Saturday, December 08, 2012
Happy Hanukkah!
Reinhold Weege, R. I. P.
latimes.com: Reinhold Weege, who created the popular Emmy-winning sitcom "Night Court" about an often-anarchic, after-hours New York courtroom and its cast of memorably loony characters, has died. He was 62.
This Could Be the Beginning of a Whole Series of SyFy Movies
FWC announces '2013 Python Challenge' in hunting the invasive snakes: Beginning on January 12, Florida's python permit holders and the general public are invited to compete to see who can harvest the longest and the most Burmese pythons.
Friday, December 07, 2012
Even Weirder than Texas?
Florida weird news: 2012 year in review: The year's 20 weirdest stories from Florida, America's weirdest state
First It Was the Thin Mints Melee . . .
. . . and not the spoon attack!
Spoon attack stirs up trouble in Vero Beach
Hat tip to Jeff Meyerson.
Spoon attack stirs up trouble in Vero Beach
Hat tip to Jeff Meyerson.
Book a Seat Now!
The Washington Post: It had to happen: A start-up company is offering rides to the moon. Book your seat now — though it’s going to set you back $750 million (it’s unclear if that includes baggage fees).
I'll Just Have One of Those Little Sausages on a Toothpick
The Rare Pleasure of Cod Semen in San Francisco: Chef Corey Lee decided to serve a liquified version of cod sperm in shot glasses as a passed appetizer.
Forgotten Books: A Memory of Murder -- Ray Bradbury
This is Ray Bradbury week on Forgotten Books. I did a post on a Bradbury book about one year ago, so I'm reprinting that post with a couple of small changes.A Memory of Murder has been out of print since 1984, so I figure it's at least as forgotten as any Bradbury book. If there's a more recent edition, let us know in the comments.
This is a collection of Bradbury's very early crime stories, some of his first fiction sales. It comes complete with a short but revealing introduction that explains why the book is dedicated to Leigh Brackett.
One of the stories in the book, "Small Assassin," is likely to be familiar to a lot of readers, but that's the only one. The others, from places like Dime Mystery Magazine and Detective Tales, probably aren't. These aren't great stories, but they're interesting if you care about the development of a young writer who really hit his stride a few years after their publication. Not essential, but certainly worth a little of your time.
Thursday, December 06, 2012
Yet Another List I'm Not On
Books of the year: Page turners | The Economist: Books of the year
Page turners
The best books of 2012 were about Richard Burton, Titian, Rin Tin Tin, the revolution in Iran, the great famine in China, secret houses in London, good oil companies, bad pharma and management in ten words
Hat tip to George Kelley.
Hat tip to George Kelley.
Buy My Books!
Gabby Darbins and the Slide-Rock Bolter (Rancho Diablo): Colby Jackson, Mel Odom, Bill Crider, James Reasoner: Amazon.com: Kindle Store: Gabby Darbins heads for Pike's Peak country to find gold. He finds more than he bargained for, including gunfights, conniving women, and the terrifying slide-rock bolter!
It's Not Too Late . . .
The 50 Most Popular Women On The Web (According To Google) 2012
The 50 Most Popular Women On The Web (According To Google) 2012 �
Yes, it's a slideshow and borderline NSFW, and I'm linking to it only because a certain PH is at #11, up 8 places from last year. Can the persecution be ending?
Yes, it's a slideshow and borderline NSFW, and I'm linking to it only because a certain PH is at #11, up 8 places from last year. Can the persecution be ending?
AbeBooks’ Most Expensive Sales in November 2012
AbeBooks’ Most Expensive Sales in November 2012: Our most expensive sales during November 2012 featured a book of paintings by Belgian artist and botanist Pierre-Joseph Redouté, who was so famous for his watercolors of roses, lilies and other flowers that he was dubbed the “The Raphael of Flowers." A copy of his most famous publication Les Roses sold for $28,000.
And Keep Off His Lawn!
News - Home: LEAGUE CITY, Texas -
A homeowner put his karate skills to use on an armed man who may have been on bath salts when he tried to break into a home, investigators said.
