Paul Bishop's Blog, page 32

INTERROGATION SEMINAR

HELPING YOU PIECE TOGETHER THE TRUTH THE INTERVIEWS AND INTERROGATIONS INSTITUTEwww.getconfessions.com24 HOUR INVESTIGATOR INTERVIEW AND INTERROGATION COURSEREIMBURSABLE CALIFORNIA POST PLAN 1CERTIFICATION NO: 7140-31435August 23—25, 2016Ventura County Criminal Justice Training Center106 Durley Ave. Camarillo, CA 93010 Capsule Description:  Class specifically covers interview and interrogation techniques for investigators, featuring hands-on, experiential, proven interrogation techniques including: ·         Understanding deceptive behavior ·         Proper planning for an interview/interrogation ·         Enhance rapport building ·         Assessing subject types ·         Understanding deceptive behavior ·         Understanding and properly using questions ·         Conducting free-format and elimination interviews ·         10-step confrontational interview/interrogation format ·         Effective application of legal aspects of interrogation law ·         Appling effective and legal interrogation tactics ·         How to properly take a confession and close the session ·         Proactively prevent false confessions and admissions Fees:  Tuition is $230.00, which is due at the door on the first day of class. All training materials are provided. Instructor:  A thirty-five year veteran of the Los Angeles Police Department, Paul Bishop’s career included a three year tour with his department’s Anti-Terrorist Division, and over twenty-five years’ experience in the investigation of sex crimes. His Special Assaults Units consistently produced the highest number of detective initiated arrests and highest crime clearance rates in the city. Twice honored as the LAPD Detective of the Year, he continues to work privately as an interrogation and deception expert and a specialist in the investigation of sex crimes. Course Length:  24 hours of training from 0800—1700 daily with a one-hour lunch and breaks. Background:Since 1982, the Interviews & Interrogations Institute (II&I) has provided superior, on-going, training for police departments and state agencies across the western United States. In 2012, I&II began conducting in-service interview and interrogation training for the Los Angeles Police Department and the Los Angeles County Fire Department arson investigators. Prerequisites:  This is a hands-on course. Participants will be required to actively engage in learning exercises throughout the course. Student manuals for use in following along with class presentation, note taking, quizzes, and fill in the blank sections will be provided. Who Should Attend:  Investigators, Detectives, Officers, Agents, and supervisory personnel responsible for conducting/overseeing criminal interview and interrogations of victims, witnesses, and suspects—especially when suspect custody has attached. Benefits:  Managing liability is currently a top law enforcement priority. Learning how to bullet proof confessions is a major step toward this goal. Completion of classroom training provides investigators with a firm grasp of effective and legal interview and interrogation techniques, while enabling the best possible law enforcement decisions when interacting with victims, witnesses, and suspects. Participants will be able to immediately apply techniques in real world situations. Contact: For questions or more information send email to confessiongetter@att.net or call Paul Bishop (805) 312-4936. Guarantee:If you attend a I&II seminar and can honestly say it wasn’t worth your time or money, tuition will be refunded in full. That’s a promise not made by any other similar seminar presenters. TAKE YOUR INTERVIEW/INTERROGATION SKILLS TO THE NEXT LEVEL
 

WRITERS ON BOOKS ~ PETER BRANDVOLD

WRITERS ON BOOKS ~ PETER BRANDVOLD As part of an ongoing series of blog posts, I’ve asked western pulp master Peter Brandvold to give us a personal look into what writers read and what books influence their lives. 
Currently the acknowledged king of the fast-moving, hard-driving western novel, Peter has written over a hundred westerns under his own name and his pen name, Frank Leslie. He has also written thirty Longarm novels under the name Tabor Evans. He’s written several novels under the banner of the late Ralph Compton. Under his own name he writes the popular .45-Caliber books (featuring Cuno Massey), the bounty hunter Lou Prophet series, the Yakima Henry tales, the Rogue Lawman series, and others. Through his own Mean Pete publishing imprint, Peter has also become a dynamic force in the world of self-publishing… Thx for stepping out of the saddle, Peter, and hunkering down with us around the campfire… THE BOOK YOU LOVED AS A CHILD…  Oddly enough, it was a bulky, water-damaged, falling-apart fifth grade reading text. The stories I remember liking most and which made me want to try to practice such dark alchemy myself were: Beware of the Dog by Roald Dahl, All Summer in A Day, by Ray Bradbury, Odyssey of the North by Jack London, The Ears of Johnny Bear by John Steinbeck, In Another Country by Hemingway, and Wine on the Desert by Max Brand. I loved that book. I read every word—even those that weren’t assigned. I still remember how that book smelled, the splotches of dried dirty snowmelt and green snot previous students had mashed between the pages, and the Fuckscribbled in spidery pencil on the inside of the back cover.  A BOOK YOU WOULD READ TO YOUR KIDS…  Since I don’t have kids, I really don’t know what’s out there for kids these days. At least not for kids young enough to be read to. One of the first books that was read to me was Where The Red Fern Grows, so I’d probably read that one but I’m probably way, way out of date! But I know how important it is to read to kids. My fifth grade teacher even read Ann Of Green Gables to us, and I, a boy’s boy, loved hearing it though I suppose it’s considered more of a girl’s book. But the images remain. It’s important to read any kind of a story to kids. A teacher also read A Wrinkle In Time and Old Yeller to us, as well as The Witch Of Blackbird Pond. I remember them all. THE BOOK THAT MADE YOU WANT TO BE A WRITER…  That fifth grade text but also Huckleberry Finn and Mandingo. I read my father’s old paperback Mandingohe acquired when he was in the army and being transported around the South Pacific. Most of the first books I read came from his somewhat proscribed library which included Tobacco Road and Peyton Place. I loved Mandingo and even though it’s probably not politically correct to say this, I still do. As well as its sequel, Drum. Great vivid writing. Such writing just doesn’t show up anymore. Most of the books published these days would not have been published twenty or thirty years ago. The editors would have told those writers to keep punching away and maybe try a correspondence course. YOUR FAVORITE CLASSIC… It’s a tossup between Moby Dick and War And Peace. I reread big chunks of both regularly. Also The Sea Wolf. THE CLASSIC YOU’VE NEVER BEEN ABLE TO READ… Finnegan’s Wake THE CLASSIC YOU’VE PRETENDED TO HAVE READ… I don’t know...maybe The Bible when I was in Lutheran confirmation class. I think I’ve read most of the whole thing since, though. THE MOVIE ADAPTATION YOU’VE LOVED… Jaws. (I can recite great chunks after a few home-brews...) THE BOOK YOU’D LIKE TO SEE AS A MOVIE…  My Uncle Oswald by Roald Dahl, but only if they do it right. It would probably have to be rated X, however. I wish they would do a straight adaptation of either Robert E. Howard or Karl Edward Wagner. I don’t understand why Hollywood keeps trying to rewrite these great writers. Howard is legendary for the stories he wrote, so why doesn’t Hollywood make what he wrote? Why do they think their pastiches are better? Against the evidence! THE IMAGINARY PLACE WHERE YOU COULD LIVE… The world I create in my own books, especially the Stillman books. I like that one though it can be violent at times.  THE GENRE YOU’D READ IF YOU WERE LIMITED TO ONE…  I would say westerns if there were better westerns written, but, outside of my own, he-he, and damn few others, there just aren’t. So I’d probably read sword and sorcery just for Karl Edward Wagner if no one else but I probably say that now because I happen to be reading Wagner again. If I were reading Chandler, I’d probably say detective noir.   THE BOOK YOU’VE RETURNED TO AGAIN AND AGAIN…

