The New York Times Chuck Berry, who with his indelible guitar licks, brash self-confidence and memorable songs about cars, girls and wild dance parties did as much as anyone to define rock ’n’ roll’s potential and attitude in its early years, died on Saturday. He was 90.
Saturday, March 18, 2017
The Curse of the Bahia Emerald
The Curse of the Bahia Emerald, a Giant Green Rock That Wreaks Havoc and Ruins Lives: RIGHT NOW, IN A VAULT controlled by the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department, there sits a 752-pound emerald with no rightful owner. This gem is the size of a mini�fridge. It weighs as much as two sumo wrestlers. Estimates of its worth range from a hundred bucks to $925 million.
Friday, March 17, 2017
Derek Walcott, R. I. P.
The New York Times: Derek Walcott, whose intricately metaphorical poetry captured the physical beauty of the Caribbean, the harsh legacy of colonialism and the complexities of living and writing in two cultural worlds, bringing him a Nobel Prize in Literature, died early Friday morning at his home near Gros Islet in St. Lucia. He was 87.
Hat tip to Jeff Meyerson.
Hat tip to Jeff Meyerson.
Bob Bruce, R. I. P.
Houston Chronicle: Bob Bruce, the man who was the starting pitcher in the last game at Houston's Colt Stadium and the first official official game at the Astrodome, died Wednesday at the age of 83.
Happy St. Patrick's Day!
FFB: Once Around the Bloch -- Robert Bloch
I had a feeling this "unauthorized autobiography" by Robert Bloch would be entertaining, and it certainly was. Bloch doesn't go in for depth, but he covers the breadth of his life in some detail. I learned quite a few things I didn't know. Having started reading Bloch's stories in the '50s in the SF digest, I'd always thought of him as a full-time writer. He wasn't. He worked for years in different jobs, primarily advertising and politics, until Hollywood work came along. I'd never realized how much TV and movie work he'd done. Quite possibly the success of Psycho had a lot to do with that. Bloch wrote for the shows you'd expect and for some so obscure that I have no memory of their existence. His stories of the fates of many movie and TV projects are among the most interesting in the book to me.
Bloch's Hollywood success led to some amazing friendships, including those with Boris Karloff, Buster Keaton, and Joan Crawford. His writing about the latter has changed my opinion of her.
The tone is breezy and light (Bloch can't resist puns), and although the book is long, it doesn't seem to be. Because I was fond of Bloch's work in the '50s, I wanted to know more about him, and I'm glad he left us this record of his life and work.
Thursday, March 16, 2017
Croc Update (Fishing in the Gulf Edition)
Search is on for 10-foot crocodile who ate a man while fishing in Mexico
Not that there's anything wrong with having a bite to eat while fishing.
Hat tip to Don Herron.
Not that there's anything wrong with having a bite to eat while fishing.
Hat tip to Don Herron.
Once Again Texas Leads the Way
He Got a Bad Grade. So, He Got the Constitution Amended. Now He's Getting the Credit He Deserves.
A great Texas (and Austin) story.
A great Texas (and Austin) story.
Most Searched For Out-of-Print Books of 2016
Most Searched For Out-of-Print Books of 2016: HBO's revival of Michael Crichton's science fiction thriller Westworld was one of the best things on TV in 2016. The series, about a Western-themed amusement park populated by robots, also turned a humble paperback, published in 1974, into the most searched for out-of-print book of the year.
Wednesday, March 15, 2017
Jack Harris, R. I. P.
Portland Press Herald: LOS ANGELES — Jack Harris, who cemented his place in Hollywood history by producing the 1958 horror film “The Blob,” has died.
