When Philadelphia Ruled the Skies

I stumbled across this amazing illustration while browsing the online Popular Graphic Arts collection at the Library of Congress. (I figure if you're going to procrastinate, might as well do something more constructive than play Angry Birds.) The listing doesn't specify where this originally appeared; the name on the shelf list card is "Webster & Hunter." But it does reminds me of those beautiful, elaborate illustrations that used to appear in Joseph Pulitzer's New York World. Click on the image above for a much more detailed look.

Once upon a time, Philly had the world's tallest habitable building -- our City Hall -- and kept that title until 1908. The other buildings weren't too shabby, either... though I wonder how many still exist. Just off the top of my head, I know the Masonic Temple (#10) and Land Title Building (#15) are still around, and of course they haven't torn down either City Hall or Independence Hall (#9). But the others...? Feel free to share in the comments section, especially if you know where this illustration may have first appeared.

(Illustration courtesy the Popular Graphic Arts collection, Library of Congress.)

Forthcoming Awesome from Stark House

Stark House Press, those fine purveyors of pulp and hardboiled reprints (and recently, some badass originals) have cool stuff headed our way. First up: two Peter Rabe books that have never seen the light of day: The Silent Wall and The Return of Marvin Palaver, as well as a short story called "Hard Case Redhead." From the Stark House press release:

Shortly before his death in 1990, Rabe had sent these manuscripts to friend and author Ed Gorman, who’s had them in his possession until now.  We’re ecstatic to be the ones who are finally bringing these books, along with the short story “Hard Case Redhead,” into the world.  In “Redhead,” two thieves and their uninvited guest try to wait out the aftermath of a troublesome heist.  It’s hard-boiled and noir and shows that Rabe could write just as well at shorter lengths.

Kind of makes you wonder what other pulp goodies are hiding out in the secret underground lair of Ed Gorman... right next to the giant penny and the huge dinosaur, of course. (Just kidding, Ed.) (Sort of.)

Stark House will also be publishing a two-in-one edition of Gang Girl and Sex Bum by "Don Elliott," who you SF-heads might recognize as the 1960s sleaze paperback pen name of Robert Silverberg.

And finally, Stark House is kicking off their own book club, promising free shipping, no minimum, no obligation to buy. For details you can e-mail Stark House publisher Greg Shepard at griffinskye3 [AT] sbcglobal.net or visit www.starkhousepresscom.

Planes, Trains and Russian Super-Spies

Just in time for your Thanksgiving holiday reading needs, Black Widow #8 is available in finer comic shops everywhere. (CBR has a preview right here.) It's the conclusion of my first arc, "Kiss or Kill," and cues up the action in Widowmaker, my Widow/Hawkeye/Mockingbird crossover with Jim McCann.

105 Years Ago in Philadelphia

Here's one of my favorite Philadelphia images from Shorpy.com: the 1905 view from Broad and Spruce streets, with City Hall in the distance, as well as the Academy of Music and the Bellevue-Stratford on the left. (If you were here for NoirCon, and you stayed/drank at the Doubletree Hotel, you were one block up the street.)

 Here's the view from almost the same spot today:

A Drink to Wash Down the Noir

Some say noir is the literature of "no hope." So naturally, a bunch of us are doing a Philadelphia Noir signing in New Hope, PA. This Friday night, editor Carlin Romano will be gathering Noir contributors Cordelia Frances Biddle, Diane Ayres, Dennis Tafoya, Jim Zervanos and yours truly for a special reading and signing party at Marcella's, 7 E. Ferry Street, at 7 p.m. The night is hosted by the awesome folks at Farley's Bookshop, who ran the book tables at NoirCon 2010 a few weeks ago. You can find more details about the event right here.

Best of all: buy a copy of the book, and Farley's will buy you a glass of champagne or wine.

Somehow, I think I forgot to blog about Philadelphia Noir. I'm very proud of my contribution, "Lonergan's Girl," which is set in 1924, making it my first stab at historical crime fiction. (The story is also a prequel to a full-fledged Prohibition-era Philly crime novel I've been writing/researching.) And I'm very proud to be in the company of writers like Tafoya, Romano, Ayres, Biddle and Zervanos, among other usual (and unusual) suspects.

