HYMN TIME

 Johnny Mathis.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EnJjqAnnF4Q

FRIDAY'S FORGOTTEN BOOK (A DAY LATE) - HONKY IN THE WOODPILE

 Honky in the Woodpile by John Brunner (1971)

John Brunner was best-known for his science fiction, although he was also adept at mystery, fantasy, horror, thriller, poetry, and mainstream genres.  In the late Sixties/early Seventies, he seemed to have a good thing going with his Max Curfew series of spy-guy thrillers, but, as often happened during his career, the oppotunity fizzled.  Brunner could be notoriously difficult to work with, but much of the blame could be set squarely on his publishers.  A topical book that was ensured to be a best-seller was delayed and delayed until its time had past.  A major science fiction novel was butchered (and basically rewritten without permission) by an editor, to the point that it was unreadable.  His mainstream historical novel, The Great Steamboat Race, lost the support of its publisher and flopped.  And Max Curfew?  After three successful outings, Brunner's editor insisted on a certain plot for the fourth book -- a plot that happened to be basically that of the second book in the series,  Brunner refused to write the fourth book and the series was dropped.

So who was Max Curfew?  He was a Black man born in Jamaica who was bitterly affected by racial inequalities.  Full of rage and anger, he found himself in Russia, employed by the Soviets to do undercover work in African and other countries of "color" -- work that often involved fomenting rebellion.  But Curfew soon found that the Russians were just as prejudiced against his kind as others were.  Her then went to work for British intelligence, where he found many of the same attitudes in an England where being a Black, Paki, or Westie was a detriment.  Now older, wiser, and just as bitter and filled with rage, Max is keeping a low profile.  Until...

"It started with stopping a small gang of skinheads from beating a black man, who happened to be the head of a West Indies country in exile.  This leads to Max Curfew beings asked to go there in pursuit to a traitor to their liberation movement."

It's a dangerous assignment, made more dangerous a deadly government force and by an undercover CIA agent who knows Max's identity and will do anything to stop him.  But Max is tough and capable.  He knows how to survive, how to fight, and how to kill.   And Max's rage at the inequlities and the oppression he sees on the small island fuels his determination.  Max Curfew is a character of his time, but unlike the rage-filled characters of the American Black exploitation and street novels of, say, Iceberg Slim and Donald Goines. 

International politics mixes with Banana Republic politics and native superstitions and religion to make an interesting book, although some readers have been put off by the intensity of Max Curfew's rage.  But this is a book -- like its character -- of its time, and it's a good one.

Brunner was a pssionate author and many of his works are moored in his liberal beliefs.  He started with typical space opera, publishing his first novel at 17.  A prolific author, much of his early work disguises deeper themes.  He experimented frequently -- one novel  follows a move-by-move recreation of a famous chess game; his most famous novel, The Sheep Look Up, channels John Dos Passos; in another, an advanced society meets its final doom because of bad economic choices.  Brunner had a tricky relationship with proponents of Britain's "New Age" science fiction, but I would argue that he was much closer to their ideals than he was given credit for.

John Brunner was a sometimes great, and often very, very good author who has unfairly sunk from the public recognition he deserves.

GHOST RIDER #46 (MAY 1956 - ESTIMATED)

This is not your American, Marvel Comics Ghost Rider in any of his various forms.  The American Ghost Rider began as Rex Fury in Tim Holt #11 in 1949 from Magazine Enterprises, and was created by Ray Krank and Dick Ayers; this one is not that guy, either.   After the trademark to the character's name expired, Marvel debuted its own near-identical character in Ghost Rider #1 (February 1967), drawn by original artist Ayers, with a script by Gary Friedwich and Roy Thomas.  In the 70s, Marvel introduced the supernatural Ghost Rider and renamed their western Ghost Rider Phantom Rider.  (At first Marvel renamed their original character Night Rider, but that name turned out to have bad connotations of the Ku Klux Klan,)  The original supernatural Ghost Rider was Johnny Blaze, complete with motorcycle and blazing skull, to be folowed by Danny Ketch, robbie Reyes, and others.

The Ghosr Rider of the Australian comic books was Steve Jarret (or Jarrett, depending on the mood of the letterer, I guess), who wore a white mask, believed in justice and was quick on the draw.  His horse is moonshine, who is either an Appaloosa, covered with bad tattoos, or has a terrible case of warts.  His sidekick is Mariposa, who, when he wears a teeny, tiny black mask and a large fancy Mexican sombraro is the Mariposa Kid.  Ghost Rider was created by J Morath; from issue #6 to the final issue #57, Terry Trowall wrote and drew the feature.

