Who Was Jimmy Hoffa?
WORLD HISTORY | May 7, 2019
Jimmy Hoffa. Source: (history.com)
On July 30, 1975, in Detroit Michigan, Jimmy Hoffa disappeared, in what would become one of the most culturally referenced historical mysteries in United States history. Most people have at least heard of Jimmy Hoffa and several of those people know he disappeared, but how many actually know who he was?
Early Life
James Riddle Hoffa was born on February 14, 1913, in Brazil, Indiana. His father, a descendant of German immigrants was a coal miner who died when Hoffa was seven and the family moved to Detroit shortly thereafter. At the age of 14, Hoffa left school and began working as a stock boy in a supermarket chain. At the age of twenty, after several years of poor working conditions, Hoffa organized a labor strike in Detroit.
International Brotherhood of Teamsters
He quit his job in 1932 and began to rise up the ranks of the International Brotherhood of Teamsters. This organization campaigned for workers’ rights through strikes and boycotts, as well a few dodgy manipulations. By 1942, Hoffa had become president of the Michigan Conference of Teamsters. In 1952, he became international vice president and then, in 1957, he was elected International President of the Teamsters, after its former leader went to prison for bribery. Under his leadership, the organization became the largest labor union in the United States.
Connections to Organized Crime
While Hoffa did a lot to improve working conditions, he also had shady connections. Several leaders of the Teamsters were involved with the Mafia, committing such crimes as racketeering, extortion, and embezzlement. Hoffa himself was frequently investigated for his association with such dealings and, in 1967, was convicted of jury tampering, fraud, and conspiracy. He was sentenced to 13 years and imprisoned at the federal prison in Lewisburg, Pennsylvania. In 1971, president Richard Nixon commuted his sentence and Hoffa returned to his position of president of the Teamsters, having refused to resign during his incarceration; however, he was unable to participate in union activities for ten years as a condition of his release.
Disappearance
Hoffa tried to have the stipulation overturned and many believed he continued to operate in secret. However, he never got the chance to achieve his previous level of success. On July 30, 1975, he disappeared from the parking lot of a restaurant in Detroit. The mystery of his disappearance has never been explained, but numerous conspiracy theories exist. The most prevalent of these is that he was executed by the mafia. Hoffa was allegedly in the restaurant parking lot because he had a meeting with Anthony Provenzano, a former member of the mafia and a New Jersey Teamsters official, and Anthony Giacalone, a member of the Detroit mafia. Both men denied attending such a meeting. In 1982, Hoffa was legally presumed dead.
Film and Television References
In 1992, Jack Nicholson took on the role of Jimmy Hoffa in the film, Hoffa, directed by Danny DeVito. However, a much earlier film, F.I.S.T., starring Sylvester Stallone was loosely based on Jimmy Hoffa and the Teamsters. However, the fact that his body was never recovered is often used as a joke or a threat in numerous films and televisions shows. For that reason, the most memorable fact about Hoffa’s life is that the secret of the whereabouts of his body is one that was taken to the grave.
