Ed's Blog

"Complex 90" by Mickey Spillane & Max Allan Collins

2013-05-16T14:40:40Z

Ruthless tough guy private eye Mike Hammer returns in a cold war thriller set around 1964-65 in Complex 90, the latest Mickey Spillane thriller completed by Max Allan Collins.

]]> (See my previous reviews of earlier Spillane-Collins collaborations here.

Hammer returns to the US after spending three months on the run in Soviet Russia. While acting as a bodyguard to a United States senator on a public relations trip in that country, Hammer had been kidnapped by the KGB, apparently out for revenge after the detective's previous run-ins with Soviet Intelligence in One Lonely Night (1952) and The Girl Hunters (1962).

MIke being Mike, he manages to break free and get himself back to America while leaving behind a big body count. Unfortunately Washington is taking heat from the Russians over extraditing Hammer for his "crimes" and may just deliver the detective to them.

Add the presence of Russian agents on American soil trying to capture/kill Hammer themselves, a mysterious NASA project somehow connected to the proceedings, some surprising revealations from Hammer's partner/lover Velda, and the return of an old enemy previously thought dead, and you've got one exciting fast paced thriller that keeps you glued to the page from start to finish. And that great nasty final scene when Hammer finally settles accounts... Well, you'll be left breathless by then.

Collins as usual manages to "get" Spillane's inner voice and tone. There's no jarring clash of writing styles, and the characterzations and situations all feel right. Collins also fills in some continuity gaps from previous Spillane novels, including explaining why one character who had appeared in previous novels subsequently left Hammer's universe.

Reserve our copy of Complex 90 here. It's worth reading.

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Doctor Who: "The Masque of Mandragora" (1976)

2013-05-10T19:59:47Z

A four part serial originally broadcast by the BBC in September, 1976 and now available on DVD, "The Masque of Mandragora" finds the Doctor (Tom Baker) and his companion Sarah Jane (Elisabeth Sladen) facing both sinister court intrigue and an attempted invasion from a malevolent form of intelligent energy in 15th century Italy.

]]> (Click here to reserve a copy from us.)

While traveling through space in the TARDIS, the Doctor and Sarah encounter the Mandragoria Helix, a living energy form which tries to attack them. Our heroes manage to break away by heading back in time to the Italian Renaissance (specifically, the fictional city of San Martino), arounfd the 15th century.

There, they become embroiled in a dispute between the vicious Count Federico (Jon Laurimore) and his more honest nephew, Giuliano (Gareth Armstrong), the son of the Duke. Federico is assisted by Hieronymous (Norman Jones), the court astrologer, who's also running a secret cult called the Brethren which terrorizes the countryside in worship of the Roman god of moonlight, Demnos.

Meanwhile, the Mandragora Helix, having attached itself to the TARDIS, is also in the area, posing as the actual Demnos....

To give away more would spoil the fun. Suffice to say, writer Louis Marks (one of the best scribes of the original series) and director Rodney Bennett, with the aid of a capable cast (including a young Tim Pigott-Smith as Marco), deliver a solid thriller with lots of call outs to previous episodes (like the Second Doctor's recorder) and historical figures of the day like Leonardo daVinchi.

Okay, one minor complaint: What's with the Doctor allowing bystanders getting (seemingly) killed in the climax? Maybe I missed something? Otherwise, "The Masque of Mandragora" is recommended for fans and non-fans alike!

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Doctor Who: "The Three Doctors" (1973)

2013-04-28T19:07:18Z

From 1973, "The Three Doctors" was intended to celebrate the (at the time) tenth anniversary of the Doctor Who series. The four part serial managed to pair up the then-current Doctor, Jon Pertwee, with the two previous actors associated with the role: William Harnell who played the role from the show's beginning in 1963, and Patrick Troughton, who succeeded Hartnell in 1966 (and who in turn was replaced by Pertwee in 1970).

]]> (Click here to reserve a copy from us.)

A strange energy blob shows up in England, gobbling up people and objects, and is after the Doctor (Pertwee, remember?) Meanwhile the Time Lords back on the planet Gallifrey is finding their energy being sucked away by a black hole. Realizing both situations are related, the Time Lords contact the Doctor and send his two previous incarnations (Hartnell and Thoughton) to assist him. (Thoughton gets to work alongside Pertwee, but ill health forced Hartnell's scenes to be filmed separately; his Doctor is only seen on a television viewscreen in the TARDIS.)

Eventually the Doctors trace the source of the blob and the black hole to an anti-matter universe run by an insane former Time Lord, Omega, who wants revenge on his people, and wants the Doctors to keep him company.

