Saturday, June 14, 2014

First It Was the Thin Mints Melee

New York Post: A machete wielding madman stabbed three men outside of a Brooklyn catering hall, cops said.

A Blog Post of Interest (To Me, Anyway)

Ed Gorman's blog: BRASH BOOKS PRESENTS BILL CRIDER'S OUTRAGE AT BLANCO

Jimmy Scott, R. I. P.

Jimmy Scott, US jazz singer and Twin Peaks star, dies aged 88: Jimmy Scott, the US jazz singer whose haunting contralto voice won him acclaim over the course of more than seven decades, has died at the age of 88.

Available Again -- The Healer's Road by James Reasoner and Livia J. Washburn

Available Again -- The Healer's Road by James Reasoner and Livia J. Washburn: For more than thirty years, bestselling authors James Reasoner and Livia J. Washburn have chronicled the story of America in their award-winning historical novels. THE HEALER'S ROAD is one of their greatest sagas, the sweeping story of a family dedicated to the practice of medicine and caught up in the violence and heartbreak of America's bloodiest war.

10 Amazing Man-Made Underwater Discoveries

10 Amazing Man-Made Underwater Discoveries 

The Beat "Rock N Roll Girl" - YouTube

The Beat "Rock N Roll Girl" - YouTube:

10 Sci-Fi Technologies Moving Us Closer To Immortality

10 Sci-Fi Technologies Moving Us Closer To Immortality

Today's Vintage Ad


Lewis Carroll’s 4 Rules for Digesting Information and Mastering the Art of Reading

How to Learn: Lewis Carroll’s 4 Rules for Digesting Information and Mastering the Art of Reading 

10 Amazing Mythological Treasures

10 Amazing Mythological Treasures

PaperBack



Donald A. Wollheim, editor, Avon Fantasy Reader #11, 1949

6 TV Shows That Flopped Despite Having a Super Bowl Lead-In

6 TV Shows That Flopped Despite Having a Super Bowl Lead-In 

10 Notorious Pirates (Arrrrgh!)

10 Notorious Pirates (Arrrrgh!) 

A Dude Feeding the Gators. No Biggie.

The Regular ol' Tour of Louisiana's Swamps Features a Dude Feeding the Gators (Video)

Once Again Texas Leads the Way

Planned Texas water park would prohibit thongs, ‘excessively revealing’ swimwear

The Birth of Tarzan

The Birth of Tarzan 

24 Things No One Tells You About Leaving Texas

24 Things No One Tells You About Leaving Texas

Dragstrip Riot

1958 DRAGSTRIP RIOT TRAILER BAD TEENS YVONNE LIME - YouTube:

Friday, June 13, 2014

I Want to Believe!

​‘Underground oceans’ potentially have 3 times more water than surface 

I'll Just Have Some Ice Cream

1,000 People Decided To Eat One Of The Hottest Chillies In The World And It Didn't Look Fun At All

Free for Kindle For a Limited Time

Amazon.com: The Lizard's Ardent Uniform (Veridical Dreams Book 1) eBook: Patti Abbott, Evan V. Corder, Hilary Davidson, Garnett Elliott, Chris F. Holm, Terrie Farley Moran, Steve Weddle, Kyle J. Knapp, David Cranmer: Kindle Store: The Lizard's Ardent Uniform and Other Stories (Veridical Dreams Vol. I) takes you on several voyages into every day nightmares, bizarre detours, and hellish worlds. Enlisting the talents of authors Chris F. Holm (Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine), Terrie Farley Moran (Well Read, Then Dead), Patti Abbott (Home Invasion), Evan V. Corder, Steve Weddle (Needle: A Magazine of Noir), Hilary Davidson (The Damage Done), and Garnett Elliott (Alfred Hitchcock Mystery Magazine), thought-provoking fragments from the dream journals of Kyle J. Knapp (writer and poet of Pluvial Gardens and Celebrations in the Ossuary, who passed away in 2013 at the age of twenty-three) are fleshed out into seven stirring tales of crime, science fiction, literary, and fantasy. Edited and with an introduction by BEAT to a PULP's David Cranmer.

I Miss the Old Days

Early Vegas From the Air (1959)

Song of the Day

Ray Peterson - Corinna, Corinna (1960) - YouTube:

Once Again Texas Leads the Way

Texas supermarket faces $5,000 lawsuit for selling bull penis as human food  

Hat tip to Jeff Meyerson.

Or Maybe Not

45 Classic Rock Facts That Will Completely Blow Your Mind

Today's Vintage Ad


I Miss the Old Days

25 Photos Of ’80s Hairstyles So Bad They're Actually Good

Crocodile Ice Cream -- Ummmmm!