Probably the book I reread the most often is Hemingway’s collected stories but I have to also mention Smith & Other Events by Paul St. Pierre, little-known (to Americans) Canadian writer, now dead. THE FICTIONAL FRIENDS YOU’D LOVE TO HAVE… Conan. Man, could that guy back you in a bar fight! THE LAST NOVEL TO MAKE YOU LAUGH AND THE LAST TO MAKE YOU CRY… Roughing It by Twain and The Determined Heart by Antoinette May (about Mary Shelley). WHAT YOU’RE READING NOW… Night In The Lonesome October by Richard Laymon.  Peter’s newest series features U.S. Marshal Bear Haskell, former union war hero, former Pinkerton agent, current deputy United States marshal. Bear is a big man—over six and a half feet tall and as broad as a barn door. He wears a necklace of bear claws taken from the grizzly who almost had him for supper. That’s the kind of man Bear is. He holds a grudge and he gives no quarter—to grizzly bears or men. FOR MORE ON PETER’S BOOKS CLICK HERE TO VISIT PETER’S WEBSITE CLICK HERE

WRITERS ON BOOKS ~ TERRENCE MCCAULEY

  WRITERS ON BOOKS ~ TERRENCE MCCAULEY
I’ve asked my Fight Card compatriot Terrence McCauley ( Fight Card: Against The Ropes —a prequel to his hard hitting novel Prohibition ) to contribute to a new blog post sequence examining what books writers are reading and what books have influenced their lives. 
An award-winning writer of crime fiction and thrillers, Terrence’s most recent techno-thriller, A Murder Of Crows —sequel to Sympathy For The Devil —has just been released by Polis Books and is garnering rave reviews. More importantly (to me anyway), Terrence is a huge soccer fan who unfortunately supports Liverpool FC in the English Premier League and NYCFC in Major League Soccer instead of FC Barcelona in La Liga and Major League Soccer’s LA Galaxy. Somehow, we still manage to be friends…A proud native of The Bronx, NY, he is currently writing his next work of fiction.
Thanks for taking time, Terrence to consider these questions about the books in your life…
THE BOOK I LOVED AS A CHILD…
I can’t really think of one. My parents didn’t read to me and, since I was an only child, I got my entertainment mostly from television. I read a lot of the required texts all school kids have to read, but none of them stuck with me, not even A Christmas Carol or A Wrinkle In Time or even the Hardy Boys books. 
I really wasn’t really touched by impact literature could have until I was in high school. The first work to have an impact on me was a poem I read in sophomore year called Death of the Ball Turret Gunner by Randall Jarrell, followed by The Merchant of Venice and The Shining. The only common element of all three works is that they ultimately had a profound impact on me as a student and sparked my interest in wanting to become a writer. 
A BOOK YOU WOULD READ TO YOUR KIDS…
Probably my Fight Card entry Against the Ropes. It would give them a sense of the importance of loyalty, of injustice and of staying true to one’s own self despite the consequences. 
THE BOOK THAT MADE YOU WANT TO BE A WRITER…
Tai Pan by James Clavell. It doesn’t hold the same power over me now as it did back when I first read it in high school, but I’ll never forget reading it for the first time and being mesmerized by the story. Clavell layers details throughout the story that become important later on as the plot moves along. My admiration for his ability to craft a story in such a way made me pay more attention to the writing in a novel than just the words on the page.
YOUR FAVORITE CLASSIC…
My definition of a classic may be very different than someone else’s definition. To me, The Harder They Fall is one of the best books of its generation. It’s a tale of false perceptions becoming reality, dreams shattered and lives ruined all in pursuit of the almighty dollar. It’s the only book I’ve ever read that made me miss my subway stop because I was that close to the end that I didn’t realize where I was. Brutal, unflinching and real.
THE CLASSIC YOU’VE NEVER BEEN ABLE TO READ…
Moby-Dick (The Whale).I’ve never been able to get into it and I’ve tried several times. Most of Hemmingway’s stuff, too. I know he’s supposed to be good, but I think he’s grossly over-rated. I know I’m in the minority on that score, but it’s my opinion. He writes like a journalist, which makes sense since that’s what he was, but there’s no depth of feeling in his work. I’ve been told the depth is there, but I haven’t found it. The words just lay on the page like a dead possum on the side of the road. 
THE CLASSIC YOU’VE PRETENDED TO HAVE READ…
I gave this one a lot of thought and I don’t think I’ve ever pretended to read something I didn’t actually read. I’ve never been afraid of admitting my own ignorance and doing something about it. 
THE MOVIE ADAPTATION YOU’VE LOVED…
I thought L.A. Confidential was a fantastic adaptation of a book that was nearly impossible to film. They took all the right parts and struck just the right tone. The casting was also top-notch.
THE BOOK YOU’D LIKE TO SEE AS A MOVIE…
I think Eric Beetner’s Rumrunnerswould make an interesting movie, as would Lamentationsby Joe Clifford.
THE IMAGINARY PLACE WHERE YOU COULD LIVE…
I’d probably choose the fictional town where Lew Archer works in Ross Macdonald’s excellent series of novels. 
THE GENRE YOU’D READ IF YOU WERE LIMITED TO ONE…
Noir fiction suits my world view best. It’s more than just a haunted man with a bottle of bourbon in his desk and a pretty secretary in his lap. When it’s done well, it’s a rich and deeply rewarding genre that can be approached in a variety of ways. To cross art forms for a moment, I thoroughly believe the excellent sci-fi film Ex Machina is just Double Indemnitywith robots. The cast and setting can change, but the deception and heartache at the core of noir never does. 
THE BOOK YOU’VE RETURNED TO AGAIN AND AGAIN…
The Cold Six Thousandby James Ellroy. The way he creates a scene and carries tension through a book is fantastic. L.A. Confidential is another one I’ve probably read three times and love it each time.
THE FICTIONAL FRIENDS YOU’D LOVE TO HAVE…
Jesse Stone, Hitch and Cole (all three from Robert B. Parker stories) and Samson from Len Deighton’s spy novels. With all four of those protagonists around me, I’d have a good, grounded group of people to keep me level.
THE LAST NOVEL TO MAKE YOU LAUGH AND THE LAST TO MAKE YOU CRY…
They’re both the same novel: Berlin Game by Len Deighton. It’s a novel—and series—that deserves a hell of a lot more attention than it receive. They’re complex, funny and full of emotion. I find myself quietly riveted to the story without realizing how much I’ve read so quickly. I recommend that novel to anyone who is looking to learn how to write or looking for a good way to break into the spy genre. 
WHAT YOU’RE READING NOW…
I just finished George R. R. Martin’s Fevre Dream based on the recommendation of a good friend on line.  God, what a long, hard slog that was. That was an example of a book that could’ve easily been a hundred pages shorter and even more rewarding. But, I admire Martin’s style, so I’ve decided to bite the bullet and give Game of Thrones a shot. I’m not a fantasy guy, but I’ve seen the series and want to see what all the fuss is about. Like I said, I’ve never been afraid of admitting my own ignorance. 
Thx, Terrence…Great getting your thoughts on writers and books…

