Essential Paperback & Audiobooks to Own : Feb 2024 Edition – The Essential Marc Olden!

 

 

 

 

 

 

For those of you new to this blog I am a huge fan of men’s adventure pulps/paperbacks of the 70s and 80s. The 70s and 80s explosion of Men’s adventure mags was a revival of sorts of the pulp craze of the 30s and 40s that featured such characters as THE SHADOW, DOC SAVAGE, and THE SPIDER; but the 70s replaced the more costumed and fantastical elements, with a more militarized protagonist. Gone was the rich self-directed playboy vigilante, and instead you had these built weapons, these blunt weapons, conscripted into various agencies and their hidden shadow wars against enemies beyond the reach of traditional law enforcement.

Ian Fleming’s 14 book series James Bond, is in many ways its own age and genre of pulp, running from 1953 to 1967, it bridges the gap from the 30-40s pulps, and its success gives birth and creates the mold for the 70s/80s pulps.

Of these 70s, 80s pulps, I was introduced to the genre with THE EXECUTIONER MACK BOLAN (A long lived series starting in 1969, Don Pendleton wrote 37 of the first books before selling the series, which has continued into the 21st century) followed by the DESTROYER: REMO WILLIAMS books (one of my favorites, this series started in 1971 by the prolific and talented Warren Murphy. Arguably one of the most successful and longest running men’s adventure pulps, it continues to this day in various formats ) and have sampled many other takes on this genre since, but without doubt my favorite of this bunch is one of  the shortest lived… Marc Olden’s BLACK SAMURAI.

Marc Olden’s BLACK SAMURAI which ran for only eight books. But my gosh, what an eight books! What is amazing about these books, besides how great each one is, is how prolific Marc Olden was. He wrote and had published the first five books in THE SAME YEAR!!! And then the last three books in the next year. Eight books running from 1974 to 1975, The books by all reports sold well, before the publication inexplicably ended.

But despite their relatively short publishing life, these books stand out as the height of the medium; brilliantly written, with a veracity in terms of the action scenes (Marc Olden in addition to being a great writer was a life-long martial artist) and an empathy in terms of the characters, that was novel in a Men’s Action genre that dealt typically in stereotypes.

I had the great pleasure to do an interview with Diane Crafford (Marc’s Partner) regarding Marc Olden, I direct you to that earlier interview on this blog, but suffice to say he was a fantastic writer, and would go on to write several works outside of the BLACK SAMURAI franchise, two of which I consider absolute masterpieces, POE MUST DIE and BOOK OF SHADOWS.

However his BLACK SAMURAI series for me stands as some of the best and most beautiful of a very specific period of time; and those original Signet paperbacks, with those beautiful painted covers, are woefully and criminally out of print. And yes you can still pick these up in ebook form, and even in a newer trade format, but you really need to read that book with that Signet Art, that Signet aesthetic, as it properly sets the stage for the work within.

I hope this series gets a new printing that will do what those original Signet paperbacks did, be works of art inside and out. But till that happens I HIGHLY recommend using the links to pick up these Signet paperbacks while you can. Purchasing thru the links earn this Blog a few appreciated pennies, but whether you use the links or get these offline, I strongly urge getting them. These books are like the protagonist of the series, Robert Sands, the best of a time and a place.

 

In addition to picking up the SIGNET paperbacks from 1974 and 1975, the eight audio books are fantastic! With a great voice actor bring to life the escapades of Robert Sand’s BLACK SAMURAI. Don’t let the audio books disappear on you like the paperbacks have, Pick them up today! And you can also pic up the aforementioned POE MUST DIE and BOOK OF SHADOWS in their original paperback versions and in audio-book form. Voice actor is brilliant here as well, so these are must own. I’ll put links to those up as well. (There seems to be various audio book versions, so I can’t speak on the quality of the new ones. I’ll provide a link to the ones I have checked out and recommend.)

 

 

 

Most Disappointing Movie of 2024?? The acclaimed WHEN EVIL LURKS???

 

 

So yes WHEN EVIL LURKS is a 2023 Horror Movie that made MANY Best of the year lists. Directed by Demian Rugna who got on my radar I think in 2021 or  2022 when his 2017 film TERRIFIED finally made it on to SHUDDER. Not the crappy Torture Porn clown films called TERRIFIER, I’m talking about Rugna’s beautifully made, sensationally performed, and actully scary masterpiece TERRIFIED.

