August 2011
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The Shorts
I don’t know why this town doesn’t believe in street lights. They wouldn’t be the first small town to have them—if they did have them. But they don’t. Don’t have a bike lane, either. At night, this means bikes have to risk being mown down by cars who don’t see them, or risk mowing down pedestrians who don’t see them, either. It’s no...
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thelamplightersserenade asked: Have you read all of James Ellroy's L.A. Quartet? If so, which is your favorite one and why?
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The Pretty Boy
His thin, blonde hair was slicked back. Grooves left by the comb gleamed and begged to be placed atop a vintage monkey suit. Instead, they sat above a grey wifebeater and white shorts. When his jaw wasn’t being used to masticate chewing gum, it hung as lank and as limp as his hair would without pomade. The hair said Roaring Twenties. The rest said aimless twentysomething. It all said...
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The Good Stuff
I saw the young guy at the other end of the bar. He was just old enough to be there, but too young to know what he was doing. And what he was doing was ordering rotgut. He gagged his cheep hooch down and ordered another. He obviously didn’t enjoy it. The booze had an effect alright, but it wasn’t the one you come back to the bar for more of. It didn’t appear that the rotgut...
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vermilionborder asked: Have you finished reading "Girl With the Dragon Tattoo" & if so, what did you think of it? Also, noticed absence of Robert Crais and Michael Connelly on your list. Greatly enjoy the former and Connelly's books are very "atmospheric" (although I don't much like the H. Bosch character)..
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The Conspiracy Theorist
I didn’t like her. I didn’t like most people, but she was especially distasteful. And that was putting it mildly. The precise term was “bitch.” If Grace Kelly had her face mauled by a junkyard dog, Cora Rogers would have been the pit bull chewing Kelly’s face off. She tried to chew mine off while she was at it. If she had stopped with me, I might have merely been...
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Anonymous asked: I'm confused as to the pronunciation of noir. Is it noy-er? Or Nuwar? Or is it just pronounced like nor?
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Velda: Mike, a computer could bring some order to this office, and to your life.
Mike Hammer: I can't think of a better reason for not having one.
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“Get this, and get it straight: crime is a sucker’s road and those who...”
– Opening words from radio’s The Adventures of Philip Marlowe
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stevenforbesmartinez-deactivate asked: you might like jim thompson's the killer inside me, as well as the rest of his work
i'm into noir myself and he's one of my favorites
i'm into noir myself and he's one of my favorites
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My computer is as dead as Miles Archer
So posting may be slow for a while. A new comp is in the works, and I will be back as soon as possible. But I thank you for your patience until then. In the mean time, I’m still reading and watching lots of hardboiled and noir, so I am certainly not taking a vacation from the subject matter we all love. Updates may be sporadic until the new comp comes, but they will be forthcoming. ...
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Galoot on the Bus
I was right on time for my appointment. I’d show up a little wilted, but that couldn’t be helped. Not by me, anyway. A little air conditioning on the bus might have kept the wool suit fresher, but that was a luxury that the Pioneer Bus Line wasn’t prepared to grant. There was no fuss to be made. There was nothing to do but exit the bus.
So I moved toward the rear door. ...
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Sleep
I was tired. My throat was constricting painfully. If I didn’t sleep, I got sick. I hadn’t slept. So I laid down. I tossed and turned. I drifted off. Perchance to dream, said the Bard. Well, the dreams were hostile territory. Tasks I’d left undone, rejection by former lovers, appearances by people I detested. It wasn’t a nightmare, just thoroughly unpleasant.
I...
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Ain't Seen Her
He wanted to know if I’d seen Claudette recently. I hadn’t. And she was telling everyone she knew about it. She was the type of girl that didn’t like to be told no. So I never told her. She didn’t like that, either. But you never have good options with a broad like that. Unless you think suffocation is a good option. In which case, help yourself—she’ll...
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He Liked it That Way
[I have held on to this one for a while. I was concerned that it might be entirely too much. James M. Cain’s Serenade has convinced me otherwise. As with earlier writing, I am interested to know if fellow tumblrs think otherwise.]
Delacroix was in town. That meant more nonsense for me. I’d be well-paid for it. Doesn’t mean I had to enjoy it. Foster Delacroix thought he...
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