In this issue, The Ghost Rider must save unjustly accused young Charlie Westover from being lynched for robbery and murder.  The local sheriff has fitted young Charlie up because he was unable to catch the real bad guys -- it's an election, after all, and somebody has to pay.

Also in this issue are two stories about American Eagle (by Gevanter and Al Williamson, taken from the Prize comics stable).  In the first, evil Indian trader Hatlan Brody murders peaceful Indians to steal their pelts.  American Eagle chases the bad guys down the river, but their boat does not tire oput like American Eagle's horse does, so it's up to Laughiong Dog to save the day.  In the second American Eagle and his Army scout friend Buck Dolan come across a pair of crooked gamblers.   But how to prove they are crooks?  The decks they use are neither marked or shaved...

The stories aren't bad.  The artwork, for the most part, is good.  And it's interesting to see a different take on the Ghost Rider motif.

Check it out.

https://comicbookplus.com/?dlid=96902&comicpage=&b=i

NO FFB TODAY

 Maybe tomorrow.

HOMICIDE O'KANE: THE KILLER WHO RETURNED FROM THE DEAD AS THE CLOCK STRUCK THE HOUR (MARCH 2, 1943)

A nearly forgotten radio show from the Blue Network.  As far as I can tell, this is the only episode of  Homicide O'Kane extant.  O'Kane is played by Bud Heistand, better known as a radio announcer (The Rudy Valee Show, Kay Kyser's Kollege of Musical Knowledge, The Grerat Gildesleeve, The Mel Blanc Show).  Also festured is Dick LeGrand, perhaps best known for playing Peavey in The Great Gildersleeve.  Also featured in this episode were Howard McNear (Floyd the Barber on The Andy Griffith Show), Sarah Selby (Prissy the Elephant in Dumbo, and Aunt Gertrude in Disney's The Hardy Boys), Harry Lang (Pancho in The Cisco Kid radio show, and, from 1940 to 1953, he provided the vocal effects for Tom in the Tom and Jerry cartoons), and Grey Colby (I know nothing about him).  Walter Arnold was the announcer.  

Tough homicide detective O'Kane gets a phone call from a man who is about to be murdered.

It should be noted that the solution to the case does not hold water, but what can you expect from a short-lived, little-known radio show?

Enjoy.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-OT0ql1I91U

SHORT STORY WEDNESDAY: MURDER, 1990

"Murder, 1990" by C. B. Gilford  (from Alfred Hitchcock's Mystery Magazine, October 1960; reprinted in The Best Detective Stories of the Year:  16th Annual Collection, edited by Bret Halliday, 1961; in Alfred Hitchcock's Anthology #1, 1977 edition [also published as Alfred Hitchcock's Tales to Keep You Spellbound]. edited by Eleanor Sullivan, 1976; in Dark Sins, Dark Dreams, edited by Barry N. Malzberg & Bill Pronzini, 1978; the story was taken from the Malzberg/Pronzini amthology and published in Romanain in 1987 as "Omor in 2020" ["Murder, 2090"], translated by Andriana Fianu; in Alfred Hitchcock:  The Best of Mystery, Harold Q. Masur, uncredited editor, 1980; and in the British paperback Alfred Hitchcock's Book of Horror Stories:  Book 9,  edited by Eleanor Sullivan, 1989)

"The case of Paul 2473 really began when he discovered the old book.  He recognized it instantly for what it was, because he had once been through the Micro-filming Section where they were recording some old-fashioned but worthy volumes on genetics before destroying them.  But the sight of this book, obviously an unsuspected relic of the dim past, provoked a simultaneous curiosity and dread in him."

He discovered the book while marching withn his Thursday Exercise Platoon; it was hidden in a crumbling wall where he had sat down to rest.  His duty, of cojurse, was to turn the book over to his Platoon Leader without looking at -- old books could be either valuable or dangerous, and it was not Paul 2473's place to decide which.  Instead, he looked at the title -- The Logic of Murder -- which confused him: he had a vague idea of what "logic" meant, but "murder" was a word totally unfamiliar to him.  Paul 2473 stuck the book inside his shirt and continued the march.

In reading the book, he was amazed to find that once there was a society where peoplpe shoise their mates at random, which sometimes lead to the unthinkasble act of taking human life, or that the government did not provide for all needs of its people, leading to murder being ciommitted to acquire wealth.  Barbaric!  "As he read on, Paul was treated to the full panarama of homicidal motivations, both sane and inseane.  There was a chapter on methods of murder.   There sections on the detection, apprehension, and punishment of murders."   Paul also learned tha many murderers -- especially those who planned their crimes well beforehand -- were never caufght.  Good to know.

