He'd noticed a reference to his old friend Chuck in the site's Basin St article.   Chuck had managed the Seamen's Center in the 60's.   I explained he had been called out of his Florida retirement to come back and manage the Seamen's Center for six months while they searched for a manager, we'd got to know him and he'd helped us find Basin Street, as well as sharing a lot of stories.  Jim got a twinkle in his eye talking about Chuck.  He related once that Chuck tried to start a nightclub.  He and a partner who was a sculptor leased a place 5-6 blocks from Basin Street and put a lot of money into the decoration.  Chuck's sculptor partner went a little wild and created a series of columns on the facade which were painted a garish purple.  Jim's opinion of Chuck's partner wasn't very high:  "People called him a sculptor, but I called him a chiseler!"  And at the end, after all the investment they failed to get their license to operate.  Chuck begged Jim to help them unload the place - Jim said I can only introduce you to people but the rest is up to you and I don't want to be responsible for any deal.  Finally some potential buyers - don't know if they were a group of lawyers, rich guys with police connections or what -  went to the authorities and asked what it would take to get the license approved:  Change the color of the columns to something more neutral.   After a few coats of beige paint they were in business, but they never paid Chuck and his partner a cent...much to Jim's disappointment, though he repeatedly had said he couldn't take responsibility for what was up to them to negotiate.

He had some involvement with Hassan II's chief strongman who had succeeded General Oufkir.  There was a plan to allow slot machines in tourist hotels, and Jim had connections to manufacturers in the U.S. ready to sell the machines.   Casablanca was a problem because the operator of the biggest casino and gaming operation in neighboring Mohammedia didn't want competition and he was a man of considerable influence.   He was willing to let the slot operations in Casablanca develop, however, if he could be a 50% partner.  It turned out he was hamstrung in his Mohammedia operations because his license, while comprehensive, was signed personally by King Mohammed V, and as such was frozen in time...it did not cover slot machines.  With 50% of the Casablanca operation he could finally get into this lucrative business.  After getting his concurrance he went to the chief strongman, who gathered some other partners from the shadows.  They were on board - but for close to 50%!   That left Jim with nothing...so he walked away.

 Jim recounted one time a more friendly Chief of Police made a tour through his bar, took a look at the money that was pouring in, quit his position and became a tax consultant.which in those days was hardly like the  profession today.  Jim said, "People always talked behind my back that I was a bagman...but I sure didn't have a lot of money to show for it if I was!  A middleman,yes - bagman no."->

....  Jimmy recalled some of the characters from Basin St.  Jerry Manilow, trusted bartender, who was with him until he died in 1973. Jerry had an extensive collection of jazz records which people still tell me about. Jerry was like a brother, he said, and the group of employees at Basin Street were like a family.  When "the" waiter left, the dishwasher had done enough apprentice work to master the job, and became the new waiter.  There was no artificial hierarchy.  He fondly remembered the black pianist, Bob Robinson, who played for 2 years before moving on to Tangiers.  He recalled the musicians that circulated through Casablanca.  One time he brought the reknowned "Memphis Slim" from Paris - he lasted 2 nights, got a big head and went on to bigger and better things in Tangier and Marrakech.

 Conversation turned to Suzanne.  In an article on our site I called her his wife.  He made it clear she was not his wife.  I acknowledged the information I had was conflicting  - another gray area.  Suzanne was a customer who became a manager of Basin Street.  She got involved with a wealthy man from the north and had  a daughter by him.   Jim's wife, on the other hand,  continued to live in New Orleans, but came to Morocco frequently for long visits.  Once she surprised him by arriving at Casablanca Port aboard a Lykes Line passenger freighter and driving off the ship in a flashy Ford Fairlane convertible.  Their son Dodd was born in Casablanca.

 He said when Jerry Manilow, the bartender, died in 1973 things just weren't the same.  Finally it wasn't fun and that was when he decided to sell Basin Street.  The opportunity arose to sell to Suzanne and two partners.  One was the owner of the Embassy Club which still exists, and another whose name he couldn't recall.   He suspects the money came from Suzanne's friend in the north of Morocco.

 Jim left Casablanca in 1977, and Basin Street's business gradually fell off.  The restaurant closed in 1998 and it sits frozen in time.   The sale is tied up in a dispute over taxes - between Suzanne and her partners and with the city.    As Jim explained it, the way the tax system operated then (would that it were still the same!) was the taxes would pile up, unpaid, and there was no reckoning until there was a sale.  When Jim "sold" Basin Street to Suzanne and her partners the price included a deduction of what would have been Jim's unpaid taxes.  He says that was never acknowledged by the buyers, but that the written agreement had been very clear.

 This was Jim's first trip back to Casablanca in 30 years.  He was very depressed after seeing Basin Street, and they cut short their stay, still leaving time to come to Rick's.  When his son Dodd said they were going to Rick's Cafe,  and it was owned by a woman, Jim replied:  "I hope it's not Suzanne."

 After a dinner filled with conversation and stories we went upstairs and interviewed Jim by video.  Finally a farewell coffee at the bar.  I promised to find Chuck's contact, and we vowed to keep in touch.  They didn't  let on where they were staying in Casablanca, Jim's still looking over his shoulder to a certain extent.  But during their time with us at Rick's I got the impression Jim had regained some of the feeling he had in the Casablanca of the old days.the spirit of Basin Street is alive and well. We'll always have Casablanca, Jim!  Thanks for sharing your memories.