Features
Allan Levine combines his ability as a historian with his talent as a novelist in his latest book
By BERNIE BELLAN
Winnipeg’s own Allan Levine has established himself as an award-winning author of non-fiction history – with probably the book best-known to Winnipeg audiences being Coming of Age: A History of the Jewish People of Manitoba, which was published in 2009.
In addition to his well-received works of history, Levine has occasionally delved into the mystery oeuvre, most often with his Sam Klein mystery novels, the most recent of which was The Bootlegger’s Confession.
The Sam Klein novels are set in Winnipeg in the first half of the 20th century – an era for which Levine apparently has a great deal of affection. With an endless series of colourful rogues populating those books, Levine has certainly demonstrated an ability to bring alive a period with which most of us now can only imagine through the accounts of others.
Now, with his latest book, Details are Unprintable: Wayne Lonergan and the Sensational Café Society Murder, Levine enters into a different sort of writing that combines his demonstrated ability to research his subject matter with a novelist’s fine ear for authentic dialogue.
Although the particular subject of this book – that being the sensational murder of a young, wealthy New York heiress by the name of Patricia Burton, presumably at the hands of her estranged husband, Wayne Longeran, may have commanded the headlines of newspapers throughout the United States and Canada (and Europe too, on occasion), by now the story has faded from memory.
As Levine notes, “The story of the murder of Patricia Burton Longeran and Wayne Longeran’s alibi, confession, and conviction is two tales in one. The first tells of the tragic death of a young mother…” the second aspect of the story relates to doubts cast on the Longeran’s guilt “mainly because the trial took place in an era before DNA was utilized in legal proceedings”.
And, although there have been other accounts of the murder and its aftermath published previously (to which Levine refers with full acknowledgment of those other works), the painstaking manner in which Levine pieces together the chronology of what likely happened in 1943 brings alive a story that for the vast majority of readers is likely totally unfamiliar.
There is a Jewish aspect to the story in that Patricia Burton was Jewish, but coming from a highly assimilated family that more than anything wanted to be accepted as one of New York’s upper echelon families, her Jewishness was totally irrelevant to her.
She was also an unmitigated spoiled brat and Levine offers up a vivid description of what her life of carousing and partying was like until her murder when she was only 22.
Now, if the story of the murder of a rich heiress at the hands of her estranged husband seems to have been lifted straight from some Hollywood movie, Levine informs us that this particular story itself actually inspired more than one movie.
The book is written in chronological form, with an often dizzying array of characters introduced throughout. Levine describes the origins of the Burton family fortune, beginning with a successful brewer by the name of Max Bernheimer. As the family became more assimilated – similar to many other German Jews at the time, the name was changed to the more Waspish sounding “Burton”.
Patricia’s father, William O. Burton, plays an important role in the book even though he died three years before Patricia’s murder, as it turns out that William was a homosexual – and that led to his meeting and having a relationship with William Longeran.
Longeran himself was quite the fascinating character – and a Canadian to boot! Levine explains how Longeran was very much a rogue, beginning from almost his earliest days when he plunged into a life of petty crime. He was also quite good looking and very much the ladies’ man – even though if not totally homosexual he was at lthe very least, bisexual,
Longeran’s homosexuality becomes a principal aspect of what eventually follows, as when he is eventually charged with Patricia’s murder, the New York City tabloids have a field day focusing on his “perverted” lifestyle. Levine quotes liberally from newspaper accounts of the day that use the most purple prose to denigrate Longeran in ways that would be largely unthinkable today. But Levine is able to set the scene so vividly the reader is able to imagine full well what it must have been like reading daily newspaper accounts, first of the murder of Patricia Burton, followed by the arrest of William Longeran in Toronto (where he had returned following her murder), culminating in his trial.
Levine points out that there was something else going on in the world at the time – a minor story known as World War II, but for the tabloids – and even other more self-respecting newspapers of the day, the Patricia Burton murder and subsequent arrest and trial of Wayne Longeran took centre stage for much of the time that other far more pressing events were certainly deserving to be in the spotlight.