I really have very little interest in movies about humans being horrible to each other, there is enough of that in our nightly news. Of my fiction, I want it to be even in the genre of Horror, especially in the genre of Horror… I want it to (and I guess this comes from my UNIVERSAL MONSTER, HAMMER HORROR TV marathon roots) be tinged with the fantastic.

And TERRIFIED Does that but more, it is a genuinely masterful film. It joins a small handful of films such as IT FOLLOWS and THE AUTOPSY OF JANE DOE, REC, PARANORMAL ACTIVITY (like REC don’t let the diminishing returns of the sequels blind you to just how game changing and impactful the first film was), THE DESCENT, HOUSE OF THE DEVIL, MANDY, BONE TOMAHAWK, A GIRL WALKS HOME ALONE AT NIGHT, PONTY POOL, GINGER SNAPS 3 (Best of the series), WOLFMAN as true cinematic marvels and gifts of this still young century. And all of them share this common theme of mortal man and their brushes with the other, with the Fantastic.

So I LOVE Demian Runga’s TERRIFIED (ATERRADOS). As soon as it came to Bluray I purchased it. And was always on the lookout for anything new by this filmmaker. Last year WHEN EVIL LURKS  was all the talk on the streaming channels, and the talk was all glowing, I almost bought the film sight unseen.

But I waited. Here in 2024 I found the film on Amazon Prime to rent at a good price (only $3.99, I typically never rent films anymore. I figure that rental fee could go toward purchase of the actual Dvd, Bluray or UHD) and I watched the film.

 

And the film starts well, is well shot, and the premise, the conceit of the movie, of this particular brush with the fantastic,is very rich. I can see world of film around this concept, it is that provocative of a concept. Where the film goes wrong for me is in the execution. For such a smart concept, the protagonist is progressively stupider and stupider, until it actual becomes annoying. He is told repeatedly don’t do this or people will die, and repeatedly he does exactly what he is told not to… and people die. Over and over again. And whereas in TERRIFIED the Horror snuck up on you, and live up to its name. Here every scene, with a couple exceptions you see coming. It’s all very telegraphed, so you are closing in on the end, stuck watching a character, you have lost all empathy for, he should be the one dying not those around him.

By the ending I felt let down by the movie. By the writing, by ultimately the story and inept story beats (Why are you splitting up, why leave mom alone with you know what?). And I really wanted to like this film. From writing to direction to editing the team behind TERRIFIED is the same as WHEN EVIL LURKS, but unfortunately the former is one of my favorite films of the last few years, and the latter is so far my biggest disappointment of 2024.

Grade: C-/D+.

Graphic Novel Read of the Month : MILES DAVIS AND SEARCH FOR THE SOUND by DAVE CHISHOLM

This is a relatively pricey book for what is a very slight hardcover. I was unfamiliar with the writer/artist and had only the very cursory understanding of Miles Davis that most of us over a certain age have. But based on praise for this book by a streaming channel I watched, I gave this book a chance.

Bloody Hell. This book is phenomenal, and worth every penny I paid for it. The art is not just beautiful, it is conceptual.

It strives in its wonderful construction and flow of images, to give a sense of Miles grasping toward this sound he was continually pushing toward and evolving from. And Chisholm’s inroad into this story, bits of Miles’ own autobiography, is genius. Chisolm’s storytelling of this larger than life visionary whose orbit is some of the greatest musicians of the 20th century…  is compulsive and addictive and brilliant. And Chisholm himself being a life long musician, imbues into his storytelling and his art, that love for music, and that ephemeral sense… of the sound.

The highest praise I can give this book, is  I am now on the hunt for everything by Dave Chisholm as writer/artist. And I am on a hunt for the music highlighted in this book. The book brings into relief the monumental effort to conceive this sound, and that we have it available on Cds is a gift. That it was recorded at all is a gift, and having read this book I have to add to my anemic Miles Davis collection ( I only have KIND OF BLUE) and get everything by Miles Davis and many of the other geniuses highlighted in this book. On CD of course. LPs are not my thing ( I don’t mind getting the odd one for the album art, or liner notes, or because it is not available on CD, but otherwise CD all the way), I grew up in the age of LPs, and I thank heaven for the improvements of CDs. I am not one of those who confuse nostalgia with the truth. LPs sucked. It is like cassettes… a degenerative medium, the more you play it, the worse the sound gets. Optical drives freed us of that. Let us not toss them out, in favor of nostalgia that lies… that has always lied.

