Murder On The Air

Down In New Orleans

January twenty-fourth, eighteen ninety six

New Orleans was a city bustling with jazz, energy and a uniqueness in comparison to other states in the U.S. The annual Mardi Gras festivals were complete with parades, good food and celebrations that lasted for several months of the year. The city lay near the Mississippi River. The French Quarter was the heart of New Orleans, known for Creole, Cajun and Spanish architecture and a unique blending of culture. Old fashioned cars with extra wheels on the sides were forms of transportation and newspapers were circulated widely. Other areas of New Orleans consisted of murky swamps, peaceful bayous, and densely wooded areas. At night, fireflies, alligators, deer and other wildlife would often come out in the safety of the dark.

Men and women would wear a variety of different clothing to suit their needs. Farmers would wear overalls, checkered shirts and straw hats. The women would go about their days in light-colored cotton dresses, leggings and shoes. Fancier folk would wear tall top hats, suits with bow ties, shiny black shoes, pants and the occasional a stylish cane. Upper class women would wear colorful dresses, high heels and round hats with flowers and sequins on top.

Sounds from jazz bands and lively music would fill the air, often in the mornings and evenings. Rhythm and blues, jazz, swing and a bunch of different genres would merge together and evolve into a new kind of music. At the tall white Imperial Theater building, performers would awe the audience with their dances, musicals and songs. It was the passion for the arts, music, food and life that brought a variety of people together in an otherwise segregated world.

And what a segregated world it was.

African Americans and Native Americans were treated as lower class and segregated from the dominant white-skinned folk every day. Signs labeling "white" and "colored" glared accusingly at people's faces in bold letters at every door, drinking fountain and entrance. The rich had it much easier than the poor, who roamed the streets and begged for food. With money, mansions and material goods, the butter and egg men brushed aside the sufferings of the poor, the different, the strange...anyone who didn't quite fit in. Men would often stay out late in bars, flirting with pretty dames or getting zozzled after drinking too much giggle juice.

Women worked in second class jobs that paid less than male-dominated jobs. They were the housewives, secretaries, teachers, cooks and maids, among others. The unfortunate ones were often prostitutes or homeless. Men were expected to provide for their families and demonstrate their strength and intelligence. Women were expected to care for their children and support the goals of their husbands. Only a handful of women were lucky enough to have equal standing with their partners, let alone have good husbands. Those who were homosexual or queer practically didn't exist at all in the mainstream public eye.

On the surface, the Crowley family appeared like any other family. A Caucasian French man by the name of Louis Francois Crowley worked as an accountant in the city of New Orleans, Louisiana. He was a tall man with hazel eyes, a thin black mustache and short black hair, always neat whenever he was at work. His face was round and thickly shaped. Like many individuals, he freely smoked both indoors and out. He would go to church every Sunday morning, proudly carrying a leather-bound Bible in his hands and thanking God for the life he had.

It was sometime many years back that he met a lovely woman.

Not just any woman...but an exotic beauty rarely seen by the city folk. Her name was Loretta Duvalier. Her skin was dark brown, reminding him of rich chocolate or coffee. Her eyes were brown, full of soul but also deep with hidden secrets. Long curly black hair framed her face and her fingernails were unusually sharp. She wore long dresses of various colors: green, pink, red, purple and blue.