While Patricia’s murder was not really that much of a mystery, given the overwhelming evidence that led directly to Longeran, what did become a pivotal part of what followed was his confession.
As mentioned, Levine has a fine ear for recreating imagined dialogue and, given that there were no tape recordings at the time, he does his best to lay out what likely happened when Longeran gave his confession to New York police. That confession proved to be the damning nail in the coffin for Longeran. Yet, by today’s standards of jurisprudence, there is a very good chance his actual arrest in Toronto by Toronto police and his confession to New York police would both be ruled as having occurred in violation of his legal rights.
And that proves to another fascinating aspect of this book, as Levine describes the many appeals filed on behalf of Longeran through the years while he served out his prison sentence. The standards of what constituted acceptable behaviour by police evolved over time and what happened to Longeran played a part in the evolution of those standards, as Levine explains.
At times the book does slow down its original fast pace when Levine begins to describe the very lengthy research he conducted in the New York District Attorney’s office when he read firsthand all the files relating to the Burton murder case.
Although Levine writes that he is almost totally certain that Wayne Longeran did indeed murder Patricia Burton, the circus atmosphere surrounding his trial and the overt homosexual bashing in the papers of the day undoubtedly played a large role in what eventually happened to Longeran. Readers may well be aware how recent it is that gay rights have been recognized within Western societies, but reading firsthand how vitriolic – and commonplace within media, the attitudes were toward homosexuals not that long ago helps to bring a real perspective to how far we have come.
By focusing on this one particular story, rather than doing an exhaustive study how the ostracizing of homosexuals was not only considered acceptable within larger society, it was demanded by the majority of the public, Levine not only treats readers to a terrific story, he offers a salutary lesson in how intolerant society was for so long.
In addition to being available at McNally Robinson, Details are Unprintable: Wayne Lonergan and the Sensational Café Society Murder is available at Indigo Chapters, Amazon (both Canada and the US), and Barnes and Noble in the US.
Features
Understanding the Differences Between the Three Roulette Classes
Roulette is one of those games that denotes the world of casinos most iconically with its spinning wheel and suspenseful moment when people wait for the ball to land on a number. Not all roulette, however, is the same. There are three classes of roulette: European, American, and French. They have rules and variations that somehow make them stand out and give extremely different gaming experiences. Let’s take a look at some of these differences and understand what makes each roulette class special.
The Classic Choice of the European Roulette
The typical character of European Roulette is the presence of a single zero, thus making it highly favorable among players due to a very low house advantage of 2.7% and, therefore, higher odds of winning. It offers a number of inside and outside bets that can suit different players’ appetites for risk. The reason the players like European Roulette is that it is easy to play, and the odds are quite even.
This game of roulette easily finds its place on most online websites in several variants, from differently themed games to different betting limits to accommodate any type of player. Be it a new starter or a seasoned gamer, European Roulette offers them all a slick and smooth experience with good graphics and interaction that they would want more of.
The Elegance and the Strategy of the French Roulette
French Roulette is often touted as the most sophisticated style of the game. It shares this with European Roulette, which also has a single zero wheel; however, the features are different, with the inclusion of various rules termed “La Partage” and “En Prison.” These rules create such a drastic reduction in the house edge down to as low as 1.35% on even-money bets that it affords the player a number of options for a gaming experience. French Roulette also boasts an assortment of table layouts and special bets that give the game a strategic edge, intriguing experienced players.
Spin Casino roulette games offer a sophisticated, classic European casino atmosphere in the version of French Roulette. The detailed tutorials and user-friendly interface mean that new players will take no time to learn the nuances of this great game, allowing everyone to enjoy the strategic depth of this variation.
The American Roulette, With High Stakes
Another successful variant is American Roulette, most especially in North American casinos. The key difference between American and European roulette lies in the addition of a double zero slot on the wheel. This adds to a 5.26% house edge, thereby giving it a moderate advantage over its European cousin. This also contains an extra layer of unpredictability and fun with the double zero and lures players who like higher stakes and a faster-moving pace of the game.