WRITERS ON BOOKS ~ ERIC BEETNER

WRITERS ON BOOKS ~ ERIC BEETNER As part of an ongoing series of blog posts, I’ve asked rising star Eric Beetner to give us a personal look into what writers read and what books influence their lives. If you want pistol-whipping, boot-stomping, nasty noir, then Eric Beetner is the guy for you—or his books anyway…Eric himself is wonderful blend of kind and cool…He’s the quick-fisted presence behind two of the best Fight Card novels ( Split Decision / A Mouthful Of Blood ) with his work since exploding across the hardboiled mystery scene. Rumrunners , The Devil Doesn’t Want Me , and Stripper Pole At The End Of The World , are just a few of the tough, noir influenced works Eric has published to critical acclaim…  THE BOOK YOU LOVED AS A CHILD… One I really remember is called The Great Cheese Conspiracy. It’s about a gang of mice who live in an old movie house watching old gangster films and get inspired to rob the cheese shop next door. I think it inspired my love of crime fiction at a young age. A BOOK YOU WOULD READ TO YOUR KIDS… Another favorite from childhood I had the pleasure to read to my girls is The Phantom Tollbooth. My girls are reading on their own now so this is close to the last book they let me read to them, but it is such an important book to me. I had to share it with them.  THE BOOK THAT MADE YOU WANT TO BE A WRITER… I think the one that turned the tide and made me want to commit to crime fiction was A Simple Plan by Scott Smith. Before that I was more omnivorous as a reader, but that solidified the types of stories I like best. YOUR FAVORITE CLASSIC… Oh, man, making me choose! I do my best to read the classics of crime. I know I have a long way to go, but my favorite for now might be The Hot Spot by Charles Williams. It was originally titled Hell Hath No Furywhen it came but the movie title is how it is republished today. But ask me again in 5 minutes and I’ll switch to something else like The Kiss Off or The Big Stealor Rendezvous In Black or Double Indemnity or…or…or… THE CLASSIC YOU’VE NEVER BEEN ABLE TO READ… Maybe Crime and Punishment? But to be honest I haven’t tried that hard. I know better than to try some classic detective fiction like Agatha Christie because I know it’s just not my thing.  THE CLASSIC YOU’VE PRETENDED TO HAVE READ… I never pretend. I’ll cop to not reading something every time. Talented Mr. Ripley is one I’ve never read but probably should. I own it. Just never read it. THE MOVIE ADAPTATION YOU’VE LOVED… Back to A Simple Plan. They really nailed it THE BOOK YOU’D LIKE TO SEE AS A MOVIE… Well, any of mine, of course. I’d like to see Gun Monkeys by Victor Gischler. With the right cast, it could be a lot of fun. THE IMAGINARY PLACE WHERE YOU COULD LIVE… It’s far away enough to be imaginary and mythical in my mind, but I’d love to have lived and worked in Hollywood in the 1940s. A great time for film.  THE GENRE YOU’D READ IF YOU WERE LIMITED TO ONE… Hardboiled crime fiction THE BOOK YOU’VE RETURNED TO AGAIN AND AGAIN… I don’t re-read very much, but when I even think of it I always want to start with Wild At Heartby Barry Gifford.  THE FICTIONAL FRIENDS YOU’D LOVE TO HAVE… Oh man, I’ll say the Amlingmeyer brothers from Steve Hockensmith’s Holmes on the Range series. Or Hap and Leonard from Joe Lansdale’s series. Both pairs get into a lot of trouble though so you’d have to watch your back. THE LAST NOVEL TO MAKE YOU LAUGH AND THE LAST TO MAKE YOU CRY… Martin Short’s autobiography I Must Say was fantastic. Do the audiobook to get the full effect. In a way it had the funniest and some of the saddest parts of a book so you get both in one volume.  WHAT YOU’RE READING NOW… I just started Dodgersby Bill Beverly and it’s off to a great start. I’m looking forward to digging into the rest of it.  Thx for hanging out Eric—Always looking forward to your next novel offering… Eric’s latest book, When The Devil Comes To Call , continues the adventures of aging hitman Lars and Shaine, the high spirited daughter of one of Lar’s targets who has more mayhem in one fist than most men in their entire bodies… FOR MORE BOOKS BY ERIC BEETNER CLICK HERE  

