Wade Hanna loved drag racing and followed its growth at a young age. Before he could drive, Wade read everything he could find on repairing and improving the performance of car and motorcycle engines. He worked at service stations to practice his newly learned trade. Drag racing would become a passion which would lead him down alluring but sometimes un welcomed paths.
2
New Orleans is not just any old southern town. It is steeped in history, tradition, lore and mystery. It is a city famous for great food, architecture, its French Quarter, the Mississippi River, gambling, strip clubs, Mardi Gras, Southern bells, Castilian and debutant balls, Dixieland jazz, blues and Cajun music. Wade Hanna was not shy about participating in the city’s preoccupation with fun and celebration, but this didn’t come until his late teens.
With its rivers, lakes, bayous, canals, swamps, and proximity to the Gulf of Mexico, New Orleans is a very water-oriented city. It is known for water sports including fishing and hunting. Flooding is common; the city would be underwater most of the time were it not for the levee system that protects it
Wade loved the outdoors and hunting and fishing, which interested many of the city’s residents. In his early teen years, Hanna was more likely to be found in a duck blind than on a dance floor. His fishing and hunting activities led him to meet individuals from the Southwestern part of the state in Cajun country who shared the same outdoor interests. A phone call from his friend, Dave Comeaux would quickly take him back to his outdoor roots.
Dave asked with his French Cajun accent, “When you com’on down to the Bayou to fish? We can boil some crawfish and crabs. I got some gator tail and frog legs for the bar-ba-cue.”
After Wade politely declined, telling Dave how busy he was getting his car ready for Sunday’s race, Dave said, “You’re always busy doing something. You’d better come down soon or you’ll forget how to fish.”
Wade laughed as he ended the call. It wouldn’t be too long before Wade would be fishing with Dave for speckled trout at a favorite spot near an offshore gas rig. That trip was followed the next day with a wonderful crawfish boil, sautéed frog legs, and speckled trout amandine.
The skyline of New Orleans was considerably different in the '50s and '60s than it is today. There were fewer bridges over the Mississippi, so there were more frequent ferry crossings. During this era, the city was a major commercial port in the South for cotton, tobacco, sugar, bananas and other imported goods from Central and South America and around the world. The riverfront, where gambling casinos and the Riverwalk stand today, was lined with real docks for transferring cargo. As is still the case today, the state was a center for the oil and gas industry with resources both on and offshore.
During the '50s and '60s, New Orleans was completely segregated by race. While racial tensions spread throughout the South, resulting in both peaceful demonstrations and riots, the city maintained a low profile. By comparison to other southern cities, racial tension in New Orleans attracted relatively little attention from the national and local press. Things were handled for the most part quietly without fanfare.
The city has always been operated behind a veil of secrecy. Whether the issue is business, race, justice, or which party wrongly crossed another, the city has been much about maintaining its low-key demeanor. Many residents trace their roots back to the Confederate city during the Civil War. Old family histories involve the legacy of plantation owners and slave traders. During the ‘50s and ‘60s it was not uncommon to hear references to this ancestry.
Gus, an eighty-year-old New Orleans family friend, once explained to Wade the difficulty he was having with a Northern business associate. He said, “The Northerners just don’t get it. The Confederate War ain’t over yet; we’re just in temporary suspense. The South will rise again. We just do business our way. If he wants to do business with me, my friend better get his ass down here so I can explain how business is done in the South.”
New Orleans and southern Louisiana evolved certain practices which governed how people dealt with each other. It can be said New Orleans is a “who you know” town where “favors” are often exchanged for “favors” in return. Many connections that foster this “who you know” principle stem back generations, to family ties that pre-date the Confederate War. The frequently heard Louisiana, expressions, “Who’s your Mama” and “Who’s your Daddy” were as alive in the '50s and '60s as they are today. If you knew the right person, everything from getting a traffic ticket fixed to receiving a major reduction in a prison sentence was possible. Life could be a lot easier in New Orleans if you knew the right people. Certain favors would be extended, handshakes welcomed, and a little lagniappe (bonus or extra) was passed along your way. Depending on your family ties, you might extend or receive some lagniappe. Sometimes these “little extra” favors were not so small and might take the form of a large construction contract or oil drilling concession.
As a dominate southern city on the Gulf of Mexico, New Orleans had strong business and cultural ties to the Caribbean and Latin American countries. Throughout the 1960s, despite civil unrest, social tension, and whatever else was going on in the rest of the world, New Orleans remained a fun-loving city. Publicity promoting the allure of jazz, Mardi Gras, good food, and around-the-clock parties was generated and maintained in a fashion that made and kept the “Big Easy” famous.
Beyond its glamorous and mysterious façade the city also had its seedy and undesirable side. It had its organized crime, mob bosses, street crime, and illegal activities just like all other large U.S. cities of the time. Law enforcement stood laid-back on prosecuting most organized crime activities, and focused more on street crimes and protecting the average citizen and tourist. Politicians at this time were “expected” to receive a part of the cut for handing out favors or turning their heads to questionable practices. Organized crime had been part of the city’s life since the early 1800s. Gambling, like dock workers at the turn of the century and liquor sales during prohibition, were run by the city’s organized crime bosses. Gambling in Louisiana was illegal during the '50s and '60s. City crime bosses ran most gambling and prostitution activities in both city and state, and these activities went on virtually everywhere.
One evening Wade had some relatives and friends in from out of town. They were all sitting around the table after dinner discussing New Orleans and state problems. One relative from the Northeast seemed annoyed by New Orleans’ lack of action over crime and crooked politicians and asked Wade what could be done to prevent it. Wade tried to explain, “New Orleans is surrounded by its own cloak of mystery and secrecy. If you’re on the inside, you might know or understand a few of its secrets. If you’re on the outside, none of it makes any sense. If you dare try to change things, the city shield is impossible to bend, break or move. You just have to live with it.” The other members of the group looked at each other. Wade’s answer didn’t seem to satisfy them. They still didn’t understand, but they didn’t follow his explanation with another question. The topic soon turned to Mardi Gras, which was soon approaching.
Except for the work of a few dedicated law enforcement teams, most organized crime activities in the city were either largely ignored or perpetually “under investigation.” This laid-back law enforcement policy seemed to apply as long as crimes didn’t affect the average law abiding citizen, local and state government officials, influential city families — or the tourists, who brought in large sums of money.