Born in Oklahoma in 1936, Kruz Sanchez moved to New Orleans, Louisiana, to complete graduate studies in the field of linguistics at Tulane University and never left. As a child, his first language was Spanish, but he now speaks English, Japanese, Italian, and Swahili as well, which allows him to engage with the multicultural population of the city on a more personal level. He is most known for his career as a thriving business owner. Sanchez started out his career as a vendor at the famous New Orleans flea market, after which he became one of the vendors for the First Annual Jazz and Heritage Festival. In 1972, he opened his own shop “Kruz” on Decatur Street in the French Quarter.

Tape T4990
Session I
May 31, 2019

[Begin Tape T4990. Begin Session I.]

MELISSA SMITH: Today is Friday, May 31, 2019. And I’m Melissa Smith with the T. Harry Williams Center for Oral History at LSU Libraries and special collections. We are partnering with the LGBT Plus Archives Project of Louisiana to conduct oral histories, and today I’m here with Cruz Sanchez. Thank you for being here with us today, Cruz.

CRUZ SANCHEZ: My pleasure.

SMITH: So we’re going to start off today with your early years and your childhood. So can you tell me when and where you were born.

SANCHEZ: [00:00:36] I was born in Oklahoma City on November 13, 1936.

SMITH: And what are your parent’s names?

SANCHEZ: My mother’s name is Pauline Sepeda. S-E-P-E-D-A. My father’s name was Bruce Sanders.

SMITH: And what were your parent’s occupations?

SANCHEZ: My mom was a housewife. My dad had a sheet metal shop.

SMITH: And what was their level of schooling?

SANCHEZ: I don’t think my father even finished high school.

SMITH: And where did they grow up?

SANCHEZ: My dad grew up in Iowa and my mother, Oklahoma City. San Angelo, Texas, my mom.

SMITH: And how did your parents meet?

SANCHEZ: They were both dancers. They met in a dance hall.

SMITH: And do you recall? Do you know in what city?

SANCHEZ: Oklahoma City.

SMITH: And how many siblings do you have?

SANCHEZ: I have one sister from my original family. My mother and father both remarried and I have four on my mother’s side, two on my dad’s side.

SMITH: And was it due to your parents love of dance that attracted you to dance?

SANCHEZ: It’s probably the DNA.

SMITH: Did y’all dance a lot at home? When you were growing up, or?

SANCHEZ: [00:02:23] Oh, I did, I had an aunt who was a dance instructor, had a folkloric Group in California. She came back to Oklahoma and wanted to preserve the Mexican culture. So she started a dance group, and I was a member of that.

SMITH: And do you recall the name of that group?

SANCHEZ: No.

SMITH: And so was your mother…were both your parents, Mexican. Or was it?

SANCHEZ: Yes, both Mexican.

SMITH: And can you tell me the name of your grandparents?

SANCHEZ: My grandmother’s name is Laura Barerra. B-A-R-E-R-R-A. That’s on my maternal side. My paternal side was Sebastiana. And I didn’t know my grandfathers at all.

SMITH: Were they from Mexico or did they live in the United States?

SANCHEZ: They were from Mexico originally.

SMITH: Were your either parents born in Mexico or were they born in the United States? When did your family come to the US?

SANCHEZ: They were both born in Mexico. My mother, being the youngest of twelve, was born in San Angelo, Texas. 1916 or 17.

SMITH: Do you know why your family moved to the United States?

SANCHEZ: I have absolutely no idea.

SMITH: And what kind of like what kind of food did you eat in the home when you were a child?

SANCHEZ: My grandmother did most of the cooking. We had oatmeal for breakfast. And toast. And of course, occasionally we had some meat. My family loved chopped wieners, scrambled with eggs for breakfast. I don’t even remember lunch at all.

SMITH: So did your grandmother live with you? Growing up?

SANCHEZ: She raised me.

SMITH: She raised you.

SANCHEZ: [00:05:03] I guess my mom was working to, uh, guess make ends meet. We were buying the house as a kid. When I was a kid. We finally bought it.

SMITH: And that was in Oklahoma City?

SANCHEZ: Yeah.

SMITH: So were you the oldest out of you and your sister?

SANCHEZ: I’m the oldest in the family.

SMITH: You’re the oldest. And what is your sister’s name?

SANCHEZ: Kathleen.

