Police said the man's strange behavior may involve bath salts.
Saturday, November 12, 2011
Alcohol, er, Bath Salts Might Have Been Involved
www.whiotv.com: A Vandalia family is in shock when a man broke into their house, made himself at home and even put up Christmas decorations.
Police said the man's strange behavior may involve bath salts.
Police said the man's strange behavior may involve bath salts.
Another Nic Cage Update
Hollywood Reporter: Nicolas Cage’s nearly-pristine copy of Action Comics no. 1 featuring the first appearance of Superman—stolen from his home in 2000 and just recovered in April in a storage locker—is poised to become the most expensive comic ever sold on the open market during an online auction now being conducted by comicconnect.com.
The auction started today and ends on Nov. 30th. After just a few hours bidding has already reached $900,000. The current record is $1.5 million for a less well-preserved copy of Action Comics no. 1 sold in March 2010.
The auction started today and ends on Nov. 30th. After just a few hours bidding has already reached $900,000. The current record is $1.5 million for a less well-preserved copy of Action Comics no. 1 sold in March 2010.
AbeBooks: Charles Dickens and the Popularity of Abject Misery
AbeBooks: Charles Dickens and the Popularity of Abject Misery: The world has seen many talented wordsmiths in literature, but few can hold a candle to the skill of Charles Dickens (1812-1870), especially when it comes to bleakness, hardship and injustice. After all, how many famous figures can boast that their name became an adjective (in this case ‘Dickensian’) meaning squalid, grim and poverty-stricken? That’s an impressive accomplishment of excellent descriptive writing (if perhaps somewhat depressing).
Nicolas Cage Update
m.guardian.co.uk: The Sun reports that the Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call – New Orleans actor only eats meat from animals that mate in a 'dignified' way
Sure, this is an old item, but Seepy Benton thought I should blog it.
Spitfire Update
BBC News: An excavation at the site of a 1941 Spitfire crash in a bog in the Irish Republic uncovered huge, remarkably preserved chunks of plane and six Browning machine guns. After 70 years buried in peat could they be made to fire? They certainly could, writes Dan Snow.
Friday, November 11, 2011
David Cramer Makes an Offer You Can't Refuse
The Education of a Pulp Writer: Free Copies of Cash & Miles, Vol. II: Leave your e-mail address in the comments and I will send you a free Kindle version of ADVENTURES OF CASH LARAMIE AND GIDEON MILES, Vol. II. Or e-mail me at paladin-1@hotmail.com. Sorry, no other formats currently available. Offer good through this Sunday at midnight.
Veterans Day
Veterans Day - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia: Veterans Day, formerly Armistice Day, is an annual United States holiday honoring military veterans. It is a federal holiday that is observed on November 11. It is coincides with other holidays such as Armistice Day or Remembrance Day, which are celebrated in other parts of the world and also mark the anniversary of the signing of the Armistice that ended World War I. (Major hostilities of World War I were formally ended at the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month of 1918 with the German signing of the Armistice.)
Forgotten Books: My Favorite Fantasy Story -- Martin Greenberg, Editor
I'm really fond of anthologies like this. You pick a group of fantasy writers and you ask each one to pick a favorite story and write a short intro explaining the choice. You can hardly fail to come up with a first-class book. Two writers, Robert Silverberg and Gorge R. R. Martin, picked stories by Jack Vance, both from the same collection, The Dying Earth, which happens to be one of my favorite fantasy collections. And a favorite story that I still remember reading in F&SF long years ago is "That Hell-Bound Train," chosen by Rick Hautala. Terry Pratchett picked L. Sprague de Camp's "The Gnarly Man." Neil Gaiman chose one by R. A. Lafferty.
This book's over 11 years old now, and I suspect not many people remember it. It has over 400 pages of great stories, and if you don't have it on your shelves, you're missing a bet.
Thursday, November 10, 2011
First It Was the Thin Mints Melee . . .
CBS Charlotte: Upset about the lack of toilet paper that was available in his room, a man destroyed $2,090 worth of hotel property on Monday, according to a Charlotte-Mecklenburg police report. The identity of the man remains unknown.
