The Freedom Trap by Desmond Bagley

The Freedom Trap by Desmond Bagley
Fawcett M1789,
Copyright 1971

I have a handful of novels written by Desmond Bagley. Had them for years and never read one. Sometimes I see a captivating cover on a paperback and I end up laying my money on the counter when I'm checking out. And to be honest that's how I assembled a small collection of books from this British author of dangerous thrillers. I was digging through one of my boxes of paperbacks and "The Freedom Trap" caught my eye. (a no miss -with a frogman, exploding boat, and a red bikini) This convinced me to give Mr. Bagley a go and I'm glad I did. It was an unexpected high adventure ride that immediately turned me into a Desmond Bagley fan.

A small army of men rushed us and we were both grabbed and held. There wasn't a damn thing I could do- two of the three men who tackled me were trying to tear my arms off so they could use them as clubs to beat me over the head, and the other was using my stomach as a bass drum and his fists weren't padded as drumsticks are. I sagged and gasped for breath.

Joseph Aloysius Rearden (he rather would forget the Aloysius dub) is summoned from South Africa to perform a job. He's a better-than-average crook that has been in the "nick" before. In London he meets an esoteric man called Mackintosh and his efficient secretary Mrs. Smith. Together they lay out the plan to Rearden. They want him to knock over a postman who is delivering a package of uncut diamonds and immediately pass them over to Mackintosh before the crime becomes known. Rearden will be paid a tidy sum for what he believes will be a quick score. He accepts and it goes off smoothly. The postman takes a sap to the skull, Rearden snatches the package, and then he transfers it to Mackintosh. Well, in a matter of hours the local cops are at Rearden's hotel room and have enough evidence to drag him in. Sticking to his story that he is innocent, Rearden quickly realizes that its a lost cause. He's been setup and all fingers point to one person-Mackintosh. Rearden gets 20 years and becomes a "special" inmate because of the notoriety of the crime. And it is in the "gaol"while serving his time, that this novel takes a major 180 degree turn.

I don't want to reveal to much about this one. I will tell you that it contains a damn clever plot. The twist takes place at almost the half way point in the novel. To be honest, I was expecting something. I knew a little about Desmond Bagley and the type of novels that he wrote. But I expected it earlier in the story and he had me so absorbed in the crime aspect of the plot that he caught me off guard. I really liked that. Wonderful dialogue throughout the novel and I even got to pickup a few British slang terms that I never heard before. Rearden turns out to be an integrity character, as does Mackintosh and Mrs. Smith. Many people turn out to be more than what we are let on to believe, and that includes the minor characters in the story. Bagley seems to have a nack for this and he does it extremely well. A decent amount of action, especially near the end. But it's not overly done. Bagley places it where it is most effective. The strength of "The Freedom Trap" is in its excellent plot and its well-developed characters. If you enjoy the novels of Alistair MacLean and the early works of Jack Higgins, "The Freedom Trap" may be worth getting a hold of.

I discovered that John Huston's 1973 film "The Mackintoch Man" was based on this novel. It stars Paul Newman as Rearden and one of my favorite British actors, Harry Andrews as Mackintosh. It's one of the few Newman films that I have never seen. I'll have to get a hold of the DVD. From the characterization in the novel, I don't see Newman as Rearden. I'll have to see how that works out.

Tom Selleck - Jesse Stone

Tom Selleck - Jesse Stone

I never got to see Robert B. Parker's, Chief Jesse Stone made-for -TV movies when they first were aired by CBS. Luckily, my local Public Library has recently obtained the first three in DVD and I've been treating myself using my library card. It's been a while since I've seen Selleck better in a role, especially at this stage in his career. His portrayal of the flawed, chief of police in Paradise, Mass. is exceptional. Written in his face in these films, is the dark soul and dry wit that are bottled up inside the character. There is a lot going on in the guts of this man and in the 90 minutes, Selleck sells it to the viewer. ( Also a pretty damn good crime drama too.)

I believe all four are out in DVD; Stone Cold, Night Passage, Death in Paradise, and Sea Change. I hear that CBS will be airing the fifth "Thin Ice" in 2009 and a sixth "No Remorse" is in the works. I've learned my lesson, I will not miss those two when they first come out.

"Jesse sat for a long time in the darkness looking at the ocean and rain. In clear weather the eastern sky would be pale by now and in another half hour or so, this time of year, it would be light. Jesse turned on the headlights and backed the car up and headed back down the hill to shower and change and put on his badge." -from "Trouble in Paradise"

Criss-Cross by Don Tracy

Criss-Cross by Don Tracy
Triangle Books, copyright 1934

Don Tracy sure titled this novel correctly. In it we have crosses, double crosses, and criss crosses of doubled crosses. All are interweaved within the relationships between the characters, which take them on a disastrous collision course.