We now live in the age of streaming and Itunes and Spotify, and those are all great for finding music, but once you find that album you love, there is no substitute for really enjoying it then owning it in a well mastered, mp3 free, CD. Mp3s are great for finding music, however full wav cds are great for actually experiencing the music.

I have a great portable CD player, great headphones, and thanks to this book and a few other things, I start 2024 with a MASSIVE CD buying spree.

Because a lot of people are short sighted, and are letting the best format consumers have ever had, CDs (optical drives), dry up. Not me. I will always have an optical drive in my car, my house, my laptop, and a portable player to listen to when in the mood.

I would urge you to pick up these CDs while they are in print, and while you can.

Get two, one to keep, and one to sell when they go out of print and others are looking to hear this music, not on degenerative, scratchy LPs, or compressed to death MP3s, but in the best fidelity possible. The CD.

Enough with the praise. Here are the links:

 

 

This is a relatively affordable selection of some of Miles’ musical high-points. Click on the images, grab yourself a Cd if moved to. All purchases through the links earn this blog a few much appreciated pennies, and you get great music and reads. A win-win!

Movie of the Day : MACARTHUR (1977) by Director Joseph Sargent

1977’s MACARTHUR is largely a forgotten film, by a largely unjustly forgotten director.

Joseph Sargent was a young, new breed of director who would get his start in the 1960s directing TV shows, back in an age where directing TV was the B league, a stepping stone to the A league… directing theatrical releases.

Sargent, credited with 92 directing jobs, would do the vast majority of those jobs for TV, but he had a brief stint of a few theatrical releases, sandwiched in his long TV career as director. 

Sargent made his brief leap to the A league with some compelling and gripping features, dealing largely with the strange and dangerous place the late 60s, early 70s found us in. Namely an America and an American people caught in that brief, little understood period, where change and growth was not just a possibility, but an active path. Where we for a moment embraced this idea of a nation of the people, by the people, for the people, could actually be realized; where at the very least the conversation could be had.

This was a time sandwiched between the McCarthy 50s and the Reagan 80s, before America sold out to its corporate overlords, and the last defenders of American liberty and truth, Newspapers, were dismantled. Sargent’s films of the 70s, reflect the growing pains and possibilities of a changing, turmoiled America, at a crossroads between Liberty and Control; In an age before the corporate overloads learned to weaponize our illusions of freedom against us.

Sargent’s movies are gripping sign-posts to hard times, that were still replete with… possibilities. Among some of Sargent’s few theatrical movies are THE MAN (1972 – regarding the first Black President, and woefully unavailable on streaming or physical media) , NIGHTMARES (1983 Horror Anthology), THE TAKING OF PELHAM 1 2 3 (An undisputed masterpiece from 1974), and the film this post is dedicated to… his followup to PELHAM, 1977’s  MACARTHUR.

MACARTHUR sports a gripping score, a superb latter-day Gregory Peck role. Gregory Peck was very much a star as a young man, however his performances could be somewhat limited and wooden, I really find his later performances as an older man, is where he grows into his stardom. His 60s and 70s performances, are all just amazing. Gregory Peck grew into a great actor, and that greatness, and gravity are in full display in his role of MacArthur. In addition to score and acting, the film boasts some tremendous direction, that, seeing it for the first time in 2023, can be called nothing less than enthralling and epic.

Unfortunately this would be Sargent’s last theatrical film of note, and with a few un-noteworthy exceptions, he would finish out his career in TV. Why a film of such quality as MACARTHUR and the previous TALKING OF PELHAM 1 2 3, did not lead to a longer theatrical career is unknown, and seemingly unfortunate.

However thankfully we do have MACARTHUR. You can sample it on Streaming, but I highly recommend the Indicator Blu-ray release that includes both versions, the US and UK version. The US version, is the longer version, and is the way to go. The UK version, cuts minor scenes and adds a small scene between MacArthur and the Emperor of Japan, but that scene actually does not add anything to the story telling, and is a bit out of place, and feels like it weakens and confuses the narrative rather than strengthening it. It was wisely left on the cutting room floor in the US release.