One Writer Used Statistics to Reveal the Secrets of What Makes Great Writing
One Writer Used Statistics to Reveal the Secrets of What Makes Great Writing: In his new book, data journalist Ben Blatt takes a by-the-numbers look at literary classics and finds some fascinating patterns
“The Story Is Always King” (by Robert Shepherd)
“The Story Is Always King” (by Robert Shepherd) | SOMETHING IS GOING TO HAPPEN: Robert Shepherd has managed to carve out time to write fiction while working with organizations devoted to adoption advocacy and raising his own family of nine (including four adopted children). He describes himself as a voracious reader of all genres of fiction, especially mysteries, and his love of good storytelling is the theme of this post. Robert’s first published work of fiction, “Just Below the Surface,” appears in our current issue (March/April 2017). Readers who like a good yarn won’t want to miss it. —Janet Hutchings
Bonus FFB on Wednesday: Thieves' Dozen -- Donald E. Westlake
This collection contains eleven short stories, most of which appeared first in Playboy,so I guess eleven makes up a thieves' dozen. Ten of the stories are about John Dortmunder, with whom I assume you're all familiar. The eleventh, "Fugue for Felons," is about John Rumsey, who's a lot like Dortmunder. The reason for the Rumsey name is explained in an amusing introduction by Westlake. This is the story's first appearance. There's also a general intro to the volume. In most of the stories Dortmunder's on his own, though characters from the novels do show up in a couple.As you'd expect, the stories are very funny, well-written, and cleverly plotted. Dortmunder has a lot of bad luck, but in the end things turn out just fine for him. Mostly. Maybe not in "Give Till It Hurts," about a poker game that Dortmunder falls into. "Too Many Crooks" is almost a slapstick affair about what happens when too many crooks decide to rob a bank just after it's already been robbed. I think this one might've won an Edgar, but don't hold me to that. You can't really go wrong with any of these, except maybe "The Dortmunder Workout," which isn't a story so much as a brief joke. Westlake was a master of just about any form he tried. Short stories are no exception.
ToC:
Introduction
Ask a Silly Question
Horse Laugh
Too Many Crooks
A Midsummer Daydream
The Dortmunder Workout
Party Animal
Give Till It Hurts
Jumble Sale
Now What?
Art and Craft
Fugue for Felons
Tuesday, March 14, 2017
The Violated -- Bill Pronzini
The small(ish) town of Santa Rosa has been shocked by a series of violent rapes. Then the man suspected of being the rapist is killed and the body is found in a local park. While the police haven't solved the rapes, at least one local cop is sure the dead man is the one the want for the crimes. Now that has to be proved of disproved, and the murder has to be solved. It's not really the crimes themselves, however, that drive The Violated. It's what one character refers to as "the dark consequences of the crimes . . . the pain and sorrow, the bitter regret, the physical and mental damage that so many had suffered . . . ."
Pronzini shows these dark consequences through the use of multiple first-person accounts. No one really escapes, not the mayor, not the newspaper editor, not the cops, not husbands and relatives, certainly not the victims themselves. Pronzini weaves all their stories together expertly, giving all of them distinct voices and at the same time presenting a well-constructed procedural crime story. I'm a fan of Pronzini's Nameless Detective series, but his talent goes well beyond that fine group of novels, as evidenced by The Violated, another topnotch standalone from an MWA Grandmaster
The Trashy Beginnings of “Don’t Mess With Texas”
The Trashy Beginnings of “Don’t Mess With Texas”
Tim McClure, who created the phrase, was a student in Corsicana High School when I taught there. If he'd been in my English class, I'd take credit for this, but he wasn't.
Tim McClure, who created the phrase, was a student in Corsicana High School when I taught there. If he'd been in my English class, I'd take credit for this, but he wasn't.
Livermore Light Update
This Light Bulb Has Been Burning Since 1901: They call it the Centennial Light, and it hangs in the Livermore-Pleasanton Fire Department's Station #6 where it has been shedding around 4 watts of light for well over a hundred years.
With Sherlock Holmes, is Pastiche Just a Fancy Word for Fanfiction?