SMITH: Kathleen. And what was it like growing up, so so in the 50s in Oklahoma City, what is it like growing up in that in that era?

SANCHEZ: I remember we went dancing every Sunday night. You know, Friday, Saturday, Sunday, we went dancing in a ballroom. Called [Cochi’s?] I think.

SMITH: Was that ballroom associated with the like…was it associate with the Mexican-American community or was it just a…

SANCHEZ: No, it was a, kind of a night club-ish place.

SMITH: And what kind of dancing did you like to do?

SANCHEZ: Predominately Latin. And a lot of swing.

SMITH: Were there any particular musicians or bands from that time that you enjoyed more than others?

SANCHEZ: I liked anything I could dance, too. That had a beat. But particular names I could think of.

SMITH: And tell me a little bit about your education. Where did you go to high school?

SANCHEZ: I went to grade school in a Catholic school. I was a first. Our graduating class was four people. I was one of those four. Then I went to a Catholic high school. And I didn’t care for it. And since I did all my enrollment, my family never knew I went to a public school. They just saw my report cards. Then I went to public school, Central High.

SMITH: And when did you graduate?

SANCHEZ: [00:07:33] 1954. And then I went to University of Oklahoma. I got a scholarship. And choice of Stanford or Tulane. And Tulane had Mardi Gras, so I came to Mardi Gras. Or Tulane. And I got my B.A. in language…linguistics.

SMITH: And what year did you graduate from Tulane?

SANCHEZ: [pause] I’m going to say 1970 or 71. Then I started working my PhD, which I did not get.

SMITH: So what year did you arrive in New Orleans?

SANCHEZ: 1969.

SMITH: And where, when, where did you live when you first moved to town?

SANCHEZ: By campus, not in a dorm. I was about half a block from Tulane.

SMITH: Did you stay in New Orleans after you graduated from Tulane or did you?

SANCHEZ: Actually, I needed money, so I started, I went to work in New Orleans when I dropped out school. I started working at Brennan’s, I worked there for about five years.

SMITH: And were you a waiter at that time?

SANCHEZ: At Brennan’s, yeah, I was a waiter.

SMITH: And was there, what was…since that is one of the premiere food families in the city, what was it like working for the Brennan’s?

SANCHEZ: They were good employers and they were very meticulous about what they did. And made sure we were well trained. And Al Brennan, they gave me a business sense of what business is, pleasing customers.

SMITH: And in the late 60s, since you’re already working in the quarter, what was that like? What was life like for those who were locals during that time?

SANCHEZ: I really was doing a lot of school study, I was focused, I didn’t live in the quarter then, at all. I lived by Tulane. When I dropped out, I moved to the Quarter.

SMITH: And do you call roughly when you dropped out?

SANCHEZ: [pause] No, I don’t.

SMITH: OK, and where did you live in the…do you recall where you lived, your first your first place in the Quarter?

SANCHEZ: Was on royal and Ursuline. It was $25 a month.

SMITH: I guess the prices have changed a little bit.

SANCHEZ: [00:11:14] Yeah, 25 wouldn’t even pay for a down payment.

SMITH: And after you left Brennan’s, what did you do?

SANCHEZ: I started Brennan’s for a long time, and then I opened my own business. I went to the flea market, I started sewing. I made, kaftans.

SMITH: And what was the inspiration for kaftans, or and for sewing as well?

SANCHEZ: I was living with this woman and she thought we should have our own business. And she taught me to sew, and I had seen some caftans in magazine that I really liked, and they were not available on the market, so I started making them.

SMITH: When you first started, was that the only thing you were selling at the time or were you selling?

SANCHEZ: Initially, then I started doing yoga pants and shirts. All cotton. There’s [?] with a kaftan on.

SMITH: Oh, look at that. And the original logo for the store.

SANCHEZ: Yeah.

SMITH: I take it that’s one of the kaftans you made.

SANCHEZ: Yeah.

SMITH: It’s beautiful.

SANCHEZ: Thank you.

SMITH: Who is the woman that you lived with? What was her name?

SANCHEZ: Sharon Whitlock.

SMITH: And were y’all roommates, or romantic partners?

SANCHEZ: Uh, romantic partners.

SMITH: And did she sell along with you? I mean, were y’all just selling kaftans or was she doing her own?