Crocodile Ice Cream Snapped Up: And Sweet Spot's Artisan Ice Cream uses crocodile eggs instead of hen eggs together with the more usual ingredients of milk, cream, sugar and flavourings to make the ice-cream. According to Sweet Spot staff, crocodile eggs are 80 percent yolk and much more nutritious than chicken’s eggs, making it a healthier choice for their ice-cream.

PaperBack



The Penguin John Lennon, Penguin, 1966

Forgotten Hits: 50 Years Ago This Weekend

Forgotten Hits: 50 Years Ago This Weekend

Just Your Typical Bachelor Party

KRQE News 13: ELEPHANT BUTTE, N.M. (KRQE) – A lot of crazy things can happen at bachelor parties, but one party at Elephant Butte Lake could make history.

Will the Persecution Never End?

Mail Online: Paris Hilton throws herself on Usher after bumping into him in New York... but he's not quite as excited  

Hat tip to Jeff Meyerson.

36 Nature Photos That Prove Texas Is Not Just Tumbleweeds

36 Nature Photos That Prove Texas Is Not Just Tumbleweeds

Dino Update

Warm blooded or cold? Dinosaurs were somewhere in between
The Snake Has All The Lines by Jean Kerr (1960)AbeBooks: Forgotten Memoirs: Life is Never Ordinary: Many memoirs, highly rated at the time of publication, slip into obscurity and fade away.  You can find them gathering dust in the corners of secondhand bookshops. But many of these books are worth dusting off. This trip around memoirs from the 1940s, 1950s and 1960s includes a few famous names such as poet Cecil Day Lewis, author Gavin Maxwell, publisher Stanley Unwin and French crooner Maurice Chevalier.  However, the majority of authors on this list will be unfamiliar to most people.

Vintage Treasures: Weird Tales #290

Vintage Treasures: Weird Tales #290

FFB: Men Without Bones -- Gerald Kersh

The title story of this collection was, at least for a time, a well-known horror tale.  Now, both Kersh and the story are pretty much forgotten.  The setup of the story is one of those that's familiar but that always works, at least for me: a man working on a banana boat in some banana republic tells us about a man who came out of the jungle with a fantastic tale to tell, a tale of men without bones.  The telling of the tale is what matters, but the snapper ending is still a good one.  It's very atmospheric and stylish and fun to read.

And speaking of style, I mentioned Kersh's style in another FFB post.  All the stories in this collection are written in a style that would probably be thought of by most readers today as antiquated.  It was probably a bit old-fashioned even when the stories originally appeared.  However, it's not as rococo as the style in The Secret Masters.  The style was fine by me.  I can adjust to styles from different eras.  I know some people can't, though.

If you're of a mind to, you can download the collection at munseys.com.

Here's the complete Toc: 
Men Without Bones
The Shady Life of Annibal
The Ape and the Mystery
The Oxoxoco Bottle
Thicker than Water
The Madwoman
The Terrible Ride of Colonel Tessier
The Dancing Doll
The Hack
Ladies or Clothes
In a Room Without Walls
Clock Without Hands
The Epistle of Simple Simon

Chances

1931 CHANCES TRAILER DOUGLAS FAIRBANKS JR. WWI - YouTube:

Thursday, June 12, 2014

Once Again Texas Leads the Way

Texas Rangers Ask Fans Not to Do Wave During Game to Prevent Injuries 

Criminal Genius of the Day

Man Tried To Sell Marijuana To Uniformed Cop 

ProTip: Never Go to a Hairdresser Who Calls Himself the Demon Barber

Hairdresser known as Demon Barber arrested for slashing man’s throat in Newcastle shop  

Hat tip to Jeff Meyerson.

Ruby Dee, R. I. P.

News from The Associated Press: Ruby Dee, an acclaimed actress and civil rights activist whose versatile career spanned stage, radio television and film, has died at age 91, according to her daughter.

First It Was the Thin Mints Melee

CBS New York: Naked Man In Wheelchair Charged In Attack On Fellow Nursing Home Patient

5 Insane Jobs People Had to Do Before Modern Technology

5 Insane Jobs People Had to Do Before Modern Technology 

Song of the Day

Big Joe Turner - Corrine, Corrina - YouTube:

Here's the Plot for Your Next Cold War-Era Thriller

Mail Online: One single switch was all that stood between the U.S. and nuclear disaster: How the U.S. Air Force accidentally dropped two ARMED hydrogen bombs on North Carolina in 1961

Today's Vintage Ad


And the Four Horsemen are Saddling Up

The metrosexual is dead. Long live the 'spornosexual'

PaperBack



Agatha Christie, Murder on the Links, Dell, 1959

Jurassic Park Update

How Industrial Light and Magic changed the movies (VIDEO).: Jurassic Park Was Almost Made Without CGI. Here’s What It Would Have Looked Like.

