Tuesday, November 14, 2017
The Old Gibson Guitar Factory – Kalamazoo, Michigan
Atlas Obscura: Although the classic Gibson guitar, used by such greats as Prince, Keith Richards, Johnny Cash, and B.B. King, might bring to mind its current Nashville home, the guitar’s roots are actually in the Michigan city of Kalamazoo. Built in 1917, the Gibson Factory there created some of the most iconic guitars ever made. But beyond the instruments, the factory was also home to the “Kalamazoo Gals,” a group of over 200 women who kept the guitar manufacturer going during World War II.
Bobby Doerr, R. I. P.
Bobby Doerr, Red Sox Hall of Fame second baseman, dead at 99 - NY Daily News: Bobby Doerr, the oldest living major leaguer who enjoyed a 14-year Hall of Fame career with the Red Sox, died on Monday, the team announced. He was 99.
Doerr, the second baseman known as the "silent captain" on the Red Sox teams of the 1940s and early '50s, is the only member of the Hall of Fame to live to be 99 years old. Though his playing career was cut short in 1951 at the age of 33 due to a back injury, Doerr went on to work for decades around the diamond.
Hat tip to Jeff Meyerson.
Doerr, the second baseman known as the "silent captain" on the Red Sox teams of the 1940s and early '50s, is the only member of the Hall of Fame to live to be 99 years old. Though his playing career was cut short in 1951 at the age of 33 due to a back injury, Doerr went on to work for decades around the diamond.
Hat tip to Jeff Meyerson.
Overlooked Movies: Great Balls of Fire!
I've been listening to a lot of Jerry Lee Lewis music lately, and it's hard to avoid news stories about Roy Moore in Alabama. The two men are entirely dissimilar except in one disturbing way, or at least Moore is alleged to have liked girls a lot younger than he was. Anyway, all that stuff reminded me of this movie. It's not a great movie, maybe not even a very good one, but it's still fun.Let's start with Dennis Quaid's performance as Lewis. He's great. People who think he's over the top have never read any of the many Jerry Lee Lewis biographies or seen films of Lewis in performance (I've seen him only on TV). Quaid nails him. Lewis was always larger than live and over the top, and Quaid gets it all just right. I don't know about Jimmy Swaggart, but Alec Baldwin turns in a good job as Jerry Lee's cousin. Winona Ryder is the 13-year-old cousin that Jerry Lee marries, and she's okay.
The movie never quite finds the right tone. Sometimes it's almost a comedy, and at others it's serious. I don't think comedy is the right tone for this story. Lewis might seem like a clown to some people, but he was never that. He was serious about his music, and while the movie gets a little of that across, there's a lot more there than we're shown. Judy and I saw this film on the day it opened, what with both of us being big Jerry Lee fans. We weren't disappointed. You might be, but why not take a look and find out.
Monday, November 13, 2017
The True Story Behind ‘Alias Grace’
The True Story Behind ‘Alias Grace’: At the center of the case was a beautiful young woman named Grace Marks. But was she really responsible for the crime?
Celebrities pick their favorite books of 2017
Omnivoracious: Ladies and Gentlemen, Your 2017 Celebrity Picks: We like books. And like we've done the past several years, we've collected reading lists from celebrities-turned-authors who supplement their incomes as actors, politicians, politicians' daughters, chefs, TV personalities, historians, newspeople, and comedians. There are even a few contributors who became famous through writing.
11 Beautiful Vintage Book Covers
11 Beautiful Vintage Book Covers: In The Illustrated Dust Jacket, 1920-1970, Martin Salisbury, professor of illustration at Cambridge School of Art, discusses the life and work of more than 50 artists and illustrators who created some of the most enduring dust jackets of the century, and includes a selection of their work. Salisbury picks 11 of his favorite dust jackets from the era.
Forgotten Hits: November 13th
Forgotten Hits: November 13th: "Incense and Peppermints" by The Strawberry Alarm Clock is the new #1 Record in America.
Lots of info and a SuperCharts.
Lots of info and a SuperCharts.
Liz Smith, R. I. P.
The New York Times: Liz Smith, the longtime queen of New York’s tabloid gossip columns, who for more than three decades chronicled little triumphs and trespasses in the soap-opera lives of the rich, the famous and the merely beautiful, died on Sunday at her home in Manhattan. She was 94.
Hat tip to Jeff Meyerson.
Hat tip to Jeff Meyerson.
Sunday, November 12, 2017
Chips Off the Old Block?
Chips Off the Old Block?: If you’ve ever wondered what it’s like growing up in Stalin’s shadow or whatever happened to Napoleon’s son, here are their (almost always) tragic stories.
