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Monthly Archives: April 2011

April 2011 Book Round-Up

30 Saturday Apr 2011

Posted by Randy Johnson in Books

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61: SF: Out of Time’s Abyss – Edgar Rice Burroughs

62: CR: A Shroud For Aquarius – Max Allan Collins

63: HR: The Dead Man: Ring of Knives(e-book) – James Daniels

64: WE: The Scorpion Trail – Larry D. Sweazy

65: WE: The Loner: Killer Poker(e-book) – J. A. Johnstone

66: CR: Forgive Me, Killer – Harry Whittington

67: CR: Butcher’s Moon – Richard Stark(Donald E. Westlake)

68: WE: Thunder Over Lolo Pass – Charles G. West

69: WE; MacCallister: The Eagles Legacy – William W. Johnstone with J. A. Johnstone

70: WE: Texas Fever – Donald Hamilton

71: AC: More Tales of Zorro – edited by Richard Dean Starr

72: CR: Nice Weekend For A Murder – Max Allan Collins

73: WE: Ghost Town – Ed Gorman

74: WE: Rancho Diablo: Dead Man’s Revenge(e-book) – Colby Jackson(Bill Crider)

75: SF: Terminator: Salvation – Alan Dean Foster

76: AD: Cast In Dark Waters(e-book) – Ed Gorman & Tom Piccirilli

77: SF: Jondelle – E. C. Tubb

78: WE: The Big Country – Donald Hamilton

79: MY: The Perfect Frame – William Ard

80: HR: The Last Werewolf – Glen Duncan

April 2011 Movie Round-Up

30 Saturday Apr 2011

Posted by Randy Johnson in movies

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Crime Doctor(1943)

The Crime Doctor’s Strangest Case(1943)

The Crime Doctor’s Courage(1945)

Crime Doctor’s Warning(1945)

Crime Doctor’s Manhunt(1946)

The Crime Doctor’s Gamble(1947)

The Crime Doctor’s Diary(1949)

The Girl Hunters(1963)

The Fall of Sam Axe(2011)

Kinks Follow-Up

30 Saturday Apr 2011

Posted by Randy Johnson in music

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Metallica, Ray Davies

In my post for Forgotten Music Thursday past, I touched on the Kinks from my teenage years in the Sixties amidst the “British Invasion.” Ray Foster, about my age, put me onto this CD, which I have ordered(Thanks again, Ray), that maybe I might have an interest in. Most certainly. Ray Davies, the main man of the Kinks, along with brother Dave, got together with some friends. And what a lineup indeed. I did a little exploring on Youtube and found quite a bit on the cuts from the SEE MY FRIENDS release.

I picked a few cuts for the post I found interesting. The first, though, is a live clip from a Metallica concert.

YOU REALLY GOT ME ALL DAY AND ALL OF THE NIGHT

BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN

JACKSON BROWNE

JON BON JOVI & RICHIE SAMBORA

PALOMA FAITH

FFB: The Big Country – Donald Hamilton

28 Thursday Apr 2011

Posted by Randy Johnson in Books

≈ 10 Comments

Tags

Donald Hamilton, Forgotten Books, western

Jim McKay arrived in Texas to marry his fiancee. Not having seen her in six months, he’d used the time to end his affairs in Baltimore, sell his interest in the ship line his father had left him. The new steam ships didn’t interest him, he was a sailing man, and his uncles were more in line with the new stuff. He had a plan. There was a ranch up for sale and he wanted to get it as a surprise wedding gift for his bride, Patricia Terrill.

He didn’t realize he was walking into the middle of an old feud.

The Terrills were the land barons, fancy living, dressing, talking. The Hanneseys were “Tennessee Trash,” looked down on by the Terrils. The ranch he wanted lay between the two properties they owned. Known as the Big Muddy for the river that ran through the property, both sides coveted it to control the water rights. Owned by the granddaughter of the original owner, Julie Maragon, she’d refused to sell to either party, knowing the bloodshed that would arise if one controlled it. She wanted to sell it to a third party not in line with either of the two families in the hope that they could manage it. It cost her her friendship with Patricia.

Jim, when he realizes all this, reveals his aims to her and bows out gracefully.

