Saturday, February 20, 2010
Once Again, Texas Leads the Way
ATF investigates Liberty County sheriff’s captain in missing firearms case |
khou.com | Houston News, Local News, Breaking News, Weather
| Local News: "The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms is investigating a Liberty County Sheriff’s Department captain in the disappearance of approximately 500 firearms, according to court documents.
[. . . .]
About 100 of the missing guns were recovered at the Sportsman’s Outlet in Humble, but the other 400 are still missing, according to an affidavit."
khou.com | Houston News, Local News, Breaking News, Weather
| Local News: "The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms is investigating a Liberty County Sheriff’s Department captain in the disappearance of approximately 500 firearms, according to court documents.
[. . . .]
About 100 of the missing guns were recovered at the Sportsman’s Outlet in Humble, but the other 400 are still missing, according to an affidavit."
Okay, This Stuff Is Really Getting Out of Hand
Atari's Missile Command, a potential Hollywood franchise | 24 Frames | Los Angeles Times: "Can squiggly lines be the new movie stars?
Not the ones on the face of an aging, plastic-surgeried celebrity, but those that threaten the the base cities in the vintage video game Missile Command. That's because Atari, which has been increasing its efforts to mine its video game library in Hollywood, has tapped Missile Command as a property ripe for a theatrical film.
The company is in active discussions with studios to acquire the title for development, with Fox and Peter Chernin's new production company the likely venue at which the property will end up."
Not the ones on the face of an aging, plastic-surgeried celebrity, but those that threaten the the base cities in the vintage video game Missile Command. That's because Atari, which has been increasing its efforts to mine its video game library in Hollywood, has tapped Missile Command as a property ripe for a theatrical film.
The company is in active discussions with studios to acquire the title for development, with Fox and Peter Chernin's new production company the likely venue at which the property will end up."
Johnny Cash American VI: Ain't No Grave
I haven't done many music reviews lately, but then there hasn't been an album that moved me like this one in a long time. It was recorded in the last months of Johnny Cash's life, when he sometimes didn't feel well enough to sing. But he wanted to get the work done, and he did. Although his voice was a ragged remnant of what it had once been, it's just as powerful as ever in a different way.The songs take on a new meaning in the context their recording. And oldie like "For the Good Times," for example. Wow. I'd never thought of it as the farewell of a dying man before, but what a statement. "I Corinthians 15:55," a Cash original is right out the New Testament, and you can tell he believes every word he's singing. Sheryl Crow's "Redemption Day" never sounded like this (and never sounded better). Another oldie, "A Satisfied Mind," has been recorded by dozens of singers before, but it never resonated the way it does when Cash lays it down in his final days. "Can't Help but Wonder Where I'm Bound" and "Last Night I had the Strangest Dream" knocked me out. But then so did the other nine songs on the CD. The album closes with "Aloha Oe." Just great.
Look at the photo on the CD cover. I wonder if the smiling little kid there ever thought about what his life would be like. Could anybody ever have imagined what lay ahead of him, all the ups and downs, the fame and the falls, or what the end would be? If you can listen to this album without getting misty-eyed, you're a lot tougher than I am.
The Swamp Master
Indio's National Date Festival still draws crowds after 64 years | Inland News | PE.com | Southern California News | News for Inland Southern California: "'I've been bitten 12 times,' he said, showing the empty space where the tip of his middle finger once was.
'I do a trick called bull-dogging,' he said. 'I pin his jaws between my chin and my chest. That's an old Indian technique.'"
'I do a trick called bull-dogging,' he said. 'I pin his jaws between my chin and my chest. That's an old Indian technique.'"
Great photo of bull-dogging at the link.
Archaeology Update
Primitive Humans Conquered Sea, Surprising Finds Suggest: "Crete has been surrounded by vast stretches of sea for some five million years. The discovery of the hand ax suggests that people besides technologically modern humans—possibly Homo heidelbergensis—island-hopped across the Mediterranean tens of thousands of millennia earlier than expected.
Many researchers have hypothesized that the early humans of this time period were not capable of devising boats or navigating across open water. But the new discoveries hint that these human ancestors were capable of much more sophisticated behavior than their relatively simple stone tools would suggest."
Many researchers have hypothesized that the early humans of this time period were not capable of devising boats or navigating across open water. But the new discoveries hint that these human ancestors were capable of much more sophisticated behavior than their relatively simple stone tools would suggest."
Lionel Jeffries, R. I. P.