GUIDES TO THE MEN'S ACTION ADVENTURE GENRE

(MACK BOLAN COVER ART BY DANIEL CROUSE) GUIDES TO THE MEN'S ACTION ADVENTURE GENRE I’ve written a number of columns recently highlighting men’s action adventure paperback original series deserving of wider exposure. In those columns, I’ve also mention some reference works and a few of the sites on the web where further information on these series can be found. For this column, I wanted to gather those sites together in one handy reference and add a number of others… GLORIOUS TRASH  I have spent way too much time perusing the many books of my misspent youth on Joe Kenny’s info packed Glorious Trash blog. Trawling the depths of forgotten fiction, films, and beyond, Glorious Trash is filled with reviews and biting commentary on an outrageous number of paperback original men’s action/adventure series. This is a must hangout for faithful acolytes of the genre.  TRASH MENACE   Another site dedicated to reviewing men's adventure, pulp heroes, horror paperbacks, disposable culture, transgressive literature, and theme parks. I’ll admit this is the only site to include reviews of theme parks, but the inclusion illustrates each of these sites gives a different perspective and adds additional information on the genre.   THE TRASH COLLECTOR   Here you’ll find way too many desirable vintage men’s action/adventure paperbacks for sale. Spend too much time browsing and the irresistible offerings will steal cash out of your wallet like a thief in the night.  MEN’S PULP MAGS  Celebrating the men’s adventure magazines of the ‘50s ‘60s and ‘70s, there is no other place on the web packed with so much information, original material, and wonderful cover scans of the men’s adventure magazines that dominated the magazine racks for three decades. Administrator Bob Dies has done a fantastic job preserving the history, cultural importance, and sheer over-the-top fearlessness of the men’s adventure magazines. Don’t go here unless you have several hours to spare. However, once you do visit, you’ll be drawn back again and again.  THRILLING DETECTIVE WEBSITE  Kevin Burton Smith’s comprehensive Thrilling Detective website is the go to reference for almost any detective series or character ever to pull a gat, get hit over the head, or be a sucker for a dame. The listings are filled with inside info and provide full check lists of titles for every entry.   SPY GUYS AND GALS  An extensive listing of detailed information on almost 6,000 spy novels from 1,000 different series. Also includes expanded details on movies, television episodes, and a ton of other pertinent information.   SERIAL VIGILANTES OF PAPERBACK FICTION   Subtitled, An Encyclopedia From Able Team To Z-Comm, Serial Vigilantes of Paperback Fiction is available in both physical and e-book version. Either way, it’s a wonderful experience to browse through the pages. This extensive reference is not perfect. The complete lack of related cover art is almost criminal and, beginning as it does in 1969 with Don Pendleton's The Executioner, there are some truly great series and characters missing from the listings. However, this is the first overview ever of the serial vigilante genre and it really is a terrific effort and required reading. The book examines the connections between serial vigilantes and the pulp heroes who preceded them and how the serial vigilante has influenced a variety of tough guys, private eyes, spies and cops in different media. A complete bibliography for each series is featured as well as background on the authors, including those behind the many pen names, pseudonyms, and publishing house names.  THE PAPERBACK FILM PROJECTOR  Novelizations and movie tie-ins from A(ce) to Z(ebra). Only the uninitiated would not recognize Ace and Zebra as two of the main publishers of men’s action adventure series and a flood of other pop culture related paperbacks from action adventure TV shows and movies…Pinnacle and other publishers of similar fare also get spotlighted on this ongoing blog with a deep archive of material.  TEMPLE OF SCHLOCK  Book reviews, movie reviews, interviews (Anne Francis, Pam Grier, and many more)…If it can be labeled shlock, you’ll find it covered here. Temple of Schlock also has an Endangered Species List looking at those precious gems of pop culture threatened with extinction by the passing of time.  BULLETS, BROADS, BLACKMAIL, AND BOMBS   Bruce Grossman’s column on the Bookgasm hasn’t been added to lately, but the archives of the column still hits all the high points and low points of men’s action/adventure series. Grossman is knowledgeable and has an abiding interest in the genre that shines through in his reviews. JOHNNY LARUE'S CRANE SHOT  Marty McKee defines his blog in no uncertain terms—trashy movies, trashy paperbacks, trashy old TV shows, trashy...well, you get the picture. The description is not misleading. As in other sites mentioned in this column, Johnny Larue’s Crane Shot has extensive listings and reviews of all the stuff to satisfy a genre fan’s delight.  PAPERBACK FANATIC  The Paperback Fanaticis the British magazine for collectors of pulp paperbacks from the 1960s and 1970s…Jam-packed with author interviews and articles about the weird and wonderful books from that era, The Paperback Fanatic is bursting with previously undocumented information and loaded with reproductions of many rarely seen covers. MEN OF VIOLENCE    A spin-off from the Paperback Fanatic, the three out of print Men Of Violence issues are extremely worth tracking down on the used market. Men Of Violence covers the lurid, often bloody, men's adventure paperbacks of the 1970s. Topics include intriguing aspects of the genre, such as a look at Manor Books—a New York-based operation that published some of the genre's sleaziest series, including Kill Squad, Bronson, Peter McCurtin's long running Marksman series, the western series Renegade starring Captain Gringo and more. Black-and-white cover reproductions are sprinkled across the pages giving a quick visual guide to what the genre is all about. EXPLOITATION RETROSPECT—THE JOURNAL OF JUNK CULTURE AND FRINGE MEDIA   Each issue of Exploitation Retrospect is brimming with the kind of behind the scenes details that are catnip to genre fanatics. There are often articles on many of the men's action/adventure series, such as The Destroyer, Dirty Harry, and Ninja Master, as well as articles on Nikkatsu Erotic Cinema, Nazi Zombie Flicks, and a huge DVD review section of the best and worst in sci-fi, action, horror and sleazy trash sinema. The above are the core sites and reference guides to the men’s action/adventure genre. There are certainly many others, which you can find by following the links on the sites above…

