A Civil War Time Machine

You've seen plenty of serial fiction over the past few years. But what about serial non-fiction?

Today my friend and mentor Jamie Malanowski (of Spy, Time and Playboy fame, as well as author of the political satire novel, The Coup) kicks off an interesting series in the New York Times: weekly, real-time updates of the Civil War story... exactly 150 years after the fact.

The first installment takes place Hallowe'en 1860, a week before the presidential election, and Republican Abraham Lincoln is duking it out with Democrat Stephen Douglas. It's a very rousing read, despite the fact that you may know how things turn out. (SPOILER ALERT: Lincoln will go on to be elected president.) That's the point, though. You can tuck away your history textbooks and fuzzy memories of junior high and experience the era "live," as it unfolded.

And, I hasten to add, there's not a vampire in sight.

This is a very cool experiment; I'll be looking forward to updates each Monday.

100 Years Ago in Philadelphia

Shorpy, my internet-based time machine of choice, featured this eye-popping photo yesterday. That's the Bellevue-Stratford in Philadelphia, exactly 100 years ago. When you click on the link, definitely open up the high-def version; the detail is unreal.

I've gone on about the Bellevue before; it's one of my favorite buildings in the city, and well worth a visit (especially if you're coming here for NoirCon). Here's how the building looks today:

Still a beaut, ain't she?

Back in Black

Tomorrow Black Widow #7, part deux of my three-issue arc, hits finer comic shops everywhere. CBR has a preview right here; hope you'll give it a kick.

For Ed Pettit

I'm guessing that when my friend Ed Pettit, a.k.a. the Philly Poe Guy, shuffles off the mortal coil and floats off to his ideal afterlife, it will be this: a huge library with a smoking section.

(Image from the Temple University Urban Archives, an amazing repository of all things vintage and historic in the City of Brotherly Love. Like them on Facebook; follow them on Twitter. Photo originally taken for the Philadelphia Bulletin on April 2, 1959.)

The Star Whackers Are Coming

This weekend I read about Randy Quaid's recent... uh, adventures in Canada, and I got a weird feeling in my stomach when I saw this note:

Apparently, Quaid and his wife fled to Canada to escape hit men who target Hollywood stars.

Many people think the Quaids are a few forks short a silverware drawer.

However, I would like to defend Mr. Quaid and his wife, because I happen to know the "Star Whackers" are real. In fact, I wrote an entire novel about them, and Mulholland Books just posted an excerpt from that novel, which I'm calling Fun and Games.

Stay strong, Quaids. Help is on the way.


(Quaid note photo from The Vancouver Sun.)

Date in Germany

Here's the cover for the German edition of my recent novel, Expiration Date, retitled Alte Feinde (Old Enemies), which is out this month. What's cool about the Heyne editions is that the same design carrying over from title to title to title. Every cover features an object; in this case, it's an hourglass. And as usual, the byline is "Duane Louis," which I've explained earlier.

Special thanks to translator Frank Dabrock, who's had to put up with my weird American-isms (and Philadelphia-isms) four books in a row now.

And not too long ago I received the very good news that Heyne will be publishing the German editions of my new trilogy--Fun and Games, Hell and Gone and Point and Shoot. Wonder if the design will carry forward, or if Heyne will come up with something else. Stay tuned!

Secret Dead Blog Recommends: Pulp History: Devil Dog

Saying the word "pulp" to me is like saying "grog and whores" to a 19th century sailor; right away you've got my attention.

Say the word "history," and I'm going to lean a little closer. See, I'm a history nerd. When not reading novels, I'm devouring books like Jonathan Eig's Get Capone and Ben Macintyre's Operation Mincemeat and Luc Sante's Low Life.

Put "pulp" and "history" together, and I'm going to pick up the book and take it to the counter and hand the store employee a credit card and then go find some quiet place to read.

Which is what I did in San Francisco this past weekend. I was browsing at City Lights (highly recommended, if you've never been) and saw a curious-looking book on the history shelves: Devil Dog: The Amazing True Story of the Man Who Saved America by David Talbot. It took me about 10 seconds of skimming before I realized that I knew the titular "Devil Dog" very well: it refers to Smedley Butler, the Marine general who was brought to Philadelphia during the mid-1920s to clean up the bootlegging rackets.