Lionel Jeffries, British Character Actor, Dies at 83 - Obituary (Obit) - NYTimes.com: "Lionel Jeffries, a mustachioed, bald-pated British character actor who excelled in rubber-faced comedic roles like Grandpa Potts in the musical fantasy adventure “Chitty Chitty Bang Bang,” and who directed “The Railway Children” and several other family-oriented films, died Friday. He was 83."Hat tip to Jeff Meyerson.
Friday, February 19, 2010
The Stoker Nominees
Click here:
Horror Writers Association
Hat tip to Todd Mason.
I was surprised to see Paul Tremblay's The Little Sleep nominated in the "first novel" category. I thought it was a crime novel. Congratulations, Paul!
Horror Writers Association
Hat tip to Todd Mason.
I was surprised to see Paul Tremblay's The Little Sleep nominated in the "first novel" category. I thought it was a crime novel. Congratulations, Paul!
A Classic E-Mail
Click the link and read the e-mail. It's an absolute classic.
News: Taylor Lautner Fan Letter To Universal: Your Wolfman Ripped Off Twilight | Latino Review: "The e-mail was from Kayla Patterson, a die hard Twilight/Taylor Lautner fan upset about Universal Pictures ripping off the werewolf idea from Twilight. That's right, Universal Studios, who first put werewolves in theaters, are a bunch of copycats."
News: Taylor Lautner Fan Letter To Universal: Your Wolfman Ripped Off Twilight | Latino Review: "The e-mail was from Kayla Patterson, a die hard Twilight/Taylor Lautner fan upset about Universal Pictures ripping off the werewolf idea from Twilight. That's right, Universal Studios, who first put werewolves in theaters, are a bunch of copycats."
Once Again, Texas Leads the Way
Charity begins at home.
Did They Learn Nothing from "Poltergeist"?
City Barred from Removing Graves Near O'Hare |
NBC Chicago: "The City had removed approximately 20 graves so far to make way for a new airport runway. The court order, however, bars any further disinterment even if the city has already received permission from next of kin."
NBC Chicago: "The City had removed approximately 20 graves so far to make way for a new airport runway. The court order, however, bars any further disinterment even if the city has already received permission from next of kin."
Enquiring Minds Rejjoice
National Enquirer Beats Pulitzer Brahmins, Enters for Prize: Report - journalismism - Gawker: "The Pulitzer Prize Board has allowed the National Enquirer to enter its John Edwards coverage in two categories, according to the Huffington Post, reversing an administrator's earlier objections. 'Tabloid trash' has never looked better."
Forgotten Books: To Kiss, or Kill -- Day Keene
Yes, it's yet another of those free books from Munsey's. So once again I read it on the Kindle rather than taking a chance of breaking the brittle spine of the GM edition I own. Here's the opening:You can never tell what a big, tough Polish boy will do when he finds a nude blonde in his bathroom. Especially if he is a heavyweight fighter who was born back of the yards, is married to a million dollars, and has a psychiatric record.
He might do a number of things. He might tell her to get out. He might yell for his wife. He might blow what's left of his top. He might even do what Barney Mandell did, come to his addled senses.
It really happened, in Chicago. It happened to Barney Mandell on the afternoon of the day he was released from the asylum as cured, because he hadn't wrung a parrot's neck in two years.
Oh, yes. The nude blonde was dead.
Now, I ask you: Who could resist reading on after a beginning like that? Not me, that's for sure.
Interestingly enough, this book's plot bears a strong resemblance to that of Gil Brewer's Flight to Darkness, reviewed right here on your favorite blog two months ago. There's the guy who's just out of the asylum, there's the woman he loves, there are all these weird things happening to him, and there are people dying all around him. Brewer and Keene were friends in Florida, and I suspect they talked about possible plots. We know they collaborated on one Keene novel. This one's quite different from Brewer's book in the way it plays out. The Chicago setting along makes sure of that. And then there's the parrot.
As usual with Keene's work, there's plenty to enjoy, all in a nice, tight package. Considering that Munsey's has this book in 10 different formats, there's no reason you can't check it out if you want to.
Thursday, February 18, 2010
Kathryn Grayson, R. I. P.
Kathryn Grayson, star of MGM musicals, has died
| Reuters: "LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Kathryn Grayson, a singer and movie star of the 1940s and 1950s best known for MGM musicals such as 'Kiss Me, Kate,' has died at age 88, her secretary said on Thursday.
Grayson died at home in Los Angeles on Wednesday in her sleep, said Sally Sherman, who had worked with Grayson for 31 years.
The actress was among the top movie musical performers of her day, starring opposite Frank Sinatra and Gene Kelly in 1945's 'Anchors Away' and Ava Gardner and Howard Keel in 1951's 'Showboat.'