Though with the Indicator release you can view this short minute sequence (that occurs at the 1 hour and 28 minute mark) and then return to the US release to conclude the movie.

All in all this is a fantastic film, and kudos to Blu-ray label Indicator for making this film available on Physical media. Streaming is nice, but ephemeral. I fear for the longevity of films that are left only to the impermanence of streaming. Hopefully a label will also release Sargent’s THE MAN.

In the meantime MACARTHUR, courtesy of British label INDICATOR is a wonderful addition to better home movie collections everywhere. Grade: A-.

Get your copy here!

 

 

 

 

 

 

STREAMING GUIDE : Best Streaming YouTube Videos of Feb 2023!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Currently watching : THE STRANGER (1946) Movie of the Day!

I have recently purchased the Kino Lorber LIBRARY OF CONGRESS Release of this film, and if ever a movie deserved to be preserved it is this one. That said this release needs some remastering, has noticeable frame drops, and syncing issues, and occasional small picture degradation in places, but nothing that effects the enjoyability of this film, and this is an extremely enjoyable Orson Welles film.

I am on record as calling Orson Welles my favorite director of the sound era, and I have a lot of favorite Directors from David Lean to Carl Franklin to Gordon Parks to Raoul Walsh to Diop Mambety to Johnnie To to John Woo to the Russo Brothers to Alfred Hitchcock to Fritz Lang to Masaki Kobayashi to Haille Gerima , but if I had the unenviable task of only saving one Director’s body of work, for me it word be Orson Welles.

His work is foundational to what cinema is for me, not only the sublime look of his work (which is a huge part of it, those Wellsian perspectives, deep focus, and shadows), but the themes of existential angst, unfocused dread regarding the state of the world or the human condition, that is at the heart of his films. There is a romantic, dark poetry that suffuses his work, and how he crafts his work, that for me is deeply resonant, and is the Alpha from which much of sound based cinema must launch from, to craft their Omegas.

 

Even what is a generally under mentioned, and I think overlooked film, THE STRANGER. Released August of 1946, when this started production World War II had just ended several months ago, in summer of 1945. People were still counting their dead, the damaged living trying to integrate from war back into peace. The process of dealing with war criminals and hunting down war criminals, was not just topical, it was being formulated and ironed out as this movie was in production.

It was the first film to use concentration camp footage. This is just seen as a thriller today, but upon release this was a very sensitive , and explosive topic, especially considering there were elements in the United States that were denying Germany’s concentration camps and extermination programs. The same elements in the United States that were against the US entering the war.

So for Welles to make a film, still in the tumult of a time of war, that warned of the unfinished business of war, was and to some extent remains… ground breaking.

And Welles was critical of this movie, but outside of Citizen Kane he was critical of all his films due to various levels of Studio Interference. Much like the writer Alan Moore, the negative connotations he had with the producers of the work, would  sour his outlook on the work. Welles, was akin to a butcher too close to the slaughtering of the lambs, to enjoy the final meal.

Also while I love Welles as both Director and Actor, he liked to be the star in his films, and liked to work with actors that he was familiar with and could, if not overshadow, to some extent dictate to,  and the casting of Edward G. Robinson that was forced on him by the studios, flew in the face of this.

But in this small case the Studios were… right (I balk to say that because they were typically wrong in their choices to neuter Welles), Edward G. Robinson is brilliant in this role, and a worthy equal to hold his own, in scenes with Welles. THE STRANGER begins with Edward G. Robinson and ends with Edward G. Robinson, making this arguably more his film… than Welles may have been comfortable with.

Going along with that, I cannot see this film being improved, by having Welles’ choice… Agnes Moorehead as the Detective, with all due respect to Ms. Moorehead. It would have been a vastly different film, but arguably per the audio commentary by Bret Wood, that is what Welles was striving for.

Welles was deeply shaken by his exposure in 1945 to the newsreel footage of the liberation of German Concentration camps, footage that would not be disseminated in many American circles, American circles that still sought to downplay this talk of German atrocities as fake news.