WRITERS ON BOOKS ~ DAVID FOSTER

WRITERS ON BOOKS ~ DAVID FOSTER As part of an ongoing series of blog posts, I’ve asked my Aussie compatriot, thriller writer David Foster, to help me kick off a new blog post sequence examining what books writers are reading and what books have influenced their lives.   As the pseudonymous Jack Tunney, David delivered three of the most exciting novels in the Fight Card series ( King of the Outback , Rumble In the Jungle , The Iron Fists of Ned Kelly )—each perfect examples of the fine line between action and pulp Fight Card was designed to deliver. As James Hopwood, David has also taken it upon himself to put the fun back in espionage fiction with three top notch adventures ( The Librio Defection , The Danakil Deception , The Ambrosia Kill ) featuring neophyte British spy Jarvis Love—Agent of G.I.N. (Global Intelligence Network). Cheers, David, for taking time to consider these questions about the books in your life… My pleasure, Paul. THE BOOK YOU LOVED AS A CHILD…  My dad passed on a whole stack of Biggles books to me as a youngster, and the one that continues to stick in my memory after all these years, is Biggles and the Cruise of the Condor. I know Biggles has dated, and may not be politically correct these days, but for firing a young boy's imagination back in the day, Biggles was an absolutely fantastic series. Editor Note: Biggles is a fictional pilot and adventurer featured in almost a hundred novels written for boys by W. E. Johns between 1932 and 1968. Many of the volumes are collectors’ items today. A BOOK YOU WOULD READ TO YOUR KIDS…  Easily, the Harry Potter series. No question. But, as a curveball here—and maybe not my best parenting moment—I remember back when my son was about ten years old, he came into my bedroom while I was re-reading Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas by Hunter S. Thompson. He jumped up on the bed beside me and we read it (or at least some of it) together, alternating reading page to page. That is to say, I would read a page—doing a poor Johnny Depp impersonation—and then he would read a page. I remember him laughing hysterically at the oddball descriptions of vampire bats etc. So, yeah, there's that! THE BOOK THAT MADE YOU WANT TO BE A WRITER… If you mean books that inspired me to become a writer, that's sort of difficult. Basically anything that jump-started my imagination—from Ian Fleming, Clive Cussler, or even Dan Brown (don't laugh—Dan tells a good tale). But if you want to know what pushed me to actually sit down and write, it’s actually two people rather than books.   For years I toyed around writing little pieces here and there, never finishing anything. I had my blog, where I wrote short reviews of films and books, but that was nothing more than throw away stuff. Then two people entered my life. One of these people was Australian actor, Roger Ward. You may remember him from the original Mad Max, The Man From Hong Kong, Quigley Down Under and a whole host of Ozploitation Classics. Roger read a review I wrote for the movie, Stone, and commented upon it (correcting a few of my mistakes). Later when corresponding with Roger, I would sign my emails with Author of Permission to Kill, which was the name of my blog. Roger asked, what is this Permission to Kill? Is it a book? I had to admit it was just the name of my blog. But, I proudly spouted I had all these unfinished pieces I was  working on. Roger, in his usual direct manner said, and I paraphrase at best, Finish 'em off, Dave. They're not doin' anyone any bloody good sitting in your bottom drawer. It seems like such a simple comment, doesn't it? But it was one that really got me thinking about the difference between being a writer and pretending to be a writer. I had been a pretender.  Also at that time, a gentleman, who shall remain nameless for the moment, who also used to read my blog, published a novella. It was a simple little story about an LA cop, who was also an amateur fighter who gets caught up in a tangled web of vice and corruption. What I loved about this story was it was as thrilling and emotive as a full length novel, however it was short—maybe around 25,000 words, less than 100  pages. It taught me a good story didn't need to be a six hundred page behemoth. The book was also part of a series featuring different authors, so I thought, hey, I can do that!  So I asked the question, can I write an entry in the series? The answer was, yes. And that's where it all really began to come together. It forced me to finish something I started. As some of you may have guessed, the writer was Paul Bishop and the book was Felony Fists…(sorry to piss in your pocket, Paul!) YOUR FAVORITE CLASSIC… The Three Musketeers. THE CLASSIC YOU’VE NEVER BEEN ABLE TO READ… The Big Nowhere. I have started it so many times, but just can't get into it. THE CLASSIC YOU’VE PRETENDED TO HAVE READ… The Lord of the Rings. Once again, one of those I have started on so many occasions, but just can't make the whole journey. THE MOVIE ADAPTATION YOU’VE LOVED… An obvious choice for me, On Her Majesty's Secret Service, because I think it improves on the book. THE BOOK YOU’D LIKE TO SEE AS A MOVIE… I like my movies loud and fast paced, with lots of gunfire and shit blowing up, so I'm going to say something like Matt Hilton's Joe Hunter series, starting at the beginning with Dead Man's Dust. THE IMAGINARY PLACE WHERE YOU COULD LIVE… Imaginary, eh? I don't read much fantasy, so that's tough. Maybe somewhere like a Bond villain's lair—however the lairs in the books aren't as swank as the ones in the films. Okay, how's this for obscure—the Caribbean volcano lair of Dominat, in the Mark Hood spy thriller, Black Napoleon (released in the US as Throne of Satan). THE GENRE YOU’D READ IF YOU WERE LIMITED TO ONE… Espionage THE BOOK YOU’VE RETURNED TO AGAIN AND AGAIN… Live and Let Die. THE FICTIONAL FRIENDS YOU’D LOVE TO HAVE… Dirk Pitt and Al Giordino. And Cliff Hardy. THE LAST NOVEL TO MAKE YOU LAUGH AND THE LAST TO MAKE YOU CRY…  Maybe a slightly self-indulgent answer, because I have a story in the collection, but if you dive into the anthology Lee (stories about movie star, Lee Marvin) published by Crime Factory, you'll find a story by Johnny Shaw called The Big Red One. When I read it I was laughing so hard, I had tears streaming from my eyes – so that count's for both right? WHAT YOU’RE READING NOW… The Americanization of Sarah Gallby Jim Dow. Thanks for your time, Paul. Great questions. I had a blast. Back at you, my friend…Great answers…I’m heading right over to read The Big Red One… FOR MORE ON BOOKS BY DAVID FOSTER CLICK HERE 