But as the cover -- and the word "pulp" -- implies, this is not a plain Jane biography of Butler. Instead you've got a shotgun blast of illustrations and comix (by the legendary Spain Rodriguez), magazine-style sidebars and call-out quotes, archival art and photos, and most importantly, sharp and action-packed writing. Of all the things to be slapped with the "pulp" label over the years, this new series (conceived by Talbot, founder and former editor-in-chief of Salon, and his sister, New Yorker writer Margaret Talbot) really earns it. Devil Dog is relentless in its attempt to entertain, stun, surprise, and -- rather subversively -- shock you with some rather nasty bits of American history.

For instance: I've done a lot of reading about Butler's Philadelphia years, but I had no idea how harrowing Butler's early military career had been. The highlights could be pulp magazine cover lines:

I WAS SHOT IN THE CHEST AND LIVED!


THEIR SEVERED HEADS WERE MOUNTED...
... ON TELEGRAPH POLES!


THE EMPRESS HAD ME STRIPPED AND OILED*

(*Note: It wasn't Butler who alleged he'd been stripped and oiled. You'll have to read the book for more.)

You get the idea, though. And while the details are sensational, Devil Dog isn't sensationalist. It's actually a cold hard shot of truth along the lines of Howard Zinn's A People's History of the United States. And Butler emerges not as a 2D pulp-style hero, but a tough, complex, flawed man determined to do the right thing, no matter the personal cost. After reading Devil Dog, I felt like I'd just watched one helluva a biopic, with blood-splattered images right out of a Scorcese film.

The good news? Pulp History is the start of a series. The second installment, Gary Kamiya's Shadow Knights: The Secret War Against Hitler, is at the top of my TBR pile right now.

The bad news: These two are it, for the time being. I have to imagine these take a while to produce, but damn do I want a whole shelf of these things right now.

(UPDATE: One weird bit of synchronicity: I just realized that David and Margaret Talbot, along with brother Stephen, are The Talbot Players, a self-described "story machine" that produces books, documentaries and films. Their offices are in Francis Ford Coppola's famous Sentinel Building in North Beach. Where did I go, after immediately purchasing Devil Dog, to have a drink and thumb through its pages? Coppola's Cafe Zoetrope, in the lobby of that same building.)

Rolling on The Rock

This weekend I took some time off from Bouchercon to visit Alcatraz, a.k.a. "The Rock."

As seen in crime classics such as Birdman of Alcatraz, Point Blank, The Enforcer, Murder in the First, and of course, The Rock.

Home to such gangland luminaries as Al Capone, "Doc" Barker and Alvin "Creepy" Karpis.

Here's a brief slideshow of my trip.

Bouchercon 2010: Yeah, I Feel Lucky, Punk

Early tomorrow morning I'm headed off to Bouchercon 2010, which this year is being held in the lovely city of San Francisco. Very happy to be seeing old degenerate friends, as well as meeting new degenerate friends. I might file a blog entry here and there... but no promises. If you want that vicarious Bouchercon feeling, your best bet is follow my Twitter posts (I'll do my best to update as much as possible) as well as the #bcon2010 hashtag. Drink while you read, and it'll be like you're there, swear to God.

And if you're going to be attending Bouchercon, don't be shy. Say hello! I'll most likely react by buying you a drink.

Noir Town, USA

Faithful Secret Dead Blog readers will know that I traveled cross-country with my family this summer. There are some more details from that trip in a short essay I wrote for Mulholland Books.

Ann-Margret vs. Sqweegel

Okay, those are four words I didn't think I'd be typing.

But it's true: Sqweegel -- or at least, a black-clad version of him -- will be making a special crossover appearance on this week's CSI (airing Thursday night at 9 p.m.)

Sqweegel, for those who are new to this blog, is the main villain from Level 26: Dark Origins, the novel I co-wrote with CSI creator Anthony E. Zuiker. The next Level 26 novel, Dark Prophecy, is out in hardcover this Thursday, and Anthony came up with the mad genius idea to have Sqweegel, a forensic-proof killer, duke it out with Nick Stokes, Catherine Willows and the rest of gang in this release-day episode.