:Paul had been seeing Carol 7427 reguklarly at Recreation, and had enven gone ito the Caressiong Booths with her.  They had taken the Campatibilty tests together and Paul was hoping for a Three-Year assigment with her, or, possibly, a Five-Year Assignment.  But when the Mating Assignments came out, Paul was paired with Laura 6356, and Carol with Richard 3833.  It just wasn't fair!  but Paul had the book...

A dystopian murder tale pushing all the predicted buttons, with a fittingly ironic ending.

Charles Bernard Gilford (1920- 2010) was a prolific writer of mystery stories from 1953 through 1975, 94 of which appeared in AHMM, and 41 of which appeared in Hitchcock anthologies.  Twelve years before publishing mysteries, however, he published a science fiction novel, The Liquid Man,  in Fantastic Adventures, which was eventually released in book form in 1969.   Gilford also used the pen name "Douglas Farr."  The Fictionmags Index also lists "Jack Webb" as a pseudonym, but this is most likely an error.  John Alfred  Webb (1916-2008 -- not the Dragnet Jack Webb guy) authored nine popular mysteriess about Sammy Golden and Father Joseph Shanley, plus two other novels under his own name and four novels as by "John Farr."  I suspect it was the work under the "Farr" pseudonym which caused the confusion.

Gilford was a talented short story writer and a retrospective of his work would not be amiss.

The October 1960 issue of AHMM  is available online at Luminist Archives. 

OVERLOOKED SILENT TEAR-JERKER: THE HUMAN DESIRE (1919)

 From IMDb:  ""Inspired by a statue of the infant Christ in the hands of the Madonna, Berenice, who lives in a convent in Naples, Italy, conceives of a deep passion for babies.  Learning that there are infants dying of hunger and neglect in America, Berenice determines to come to their aid.  Dressed as a boy, she arrives in New York, where destitute Berenice meets artist Robert who hires her to pose for a painting of the Madonna.  The two fall in love until one day, during Robert's absence, his wife appears and drives Berenice into the streets.  Berenice's trials finally end when Rlobert's wife dies in an automobile accident, freeing robert to marry his model."

This is supposed to be uplifting, but it appears tres mereticious and morally bankrupt to me.

No matter.  Berenice is played by Anita Stewart, whose 113 IDMb credits start in 1913 and go through to 1928, with a few minor appearsance in the early 30s.  She 'remained a major draw card with movie audiences throughout the 1920s.  She retired in 1928 with the advent of sound as one of the wealthiest women in Hollywood."  She was also a producer with 17 silents to her credit, including The human Desire.

Taking the role of Robert was Conway Tearle (Bucking the Tiger, The Mystic, of Forgotten Women), a popular leading man who (on-screen anyway) wooed many of the screen's leading femmes during the silent era and beyond, including Marguerite Clark, Mary Pickford, Norma Talmadgge, and Clara Bow; in his last major role, he was rejected by Mae West in Klondike Annie.

Eulalie Jenson, who began her career with Thomas Edison in 1914 and was a leading actress in the silent era (The Hunchback of Notre Dame, Bachelor Brides, Passion Flower), played Robert's wife.   She did transition to talkies, but little success and gained mainly iuncredited roles.

Also in the cast were Vernon Steele (who would become better known as the future oater star Bob Steele), Naomi Childers, Templar Saxe, and Hattie Delaro.

Director Wilfred North was a successful stage actor, director, and producer before joining Vitagraph Pictures in 1913, helming 31 shorts in that year alone, including at least seven starring Vitagraph's leading comedy ster John Bunny.  Among his other films were The Kid (1916), Son of Wallingford (1921), and Captain Blood (1924).  He retired from directing in 19the mid-Twenties, but stayed in the business as an actor until his death in 1935 at age 72.

The film was scripted by Edward J. Montagne, who has been credited (23 years after his death!) as the creator of I Spy.  Montagne's credits include Rupert of Henzau, The Cop and the Anthem, and The Cat and the Canary.  The script was based on Violet Irwin's 1913 novel.  I know nothing about Irwin except that she probably co-authored, with Vilhjalmur Steffansson, the juvenile novel Kak, the Copper Eskimo.

As you can tell. I'm not really a fan of The Human Desire (I glommed onto it solely because of Bob Steele), but your mileage may vary.  Let's see.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iWhTbVSSDRA