Lots of fun, with some great lines (Hartnell, upon seeing Thoughton and Pertwee,refers to the two of them as "a clown and a dandy"), good performances by the stars plus regulars Katy Manning (Jo), John Levene (Sergeant Benton) and Nicholas Courtney (UNIT head Brigadier Lethbridge-Stewart, who has a priceless reaction when realizing there's more than one Doctor). Add a suspenseful script and a nice surprise for the Doctor in the last scene, and "The Three Doctors" is essential viewing for fans!

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Doctor Who: "The Talons of Weng-Chiang" (1977)

2013-04-19T21:17:59Z

From 1977, "The Talons of Weng-Chiang" finds the Doctor (Tom Baker, the fourth actor to play the character in the series) and companion Leela (Louise Jameson) time-travelling via the TARDIS to Victorian London. Originally there to take in some theatre, our protagonists quickly run into trouble...

]]> (Click here to reserve our copy.)

Seems the local attraction at London's Palace Theatre, the magician Li H'su Chang (John Bennett) and his apparently autonomous stage dummy Mr. Sin (Deep Roy), are somehow connected to a series of disappearances involving young women. Turns out the two, with fellow members of the Tong of the Black Scorpion, are taking the women to somebody claiming to be the ancient god Weng-Chiang.

With help from the local Medical Examiner, Professor Litefoot (Trevor Baxter) and theatre owner Jago (Christopher Benjamin), the Doctor and Leela quickly discover that "Weng-Chiang" is really another time traveler from the future, who's using the women to somehow stay alive. But what's he been working on down in his hideout deep in the sewers?

Fans of Arthur Conan Doyle, Sax Rohmer, George Bernard Shaw, Gaston Leroux and Gilbert and Sullivan, as well as fans of the Doctor, will get a kick out of this six-episode serial, in color and on videotape, and its very obvious influences and in-jokes. The cast, writer Robert Holmes and director David Maloney don't let their appreciation for the background material get in the way of the story's dynamics. Lots of suspense and horror (and humor) here, especially in the sewer sequences.

Extras on this three disc (!) DVD set include audio commentaries, interviews and archival BBC featurettes on the series. This'll keep any fan of the Doctor busy for a while.

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Doctor Who: "Day of the Daleks" (1972)

2013-04-13T20:21:27Z

Given that there's been a TARDIS depicted in this blog's header since I began posting entries, I'm finally getting around to watching the various Doctor Who DVD sets we carry in the library. Up first for review is the four part serial "Day of the Daleks" from 1972, starring Jon Pertwee as the Third Doctor.

]]> Click here to reserve a copy from us.

Shot in color and on video tape and film, "Day of the Daleks" has The Doctor and his UNIT colleagues Jo Grant (Katy Manning) and Brigadier Lethbridge-Stewart (the unflappable Nicholas Courtney) investigate strange goings-on at a British diplomat's country estate. Seems a ghost dressed like a solidier with a strange gun keeps popping in and out.

Subsequent events reveal that the diplomat, Sir Reginald Styles, has been targeted by rebels from the 22nd century. Some sort of event at an important summit conference at the estate will result in a world war -and a future Earth controlled by The Doctor's old enemies,.the Daleks.

Needless to say, The Doctor and Jo, not to mention the Daleks and the rebels, travel back and forth in time trying to take out/work with each other. It's actually not at all confusing, and sequences like the Dalek attack on Styles' estate are very exciting and suspenseful. (Fans are advised to ignore various time paradoxes that pop up throughout the serial.)

Jon Pertwee is his usual authoritative, cranky, but likable self (although his fight scenes are kind of unconvincing), and the supporting cast is fine as well. Continuity with previous episodes is maintained as well (images of the two then recent Doctors, William Hartnell and Patrick Troughton, pop up in one scene). And who could NOT love those fiendish Daleks?

Lots of fun, with extras featuring interviews, photos, etc.,on the serial included in this two-disc set. So check out "Day of the Daleks". You won't be sorry.

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Recent Advances In Aiding People With Disabilities

2013-04-05T18:56:19Z

Some recent developments in aiding people with visual and auditory disabilities have been brought to my attention by fellow staffer WG. In no particular order, here they are:

* The FDA approved a new drug last month to treat patients with multiple sclerois.

* The FDA also approved use of an "artificial retina" (or bionic eye, if you prefer).

* New eye drops can help prevent macular degeneration.

* And out of Germany, there's news of an "innovative hearing aid" that can better assist persons hard of hearing.

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Further Thoughts On "Skyfall"

2013-03-01T00:08:22Z

SPOILER ALERT: If you haven't yet watched Skyfall, starring Daniel Craig as Ian Fleming's James Bond 007, then don't read the following until you do. Lots of stuff mentioned here will reveal some major plot twists and reading this post may spoil the viewing of the film for you. You've been warned!