Hat tip to Jeff Meyerson.
Hat tip to Jeff Meyerson.
Wednesday, December 05, 2012
I Wasn't the Guy
“It’s a story that’s been around some, but, yeah, we were playing the armory in Alvin, one of these hamlets we used to play, doing one of our first shows as a band (in 1970),” Hill says. “We went into the place, the curtain opened, and one guy was standing out there. He didn’t even have a date. He thought he was in the wrong place. We bought him a Coke and played a whole set for one guy.”
Fifteen years later, during a sold-out show at the Summit Arena in Houston, the guy sent a note backstage to ZZ Top.
“We saw him again and invited him backstage and met him,” Hill recalls. “That really happened. We played the places with the chicken wire up in front of the stage. That’s the way it was.”
Hat tip to Fred Zackel.
Dave Brubeck, R. I. P.
Dave Brubeck, worldwide ambassador of jazz, dies at 91 - The Washington Post: Dave Brubeck, a jazz pianist who had unparalleled commercial success, expanding musical boundaries with his daring compositions and carrying jazz throughout the world on tours sponsored by the State Department, died Dec. 5 at a hospital in Norwalk, Conn. He died one day before his 92nd birthday.
Song of the Day
Sure, you're already tired of hearing Christmas songs, but I'm going to be running some you haven't heard in a while. If ever.
Lloyd Price - Merry Christmas Momma - YouTube:
Lloyd Price - Merry Christmas Momma - YouTube:
The Siren Depths -- Martha Wells
I've read and enjoyed the first two books in Martha Well's series of planetary romances about the Three Worlds. (You can check out my comments on The Cloud Roads and The Serpent Sea here and here.) The tell the story of Moon, a member of a shape-shifting race known as the Raksura, though he's not fully aware of this at first. In fact, his origins remain obscure in both the first and second books. We learn that he's a feral soliatary, a wanderer who lives at times with the groundlings, who always expel him when they learn what he truly is.In The Siren Depths we finally learn the truth of Moon's origins when another court (Opal Night) of the Raksura claims him from the court that has adopted him. No longer a solitary whom no one wanted, Moon becomes wanted by two groups, though he's unsure about both of them. He finds out how he came to be a solitary, and he learns some other things about his beginnings. But there's more to the story. Moon isn't sure he's getting the whole truth from the court of Opal Night, and he's right. There are deeper and darker truths lurking in the siren depths, truths about not only Moon but about the Fell, the race that preys on the Raksura. And about something more.
Wells does outstanding world building, and the Three Worlds setting is as vivid and as real as the house next door in spite of its strangeness. The characters are real, too, and a pleasure to read about. There's adventure here, with battles in the air and in the depths, and there's a thoughtful approach to the problems that the characters encounter. This may or may not be the final book in the series, but if it is, it's a fine way to conclude the story of Moon and the Raksura. I recommend that you start at the beginning of the saga, if you haven't already, and read all three books for a gratifying escape to a world of wonders.
Once Again Texas Leads the Way
Mail Online: Scorned ex-girlfriend 'ran over his MOTHER with her car' before texting former lover 'How's life LOL'
Hat tip to Jeff Meyerson.
Hat tip to Jeff Meyerson.
Tuesday, December 04, 2012
Overlooked Movies: Soldier in the Rain
While on my military comedy theme, here's one that I really liked, though it probably wasn't as good as I thought. It's also as much a drama as a comedy, with a sentimental ending.The casting of the top-billed McQueen and Gleason is interesting, since McQueen plays the exuberant balls-to-the wall guy and Gleason underplays his own role. McQueen is the not-too-bright hick, a schemer who hates the army and can't wait to get out. Gleason's the staid career guy. The movie's really a buddy film about their relationship as much as it's about anything. The wild plotting of a military comedy like Wake Me When It's Over is absent. There's not much of a plot at all.
And speaking of casting, Tuesday Weld is really good in this, as she was in a lot of things. Her relationship with Gleason is very well done.
