Saturday, December 08, 2012

Happy Hanukkah!

Hanukkah - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia: Hanukkah (pronounced hah-nə-kə ;[1][2][3] Hebrew: חֲנֻכָּה, Tiberian: Ḥănukkāh, usually spelled חנוכה, pronounced [χanuˈka] in Modern Hebrew; a transliteration also romanized as Chanukah, Chanukkah or Chanuka), also known as the Festival of Lights, is an eight-day Jewish holiday commemorating the rededication of the Holy Temple (the Second Temple) in Jerusalem at the time of the Maccabean Revolt of the 2nd century BCE. Hanukkah is observed for eight nights and days, starting on the 25th day of Kislev according to the Hebrew calendar, which may occur at any time from late November to late December in the Gregorian calendar.

House-Eating Snails WBAGNFARB

Miami Invaded By Giant, House-Eating Snails 

Reinhold Weege, R. I. P.

latimes.com: Reinhold Weege, who created the popular Emmy-winning sitcom "Night Court" about an often-anarchic, after-hours New York courtroom and its cast of memorably loony characters, has died. He was 62.

Song of the Day

Hey Santa Claus - The Moonglows - YouTube:

Today's Vintage Ad


I Miss the Old Days

Airline Advertisements 

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Jonathan Betuel, The Dogfighter, Gold Medal, 1976

A Christmas Wish List In The 1920s

A Christmas Wish List In The 1920s

Who Could It Be?

Best Movie Santa

End of an Era . . . That You Thought Ended 20 Years Ago

Sony to discontinue the production early 2013 of Cassette Player/ Recorder 

This Could Be the Beginning of a Whole Series of SyFy Movies

FWC announces '2013 Python Challenge' in hunting the invasive snakes: Beginning on January 12, Florida's python permit holders and the general public are invited to compete to see who can harvest the longest and the most Burmese pythons.

Once Again Texas Leads the Way

6 Most Burgled Cities, Is Yours One?

I For One Welcome Our New Gill-Bearing Masters

Catfish Have Learned How To Hunt Pigeons

Earthquake

Earthquake Official Trailer #1 - Charlton Heston Movie (1974) HD - YouTube:

Friday, December 07, 2012

New Webzine

Michael Moorcock's New Worlds

Link via Boing Boing.

Beacon spotlights Pearl Harbor ceremony

Beacon spotlights Pearl Harbor ceremony

Photos at the link.
Hat tip to Art Scott.

Once Again Texas Leads the Way

Golfer breaks world record for longest club, connecting with 14-foot driver

Hat tip to Jeff Meyerson.

24 Moving Photos From The 71st Anniversary of Pearl Harbor

24 Moving Photos From The 71st Anniversary of Pearl Harbor

Song of the Day

Xmas Bell Rock - Barry & The Highlights - Baye 511 - YouTube:

Good Doggie

Couple shocked as dog brings home alligator head

Today's Vintage Ad


Even Weirder than Texas?

Florida weird news: 2012 year in review: The year's 20 weirdest stories from Florida, America's weirdest state

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Edward D. Hoch, The Fellowship of the Hand, Tower, 1973

Can Texas Really Secede From The Union?

Can Texas Really Secede From The Union?

First It Was the Thin Mints Melee . . .

. . . and not the spoon attack!

Spoon attack stirs up trouble in Vero Beach

Hat tip to Jeff Meyerson.

Will the Persecution Never End?

Paris Hilton and her toyboy lover can't keep their hands or lips off each other at a Miami Beach barbecue

Hat tip to Jeff Meyerson.

Question of the Day

Why Don't Parents Name Their Daughters Mary Anymore?

Book a Seat Now!

The Washington Post: It had to happen: A start-up company is offering rides to the moon. Book your seat now — though it’s going to set you back $750 million (it’s unclear if that includes baggage fees).

The Best Holiday Episodes of Our Favorite ’90s TV Shows

The Best Holiday Episodes of Our Favorite ’90s TV Shows

I'll Just Have One of Those Little Sausages on a Toothpick

The Rare Pleasure of Cod Semen in San Francisco: Chef Corey Lee decided to serve a liquified version of cod sperm in shot glasses as a passed appetizer.