He’s still pressed from all sides. In his early thirties, he resists ploys to get him to fight or embarrass him from all sides. He’s just stubborn enough to not perform for anybody to demonstrate his courage. Buck Hannesey, son of the head of the clan, gives him a short beating. Steve Leech, the foreman of the Terrill spread saddles him a bad horse that doesn’t like riders. McKay senses it and walks away, only to get a Mexican to saddle the animal later in private just to satisfy himself that he could do it. The animal only throws twenty or so times before he wears him down.

Patricia, a spoiled young woman, is upset at his cowardice. Steve Leech is jealous of him because he’d always figured he’d marry Patricia. Buck Hannesey wants to marry Julie Maragon as part of his clan’s plan to gain the Big Muddy. Also he’s never had a woman turn him down and that eats at his ego.

Jim Mckay’s values are at a clash with everyone but Julie Maragon. She ends up selling him the Big Muddy and that’s when everyone finds out just how different Jim McKay is and just how tough an ex-sea captain can be when not performing.

Quite liked this one. It was made into a movie in 1958 with an all-star cast. Gregory Peck, Charlton Heston, Burl Ives, Jean Simmons, Carroll Baker, Charles Bickford, and Chuck Connors.

Here’s a link to the trailer:

THE BIG COUNTRY

Richard Robinson is hosting Forgotten Books this week and can be found HERE.

Forgotten Music: The Kinks

28 Thursday Apr 2011

Posted by Randy Johnson in music

≈ 12 Comments

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Forgotten Music, The Kinks

The Kinks were part of what history dubbed The English Invasion of the mid- to Late sixties, following in the wake of more commercially successful bands like The Beatles and The Rolling Stones, among others of the era. They had their hits and proved to be an important band in music and British rock history. They experienced a number of lineup changes over the years, although brothers Ray and Dave Davies, the mainstays, lasted their wholw thirty-two year run. The four original members were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in their first yeat of eligibility in 1990.The band finally broke up in 1996 because of creative tension between the Davies brothers and commercial failure of some recent albums.

Influencing a lot of bands over the years, I remember when Van Halen first made a splash covering YOU REALLY GOT ME, I had a disagreement with a young fan when I commented on it and he got mad that I would question Eddie and the boys. Oh, the young, forever thinking they discover everything and us old folks(though I was just barely thirty at the time) just don’t get it.

Some of my favorites over the years:

And this final clip. A funny story here. A young friend, whom I’d introduced the Kinks music to, got all excited when he realized the true subject of the song, thinking I’d never got it. If you don’t know, and probably there might be a few checking this out, pay close attention to the lyrics.

Here’s one I had to add. Been so long since I heard it, I’d forgotten until Cullen Gallagher reminded me of it. One of those how could you forget moments? Oh well, I am getting older.

A Couple of Trailers of Possible Interest

27 Wednesday Apr 2011

Posted by Randy Johnson in movies

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Captain America, X-Men

CAPTAIN AMERICA

X-MEN

Vintage Television: Mike Hammer(1958-59)

26 Tuesday Apr 2011

Posted by Randy Johnson in Television

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Darren NcGavin, Mickey Spillane, Mike Hammer

MICKEY SPILLANE’S MIKE HAMMER ran for two seasons on CBS and starred Darren McGavin as Hammer. It seemed to be viewed as a terrible show, critics decrying the violence. McGavin said it was instantly successful. Whatever, it only lasted seventy-eight half hour episodes filmed in black and white.

Some of the writers working the show were Frank Kane, who wrote about a third of the episodes, Steven Thornley fourteen, and Evan Hunter(as Curt Cannon) even furnished two story lines, one for which Kane wrote the script. Boris Sagal was the main director, twenty-five episodes, Richard Irving the next with eleven. Some of the actors that appeared in shows were those faces that you know but can’t connect with a name. Others were Angie Dickinson, Vitto Scotti, Lorne Greene, Steve Ihnat, Anthony Caruso, H. M. Wynant, Ruta Lee, Robert Fuller, DeForest Kelly, and Len Lesser(who would have been one of those faces if he hadn’t gained some notoriety as Uncle Leo on Seinfeld), most of them in two or more roles.

The two episodes Evan Hunter provided were early in the first season, SO THAT’S WHO IT WAS and DEAD MEN DON’T DREAM. In the first, Mike had finished a long case in Chinatown and was headed home when he’s accosted by a junkie, Gus Peters, that had gave him some tips begging for money. He gives him five bucks and goes on his way. A week later he gets a call from Gus needing help, something he can’t talk about over the phone, and Mike heads back to Chinatown to see him, arriving to late as Gus had been shot to death in an alley. Worried that the police won’t care about a junkie’s death, he decides to find the killer. He learns that a prominent Chinese businessman had been knifed to death in that very same alley a couple of days before Gus was killed. He knows they have to be connected.