The 21 Greatest Moments In "Hold My Beer" History

The 21 Greatest Moments In "Hold My Beer" History

The 10 Worst Movie Taglines

The 10 Worst Movie Taglines  

Link via mental_floss.

Only in Texas, Right?

Only in Texas, Right? 

Once Again Texas Leads the Way

SEE IT: Luxury home dangles from crumbling cliff over lake in Texas 

Invasion USA

1956 INVASION USA TRAILER COLD WAR CLASSIC - YouTube:

Wednesday, June 11, 2014

Free for Kindle For a Limited Time

Amazon.com: Russian Roulette (Dev Haskell - Private Investigator Book 1) eBook: Mike Faricy: Books: Russian Roulette is the FIRST novel in the highly entertaining Dev Haskell Private Investigator mystery series. 

Bestselling author Mike Faricy kicks off his mystery series with this humorous, suspenseful tale of intrigue, rank ineptitude, and one night-stands.

Mark Finn Talks about Sailor Tom Sharkey

Mark Finn: SAILOR TOM SHARKEY ~ A LITERARY HISTORY

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

The Adventures of Sailor Tom Sharkey (Fight Card): Mark Finn: 9781499379129: Amazon.com: Books He was one of the greatest heavyweight boxers to enter the legendary squared circle during the Golden Age of Boxing. Standing a mere 5’ 8”, Sailor Tom Sharkey was one of boxing’s most feared sluggers; Gentleman Jim Corbett, Bob Fitzsimmons, Kid McCoy, and Jim Jeffries all agreed he was their fiercest opponent and gave them their toughest fights. A colorful boxer both in the ring and out, he retired in 1904 after several legendary and controversial failed attempts to win the championship belt. That’s the story you know. But it’s not the end of Sharkey’s story. Not by a long shot! In the tradition of Robert E. Howard’s humorous sailor Steve Costigan boxing tales, this action-packed collection of rowdy, bawdy burlesque feature Sailor Tom Sharkey after he hung up his professional gloves.

Here's the Plot for Your Next Cold Psycho-Killer Thriller

British murder suspects allegedly filmed themselves having sex next to a rotting corpse  

Hat tip to Jeff Meyerson.

The Best Hemingway Novels

The Best Hemingway Novels

Song of the Day

Maureen O'Hara singing The Next Market Day - YouTube:

“Underestimated” (by Joseph Wallace)

“Underestimated” (by Joseph Wallace) | SOMETHING IS GOING TO HAPPEN

The 24 Most Terrifying Places In The World To Look Down

The 24 Most Terrifying Places In The World To Look Down

He Was Standing His Ground

Arizona man arrested for shooting at moon   

Hat tip to Jeff Meyerson.

Today's Vintage Ad


Happy Birthday, William Styron: The Beloved Author on Why College Is a Waste of Time for Writers

Happy Birthday, William Styron: The Beloved Author on Why College Is a Waste of Time for Writers 

25 Most Embarrassing And Head-Scratching Mistakes Ever Made In History

25 Most Embarrassing And Head-Scratching Mistakes Ever Made In History

PaperBack



John Steinbeck, The Pastures of Heaven, Bantam, 1951

15 Shelved Movies That Were Eventually Released Years Later

15 Shelved Movies That Were Eventually Released Years Later

I Miss the Old Days

Pacific Southwest Airlines   

Best viewed as a slideshow (and it's totally worth it).

The William Tell Overture on Bottles

The William Tell Overture on Bottles 

Best Books About Scandals

Best Books About Scandals 

WINNERS: 2014 Campbell and Sturgeon Awards

WINNERS: 2014 Campbell and Sturgeon Awards - SF Signal

Martha Hyer, R. I. P.

NYTimes.com: Martha Hyer, an Oscar-nominated movie actress who starred alongside Humphrey Bogart, Dean Martin, Frank Sinatra and Shirley MacLaine in the 1950s and 1960s, died on May 31 at her home in Santa Fe, N.M. She was 89.  

Hat tip to Jeff Meyerson.

3:10 to Yuma

1957 3:10 TO YUMA TRAILER GLENN FORD - YouTube:

Tuesday, June 10, 2014

SHAMUS 2014 NOMINATIONS

SHAMUS 2014 NOMINATIONS: The Private Eye Writers of America announce the finalists for the Shamus Award for works published in 2013. 

Bob Welch, R. I. P.