Forgotten Books: A Memory of Murder -- Ray Bradbury

This is Ray Bradbury week on Forgotten Books.  I did a post on a Bradbury book about one year ago, so I'm reprinting that post with a couple of small changes.

A Memory of Murder has been out of print since 1984, so I figure it's at least as forgotten as any Bradbury book. If there's a more recent edition, let us know in the comments.

This is a collection of Bradbury's very early crime stories, some of his first fiction sales. It comes complete with a short but revealing introduction that explains why the book is dedicated to Leigh Brackett.

One of the stories in the book, "Small Assassin," is likely to be familiar to a lot of readers, but that's the only one. The others, from places like Dime Mystery Magazine and Detective Tales, probably aren't. These aren't great stories, but they're interesting if you care about the development of a young writer who really hit his stride a few years after their publication. Not essential, but certainly worth a little of your time.

Pearl Harbor

Pearl Harbor - Trailer - YouTube:

Thursday, December 06, 2012

Croc Update (Caught in the Gob Edition)

'My leg was in the croc's gob': Australian woman mauled by crocodile reveals how she fought free from the beast's jaws 

This Is Why 911 Was Created

Burglar calls 911 to save himself from gun-wielding homeowner

Yet Another List I'm Not On

Books of the year: Page turners | The Economist: Books of the year Page turners The best books of 2012 were about Richard Burton, Titian, Rin Tin Tin, the revolution in Iran, the great famine in China, secret houses in London, good oil companies, bad pharma and management in ten words

Hat tip to George Kelley.

First It Was the Thin Mints Melee . . .

Father-son reunion at liquor store ends with dad running from gun shots 

Buy My Books!

Gabby Darbins and the Slide-Rock Bolter (Rancho Diablo)Gabby Darbins and the Slide-Rock Bolter (Rancho Diablo): Colby Jackson, Mel Odom, Bill Crider, James Reasoner: Amazon.com: Kindle Store: Gabby Darbins heads for Pike's Peak country to find gold. He finds more than he bargained for, including gunfights, conniving women, and the terrifying slide-rock bolter!

Song of the Day

Kenny Vance & The Planotones - Doo-Wop Christmas - YouTube:

It's Not Too Late . . .

. . . to order signed copies of my books from Murder by the Book in Houston.  I'll be signing there on Saturday, December 8, from 4:00 P. M. until 5:00 P. M.  Come by and say "hey" if you can, but otherwise, just call 'em up and have 'em get me to sign a copy of something for you.

Today's Vintage Ad


Top 10 Everything of 2012

Top 10 Everything of 2012, and it's all in annoying slideshow format.

PaperBack



William Goldman, Your Turn to Curtsy My Turn to Bow, Bantam 1965

Music History #13: “Midnight Rambler”

Music History #13: “Midnight Rambler” 

Paging Sheriff Rhodes

Lamar Fleming Middle School: Loose goat captured after chases students trying to bite and headbutt

Hat tip to Jeff Meyerson.

The 50 Most Popular Women On The Web (According To Google) 2012

The 50 Most Popular Women On The Web (According To Google) 2012 �

Yes, it's a slideshow and borderline NSFW, and I'm linking to it only because a certain PH is at #11, up 8 places from last year.  Can the persecution be ending?

Not That There's Anything Wrong with That

Man pulled over while driving with traffic sign in his head|

AbeBooks’ Most Expensive Sales in November 2012

AbeBooks’ Most Expensive Sales in November 2012: Our most expensive sales during November 2012 featured a book of paintings by Belgian artist and botanist Pierre-Joseph Redouté, who was so famous for his watercolors of roses, lilies and other flowers that he was dubbed the “The Raphael of Flowers."  A copy of his most famous publication Les Roses sold for $28,000.

Wolf Creek: Murder in Dogleg City Now Available at Amazon

Western Fictioneers: Wolf Creek: Murder in Dogleg City Now Available at Amazon

The 12 Lousiest Christmas Movies Ever Made

The 12 Lousiest Christmas Movies Ever Made

Set 'em up, Joe!