YOU’RE IN THE ARMY NOW ~ PART 2

YOU’RE IN THE ARMY NOW ~ PART 2 This war, maggots! You screw up, you better die because the men around you are gonna die because of you. If you wanna get home and get your girlfriends outta the beds of all the four-Fs left behind, then you better pray you fight better than you… Er…Sorry…I got carried away again…You’ll have to use your imagination to finish off the above sentence, which you should hear in your head in the voice of George C. Scott…Okay, then…It appears we are back this week with another look at the best of the war-centric men’s action/adventure series from the ‘70s and 80’s…  Billed as All Man, All American, Always In The Thick Of The Action, special agent and demolition expert Captain Mac Wingate needed eleven books to win the war single-handedly, but he did it…Published by Jove between 1981 and 1982 under the house name Bryan Swift, the Wingate novels are low level Guns of Navarone/Where Eagles Dare style WWII adventures. Casablanca, Albania, Crete, Corsica, Warsaw, Norway, Salerno, the Russian front, Anzio and anywhere Nazis threaten freedom, Mac turns up and blows stuff up.  Arthur Wise wrote the first and seventh books in the series with the nine books split between western writer Bill C. Knott and Ric Meyers—master of martial arts thrillers and many of the Dirty Harry books inspired by the movies. I was able to ask Ric about his time with the series:  I had total freedom in plotting and creating my entries and truly enjoyed hinging the plot on actual WWII events—especially ones where something anonymous, unexplained, or mysterious happened, which I could then attributed to Mac.   I also will always remember it was on this series where I had the first instance of a character talking back to me. I was certain I was going to let one character live until she entered my mind and said, you know I have to die, don't you? Sure enough she did.  I also loved creating a character who had seen so many war movies he refused to make any hopeful statement such as, nothing can stop us now! Invariably, in the movies, that character is immediately killed by an enemy soldier who's not quite dead yet. I sorta regret having my character, in a moment of uncontrollable emotion, make the stupid statement he has tried so hard not to say and then gets killed. I shoulda let him live.  
 THE MAC WINGATE SERIES Mission Code: Symbol (1981—Arthur Wise)Mission Code: King's Pawn (1981—Bill C. Knott)Mission Code: Minotaur (1981—Bill C. Knott) Mission Code: Granite Island (1981—Ric Meyers)Mission Code: Springboard (1981—Bill C. Knott)Mission Code: Snow Queen (1982—Ric Meyers)Mission Code: Acropolis (1982—Arthur Wise)Mission Code: Volcano (1982—Ric Meyers)Mission Code: Track And Destroy (1982—Bill C. Knott)Mission Code: Survival (1982—Ric Meyers)Mission Code: Scorpion (1982—Ric Meyers)  From the European theatre of WWII, we now fast forward to the fallout from the Vietnam War. The M.I.A. Hunter series led the charge for many similar themed books and movies starring either Sylvester Stallone or Chuck Norris. Conceived and edited by wordslinger extraordinaire Stephen Mertz—and written by some of the top names in the paperback original trenches under the house pseudonym Jack Buchanan—M.I.A. Hunter deals honorably with the genuine ‘80s concern there were living American M.I.A./POWs left behind after the end of the Vietnam War. Anecdotal evidence was rife unfortunately (or fortunately) solid proof never materialized. The sentiment, however, funs strong and you can still see the black M.I.A./POW flags flying today.  The M.I.A. Hunter is Green Beret and former POW Mark Stone. Along with giant red-headed Texan Hog Wiley and British demolition expert Terrence Lloughlin, Stone follows every clue to scour Vietnam for soldiers listed as Missing In Action. In later books, Stone and company expand into other countries and even take on work to help the CIA locate missing agents. Over at his GLORIOUS TRASH blog, Joe Kennedy describes the series as an '80s action movie on paper. It's as if it was co-published by Canon Films or something. I asked Steve Mertz about the genesis for the series:  My Mack Bolan novel, Return to Vietnam, pretty much knocked people out when it first appeared. The book was a tremendous success and made several trade bestseller lists. An editor at Jove saw the potential and asked me to sketch the M.I.A. concept as the basis for a series. Jove liked the characters of Mark Stone, Terrance Loughlin and Hog Wiley, and The M.I.A. Hunter was born. Interestingly, the books ended up resonating with a broad audience of readers beyond the general men’s series readership.  Mertz has taken advantage of the e-book format to not only make all the M.I.A. Hunter books available, but to also—after twenty years—add new titles. As for the time gap, Mertz says, Stone will remain at the age when he’s in his physical prime, in the time honored tradition of Mack Bolan, Mike Shayne, and many others.  M.I.A. HUNTER: HOSTAGE TOWN   When an M.I.A. mission goes terribly wrong, Mark Stone and his team are thrust into a showdown with terrorists who have seized control of an isolated Texas border town. But the invaders have not counted on the fury of Mark Stone, Terrance Loughlin and Hog Wiley. It’s a deadly race against time to rescue a church full of innocent hostages when world terrorism strikes the American heartland. In his review of Hostage Town, James Reasoner (an amazingly prolific wordslinger himself) states, nobody does this sort of book better than Mertz. Compelling characters, fast action, a real sense of urgency and suspense. He's one of the best adventure writers of our time, plain and simple. Highly recommended. 
MARK STONE: M.I.A. HUNTER SERIES M.I.A. Hunter (1985—Michael Newton)Cambodian Hellhole (1985—Michael Newton)Hanoi Deathgrip (1985—Joe R. Lansdale)Mountain Massacre (1985—Joe R. Lansdale)Exodus From Hell (1986—Chet Cunningham)Blood Storm (1986—William Fieldhouse)Stone: M.I.A. Hunter (1987—Chet Cunningham)Saigon Slaughter (1987—Joe R. Lansdale)Escape from Nicaragua (1987—Arthur Moore)Invasion U.S.S.R. (1988— Arthur Moore)Miami War Zone (1988—Bill Crider)Crossfire Kill (1988— Arthur Moore)Desert Death Raid (1989—Bill Crider)L.A. Gang War (1990—Stephen Mertz)Back to 'Nam (1990—Bill Crider)Heavy Fire (1991—Stephen Mertz)China Strike (1991—Stephen Mertz)Hostage Town (2016—Stephen Mertz) <iframe style="width:120px;height:240px;" marginwidth="0" marginheight="0" scrolling="no" frameborder="0" src="http://www.paulbishopbooks.com//ws-na...  

YOU’RE IN THE ARMY NOW—PART 1

YOU’RE IN THE ARMY NOW—PART 1 “All right, you maggots! Fall-in! Your physical performances prove evolution is a lie. This is the Army, not the Girl Scouts. Reincarnation must be true because nobody could become this stupid in one lifetime. I’m gonna call every one of you Baskin, cause you’re all 31 flavors of screwed up…” Oh, sorry…I got a little carried away. It’s the fault all the WWII action I’ve been reading in preparation to share the best war is hell series from the golden age of men’s action/adventure. Writing these columns featuring men’s action/adventure series of the ‘60s and 70’s deserving of a wider audience, I keep finding more I want to share. However, there are also current books inspired by the same dynamic style of writing, which are also worthy of attention. Since I’m the czar of my 1,000 weekly words for Venture Galleries, I’ve decided to sprinkle a few of these new series into the mix. This week and next, we’re going to be hitting the beach, charging once more into the breech, and taking out machine gun nests alongside some of the meanest sumbitches to ever spit out of boot camp.  To get into the spirit, I highly recommend A HANDFUL OF HELL , an amazing collection of over the top, emotionally stirring, war stories ripped from the pages of the men’s adventure magazines. Written by the prolific Robert Dorr, the stories in this tense, gritty collection drop readers squarely into the fiery crucible of action, both in the cockpit and on the front lines. In Dorr’s own words, “These stories were being read by men who’d been there, done that. I had to have the personalities and the details right. They wouldn’t tolerate having men like themselves overly glorified, or to have war made glamorous.”  One of the toughest bastards with whom I’ve ever had the honor of being acquainted, Door passed away recently after a lifetime of proving he was a match for any of the heroes he wrote about.  Starting in 1980, Len Levinson (affectionately dubbed a trash genius—high praise by the way) wrote the first paperback original in The Sergeant series under the pseudonym Gordon Davis. The nine books in the series did for men’s action/adventure what Sgt. Rock did for comics—getting down and dirty in the mud and blood of WWII.  In an interview on Joe Kennedy’s GLORIOUS TRASH blog, Levinson explains, “During my three-year enlistment, I met many veterans of World War II still on active duty. One of my sergeants had survived the Bataan Death March. After a few beers, or during chow while on maneuvers, sometimes old sergeants told stories. All were very tough guys.  Many had killed people. I admired them greatly and still do. The Sergeant series was based on memories of my former sergeants and of Walter Zacharius, President of Zebra Books [publishers of The Sergeant], who'd been a sergeant himself and participated in the liberation of Paris.”  

