Tuesday, May 15, 2012
Once Again, Texas Leads the Way
TPMMuckraker: There’s a new entrant in the burgeoning concealed-weapon fashion industry. American Tactical Apparel, out of Houston, Texas, makes clothing for “professional door kickers, special responders, and everyday superheroes.”
Guile and Mischief: Tricksters in Literature
AbeBooks: Tricksters - so often featured in a wide variety of literature - are intriguing because they can be good or evil, or both. In many tales, the trickster is cast as the hero who uses their wits and guile to out fox the stronger and faster foe. A classic example would be Odysseus, the ancient Greek who used cunning and trickery to fool his enemies and conquer Troy with his wooden horse. Another example comes in Watership Down where Richard Adams describes rabbit folklore centered on El-ahrairah – a clever rabbit devoted to trickery who infuriates his enemies but repeatedly saves his warren.
Wall Art Update
The Raw Story: A massive block of limestone in France contains what scientists believe are the earliest known engravings of wall art dating back some 37,000 years, according to a study published Monday.
Overlooked Movies -- Gator
Nobody would call Gator a great movie, but it's everything a B-movie should be and a favorite of mine. The title alone would do the trick. Burt Reynolds is Gator McKlusky, the same character he played in another good B-movie, White Lightning. This time he's kicking back after being released from prison, trying to keep things simple and stay out of trouble. Fat chance. He's a moonshiner, after all.The plot has been used many times. Feds are onto Gator and his pappy, and they give him a choice. He either has to help them bring down his old friend Bama (Jerry Reed) or go back to prison. You know what Gator's gonna do, and we're off and running. Reed is great as the villain with a sawed-off, and the Reynolds has a lot of fun as Gator. There's a lot of hardcore violence, but there's also a lot of comedy. That's the way they did it in the '70s.
Reynolds isn't the only one having fun. Jack Weston, Lauren Hutton, Alice Ghostley, Mike Douglas (the talk-show host and singer), and Dub Taylor join in. The drive-ins were nearly all gone by the time this movie came out, but it was perfect drive-in entertainment. Check it out.
Monday, May 14, 2012
Criminal Genius of the Day
The Salt Lake Tribune: Orem teen busted after homework left at scene of crime
Mitchell Guist, R. I. P.
‘Swamp People’ star Mitchell Guist dead�after collapsing on boat: reports� - NY Daily News: "Swamp People" star Mitchell Guist died as he lived: plying his trade on the alligator-infested waters of the bayou.
The reality TV show star collapsed on his boat of an apparent seizure while navigating Louisiana’s Belle River and died Monday morning, WBRZ-TV in Baron Rouge reported.
The reality TV show star collapsed on his boat of an apparent seizure while navigating Louisiana’s Belle River and died Monday morning, WBRZ-TV in Baron Rouge reported.
Free for Kindle -- 3 Days Only!
Amazon.com: Lawyers, Guns and Money eBook: J.D. Rhoades: Kindle Store: Andy Cole has a problem. Local crime boss Voit Fairgreen has just dropped a bag full of cash on his desk and hired him to defend Voit's brother Danny on a murder charge. Andy's one of the movers and shakers in the small southern town of Blainesville, and Voit figures Andy's the kind of inside guy that can cut a deal to get his baby brother out of the jam.The problem is that Danny just might be innocent. But someone powerful needs this case buried, and if an innocent man dies for that, so be it.
Andy Cole is a guy who's made a good living by going along to get along. He's been willing to bend every rule, except Rule One--always get paid. But this case will cause him to re-examine his life and push him and his lover, beautiful newspaper editor Elizabeth Sinclair, to risk everything--including their lives-- for the truth.
Unscrewed
Alert reader Dan Read told me that I might fix the problem by removing the Mystery Scene favicon from the blog. I removed the MS link from my blog list, and that seems to have done the trick. I hope all is now well and that you Chrome users aren't being blocked.
Free Today for Kindle
Amazon.com: Killing Ways: Stories eBook: Steven Torres: Kindle Store: From the award-winning author of the PRECINCT PUERTO RICO series...
Screwed Over by Google
Because I had a link on this blog to Mystery Scene magazine, Google is now putting up a roadblock to the blog for Chrome users and claiming there's malware here. This is, of course, total baloney, but apparently there's nothing I can do about it. If there's anybody who still believes Google isn't evil, this should disabuse them of that notion. If you're reading this, it's because you didn't let Google's warning bother you, but I have a feeling my traffic's going to drop like a rock. I'll keep posting for my own amusement, though. If you're not using Chrome, apparently you don't see the warning. I'd suggest using Firefox.
Isadore Haiblum, The Tsaddik of the Seven Wonders, Ballantine, 1971
And Keep Off His Lawn!
