Black Dahlia,      Set in the post-war Los Angeles boom, the unsolved murder of Elizabeth Short is a cautionary tale about big cities, America’s peripatetic population and the dangers of the new vast urban landscapes of the nation. On Jan. 15, 1947, a severely mutilated, naked body, sliced in half at the waist and a grotesque grimace carved into her face, was found not far from Hollywood. The corpse was that of 22-year-old Short, who had moved to California to from the East Coast to pursue an acting career but ended up serving tables. Reporters gave her the nickname “Black Dahlia,

…or movie lists, more to the point. I often find myself in the mood to watch movies in groups. Sometimes I’ll spend a week watching films by a single director, or star, sometimes I group by theme.

I have decided (randomly and for the purposes of this blog) to determine these groupings at the start of the week and to share my selections with you, just in case any of my fellow compulsives out there wanted to follow suit.

This week’s theme: Period Los Angeles Crime Dramas

1. L.A. Confidential – Based on a fantastic novel by James Ellroy, and featuring great performances by Kevin Spacey & Russell Crowe, this one (like all great L.A. mysteries) is full of lies, deception and coruption.

2. The Black Dahlia – Not a masterpiece like Confidential (by any stretch of the imagination), but still a nicely atmospheric period piece based on another James Ellroy book. Don’t go looking for great acting or solid plot (cause it ain’t there), instead immerse yourself in the feel of the film and you won’t be too disappointed.

3. Hollywoodland – This is a good one. Based on the real life mystery surrounding the death of TV actor George Reeves (Superman), with Ben Affleck actually giving a great performance (in flashback) as Reeves, this one has plenty of twists and turns to go with the setting.

4. Changeling – No, not the ghost flick with George C. Scott, this one’s a twisty little drama directed by Clint Eastwood and written by J. Michael Stracynski. Well done from every angle.

5. Chinatown – You knew this was coming, right? Directed by Roman Polanski and starring Jack Nicholson, this is THE definitive L.A. private eye story. With one of the best (and most quoted) final scenes in film history.

Extra Credit – Dark Blue – Although this one doesn’t fit the same period (it takes place in the 90’s, during the Rodney King riots) it sure has the feel. Lies and corruption and this time Kurt Russell’s along for the ride. Worth checking out.

Somebody should write a fuckin’ book, that’s for sure. About what?

Um…so “Zodiac” is one of my favorite movies. I am watching it for the 2nd time today. I could probably jerk off to this movie. Ok, maybe TMI. But honestly. Jake Gyllenhaal AND Robert Downey Jr.? Be real. You agree with me.

That’s probably neither here nor there. But what’s really here or there? I thought today that I could keep being sad about whatshisface (which I am and will be for some time…Trite? Immature? Honestly. Honestly!) or I could do something productive with my life. Like start a new blog. Where I write about things that matter, besides just me and my trite, immature, insipid comings and goings (P.S. I like it when guys a) break my heart, and 2. Say shitty things about me that I turn around and use to my benefit…So, thank you, BD, because “Insipid Comings and Goings” is the name of my book…and for a copy of it, please contact me at…well, here, I guess.). But then I thought, why make another blog when I could just write a book? I’ve already got the best opening line, which I would share, but as I don’t copywrite anything, I should probably make you wait.

But what’s the point? Does anyone really want to read my insipid comings and goings? Apparently Buddy Dave did not. Nor did PDC, because I’m pretty sure he just laughed at my “poetry.” (I am all about the “quotes” tonight) But at least PDC never said anything that broke my heart, instead when I asked what was wrong with me, he said, “Molly, you’re perfect.” Thanks, pal. (Golf clap) But anyway. What would I write about? Shall I be like David Sedaris and write short vignetes about my pathetic love life? Or be like Dave Eggers and write some epic about my sad, trite, “David Copperfield” life?

Wait. Wait. Let me take a moment to say: I HATE PEOPLE NAMED DAVID. They honestly ruin my life. With the exception of the aforementioned Davids, and my personal favorite, Dave Palms Dave. So actually, Daves don’t ruin my life. Buddy Dave is a perpetual pain in my ass, and David Clinton Bloomquist (dave.bloomquist@gmail.com, in case you were wondering) broke my heart not in pieces, but in shards. Shards. Completely destroyed. He should’ve just burned me in a fire. It might have been less painful.

