Book giveaway: Five clues

I'm giving away a signed hardcover First Edition of COLD SHOT TO THE HEART.

The contest rules are simple: Guess the titles of just three of the six Blu-Ray discs I purchased immediately after buying a new Blu-Ray player two weeks ago. All six are among my all-time favorite films, all of which I'd previously owned on DVD and other home video formats (and have written about in the past).

Book goes to the first person who can correctly name just three of the titles, and e-mails me at wallace@wallacestroby.com with the answers. (Just to be fair, though, only three guesses allowed per person. Any scattershot responses with more than three titles will be disregarded).

Some visual clues below:

Remembering Ted Lewis

This month, BBC4 is broadcasting a new six-part dramatization of Ted Lewis' brilliant 1970 crime novel JACK'S RETURN HOME, famously filmed as 1971's GET CARTER, starring Michael Caine.

Lewis (right, on the set of GET CARTER), who died tragically young in 1982 at age 42, is a constant on my list of favorite crime writers (the others tend to fluctuate). Sadly, most of his books are now out of print, including JACK'S RETURN HOME and his other masterpiece, 1980's GBH. Along with the dramatization, BBC4 is also airing "Lewis's Return Home," an audio documentary tracing his life and work, with contributions from writer – and Lewis aficionado - Nick Triplow. I recently included JACK'S RETURN HOME on my list of "The Five Best Crime Novels You've Never Read," for reviewer Elizabeth A. White's blog.

THE MALTESE FALCON at Bryant Park 7/23/12

Let's talk about the bird: This Monday, July 23, I'll again be part of NYC's Bryant Park Film Festival, co-hosting a pre-screening discussion about John Huston's THE MALTESE FALCON, along with longtime host Scott Adlerberg. We'll be talking about the Dashiell Hammett novel, Humphrey

Bogart's career and various other aspects of the production. The discussion will be held at the park's outdoor "Reading Room" area off 42nd St., as part of the series "Word-for-Word Reel Talks." The lawn opens at 5 p.m., with the discussion at 7 p.m. and the film at dusk, weather permitting. You can find more details - and Bosley Crowther's original 1941 N.Y. Times review - here.

Of ATMs and front-end loaders

Attempting to steal entire ATMs using construction equipment was a fairly rare crime when I wrote about it in the opening chapters of KINGS OF MIDNIGHT. Not so much now, apparently. However, it's a lot easier to pull off this sort of thing within the pages of a crime novel than it is in real life. You can read the story here.

Elizabeth A. White on KINGS OF MIDNIGHT

The terrific reviewer Elizabeth A. White offers a lovely and insightful review of KINGS OF MIDNIGHT.

PSYCHO at Bryant Park Film Festival 6/18

This Monday, June 18, I'll help kick off the 20th anniversary Bryant Park Film Festival in NYC by co-hosting a screening of Alfred Hitchcock's PSYCHO. Able co-host Scott Adlerberg and I will conduct a pre-film discussion in the park's outdoor "Reading Room" area off 42nd St., as part of the series "Word-for-Word Reel Talks." We'll be talking about the film, the 1959 Robert Bloch novel it's based on, and other various and sundry topics. The lawn opens at 5 p.m., with the discussion at 7 p.m. and the film at dusk, weather permitting. You can read Bosley Crowther's original New York Times review, from June 17, 1960, here.

Henry Hill: 1943-2012

Henry Hill, the mob-wiseguy-turned-informant and one of the models for Benny Roth in KINGS OF MIDNIGHT, died in Los Angeles Tuesday at age 69. A member of the crew that pulled off the multi-million-dollar Lufthansa heist at Kennedy Airport in 1978, Hill fled into the federal Witness Protection Program in fear of his life, and later testified against his former colleagues. His story was immortalized in Nicholas Pileggi's book WISEGUY, which Martin Scorsese turned into the classic film GOODFELLAS. You can see a photo gallery of the Lufthansa heist here.

Liars and winners

We have a winner in the Call Me a Liar contest, originally hosted over at the Pulp Pusher site, as part of this Q&A interview. It's Robert McMahon of Narragansett, R.I., and he wins signed copies of both COLD SHOT TO THE HEART and GONE 'TIL NOVEMBER. Out of all the entrants, he is the only one who correctly picked No.3 as the lie.

Here are the truths, untruth and explanations:

1.) I’ve seen TAXI DRIVER fourteen times.

TRUE. Fourteen, at least. I have a framed one-sheet poster of it in my living room. I saw it twice in one week shortly after it came out, on a double-bill with Brian DePalma's OBSESSION (also scripted by Paul Schrader).




2.) Bruce Springsteen once borrowed my DVD of Monte Hellman’s TWO-LANE BLACKTOP.

TRUE. There was a period of time around 2005 when the DVD of Hellman's 1971 road movie was out of print and unavailable (it was rereleased a few years later by Criterion). Through a mutual friend, I was approached by someone who worked for Springsteen at the time, inquiring if I had a copy. Apparently, Bruce had caught part of it on TV, and was now looking for the actual DVD without having much luck. I Fedexed my copy to the employee, without really expecting to get it back. But in fact, I did, about a month later. Footage from the film eventually wound up in the documentary WINGS FOR WHEELS that Springsteen released in late 2005, as part of the BORN TO RUN 30th anniversary box set. Whether the clip was actually ripped from my DVD or not, I'll never know. I suspect it was.
(Top, Warren Oates with his 455 V8 GTO from the film).

3.) Years ago, I had a conversation with Stephen King while standing at adjoining urinals at the New York Hilton.

LIE. I actually did meet Stephen King at the N.Y. Hilton during the American Booksellers Association Convention there in 1991. And I did actually stand at an adjoining urinal with him, but I did NOT try to engage him in conversation. A few weeks later, I did an extensive interview with him for WRITER'S DIGEST magazine. You can read it here.

4.) I went skydiving once, landed in a tree and had to be rescued.

TRUE. In 1981, I went skydiving for the first (and, it turned out, only) time at a rural airport in Palatka, Fla. I jumped out of a Cessna 180 (pictured) at 3,000 feet, using a static line, but was late exiting the plane (in that model Cessna, you have to climb out on the strut, feet on the wheel, before you jump, in order to clear the plane. It's not easy). As a result, I missed the exit point my jumpmaster had picked, didn't make the drop zone and instead landed in some pine trees across a highway from the airport. I was wedged into branches about 12 feet up, until someone from the jump center came out to rescue me, nothing injured but my pride. I went back to do it twice more, but on both occasions the wind was such that, as a beginner, they wouldn't take me up, which I saw as a sign from the universe not to do it again. Haven't ruled it out for the future though.

5.) I once hit a Catholic nun in the back of the head with an orange (by accident).

TRUE, unfortunately. It was on the playground at the Our Lady Star of the Sea School in Long Branch, N.J. I was in seventh grade, and I was aiming at someone else. I forget the sister's name, but she pounced on me, grabbed me by my shirtfront with both hands and shook me like a terrier shakes a rat. Not my finest moment.

Thanks to everyone who participated.

Last days - Call me a liar, win free books

Just a couple more days left to call me a liar and win signed copies of both COLD SHOT TO THE HEART and GONE 'TIL NOVEMBER, via a contest I originally hosted over at the Pulp Pusher site, as part of this Q&A interview.

The contest:

Here’s five things about me. One of them is a lie:

1.) I’ve seen TAXI DRIVER fourteen times.

2.) Bruce Springsteen once borrowed my DVD of Monte Hellman’s TWO-LANE BLACKTOP.

3.) Years ago, I had a conversation with Stephen King while standing at adjoining urinals at the New York Hilton.

4.) I went skydiving once, landed in a tree and had to be rescued.

5.) I once hit a Catholic nun in the back of the head with an orange (by accident).

Anyone who wants to take a guess as to which one's a lie can drop me an e-mail at wallace@wallacestroby.com. Deadline for entries is May 31, 2012 (there have been some good responses so far, some correct and some not so). I’ll pick two winners at random from the correct responses, and send them signed copies of the hardback editions of COLD SHOT TO THE HEART and GONE 'TIL NOVEMBER. But be warned, I’m a good liar.

The Violent World of Parker on KINGS OF MIDNIGHT

"It’s in the human moments when Crissa faces up to what she’s sacrificed and what she’s missing where KINGS OF MIDNIGHT packs an extra wallop." A thoughtful review of KINGS over at the excellent Violent World of Parker site, dedicated to the work of Donald E. Westlake and his alter-ego, Richard Stark. Read the full review here.

Call me a liar, win free books

Assaulting nuns, lending DVDs to Bruce Springsteen and a unfortunate sky diving accident... find the lie I told in my Q&A at the Pulp Pusher site, and you'll have a chance at winning a signed copy of COLD SHOT TO THE HEART. The interview and full details can be found here. Contest is open until May 31, 2012.

Book Loons on KINGS OF MIDNIGHT

Book Loons reviewer Hilary Williamson has some love for KINGS OF MIDNIGHT. Read the full review here.

Mystery People Q&A

Over at the Mystery People blog, you can read a Q&A about KINGS OF MIDNIGHT, The Lufthansa heist, Eddie Bunker and various other subjects, conducted by mystery meister Scott Montgomery. For the full interview go here

Book Reporter.com on KINGS OF MIDNIGHT

Over at Bookreporter.com, reviewer Joe Hartlaub calls KINGS OF MIDNIGHT "a winner from first word to last." Read the full review here.

Six top heist novels

It was a tough call, but over at the MysteryPeople blog, I chose six of my favorite heist novels of all time (with an appropriate emphasis on the novels of Donald E. Westlake).

Booklist's starred review for KINGS OF MIDNIGHT

(Click for larger image)

Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel on KINGS OF MIDNIGHT

Reviewer Carole Barrowman, writing for the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel, calls KINGS OF MIDNIGHT "terrific." Read the full review here.

Lawrence Block on KINGS OF MIDNIGHT

Legendary crime novelist Lawrence Block has a strict no-blurb policy, which he reiterated eloquently in a recent blog post. However, he's very active in social media and was kind enough to post this complimentary Tweet about KINGS OF MIDNIGHT last week:

@Lawrence Block
It would be hard to overpraise Kings of Midnight, the new book by @wallacestroby: http://tinyurl.com/85ee89w.

Of course, I'm a huge fan of Block's work, especially his Matt Scudder series, and have written about him a bit in the past. He's one of the seminal modern American crime writers. I was more than honored by the mention.

You can find Block on Facebook on his personal page and his fan page. And on Twitter as well (click on the links)

(Photo by Marc Yankus)

"Please, no more Wallace Stroby books"

Star-Ledger/New Jersey Online reviewer Vince Cosgrove offers this plea to his editor as the lead-in to a lovely review of KINGS OF MIDNIGHT.

Of felons and front-end loaders

Talking with veteran Philadelphia journalist and author Mary Walton about KINGS OF MIDNIGHT, Crissa Stone, ATMs and heavy equipment. You can find the link here.