If you're anywhere near scenic New Hope this Friday night, I hope you'll stop by and say hello.

Deadpool and Cable, Together Again

Wait... is this Deadpool, the Merc with a Mouth? Or is it Cable, the time-traveling mutant with the pouch-and-oversized-gun fetish? Could it be both? In the same body? You'll find out in February when you buy multiple copies of...

DEADPOOL & CABLE #26
Written by DUANE SWIERCZYNSKI
Penciled by LEO FERNANDEZ
Cover by DAVE WILKINS
 
Cable is dead, and no one’s more devastated than his old friend and partner, Deadpool (a.k.a. Wade Wilson, a.k.a. the Merc With the Mouth, a.k.a. the guy who’s in pretty much every other solicit this month). Sitting by Cable’s grave, Deadpool struggles to find the perfect way to honor his fallen mutant pal. Then… light bulb! Deadpool remembers Rumekistan, the troubled and totally fictional European country that Cable once tried to turn into a Utopia on earth. Deadpool travels there to establish up a Cable museum! A Cable amusement park! A Cable cable TV show! But Rumekistan isn’t quite what it used to be, and Deadpool’s appearance only makes things worse. To set things right, Deadpool will have to do more than just honor his old friend -- he must become him!
 
40 PGS./Parental Advisory …$3.99 

(God, do I love this Dave Wilkins cover.)

The Real Boardwalk Empire

An aerial view of hotels along the Atlantic City, NJ board during the late 1920s. (Click on the photo for a larger view.) Don't know if you're as smitten with HBO's Boardwalk Empire as I am... but either way, it's a rush to see the real thing. I've been to the A.C. boardwalk this past summer, and let me tell ya: it don't look like this no more.

I found this photo in an online collection at the website of The Library Company of Philadelphia, which is a motherlode for Philly history nerds. (If you dig aerials, definitely check out the Aero Service Negative collection right here.) Wait until you see the Philly waterfront photos I dug up...

Friday at NoirCon 2010

Not everyone is lucky enough to be hanging in Philadelphia this weekend, so pay attention to this space (and my Twitter feed at twitter.com/swierczy) for updates throughout the weeekend. First up: the notorious "noir and porn" panel at 9 a.m. Because there's nothing better than noir and porn for breakfast.

NoirCon, Pre and Post

NoirCon kicks off in Philadelphia this Thursday, and I couldn't be more excited. Bouchercon is always a blast, but there's something to be said for the smaller, more intimate cons.

If you're anywhere near Philadelphia... or could be!... it's not too late. You can still register and hang out with crime fiction superstars like Megan Abbott, Scott Phillips, George Pelecanos, Christa Faust, Daniel Woodrell and Reed Farrel Coleman (to name just a few). The program is action-packed. The conversation (and drinks) will be flowing. All this, and the City of Brotherly Love, too!

There are also two NoirCon-related, off-campus events I want to mention (and no registration required:

This Wednesday night, NoirCon Eve, Mike White will be signing his fantastic Impossibly Funky: A Cashiers Du Cinemart Collection, at Brickbat Books (7 p.m., 709 South Fourth Street, Philadelphia PA 19147). Packed with groovy film writing, Funky also includes some mighty fine pieces on David Goodis, James Ellroy and Richard Stark's Parker novels. Secret Dead Blog approves.

And then on Sunday afternoon, Philadelphia Noir editor Carlin Romano along with a whole gaggle of contributors, including yours truly, Dennis Tafoya, Meredith Anthony, Keith Gilman and Jim Zervanos, will be reading/signing/hanging at the Moonstone Arts Center (a.k.a. Robin's Books). The event starts at 2 p.m., right around the time your hangover will start to wear off.

If you're attending any part of NoirCon, sound off in the comments section. And if not, check this blog and my Twitter feed (twitter.com/swierczy) for updates straight from the underbelly of the con.