ANYWAY. Back to my book. I have no problem opening my veins and letting it all go. Drugs, sex and rock n’ roll. Albeit there’s not a whole lot of anything interesting, but if there’s one thing I can do, it’s write. Right. Although writing about city council issues…not my best work. But does anyone really care? Nope. I rest my case.

So. I’ve never murdered anyone, but “Zodiac” is one of my favorite movies. “The Black Dahlia” is my favorite book. I only lived in Los Angeles for a short time, but I will never pass up a song about L.A. I hardly ever do drugs, but if I did, I’d be a cokehead like you wouldn’t believe. And if I could sing, I would sing my guts out and starve for my art.

But all I can do is write. (And also do spoken word…I am good at that…unlike some jerk who thinks I’m trite and immature.) And I will write my guts, my blood, my heart out for you, lay it on the table and let you do what you will with it.

Not so long ago, when I was sad, maybe, no, obviously sadder than I am now, I took any sharp object to my legs, and sliced them open. Not an emotional cutter, but an actual cutter. That is a fact. And you know why? Because my heart was broken. And by whom? Take a wild guess. But now, my arms are all cut to shit, and for that, whom do we have to thank? My crappy cat, just because I want him to lie in bed with me, a warm, alive body to snuggle with. But nope, he has other things to do, like slut around the alley. And that’s okay by me. I will take these ridiculous cuts on my arms because they come not out of desperation, but…a cat being a cat. And you can’t see it, but I’m smiling.

I was really sad earlier. But who knew that a stupid cat could put a smile on your face and remind you not to be stupid yourself? I don’t want to sleep with him tonight, because I have enough scratches. I lost that fight. But I may give him a little extra food…

And in the meantime, I’m going to keep watching “Zodiac” and start writing my fucking book. And who knows, someday I may move to San Francisco and be a writer and live out my nerdy dream of being an investigative reporter for the Chronicle…the future is unwritten, but the past can be written, and probably should be told. In a funny, David Sedaris way.

http://socyberty.com/crime/black-dahlia-elizabeth-short/

The body of Elizabeth Short was found on January 15, 1947, in a vacant lot in Leimert Park, Los Angeles, severely mutilated, cut in two, and drained of blood. Her face was slashed from the corners of her mouth toward her ears, and she was posed with her hands over her head and her elbows bent at right angles. The autopsy indicated she was 5′ 5″ and 115 pounds, with badly decayed teeth, light blue eyes and brown hair.

Short was buried at the Mountain View Cemetery in Oakland, California. After her other sisters had grown and married, her mother moved to Oakland to be near her daughter’s grave. Her mother finally returned to the East in the 1970s, and lived into her 90s.

Source: www.wikipedia.com

You should pick up ‘The Devil’s Muse’.

Masuimi sizzles the screen in the movie AND in the bonus behind-the-scenes features!

Google it!

And order it from the world wide web if you’re ready to take the dive into its moody and sexy world.

Go to HALO 8 for the official trailer for a glimpse of Masuimi in the film!

Thanks so much! I promise you won’t be disappointed!

And remember, this is THE ONLY ‘Black Dahlia’-themed movie with Masuimi in it, and the only OFFICIAL one directed, produced, and owned by hard-working, no bullsh*t-taking indie film director and producer, Ramzi Abed~!

see her in THE DEVIL'S MUSE!

Metaphor-
The metaphor in this ad is simple;  having unprotected and/or unsafe sex is like inviting a poisonous insect in your bed. Although disgusting, it’s effective and makes one cringe.

A metaphor is a figure of speech that suggests a resemblance or emphasizes a point but is not a literal example.
Metaphors in art or in advertising can convey something in pictures that otherwise couldn’t be stressed enough with words. Like the picture of the spider- it speaks volumes more than a picture of two (human) people with a caption that says, “we contracted an STD from one another.”

Cliches-
An image is cliche when it’s been reproduced or duplicated and thus begins to lose it’s meaning or impact. This image of a woman crying blood is cliche because it’s overused in art, movies, etc. The idea is supposed to provoke thought of dark emotion, tragic circumstances or perhaps fear in general but is lacking as an original idea to express that. We’ve seen it before plenty of times and it’s not shocking anymore.

