Spillane « Friends/Family/Fans of Max Allan Collins

Comic Con Update #2

Friday, July 23rd, 2010

The dealer’s hall floor still overwhelms me — I haven’t yet walked the whole thing. But I continue to find things to buy, like the latest ON STAGE collection and several half-price Jack Kirby hardcovers. Lunch today with Ken Levin, my comics agent and Hollywood guy, exploring possibilities for Mike Hammer on TV and various comic book projects. The vampire detective meeting went very well, and I spoke with several other editors, including Ed Schlessinger, my old CSI editor, about possible new projects.

Most fun moment was spending time with the Riff Trax boys, Mike Nelson, Kevin Murphy and Bill Corbett. I’ve gotten to know them in recent years and I always look forward to seeing them again — they are nice, down-to-earth guys and as funny in person as on TV. Nate and I love the Riff Trax crew — both their commentaries on new movies but also their collections of “classic” shorts with their MSTK riffs.

RiffTrax & MAC @ Comic Con 2010

Nate is very envious of my spotting Simon Pegg and Nick Frost of HOT FUZZ and SHAUN OF THE DEAD fame. They were very nice, absolutely regular blokes, and we spoke for five or ten minutes, in part about Simon’s Scotty role in STAR TREK. I admitted never having driven into Riverside, Iowa (future birthplace of Captain Kirk) despite it being (a) about 25 miles from my house and (b) having played with Crusin’ at the Riverside casino several times.

Also did an IDW panel about adapting TV and movies into comics (my connection being the CSI graphic novels). A good panel with reps from Dr. Who, Star Trek and True Blood. Not well-attended, though. The big Hollywood panels really swamp the actual comics panels. That’s part of the changing face of comic con that I am not wild about.

M.A.C.

Tags: Appearances, Comic-Con, Comic-Con 2010, CSI, Mike Hammer, Spillane
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Post July 4 Bangs

Tuesday, July 6th, 2010

I’m happy to report two more stellar reviews for THE BIG BANG.

That first-rate writer Mel Odom, whose Bookhound is a lively site combining prose novels and comics, has some lovely and insightful things to say.

Then from Charleston, South Carolina (Mickey’s adopted home state), the Post and Courier gives THE BIG BANG a down-home rave.

Charles Ardai’s latest Hard Case missive has (as usual) gone out to a number of sites, but I’m giving you like a link to my pal Bill Crider’s, which remains among my top, most-visited sites on the net.

A good new small press publisher called Perfect Crime is doing some interesting things, including books by two of my best friends in the business (or anywhere), Ed Gorman and Bob Randisi. Among several Randisi projects is THE SHAMUS AWARD WINNERS volumes 1 and 2. For Nate Heller fans, Volume One may fill in an important gap: included among the stories therein is the Shamus-nominated novella DYING IN THE POST-WAR WORLD, which has never been reprinted before (since its initial appearance in the very out-of-print collection of the same name).

And Quarry fans may be relieved to learn that I’ve signed with Perfect Crime books to reprint the first five Quarry novels in individual volumes. Cover artist will be a guy named Terry Beatty you may have heard of. We are using the re-titling from the Foul Play ‘80s reprints, and PRIMARY TARGET will get a new title, to make it “fit” the titling pattern of the others: QUARRY’S VOTE.

This week will largely be devoted to musical pursuits. I have a rehearsal with Crusin’ early in the week (still prepping for the July 29 Great River Days concert with the XL’s). Then the rest of the week will be spent prepping and rehearsing with the original Daybreakers – Mike Bridges, Buddy Busch, Denny Maxwell, Chuck Bunn and myself – with our first full gig together since 1968. We are playing the Class of 1970 reunion at the ballroom at Hotel Muscatine on Saturday night, July 10. Daybreakers fans who aren’t class of ‘70 grads are welcome to come and pay a five-buck cover…if so, show up around 8 p.m. The boys are coming from hither and yon for this, and it could well be the final appearance of the original line-up.

And, yes, we will be playing “Psychedelic Siren.”

M.A.C.

Tags: Appearances, Crusin', Daybreakers, Mike Hammer, Nathan Heller, Quarry, Reviews, Spillane, The Big Bang
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Premature Ex-Aculation

Tuesday, June 29th, 2010

Though it isn’t out till late September, QUARRY’S EX has already racked up a rave! It’s courtesy of Ron Fortier (a terrific writer in his own right), whose Pulp Fiction review site is always worth checking out.