The Affair -- Lee Child
The Affair is a flashback to the beginning of the career of Jack Reacher, who's appeared in 15 or so earlier novels by Lee Child. Unlike most of them, this one's told in first person, but then maybe all the flashback ones are. The difference this time is that it's told as if Reacher's telling it now and reflecting on the time that the story takes place, a pre-9/11 world where things were different.In a little Mississippi town, three women have been murdered, and Reacher's sent by the army to work undercover and see what he can find out. Why? Because there's an army base nearby and because a senator's son is also on the base. Reacher's cover is blown about five minutes after he gets to town, and he begins to investigate the murders, though that's not his job. He and the local sheriff, a very attractive woman, begin an affair. (There's a good bit of softporn sex in this book, more than in the earlier Reacher novels, as I recall.) Strange things are going on around the army base. Bad things happen. Before long, even the sheriff is a suspect.
Reacher, of course, sorts it all out in his usual fashion. Due process? Reacher laughs at due process. He takes care of things his own way.
The clock in Reacher's head, the one that's accurate to the minute, if not the second, is mentioned several times. There's a funny line where Reacher says he doesn't know anything about fruit trees. If so, it's the only thing he doesn't know about, as he spouts plenty of knowledge before the end of the novel.
The book's fast and entertaining, sure to make Reacher fans happy and to capture a few new ones.
The Landmark Books of Haruki Murakami
AbeBooks: The Landmark Books of Haruki Murakami: We simply haven’t showcased enough of Japan’s writing talent so let’s start with Haruki Murakami. He writes novels, he writes short stories, he writes non-fiction, he has a shelf filled with literary awards and he’s sold a lot of books.
Murakami is one of the most important figures in modern literature and is always prepared to challenge readers and critics with books that don’t conform to traditional narrative structures. Acclaimed as his fiction is, one of Murakami’s most engaging titles is about running – his 2008 book, What I Talk About When I Talk About Running, shows another side of his character.
Murakami is one of the most important figures in modern literature and is always prepared to challenge readers and critics with books that don’t conform to traditional narrative structures. Acclaimed as his fiction is, one of Murakami’s most engaging titles is about running – his 2008 book, What I Talk About When I Talk About Running, shows another side of his character.
Sylvester Stallone designs a pen
Nancy Olson, Ink: Montegrappa is introducing the Chaos pen collection, inspired and designed by Montegrappa brand ambassador, filmmaker, writer and actor Sylvester Stallone. A long-tme collector of Montegrappa pens, Stallone will also serve as the face of Montegrappa in the company's new advertising campaign. Apparently Mr. Stallone drew inspiration for the design of the pen from his film The Expendables. He worked with Montegrappa's artisans to produce it, intending to demonstrate the juxtaposition between Renaissance art and our current technological society.
Gators and Drugs -- A Continuing Series
KETV Omaha: Authorities said a 30-year-old man was arrested after they found an alligator, a snake, a slew of turtles and an elaborate marijuana-growing operation in his home.
Classic mugshot at the link.
Wednesday, November 09, 2011
What a Deal!
The Dead Man: KILL THEM ALL -- 99 Cents for a Very Limited Time!!: Harry Shannon's KILL THEM ALL, the sixth book in the DEAD MAN series, is bargain priced at 99 cents for a very limited time. And if you visit the product page for the book, you'll find a terrific Q&A interview with the author.
Cynthia Myers, R. I. P.
Playboy Playmate Cynthia Myers Dies: BEYOND THE VALLEY OF THE DOLLS Star: Model and actress Cynthia Myers, a 1968 Playboy Playmate, died Nov. 4. She was 61. Hugh Hefner announced her death on Twitter: “I’m saddened by the news of the passing of beloved Playmate Cynthia Myers, Miss December 1968.” No details about the cause of death have been released yet.
Hat tip to Fred Blosser.
This Is on the internet, So I Know It's True
FOCUS Information Agency: Athens. It is believed that the tomb of Alexander the Great and the Ark of the Covenant have been found on the Greek Island of Thasos, announced Russian Grekomania.ru, which is information partner of the Greek Minister of Culture and Tourism.
First It Was the Thin Mints Melee . . .
fresnobee.com: A Fresno Pacific University basketball player went on a naked rampage Monday night near campus after being told that he had been kicked off the team, Fresno police said Tuesday.