He'd been smarter than me. All along I'd thought he was dumb and that I was giving him the big cross and now I was finding out that he knew all along and was just waiting to throw it into me. I was the dumb one. And I was paying for being dumb.

The story is about Johnny Thompson, who struggles to earn a decent buck during the 1930s depression era. Right now he's an ex-boxer with a flat nose working as an armored car delivery guard. His biggest problem is coming up with enough cash to take out the girl he is obsessed with, Anna. Anna loves money and the cushion life it brings. Johnny can't compete with Slim, an acquaintance of his who has plenty of dough usually obtained by shady dealings. Anna ends up marrying Slim for his money, which tears the guts out of Johnny. But the trio continues a "friendly" relationship, and Slim takes a liking to Johnny. Eventually Anna and Johnny play around behind Slim's back. Johnny knows he is being used by Anna, but he doesn't care just as long he can spend time with her. Slim offers Johnny a chance to make some big money, by being the inside man in robbing a payroll carried by his delivery truck. Johnny takes the offer and it chances his life, and the lives of Anna and Slim, forever.

"All woman are bitches," I said. She smiled at me. Her eyes were deep and black. "All woman are cheats and liars and bitches," I told her.
"I'm not," she said. "I'm a whore."
"You're different," I said. "I mean real women."

An excellent gritty, noir novel. The author gives us a inside look into the garbled mind of Johnny Thompson. He's a complex character, where at times you feel sorry for him and then you'll want to see him suffer for what he does. But I felt he suffered enough holding onto Anna. Anna is a gold-digger tramp and we have no sympathy for her. Slim is an interesting crook, who we can also feel sorry for and even like him at times-but he is basically a rat. After the payroll hold up attempt, Johnny's fate improves, but deep down he realizes it really doesn't.

Well written and sharp. I really enjoyed the novel and it's atmosphere of the struggling times of 1930s Baltimore. If you read it, you'll enjoy the numerous boxing references in the story-the author uses them to help define the character of Johnny Thompson. And the novel contains one of the great lines that I read recently:

A big girl in a white evening dress came out and sang "For All We Know" in a voice like a dentist's drill.

In 1951, Lion published the novel in paperback, titled "The Cheat."

And the novel was the basis for the excellent 1949 Burt Lancaster noir film "Criss Cross."

A Cry in the Night by Whit Masterson

A Cry in the Night By Whit Masterson
Bantam 1487, Copyright 1955

Whit Masterson is just one pseudonym used by the writing team of Robert Wade and Bill Miller. They also wrote novels and short stories penned under Dale Wilmer, Will Daemer, and the most recognizable name of Wade Miller. I first got hooked by the Gold Medal books published in the 50s. The settings were mostly around the borders of California and Mexico, with a femme fatal ready to throw a wrench into the guy's life. All are different and excellent, with not a bad one in the bunch. I then quickly treated myself to the earlier exploits of San Diego P.I Max Thursday. Six books in the series were published by Signet from 1947-51. These are outstanding and one of the finest written detective series of its day. They capture a believable picture in the day-to-day life of a P.I. working alone.

As for the books with the Whit Masterson tag, the most popular "Badge of Evil" was the basis for Orson Welles' 1958 film noir "Touch of Evil"; which is finally called "a classic." David Janssen started in the underrated 1967 "Warning Shot", from the novel "711-Officer Needs Help." Many of the Whit Masterson novels are exceptional, I found "A Cry in the Night" as one of the most suspenseful.

"I captured you, didn't I?" he told her aloud. "I won, so now I can do anything I want to you." He was boss. All that mattered was the girl. He patted her unconscious cheek and chuckled. "Relax, honey," he crooned. "You've got yourself a real sweetheart now."

The novel has five chapters each consisting of a hour in time. The whole story takes place in one night from 12:10am to 5:30am. A psychotic sex-fiend knocks out and kidnaps Liz Blossom, who was at a lovers lane location with her boyfriend. Police find the dazed boyfriend and they start a manhunt to locate the girl. Once her full name is known things really swing into action, because her father is Lt. Blossom who happens to be the duty officer on that night. This story is a quick pumping one, as we go on the hunt with the workings of a 50's police unit. The beginning of each chapter takes us into the thoughts of the warped kidnapper, Hill Loftus. He's not staying still, he is bouncing to different locations trying to find the right place to torment and rape the Blossom girl. The rest of each chapter is bang, bang police work, the pace is fast during the five hour period. Lt. Blossom fights to contain his worries as a father, to stay focused and help lead the investigation to get her back. Quality police work and cool heads allow the dragnet to close in.