THE BIG BANG received a pretty positive if patronizing review from the Chicago Sun Times. The reviewer is the kind of guy who enjoys a cheeseburger, then apologizes for it. But it’s a nice high-profile place to get reviewed, in an era where most of the reviewing is done on-line now.

There’s a new website about DICK TRACY up – old pal Jim Doherty is part of it. A TRACY comic-book story, circa 1990, that I did with artist Joe Staton (another old pal) is supposedly posted there, but all I can find so far is the first page. But check into it. That story – “Fireworks” – was done for a Disney comics digest but never got used. The website just went up recently, so to get the full “Fireworks,” you may have to check back now and then.

A blast from the past – a recent, positive review of THE EXPERT (1995), my first screenwriting credit. I like that movie, though it’s only fittingly faithful to what I wrote. I always like to say that they apparently had only one copy of the screenplay, misplaced it, then tried to remember it. Anyway, that’s the case with the Jeff Speakman scenes – the James Brolin crazy-warden scenes are right on script. If you’ve never seen this, it’s worth tracking down – a decent B action movie about a prison break-in. With the great Jim Varney! It deserves better on video than it’s received – the only widescreen presentation is the laserdisc, and there’s never been a U.S. DVD release (the UK DVD is full screen pan-and-scan).

On the music front, intense rehearsals lay ahead – we have the Daybreakers Reunion for the Class of 1970 coming up on July 10, and on July 28, we have the Crusin’/XL’s Great River Days Concert. More about these later.

M.A.C.

Tags: Crusin', Dick Tracy, Mike Hammer, Movies, Quarry, Quarry's Ex, Reviews, Spillane, The Big Bang, The Expert
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100,000 Served!

Tuesday, June 8th, 2010

Here at FOMAC (which does not stand for F**cking Old Max Allan Collins) we are celebrating. We are over 100,000 visitors to our humble site. Thank you to the Friends/Family/Fans of M.A.C.

QUARRY IN THE MIDDLE has been nominated for a Best Paperback Novel “Anthony,” which will be presented at Bouchercon in September.

It’s unlikely Barb and I will be attending the con, so the odds of winning this one are long indeed. Voting is done by attendees at the con, and writers who aren’t in attendance don’t often win. It’s a popularity contest, but then so is the writing game in general.

But this is a very nice honor. THE FIRST QUARRY was nominated last time. Keep in mind I’ve only had five Anthony nominations in my entire career (George Hagenauer and I won for MEN’S ADVENTURE MAGAZINES). So I’m very grateful, particularly to those of you who voted for the book in the preliminary round.

Last Quarry Audiobook

Speaking of Quarry, there is an excellent, reasonably priced audio book of THE LAST QUARRY from Speaking Volumes Audio, nicely read by actor Curt Palmer. You can buy it at Amazon or other of the usual suspects, or at Speaking Volumes’ own website.

There are more Quarry audios on the way from Speaking Volumes, including the early out-of-print books. I hope Curt Palmer is asked to read those, as well, because he does a nice, understated job. According to Curt’s site, he is going to do THE FIRST QUARRY and at least one more.

Also, Stacy Keach’s reading of THE BIG BANG is out from Blackstone Audio, and Barb and I are listening to it in the car now – another terrific job from everybody’s favorite Mike Hammer actor. Again, you can get it from various online sources, including directly from Blackstone Audio. But Amazon seems to have the best price.

Back to Quarry, I received a handful of bound galleys from Hard Case Crime. If you are an internet reviewer, and aren’t regularly receiving Hard Case Crime reading copies, write me at macphilms@hotmail.com, and I’ll send you a copy (until my supply is gone).

I am working on the JFK Heller – still researching/plotting. I am considering titles for the book, and would love to get your opinions.

Among current candidates:

IDES OF TEXAS
SMOKING GUNS (or SMOKING GUN)
SHADOWS IN SUNSHINE
LONE GUNMAN
MAGIC BULLET

Thoughts?

M.A.C.

Tags: Awards, Mike Hammer, Nathan Heller, Quarry, Quarry in the Middle, Spillane, The Big Bang, The First Quarry, The Last Quarry
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Posts Tagged ‘Spillane’

Comic Con Update #2

Post July 4 Bangs

Premature Ex-Aculation

100,000 Served!