Richard Prosch Interview
PAUL BISHOP ~ WRITER: SPALDING GETS HIS GROOVE ON: Spur award-winning writer Richard Prosch is a master of short-story and novella length Westerns and crime stories with a vicious twist in the tail. He also writes the adventures of sassy twelve-year old Jo Harper set in 1910, Wyoming, which are a delight for all ages. Richard is currently debuting his new contemporary series character, Dan Spalding, in the short-story Spalding’s Groove and a new novel, Answer Death.
Saturday, November 11, 2017
Forgotten Hits: November 11th
Forgotten Hits: November 11th: Van Morrison performs his hit "Brown Eyed Girl" on American Bandstand. Although this record will go on to become one of the most over-played songs in America, it will NOT be a hit in England. This will also be Van’s only appearance ever on this program.
Includes a couple of surveys, and you can listen to "Tapioca Tundra." Probably been a while since you've heard that one.
Includes a couple of surveys, and you can listen to "Tapioca Tundra." Probably been a while since you've heard that one.
Krysten Ritter: By the Book
Krysten Ritter: By the Book: The actress and author of a thriller, “Bonfire,” can’t read on the set of “Jessica Jones”: “It is crazy exciting! But it’s not a reading environment.”
Friday, November 10, 2017
Uh-0h
Barry Gibb Developing Bee Gees Musical: A Bee Gees musical is in the works, with Universal Theatrical Group securing rights to the legendary band's life story and music. Singer Barry Gibb, the group's only surviving member, will executive produce the as-yet-untitled project.
FFB: The Best of Robert Bloch
I was asked to be on a panel celebrating Robert Bloch at the recent World Fantasy Convention in San Antonio. I was a last-minute appointee, subbing for Peter Straub, who was unable to attend, so I figured I'd better do a quick refresher course. What better way to do that than with The Best of Robert Bloch from Ballantine books? After all, it has several of my favorite Bloch stories in it, including my #1 favorite, "That Hellbound Train," which also turns out to be Joe Lansdale's favorite. I'm not surprised, as he has good taste in fiction. Most of the time. I read the story back in the very late 1950s in an issue of The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction, and it knocked my socks off.I'm also fond of "Yours Truly, Jack the Ripper," but only in a nostalgic way. It's been so imitated since its publication in the early '40s that it no longer has the same punch, and I'm a lot more sophisticated as a reader than when I first ran across it in some anthology or other. I'll bet that if you gave the story to a kid the same age as I was when I first read it, though, he'd love it.
I read a lot of Bloch's work in the low-rent digests of the '50s, including Super Science Fiction, which is where "Broomstick" first appeared. For some reason I remembered it pretty well, even though it's not really Bloch at his best. Very few stories from the low-rent digests made it into this collection, but I'm glad this one did.
"The Movie People" is another of my favorites. I like to believe it could happen.
A lot of these stories have Bloch's patented snapper at the end, like the one in "I Like Blondes." Reading too many in a row isn't recommended.
Bloch liked wordplay, so you have to watch out for it, especially in a title like "I Like Blondes" or "The Man Who Collected Poe." As a collector myself, I naturally enjoyed that one.
All these stories are fun, and I think that the Ballantine "Best Of" series is just plain great if you're interested in the history of SF. I have all of them except maybe one or two. Great stuff.
Table of Contents:
Robert Bloch: The Man Who Wrote Psycho by Lester del Rey
Yours Truly, Jack the Ripper
Enoch
Catnip
The Hungry House
The Man Who Collected Poe
Mr. Steinway
The Past Master
I Like Blondes
All on a Golden Afternoon
Broomstick Ride
Daybroke
Sleeping Beauty
Word of Honor
The World-Timer
That Hell-Bound Train
The Funnel of God
Beelzebub
The Plot is the Thing
How Like a God
The Movie People
The Oracle
The Learning Maze
Author's Afterword: "Will the Real Robert Bloch Please Stand Up?"
Thursday, November 09, 2017
John Hillerman, R. I. P.
Hollywood Reporter: The Texan played the stuffy (but lovable) character on the Tom Selleck starrer, winning an Emmy in 1987, and appeared in 'Chinatown' and 'Blazing Saddles.'
Hat tip to Fred Zackel.
Hat tip to Fred Zackel.
The Patron Saint of Books
The Patron Saint of Books: James Patterson might be the most successful man in the book-writing business. But these days he wants something more.