Blossom didn't wait to hear the rest of it. If anything happens to her...Damn it, nothing was going to happen to her! He'd get her back safe if he had to tear the city apart, stone by stone.

The authors created this one to take us on a late night of high suspense. No mystery here, we know what happened and who did it. Its about grabbing the reader -with the demented psycho and his crime, and then rapidly joining with the law enforcement network to save the girl from him. Wonderfully executed by Robert Wade and Bill Miller.
(and considered a bit raw for its day)

"All Through The Night" is the title of the 1955 Hardcover First Edition, published by Dodd, Mead, New York.


Basis for the 1956 film noir "A Cry in the Night", starring Edmond O'Brien, Brian Donlevy, Natalie Wood and Raymond Burr.
(For excellent film noir reviews, check Steve's "Noir of the Week" site)

Night Cry by William L. Stuart

Night Cry by William L. Stuart
Avon 801, Copyright 1948

There is nothing like picking up a novel that you don't expect much out of and be blown away by it...

The barriers that had held his emotions broke and thoughts came flooding at him, released. They had escaped and now they would burrow and work, reappearing briefly and scuttlingly, like rats in an alley.

Hard-nosed cop Mark Deglin just got passed over for the big promotion, and has been carrying a chip on his shoulder since. Mark plays it tough and the press loves him. During a murder investigation he visits a possible suspect, war hero Ken Paine. He gets a little too rough with the guy and Deglin accidentally kills Paine. Immediately after he learns the guy had nothing to do with the murder. He covers up what he did by first disguising himself as Paine, then dumping the corpse in the river and make it look like the guy flew the coop. Paine can't be located, so the cops make it a missing persons case and guess who gets assigned to find him-Mark Deglin. Paine's girlfriend, the beautiful Morgan Taylor, gets involved in the story and she doesn't believe Paine vanished and left town. To insure he is not connected to the disappearance, Deglin comtemplates another murder; but morally weakened, he can't go through with it. Good police work by others lead to the body being found and Morgan is now the suspect in the Paine murder. Pitted with anxiety and hagridden, the weight is too much for Deglin. Unable to escape emotionally, he realizes he must do what is not in his nature-throw his cards in and make his final play.

This is classic crime fiction and contains everything that is great about the genre. Wonderfully written by William Stuart, with a dreary autumn NYC as the setting. The streets are dark and the pages are full of fog, rain, and shadows. From the precinct houses, to the drab bars, and with the stench of the riverfront warehouses in the air; we are rewarded with a psychological noir thriller that grabs you from page one.

After a moment, the body came out of the water, slowly, oily with viscous mud, the dirty water cascading back from its blanket shroud. Deglin felt his stomach revolt, and he caught the vomit in his mouth, held it and swallowed convulsively.

Mark Deglin descends down a nightmare journey, as Paine becomes a man who will not stay dead. Ken Paine remains one of the main characters throughout the story, even though he is killed in the first few pages. It's haunting, with the police searching the city for Paine, and the Morgan girl waiting for him to show up; while all along Deglin knows he's at the bottom of the Hudson. This, along with its noir atmosphere, brings an eerie element to the novel. What starts as a simple cover up, slowly torments Deglin to a point of anhedonia; which at the end, the burden of guilt becomes unbearable when he realizes he has fallen for Paine's girl. He can't let it continue, he must get out....

One of the best books I read this year!
( and it was written 60 years ago)

Of course this novel was so good that Hollywood grab it immediately and Otto Preminger produced and directed the film noir classic, "Where The Sidewalk Ends." (1950) Dana Andrews portrayed Mark Dixon (changed from Deglin) The film starts the same as the novel, but then curves a bit from there. (The film was excellent, but of course the plot in the book is superior)

In 1958, Kraft Television Theatre aired "Night Cry", with Jack Klugman as Mark Deglin. I don't know if this was more faithful to William Stuart's novel, I would love to see it sometime.

The Radio Program "Suspense" aired "Night Cry" on 10/07/1948, with Ray Milland as the rogue cop.

Dial Press, NY (1948) published the first edition in hardcover.