In DEAD MEN DON”T DREAM, Mike returns to the old neighborhood fore the funeral of a childhood friend found in front of his store with his throat cut. In questioning some of his old friends, they all seem nervous and evasive. In another store from his childhood, Pop’s, he happens to be there when a couple of hoods come in demanding the weekly fee. The old protection racket! Mike runs them out, only to find Pop dead the next day. It’s then that Mike gets serious about finding out who’s behind it all.

I haven’t watched all episodes yet, just the first six of each season and a few spotted around, but the quality seems pretty good so far. I picked the set up from classicradioandtv.com at a fairly reasonable price. What I have is the collector’s edition. While I don’t wish to be too critical, I found numerous mistakes in the packaging. Misspellings in the titles, Mere Maid becomes Metre Maid, Just Around The Coroner became Just Arounj The Corner(not my J), Scar and Garter became Scar and Gaerter(correct on the DVD, wrong on the outside packaging), and the most glaring error of them all, Darren is spelled with an I(notice in the picture) . These are just the ones I’ve caught. There may be more.

Still I think it’s worth the price.

McGavin captures the spirit of Hammer fairly well, attracted to every good looking female he meets, obstinate about keeping details to himself, violent when he needs to be. One thing I missed though was his hardware. Betsy, his M1911 army Colt is not in evidence. Not a gun expert myself, he carries a snub-nosed revolver, probably a .38(not sure though), in his shoulder holster.

I’ve enjoyed them so far.

New In The House

24 Sunday Apr 2011

Posted by Randy Johnson in Books

≈ 2 Comments

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New In The House




!: The Rattlesnake Season – Larry D. Sweazy: first novel in the Josiah Wolfe Texas Ranger series

2: The Badger’s Revenge _ Larry D. Sweazy: book three in the Josiah Wolfe Texas Ranger series

3: The Big Country – Donald Hamilton: another western from the master. Made into a fine film with Charlton Heston, Gregory Peck, and a host of lesser stars.

4: The Pressure of Darkness(e-book) – Harry Shannon: thriller/horror novel. Don’t know a lot about this one. Read a nice review and the price was right.

5: More Sinned Against(e-book) – Dave White: collection of stories about Jackson Donne, P.I.

6: A Matter of Tea and Other Stories (e-book) – Charles T. Whipple: a collection of short stories. The profits go to help the people of Japan in their recovery from the earthquake and tsunami disasters.

7: Cast In Dark Waters(e-book) – Ed Gorman & Tom Picirilli: pirates and a bit of a horror story. Nice combination.

The Night Stalker

23 Saturday Apr 2011

Posted by Randy Johnson in Television

≈ 3 Comments

Tags

Darren McGavin, The Night Stalker

This post concerns just the prose books I have.

THE NIGHT STALKER was a 1972 telefilm written by Richard Matheson from an, at the time, unpublished novel by Jeff Rice titled The Kolchak Papers. The novel debuted about the same time as the movie, which for a time, and may still be for all I know, the highest rated TV movie of all time. That caused a sequel, THE NIGHT STRANGLER, in 1973 and eventually led to the series. Rice did the novelization of that one.

The TV series lasted only one season(not sure about the reasons here as it seemed to be a hit) where Darren McGavin, in his straw boater, seersucker suit, and tennis shoes discovered and defeated a succession of monsters of all types. Naturally no one ever believed him and relegated him to “National Enquirer” status.

The show, and McGavin’s character went on to cult status, survived in the fans’ minds for years. Then in 1994, GRAVE SECRETS by Mark Dawidziak appeared, supposedly the first of a new series(Grand Inquisitor was announced in the back as coming soon, but never made it). Dawidziak had already penned NIGHTSTALKING: A TWENTIETH ANNIVERSARY KOLCHAK COMPANION and the earlier THE COLUMBO PHILE: A CASEBOOK.

That’s how things stood until Moonstone books started doing Kolchak comics and graphic novels(I have none of those). They eventually did a couple of anthologies of short stories, recruiting some of the best writers working to contribute.
Some of the authors represented here include Max Allan Collins, Peter David, James Reasoner, Mark Dawidziak, Stuart Kaminsky, Mike W. Barr, Richard Dean Starr, and others we might be familiar with. I’m working from memory here as I can’t lay my hands on the book(packed away somewhere in the house). It was successful and inspired a second set of tales of our favorite monster hunter.

