It's important that the passing of a Kansas City icon is reported with a dose of reality and a bit perspective about an extraordinary life which shaped this wicked little town in which we live.
To wit . . .
TONIGHT OUR TKC BLOG COMMUNITY CELEBRATES THE LIFE OF MANNY LOPEZ WITH EXTRAORDINARY REVELATIONS REGARDING HIS GROUNDBREAKING POLITICAL AND BUSINESS CAREER IN KANSAS CITY!!!
With respect to his family and friends, the paltry mainstream media coverage filled with pleasantries but surprisingly few deets simply doesn't do justice to a career that impacted the lives of tens of thousands of Kansas City Latinos to this very day.
The Career Of Manny Lopez Started With Tense Connections To Notorious Big Jesse
Manny's start was shrouded in mystery with no real answers about his humble beginnings until now.
Nowhere in Manny's obit or so many biz profiles written about this local biz titan is a mention of Big Jesse.
Big Jesse was a notorious bar owner, drug kingpin and hardcore Mexican gangster before most Americans knew that this brand of criminal even existed. Big Jesse rose to power in the early years of the American drug epidemic in the 1980s. He owned a few places on the Westside and even ventured into Midtown.
Just to be clear: Manny was in NO WAY connected with illicit biz of Big Jesse but few people really understand that the drug biz connects directly with legitimate interests in more ways than any of us really want to imagine.
Fun fact from CNN: 90 percent of U.S. bills carry traces of cocaine
And so, Manny worked
Here's where things get interesting . . .
Like all gangsters, Big Jesse was living on borrowed time. Finally, bad debts, broken promises or old beefs came due and Big Jesse was found with his throat slit, his tongue pulled through his neck and his testicles cut from his body and shoved in his mouth.
Some might call this a Sicilian necktie but this method of execution is also used South of the Border was well and it's also known as a Colombian necktie.
With any biz connections and debt from Big Jesse fortuitously removed by forces more sinister, deadly and beyond a hopeful taco and burrito vendor . . . Manny was free to pursue his own ventures and the capital for his restaurant was quickly discovered shortly thereafter. The rest is Kansas City restaurant history as Manny was one of the first Crossroads developers, entrepreneurs and successful businessmen to redevelop this risky but ultimately lucrative location.
Manny Lopez Was A Strident Conservative Republican Who Literally Took A Vicious Beating From Illegal Immigrants
Navigating the immigration landscape in Kansas City has always been tough. Labor laws have evolved over time along with documentation reporting requirements. Manny Lopez was always eager to help people who wanted to help themselves and early in his career he employed many immigrants who had arrived recently from Mexico.
The policy of employing recent immigrants ended quickly at his restaurant after Manny Lopez was savagely beaten to within an inch of his life by three masked gunman who many believe he helped to employ. The robbery was terrifying but its impact was more pronounced as Manny, upon his recovery, was the first Westside biz to discourage the employment of recent arrivals and was stringent in documenting the records of employees thereafter and long before U.S. and state labor laws demanded as much.
An Alternative To La Raza Political Club Was Served Up By Manny Lopez
In his later years, Manny Lopez proudly claimed that he was pro-Union Republican while extolling the virtues of his strict Catholic upbringing.
Long, long ago, I heard Manny speak with pride about being a "solider of Christ" when talking to my 8th grade class before Catholic Confirmation. His faith was something that defined the entrepreneur as a person, businessman and local leader.
Given this strict socially Conservative stance . . . He was naturally at odds with other Westside political groups like La Raza Political Club . . . In searching for an alternative to socially liberal Democratic Party advocacy, Manny was the founding member of Kansas City's Hispanic Organization for Justice and Equality (HOJE). He lent his support to fiscally Conservative candidates along with simply providing a venue to network and meet people from the community in much then same way that Manny generously offered an initial investment of $5k to help start the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce which now represents hundreds of millions of dollars.
And so, these facts might be uncomfortable to some and aren't very well known in Kansas City but this blog hopes this posting helps provide a more complete picture of a man who was defined by hard work, conservative principles and just a bit of good luck amid unfortunate circumstances. Like many in Kansas City, Manny Lopez transcended his surroundings with a single-minded and often stubborn commitment to making his own way.
I only agree that the newspaper obit was utterly useless. Must've been written by Mary Sanchez.
ReplyDeleteNice article - about an important, interesting man.