Paperback editions were published by Avon.
Avon 186 (1949)
Avon 597 (1954)
Avon 801 (1958)

Will Penny by Tom Gries

Will Penny by Tom Gries (and Bob Thomas)
Ballantine U5134, Copyright 1968

"What do I know about love?"-Will Penny

There are times when someone will mention a western movie to me and I’d answer, “Oh, that one is on my top-ten list of favorite westerns.” But in reality I’ll say that to well over ten or even twenty movies, so lately I am careful about say things like “that’s my favorite this-and-that….” Which brings me to Will Penny and I’ll leave how high this western film is rated to others. But there was a novelization written for the film and now I have a new respect for books written after movies are filmed.

I usually don’t read film novelizations, but when I found this one I had to give it a go. The story of an old cowpoke that finds love while trying to protect a mother and her young boy is just as strong in words as it is on film. Lonely Will Penny battles with this new discovery of love and family, something he has never known or felt. There is the heartwarming friendship between the cowhands; Penny, Dutchy and Blue. The pages capture the freedom they share and the way of life they love. We can smell the fresh, cold mountain air and snuggle in the warmth of the mountain cabin. Thrown in the story are some crazy inbreed villains that provide some good western action; and I can’t help but enjoy reliving the story through the pages of the novel.

But of course the strength of the story is Will Penny finding something he never had or felt. Love. The love he found with Catherine and family bond discovered with Button. And yet he has to let it go, because to Will Penny love cannot survive in his world. He realizes that a time for a woman’s love and family has past for him. He has limitations now because of his age, and life would be harder and more uncertain. Will Penny don’t risk the chance, and walks away.

"A man can't change, not when he's lived one way most of fifty years. I came closer with you than I ever done, I wish it woulda happened long ago. It's too late for me."

All that was wonderful in the movie is captured in the novel. I may have enjoyed it so much because the movie was exceptional, I’ll never know since I saw the film first. But I do picture Charlton Heston as Will Penny and Joan Hackett as Catherine when I read it, and why not they were terrific. I certainly enjoyed this enough, to take a chance and read more novelizations of films. As for Tom Gries, the writer and director of the movie, he created a magnificent western film and a memorable western character in Will Penny.

There is even a statue of the Will Penny character in the National Cowboy Hall of Fame in Oklahoma.

Rio Bravo (DVD) director: Howard Hawks

Rio Bravo (DVD) director: Howard Hawks (1959)

After seeing this wonderful film many times, I viewed the DVD last night for the first time and it's magnificent. The DVD lets us see how beautifully filmed this movie really was. From the brilliant, subdued lighting on the sets to the enhanced sound; this DVD brings a totally new experience for the viewer seeing this film.

The story, if anyone doesn't know, is about Sheriff John T. Chance taking a stand with a few misfits while surround by hired gunmen in his own town. Chance is holding a cattle baron's brother in the jail for murder. Directed by the great Howard Hawks, this has become one of the best westerns made by Hollywood.

Almost flawless, except in my opinion, for a little overacting by a young Angie Dickinson and some underacting by Ricky Nelson. But the trio of John Wayne, Dean Martin and scene-stealer Walter Brennan more than make up for them. In fact this may be Dean Martin's and Walter Brennan's finest performances on film.

Leigh Brackett contributes to the screenplay and it seems that everything she brings to Hollywood is always gold. The story is from a short work by B. H. McCampbell whom I never heard of. I would love to know more about the original story, so if anyone knows more please drop me a comment or E-Mail.

It's a whole new experience viewing this masterpiece on the Two-Disc DVD Special Edition. Warner Bros. is definitely doing something right here. Fabulously entertaining, almost perfect in every way, it's on my top shelf to stay for Western DVDs. Truly wonderful!

My Rifle, My Pony and Me - Dean Martin and Ricky Nelson (a small treat in the movie)

Reminder -"Nightfall" on TCM

Nightfall (1957)
Directed by Jacques Tourneur
Story by David Goodis

To all David Goodis fans:

Just a quick reminder that TCM will run Nightfall on Wednesday Jan. 23rd at 11:15 am EST. Based on the David Goodis story and directed by Jacques Tourneur- the man who gave us Out of the Past. The film is not shown often, I'll set my DVD recorder for this one.

The excellent Noir of the Week blog ran a fine review.- I recommend visiting this site. Steve-O has one of the best film-noir sites on the web.

Also on the 23rd: earlier at 08:00 am, TCM will be showing Murder, My Sweet .(1944) In my humble opinion, the best film adaption of any Raymond Chandler novel.

Mr. Majestyk by Elmore Leonard

Mr. Majestyk by Elmore Leonard
Dell paperback, Copyright 1974

Just a quick note.