SANCHEZ: No, I was doing it all alone, and she had a daughter. That I helped raise.

SMITH: Was that the daughter you always called the daughter of your heart?

SANCHEZ: Yes.

SMITH: And what was her name?

SANCHEZ: [00:13:11] Romy. R-O-M-Y. That’s her on the wall back there.

SMITH: Oh, she’s beautiful.

SANCHEZ: As a little girl.

SMITH: Are you still in touch with them?

SANCHEZ: Sharon moved to Tyler, Texas. Now I’ve lost track of her and her daughter. Romy has a second marriage and I haven’t heard from her in about six, seven years.

SMITH: And how long were you in the market? Selling your kaftans?

SANCHEZ: From 1970, for about maybe two years, I’ll opened the shop in 1972. In fact, we were a co-operative. There were ten of us.

SMITH: Can you tell me a little bit about the co-operative and what y’all were called?

SANCHEZ: Initially it was called the Quarter Guild. And then after when I opened up, we opened up, all my customers from the flea market followed me, so I had a ready-made market. Most of the people after about less than a year dropped out, but they were all craftspeople.

SMITH: In what type of items were y’all, as the guild, were y’all selling?

SANCHEZ: So we had leather goods, clothing. Pottery, crochet work. Macramé. I’m envisioning the old shop, what is used to have, that was basically it.

SMITH: And who were the other members of the guild?

SANCHEZ: Well. The Good Earth Pottery from, I think, Thibodaux. I still see them from time to time. And then there was [pause] uh, Billiot. B-I-L-L-I-O-T. Did crochet work.

SMITH: Was Chick a part?

SANCHEZ: Chick Fortner? No, but he had a shop where I used to be. I took it over eventually.

SMITH: So he was like, was he located at 432 Barrack’s or 428?

SANCHEZ: 428.

SMITH: He was 428.

SANCHEZ: That’s where he first started.

SMITH: And didn’t Chick go on to own the sun shop on Maple Street? Right?

SANCHEZ: Exactly.

SMITH: Well, tell me a little bit about why you decided to go from the market and to 428 Barracks.

SANCHEZ: [00:16:07]. All the crafts people were friends at the flea market. We all get together. And so someone made the suggestion and we all went for it. It was very economical because there are 10 of us to open up. So rents were about, very inexpensive. And [Jill Collin] was my landlord.

SMITH: And, and over time, why did the rest of the guild drop out? And how long did that take?

SANCHEZ: It took about a year or two years. More than other, to make big money. It didn’t happen. I wanted a career, not money.

SMITH: And so by about 1972, you’re by yourself at 428 or?

SANCHEZ: Oh, no, we opened in 1972 I think by 1974 I was, I had the place to myself.

SMITH: You have mentioned in the past that you sold your kaftans at the first Jazz Fest.

SANCHEZ: Yes.

SMITH: What was that like in that the beginnings of what’s now such a huge festival?

SANCHEZ: It was exciting. You meet people from all over the world. And I wasn’t really tuned into New Orleans culture. That opened doors for me. First time I heard the Neville Brothers. And I loved them.

SMITH: And did you only sell that first year? Or did you sell at Jazz Fest for…

SANCHEZ: I sold for several years, I think about 4 or 5.

SMITH: When did the store started evolving out of just caftans and into other types of imports?

SANCHEZ: When I read realized I couldn’t make everything. And then I did traveling. So I started buying things that were ethically handmade. I went to Mexico. I used to buy a lot of things from them and then I did world travels, and I bought things in Egypt, Morocco and Turkey. I made contacts. And then when I quit traveling, I started going to trade shows and I bought ethically made things from the trade show. I would go to Los Angeles and New York like two or three times a year.

SMITH: Recently, I was looking through your photo album at the store and there was a picture of you in the 1960s with Arthur Murray. I guess that…were you an instructor for Arthur Murray.

SANCHEZ: [00:19:41] I worked for Arthur Murray for about five years. I trained in Los Vegas. Then I went to Oceanside, California, where I worked there for four or five years, that’s where I went back to college. The studio closed and I went back. I started my college education. I got an AA from San Marcos in California. And then when my mother became ill with cancer, I moved back to Oklahoma, continued my education.

SMITH: When did your mother die?

SANCHEZ: In 1954.

SMITH: So it sounds like you say you jumped a little bit between Oklahoma and California before coming to New Orleans.