Beer is good for you: study finds anti-virus powers 

And Keep Off His Lawn!

News - Home: LEAGUE CITY, Texas - A homeowner put his karate skills to use on an armed man who may have been on bath salts when he tried to break into a home, investigators said.

Hat tip to Jeff Meyerson.

Family Plot

Family Plot Official Trailer #1 - Bruce Dern Movie (1976) HD - YouTube:

Wednesday, December 05, 2012

No Comment Department

Nic Cage Is Also The Virgin Mary

I Wasn't the Guy

 Las Vegas Sun News: Wednesday night and again Saturday, ZZ Top headlines at House of Blues at Mandalay Bay. The Vegas HOB outpost seats about 1,800, so it should be a rockin’ good time in close quarters, a lot less sprawling than the Indy Speedway but more lively than the night in Alvin, Texas, when the band played for just one guy. 

“It’s a story that’s been around some, but, yeah, we were playing the armory in Alvin, one of these hamlets we used to play, doing one of our first shows as a band (in 1970),” Hill says. “We went into the place, the curtain opened, and one guy was standing out there. He didn’t even have a date. He thought he was in the wrong place. We bought him a Coke and played a whole set for one guy.” 

Fifteen years later, during a sold-out show at the Summit Arena in Houston, the guy sent a note backstage to ZZ Top. 

“We saw him again and invited him backstage and met him,” Hill recalls. “That really happened. We played the places with the chicken wire up in front of the stage. That’s the way it was.”

Hat tip to Fred Zackel.

First It Was the Thin Mints Melee . . .

Assault allegedly spurred by incorrect McDonald's order 

Hat tip to Patrick Golden.

It's About Time

Ed Gorman's blog: FNALLY ALL THE JOHN Ds TO BE BACK IN PRINT

Dave Brubeck, R. I. P.

Dave Brubeck, worldwide ambassador of jazz, dies at 91 - The Washington Post: Dave Brubeck, a jazz pianist who had unparalleled commercial success, expanding musical boundaries with his daring compositions and carrying jazz throughout the world on tours sponsored by the State Department, died Dec. 5 at a hospital in Norwalk, Conn. He died one day before his 92nd birthday.

First It Was the Thin Mints Melee . . .

Long Island man arrested after shooting girlfriend over argument over possibility of zombie apocalypse like one on TV's 'The Walking Dead'

Hat tip to Art Scott.

Looking Back on a Half-Century Love Affair with EQMM

“Looking Back on a Half-Century Love Affair with EQMM” (by Josh Pachter) | SOMETHING IS GOING TO HAPPEN

Song of the Day

Sure, you're already tired of hearing Christmas songs, but I'm going to be running some you haven't heard in a while.  If ever.

Lloyd Price - Merry Christmas Momma - YouTube:

10 Most Bizarre Calendars for 2013

Book Dirt: 10 Most Bizarre Calendars for 2013

First It Was the Thin Mints Melee . . .

Handyman Held Hostage In Morgan Hill, Forced To Fix Home

The Siren Depths -- Martha Wells

I've read and enjoyed the first two books in Martha Well's series of planetary romances about the Three Worlds.  (You can check out my comments on The Cloud Roads and The Serpent Sea here and here.)  The tell the story of Moon, a member of a shape-shifting race known as the Raksura, though he's not fully aware of this at first.  In fact, his origins remain obscure in both the first and second books.  We learn that he's a feral soliatary, a wanderer who lives at times with the groundlings, who always expel him when they learn what he truly is.

In The Siren Depths we finally learn the truth of Moon's origins when another court (Opal Night) of the Raksura claims him from the court that has adopted him.  No longer a solitary whom no one wanted, Moon becomes wanted by two groups, though he's unsure about both of them.  He finds out how he came to be a solitary, and he learns some other things about his beginnings.  But there's more to the story.  Moon isn't sure he's getting the whole truth from the court of Opal Night, and he's right.  There are deeper and darker truths lurking in the siren depths, truths about not only Moon but about the Fell, the race that preys on the Raksura.  And about something more.