This film, true to the wunderkind that Welles always was, was Welles turning outrage to action. While the mass of men did nothing or ignored the news, Welles turned around and in months from seeing that footage had gotten a film into production that touched upon the world of atrocities, that small-town America USA was being kept from, was oblivious to. But his film, based on the story beats that did not make it into the film, was going to be something more harsh and brutal, and far reaching than the film we got.

Possibly Welles, left to his devices and with Agnes Moorhead in the role of the Detective, would have given us something more akin to COME SEE or SHINDLER’S LIST. We will never know. And arguably it is the film he did not make, that is all Welles could see when he looked at THE STRANGER. However the film he did make was successful, did reach audiences, and was impactful. For the time it was made I think the film was as impactful as could have been made, and anything more impactful would not have made it to audiences… not in a 1946, trying to put the horrors of a just won war… behind them.

So it wasn’t his complete vision, but the film that is there I would argue, compromises and all, is like most of Welles’ films… transcendent and says something about who we were, who we are, and who we strive to be. I have watched THE STRANGER easily over a half dozen times now, and every-time it strikes me deeply, in the shots, and the speeches, and the language and the performances, and the direction, it strikes me as… the work of a master visionary and humanist. It strikes me as moving and worthy.

And Loretta Young rounds out the major players in this film, delivering one of the standout lines in a film replete with them, but also a standout line in cinema. When you hear it you’ll know it. It is for me her finest and most memorable role and performance by far.

Movies like CITIZEN KANE and MAGNIFICENT AMBERSONS may get the accolades (and deservedly so) but for sheer cinema and rewatchability, for me THIRD MAN (credited to Carol Reed, the uncredited direction is by Orson Welles), LADY OF SHANGHAI and THE STRANGER go at the top of any list.

An overlooked classic. Love this film, and it does deserve a quality restoration. Highly Recommended!

 

Buy your copy here!

 

Movie of the Day : THE MAN FROM LARAMIE (1955) -The Last Mann and Stewart Film

“Hate’s unbecoming in a man like you… in some men it shows.” Charlie to Lockhart

THE MAN FROM LARAMIE- Marks the end of a five year partnership between Anthony Mann and star Jimmy Stewart, and it ends like it began, with a near biblical tale of frontier vengeance, only this time in rich technicolor as opposed to striking noirish black and white.

Stewart giving  a deeply felt performance, more nuanced and conflicted than the vengeance of the younger Stewart of their first collaboration, WINCHESTER 73.

In this film Stewart’s performance of vengeance is that of an older man, not the hot certain vengeance of youth,  but touched with fear and doubt, and makes it a different, and evocative and attractive performance. The film only slightly marred by a cartoony performance, by an actor seemingly miscast as the hothead son.

But that aside a fitting ending to their collaboration, and by any measure an essential western.

You can view it for free on streaming. And when suitably availed of its greatness, you can click the images to purchase your copy today. Masters of Cinema in 2016 released a Blu-ray 60 years in the making (almost sold out), improving on the 2014 Twilight Time release (which showed the film finally in its full widescreen glory) by adding a bevy of special features including an insightful audio commentary. I despair of a world where people are silly enough not to own these films in physical media 🙂 . If you are not one of these silly people, get yours by clicking the image below.

 

 

 

The Last Hurrah: Seminal Physical Media Box Sets – Indicator’s MARLENE DIETRICH 6 film Boxset!

Marlene Dietrich & Josef von Sternberg at Paramount, 1930-1935 (Limited Edition) [Blu-ray] [2019]

 

 

I’ve had this boxset for a year or so, but am just now finishing all the films and all the special features. I really had no interest in Marlene Dietrich or Joseph Von Sternberg, or this boxset.

Just as an art object, I thought it was one of the most beautiful looking boxsets I had seen, but I had a hard time spending money on 6 romance films, that I likely wasn’t going to like, based just on the boxart.

So I did not buy it when it first came out, or for the first few sales over the following year. What got me to finally decide to purchase was I picked up a movie from Joseph Von Sternberg, not starring Dietrich, called THE LAST COMMAND.

And I was BLOWN AWAY.

This was from frame one, a master Director, his composition of shots, use of camera movements, beauty of the frame. I felt watching that film, the way I felt discovering Welles’ CITIZEN KANE or David Lean’s GREAT EXPECTATIONS or The Hugh’s Brothers MENACE 2 SOCIETY, it made me LOVE cinema.

