Swords, Specters, & Stuff
Welcome to My World
I started this blog in January 2012 for one simple reason: I love to write. I named it “Swords, Specters, & Stuff” because I especially love to write about writing, about books and movies in my favorite genres, about authors that mean a great deal to me. But there’s more to it than that, which is why I included “Stuff” in the title. It is “Stuff” that gives me carte blanche to write about anything, which is why you’ll see stories about special trips to Cooperstown, Sedona, and other places; about getting older; about baseball; about the otherworldly way in which I met my soul mate; about the loss of good friends, and so much more. Enjoy! And feel free to leave a comment.
Films About Writers: The Last Word
It is always a pleasure to see eighty-something Shirley MacLaine on the silver screen. Sadly, not a whole lot of people saw her perform in the 2017 comedy-drama, THE LAST WORD.
Righting Old Wrongs: The Talisman Of Okorro
Over the past few years I’ve been busy rewriting and reissuing many of my novels, the ones that were published from the late 1970s through the ’90s. Some revisions proved relatively easy; others required a good deal of effort. But nothing, nothing came close to the amount of work required in making a silk purse (hopefully) out of what I consider my most notorious sow’s ear.
Guilty Pleasures: C.H.U.D.
When I wrote about the late John Heard last week I mentioned that one of his earliest screen roles was in the 1984 horror movie, C.H.U.D. I would’ve eventually written about this weird film, given that it is one of my Guilty Pleasures—so why not now?
Remembering “Charlie Bloom”
Actor John Heard passed away a couple of weeks ago at the age of seventy-one (exactly one day younger than me). It saddened me to learn of this, given that I’ve always enjoyed his work, in particular three films that are among my (Guilty Pleasure) favorites: horror movies CAT PEOPLE and C.H.U.D., and the wonderful indie comedy-drama, THE MILAGRO BEANFIELD WAR, in which he played fallen attorney/crusading journalist Charlie Bloom.
Myths And Legends: The Ghosts Of Bachelor’s Grove Cemetery
One of the most haunted places in the U.S. is located in suburban Chicago, of all places. The Bachelor’s Grove Cemetery, abandoned over four decades ago, is surrounded by the Midlothian Forest, which sounds more apropos to Middle Earth rather than Middle America. As creepy sites go, this one has it all.
The Gill-Man: A 1950s Rock Star
The science fiction and horror movies of the 1950s more than sufficed to scare the crap out of an impressionable kid like me. Foremost among them was the Gill-Man from the 1954 Universal-International classic, CREATURE FROM THE BLACK LAGOON, even though most of us knew that the “piscine amphibious humanoid” was a guy in a rubber suit.
The Man Of A Thousand Screen Roles
In one of my books from decades past I wrote about a late Hollywood character actor named Whit Bissell and said that he had played in every movie ever made. Okay, I was kidding, just as I am with the title of this post. But in reality Bissell played many hundreds of roles in movies and television from the early 1940s until he hung up his acting shoes in the mid-’80s, quite a few of them in films that I count among my favorites.
Who Is The Real Monster?
Yes, there is an actual monster in the gripping 2016 horror film, THE MONSTER, the kind you once thought hid under your bed, or in your closet. But there is also a metaphorical monster in the person of Kathy, a Mother From Hell to ten-year-old Lizzy, who can’t wait to have her mom out of her life for good.
The Cat Will Always Be In The Cradle
In last week’s post we left Jack Miller sitting in the waiting area outside the Rock-and-Roll Afterward, wondering who could have summoned him there. I suppose, from the title of this post, that you might have figured it out. Also, you might have guessed the name of my favorite song EVER. But let’s see what the Doorkeeper has in store for Jack.
The Rock-And-Roll Afterward
In my comedy/science fiction novel, Bicycling through Space and Time (which will again be published later this year or early next year), and its two sequels, I occasionally offset the outrageous humor with chapters of a more serious—and personal—nature. Chapter twenty-four is titled, “The Afterward” and is a strong example of that.
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