Have we forgotten “The Man Who Loved Cat Dancing?” “Cat Dancing” is another one of my favorite “book-to-movie” westerns. A great author backstory, steamy movie-making backstory (murder!?) and then a western film that just about everyone agrees is worth watching, and numerous folks think is a classic. The simple plot events are not new. Train…
Tag: hock
The Name of the Rose, The Name of Eco
The Name of the Rose! Back in 1986, a certain new “detective movie” came out of nowhere. A certain, dramatically new “Sherlock Holmes.” The plot unlike any other – “The year is 1327. Benedictines in a wealthy Italian abbey are suspected of heresy, and Brother William of Baskerville arrives to investigate. When his delicate mission…
G. Gordon Liddy Died
As I turned on my car radio this morning, the very first line I heard was “G. Gordon Liddy died, age 90.” I once described my friend G. Gordon Liddy as a “Great American Story,” among a list of other unique folks, in a piece I had published years ago. The G-man was an FBI…
Joe Forrester, TV Street Cop
Most of my 26 years in law enforcement, I was a “street” detective, Army (many places) and Texas. I guesstimate, my patrol time is only 7 years. I started there and I ended there. In Texas, I was happy being the “consummate patrolman” as I envisioned/defined it. I was very happy on the streets in…
The Great Escapes of Pancho Villa!
My first book has been lost through time. In 1981 my “Great Escapes of Pancho Villa” was published by a small north Texas publishing company, Pennington Press. It was non-fiction and concerned itself with some terrific, death-defying escapes. When I first discovered these Villa escapes from various history books, I was amazed by…
Be A Lucky Good Writer
Charlton Heston use to say, “there are a million good actors. You have to be a lucky, good actor.” Having been involved in the book business since the 1980s, for writers, I paraphrase that line and say, “there are a million good writers, you have to be a lucky, good writer.” I have had writing…
Basically, Why I Hate Jack Reacher!
Gotcha to read this, didn’t I! Honestly? Naaah, I don’t really hate-hate-HATE the fictional character Jack Reacher or the human writer Lee Childs. I just strongly dislike Reacher stories and scratch my head about the entire Reacher “thing/series/industry.” I am far from alone. My friends and strangers ask me why? First off! Well,…
Years People! In Science Fiction!
Isn’t this the year that Blade Runner took place??? It has always been a pet peeve of mine to see the year in which science fiction authors and screen writers place their sci-fi books and movies in. They are usually way off by many decades. Centuries even. It was 1949 when Brit George…
Oh Lord, it’s hard to be humble, when you’re perfect in every way.
(What Matt Lauer Got It Right! The Proper use of the word “Humility.”) Disgraced NBC anchor Matt said, “…The last two days have forced me to take a very hard look at my own troubling flaws. It’s been humbling. I am blessed to be surrounded by the people I love.”) Oh Lord it’s Hard to…