SANCHEZ: Yes, definitely.

SMITH: Were there any other places where you lived or traveled before you came to New Orleans?

SANCHEZ: I lived in Las Vegas. Oh. I had wanted to go into dancing, but it was a catch 22. You had to have a job offer to be able to get in. I didn’t have it, so I went and trained with Arthur Murray. My teacher was an ex-boxer. She a Murphy.

SMITH: When, during this time, were your significant relationships with other women or was it with both women and men?

SANCHEZ: I had a boyfriend who I lived in Oklahoma with. That’s why I went to Las Vegas. He was a school teacher. He had a contract there. We lived there for a couple of years and then he had a contract in Oceanside. That’s why I went there.

SMITH: And is that Renee Gasser?

SANCHEZ: Yeah.

SMITH: And how did y’all meet?

SANCHEZ: I was a waiter at El Churrito and he was a customer there. And it turned out he had a good friend OU, who is Durango, Renee was Swiss, and his friend was German. So I met the group in Norman, Oklahoma, and I used to go to a lot of parties, very social.

SMITH: And was this group of friends? Were they all gay or?

SANCHEZ: Most of them.

SMITH: What was that like again? In the 1950s, anywhere in the US, much less in Oklahoma.

SANCHEZ: [00:22:40] And it was a no, no. And one time, because I gave a lot of parties, people knew me. This guy, I forget his name. One good party. So you use my party list and they all came. And a lot of the bars didn’t have any business that night. They called the police. And we got raided.

SMITH: Oh, wow. Were there gay bars in Oklahoma City at that time or what did gay men do? I mean, did y’all go to people’s houses or were there certain bars where that it was more acceptable for y’all to be in?

SANCHEZ: There were none in Oklahoma. That’s why I gave a lot of parties. Oklahoma City, Oklahoma City is a strange place, because they have a whole gay section on NW 39th. It’s probably about an 8-block square area, they’ve got tons of gay bars and gay activities. Clubs. Restaurants. And. I don’t recall going to a gay bar in Oklahoma.

SMITH: When did you, once you moved to New Orleans? Did you go to places like Miss Dixie’s or sound like you were also, you were pretty studious during that time.

SANCHEZ: Yeah.

SMITH: But for a social outlet, what did you do when you first moved to New Orleans?

SANCHEZ: I looked for a dancing group and became part of the Folkloric…Folklore…Folklore Group with Jesse. And then I started buying clothing for the dancers and then I got hooked into the belly dancing group.

SMITH: When did you get involved with the belly dancers? Was that early on?

SANCHEZ: Probably about 74? 75?

SMITH: As far as, whether it was belly dancers or the folklore group, was New Orleans open to those types of, since is they’re so different in one sense than, say, traditional Arthur Murray. Was New Orleans open or prepared for belly dancers in the 1970s?

SANCHEZ: Well, they had the Greek nightclubs. The Acropolis. That’s where all the dancers used to go to dance. Now, of course, when the ships came in with sailors, they had live bands. Place was packed and a lot of the belly dancers used to go there and, [Beba?] was the first big belly dancer, I think, in New Orleans.

SMITH: And did you did you hang out the Greek nightclubs a bit or did you shy away from those types of establishments?

SANCHEZ: I just took go because you could do folk dancing there. It was a lively group.

SMITH: And around in the early 70s, do you recall the Upstairs fire, the upstairs lounge fire?

SANCHEZ: [00:26:16] I knew about it, but I never went there. I just never thought about going there, that’s all. I’m not even sure I knew about it.

SMITH: By the time you were living in the quarter or living in New Orleans, it sounds like you’re both…you were in a relationship with Sharon. When did you decide or when did you come to terms that you were gay or did you always just kind of look at it as who you were with? Not necessarily an identity or.

SANCHEZ: I think the reason I got hooked up with Sharon was because I had a boyfriend, [Ed Ou?] And after I left, he came here to go to school and he started going with Sharon’s sister. And then Sharon’s sister moved back to Miami. And after I dropped out of school, I considered moving to Miami. I went there. I didn’t like it well enough to live there but it was a fun place to go visit.

SMITH: What made you decide? Did you ever come to a decision of, New Orleans is where I want to be? Or did you look to leave at some point but just decide to stay?