]]> As I hope I made clear in yesterday's post, the most recent James Bond 007 film Skyfall (click here to reserve a copy from us), is an exciting and entertaining entry in the long running series. Still, there's a few nits to pick about the movie I didn't have room to discuss. Like the following:

Why is M and her office staff monitoring Bond and Eve during their Istanbul mission? That's not the usual SOP in these films.

How did Bond survive not being drowned after getting shot by Eve?

How did MI6 miss the bullet fragments in Bond's body?

M makes a lot of questionable decisions. Like insisting on staying on the job and endangering the lives of those around her for example. The results include damage to the London Underground, security committee members and various cops getting killed, and oh yeah, getting killed herself.

When poor Serverine gets killed, Bond doesn't even bat an eye. Not even a Connery-like scowl at Silva.

The informative commentary track with Sam Mendes on the DVD/Blu Ray is recommended for listening, as some of these details are explained. The track is also good for other gems of information, like whose house they used as M's, why they focused on the later Bond novels by Fleming, and the real significance of the final scenes with the new M, Eve and Bond. Mendes makes the film's narrative much more clearer.

Here's hoping the next film in the series will build on Skyfall's foundations.

"Skyfall" (2012)

2013-02-27T20:44:39Z

After being absent from the movie screens for four years, Daniel Craig returns as Ian Fleming's James Bond 007 in 2012's Skyfall, the 23rd official installment of the long running (FIFTY YEARS!) series. (Click here to reserve one of our copies.)

]]> The exciting pre-credits sequence finds Bond and a fellow agent (Naomi Harris) in Istanbul making an ultimately abortive attempt to retrieve a stolen hard drive that contains a list of undercover NATO agents in terrorist organizations. It doesn't end well for Bond.

Subsequently, it's discovered that a former MI6 agent turned cyberterrorist, Silva (Javier Bardem), who has the list, is conducting a campaign of terror against his old boss M (Judi Dench) for reasons of his own. Bond, badly wasted and still wounded from his Istanbul assignment, is assigned to stop Silva and get the list back.

Now that's pretty much what I can tell you about the film's plot without giving away a lot of fun (and some sad) surprises. There's a running subplot of M getting heat from the British government about her ability to run MI6, with Security Committee man Gareth Mallory (Ralph Fiennes) seemingly leading the attack.

There's also Bond and M both feeling they have to prove their relevence in the changing 21st century. And did I mention that weapons master Q (now played by Ben Whishaw) is back, depicted as a cybergeek at least ten years younger than Bond? Or that Bond's fellow agent in Istanbul played by Naomi Harris turns out to be.... Nope, not gonna spill the beans!

Skyfall has lots of exciting action sequences, such as the cycle chase and train fight in the aforementioned pre-credits scenes. Plus the subway sequence in London that's both funny and suspenseful, as well as the various attacks by Silva and his henchmen during a Security Committee hearing in London and, later, during the climax, at the place (I'm not telling where or why its important to the plot) Bond and M decide to make their last (?) stand.

Solid acting by Craig, Dench (who's practically this film's closest thing to a "Bond girl"), Bardem, Fiennes, Harris, Whishaw, newcomer Berenice Marlohe (as Silva's mistress, who's not in the film too long) and Albert Finney (as a figure from Bond's past) is complemented by equally strong direction by Sam Mendes, which overcomes some gaping holes in the Neal Purvis-Robert Wade-John Logan screenplay.

Thomas Newman's musical score is just okay. I liked the Morricone-sounding sequence (some cool bass work) around the 2:06 mark, but I really missed composer David Arnold's touch. (Arnold's take of "The James Bond Theme" is played a few times during the film.) And Roger Deakins' cinematography makes Skyfall probably the best-looking Bond film yet.

Overall, Skyfall proves there's still life in the world of 007. Check it out!

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"Llana of Gathol" by Edgar Rice Burroughs

2013-02-15T16:27:33Z

Apologies for taking more than four months to post this review of the tenth and penultimate installment of Edgar Rice Burroughs' Barsoom (Mars to you and me) series, 1948's Llana of Gathol, after my entry on the previous novel, Synthetic Men of Mars came out. No, Llana wasn't a tough read. Anything but.

]]> (Above is the cover of my old battered 1974 edition. Click here to reserve our copy. And click here for my previous reviews of the Barsoom novels.)

Made up of four novellas that appeared in the Amazing Stories pulp magazine between March and October,1941, and were edited together into one coherent, if episodic, narrative, Llana of Gathol's focus is on our old pal John Carter again. Seems a desire on Carter's part to get away from it all sets the novel's events in motion.