NYTimes.com: Today, the persistent British again own the [land speed] record — now at 763 m.p.h. — and [Craig] Breedlove, at age 75, is organizing a team for an attempt to recapture it, with a goal of 800 m.p.h.
Graduate of the Day
The Washington Post: For years, Gac Filipaj mopped floors, cleaned toilets and took out trash at Columbia University.
A refugee from war-torn Yugoslavia, he eked out a living working for the Ivy League school. But Sunday was payback time: The 52-year-old janitor donned a cap and gown to graduate with a bachelor’s degree in classics.
A refugee from war-torn Yugoslavia, he eked out a living working for the Ivy League school. But Sunday was payback time: The 52-year-old janitor donned a cap and gown to graduate with a bachelor’s degree in classics.
Sunday, May 13, 2012
"The Last Book Sale"
Archer County News: On August 10th and 11th of this year, Larry McMurtry will sell hundreds of thousands of books by the shelf lot in an auction from his Archer City bookstore, Booked Up, one of the world’s largest antiquarian book stores in the world.
McMurtry wants to stress that Booked Up will be downsizing but not closing its doors. He will continue to operate Booked Up No. 1 which holds approximately 125,000-130,000 books.
McMurtry wants to stress that Booked Up will be downsizing but not closing its doors. He will continue to operate Booked Up No. 1 which holds approximately 125,000-130,000 books.
H. P. Lovecraft, Donald ‘Duck’ Dun, R. I. P.
Legendary Bassist Donald ‘Duck’ Dunn Passes Away At Age 70: Donald “Duck” Dunn, who played on hundreds of rock and soul classics as the bassist for Booker T. and the MGs, and later as a session player, passed away Sunday morning at the age of 70. Steve Cropper, the MGs guitarist, broke the news on his Facebook page at approximately 12:30AM Eastern time.
“Today I lost my best friend, the World has lost the best guy and bass player to ever live,” Cropper, his lifelong friend, wrote. “Duck Dunn died in his sleep Sunday morning May 13 in Tokyo Japan after finishing 2 shows at the Blue Note Night Club.”
Born in Memphis in November 24, 1941, Dunn started playing bass at the age of 16. “I tried the guitar but it had two strings too many,” he wrote on his website. “It was just too complicated, man! Plus, I grew up with Steve Cropper. There were so many good guitar players another one wasn’t needed. What was needed was a bass.”
Hat tip to jeff Meyerson.
“Today I lost my best friend, the World has lost the best guy and bass player to ever live,” Cropper, his lifelong friend, wrote. “Duck Dunn died in his sleep Sunday morning May 13 in Tokyo Japan after finishing 2 shows at the Blue Note Night Club.”
Born in Memphis in November 24, 1941, Dunn started playing bass at the age of 16. “I tried the guitar but it had two strings too many,” he wrote on his website. “It was just too complicated, man! Plus, I grew up with Steve Cropper. There were so many good guitar players another one wasn’t needed. What was needed was a bass.”
Hat tip to jeff Meyerson.
Happy Mother's Day!
My mother and her mother on Galveston Island, early 1950s. They loved the beach and the waves and the clouds.
Saturday, May 12, 2012
Free Today for Kindle Today & Tomorrow
Amazon.com: Horse Money eBook: Richard Wormser, Tom Roberts, Robert J. Randisi: Kindle Store: HORSE MONEY—The Cases of Chief Van Eyck, Race Track Detective.Four hard-boiled novellas of crime and intrigue around the Sport of Kings.
Known from Saratoga to Belmont and throughout the racing circuit, Chief Van Eyck keeps the bookies and fix games in check—whether using a little strong-arm, or the nickel-platted death secured in his wide right fist—in the process.
And Van Eyck is never above picking up a few greenbacks on the side thanks to an inside tip or two from the jockey club.
Grab a stool, order a strong one and slid to the edge of your seat as the ponies and Van Eyck both give a thrill ride from wire to wire!
First time in book form.
The Hearts of Horses -- Molly Gloss
Here's another modern western that I really liked. The setting is eastern Oregon in 1917. Martha Lessen is a young woman (age 19) who's left home, for good reason, and who's looking for work as a broncobuster. Except that she doesn't break horses. She's kind and gentle and loves them too much for that. Her training is more of the horse-whisperer variety, and she's very good at it.She finds work with a family named Bliss, and George Bliss soon recommends her to his friends and acquaintances. She begins doing a "circle ride" from one ranch to the next as she trains horses for many people in the county. Because of her circuit, she gets to know a great number of people, and they come to rely on her for things other than training horses as she becomes more involved in their lives.
This is a dandy book. Some fine writing, lots of characters, a little romance, some sadness (a couple of things really got to me), and some laughter. Great descriptions, and I got so cold at a couple of points that I almost forgot how hot it is here right now.