With Sherlock Holmes, is Pastiche Just a Fancy Word for Fanfiction?: LYNDSAY FAYE ON HOW TO SUCCESSFULLY IMITATE ARTHUR CONAN DOYLE
I Thought I Saw the Fluorescent Frogs Open for the Animals
But I guess I didn't: First fluorescent frog found
Overlooked Movies -- Murder, My Sweet
Once again I'm talking about a movie that's not really overlooked or forgotten, but who cares? Not me. It's one I hadn't seen in a good many years, and when it turned up on TCM, I couldn't resist taking another look.You've probably heard the story about how Dick Powell, song and dance man, changed his career by taking the role of Philip Marlowe in Murder, My Sweet (based on Raymond Chandler's Farewell, My Lovely), and a lot of people think he's the best incarnation of Marlowe on the screen. I like Bogart in The Big Sleep, but even I have to admit that Powell is very good and probably closer to the Marlowe of the novel than Bogart is. I liked Powell even better this time than I did when I first saw the movie. The script handles the novel's first-person narration by having him relate his story to the cops. Works for me.
You know the plot. Moose Malloy (Mike Mazurki) wants Marlowe to find a woman named Velma for him. Meanwhile there's hanky panky with a jade necklace supposedly stolen from a woman named Helen Grayle. There's a ransom to be paid, but that doesn't turn out well at all. And after that the plot gets really complicated. I probably couldn't summarize it even if I tried, so I'm not going to try. Let's just say that it involves a little romance, plenty of blows to the head for Marlowe, deceit, danger, that necklace, and snappy patter. It's all a lot of fun, and Murder, My Sweet is right up there with the best of Chandler on film. The Robert Mitchum remake under Chandler's original title isn't nearly as good, even though Mitchum might have been an even better Marlowe when he was younger.
Murder, My Sweet is a movie you don't want to overlook. Trust me.
Monday, March 13, 2017
I Want to Believe!
Alien shot at McGuire Air Force Base seen by Sgt Jeff Morse - case remains unexplained
Annoying auto-start video.
Annoying auto-start video.
Sunday, March 12, 2017
Bargain of the Day
99 cents for Kindle, under ten bucks for the actual book: The Complete Fiction of H. P. Lovecraft: H. P. Lovecraft: 9780785834205: Amazon.com: Books The Complete Fiction of H.P. Lovecraft collects the author's novel, four novellas, and fifty-three short stories. Written between the years 1917 and 1935, this collection features Lovecraft's trademark fantastical creatures and supernatural thrills, as well as many horrific and cautionary science-fiction themes, that have influenced some of today's writers and filmmakers, including Stephen King, Alan Moore, F. Paul Wilson, Guillermo del Toro, and Neil Gaiman. Included in this volume areThe Case of Charles Dexter Ward, "The Call of Cthulhu," "The Dream-Quest of Unknown Kadath," "At the Mountains of Madness," "The Shadow Over Innsmouth," "The Color Out of Space," "The Dunwich Horror," and many more hair-raising tales.
Joni Sledge, R. I. P.
NY Daily News: Joni Sledge, who recorded the infectious dance anthem “We Are Family” with her three sisters, was found dead in her Phoenix home, the band’s rep said Saturday.
Hat tip to Jeff Meyerson.
Hat tip to Jeff Meyerson.
Video of the Day (Or Possibly the Year)
Chicken Attack!: Five years ago, we introduced you to Japanese yodeler Takeo Ischi. The 70-year-old "chicken yodeler" has quite a following -in Germany. Now he's the star of a music video about a ninja chicken. Really. This video contains a little NSFW language.
Forgotten Hits: March 12th
Forgotten Hits: March 12th: It only took The Beatles four weeks to reach the top of the chart with their latest, "Penny Lane". (During that time it climbed from #62 to #28 to #6 to #1).� "Ruby Tuesday" by The Rolling Stones holds at #2 for the third week in a row (after a week of its own in the #1 position) and The Turtles make BIG inroads on their way to the top of the chart with their latest, "Happy Together", leaping from #11 to #3 this week.
I'm Sure You'll All Agree
Top Ten Dinosaur Movies of All Time - 100 Years of Dinosaurs in Film
This is a video list.
Hat tip to Toby O'Brien.
This is a video list.
Hat tip to Toby O'Brien.
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