The Sergent—or more correctly, Master Sergeant Clarence J. Mahoney—is a bruising, brawling, hardcore, hardcase—a coarse, hard-drinking brute who specializes in killing and fornicating. Always clever enough to avoid court martial, Mahoney is an amalgam of the Lee Marvin, Charles Bronson and John Cassavetes Dirty Dozen characters rolled into one fighting machine—my kind of guy… THE SERGEANT SERIES Death Train (1980)Hell Harbor: The Battle for Cherbourg (1980)Bloody Bush (1980)The Liberation of Paris (1981)Doom River (1981)Slaughter City (1981)Bullet Bridge (1981)Bloody Bastogne (1981)Hammerhead (1982)  Due to his prodigious output of paperback original novels, the ubiquitous wordslinger Michael Avallone was often called The Fastest Typewriter In The East. In my estimation, Len Levinson was most likely The Second Fastest Typewriter In The East. After the success of The Sergeant, Levinson switched from the European theatre to the war in the Pacific. Under the pseudonym John Mackie, Levinson wrote sixteen books detailing the harsh travails and harsher antics of The Rat Bastards.   Writing about his numerous war novels, Levinson states, “After The Sergeant, I felt inspired to write The Rat Bastards set during World War Two in the Pacific Theater of Operations. This series became a massive cauldron of jungle fighting, swamps, malaria, snakes and leeches, told from viewpoints of both American and Japanese soldiers and officers, including guest appearances by historical figures such as Major General Alexander Vandegrift and Lieutenant General Harakuchi Hyakatuke."  Whereas, The Sergeantwas a one man Dirty Dozen (even though backed by a tough crew), The Rat Bastards’ Recon Platoon is made up of misfits, criminals, and barroom brawlers. As you would expect, they don’t like to follow orders and are tougher than hell in a fight. As you would expect, The Rat Bastards see a lot of action, but Levinson also exposes the flaws in his characters, including the fear and self-doubt experience by all men in combat. This deeper writing extends to Levinson’s Japanese characters, treating them with some understanding and showing a respect for  their hardships, bravery, and loyalty as opposed to stereotypical sadists. THE RAT BASTARDS SERIES Hit the Beach (1983) Death Squad (1983) River of Blood (1983) Meat Grinder Hill (1984)Down and Dirty (1984) Green Hell (1984) Too Mean Too Die (1984) Hot Lead and Cold Steel (1984)Do or Die (1984)Kill Crazy (1985) Nightmare Alley (1985)Go for Broke (1985) Tough Guys Die (1985)Suicide River (1985) Satan's Cage (1985) Go Down Fighting (1985)  FOR MORE ABOUT THE RAT BASTARDS CLICK HERE My ammo supply of words for this week have been shot off faster than rounds fired through the 50 cal. machineguns mounted on the back of The Rat Patrol’s jeeps. Next week we’ll hit the beach again with other WWII action series of note.

HARDBOILED NOW: HIDDEN GEMS PART 3

HARDBOILED NOW: HIDDEN GEMS PART 3 In last week’s column, hard-edged series characters Sand and Burns Bannion joined Rafferty and Jim Hardman on our growing list of hardboiled private eyes and tough guys little known outside of The Eye—the inner circle of acolytes committed to keeping the secrets of the hardboiled genre. This week, we’ll check out three more series entries, all of which should send you scrambling to your used book resources ready to crack your piggy bank open. Before we start, however, I’m making an executive decision to expand the reach of this series of columns beyond officially licensed private eyes to add in hard-hitting tough guys (and maybe even a few gals) be they spies, Parker style criminals, vigilantes, troubleshooters, military grunts or whatever else strikes my fancy. While most of my buddies within the hardboiled inner circle know all about these characters, my goal is to expose these action-filled and deserving series to a wider audience. I’m also going to be adding in more Internet sources and reference works—places where you can lose half a day simply browsing through the entries and still have much more to explore.  This week, I’m going to start with a great guide to retro-espionage series, SPY GUYS AND GALS , which contains listings and information on almost 6,000 spy novels from 1,000 different series, as well as movies, television episodes, and a ton of other pertinent information.   THE TRASH COLLECTOR is another dangerous website. Here you’ll find way too many desirable vintage men’s action/adventure paperbacks for sale. Spend too much time browsing and the irresistible offerings will steal cash out of your wallet like a thief in the night.  And for those who want to hold a physical book in your hands (there is also an e-book version) there’s Brad Mengel’s, SERIAL VIGILANTES OF PAPERBACK FICTION . Subtitled, An Encyclopedia From Able Team To Z-Comm, it is a wonderful experience to browse through the pages. This extensive reference is not perfect. The complete lack of related cover art is almost criminal and, beginning as it does in 1969 with Don Pendleton's The Executioner, there are some truly great series and characters missing from the listings. However, this is the first overview ever of the serial vigilante genre and it really is a terrific effort and required reading. The book examines the connections between serial vigilantes and the pulp heroes who preceded them and how the serial vigilante has influenced a variety of tough guys, private eyes, spies and cops in different media. A complete bibliography for each series is featured.  In 1978, the private eye novel Kyd For Hire made a splash on the mystery scene with the author Timothy Harris being touted as the next Chandler—which is never a good sign. None-the-less, while not exactly in Philip Marlowe’s league, Thomas Kyd does hit the sweet spot for most hardboiled fans. Kyd is a damaged Vietnam vet whose goal is to make it through to the end of each day as he bounces his PI license off the mean streets of LA. The three Kyd novels are well worth tracking down, especially if you can find the British paperback editions of the first two novels published by Pan. Placed side by side, the two covers complete a titillating and provocative painting—entitled Bodyguard 2—by Paul Roberts. I have a copy of this print rolled up and stashed somewhere on my shelves—a prized possession. THE THOMAS KYD SERIES Kyd For Hire (1978)Goodnight and Goodbye (1979)Unfaithful Servant (2004) FOR MORE ON THOMAS KYD CLICK HERE FOR MORE ON AUTHOR TIMOTHY HARRIS CLICK HERE TO SEE MORE WORK BY ARTIST PAUL ROBERTS CLICK HERE 
 
Before he began his bestselling Doc Ford novels, Randy Wayne White cut his writing chops on several different men’s adventure paperback original series under various pseudonyms. For a number of years, White attempted to distance himself from these early works, but eventually embraced them when offered a lucrative deal to republish all of them under his own name. As Carl Ramm, he wrote eleven books in the Hawker series, featuring an ex-SWAT sniper turned vigilante in the Mack Bolan mode. After disobeying questionable commands and shooting a suspect during a hostage situation when the suspect opened fire on a group of rich teenagers, Hawker is made a scapegoat by weak-kneed political Monday morning quarterbacks. Angry and frustrated, Hawker tosses in his badge without any real idea of what to do next. However, he’s just the man a multi-millionaire needs to bring rough justice down on the criminals destroying society. What raises Hawker above similar vigilante series is Hawker is not a mindless tool of destruction slaying away regardless of collateral damage. He's not afraid to kill when necessary, but he has some clear restrains—ethics that make him both powerful friends and powerful enemies.   While I liked the Hawker series, it’s White’s other early series, MacMorgan—written as Randy Stryker—I think is truly exceptional. A former CIA agent, with a major body scar from being bitten by a shark, Dusky MacMorgan is a kick-ass action hero, but the books also get deeper into character than almost all other men’s action/adventure series. This helps the reader come to know and like MacMorgan, as much more hot blooded action hero than cold killing machine. Working off the books for a secret government agency, MacMorgan takes assignments where his job as a working charter boat captain is an advantage. An ex-Navy SEAL with three tours in Vietnam behind him, MacMorgan left the service for the Florida Keys and his own charter fishing boat. However, when his wife and twin boys are killed in a car bomb explosion meant for MacMorgan, there is hell to pay for the killers. White uses his experiences as a real life charter boat captain, and his extensive knowledge of the Caribbean, to skillfully give the reader a vicarious experience of not only adventure, but culture, music, food, fishing lore, and a sense of place almost always completely absent from these types of series. The seven books in the MacMorgan series have been described as part Travis McGee and part early Matt Helm without being a cheap imitation of either. I agree… THE DUSKY MACMORGAN SERIES Key West Connection (1981)The Deep Six (1981)Cuban Death-lift (1981)The Deadlier Sex (1981)Assassin's Shadow (1981)Everglades Assault (1982)Grand Cayman Slam (1982) THE HAWKER SERIES Florida Firefight (1984)L.A. Wars (1984)Chicago Assault (1984)Deadly in New York (1984)Houston Attack (1985)Vegas Vengeance (1985)Detroit Combat (1985)Terror in D.C. (1986)Atlanta Extreme (1986)Denver Strike (1986)Operation Norfolk (1986) FOR MORE ON DUSKY MACMORGAN CLICK HERE Next week be ready to fall-in with some of the toughest bastards to ever take the war to the enemy…