After leaving his home city of Helium, Carter gets lost and winds up encountering a number of bizarre characters, starting with the "Ancient Dead" of Horz, various persons who have been in suspended animation and held captive by a crazed madman, who tries to do the same to Carter and his newfound ally, Pan Dan Chee. It's there that Carter is reunited with his grandaughter, Llana of Gathol, who joins our heroes as Carter tries to make his way back to Helium.

Llana informs Carter that the evil Hin Abtol had kidnapped her, but she managed to escape to Horz. Subsequently, throughout the book, Hin Abtol manages to provide the narrative hook, as his performing one selfish and evil act after another (stealing Carter's flier, attacking the city of Gathol, etc.) propels our heroes from one incident to the next.

Along the way, Carter and company (Llana, despite a strong personality, takes a back seat to most of the action; even her budding romance with Pan Dan Chee is downplayed) encounter old enemies the Black Pirates, try to save Gathol by inflitrating Hin Abtol's forces, and deal with the invisible warriors of the Barsoomian city of Invak. In between, the characters get taken prisoner quite a lot and Carter finds himself having to duel several times with various adversaries, before finally taking down Hin Abtol.

Llana of Gathol is a wild ride from start to finish. Burroughs has fun revisiting old territory (the energetic duels and chases, the heroine constantly getting kidnapped; Carter's namechecking of previous adventures) and there's a lot of sly humor (Carter in disguise passes himself off to the people of Invak as a ruler known as "the Sultan of Swat", which indicates that his several visits back to Earth made him a baseball fan). A wonderfully entertaining and enthusiastically infectious read from start to finish!

Up next: The last two installments of the series, the controversal "John Carter and the Giant of Mars" and the exciting "Skeleton Men of Jupiter" (no, that's not a typo), collected in John Carter of Mars, which wasn't published until thirteen years after Burroughs' death!

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Ask Greenwich Librarians a Reference Question!

2013-02-04T16:43:03Z

Four years ago, in this blog post, I mentioned that the library has an email service for patrons who can't come into the library to ask a reference question or two. This service was set up so patrons, especially those with disabilities (as well as working professionals and others "on the run"), could get in touch with the library without any difficulty.

Well, the service is still up and if you have any queries you need answers to, just head here. Lately, we've been getting more requests for Inter Library Loans (which only apply to books, not other materials like CDs and DVDs), but you can also email us other questions/requests if you have any.

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"Bye Bye, Baby" by Max Allan Collins

2013-01-25T16:59:01Z

It's been years since I've read one of Max Allan Collins' Nate Heller mysteries. So it's nice to see Heller back in the 2011 novel Bye Bye, Baby, which has him involved with Marilyn Monroe, the Kennedys, Jimmy Hoffa and all sorts of other characters, real and fictional, in the fateful summer of 1962.

]]> (Click here to reserve a copy from us.)

For those not in the know: Heller's the former Chicago cop turned private eye who somehow manages throughout the 20th century to rub shoulders with the likes of Eliot Ness, Huey Long, Amelia Earhart and Harry Truman, to name a few, in a series of very entertaining "historical mysteries" that mix fact with fiction. Think E.L. Doctorow combined with Mickey Spillane and you've got a good idea of what to expect.

Bye Bye. Baby finds Heller, now in his fifties and running the A-1 Detective Agency out of Chicago, New York and Los Angeles, hired by actress Marilyn Monroe to tap her phone. Seems she's in a bitter dispute with 20th Century Fox over her latest film and wants recorded proof that the studio is misleading her and the public about their business negotiations.

Heller, who occasionally also beds Monroe, soon discovers that someone else has already bugged the actress' phones. This lead to Heller's discovering Monroe's affairs with both President John F. Kennedy and brother Bobby (JFK's Attorney General), and how organized crime, in the personages of Sam Giancana and Heller's "friend" Jimmy Hoffa, wants to use the Hollywood sex symbol as leverage against the Kennedys.

Then Monroe dies of a questionable overdose. And Heller, who uncovers lots of inconsistencies from witnesses and various law-enforcement types, decides to find out for himself the ones responsible for Monroe's murder. That of course leads him into direct (and sometimes violent) conflict with the LAPD, the Feds,the Mob and the Kennedy family.

Collins manages to weave historical fact and the hard-nosed (well, it is) school of mystery fiction successfully, creating a compelling narrative that holds your attention. The amount of research the author undertook, as noted at the end of the book, shows.