I don't know how well the ending would work now, but I thought it was pretty cool 50-something years ago. I bought the book shortly after seeing the movie and immediately became a William Goldman fan. I checked Netflix, and the movie's not available through that service. Too bad, as it's another one I'd really like to see again.
Monday, December 03, 2012
Borrow My Books!
If you have a Kindle and are a member of Amazon Prime, you can borrow my books for free. You don't have to read them. Just borrow them. Amazon wants to make me rich by paying me for this!
Ethan Iverson's Lengthy Essay on Charles Willeford
It's well worth your time. Plus there are interviews with Don Herron and Ray Banks.
Nothing is Inchoate, or, "When Did You Get Interested in Abused Children, Helen?" - Do The Math
Nothing is Inchoate, or, "When Did You Get Interested in Abused Children, Helen?" - Do The Math
Uh-Oh
The Guardian: Former OED editor covertly deleted thousands of words, book claims
Efforts to rewrite the dictionary in the 70s and 80s to omit entries with foreign origins described as 'really shocking' by author
Sunday, December 02, 2012
PimPage: An Occasional Feature in Which I Call Attention to Books of Interest
The Knockout (Fight Card): Jack Tunney, Paul Bishop, Mel Odom, Robert J. Randisi: Amazon.com: Kindle Store: Brooklyn, 1954
Frankie ‘The Piston’ Corleone was an up-and-coming light heavyweight fighter until a broken hand took him out of contention. Now, Frankie works as a private eye, occasionally taking sparring work to stay in shape make ends meet. Cappy O’Brien has trained a lot of fighters, including Frankie. But Cappy has never had a real contender until now ... Candy Marquez is the real deal, and after being battered by Marquez during several rounds of sparring, Frankie has to agree. But the fight game is as crooked as a dog’s hind leg, and other trainers and the mob all want a piece of Cappy’s best prospect.
When Cappy winds up dead, it’s time for Frankie to take off the gloves and take The Piston’s punching power to the street to knockout a killer ...
Nero Award
The Nero Award is presented each year to an author for the best American Mystery written in the tradition of Rex Stout's Nero Wolfe stories. It is presented at the Black Orchid Banquet, traditionally held on the first Saturday in December in New York City. The "Nero" is considered one of the premier awards granted to authors of crime fiction.
This year, the winner is Dana Stabenow for Though Not Dead (Minotaur Books, an imprint of St. Martin's Publishing Group). Her award was presented by Jane K. Cleland, chair of the Wolfe Pack's literary awards.
The Black Orchid Novella Award is presented jointly by The Wolfe Pack andAlfred Hitchcock Mystery Magazine to celebrate the Novella format popularized by Rex Stout. This year's winner is Robert Lopresti for "The Red Envelope."
About the Wolfe Pack
The Wolfe Pack, founded in 1977, is a forum to discuss, explore, and enjoy the 72 Nero Wolfe books and novellas written by Rex Stout. The organization promotes fellowship and extends friendship to those who enjoy these great literary works of mystery through a series of events, book discussions, and a journal devoted to the study of the genius detective, Nero Wolfe, and his intrepid assistant, Archie Goodwin. The organization has more than 500 members worldwide.
Free Today for Kindle
To the Devil, My Regards: Anthony Neil Smith, Victor Gischler: Amazon.com: Kindle Store: Z.Z. DelPresto is a ne'er-do-well private eye who stumbles into trouble along the beaches of Alabama and Florida. But this time he may have waded out too far. The evidence appears to show him killing the seventeen-year-old girl he'd fallen for. But Z.Z. knows good and well he didn't do it, and now he's in the fight of his life to prove it. Throw in the girl's rich and ruthless parents, some cops who have been trying to put DelPresto away for years, a topless tourist and a stuttering psychic who knows all of tomorrow's sports scores today, and you have a story you just can't put down. Combine Gischler's colorful eccentricity with Smith's grinding noir, and you end up with this unique novella: To the Devil, My Regards. Originally published in 2001, Gischler and Smith now bring this crazy tale to Kindle, with a new cover by "Pokerben" Springer.
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