Chapter 6

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a private op
A private investigator or detective

Doc Holliday cocktail
Old Overton rye + Nehi peach soda + a half jigger of absinthe. Nehi Peach soda has been around for about a century, first introduced in 1924 by the Chero-Cola Company. It was part of a successful line of fruit-flavored drinks.

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the ol’ Chief
In the 1930s, the "ol' Chief" likely refers to either the original Chief or the more luxurious Super Chief, both premium, all-Pullman passenger trains of the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway (Santa Fe) that ran between Chicago and Los Angeles.

dancin’ the Pinkertonian
"Dancing the Pinkertonian" refers to a scene in some versions of the opera “Madame Butterfly” that depicts a fantasy sequence. It is not a formal dance style. The term comes from the opera's male lead, Lt. Pinkerton, whose actions lead to the tragedy of the title character, Cio-Cio San. The Pinkertonian dance is a theatrical, not literal, expression of the character's conflicted state. It does not refer to a genuine folk or ballroom dance. In some stagings of the opera, the "Pinkertonian" dance is interpreted in the following ways: (1) A conflicted fantasy: In a dream sequence, Cio-Cio San has a fantasy of her life in America with Pinkerton. She dances with a real partner, but in her mind, she is with Pinkerton, who appears as a ghostlike figure; (2) A "shadow-partnering": As Cio-Cio San is being courted by Prince Yamadori, a different version of Pinkerton appears as a "shadow-partner," and the two dance, revealing her inner longing for the American lieutenant.

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