Z czeluści internetowego zapomnienia udało mi się wyrwać skany okładek i trochę informacji związanych z legendarnym Resetem. Informacje to tym cenniejsze, bo materiały dotyczą 1998 roku, a więc ledwo drugiego roku aktywności Reseta na rynku!

A zatem zapraszam do podróży …

aaa aaaaaa

Okładka pierwsza z lewej, przedstawia pierwszy, styczniowy Reset z 1998 roku (a w ogóle dziewiąty w historii magazynu). Hitem numeru była przygodówka Curse of Monkey Island (tytuły Gry Miesiąca), a poza tym redaktorzy Reseta przygotowali recenzje takich hitów jak m.in. Quake 2, Tomb Raider 2, Need For Speed 2 czy Grand Theft Auto (…dla odmiany 1).  W numerze pojawiły się również  opisy sprzętu, m.in. myszy Logitech i kart Rivy, poradniki i całe mnóstwo odlotów (komiksy, artykuł o ekstremalnych sportach czy o zespole Clawfinger).

W drugim numerze tego pięknego roku postanowiono wrócić do Quake’a 2, którego okrzyknięto Grą Miesiąca. Tym niemniej większą uwagę przyciągnęły recenzje wśród których znalazły się takie giganty jak m.in. Age of Empires, GPolice, Fallout, Mortal Kombat Trilogy, Worms 2, Diablo: Hellfire, Książę i Tchórz, Liga Polska Manager czy Oddworld: Abe’s Oddysee… ach, luty! Piękny miesiąc dla premier.

Do poprzedniego numeru startu nie miał ten marcowy. Wprawdzie znalazła się tutaj fajna Gra Miesiąca, którą tym razem była Heavy Gear, ale recenzje nie powaliły na kolana żadnym ważnym tytułem. Małą rekompensatą marcowej posuchy okazały się być poradniki do Blade Runnera, Jack Orlando i Mortal Kombat Trilogy oraz świetne artykuły w odlotach, m.in. o Rage Against The Machine i Adwokacie Diabła.

W czwartym numerze roku nie wyłoniono Gry Miesiąca przyznając ten tytuł magicznej liczbie 666. Nie było w tym przypadku, wszak wśród recenzowanych tytułów znalazły się takie pozycje jak Fighting Force, Last Bronx i Virtua Cop 2, a więc pompujące krew lepiej niż niejedno serducho. W poradnikach znalazły się pomoce do takich gier jak m.in. Książę i Tchórz czy druga część do MKT, a w odlotach nieco treści o Linuxie.

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Majówkę Reset rozpoczął o przyznania tytułu Gry Miesiąca przygodówce Black Dahlia. Wśród fanów produkcji Blizzarda wywołało to niemałe poruszenie, bo również w tym numerze recenzję otrzymał Starcraft, który jednak przegrał rywalizację z wspomnianą BD. Szereg recenzji zasiliły jeszcze takie tytuły jak m.in. Die By The Sword, BattleZone czy Interstate 78′, a więc – jakby nie patrzeć – nic szczególnego, poza wymienionymi na początku: Black Dahlią i Starcraftem. Numer ten zawierał wyjątkowo mało informacji o sprzętach, ale wszystko tradycyjnie nadrabiały świetne odloty.

Czerwiec 1998 przyniósł kilka ciekawych pozycji dla graczy. Redaktorzy Reseta uznali, że najlepszą z nich jest symulator lotu F-15, ale wybór z pewnością nie był łatwy patrząc na takie tytuły jak Might and Magic VI, World Cup 98, Reah czy Motorhead. W sprzęcie pojawiło się więcej “blach” niż ostatnio, w tym świetne głośniki Primax SoundStorm 3d. Zaś w odlotach dużo optymistycznych tekstów, m.in. o nadchodzących zagładach i o końcu świata .

Siódmy numer Reseta w mundialowym roku chyba pierwszy (i ostatni?) raz w historii nie różnił się w głównym przesłaniu od innych czasopism o grach, a przesłanie owe brzmiało – UNREAL. To oczywiście Gra Miesiąca wśród redaktorów pisma, ale i tytuł, który zawrócił w głowie każdemu posiadaczowi komputera w lipcu 1998 roku. Tylko tło dla Unreala stanowiły recenzje takich gier jak, m.in. Incoming, Army Men, Redneck Rampage, WLS 98 czy Commandos: Behind Enemy Lines. W poradnikach pojawiło się sporo materiałów o Starcrafcie, Black Dahlii i Die By The Sword, a sprzęty zdominował legendarny Pentium II.