The guest star is Ann-Margret, people. This means Sqweegel has two degrees of separation from Elvis.

I've been a longtime CSI fan, ever since the Bride turned me on to the show back in... geez, 2003? We'd gorge on the box sets, which were perfect for watching between diaper changes and feedings (our son Parker was barely a year old then). I know this sounds like retro-brown-nosing, but really: I've been hooked on CSI long before I spoke word one to my eventual collaborator. I'm not sure Anthony believes this, but it's true.

So to have a character I worked on make his TV debut is more than a little exciting. When the episode airs, I'll be at Bouchercon in San Francisco. I'm hoping to find a bar that will play the episode so I can watch while I hoist a celebratory cocktail. I hope you guys will have a chance to check it out, too. While I haven't seen the episode, my editor has -- and tells me it is scary as shit.

You can check out a preview right here.

And if you're a Level 26 fan, you should definitely order a copy rightthisminute. (The first novel is just out in paperback from Signet.)

(Photo courtesy CBS Broadcasting Inc.)

My Bouchercon Schedule

Headed to Bouchercon in San Francisco this week? Have no idea what you're going to do with your Friday? Allow me to humbly suggest two panels, one first thing in the morning, and one in the afternoon. Let's start with the eye-opener:

8:30 a.m.: The Hard Breed: Beyond Novels. Author who write more than just novels. Moderated by Jeremy Lynch. Panel: Gregg Hurwitz, Duane Swierczynski, Robert Ward, Lou Berney, Hal Ackerman. Room: Bayview A.

I think I speak for all of my co-panelists when I say that attendees with bloody mary mix will be especially welcome.

3 p.m.: Murder By Proxy: Mulholland Books Presents. Moderated by John Schoenfelder and Miriam Parker. Panel: Mark Billingham, Marcia Clark, Duane Swierczynski, Daniel Woodrell, Sebastian Rotella. Room: Grand Ballroom C.

Wow, our official coming out party.

Also, at 12:30 p.m., I'll be signing books and hanging out with Jon and Ruth Jordan at the Bouchercon 2011 table.  Jen Forbus has the complete rundown right here.

Hope you can drop by one of these three events. If not, please don't be shy about introducing yourself. I'm usually in one of two places: the book room or the hotel bar. (If they served scotch in the book room, I'd probably stay there the whole time.)

Secret Dead Blog Recommends: Following the Detectives

Place is important to me, as a writer and a reader. As much as I love Ed McBain's books, I've always had a problem with the 87th Precinct series, because I know that "Isola" is just an inverted Manhattan, and I end up trying to do the math in my head. (Wait... is this supposed to be Greenwich Village? Ah, damnit...) See, I want pieces of the real Manhattan in my crime novels, just like I want pieces of real L.A., real New York City, and real San Francisco in my film noir. There's nothing like seeing a place through the eyes of its crime writers and screenwriters.

Which is why Following the Detectives: Real Locations in Crime Fiction (New Holland Publishers), edited by Maxim Jakubowski, is such a pure delight. Jakubowski has gathered a crack team of contributors (Sarah Weinman, Barry Forshaw, Declan Burke, Martin Edwards, J. Kingston Pierce, and Philly's own Peter Rozovsky, among others) to examine 21 locales through the prism of crime fiction. You've got Ian Rankin's Edinburgh; Lawrence Block's New York City; John Harvey's Nottingham; George Pelecanos's D.C., Dashiell Hammett's San Francisco, Arthur Conan Doyle's London... as well as maps, sidebars, and photos galore. Hell, I feel like I've been to Nottingham, after Harvey's candid and revealing essay.

Sure, you could quibble about what you wish might have been included -- personally, I was hoping for Laura Lippman's Baltimore and David Goodis's Philadelphia. But a.) you've gotta draw the line somewhere, and b.) you've gotta save something for the sequel.

And here's hoping there will be a sequel, because I scarfed this baby down in one night.

This is a UK book; I found my copy via Book Depository. But you can also your local indie bookstore to order a copy for you.