Dudley Joseph LeBlanc (August 16, 1894 – October 22, 1971) was an American entrepreneur and politician. He created the

patent medicine A patent medicine, sometimes called a proprietary medicine, is an over-the-counter (nonprescription) medicine or medicinal preparation that is typically protected and advertised by a trademark and trade name (and sometimes a patent) and claimed ...

Hadacol Hadacol was a patent medicine marketed as a vitamin supplement. Its principal attraction, however, was that it contained 12 percent alcohol (listed on the tonic bottle's label as a "preservative"), which made it quite popular in the dry counties ...

and promoted it through the 'Hadacol Caravan' which featured major celebrities of the day including

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Ava Gardner Ava Lavinia Gardner (December 24, 1922 – January 25, 1990) was an American actress. She first signed a contract with Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer in 1941 and appeared mainly in small roles until she drew critics' attention in 1946 with her perform ...

Cesar Romero Cesar Julio Romero Jr. (February 15, 1907 – January 1, 1994) was an American actor and activist. He was active in film, radio, and television for almost sixty years. His wide range of screen roles included Latin lovers, historical figures in c ...

Hank Williams Hank Williams (born Hiram Williams; September 17, 1923 – January 1, 1953) was an American singer, songwriter, and musician. Regarded as one of the most significant and influential American singers and songwriters of the 20th century, he reco ...

, and many others. Williams began writing the song '

Jambalaya Jambalaya ( , ) is an American Creole and Cajun rice dish of French (especially Provençal cuisine), African, and Spanish influence, consisting mainly of meat and vegetables mixed with rice. Ingredients Traditionally, the meat includes sau ...

' while traveling on the Hadacol bus, listening to the Cajun conversation. Leblanc served in the

Louisiana House of Representatives The Louisiana House of Representatives (french: link=no, Chambre des Représentants de Louisiane) is the lower house in the Louisiana State Legislature, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Louisiana. This chamber is composed of 105 repr ...

from 1924 to 1928. In 1932 he ran for governor, losing to the

Huey Long Huey Pierce Long Jr. (August 30, 1893September 10, 1935), nicknamed "the Kingfish", was an American politician who served as the 40th governor of Louisiana from 1928 to 1932 and as a United States senator from 1932 until his assassination ...

candidate

Oscar K. Allen Oscar Kelly Allen Sr. (August 8, 1882 – January 28, 1936), also known as O. K. Allen, was the List of Governors of Louisiana, 42nd Governor of Louisiana from 1932 to 1936. Allen succeeded Alvin Olin King, who served briefly in the state's h ...

. He served in the

Louisiana Senate The Louisiana State Senate (french: Sénat de Louisiane) is the upper house of the Louisiana State Legislature, state legislature of Louisiana. All senators serve four-year terms and are assigned to multiple committees. Composition The Louis ...

from 1940 to 1944, 1948 to 1952, and 1964 to 1972. In his gubernatorial campaign, one of Leblanc's planks was to pay a monthly stipend to the elderly. Huey Long subsequently adopted the idea in his nascent campaign for President.

Franklin D. Roosevelt Franklin Delano Roosevelt (; ; January 30, 1882April 12, 1945), often referred to by his initials FDR, was an American politician and attorney who served as the 32nd president of the United States from 1933 until his death in 1945. As the ...

got the idea from Long, and it became the modern

Social Security Welfare, or commonly social welfare, is a type of government support intended to ensure that members of a society can meet basic human needs such as food and shelter. Social security may either be synonymous with welfare, or refer specificall ...

system. LeBlanc can be seen as a contestant on the 1st March 1951 edition of

You Bet Your Life ''You Bet Your Life'' is an American comedy quiz series that has aired on both radio and television. The original and best-known version was hosted by Groucho Marx of the Marx Brothers, with announcer and assistant George Fenneman. The show deb ...

in which he describes his political career. He was

posthumously Posthumous may refer to: * Posthumous award - an award, prize or medal granted after the recipient's death * Posthumous publication – material published after the author's death * ''Posthumous'' (album), by Warne Marsh, 1987 * ''Posthumous'' (E ...

inducted into the

Louisiana Political Museum and Hall of Fame The Louisiana Political Museum and Hall of Fame is a museum and hall of fame located in Winnfield, Louisiana. Created by a 1987 act of the Louisiana State Legislature, it honors the best-known politicians and political journalists in the state. H ...

in 1993.

References

* William J. "Bill" Dodd, ''Peapatch Politics: The Earl Long Era in Louisiana Politics'', Baton Rouge: Claitor's Publishing, 1991 * Obituaries of Dudley J. LeBlanc, ''

Baton Rouge Morning Advocate ''The Advocate'' is Louisiana's largest daily newspaper. Based in Baton Rouge, it serves the southern portion of the state. Separate editions for New Orleans, '' The Times-Picayune The New Orleans Advocate'', and for Acadiana, ''The Acadiana ...

'', October 23, 1971; ''

Lafayette Daily Advertiser ''The Daily Advertiser'' is a Gannett daily newspaper based in Lafayette, Louisiana. ''The Daily Advertiser'' covers international, national, state, and local news in the six parishes of Lafayette, Acadia, Iberia, St. Landry, St. Martin, and ...

''October 22, 1971; ''

New Orleans Times-Picayune ''The Times-Picayune/The New Orleans Advocate'' is an American newspaper published in New Orleans, Louisiana, since January 25, 1837. The current publication is the result of the 2019 acquisition of ''The Times-Picayune'' (itself a result of th ...

'', October 23, 1971 * https://web.archive.org/web/20060715210804/http://www.sec.state.la.us/archives/leblanc/leblanc-1.htm * Floyd Clay Martin, ''Coozan Dudley LeBlanc: From Huey Long to Hadacol'' * http://www.alibris.com/search/search.cfm?S=R&qwork=1336975&qsort=p&siteID=KLVmR9fE2yU-LcsUdqTmR6Odz.nkB9F.IA * http://www.acadian.org/leblanc.html * http://www.lpb.org/education/classroom/itv/serdesc.cfm?SerID=15 * M. M. Le Blanc, ''The True Story of the Acadians, 90th Anniversary Edition'', BizEntine Press. * M. M. Le Blanc, ''The Acadian Miracle, 50th Anniversary Edition'', BizEntine Press. {{DEFAULTSORT:LeBlanc, Dudley J. 1894 births 1971 deaths People from Abbeville, Louisiana People from Erath, Louisiana People from Youngsville, Louisiana 20th-century American politicians Acadian history Burials in Louisiana Businesspeople from Louisiana Cajun people Democratic Party Louisiana state senators Democratic Party members of the Louisiana House of Representatives Members of the Louisiana Public Service Commission Patent medicine businesspeople Politicians from Lafayette, Louisiana University of Louisiana at Lafayette alumni 20th-century American businesspeople