W sierpniowym Resecie pierwszy raz w historii magazynu tytuł Gry Miesiąca przyznano dwóm grom. Szczęśliwymi tytułami okazały się Sanitarium oraz Final Fantasy VII.  Generalnie miesiąc był dobry dla rynku gier, bo i wtedy też pojawiły się na rynku szalenie niedoceniana X-Files The Game, a także m.in. Deathtrap Dungeon, KKND 2, Jazz JackRabbit 2, Sensible Soccer czy trzeci Caesar. Redaktorzy Reseta nie mogli nie napisać czegoś o ostatnim pięknym mundialu czyli tym z Francji 98′… artykuł znalazł się w odlotach.

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Mortala nigdy dość? A jakże! Jeszcze w 1998 roku rynek gier obiegła czwarta część legendarnej serii, która zresztą w wrześniowym Resecie otrzymała tytuł Gry Miesiąca. Kosz recenzji uzupełniły takie gry jak m.in. Reflux, Street Fighter, Emergency i Xenocracy.  Furorę robiła także karta graficzna Intel i740. W odlotach redaktorzy poruszyli mocne tematy czyli twórczość Metalliki, historię Godzilli, Conana i Bruce’a Lee… wybuchowa mieszanka!

Jesień 1998 roku z pewnością nie należała do smutnych bowiem poza dziesiątym Resetem w roku gracze otrzymali takie gry jak Get Medieval, Colin McRae Rally, GunMetal, Motocross Madness, Need For Speed czy wreszcie uhonorowany przez Reset Rainbow Six. W odlotach redaktorzy Reseta wcale nie zwalniali… Iron Maiden i artykuł o cyberpunku 2020 mówią wszystko…

Listopadowy Reset to drugi w historii podwójny tytuł Gry Miesiąca. Splendor spadł na gry sportowe NHL 99 i Grand Prix Series. Pozostałe recenzje wypełniły m.in. Knights and Merchrants, Ground Zero, Dune 2000, Creatures 2 czy 5th Element. Ważnym poradnikiem okazał się ten dla trudnego Sanitarium, a obok niego jedenasty Reset oferował jeszcze pomoc dla Commandosów i Heart of Darkness. Listopad w publicystyce to (…a jakże) Helloween. Poza tym jeszcze nieco o Quentinie Tarantino i o spotkaniu Draculi z Frankensteinem :-].

Ten fantastyczny rok Reset zakończył z potworkiem na okładce. Ów gad to postać z gry Trespasser, mniej znanego odpowiednika Turoka  gdzie zamiast do ludzi strzelamy do dinozaurów. Gra na tyle spodobała się redakcji, że otrzymała tytuł Gry Miesiąca. Grudzień to także premiery takich pozycji jak Hopkins FBI (również artykuł w poradniku), FA Premier League 98, Chessmaster 6000, Nascar 99 czy Shogo MAD. W blachach pojawił się opis nowego Celerona, a w odlotach pojawiły się artykuły m.in. o Marilynie Mansonie, Świętym Mikołaju, mumiach, wampirach i rajdowcach F1.

Ech, cały Reset!

I tylko przez wrodzoną twardość ^_^ nie powiem, że po licach ciekły mi litry łez powracając raz jeszcze do tych pięknych czasów.

Today I present to you an article written by Sarah Russel. This is the first guest post I have had. I hope to continue doing this!

Five High-Profile Murders That Are Still Unsolved

If you’ve ever watched Cold Case Files you know how many cases out there, murder or otherwise, that go unsolved. Sometimes there’s just not enough evidence or things never come together in a way that allows justice to be done. The same holds true for even high profile cases that attract a lot of media attention. Here are five major cases, in no particular order, that remain unsolved to this day.