ReplyDeleteNow that's a story...that's a life well
ReplyDeleteIived. Two thumbs up and a hell yeah!
"a man who was defined by hard work, conservative principles and just a bit of good luck"
ReplyDeleteKC metro salutes Manny Lopez!
Sounds like a nice chap.
ReplyDeleteManny was a good guy. He had some very interesting friends. His business was first class. His creed and demeanor were first class. Via Con Dias
ReplyDeleteSee Byron, if you hadn't been such a loser in life by not wanting to work and be someone, you to could have been successful like Manny was,
ReplyDeleteI think Tony has revealed a lot about where he is coming from here. Like Tony, & Mr. Lopez, I've never met a Latino that didn't have a strong work ethic. But, where does the money come from for you to live, or does your family simply believe so much in what you are doing?
ReplyDeleteMr. Lopez was a good American, & one of the Real Americans.
My condolences to his friends & family.
RIP Manny- may other Latinos fill in & continue to fight off the idiot libs and the la Cuca Raza dreamers who think they speak for all minorities
ReplyDeleteFuckhouser, you suck ass.
ReplyDeleteOK Lets start a pool. How many of these posts are by Tony?
ReplyDeleteInteresting.
ReplyDeleteIs there an American success story that didn't involve the mob?
ReplyDeleteInteresting stuff, not a bad obit.
ReplyDeleteFunk, some of your writing is murky. Are you saying Tony and Manny are examples of Latinos with strong work ethics, or THEY didn't know of any Latinos without it?
ReplyDeleteI noticed growing up there were folks of all ethnicities who were work shirkers. My big family moved from one of the Dotte's 'dales long ago. While there near the rails and factories, we often saw a few 'mexicans' (micks, bohunks and blacks, as well) who were known to work just long enough for the next bottle. Some begged and "borrowed" intermittent to those work cycles, often seeking bagged lunches at the parish rectories or leftovers at cafes' backdoors.
Volunteering with recovery programs in the recent past, I've seen that some addicts reform and improve greatly on their work ethic.
A very thoughtful post Tony and one of your best ever (from a long time reader). Life is indeed full of gray areas.
ReplyDelete10:51, hmmm, yeah, wonder how short that list may be. We know a couple more Catholics, bootlegger Joe and crooner Frank, for sure aren't on it.
ReplyDeleteWhoa, Funky 9:14, are you feeling alright? What, did you revise your definition for Real Americans? Spanish explorers (invaders, for the most part) made up some of that Lopez bloodline. You know, white Europeans. Plus, muddle-class (?), middle-class describes Manny for the majority of his life. Having a sudden reality check, are you?
ReplyDeleteFunny how TKC did not mention the full name of the supposed Mexican gangster, as I'm guessing he doesn't want to be sued from the grave or bumped off by relatives. I worked in the Kansas City Homicide unit back in the day and I recall Jesse's death, however the tongue pulled through the throat and the testicles in the mouth is news to me. I also fail to see what connection you're making between Jessie and Manny other than leaving details up to peoples imagination.
ReplyDeleteA life well lived and a legacy of great food. R.I.P. Manny.
ReplyDeleteKC has a long mob history that starts with the Irish and then keeps going. You guys ain't seen nothing yet until the Russians leave their mark.
ReplyDeleteAnon 3:14
ReplyDeleteA Latino, by definition, has some Native American DNA. These are the Real Americans. No Latino is all Spanish, you stupid white man.
Geee! I had no idea the Aztecs were breeding in Italy.
ReplyDeleteBy definition? I doubt it. Provide evidence.
ReplyDeleteFrom Wikipedia: "People who identify as Spanish, Hispanic, or Latino may be of any race."
Anyway, you forgot about those who self-identify as Latino, who of course may be of Inuit, Polish etc. ancestry. If it works for genders, surely it works for cultures too.
8:04am
ReplyDeleteThe answer to your question.. the full name is Jesse Mora Sr. and a few years later his son Jesse Mora Jr. died.
Don't know the connections to Manny.
8:04am-Loan funds, that's the known connection per TKC.
ReplyDeleteO'Malley's book: Black Hand/Strawman" covers the dominant stories of a certain era on Italian connected mobs in KC. Growing up in 1970's KCK, we were later told certain types of proceeds made possible fuller collection plates at area parishes along with loans to select businesses and families. Rumor and realty is arguably blurred on these topics.