Each time. Each film.

They made me a lover of cinema, and a devotee of that director.

So following up on THE LAST COMMAND, Indicator’s MARLENE DIETRICH & JOSEPH VON STERNBERG Boxset became a must buy.

Now having lived with this Boxset for over a year, seen the films and the special features, and I can confidently say it is one of my favorite purchases of the last couple of years. And the films, are not what I thought. They are about romance yes, but they are about more… they are about drama, and war and intrigue and loss and hope and sacrifice.

Small Melodramas, of the pangs of love, told against the backdrop of events great and small. But more the film is a showcase of a passionate union between a star a director and a costume designer, and together they created glamour, in the original definition of the word, a sorcery– a construct of beauty, for an age that needed it.

Together they moved the needle, they defined iconic.

This Boxset from Indicator, likewise moves the needle now, and is iconic and a must own.

Click the images for more info, or to pick up a boxset of your own. Criterion has a region A boxset of its own, the content with the exception of some of the special features is largely the same. The difference is the quality of the box part of the boxset.

 

The Criterion release sports boring, uninspired stock photo with not especially interesting typography for the box art, and a really cheap, thin cardboard box, Whereas Indicator commissions lavish, stunning painted artwork for their boxset, and the quality of the box is a durable, thick solid, not easily dented or warped box.

One is a work of art made to endure and be worthy container for the films within, one is not.

But if you just want to watch the films, and are not concerned with quality of the box part or the boxet, or want the features that are not on the Indicator set, than by all means pick up the Criterion set as well.

However if you can only get one, Indicator is the one to get.

For another, and more comprehensive view on the boxset check out SOLITARY RONIN”S simply essential coverage at the link below. If you are not subscribed to SOLITARY RONIN you are missing out on what I genuinely consider, one of the most informed and most informing channels on film you can find not just on Youtube, but anywhere. He and a handful of other channels are a film-school in a box. So definitely do yourselves a favor, subscribe to him and check him out. 

Hope you found this post of interest, and if you did please like, subscribe and email/comment.

Till next time… be well.

 

“But I think it’s safe to say the six films they (Director Joseph Von Sternberg, Star Malene Dietrich and Paramount’s Lead Costume Designer Travis Banton) made together during this five year period produced some of the most remarkable images, most stunning costumes and iconic moments of cinema history.”–Nathalie Morris in the Sarah Appleton helmed and Samm Dunn and John Morrissey produced 2019 Indicator Special Feature, STYLING THE STARS (can be found on the Indicator DEVIL IS A WOMAN Blu-ray, part of the Marlene Boxset)

FOUR Button-Lock Must Own Knives of the Day!

Civivi has made me a Button-Lock fan, and at their price point their knives are all must own tools and collectibles. Really smooth and addictive deployment, beautifully designed, Gentleman’s carry (or Gentlewoman’s carry). All of these make great letter or package openers and are really just a nice office desk knife, tactile fidget, zone-in knife. They are the Rubix Cube of knives, the addictive deployment making them perfect for giving your hands something repetitive to do while your mind is working on a problem or processing.

Today’s pick for the best civivi knives are AS FOLLOWS.

Click the images below for more information or to pick up one for yourself or as a gift.

 

My first Button Lock knife, I absolutely LOVE this knife. Own multiple copies of this specific variation with its color, blade material and handle material. Essential.

This one is great for gals and guys.

A sub $100 Damascus folding knife? A no-brainer of a purchase.

And Another Damascus blade, but a whole different model and blade shape/design. Another must own.

So that’s it guys. My list of today’s 4 MUST OWN Civivi Button Lock knives! Click on the images to find out more. And purchase via the links and you get a great item, and earn this blog a few pennies to keep the proverbial lights on.

 

A win-win!

 

Till next time, be well.

New Time Radio/Podcast and OTR (Old Time Radio) Recommendations of the Day!

1948 an America just coming out of the war to end all wars, and this series played to a generation that had unleashed the atom. ESCAPE sported the best voice actors in the world, names like Paul Frees, William Conrad, Jack Webb and many more, to give life to some of the most thrilling stories.

This is one of the stories that kept captivated a world that needed… Escape.

How Love Came to Professor Guildea.