giancana’s final recipe; thank you to scores of cyber scholars and enthusiasts.
I would like especially to thank and acknowledge my editor, Sarah Durand, not just for her intelligent and helpful editing, but her understanding and support when real life intruded on the writing of this book. Also, I would again like to thank Trish Lande Grader, who saw potential in my proposal for prose sequels to Road to Perdition.
I am, as always, grateful to my friend and agent, Dominick Abel, who recognized movie potential in Road to Perdition, and to entertainment lawyer Ken Levin.
Right to the end of the road, my co-pilot, Barbara Collins — wife, friend, collaborator — was with me for every twist and turn. More than any novel I’ve ever written, this one benefited from Barb’s suggestions and her ability to know when to be sounding board, and when to be editor; also, she attended college in Tucson in the late ’60s, and shared memories of the campus and the town. My son, Nathan, and my late father, Max Allan Collins, Sr., inspired this trilogy, and my love and thanks to them both.