One thing I thought about while reading this was that mainstream or literary writers get to have all the fun. What we have here is an omniscient narrator, shifting point of view at will, telling instead of showing, and having a wonderful time of it. I had a wonderful time, too. Highly recommended if your taste runs to something a little more leisurely than the latest thriller.
Geezer Alert!
Tampa Bay Times: With a bit of chalk on a blackboard, Scooter Gabel unleashed a fury. Smudgy and handwritten, the sign that went up nearly two months ago says this: "For the comfort and safety of everybody, if you allow your child to run, scream or misbehave, you will be asked to leave." The owner of Cappy's pizzeria in Seminole Heights had had enough.
This article is one of those things that makes me feel really old. (Sure, I am really old, but most of the time I don't feel that way.) I can't imagine the need for such a sign back when I was a kid or even when my own kids were growing up. I suppose I'm permanently scarred, and so are my kids, because we weren't allowed to run wild in restaurants. I can't speak for my kids, but the truth is that it would never have occurred to me to. There were places where you could be loud and run around, but restaurants weren't included in them. Now if you'll excuse me I'm going to walk along the beach with the bottoms of my trousers rolled.
This article is one of those things that makes me feel really old. (Sure, I am really old, but most of the time I don't feel that way.) I can't imagine the need for such a sign back when I was a kid or even when my own kids were growing up. I suppose I'm permanently scarred, and so are my kids, because we weren't allowed to run wild in restaurants. I can't speak for my kids, but the truth is that it would never have occurred to me to. There were places where you could be loud and run around, but restaurants weren't included in them. Now if you'll excuse me I'm going to walk along the beach with the bottoms of my trousers rolled.
Joyce Redman, R. I. P.
NYTimes.com: Joyce Redman, a distinguished Irish-born actress widely acclaimed for her intelligent stage presence in Shakespearean drama and French comedy, though probably best known to American audiences for her silent improvisation with a lobster, an oyster, a pear and Albert Finney in the exuberantly lascivious eating scene in the 1963 film “Tom Jones,” died on Wednesday in Kent, England. She was 96.
Hat tip to Jeff Meyerson.
Hat tip to Jeff Meyerson.
Friday, May 11, 2012
Carroll Shelby R. I. P.
Houston News: Racing and car legend Carroll Shelby died today in Dallas at the age of 89.
He'd been ill for some time, but it's still a sad day in the auto world. Not to mention the decadent Texas chili world.
Shelby played a role in developing both the Cobra and the Mustang, and he won races like the 24 Hours of Le Mans before he had to retire from the track and spend the rest of his days building cars.
He also played a role in establishing the legendary Terlingua Chili Cook-Off, an annual bacchanal in West Texas that began in 1967.
He'd been ill for some time, but it's still a sad day in the auto world. Not to mention the decadent Texas chili world.
Shelby played a role in developing both the Cobra and the Mustang, and he won races like the 24 Hours of Le Mans before he had to retire from the track and spend the rest of his days building cars.
He also played a role in establishing the legendary Terlingua Chili Cook-Off, an annual bacchanal in West Texas that began in 1967.
Free for Kindle -- Today and Tomorrow!
This is a collection of short pieces, fiction and nonfiction, by my friend Paul Bishop. Great stuff, and it's free for two days!
Amazon.com: Running Wylde eBook: Paul Bishop: Books
Free for Kindle this Weekend!
Amazon.com: Skin Deep (Simeon Grist #3) (Simeon Grist Mystery) eBook: Timothy Hallinan: Kindle Store: The six Simeon Grist private-eye novels by 2011 Edgar and Macavity Award nominee Timothy Hallinan have become cult favorites and are now available fot the first time since the 1990s. For a fee so big he can't turn it down, Grist is hired to watchdog the kind of guy he'd usually prefer to throw through the nearest window. Toby Vane is the golden boy of prime-time TV, whose gee-whiz smile and chiseled features mask a dark secret that would take the shine off for his millions of adoring female fans: every now and then he beats up a woman, and almost any woman will do. When some of the women around Toby begin to turn up dead, Simeon has to figure out whether he's protecting a murderer – or whether one of Toby's multitude of enemies wants to put him away forever. And when Simeon meets the beautiful Nana, the whole situation becomes very personal, very fast.
First It Was the Thin Mints Melee . . .
The Courier-Mail: A CHURCH meeting in New Zealand ended in a vicious assault when a woman ripped a chunk of a man's earlobe off after discovering the dishes had not been done following a Sunday service.
F. Marion Crawford, Khaled, Ballantine, 1971
The Fabulous G-Strings Merchandise!
For years people have been asking this important question: Where can I buy merchandise featuring photos of The Fabulous G-Strings. And now there is an answer. You can buy it here. This is one of the more tasteful items. Trust me.