1. JonBenét Ramsay:  The media and the American public were captivated by the murder of this tiny beauty queen. Found hidden in the basement of her Colorado home along with a ransom note demanding $118,000, the murder offered little in the way of evidence as there were no signs of forced entry and DNA results found no matches. Suspicion turned to her parents, both of whom were accused through ultimately excluded as suspects due to lack of evidence. Despite a supposed lead with Mark Karr in 2006, the case remains unsolved to this day.

2. Tupac Shakur and Biggie Smalls:  Occurring only months apart, many have suspected that the deaths of these two rappers are in fact connected. Both occurred in highly public settings but no witnesses or definitive evidence was ever found to bring a suspect to justice. Many have theorized that police corruption or a larger conspiracy within the rapper’s circle may have purposely stalled the case. Regardless, their deaths still attract a large amount of media and public attention to this day.

3. Black Dahlia:  It was the gruesome nature of the murder of young Elizabeth Short, later to be known as the Black Dahlia, which attracted a lot of attention to her case. Short’s body was found severely mutilated, having been cut in half at the waist and slashed multiple times. Despite numerous confessions to the murder (over 60 on record) there has been no conclusive evidence to link any one person to her murder. Some point the finger at Mark Hansen, a nightclub owner, others at Dr. Walter Bayley who lived a block away from the crime, but no real leads were ever found in the case despite intense media and popular attention.

4. Jack the Ripper:  In 1888, London was terrorized by a man, later to be known as Jack the Ripper, who attacked prostitutes throughout the city. The Ripper didn’t just kill his victims however, instead choosing to mutilate them, elaborately slicing them up and even keeping parts of their bodies as souvenirs. Police received several letters claiming to be from the Ripper himself, but many believed these to be faked and no leads were ever found in the case. The Ripper was such a mysterious figure that there was never even a lead suspect and the murders remain one of the great unsolved crimes of the modern era.

5. The Zodiac Killer:  This killer has gained renewed attention due to a recent movie made about the 1968 and 69 murders. Even with an investigation that led police to question thousands of suspects, and numerous coded letters from the killer himself, there was not enough evidence to definitively link any one person to the crime, leaving five or more murders (he claimed 37 but only five have been definitely linked) unsolved to this day, and the Zodiac Killer as one of the most mysterious serial killers never to be caught.

This post was contributed by Sarah Russel, who writes about the criminal justice masters. She welcomes your feedback at SarahRussel1234 at gmail.com. Her website is Masters In Criminal Justice.

Starring Kristin Kerr,Lizzie Strain & Julie Strain,Trent Haaga and Llloyd Kaufman.
“Surreal Horror”,An ignored Genre ? This Ramzi Abed film breaks down walls and formats and all filmaking rules !
I kept getting this nagging feeling while watching that I had seen Trent Haaga’s character before,LIGHT BULB goes off : Herke Harvey as the spectre in CARNIVAL OF SOULS (‘62).Trent keeps  popping up in this Black Dahlia mystery and he has evil intentions,Usually.
This is a good movie with SAW-like actions towards victims,great acting by all the cameos and Kristin Kerr is a modern day Elisabeth Short (With an almost Betty Page fetish tone).
Lots of extras on this 2 disc set including making of and complete separate soundtrack.

Elizabeth Short AKA The Black Dahlia

This book has taught me, if I’m going to read a book about something that really happened, I need to do some research. Let me go ahead and throw this out there: This book uses some facts from the case, but fuses fact with fiction.  I didn’t know that until I got to the end of the book and read that the two main characters, other than the Dahlia were made up.  Before I got that far, I couldn’t understand why the case was never solved because the book told me who did it. Wow, did I feel dumb.

Before the last few chapters, I would have only given this book one bookmark. It was not what I expected. It is kind of dirty (yes, I’m being a prude again). There’s a lot of sex and it’s pretty morbid. I expected the morbidity, just not all the sex. Everything I read about the Dahlia says people speculated she was a hooker but it wasn’t true, so when the book kind of played off that, I didn’t know what to believe.

The last few chapters, however, bring it all together. I was very surprised at who was pegged the killer and even more surprised at how “Bucky” handled the news.

I’m more of a high heel and handbag book kind of girl. I personally would say this is more of a guys book about cops and boxing.

I did think it was written well. When I read it, I really felt like I was in the 40’s. I really like, looking back now, how many facts he used in the book and how he played off them to make this a novel.  Everyone can hear about a murder and put a story together about how it happened, but this was a good story.

Looking back at the writing, especially towards the end, I’m going to give this book 3 bookmarks. If you can push through the first 3/4 of the book, the last 1/4 is great and an intriguing read to find out who’s the Dahlia’s killer (fake killer, they never solved it).

If you would like to read the “Tru” story about the Dahlia, click here.  This site taught me the most about her, even though there really isn’t a lot to know. The 50 year mystery makes it intriguing, but also very sad. It’s not a case that will ever be solved because most likely, the killer isn’t around anymore. The only way I can see it truly coming out is if the person is still alive and on their death bed they spill or a diary comes out after they pass on. Chances of that happening, not likely.

http://www.zonkerala.com/magazine/black-dahlia-review-58.html

http://www.zonkerala.com/movie/black-dahlia.html

Every friendship/relationship has its ups and downs, and even some have there song. Out of the 20+ years I have been on this earth I can honestly say that there is only one (positive) song that I have attached to a relationship. The bad songs are all attached to relationshits… and i have two of those songs.

The one song that I have had since 2004 (and yes you can do the math to figure out who the song does NOT belong to) is by Matchbook Romance. I will not get too specific as to what the title of the song is, because sharing a song with that person is half the fun of having a song to share.

I will state however, that whenever I hear that song being played I get a warm fuzzy feeling inside. I am able to tell myself that no matter what kind of day I’m going through that no matter what, I’ll be able to fall asleep that night, because it brings me closer to you.

So what is your song? What song reminds you of that special person in your life? I’m not talking about hateful upsetting songs about broken relationships such as “Black Dahlia by Hollywood Undead” *wink* or anything like that. Instead a song that gives you your very own fuzzy feeling when you hear it being played?

P.S. I would take your hand, and never let it go

A recent Facebook conversation with a friend in North Carolina touched on the Black Dahlia story — the  1947 murder and mutilation of Elizabeth Short — and several of the books and films either based explicitly on the killing or just inspired by it. James Ellroy’s novel The Black Dahlia is probably the best known and one of my favorite novels (though I literally walked out of the theater while watching the film, completely insulted by Brian De Palma’s adaptation), but there have been others of note. Jack Webb, of Dragnet fame, explored the case in his book The Badge; John Gregory Dunne’s novel True Confessions (and the Robert De Niro/Robert Duvall film based on the book) drew on the killing; and there’s even a jazz album by Bob Belden — a great one, I might add! — that charts Short’s life and death with its own narrative drive and passion. (It has the feel of a terrific soundtrack, though it was never attached to a movie.)

Thinking about the Black Dahlia sent me to examine a new book from The Library of America: True Crime: An American Anthology, edited by Harold Schechter and covering “350 years of brilliant writing about dark deeds.” The anthology features both Jack Webb’s account of the Short slaying and Ellroy’s essay “My Mother’s Killer,” first published in GQ and then expanded the memoir My Dark Places — both of which (essay and book) help to reveal connections between the 1958 slaying of Ellroy’s mother and his interest in the Short case, which he first read about in Webb’s account.

But beyond those two entries, I also found a wealth of great material, beginning with Schechter’s fascinating introduction, which quotes both Plato and Freud to delve into some of the sociological and psychological reasons behind man’s eternal fascination with such stories and then traces the historical development of the genre: Puritan execution sermons; Hawthorne, Melville and Poe’s fascination with crime stories; the emphasis on lurid tales to move papers during the height of yellow journalism; the rise of pulp magazines and books capitalizing on sensational stories; and then New Journalism and the arrival of Truman Capote’s In Cold Blood and ushering in if not a new genre of what Schechter calls “serious book-length studies of particular crimes, written by major authors and published by prestigious presses.” He particularly notes Norman Mailer’s Executioner’s Song, Joseph Wambaugh’s The Onion Field, and Joe McGinnis’s Fatal Vision among those books, though none of them nor In Cold Blood is excerpted here because of the anthology’s focus on self-contained works.