Leonard Tyrell Young, 21, ran naked through a convenience store parking lot, tried to steal a police car, beat a police officer and police dog and withstood three Taser strikes before finally being subdued, police said.
Leonard Tyrell Young, 21, ran naked through a convenience store parking lot, tried to steal a police car, beat a police officer and police dog and withstood three Taser strikes before finally being subdued, police said.
Bil Keane, R. I. P.
The Associated Press: 'Family Circus' creator Bil Keane dies at 89: Bil Keane's "Family Circus" comics entertained readers with a simple but sublime mix of humor and traditional family values for more than a half century. The appeal endured, the author thought, because the American public needed the consistency.
Keane, who started drawing the one-panel cartoon featuring Billy, Jeffy, Dolly, P.J. and their parents in February 1960, died Tuesday at age 89 at his longtime home in Paradise Valley, near Phoenix. His comic strip is featured in nearly 1,500 newspapers across the country.
Keane, who started drawing the one-panel cartoon featuring Billy, Jeffy, Dolly, P.J. and their parents in February 1960, died Tuesday at age 89 at his longtime home in Paradise Valley, near Phoenix. His comic strip is featured in nearly 1,500 newspapers across the country.
Margaret Field, R. I. P.
NYTimes.com: Margaret Field, an actress who appeared in countless television shows in the 1950s and ’60s and who was the mother of the Academy Award winner Sally Field, died on Sunday at her home in Malibu, Calif. She was 89.
Hat tip to Jeff Meyerson.
Croc Update (They're Everywhere Edition)
Crocodile shock | Orange UK: A man is facing a year in jail after police discovered a rare crocodile living in his bath.
The three-year-old Cuban crocodile - critically endangered in the wild - will one day reach nine foot long and said by experts to be the most intelligent and aggressive croc in the world.
Owner Fabio Lazelli was caught out when his neighbours dialed 999 after a bust up at their apartment block in Cremona, Italy.
The three-year-old Cuban crocodile - critically endangered in the wild - will one day reach nine foot long and said by experts to be the most intelligent and aggressive croc in the world.
Owner Fabio Lazelli was caught out when his neighbours dialed 999 after a bust up at their apartment block in Cremona, Italy.
Hat tip to Jeff Meyerson.
But He Didn't Make a Cage from Their Bones
BBC News: A suspected grave robber in the central Russian city of Nizhny Novgorod is said by police to have made 29 life-size dolls from mummified female corpses.
Hat tip to Karin Montin.
All the Earth Thrown to the Sky -- Joe R. Lansdale
All the Earth Thrown to the Sky is being sold as a YA novel, which is fine by me. Still, it's not that different from any other novel by Joe Lansdale except for less cussing and sex. In other words, it's funny, insightful, and all-around good reading.Jack Catcher's a kid during the Great Depression, and he lives in the Dust Bowl. His mother's died, and his father's committed suicide. You might think that Jack would be a little depressed, but he's a strong character, and when he gets a chance to strike out on an adventure with a couple of other kids -- Jane and her little brother, Tony -- he's all for it.
So this is a road novel, with the youthful trio encountering all manner of people and adventures, from the common folk to notorious gangsters to evil lawmen.
I particularly enjoyed the Burroughs references and the humor, but there's plenty more here to like. You can't go wrong with Lansdale. Check it out.
Find the Hidden Picture
Chicago Sun-Times: A smirking horned devil exists in the frescoed clouds of a Giotto work in the famed Assisi basilica, an Italian art historian said Tuesday — a tantalizing detail that apparently went unnoticed by scholars for centuries.
Reed Farrel Coleman Interview
Reed Farrel Coleman is the blog's guest today, and he agreed to be interrogated. Here's what he had to say when I stuck the bamboo splinters under his fingernails.
Q: I think I first met you at the Bouchercon in Toronto in 2004, and everybody was wearing “Save Moe” buttons. Obviously Moe was saved, and here he is again in The Hurt Machine. Tell us a little about his publishing travels.
A: After I lost my Plume/Viking contract on an Edgar nominated, Shamus, Barry, and Anthony winning novel—The James Deans—Bleak House Books was very happy to pick up the series. I published two Moe books with them—Soul Patch and Empty Ever After. Soul Patch was nominated for the Edgar and won the Shamus. EEA won the Shamus. When Ben LeRoy moved over to Tyrus Books, Moe went along with him. First for Innocent Monster and now for Hurt Machine. There are two more books planned: a prequel titled Onion Street and a final coda for the series.