Forgotten Books: The Day the Sea Rolled Back -- Mickey Spillane
Did you remember the Mickey Spillane wrote children's books? I did, but then I got my copies signed at the Milwaukee Bouchercon long ago and I still have them. Two of them were published, and The Day the Sea Rolled Back was the first. I think at the time Spillane said that he'd written a couple of others. If so, they didn't see print as far as I know.This one's about lost treasure. Two boys, Larry and Josh, are the ones who find it. The circumstances are unusual. There's a tidal drop in the waters around the island were the boys live (Peolle Island, not a real place). When the sea rolls back, old wrecks are exposed. Just about everybody wants to find treasure, and when somebody does, there's bound to be someone who wants to take it away. So we have the dastardly Jimson brothers, who are willing to kill Larry and Josh if that's what it takes. The sea rolls back in, of course, as it always does, and what Larry and Josh are left with is . . . you'll have to read the book to find out.
Far be it from me to say anything (very) bad about a book by Mickey Spillane, but this one lacks the narrative drive of his novels for adults. It also has some clumsy writing and could've used a better editor. Still, it's fun for what it is, and it's worth a look if your curious about what Spillane could do outside his usual playground.
Thursday, May 10, 2012
PimPage: An Occasional Feature in Which I Call Interesting Books to Your Attention
Amazon.com: EARTHQUAKE WEATHER eBook: Terrill Lee Lankford, Michael Connelly: Books: EARTHQUAKE WEATHER - An L.A. Times BestsellerA veteran filmmaker and novelist now creates a riveting noir set in the power-mad jungle of Hollywood. In Earthquake Weather a natural disaster shakes a city and an industry to their cores, revealing new layers of deceit, desire, and deadly aggression.
Hollywood. The land of dreams and schemes. Mark Hayes has a dream. To make movies. But that’s easier wished for than done. Years of frustrating career moves have yielded little progress and Mark now finds himself in a dead end job as a “creative executive” for the loathsome producer, Dexter Morton at Prescient Pictures, the hottest new production company in town. A job like that could lead to big things—but Dexter Morton has no interest in promoting Mark’s ambitions. Then a major earthquake rocks Los Angeles and all deals are off. And when Mark finds a body floating in Dexter’s pool he goes from D-Boy to murder suspect before he can say “three picture deal”.
Infamous Players: A Tale of Movies, the Mob (and Sex)
Peter Bart was working at the New York Times when he left journalism to become the right-hand man of Robert Evans at Paramount Studios. At the time (mid-60s) Paramount was nothing special, but while Bart was there, it produced some of the best-remembered movies of the era: Love Story, The Godfather, Chinatown, and Rosemary's Baby, to name only four. Bart's memoir tells about his time at the studio, and it delivers everything the title promises. It's a breezy anecdotal account, and it's full of insider stories about Hollywood. You may have heard some of them before, but it's always fun to hear them again when they're recounted in such an engaging way. My only problem with the book is that it's not linear. Bart jumps around from year to year and back again with little indication of when he's writing about. I got lost a time or two. Maybe he did, too. At any rate, it's a quick entertaining trip through a time when movies mattered. Check it out.
Jack the Ripper Update
Gather: Was Jack The Ripper really a Jill? A new book about the most celebrated unsolved murder mystery in the history of crime reporting proposes that investigators have long overlooked the real killer. Simply because he was a she.
And guess what? It seems to make sense.
And guess what? It seems to make sense.
Double Feature Time!
MFAH | Films | Rainbow Over Texas On Friday, May 18, at 7:00 P. M., the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, will be showing, free of charge, a great double feature. Check it out.
Like Gene Autry, Roy Rogers was a singing cowboy who cranked out westerns for the Saturday matinee crowd. Rainbow Over Texas was Rogers’s 60th film since 1935, counting uncredited roles and the twenty-seven films in which he played a version of himself. Then there was Trigger, his faithful horse, and Dale Evans, who had already been his steady squeeze for fifteen films, and would later marry Roy and star in a TV show that ran for six years. The sidekick, Gabby Hayes, likewise starred in at least twelve films with Rogers, having previously served as William Boyd’s (alias Hoppalong Cassidy) sidekick. However, Rainbow was not just routine; Dale Evans appears first as a boy to travel west. – UCLA
Followed by Heart of the Rio Grande (directed by William Morgan, USA, 1942, 68 min.)
Gene Autry’s 51st film in less than eight years, Heart of The Rio Grande was different because it’s a contemporary Western, taking place in 1942, the first year of America’s involvement in World War II (reflected in the narrative in Gene’s plea for folks to buy war bonds.) It’s less of an action film than many of Autry’s westerns, and more of a lyrical, musical western. Autry runs a dude ranch and must contend with the spoiled daughter of a millionaire and a disgruntled ex-foreman. Gene manages to find time to sing a few tunes of course, including “Deep in the Heart of Texas.” – UCLA
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