SANCHEZ: The only time I ever considered was after Katrina. I remember, I just, I wasn’t going to come back to New Orleans. One day I went to the museum. I came outside, I was sitting down on the beach under a tree. And I got very sad for New Orleans and decided to come back. I remember going back to the motel where I was staying. FEMA paid for of course. And then I started arranging to come back and I came back about two weeks later. I’ve been here ever since. I never consider leaving. I don’t know where else I would go or why I would go anyplace else. Of course, when you have a business, you’re sort of married to it.

SMITH: And what is it like to have been married to your store for 50 years?

SANCHEZ: Well, I can’t complain about anything. I guess I was a perfect boss to myself. Met a lot of wonderful people and a lot of great employees. Many of which we are still friends, still come and visit. And also the shop became like extended family.

SMITH: When did you start hiring people for the store?

SANCHEZ: I don’t remember, or even why I hired people, I guess business I got good enough that I needed some time off. And one of my best friends, Linda [Soravian?], who lives in the building, was one of my first employees. And we’re still good friends.

SMITH: By the time you opened the store, were you living above…were you living at the space above the store? When did you move in there?

SANCHEZ: I moved there about 1976, roughly. I lived there ever since, until I had my stroke, then I couldn’t climb my stairs to the third floor.

SMITH: When did you have your stroke?

SANCHEZ: [00:30:30] Roughly six, seven years ago. [phone rings]

SMITH: Other than Linda, who were some of the early employees at the store? Is there anybody from those early days in the 70s that you would like to mention?

SANCHEZ: There’s been so many I can think of them. But I know the last, before stroke, most people stay about a year or two years. Jamal Morelli was a great, good employee. Of course, you too, Melissa.

SMITH: Thank you. Can you tell me a little bit about Luis?

SANCHEZ: Luis Hansa?

SMITH: [agrees]

SANCHEZ: He was in Gulfport and he was also a very good employee.

SMITH: How long did he work for you?

SANCHEZ: I was there four or five years. Then he developed AIDS. And one time, he had to go to the hospital for medication observation. He never came back.

SMITH: How many of your friends and loved ones did you lose to AIDS during that time?

SANCHEZ: Probably only Luis. I didn’t know anybody else who had AIDS. Maybe I did, but I didn’t know it.

SMITH: When did you meet Pat Jolly? Seems like y’all have had a wonderful, long lasting friendship. And how did y’all cross paths?

SANCHEZ: I guess she came to the shop. She’s a customer, but beyond that I don’t remember.

SMITH: What about the musicians that either who worked for you or bought from the store?

SANCHEZ: I used to hear it on exotic instrumentation, so I had a lot of the local Indian musicians. I would always carry drums, Middle Eastern musicians who would buy from me. And then we had musical groups that formed. And I try to, I learned to play tambourine and doumbek because I always had parties in my apartment. Did you ever come to one?

SMITH: I don’t know if I ever came to a party in the apartment. I remember some of the birthday parties at restaurants. Yeah. But if I ever went to a party at the apartment.

SANCHEZ: [00:33:51] We had belly dancers and live bands and the folk dancers who came to [Liberty?] Group and we started having enough food. Became a potluck. It was a complete evening: dining, food, and music, and dancing.

SMITH: Who are some of the dancers or some of the musicians who?

SANCHEZ: I became hooked up with the Baton Rouge Who MEDA, M-E-D-A. Middle Eastern Dance Association. Many of those have now passed away and most of them moved away. But I think it lives only in name now. Marlene Drake somehow was in charge of their budget, their papers or documents. In the belly dancing associations in New Orleans are kind of weak now. Crescent Lotus carries on.

SMITH: Was Betty Karam part of MEDA?

SANCHEZ: No, but she taught dancing at the JCC, and she retired about two years ago, went around the world with her husband.

SMITH: Must be nice.

SANCHEZ: It was. She sent me a postcard from every place she went.

SMITH: During your travels, you mentioned Mexico and Egypt, Morocco and Turkey. Where did you live and how did you set yourself up? Did you go for extended amounts of time or short periods?

SANCHEZ: I joined a group called, uh, it was a Danish company. You joined and they gave you a list. People. People’s houses and I…and also Yugoslavia. And so I got to tell I was out, write them down, plan to come, and they would meet me at the bus station or train station or however I got there. And they would show me around.