Free for Kindle for a Limited Time
Amazon.com: Kothar of the Magic Sword book #2: Illustrated (Sword & Sorcery) eBook: Gardner Francis Fox, Frank Robbins, Kurt Brugel: Kindle Store This is Gardner F Fox's second classic Sword & Sorcery story for paperbacks. There are 5 books in this series. Mr. Fox's was heavily inspired by Robert E. Howard's Sword & Sorcery stories: Conan, Kull & Bran Mak Mor. The Kothar books are listed in Gary Gygax's Appendix N as one of the few books that inspired the creation of Dungeons & Dragons.
The True History of the Orient Express
The True History of the Orient Express: Spies used it as a secret weapon. A president tumbled from it. Hitler wanted it destroyed. Just what made this train so intriguing?
Feeling Safer Now?
TSA fails most tests in latest undercover operation at US airports: When ABC News asked the source familiar with the report if the failure rate was 80 percent, the response was, “You are in the ballpark.”
William Blake: More than Tyger, Tyger and Jersusalem
William Blake: More than Tyger, Tyger and Jersusalem: William Blake did so much so well that it is difficult to label him. Therefore, we're going to let bookseller and William Blake expert John Windle summarise the incredible life and impact of this particular Englishman. "Blake is regarded as one of the greatest polymaths who ever lived: poet, songster, artist, printmaker, etcher and engraver, philosopher, and genius. He single-handedly created the first 'livres d'artiste' in his series of illuminated books in which text and artwork are inextricably entwined, starting a tradition in England that continues to this day.
Wednesday, November 08, 2017
The Other Bowie’s Epic Battle
The Other Bowie’s Epic Battle
When I was at the Alamo last weekend, I saw the special Jim Bowie exhibit. Lots of nice knives were on display. No photos allowed, though.
When I was at the Alamo last weekend, I saw the special Jim Bowie exhibit. Lots of nice knives were on display. No photos allowed, though.
ONE FOR OUR HIGHLIGHTS LIST | SOMETHING IS GOING TO HAPPEN
ONE FOR OUR HIGHLIGHTS LIST | SOMETHING IS GOING TO HAPPEN: The 2017 Bouchercon World Mystery Convention, in Toronto, Canada, concluded more than three weeks ago. Normally, we post photos soon after a convention, but this year the whole experience of Bouchercon was so powerful that I felt unable to post about it until now.
Includes a couple of photos that have me and Angela in them.
Includes a couple of photos that have me and Angela in them.
Collecting New York
Collecting New York: "As for New York City, it is a place apart. There is not its match in any other country in the world". -- Pearl S. Buck
The Poetic Tale of Literary Outlaw Black Bart
The Poetic Tale of Literary Outlaw Black Bart: Stagecoach robber Charles Bole took the inspiration for his pseudonym from pulp fiction
Bonus FFB for Wednesday: Baseball Stars of 1957 -- Bruce Jacobs
The eminent George Kelley gave me this nice Lion Book at the World Fantasy Convention, an appropriate venue, since my fantasy when I was a little shaver, one that I shared with millions of others, was to play baseball like Mickey Mantle. For me it didn't work out, but maybe it did for some of those other kids. Anyway, reading the essays in this book was a real nostalgic thrill.Sal "The Barber" Maglie? He's here, and so is another of my heroes, Stan "The Man" Musial. Plus there's the thrill of reliving Don Larsen's perfect game in the 1956 World Series.
There are lesser-known stars, too, like Johnny Kucks and Tom Brewer. These are actually the most fun to read about because I hardly remembered them. It was nice to recall their moments of fame.
There are lots more, 24 in all, including the top rookies in the National League (Frank Robinson) and the American League (Louis Aparicio). If you ever run across one of these Baseball Stars books, grab it. You won't be sorry.
Tuesday, November 07, 2017
Free for Kindle for a Limited Time
Natalie's Revenge: a Frank Renzi crime thriller - Kindle edition by Susan Fleet. Mystery, Thriller & Suspense Kindle eBooks @ Amazon.com. Murder and revenge in New Orleans. In 1988, ten-year-old Natalie is devastated when police find her call girl mother brutally murdered in a New Orleans hotel. Like the dragon tattoo girl, Natalie wants revenge. Her twenty year hunt for the killer takes her from dancing in New York City strip clubs to working as a call girl in Paris. And back to the Big Easy, with a gun.
Roy Halladay, R. I. P.
The Daily Beast: Former Major League Baseball pitcher Roy Halladay died in a plane crash off the coast of Florida on Tuesday, the Pasco County sheriff said. Halladay won two Cy Young awards and appeared in eight All-Star games during his career with the Toronto Blue Jays and the Philadelphia Phillies. In 2010 with the Phillies, he threw a perfect game during the regular season and a no-hitter in the postseason.