Wells does outstanding world building, and the Three Worlds setting is as vivid and as real as the house next door in spite of its strangeness.  The characters are real, too, and a pleasure to read about.  There's adventure here, with battles in the air and in the depths, and there's a thoughtful approach to the problems that the characters encounter.  This may or may not be the final book in the series, but if it is, it's a fine way to conclude the story of Moon and the Raksura.  I recommend that you start at the beginning of the saga, if you haven't already, and read all three books for a gratifying escape to a world of wonders.

Today's Vintage Ad


Who You Callin' Older?

Why older people fall for scams: It's all in the brain

15 Incredible Color Photographs from a Lost Age

15 Incredible Color Photographs from a Lost Age

The Top 10 Charles Dickens Books

The Top 10 Charles Dickens Books

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Michael Crichton, Westworld, Bantam, 1974

Once Again Texas Leads the Way

Mail Online: Scorned ex-girlfriend 'ran over his MOTHER with her car' before texting former lover 'How's life LOL'

Hat tip to Jeff Meyerson.

And Keep Off His Lawn!

Retired cowboy, 79, stops intruder high on bath salts using a quick karate chop-punch

Hat tip to Jeff Meyerson.

Mug Shots: Notorious Women

Mug Shots: Notorious Women 

For the Hardboiled Dames on Your Christmas List

Great Britain Knuckleduster Clutch

I Miss the Old Days

Retrospace: Vintage Style #35: Men's Fashion Ads

So We've Come to This

Seminole High School locked down after student brings mercury-filled thermometer to class for chemistry project

And the Winner Is . . . .

Bad Sex Award Winner

The 6 Luckiest Near-Death Experiences Ever Caught on Camera

The 6 Luckiest Near-Death Experiences Ever Caught on Camera

Major Dundee

Major Dundee Trailer - YouTube:

Tuesday, December 04, 2012

Why second-hand bookshops are just my type

Why second-hand bookshops are just my type 

With a photo to get your blood racing.

Criminal Genius of the Day

Robbery suspect brags on YouTube

Getting the Poop through Poop

UMass geoscientists study ‘Viking poop’ to understand climate, prehistory 

Max Allan Collins Ranks the James Bond Films

Ranking the James Bond Films

The Astonishing Transparent Frogs WBAGNFARB

Glass frog: The astonishing transparent frogs of Costa Rica's cloud forest 

Uh-Oh

Woman's running nose revealed to be leaking brain fluid

Hat tip to Art Scott.

Song of the Day

Billy Ward and The Dominos - Star Dust - YouTube:

Henry Miller’s Reflections on Writing

Henry Miller’s Reflections on Writing 

Today's Vintage Ad


Kurt Vonnegut term paper assignment

Kurt Vonnegut term paper assignment from the Iowa Writers’ Workshop

10 Sinister Origins of Nursery Rhymes

10 Sinister Origins of Nursery Rhymes

PaperBack



William Goldman, Soldier in the Rain, Dell, 1963

19 People Who Are Having A Way Worse Day Than You

19 People Who Are Having A Way Worse Day Than You

2013 Calendars for Book Nerds

2013 Calendars for Book Nerds

Link via SF Signal.

The 5 Most Baffling Genres of Romance Novel

The 5 Most Baffling Genres of Romance Novel

10 Famous Writers on How to Read

10 Famous Writers on How to Read

Sounds Reasonable to Me

Rev. Bobby Gass: That Cocaine Wasn't Mine -- I Found it in the Church Parking Lot!

Ranked: Rolling Stones Albums From Best to Worst

Ranked: Rolling Stones Albums From Best to Worst

Overlooked Movies, Part 2

10 (Almost) Forgotten Made-For-TV Biopics

Overlooked Movies: Soldier in the Rain

While on my military comedy theme, here's one that I really liked, though it probably wasn't as good as I thought.  It's also as much a drama as a comedy, with a sentimental ending.