Dramatic license is (obviously) invoked,with the fictional Heller (who reminds me less of Philip Marlowe than a slightly more mature Mike Hammer) interacting with actual (and now deceased) people, but everyone comes off as feeling real, particulary poor doomed Marilyn. You never feel like it's a put-on. (And I guarantee you'll never think the same about the likes of Peter Lawford and Frank Sinatra, among others, again after reading this book.)

Make time for Bye Bye Baby. You won't be sorry.

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Connecticut's Network of Care for Behavioral Health

2013-01-16T20:01:14Z

The State of Connecticut has a site offering resources for "individuals, families and agencies concerned with mental health". Connecticut's Network of Care for Behavioral Health allows you to find the appropriate services related to mental and behavioral health, addiction, advocacy, legal services, employment, and even basic needs like food and housing via their online service directory here. They also assist veterans and persons with physical disabilities and legal troubles as well. Check out the site by clicking here and see for yourself.

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"Doctor No" by Ian Fleming

2013-01-11T21:20:06Z

From 1958, Doctor No by Ian Fleming, the sixth recorded adventure of British Secret Service Agent James Bond 007. (Click here to reserve our copy.)

]]> Bond, having fully recovered after nearly being killed in the previous novel, From Russia, With Love. is given a "soft" assignment by his boss M to lead an investigation into the mysterious disappearance of a former colleague, Strangways (last seen in Live And Let Die), and his secretary in Jamaica. Subsequently doging several attempts on his life, Bond discovers that a local guano mine owner, the half Chinese, half German Doctor Juilus No may have been responsible for the missing duo.

With the aid of another colleague (also from Live And Let Die) Quarrel, Bond heads to the eerie and mysterious Crab Key, No's island hideaway. There the two men meet gorgeous (even with a broken nose!) nature child Honeychile Rider, who picked the wrong day to go collect sea shells on Crab Key.

Bond soon discovers that the disappearance of Strangways and his secretary were arranged by Doctor No, after they had discovered that he (No) was working with the Russians to sabotage American missile tests at Cape Canaveral. Doctor No doesn't plan on Bond escaping from the island with that knowledge, however....

A fun, semi-serious outing after the last novel (the title villain was Fleming's send up of Sax Rohmer's Dr. Fu Manchu), Doctor No won't disappoint fans. Depite it's pulp fiction overtones and lacking the sense of plot development from the last novel (which focused as much on the antagonists' motivations as it did Bond's), the book still offers some nice character bits, such as Bond holding back his anger against M for being assigned a seemingly worthless job, Doctor No's chilling speech to Bond during their dinner together, and the friendship between Bond and Quarrel.

And of course, there's those various attempts on Bond's life while in Jamaica and Crab Key; poisoned fruit, a centipede in his bed, a bizarre obstacle course on No's island, etc. It all leads to an exciting, nerve-wracking climax you won't forget. Check out Doctor No for first rate excitement.

Up next: Goldfinger!

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VetNet

2013-01-02T21:26:53Z

VetNet is a new site that offers assistance to veterans reentering civilian life. The site was put together by groups such as Hire Heroes USA for the purpose of helping vets and their family members find jobs.

VetNet offers online courses in resumes and refining job search skills, advice on how to get in touch with possible employers, and/or starting your own business. For more info, click here.

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RIP Gerry Anderson

2012-12-27T16:49:10Z

Sorry to report that British television and film producer/director Gerry Anderson passed away on December 26th at the age of 83. (Click here for details.)

]]> During the sixties and seventies, Anderson and his then-wife Sylvia were responsible for some of the most imaginative and exciting science fiction series ever developed for television. American audiences (including me) knew them for such supermarionation (animated puppets) programs as Fireball XL-5, Stingray, Captain Scarlet and the Mysterons, Joe 90, The Secret Service, and the most famous of them all, Thunderbirds. The Andersons would later move on to live action shows like UFO and Space: 1999, as well as the less science fictional, more action-adventure orientated detective series The Protectors, before divorcing in the early eighties.

(We carry some of those shows on DVD. Click here to see our list.)

The supermarionation shows were always exciting, with terrific special effects, despite being aimed mostly at children. The move to filming actual flesh-and-blood actors expanded the Andersons' range towards more mature themes (like adultery and drug use, as in UFO and, sometimes, Space: 1999), yet the production values never faltered.

Despite some dated elements -look at those "futuristic" fashions on UFO, for example- , the Andersons' shows are still entertaining today. Rumors still pop up of updated versions of UFO and Space: 1999 (to be called Space: 2099), while the still ongoing proliferation of graphic novels , websites and toys based on the shows insure that the legacy left by the Andersons will be around for a long time. Rest in peace Gerry Anderson.

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