Just saw the Bronson movie, last time was in the 70s. Thought back about when I read the paperback and dug it out. I remember after I first read it, I hunted for Leonard's westerns for some reason. (which I'm glad I did)

Bronson is "the real deal" in the film and he has some great lines, but the novel is extremely good. More depth with the Vince Majestyk character, better storyline and descriptive action against the organized crime guys. It might of been my first Leonard book I read. Got me hooked.

Elmore Leonard's screenplay was exactly what Hollywood was looking for in the 1970s- action, wise comebacks by the good guy, girl meets guy, etc...,but his novelization packs a punch. I almost forgot about the novel. You paint a different character of Majestyk when you read the book. I love Bronson, but I like the book character much more.
(Actor Al Lettieri, as Frank Renda in the film, was exceptional.)

Last week completed Leonard's "Forty Lashes Less One" -Very good, with an excellent ending.

Murder is My Beat-Classic Film Noir Themes and Scenes

Murder is My Beat-Classic Film Noir Themes and Scenes.
Rhino CD

I dusted this off after not listen to it for quite a while. Glad I did, I forgot how much I enjoyed it. I thought it was a good idea by Rhino and Turner Classic Movies to team up and issue this. The music themes are exceptional, especially "Laura" and "The Letter." And what can you say about the scene dialog....classic!

Gen. Sternwood: "How do you like your brandy sir?"
Marlowe: "In a glass"
-The Big Sleep.

One of my favorites are the two scenes from "Crossfire." After hearing it again, I had to play the movie DVD again. I would of liked to see more of this from TCM and Rhino. Maybe include some of the other classics that were not in this CD-there are so many. It probably had to with marketing-sales and costs. Anyhow, a good substitute if you can't pickup a hardboiled novel or see a film-noir movie. I've been listening to it as I am driving.

If you don't have a copy of the CD, you can listen to it for free.

Would of liked to have seen "Double Indemnity" included, (great dialog and music) guess you can't have them all. But you can always listen to the Lux Theater OTR version.

As for TCM-four good Robert Ryan movies are coming up:
Act Of Violence (1949) Fri. Jan. 11, 5:00 PM EST
Odds Against Tomorrow (1959) Mon. Jan. 21, 10:45 AM EST
Bad Day at Black Rock (1955) Thurs. Jan. 24, 2:00 PM EST
Crossfire (1947) Mon. Jan 28, 10:30 AM EST

Also, on Weds. Jan 23 @ 11:15 AM EST is Nightfall (1956)-from the David Goodis story.

Clip-Joint Chatter

Visited the local Salvation Army store and picked up the following 2 hardcovers for a buck.

Ride the Pink Horse by Dorothy Hughes. I saw the Robert Montgomery movie a few times and really enjoyed it. I never read any of Hughes books, but I heard good things about her. Will have to read this over the winter.

Grave Error by Stephen Greenleaf. Another author that I haven't read yet. The series has very good reviews. After glancing through the book, John Marshall Tanner might deserve a read. If anyone has thoughts on the novel and series, drop me a note.

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Secret Agent X-9 Just finished the 13 Chapter DVD serial . This was the second serial from 1945, there was an earlier one from 1937 with Scott Kolk as SECRET AGENT X-9. (different storyline) Lloyd Bridges is the title character in this one and you can't take it too seriously-but it was fun and had a noir-ish style. Might check out the earlier serial. Yearly, I will view 2-3 movie serials from that era. Since each chapter is approx. 15 min. , you can fit them in your schedule. Knowing that Dashiell Hammett and Alex Raymond created SECRET AGENT X-9 as comic strip, I sent for some reprints of the early strip. Hope they are as good as Lee Falk's The Phantom daily strips.

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Dick Tracy Films from the 1940s
Went to a "dollar store" and found a DVD that featured all four Dick Tracy movies from the 40's. Dick Tracy Detective, Dick Tracy vs. Cueball, Dick Tracy's Dilemma and Dick Tracy Meets Gruesome. I enjoyed them as a kid when I first saw the films on TV and I know I'll enjoy them again. Ralph Byrd played DT on the last three and Morgan Conway on the first. DT Meets Gruesome is the best of the four, with Boris Karloff playing Gruesome. It is film noir and not a bad movie.

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Whatever happened to Hollywood
Didn't get a chance to see the Coen's "No Country For Old Men", wasn't playing in our area. Cormac McCarthy's novel was the best book I read in 2005. I've had it with Hollywood-I go to one movie a year (if that) A good movie like this should be shown in the major theaters. I guess people want to see crap......