Bob Welch, winner of 1990 AL Cy Young, passes away at 57 | The Strike Zone - SI.com: On Tuesday afternoon, the Oakland Athletics shocked the baseball world by announcing the sudden death of former AL Cy Young winner Bob Welch. According to the team, Welch passed away due to a heart attack on Monday night at the age of 57.  

Hat tip to Jeff Meyerson.

I'm Sure You'll All Agree

7 Best Book-To-TV Adaptations

Once Again Texas Leads the Way

Conjoined Texas twins celebrate 18th birthday  

Hat tip to Jeff Meyerson.

Song of the Day (Howlin' Wolf Born on this Date in 1910)

Howlin Wolf Smokestack Lightning - Live (1964) - YouTube:

Exaggeration Postcards

Exaggeration Postcards: Scroll down to see the best one.

Today's Vintage Ad


Yet Another List I'm Not On

9 Classic Contemporary Westerns You Need To Read

Hammett Prize Winner Announced

Mystery Fanfare: Hammett Prize Winner Announced

PaperBack



Andrew Shaw (Lawrence Block), Campus Tramp, Nightstand Books, 1959

Men Took Coffee Very Seriously In The 1950s, According To Commercials

Men Took Coffee Very Seriously In The 1950s, According To Commercials 

Once Again Texas Leads the Way

Texas school bans sunscreen because a child might drink it 

I Miss the Old Days

Flavorwire: ‘Ghostbusters’ and ‘Gremlins’ at 30: A Requiem for the Special Effects-Heavy Comedy

Yet Another List I'm Not On

2014 Longlist: The Frank O'Connor International Short Story Award

Collectible Exhibition Catalogs

Andy Warhol: A Retrospective edited by Kynaston McShineAbeBooks: Guggenheim to the Tate: Collectible Exhibition Catalogs: The world’s greatest galleries and art museums support their major exhibitions by publishing beautifully illustrated catalogs that serve two purposes – they are a lingering reminder for visitors and an object of beauty for anyone’s bookshelf.

Mona Freeman, R. I. P.

The Washington Post: Mona Freeman, a film star of the 1940s and ’50s who often played the spunky, wholesome girl next door but longed for roles as “wildcats, brazen women, the menacing side of the triangle,” died May 23 at her home in Beverly Hills, Calif. She was 87.  

Hat tip to Jeff Meyerson.

Overlooked Movies: What About Bob?

This is another of the movies that either Judy and I can refer to in passing and make the other one smile.  Bill Murray plays Bob, a psychiatric patient, and Richard Dreyfuss plays the Doctor Leo Marvin who's going to treat him.  After only one session, Bob feels that Leo is helping him, so he follows Leo and his family on vacation.  

By this time, the viewers have noticed what no one in the movie seems to realize: Bob is much better adjusted than Leo, whose problems with Bob become progressively worse.  Everyone likes Bob, especially the members of Leo's family, who don't relate very well to Leo.  Who could?  He's a clinical egomaniac, mainly concerned about his new book and his reputation.

Bob goes along blithely unaware that Leo hates him and is doing terrible things to him.  Bob thinks they're just accidents.  Every time Leo tries to get rid of them, the tricks backfire, and Leo becomes worse.  Bob just gets better. When Leo's sister falls for Bob, it's the final blow.  Leo decides to kill Bob.  Let's just say that even that doesn't work.  Bob uses methods in Leo's own book to escape.

Dreyfuss and Murray are both hilarious in this.  It's like Inspector Clouseau and Chief Inspector Dreyfus (!) all over again.  Maybe this movie's not to everyone's taste, but it makes me laugh a lot.

What About Bob?

What About Bob Movie Trailer Bill Murray - YouTube:

Monday, June 09, 2014

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

Iron Head and Other Stories (Fight Card): Jory Sherman, Carl Yonder, Paul Bishop, Jeremy L.C. Jones: 9781500135737: Amazon.com: Books Fight Card Presents: Iron Head & Other Stories is the first in a series of charity anthologies from the Fight Card authors cooperative – a writers community featuring many of today’s finest fictioneers, including Jory Sherman, Ryan McFadden, Mark Finn, Troy D. Smith, Ed Greenwood, Jack Badelaire, James Scott Bell, James Hopwood, Bowie V. Ibarra, and Matthew Pizzolato. Compiled by Paul Bishop and Jeremy L. C. Jones, 100% of the proceeds from these anthologies will go directly to an author-in-need (in this case, revered western writer Jory Sherman) or a literacy charity. Words on paper are the life blood of a writer. The writers in this volume were willing to bleed in order to give a transfusion to one of their own – and then continue to bleed to give a transfusion to literacy charities in support of that most precious of commodities ... readers. They are true fighters, every one ...