The realness of the experience means that American Roulette fans will get a true taste of Las Vegas-style casino action. From this brand, high-quality American Roulette games are available for players to try their luck with the double zero in immersive graphics and sound effects that bring the excitement of the casino right to your screen.
Try these roulette variations and enter a whole new world of casino gaming, where each spin holds a new chance at excitement and rewards. Be it for the first-timer or a seasoned player, roulette is a game in which the thrill keeps one sitting on the edge.
Features
Auschwitz Tours from Warsaw: Preserving Memory, Honoring History
Auschwitz is one of the most powerful symbols of the Holocaust and its lessons are as current as ever. As the world prepares for International Holocaust Day the need to remember and educate becomes even more urgent.
At Auschwitz Tours from Warsaw, our mission is to help you connect with this dark chapter in history. We offer guided tours to Auschwitz-Birkenau from Warsaw and Krakow so you can visit the largest Nazi concentration and extermination camp where over a million innocent lives were taken.
Why Auschwitz Tours from Warsaw?
A visit to Auschwitz is an emotional experience and we want you to get the most out of it. Our guides will walk you through the historical context, tell you stories of those who suffered, resisted, and in some cases survived. With respect and sensitivity, we will share the history that can’t be forgotten.
We offer full day tours from both Warsaw and Krakow so you can visit Auschwitz whether you’re coming from Poland’s capital or its cultural hub. Our tours include comfortable round trip transportation so you can focus on the experience without worrying about the logistics.
Extra Educational Content
Apart from the day trips, Auschwitz Tours from Warsaw also provides a lot of educational content about Auschwitz and the Holocaust. Our website is a resource for learning with articles and materials about Auschwitz’s history, World War II, and the long-term impact of the Holocaust.
For those who can’t visit in person, these materials are a window into this dark period of human history so the lessons of the Holocaust are available to everyone.
Honoring the Past on International Holocaust Remembrance Day
International Holocaust Remembrance Day on January 27th is a global moment of remembrance. It’s a day to remember the 6 million Jews and millions of others murdered by the Nazis during World War II.
It’s not just about the victims of the Nazi regime but about learning from history so we never repeat the mistakes.
January 27th is the anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz-Birkenau in 1945, a day of unimaginable suffering but also of survival. The site itself is closed on this day for commemoration, but it’s a place of great importance for those who want to reflect on what happened here.
Although the gates are closed to visitors on January 26 and 27, it’s a day of personal reflection and remembrance for those who have passed away.
But on January 27th, a special area will be open for those who want to mark this solemn day on the grounds of the Memorial. This is a unique opportunity to reflect and remember in silence, on the very ground where so many lives were lost.
If you can’t visit Auschwitz today, International Holocaust Remembrance Day is still a chance to connect with the stories of survivors and victims. It’s a day to educate ourselves and others, not just about the past but about the present need to face hatred, intolerance, and anti-Semitism in all its forms.
If you’d like to learn more about our tours or explore our educational content, visit us at auschwitztoursfromwarsaw.com. Join us in remembering the past and keeping the message of “Never Again” alive.
Features
The Hurdles Facing Egyptian Intellectuals
By HENRY SREBRNIK In the twentieth century, many middle-class Egyptians adopted a cosmopolitan cultural style. They wanted to move the country toward a more liberal and secular state.
But they always came up against, and were unable to surmount, the strength of a very strong Islamic religious culture. In despair, some, despite their own preferences, ended up preferring autocracy to what they considered a backward and dangerous ideology.
In 1952, a revolution brought the Free Officers movement, led by Gamal Abdel Nasser, to power. It seemed to have brought a secular quasi-socialist regime to power.
But the undercurrents of politicized religion, though banned by Nasser, did not disappear. The Muslim Brotherhood, which had been founded in 1928 by Hassan al-Banna and preached a fundamentalist Islamism guarded exclusively by the sharia, was outlawed. Its most prominent theoretician, Sayyid Ibrahim Qutb, was executed in 1966.