SMITH: I recall a series of stories that you told me many years ago. Did you live in Paris and then jump around to various countries, didn’t you talk about maybe a summer?

SANCHEZ: That was my first foreign trip was to Paris with my best friend. Jerry would have been my neighbor when I first moved here. And we went to Southern France, the Gypsy Festival, and then we traveled around the country. He had a sister in Belgium, we went to visit, and we came back to Paris, took an apartment there, stayed for three months. And I studied French there. Like I studied Arabic in Egypt.

SMITH: How many languages did you speak at one point?

SANCHEZ: I never really spoke Arabic well. But I still, I still do, just enough to get in trouble. And I also studied Italian and Portuguese, and I minored in French in college and of course, Spanish is my native language and I studied several Croatian. And Japanese, too.

SMITH: Really? Did you did you study in Japan or did you?

SANCHEZ: Never made it to Japan.

SMITH: Out of your travels, was there a country that was more special to you than others?

SANCHEZ: [00:38:00] I’ve thought that the Mexico was the best place to go. The best people. But Egypt, the people were so warm, so friendly. By the second week I was going to an old lady’s house and eating. And their sons would take me to the mosque. I remember I was once in Egypt, and I wore kaftans like everybody else. I used to go to the mosque just to relax and hang out because on a hot day, it was a nice place. It was cool. You could lay on the rugs, go to sleep if you wanted to. One day I was in the mosque around noon time, it was a Friday, and the Imam came out. He pointed to me and says, “You, get up.” And if you’re at the end of the line you had to lead the movements. I didn’t know the movements. So I just, I moved from the first spot to the third spot, so I could follow rather than lead. And being a dancer, sort of watch you do a one, two, three, stand up. One, two, three, sit down. One, two, three. Do this. Do that. And eventually became comfortable with it.

SMITH: As far as religious practices go. Was there any? Did you follow a certain path?

SANCHEZ: I was raised Catholic, but now I’m just spiritual because everything is man-made law. And there is a control that goes with that.

SMITH: When you traveled in Morocco, where did you stay and what was Morocco like?

SANCHEZ: Morocco’s wild.

SANCHEZ: The guys knew what you wanted. They knew more than I knew. They would follow you around, literally follow you around.

SMITH: How many times did you go there?

SANCHEZ: Morocco? One time, but I spent three months there.

SMITH: Did you want to leave?

SANCHEZ: I think of Morocco as kind of an exotic woman waving to you to come back.

SMITH: When were you there? Was it the 70s or the 80s or?

SANCHEZ: I think it was the 70s. I went to Egypt during the world’s fair because they started flights and they had cheap flights, so I went. I didn’t want to leave New Orleans because, the world’s fair, I loved it.

SMITH: Were you a vendor at the World’s Fair or would just a happy participant?

SANCHEZ: I bought a pass. I used to go and have lunch there every day.

SMITH: Were there…what restaurants would you go to during the World’s Fair?

SANCHEZ: [00:41:01] I loved the real love the Filipino restaurant. What did I go to? [pause] You know, I don’t remember a single restaurant besides the Filipino restaurant.

SMITH: In all your years of being in the Quarter, and particularly a one block radius essentially of the Quarter, what have you seen changed or develop over your time down there?

SANCHEZ: The Quarter always looks the same even though business come and go. I mean, it looks the same, but it’s become much more touristic, much more commercially oriented, less neighborhoody.

SMITH: Were there ever any particular neighbors that you had over time that that stand out in memory?

SANCHEZ: Jerry Stubin, who still remains a good friend of mine, and Don Bailey, who’s an artist who’s also my neighbor, and we’re still friends. Most of my focus was the shop. I met a lot people there and we socialized, and I had own parties, so I created my own little social world.

SMITH: Were you involved other than the folkloric dance group and the quarter guild, were there any other, whether a it was civic groups or neighborhood groups, was there any?

SANCHEZ: No.

SMITH: Is there a reason behind that of why you weren’t as involved?

SANCHEZ: I probably never thought about it. Or they didn’t invite me.

SMITH: To go back for a minute to some of the musicians who came through the store. Whether as employees or as customers, were there any who kind of stood out?

SANCHEZ: David Brown was a guy who could play anything. And he always carried [?] With him. Then there’s uh, he played Indian music. I can think of his name. [pause, gets up to search for something] Well, I thought I had his business cards. He teaches Indian drumming, he plays at [the Met?] the from time to time. I can’t think of his name.