'She was a lady of class and quality, with the greatest sense of humor conceivable,' Sherman said."
| Reuters: "LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Kathryn Grayson, a singer and movie star of the 1940s and 1950s best known for MGM musicals such as 'Kiss Me, Kate,' has died at age 88, her secretary said on Thursday.
Grayson died at home in Los Angeles on Wednesday in her sleep, said Sally Sherman, who had worked with Grayson for 31 years.
The actress was among the top movie musical performers of her day, starring opposite Frank Sinatra and Gene Kelly in 1945's 'Anchors Away' and Ava Gardner and Howard Keel in 1951's 'Showboat.'
'She was a lady of class and quality, with the greatest sense of humor conceivable,' Sherman said."
Agatha Nominees
Best Novel
Swan for the Money, Donna Andrews, St. Martin’s Minotaur
Bookplate Special, Lorna Barrett, Berkley Prime Crime
Royal Flush, Rhys Bowen, Berkley Prime Crime
A Brutal Telling, Louise Penny, Minotaur Books
Air Time, Hank Phillippi Ryan, MIRA
Best First Novel
For Better For Murder, Lisa Bork, Midnight Ink
The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie, Alan Bradley, Delacorte Press
Posed for Murder, Meredith Cole, St. Martin’s Minotaur
The Cold Light of Mourning, Elizabeth Duncan, St. Martin’s Press
In the Shadow of Gotham, Stefanie Pintoff, Minotaur Books
Best Nonfiction
Duchess of Death, Richard Hack, Phoenix Books
Talking About Detective Fiction, P.D. James, Knopf
Blood on the Stage, 1925 – 1950, Amnon Kabatchnik, Scarecrow Press
Dame Agatha’s Shorts, Elena Santangelo, Bella Rosa Books
The Talented Miss Highsmith, Joan Schenkar, St. Martin’s Press
BEST SHORT STORY
“Femme Sole,” Dana Cameron, Boston Noir, Akashic Books
“Handbaskets, Drawers and Killer Cold,” Kaye George, Crooked
“The Worst Noel,” Barb Goffman, The Gift of Murder, Wolfmont Press
“On the House,” Hank Phillippi Ryan, Quarry, Level Best Books
“Death Will Trim Your Tree,” Elizabeth Zelvin, The Gift of Murder, Wolfmont Press
Best Children’s/Young Adult Novel
The Morgue and Me, John C. Ford, Viking Juvenile
The Hanging Hill, Chris Grabenstein, Random House
The Case of the Poisoned Pig, Lewis B. Montgomery, Kane Press
The Other Side of Blue, Valerie O. Patterson, Clarion Books
The Case of the Cryptic Crinoline, Nancy Springer, Philomel
Swan for the Money, Donna Andrews, St. Martin’s Minotaur
Bookplate Special, Lorna Barrett, Berkley Prime Crime
Royal Flush, Rhys Bowen, Berkley Prime Crime
A Brutal Telling, Louise Penny, Minotaur Books
Air Time, Hank Phillippi Ryan, MIRA
Best First Novel
For Better For Murder, Lisa Bork, Midnight Ink
The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie, Alan Bradley, Delacorte Press
Posed for Murder, Meredith Cole, St. Martin’s Minotaur
The Cold Light of Mourning, Elizabeth Duncan, St. Martin’s Press
In the Shadow of Gotham, Stefanie Pintoff, Minotaur Books
Best Nonfiction
Duchess of Death, Richard Hack, Phoenix Books
Talking About Detective Fiction, P.D. James, Knopf
Blood on the Stage, 1925 – 1950, Amnon Kabatchnik, Scarecrow Press
Dame Agatha’s Shorts, Elena Santangelo, Bella Rosa Books
The Talented Miss Highsmith, Joan Schenkar, St. Martin’s Press
BEST SHORT STORY
“Femme Sole,” Dana Cameron, Boston Noir, Akashic Books
“Handbaskets, Drawers and Killer Cold,” Kaye George, Crooked
“The Worst Noel,” Barb Goffman, The Gift of Murder, Wolfmont Press
“On the House,” Hank Phillippi Ryan, Quarry, Level Best Books
“Death Will Trim Your Tree,” Elizabeth Zelvin, The Gift of Murder, Wolfmont Press
Best Children’s/Young Adult Novel
The Morgue and Me, John C. Ford, Viking Juvenile
The Hanging Hill, Chris Grabenstein, Random House
The Case of the Poisoned Pig, Lewis B. Montgomery, Kane Press
The Other Side of Blue, Valerie O. Patterson, Clarion Books
The Case of the Cryptic Crinoline, Nancy Springer, Philomel
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