HARDBOILED NOW: HIDDEN GEMS PART 2

HARDBOILED NOW: HIDDEN GEMS PART 1 In last week’s column, I spotlighted two private eye series familiar only to the  acolytes of the hardboiled inner circle—The Eye—whose knowledge and fanatical commitment to the genre keep the embers of even the most obscure fictional private eyes and tough guys alive. This week, I’ll expose three more hidden gems of the genre.  I must admit, I’m having way too much fun with this theme. While compiling my own list of obscure tough guy characters, I also reached out to some of my co-fanatics who contribute to the Men’s Adventure Paperbacks of the ‘70s and ‘80s Facebook group—Celebrating the two-fisted, heavily armed paperback adventure heroes of long-gone publishers like Pinnacle, Leisure, Zebra, etc....The Executioner. The Destroyer. The Death Merchant. The Protector. Nick Carter, Killmaster. The Penetrator. Black Samurai. Edge. The Hook. And so many more. In short order, they inundated me with enough private eyes, hitmen, vigilantes, tough crooks, tougher cops, and troubleshooters to fill this column for the rest of the year. I had either read or was familiar with most of the characters they mentioned—from both series or standalone novels—but there were definitely some I needed to check out for myself.  Anyone serious about tracking down these series and others should be familiar with these Internet resources: Kevin Burton Smith’s THRILLING DETECTIVE website is a comprehensive reference site for almost any detective series or character ever to grace the page; Joe Kenney’s GLORIOUS TRASH blog—where I have spent way too much time perusing the many books of my misspent youth—is filled with reviews and biting commentary on an outrageous number of paperback original men’s action/adventure series; Bruce Grossman’s BULLETS, BROADS, BLACKMAIL, AND BOMBS column on the BOOKGASM blog hits all the high points and low points of men’s action/adventure series;  JOHNNY LARUE'S CRANE SHOT blog—trashy movies, trashy paperbacks, trashy old TV shows, trashy...well, you get the picture; and the TRASH MENACE blog—a review of men's adventure, pulp heroes, horror paperbacks, disposable culture, transgressive literature, and theme parks. Each of these sites will keep both hardcore and new fans busy for hours…  This week, I’m continuing with my own list of obscure favorites. This dynamic duo, like the Rafferty and Hardman series from last week, have been off the hardboiled genre’s radar for far too long. One of the toughest tough guys is Ennis Willie’s Sand—A former crime lord with a price on his head, an army of hit men on his back, and a .45 riding in a shoulder rig under his arm to do his talking. A man alone, with few friends and many hates. There is nowhere to hide…and it's too late to pray...  Short, terse, full of sex and graphic violence, the Sand Shockers, took their cue from Richard Stark’s far better known Parker novels. But Sand is far more than an imitation Parker. Sand’s violent cross-country crusade to break from his past as a mob hitman and rectify past wrongs—killing a morgue-full of minions and former mob bosses without qualms in the process—forms the template followed a decade later by Donald Pendleton’s Mack Bolan The Executioner series and its myriad of imitators.  Ennis Willie wrote many novels published by the low-circulation sleaze imprint Merit Books in Chicago. Merit also published the nine Sand novels, but the distribution of Merit’s books was erratic at best, condemning the Sand Shockers to obscurity. However, the inner circle of hardboiled fanatics—in particular Stephen Mertz and Ed Gorman—have kept Sand’s flame alive, ensuring his continuing legacy.   A hardboiled icon in his own right, Max Allan Collins acknowledges his series featuring tough crook Nolan and his later series with calculating hitman Quarry (soon to be seen on Cinemax) were inspired by Sand. Regarding Ennis Willie the writer, Collins declares, Among American writers, only one caught Mickey Spillane's magic—only one managed to create a fever-dream world of sadistic gangsters, willing women and larger-than-life tough guys. THE SAND SHOCKERS Scarlet Goddess (1963)Aura Of Sensuality (1963)Haven For The Damned (1963)Game Of Passion (1964)And Some Were Evil (1964)Warped Ambition (1964) The Case Of The Loaded Garter Holster (1964) Passion Has No Rule Book (1964) Code Of Vengeance (1965) The original Sand novels are incredibly rare and expensive, however, Ramble House has resurrected a number of Sand tales in two readily available collections, SAND’S GAME and SAND’S WAR    FOR MORE ON ENNIS WILLIE CLICK HERE  An American GI who remained in Tokyo as a Karate student after World War II, Burns Bannion was created by Earl Norman (Norman Thomson) in a series of nine paperback originals. Like the original Sand novels, the Bannion books are rare and expensive. Unlike Sand, there are no easily accessible reprints or collections.  In 1958’s Kill Me In Tokyo, Burns Bannion gets his start as a private eye when he is mistaken for a real Californian PI who has followed a lead to Japan. Racial stereotypes abound in Bannion’s Japan, but if you can get beyond the political incorrectness (by today’s standards), the books are quick, hard hitting, and enjoyable reads. They are also possibly the first action novels to feature a westerner with martial arts skills.   The covers of the first editions and all reprints have become collectable treasures, especially with great blurbs claiming Bannion to be blood brother to Shell Scott and Mike Hammer and a guy who keeps running into his two favorite pastimes—gorgeous girls and deadly killers.  THE BURNS BANNION SERIES Kill Me in Tokyo (1958)Kill Me in Shimbashi (1959)Kill Me in Yokohama (1960)Kill Me in Yoshiwara (1961)Kill Me in Shinjunku (1961)Kill Me in Atami (1962)Kill Me on the Ginza (1962)Kill Me In Yokosuka (1966) Kill Me in Roppongi (1967)