SMITH: It seemed that at least in the early nineties you had a number of, whether it was folks like the Nevilles coming through and buying instruments or as Cuban music was becoming more popular in New Orleans during that time. And as well as the Klezmers, it seemed that many seemed like many, the store was one stop shopping for the percussionists in town that you couldn’t really not go to the store. Do you see having an influence on some of the music in New Orleans during that period?

SANCHEZ: [00:45:01] I don’t think so because, musicians were already major. They came knowledgeable. In fact, I learned a lot from them.

SMITH: And what kind of things did you learn from them?

SANCHEZ: About what was good, what was bad. What was a good drum, a bad drum or how to tune them. Probably Michael Skinkus, one of the top people I knew. He was also one of my best employees.

SMITH: And how long did Michael work for you?

SANCHEZ: Was he your coworker?

SMITH: Yes.

SANCHEZ: From uh, he graduated from college. And stayed about five years and he formed his own musical groups. And now he teaches. I think at Loyola. Or is it Country Day?

SMITH: He’s at Country Day.

SANCHEZ: OK.

SMITH: And what about that, that wild haired child, Many Lander? With his dreads halfway down his back.

SANCHEZ: Many always comes back and visits, he moved to Denver about a year ago. And his daughter moved there, so that’s why he went. Many was a singer, and his mother was a singer, too. Did you know him well?

SMITH: Yeah, because I worked I worked mainly with Many, Michael and Hope and then later, Jamal. So I kind of segued the two groups, so to speak.

SANCHEZ: I always found it interesting. Michael, Michael always complained about Many not being a good a good employee. But when I work with Many, he was excellent. I had no complaints about him at all.

SMITH: And wasn’t Michael the manager for a while?

SANCHEZ: I don’t think so.

SMITH: OK. Tell me a little bit about the parties and your birthday parties, because it seemed that people would come out of the woodwork for your birthday. The birthday sale and the anniversary sale.

SANCHEZ: We used to block off Barrack Street barriers to the flea market. We had barricades and we had street bands of folk dancers come and dance in the streets, and I remember one time, just before the party had started, somebody had left a rug on the sidewalk. We unrolled it so people could dance, belly dance especially, and magically when the party was over, that rug disappeared. I have no idea who picked it up. Or who brought it. Maybe somebody brought it and lent it to me. If they didn’t, somebody did. And I never had to thank anybody for that one.

SMITH: And where would you get your birthday cakes?

SANCHEZ: [00:48:18] I always had them made at Cake Cafe. With Steve Fober? Fobwalker? And he used to walk around selling cakes and Hope always bought a slice every day. Eventually he owned his own place. Now I still get cakes from them for anytime I need anything, I call him.

SMITH: Didn’t he become Buddhist or it was wasn’t the story behind him that he had like a 9 to 5 job and then started making cakes because Buddha called him to do it? I just have a vague recollection.

SANCHEZ: I never heard that story. I’ll ask him next time I see him.

SMITH: And tell me. Were there any customers that kind of stood out? Those who were, whether they were regulars or people who would just kind of pass through.

SANCHEZ: Every customer felt special to me. And every customer became a friend. Not everyone, but most of them. I’m still amazed. I mean, people still come by to visit. If they leave town, they always come back to make a visit.

SMITH: And what was it like to create a community like that? And, you know, within the four or five walls of the shop.

SANCHEZ: I think I was creating a family. Because I was probably a big family. And the shop for me has been as a family, with the customers and employees.

SMITH: And with any of that. Did you ever spend, or were you ever friends with the owners of the Marigny bookstore or were you real involved in any like the French Quarter groups, so to speak?

SANCHEZ: No, but I knew the owner, Tom Horner?

SMITH: I think so.

SANCHEZ: I knew him. I remember one time I went with Hazel Bois, my landlady. We went to the bookstore and I guess Tom thought she was gay and he said, the lesbian section is over here, and she turned to him and said, why in the hell would I want to look at that?

SMITH: Was there much co-mingling between gay men in the quarter and the lesbians who were there or were they-.

SANCHEZ: Not to my knowledge.