The casting of the top-billed McQueen and Gleason is interesting, since McQueen plays the exuberant balls-to-the wall guy and Gleason underplays his own role.  McQueen is the not-too-bright hick, a schemer who hates the army and can't wait to get out.  Gleason's the staid career guy.  The movie's really a buddy film about their relationship as much as it's about anything.  The wild plotting of a military comedy like Wake Me When It's Over is absent. There's not much of a plot at all.

And speaking of casting, Tuesday Weld is really good in this, as she was in a lot of things.  Her relationship with Gleason is very well done.  

I don't know how well the ending would work now, but I thought it was pretty cool 50-something years ago.  I bought the book shortly after seeing the movie and immediately became a William Goldman fan.  I checked Netflix, and the movie's not available through that service.  Too bad, as it's another one I'd really like to see again.

Chris Noel in Soldier in the Rain

Chris Noel in Soldier in the Rain - YouTube:

Monday, December 03, 2012

Once Again Texas Leads the Way

Houston's Economy Ranked Number One in the U.S., 40th in the World 

A Guy's Gotta Make a Living Somehow

Police: Man Robs Bank 55 Minutes After Getting Released From Jail

Borrow My Books!

The Blacklin County Files
If you have a Kindle and are a member of Amazon Prime, you can borrow my books for free.  You don't have to read them.  Just borrow them. Amazon wants to make me rich by paying me for this!

The Blacklin County Files: Bill Crider, Judy Crider: Amazon.com: Kindle Store: For Kindle Device Owners With your Amazon Prime membership, you can borrow this book for free from your Kindle device. With Prime, Kindle owners can choose from over 145,000 titles to borrow for free – including all seven Harry Potter books and more than 100 current and former New York Times Bestsellers – as frequently as a book a month, with no due dates. Learn more about Kindle Owners' Lending Library.

8 Rock Stars With Numerous Splits

Musician Divorce: 8 Rock Stars With Numerous Splits

Hat tip to Jeff Meyerson.

Song of the Day

Billy Lee Riley, Flying Saucer Rock & Roll Alt - YouTube:

First It Was the Thin Mints Melee . . .

Guest TV host sets magician's head on fire 

Today's Vintage Ad


Librarians uncovered

Librarians uncovered

A Sincere Homage to Larry Fine

A Sincere Homage to Larry Fine 

PaperBack



Milt Gross, He Done Her Wrong, Dell, 1967

Ethan Iverson's Lengthy Essay on Charles Willeford

It's well worth your time.  Plus there are interviews with Don Herron and Ray Banks.

Nothing is Inchoate, or, "When Did You Get Interested in Abused Children, Helen?" - Do The Math

MWA Announces 2013 Grand Masters


Mystery Writers of America Announces Ken Follett & Margaret Maron  as their 2013 Grand Masters 

Archaeology Update

Engraved Stone Dating Back 30,000 Years Found in China 

Cursive Update

Typing replaces handwriting: Philip Hensher’s The Missing Ink, reviewed.

Not That There's Anything Wrong with That

Parents Increasingly Naming Children Apple, Mac and Siri

Famous Actors Reading Holiday Stories

Famous Actors Reading Holiday Stories

8 Banned Children's Toys From Yesteryear

8 Banned Children's Toys From Yesteryear

And Keep Off Her Lawn!

Gun-toting granny in Virginia Beach now sleeps with hatchet for protection

First It Was the Thin Mints Melee . . .

Police: Man threatened with hatchet on Thanksgiving over Trivial Pursuit question 

Uh-Oh

The Guardian: Former OED editor covertly deleted thousands of words, book claims Efforts to rewrite the dictionary in the 70s and 80s to omit entries with foreign origins described as 'really shocking' by author

At This Point It Wouid Be a Surprise if Gators Weren't Involved

Alligator guards cannabis: Man uses TWO ALLIGATORS to guard his marijuana 

Genghis Khan

Genghis Khan trailer - Charlton Heston, Pat Morita, et al - YouTube:

Sunday, December 02, 2012

PimPage: An Occasional Feature in Which I Call Attention to Books of Interest

The Knockout (Fight Card)The Knockout (Fight Card): Jack Tunney, Paul Bishop, Mel Odom, Robert J. Randisi: Amazon.com: Kindle Store: Brooklyn, 1954 Frankie ‘The Piston’ Corleone was an up-and-coming light heavyweight fighter until a broken hand took him out of contention. Now, Frankie works as a private eye, occasionally taking sparring work to stay in shape make ends meet. 