Will the Persecution Never End?
Here’s Why You Never Hear About Paris Hilton Anymore: Paris Hilton practically pioneered the art of being famous for being famous. A decade ago, she was everywhere – magazine covers, albums, books – despite not appearing to have any marketable talents. She was an object of both admiration and revulsion. But as the years went by, she gradually became less and less reported upon, and now the Hilton heiress has all but faded into the background. So what actually happened?
Hat tip to Jeff Meyerson.
Hat tip to Jeff Meyerson.
Forgotten Hits: November 7th
Forgotten Hits: November 7th: Diana Ross and the Supremes have the top chart debut this week as "In And Out Of Love" premiers at #60.
Lots of songs to listen to today.
Lots of songs to listen to today.
Overlooked Movies: Kiss Me Deadly
Not forgotten by any means, but maybe you haven't seen it lately. Well, now's your chance, what with the release of this new Criterion Collection Blu-Ray edition. It looks great, as you'd expect, and it's just as outrageous and entertaining as ever, from the Cloris Leachman-naked-under-the- overcoat scene to the explosive conclusion. The movie follows the book's story fairly closely, and though the shift in location from New York to L. A. is a little bothersome to me, it works pretty well. Part of the film's original ending is included, too.
The commentators, on the other hand, leave me cold. They don't seem to have read Spillane, and their ignorance of him and his work is sadly depressing. Their opinions of Hammer run along the lines of those in the accompanying booklet, in which J. Hoberman says the film "tracks one of the sleaziest, stupidest, most brutal detectives in American movies." Hoberman also calls Hammer "a crass private-eye."
Luckily, Max Allan Collins' Spillane documentary (Mike Hammer's Mickey Spillane) is included among the special features on the DVD to provide a little balance. This documentary (re-edited to about 40 minutes from the original) alone is a great reason to buy the DVD if you haven't seen it. Makes me wish for a Criterion Collection edition of The Girl Hunters.
The entire package is well worth your time and highly recommended in spite of the shortcomings I mentioned. Just don't listen to the commentary.
Monday, November 06, 2017
Robert Knight, R. I. P.
NY Daily News: Robert Knight, the soul and pop crooner whose seminal hit "Everlasting Love" remains a beloved classic, died Sunday.
Hat tip to Jeff Meyerson.
Hat tip to Jeff Meyerson.
I'm Coming Home
I'm about to pack up, and I'll be leaving for the airport in a couple of hours. The World Fantasy Convention was great, and I'm glad I took the chance on coming. Yesterday afternoon, after the con was over, my sister came over from Austin, and we had a nice lunch at Casa Rio, where we'd first eaten as kids. Then we took a walk to the Alamo, another place we'd visited as kids. It was a nice afternoon.
The highlight of the convention was when Joe and Gay Haldeman asked me to sign a book for them. The Forever War is one of my favorite SF novels, so this was a real honor for me.
The highlight of the convention was when Joe and Gay Haldeman asked me to sign a book for them. The Forever War is one of my favorite SF novels, so this was a real honor for me.
Forgotten Hits: November 6th
Forgotten Hits: November 6th: Sam and Dave move into the #1 position on the Pop Chart this week as "Soul Man" overtakes Lulu's hit "To Sir, With Love," dropping it to #2. "Incense And Peppermints" by The Strawberry Alarm Clock and "The Rain, The Park And Other Things" by The Cowsills continue their climb up the chart moving from #7 to #3 and #10 to #4 respectively. Vikki Carr's "It Must Be Him" rounds out The Top Five. The only other Top Ten hits showing upward movement this week are by Bobby Vinton ("Please Love Me Forever", up from #12 to #8) and "A Natural Woman" by Aretha Franklin, which climbs from #11 to #9.
Includes SuperCharts and some songs to play.
Includes SuperCharts and some songs to play.
Sunday, November 05, 2017
Happy birthday, Judy Crider
Judy would have been 74 today. I still think about her constantly, and one of the things I remember best is our dates at the Fort Parker State Park lake. There was a clubhouse with an outside dance floor, which you can see in the picture on the right, and we spent many nights there all year 'round. I wasn't much of a dancer, but I could dance with her to the slow numbers. We both agreed that the song that reminded us the most of those days was "Twilight Time" by the Platters. I hope that someday Judy and I will meet again on that dance floor where we do another slow dance and I'll fall in love again, as I did then, when we're together at last at twilight time.
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