Q: Moe might have been saved, but you’ve really put him through the wringer. What about the future? Anything you can tell us about what it holds for Moe?
A: Well, yes and no. Hurt Machine is a bittersweet novel because Moe is on the verge of his daughter’s wedding when he finds out some very grave news about his health. At this best and worst moment in his life, his ex-wife and former PI partner, Carmella, appears to ask him a desperate favor. He takes on the task as a hedge against his own fears.
Q: The series has won some nice awards. Do awards have any effect on sales in your experience?
A: Awards are great, but if you get a sales bump, it’s from the nominations. As Harlan Coben once said to me, “People forget who wins. They remember who gets nominated and think you won anyway.” Awards do earn you some respect among your peers, but I’ve never known how to quantify what they do for my sales. I’m just happy to have them. At Lee Child’s party in Madison, Lee came by my table and jokingly admonished me for winning so many awards at one time. He asked if I might give him an award or two. I said I’d trade them for his pin#. He half-smiled and walked away.
Q: You’re also a poet. Do you think writing poetry has had an effect on your prose style?
A: Absolutely. There is a certain rhythm to my prose. I don’t count iambs or anything, but it’s definitely a component of my work. It has also effected my process in that I edit and edit and edit constantly and how the words look on the page are very important. I also read my work aloud. This is so important, I cannot emphasize it enough. It helps eliminate clunky language and helps with the flow of the work. Poetry also taught me how to get to the reader’s heart economically.
Q: Tell us about Tower, your collaboration with Ken Bruen. What was it like to write a novel with another poet who’s also a distinctive stylist?
A: I often joke that both Ken and I benefited from having three thousand miles of ocean between us and that neither one of us owning a handgun. Seriously, though, it was the hardest work I ever did and also the most Zen-like. Ken left my half of the book to me to figure out. He gave me almost no instruction on how to do my part. It was like being the other hand in the one hand clapping allegory. It made me really get inside the characters and it forced me to excel. I guess we did okay as we sold the movie rights and word is they want to make this happen. We’ll see.
Q: Back to plugging the current stuff. Not only is there a new Moe Prager book coming out this month but Gun Church, a standalone novel, as well. Great planning? Accident of fate?
A: I wouldn’t have planned it this way, but it has given me some cross-promotional opportunities and allows me to get back to my real work after a month or two of heavily pushing the new books. David Lehman, my poetry instructor at Brooklyn College, used to advise us to use our mistakes. Here, I’m using fate and serendipity. The books are an interesting contrast in styles, sub-genres, formats, etc. It makes promoting them more fun than usual.
Q: Gun Church is coming out exclusively from Audible.com rather than in print. What do you see as the advantages of this format?
A: After a set time period, I can seek a traditional and e-rights deal, but I love this format. The book is done by two narrators/voice actors. This reflects the fact that Gun Church features a book within a book conceit: one first person in American English, the other in third person Irish dialect. Audible believed in this book so much, the two actor thing was their idea, not mine. It’s sort of the difference between a movie and a book, but where my manuscript is the actual script. Very cool.
Q: I thought Gun Church was a terrific story. It has action, humor, great characters, and something to say about writing and the creative process. But you imply in your intro that it was a tough sell. Any idea why?
A: Well, it might be a tad controversial, which is good after a book is out, but makes it tougher to sell initially. Also, it was a matter of finding the right editor or the right editor finding it. Steve Feldberg at Audible worked very very hard with me to get the book into shape. The novel has so many characters, so many moving parts, that I lost control of the process at times. Steve saw the book in the manuscript my agent sent him and he stubbornly worked with me till we got it right. I think that’s part of the problem these days. I think many novels out in the world have great potential, but editors are so overworked, they don’t have the time to devote to manuscripts to make them publishable. I got lucky.
Q: Any other writers you’d recommend, aside from the usual suspects? Maybe a forgotten book or forgotten writer?