Cappy O’Brien has trained a lot of fighters, including Frankie. But Cappy has never had a real contender until now ... Candy Marquez is the real deal, and after being battered by Marquez during several rounds of sparring, Frankie has to agree. But the fight game is as crooked as a dog’s hind leg, and other trainers and the mob all want a piece of Cappy’s best prospect. 

When Cappy winds up dead, it’s time for Frankie to take off the gloves and take The Piston’s punching power to the street to knockout a killer ...

Latest Getting Away With Murder Now On-line

GETTING AWAY WITH MURDER #73 DECEMBER 2013

Nero Award


The Nero Award is presented each year to an author for the best American Mystery written in the tradition of Rex Stout's Nero Wolfe stories. It is presented at the Black Orchid Banquet, traditionally held on the first Saturday in December in New York City. The "Nero" is considered one of the premier awards granted to authors of crime fiction.


This year, the winner is Dana Stabenow for Though Not Dead (Minotaur Books, an imprint of St. Martin's Publishing Group). Her award was presented by Jane K. Cleland, chair of the Wolfe Pack's literary awards.
The Black Orchid Novella Award is presented jointly by The Wolfe Pack andAlfred Hitchcock Mystery Magazine to celebrate the Novella format popularized by Rex Stout. This year's winner is Robert Lopresti for "The Red Envelope." 
About the Wolfe Pack
The Wolfe Pack, founded in 1977, is a forum to discuss, explore, and enjoy the 72 Nero Wolfe books and novellas written by Rex Stout. The organization promotes fellowship and extends friendship to those who enjoy these great literary works of mystery through a series of events, book discussions, and a journal devoted to the study of the genius detective, Nero Wolfe, and his intrepid assistant, Archie Goodwin. The organization has more than 500 members worldwide.

Song of the Day

Uncloudy Day - YouTube:

Free Today for Kindle

To the Devil, My RegardsTo the Devil, My Regards: Anthony Neil Smith, Victor Gischler: Amazon.com: Kindle Store: Z.Z. DelPresto is a ne'er-do-well private eye who stumbles into trouble along the beaches of Alabama and Florida. But this time he may have waded out too far. The evidence appears to show him killing the seventeen-year-old girl he'd fallen for. But Z.Z. knows good and well he didn't do it, and now he's in the fight of his life to prove it. Throw in the girl's rich and ruthless parents, some cops who have been trying to put DelPresto away for years, a topless tourist and a stuttering psychic who knows all of tomorrow's sports scores today, and you have a story you just can't put down. Combine Gischler's colorful eccentricity with Smith's grinding noir, and you end up with this unique novella: To the Devil, My Regards. Originally published in 2001, Gischler and Smith now bring this crazy tale to Kindle, with a new cover by "Pokerben" Springer.

Today's Vintage Ad


Top 10 Legendary Lost Worlds

Top 10 Legendary Lost Worlds

Perfectly Understandable

Zombies are among reasons for increased gun sales 

PaperBack



Syd Hoff, From Bed to Nurse or What a Way to Die, Dell, 1963

The Ten Most Beautiful School Libraries In The World

The Ten Most Beautiful School Libraries In The World

I Miss the Old Days

All the fun of the fairground: Nostalgic set of photos capture the fun, frivolity and Ferris wheels at the 1941 Vermont State Fair 

Hat tip to Jeff Meyerson.

I Miss the Old Days

Vintage Cazal Sunglasses Ads, Catalogs and Promo Stuff from the 80s & 90s

I'm Sure You'll All Agree

Top Ten Fantasy Authors

100 most popular baby names of 2012

100 most popular baby names of 2012

Bizarre Movie Theaters from All Over the World

Bizarre Movie Theaters from All Over the World

Vertigo

Vertigo Official Trailer #1 - James Stewart Movie (1958) HD - YouTube: