SmashMouth

New Orleans businessman Robert Retz is having a pretty good Mardi Gras season so far. His rental properties are filling up, and he just secured a three-year commercial loan at a fixed rate for his company, SL Contractors. Oh, and he met Paul McCartney on the streetcar, he says.

Since Super Bowl 2013 weekend, a photo that appears to be the former Beatle has been circulating on Facebook (as of Friday afternoon, it has 18,626 “likes” and has been shared 7,270 times on the site.) The woman McCartney is sitting next to, Retz says, is Retz's childhood friend Evelyn Trahan.

Retz, 57, and Trahan, 56, grew up together in Mid-City. The two friends had recently gotten back in touch, and on Super Bowl Sunday, were waiting for the streetcar at Canal Street and Carrollton Avenue with their families, heading back toward the old neighborhood to pick up their cars. When the streetcar pulled up, there was a bit of a surprise on board.



Here’s the story, as Retz tells it:

“Paul was sitting there on the first seat, not the long seat, the first double seat,” Retz said. Nancy Shevell, McCartney’s wife of two years, as well as six or eight other riders were on board, he said. Retz assumed that all were part of the musician’s entourage; he noticed a limousine keeping pace with the car as it rumbled down Canal Street.

“The security said, no, don’t get on,” Retz said. “And Evelyn said, ‘Paul, you’re not going to take a picture with me?’”

Sir Paul was indeed in New Orleans for the Super Bowl 2013 weekend. He attended Rolling Stone magazine’s party at the Bud Light Hotel on Feb. 1, and GQ’s soiree on St. Charles Avenue the following night. Many celebrities were photographed over that weekend enjoying New Orleans – Jay-Z was apparently seen drinking cognac “out of plastic cups,” in a dive bar, and Snoop Dogg spent an evening at the R Bar in Marigny – so it’s not that farfetched that McCartney might get a ticket to ride the streetcar.

The story, besides going viral on Facebook, has been picked up by dozens of blogs and websites, including MSN Music and the UK’s Daily Mirror. Most of the posts misidentify Retz as Robert Senft, and quote a version of his original Facebook post joking that “this guy got on the streetcar, and started singing Beatles songs to my friend Evelyn. Turns out it was Paul McCartney.”

“I was completely misquoted,” he laughed. “You’re the first person to actually talk to me.”

The NME reported that streetcar passengers “ignored” McCartney after the star “burst into a medley of some of the Beatles’ biggest hits.” That is not exactly what happened, Retz said.

After Retz and Trahan’s group boarded the streetcar, he said, Trahan sat next to McCartney, and started singing “I Want To Hold Your Hand.” The former Beatle joined in for a few bars, and posed for pictures.

“He leaned over and put his cheek on her cheek,” for a photo, Retz said, “but her sister was so nervous she turned the camera off instead of taking the picture.”

Retz and Trahan’s group hopped off the streetcar after a few blocks.

“We kind of felt like we were imposing,” he said.

After getting home, Trahan emailed the photo to half a dozen friends. Retz uploaded it to Facebook, and soon after, the chain reaction started. Trahan called him, mystified, when she began receiving phone calls and emails from friends she hadn’t spoken to in years, asking about her ride with the star.

“’She said, I’m going to have stalkers!’” Retz said. He himself has been getting a flood of Facebook friend requests: “I’ve got people friending me from Argentina, Brazil,” he said.

Of the encounter, Retz said: “It only lasted a few minutes, but he could not have been nicer. It was extremely cool. Extremely cool.”

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saintfan

Very select group of artists I go gaga for. Very short list. Paul is high on that list. The engine that made the Beatles go - he and Harrison to be sure. Too cool!

QBREES9

That is very cool.