A: I am a huge fan and friend of Peter Spiegelman. I think he’s about as good and talented an writer as there is working today. He just doesn’t get the attention he should. When I look at my own work, I hold it up against Peter’s to see if I’ve done well. He’s my measuring stick. Red Cat is one of the 10 best detective novel’s I’ve ever read and should have been nominated for every award in mystery fiction. It will be a classic someday. His new novel Thick As Thieves is an amazing caper novel and a truly seamless piece of work. New writers would do well to read Peter’s work and to measure by his standard.
Q: Thanks for taking the time for this interview, Reed, and congratulations on two terrific new books in two different formats. I hope they sell a ton. And now one final question: Are you really related to Henny Youngman?
A: Thanks, I hope they sell a ton too. I am indeed related to the late Henny Youngman. He was married to my father’s Aunt Sadie, so he was my great uncle. And now you know when he used to say, “Take my wife, please,” he was saying it about my great aunt.
Thanks again, Reed, for being such a good sport!
Tuesday, November 08, 2011
Heavy D, R. I. P.
Heavy D dead at 44: Rap legend collapsed Tuesday inside his Beverly Hills home - NY Daily News: ROTUND RAP legend Heavy D died Tuesday after collapsing in his California home. He was 44.
Hat tip to Jeff Meyerson.
Gator Update (They're Everywhere Edition)
Alligator captured at Michigan church - News: Police have caught a six-foot-long alligator that was spotted roaming the property of a southern Michigan church.
Nice photo at the link.
I Suppose They Were Small Bags
Wilmington, NC news and weather -: A man stopped by cops for after he had a problem with his car in Cleveland County was found with 11 bags of marijuana "in his buttocks," a Shelby Police report said.
Hat tip to Jeff Meyerson.
Croc Update (Granddaddy of Them All Edition)
Discovery News: An enormous prehistoric crocodile-like creature called "Shieldcroc," so named because of a shield-like bony plate on its head, could be the last common ancestor of animals related to crocodiles and alligators.
Diving into the Wreck -- Kristine Kathryn Rusch
Kristine Kathryn Rusch is a writer I admire tremendously. She's prolific in four of five genres and has won awards in all of them. For years she edited The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction and became the only person to win a Hugo for both editing and writing. Besides all that, she's been part of a small press, and she has a blog that's much more professional and ambitious than this one.Diving into the Wreck is the first book in a new series about, well, wreck divers. Boss (that's her on the cover, I assume) is the professional wreck diver, which means that she gathers crews to salvage wrecked and long-abandoned spaceships. When she discovers a wreck far from where it should be, from a time when faster-than-light travel was impossible, she knows she has an unusual find. Little does she know. The crew she puts together finds out that the ship possesses stealth technology far beyond anything known to current science. It's the kind of tech that could shake up the whole galaxy.
Bad things happen. Boss loses crew members and leaves the wreck. She becomes a shuttle for tourists who want to dive safe, well-known wrecks and tries to forget the dangerous ship. Fat chance. A stranger comes to hire her to go back. Her estranged father is involved, and so is a lot of Boss' past that she'd rather forget.
Wreck diving is a cool concept, and Rush has a fine storyteller. If you like SF adventure, this is one you need to check out for sure.
What Would This Blog Smell Like?
That's a rhetorical question, folks. Please don't attempt to answer it.
Hal Kanter, R. I. P.
latimes.com: Hal Kanter, an Emmy Award-winning comedy writer, and a director and producer whose career included writing for Bob Hope and Bing Crosby, directing Elvis Presley and creating a landmark 1960s TV series starring Diahann Carroll, has died. He was 92.
Joe Frazier, R. I. P.
People.com: Joe Frazier, the former world heavyweight boxing champion, died after a battle with liver cancer. He was 67.
Frazier, whose death was confirmed Monday by his family, had been in a Philadelphia-area hospice.
Known for his famous "Thrilla in Manila" fight in 1975 against Muhammad Ali, whom he fought three times, "Smokin' Joe" Frazier is an inductee of both the International Boxing Hall of Fame and the World Boxing Hall of Fame.
In all, Frazier – at 5'11" and 205 lbs., considered small for a heavywieght – won 32 fights: 27 by knockouts, losing four times (twice to Ali and also to George Foreman). Another fight ended in a draw.
Frazier, whose death was confirmed Monday by his family, had been in a Philadelphia-area hospice.