Some of the writers featured here include P. N. Elrod(who has her own vampire novels), Starr again, Christopher Golden, and Elaine Bergstrom. Once again working from memory.

I kept wondering during that time whether they might do an original novel or two as well as the short stories and graphic novels. I know they teamed, somehow, Kolchak and Sherlock Holmes in a graphic series and I heard rumors of a novel version. If it’s appeared I missed that one. But finally, a new novel by C’ J. Henderson, A BLACK & EVIL TRUTH, showed up.

Moonstone books finally released Jeff Rice’s two novels in an omnibus volume,THE KOLCHAK PAPERS,which leads me to wonder if the previously mentioned “forthcoming” novel GRAND INQUISITOR was ever written. If so, One might like to see that one. Maybe an omnibus with GRAVE SECRETS?

I’d certainly be interested in more collections of stories or novels. Always had a soft spot for old Carl. Darren McGavin created one of those spot-on characters that would be hard for anyone else to pull off(witness that abominable, thankfully short-lived update).

FFB: The Caspak Series – Edgar Rice Burroughs

21 Thursday Apr 2011

Posted by Randy Johnson in Books

≈ 10 Comments

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Edgar Rice Burroughs, Forgotten Books

I recently covered THE LAND THAT TIME FORGOT for Todd Mason’s Overlooked Movies. Truly overlooked by me, the effects were cheesy even for the time of the film. It was my discovering that Michael Moorcock did the screenplay that got me to watch the film for the first time. A Moorcock script from a Burroughs novel. How could that miss? As part of my preparation, I decided to re-read the book to refresh my memory for any changes. After all, it had been something on the order of forty years or so since I first read it. I had so much fun that I jumped right into the other two volumes which comprise one story told from several viewpoints.

Bowen Tyler is our hero in the first novel. He’s aboard a liner sunk by a German U-boat during WWI(of course the Great War at the time). He rescues a young woman, Lys La Rue, from the waters, is rescued by a tug boat, which is in turn sunk by the same submarine, the survivors taken aboard. Lys was headed to Germany to marry a man who, as luck would have it, was commander of the U-boat. Tyler’s family built submarines and he knew this one intimately, allowing him to take control with the tugboat crew. A traitor amongst that crew messes with the compass and they sail south for weeks before realizing what’s happened.

Low on fuel and food, they come upon an island ringed with high cliffs and Tyler remembers old stories about an explorer’s claim, that no one believed, from a couple of hundred years before. Caprona it had been dubbed. The crew find an underground channel that allows them into the interior where they discover a land of dinosaurs, humanoids of varying degrees of development, and, finally, crude oil. They set up a factory to turn the crude into usable fuel, needed for the long trip north.

Tyler writes it all up and seals the manuscript tightly in a thermos and tosses it off the cliffs into the ocean, hoping someone would eventually find it, get it into the right hands, and come looking for them.

Which is exactly what happens.

The second book, THE PEOPLE THAT TIME FORGOT, concerns an expedition to rescue Bowen, Lys, and the crew. Tom Billings heads it up and when the yacht finds the island, he flies a small plane over the cliffs and is attacked by a pterodactyl, crashing the plane, and stranding him several hundred miles from where Bowen was thought to be. He has to make his way across the continent sized island, rescuing a young woman, Ajor, from death, traveling with her, and falling in love.

The third book, OUT OF TIME’S ABYSS, finds Bradley, last seen leaving Fort Dinosaur with a hunting expedition in THE LAND THAT TIME FORGOT, in his own adventures after being captured by winged humans and taken to their island, finding his own love, the beautiful Co-Tan, and the participants of all three books finally coming together at the end.

The novels present evolution decidedly different from the norm and we gradually learn the full story as the books go along, discovering the end result.

Pure pulp and I loved every bit of it. It had been a long time since I’d read Burroughs and I’d forgotten just how much fun his books were(well not really, just more sophisticated reading as I got older). But that little boy still lurks inside this weathered old hide and emerged in full glory. I still get it. I found one review, though, of someone who doesn’t seem to get it. He looked upon them as badly written books, racist, a juvenile mentality throughout. I think he judged them from a modern perspective and not in the times they were written. Definitely not great literature, but I like them a lot better than some more pretentious books.

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