But secular movements fell from favour following Egypt’s defeat by Israel in 1967, and the country was transformed into an autocracy following Nasser’s death three years later. From 1981 until 2011, Egypt was ruled with an iron hand by Hosni Mubarak, until popular unrest forced him to step down during the Arab Spring.
Would this herald a new, democratic chapter in Egypt? Would free elections bring about a rebirth of secular politics? The answer was no.
Mubarak’s ouster cleared the way for the Muslim Brotherhood to participate openly in Egyptian politics, and to that end the group formed the Freedom and Justice Party. In April 2012 the party selected Mohamed Morsi to be its candidate in Egypt’s presidential election. Morsi defeated Ahmed Shafiq, a former prime minister under Mubarak, that June.
Morsi soon issued an edict declaring that his authority as president would not be subject to judicial oversight until a permanent constitution came into effect. Although he defended the edict as a necessary measure to protect Egypt’s transition to democracy, mass demonstrations were held against what many saw as a seizure of dictatorial powers.
Worsening economic conditions, deteriorating public services, and a string of sectarian incidents, including attacks on the country’s Coptic Christian minority, strengthened opposition to Morsi’s rule. Clashes between Morsi’s supporters and critics in late June 2013 culminated in massive anti-Morsi protests around the country.
On July 3 the military under the head of the Egyptian Armed Forces, General Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, removed Morsi from power. A figurehead president, Adly Mansour, was installed, but it was clear that Sisi, who retained the title of defence minister, wielded power.
Sisi claimed that the military had carried out the will of the Egyptian people, as expressed in the anti-Morsi protests, and that the Islamist-dominated administration led by Morsi had put the Muslim Brotherhood’s interests before those of the country.
A month later the Egyptian police and armed forces committed what Human Rights Watch deemed “one of the world’s largest killings of demonstrators in a single day in recent history.”
Eleven years on, the murder of over 1,000 supporters of the deposed president, known as the Rabaa Massacre, has gone largely unpunished. The Muslim Brotherhood was formally outlawed that September and Morsi was jailed. Prison conditions were harsh, and he was denied adequate medical attention. He died in 2019.
Sisi officially left the military to run for president and was elected in a clearly fraudulent manner in May 2014. He has been re-elected twice since, in March 2018 and again in December 2023, when he was reported to have won with 89.6 per cent of the vote after several opposition figures were prevented from participating. Under his reign, Egypt has degenerated into a police state even more repressive than the 30-year dictatorship of Hosni Mubarak.
Caught between the proverbial rock and a hard place, Egypt’s pro-democracy and civil society movements jettisoned their long-standing commitments to human rights and the rule of law and enthusiastically supported the return of military rule.
One of those civil society leaders, Saad Eddin Ibrahim, was among Egypt’s most influential intellectual figures. He had spent his career insisting that democracy is the solution both to political authoritarianism and to the allures of religious fundamentalism in the Arab world.
Pushing back against the prevailing view that Islamist groups must be marginalized, he argued that they should be included in the democratic process. He even went so far as to advocate, in an article titled “Toward Muslim Democracies,” that “it will be better for us as democrats, for the Islamists, and for Egypt to enlist Islamists under the flag of democracy.”
He encouraged Egyptians to support this vision and put aside common fears about Islamist movements and had been arrested for his views under Mubarak. Yet even he abruptly became an apologist for authoritarian rule.
The “problem” was that the bulk of the Egyptian masses were unwilling to part with their religious traditions or wholly consign them to the realm of the private. Put another way, if most Egyptians were given the choice between being liberal or being Muslim, they would overwhelmingly select the latter.
Faced with that reality, these intellectuals forged authoritarian alliances to forcibly impose their worldview on an otherwise unwilling populace. When Morsi and the Muslim Brotherhood were in actual control of the state rather than at its fringes, the liberal secularists chose authoritarian rule. This is the same tragedy found in most of the Arab world.
Henry Srebrnik is a professor of political science at the University of Prince Edward Island.
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