Known for his famous "Thrilla in Manila" fight in 1975 against Muhammad Ali, whom he fought three times, "Smokin' Joe" Frazier is an inductee of both the International Boxing Hall of Fame and the World Boxing Hall of Fame.
In all, Frazier – at 5'11" and 205 lbs., considered small for a heavywieght – won 32 fights: 27 by knockouts, losing four times (twice to Ali and also to George Foreman). Another fight ended in a draw.
Overlooked Films -- Mr. Brooks
Here's another one of those movies that nobody seemed to like except me, but I liked it a lot. Kevin Costner is Mr. Brooks, his town's Citizen of the Year. Little does everyone know that while his presents an outward facade of good will and friendliness, he harbors a dark side, a really dark side, represented my William Hurt as Marshall. Soon enough, the killings begin, and if you don't think Demi Moore can act, take a look at her performance as a cop in this one. Excellent work, but then Kostner and Hurt are just as good, and so is Dane Cook as a guy who would like to be Mr. Brooks. Not the good one. The other one.
Some great dialogue, some amusing moments, and an entertaining picture as a whole. It was clearly set up to be the first of a series, but like some other movies I've enjoyed, it didn't make enough money to interest anyone in a follow-up. Too bad, from my point of view.
Monday, November 07, 2011
And Keep Off Her Lawn!
The Smoking Gun: -Convinced that her 88-year-old husband was having an affair with her hairdresser, a Missouri woman, 87, shot her spouse in the arm with his own gun, police report.
Sid Melton, R. I. P.
NYTimes.com: Sid Melton, a jug-eared character actor best known for his regular roles in the television shows “Make Room for Daddy” and “Green Acres,” and for his unflagging reliability as the comic relief in many science fiction and noir films of the 1950s, died on Wednesday in Burbank, Calif. He was 94.
Hat tip to Jeff Meyerson.
The Night Circus -- Erin Morgenstern
Now and then a book that might be published as a big fat fantasy without anybody quibbling about it manages to avoid that label and get published as a mainstream novel to great acclaim. That's what happened with Erin Morgenstern's The Night Circus, which is about two old magicians who decide to bet on which of their pupils can get the better of the other. Will it be the one who has inherited magical powers or the one who's been carefully taught?Make no mistake here. The magic is real, though the magicians have to pretend it's just legerdemain in order not to frighten the public. With real magic, anything is possible, so we get a story of escalating marvels. And since the pupils are male and female, we get a love story, too.
The Night Circus is full of characters and incident, but Morgenstern's style is clear, and the story flows in short chapters. My friend George Kelley found this book tough going, but I found it fairly entertaining. Even at that, I'm not sure why it's getting such a big push when I find other fantasy novels (like just about any fantasy by Jack Vance) that are more compelling are shoved off into the genre ghetto. I guess that's just the way of the world.
Reese Palmer, R. I. P.
The Washington Post: Reese Palmer, the leader of the Washington-based doo-wop group the Marquees, which in the late 1950s featured singer Marvin Gaye and accompanied Chuck Berry, Bo Diddley and Billy Stewart on records, died Oct. 27 at Southern Maryland Hospital Center in Clinton. He lived in Temple Hills.
The War on the Apostrophe
Fun Facts (and Fiction) about Pikes Peak: In the early days, it was called (and spelled) “Pike’s Peak.” However, in 1891, the U.S. Board on Geographic Names recommended against the use of apostrophes in geographic names, and the possessive apostrophe was removed from all official references. If that wasn't enough, the Colorado state legislature passed a law in 1978 requiring the use of “Pikes Peak.”
Sunday, November 06, 2011
And Stay off Her Lawn!
Houston Chronicle: A 70-year-old Southern California woman and her son are among four people indicted in a narcotics scheme that authorities say involved buying pharmacies so they could purchase and send a powerful cough syrup from California to Texas, where it was sold for the street concoction "purple drank" or "the�lean."
AbeBooks' Top 10 Most Expensive Sales in October 2011
AbeBooks' Top 10 Most Expensive Sales in October 2011: Those naysayers who say the physical book is dead should take a look at October’s top 10 most expensive sales on AbeBooks. The combined value of the top 10 sales exceeds $98,000 and an $11,000 signed first edition of A Farewell to Arms by Ernest Hemingway didn’t even crack the top three.
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