SMITH: Were are there any memories that stand out from just working in the Quarter? Or any events that that come to mind again, with spending 50 years down there. Are there any points at time that just almost trigger like a marking, a marking point from working down there?

SANCHEZ: [00:51:25] I don’t understand the question.

SMITH: Were there any events that took place? You mentioned Katrina. Yes, we can go back to that as one moment where Katrina, for many people, became a marking point. Were there any other events in the Quarter while you worked down there that would stand out or being a citizen of New Orleans that, kind of stand out in your memory?

SANCHEZ: Well, the one year the police boycott Mardi Gras. I know was important because Mardi Gras went on. I can’t think of anything else.

SMITH: What was it like…in your photo album, in one of the images. It’s an early image of the shop where you have clothing on the doors and you make a comment about, before the city council made y’all, if you talk about that, maybe for a minute. What was it like? Whether it was the Vieux Carre commission, or dealing with the city and owning a shop.

SANCHEZ: I’m not sure why they passed that ordinance. You couldn’t display merchandise in the door. And I’m kind of grateful because a lot of people will steal things off the door. So they did me a favor. But I don’t know why they passed that at all. You asked me a question I don’t remember now. What was the question?

SMITH: Well, I’ll just as I was just wondering, you know, and again, we can talk about Katrina shortly. But just to find out, you know, if there were any issues of dealing with city government and being a store owner or if or was it a little bit different being in your part of the quarter versus, say, when you worked at Brennan’s, which is a little bit more in the center of things. Was there…did the city treat that neighborhood differently?

SANCHEZ: I don’t recall, neither Brennan’s nor myself ever being been targeted by the city for anything. But they used to dive around. If they saw stuff on the door, they would stop and come in and tell you that you’re in violation.

SMITH: So when Hurricane Katrina was coming ashore and the levees breached, did you evacuate?

SANCHEZ: I did eventually. I wasn’t going to go anyplace. I woke up Sunday morning and I forget who was the mayor? He says, get out of town. Within an hour, I was on the highway.

SMITH: Where did you go?

SANCHEZ: I was going to go, I headed north and then decided I would go to Oklahoma. And I turned out nobody was available in Oklahoma. So I went to Abilene, stayed with my cousin. I stayed there for six weeks at this house. And then after six weeks, with my money from FEMA, I went to Oklahoma City, and stay there for about six, about a couple of months. Then I really became homesick? I came back.

SMITH: What was it like? What were the thoughts? Or do you recall the thoughts going through your head when you were evacuating and seeing what was coming? You know, for New Orleans.

SANCHEZ: [00:55:17]. Well, the hardest thing was, as high as we were packed was finding a place to sleep. I think the first place I found was Jacksonville…Jackson, Mississippi. Was my first night and then I stayed at the motels along.

SMITH: What was the response of people, like as you were trying to go to hotels or, you know, for those who were watching all these evacuees pouring through their towns and cities? What was the reaction like from people like that?

SANCHEZ: I don’t recall because only places I stopped was restaurants, or a motel to eat.

SMITH: And what was it like returning?

SANCHEZ: Coming back?

SMITH: Coming back, seeing the devastation. And did you wonder about the viability of the store at that time?

SANCHEZ: This was all new to me. When I came back, the streets were desolate. There was just like nobody else. Neighborhoods where they had kids play the street. There are no kids playing. No people on the stoops. It felt very lonely. And then day I thought to myself, did I make the right decision to come back? My store was not affected at all by Katrina. So I opened up.

SMITH: What was business like when you first reopened?

SANCHEZ: Very, very slow. I don’t recall how it was, but I don’t think. FEMA, give me a nice security, have that money that they offered you. I still had FEMA money in the bank, so.

SMITH: Did you ever, in the moments that you thought about, did you ever think of not reopening the store or how did you look at the city’s ability to recover from the events?

SANCHEZ: Being optimistic, I thought the city would recover no problem. But I had no sense of devastation. Or what That meant.

SMITH: As we wrap up today’s session, is there anyone or anything you would like to mention that we didn’t that we haven’t covered?

SANCHEZ: I live in a state of gratitude to everyone who crosses my path and even for those who did not cross my path yet. I’m waiting for ’em.

SMITH: Well, Cruz, thank you so very much.

SANCHEZ: It’s been my pleasure. I’ll probably have a dream now bout my past.

[58:43]
[End Tape T4990. End Session I.]