Nathan Leopold and Richard Loeb, during their trial for killing 14-year-old Bobby Franks in 1924

Still, even without those classics, there’s plenty here to savor: from one of those execution sermons (from no less than Cotton Mather) through a series of murder ballads to Meyer Berger’s Pulitzer Prize-winning account of a Camden, NJ shooting spree  (a case recently reflected on by critic Sarah Weinman) and straight through to Dominick Dunne’s account of the Lyle and Erik Melendez trial. Along the way, we get some of the most famous criminals in our nation’s history —  Leopold and Loeb, Charles Manson, Ed Gein, Son of Sam — and some of the best writers, many of them familiar but others perhaps unexpected by readers here: Ben Franklin, Abraham Lincoln, Ambrose Bierce, Mark Twain, Frank Norris, Susan Glaspell, Damon Runyon, Joseph Mitchell, H.L. Mencken (from whom the title to this blog post is taken), Edna Ferber, Jim Thompson, James Thurber (wait, James Thurber!?), Zora Neale Hurston, Robert Bloch, Calvin Trillin, Gay Talese, and Jimmy Breslin, among many others. 

I’ve hardly had time to do more than sample a few of these, but I can assure you that it’s a collection to which I’ll return, not only for reading but also as a valuable resource. 

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Hey folks, don’t forget the Kerry Fashion Weekend is on this weekend, and it looks fab! Here’s another little taster of some of Agata’s shots that will be featured in the Fashion and Photography Exhibition in the Fels Point Hotel. Check it out…

Photo by Agata Stoinska

Photo by Agata Stoinska

Photo by Agata Stoinska

När spelvärldens klocka slagit 1998 hade den spelmässiga trend som gick under benämningen FMV(och som ofta innefattade b-iga skådisar mot en greenscreen-bakgrund) mer eller mindre hunnit försvinna. Det som under en kort period under mitten av 90-talet refererades till som “the future of gaming” hade redan blivit en pinsam fotnot i marginalen och något ganska inaktuellt i skenet av den nya generationen av 3D-spel såsom Quake och dylikt. Men till och med vid denna sena timma fanns det spel som fortfarande höll sig kvar vid formatet. Och underligt nog visade det sig också bli ett av de bättre spelen som utnyttjade sig av tekniken.

“Black Dahlia” var företaget Take-Two Interactives sista egenproducerade giv i äventyrsspelsgenren, (de är idag förmodligen mest kända som ägarna av spelföretaget Rockstar Games, som ligger bakom megasuccéer såsom “Grand Theft Auto” och “Max Payne”) då deras tidigare försök hade varit halvlyckade om än smått kultförklarade försök såsom “Bureau 13“, “Hell: A Cyberpunk Thriller” och inte minst det kändisspäckade “Ripper“, som stoltserade med namn såsom Christopher Walken, Karen Allen, Paul Giamatti och John Rhys-Davies på rollistan. Men där de föregående stapplade och föll på mållinjen lyckades “Black Dahlia” visa upp att FMV nödvändigtvis behövde vara något dåligt, trots en uppsjö av exempel som visade upp det motsatta.

För trots att spelet till en början visar upp allt det som vanligtvis tyder på ett riktigt dåligt äventyrsspel, såsom en överreklamerad hollywoodstjärna i en av rollerna(i detta fall en tämligen tam Dennis Hopper, som trots att hans namn och ansikte är spritt över hela spelpaketet egentligen bara är med i drygt fem minuter i själva spelet) och bisarrt många cd-skivor(eller “Eight CD-rom Extravaganza!” som omslaget så snyggt kallar det) är “Black Dahlia” faktiskt överlag riktigt bra.

Handlingen utspelar sig under en utdragen tidsperiod med start 1942 i Cleveland, och kretsar kring den tämligen oerfarne internutredaren Jim Pearson, som dras in i en härva som visar sig innefatta allt från en lokal seriemördare som styckar sina offer, till nazism, asaguds-ockultism och så förstås det kända mysteriet kring mordet på Elisabeth Short, mer känd som “the Black Dahlia”. Spelet lyckas binda samman verkliga fakta och karaktärer med fiction på ett snyggt och engagerande sätt, som ofta för tankarna till en annan klassiker i äventyrsspelsammanhang, nämligen Sierras “Gabriel Knight“-serie.
Grafiken är ok, om än något intetsägande, men är fullt duglig förrenderad, första-personens 3D för sin tid och inte störande för spelupplevelsen. Nej, vad spelet istället vilar på förutom den genomtänkta och välskrivna handlingen är utan tvekan skådespelarna, som för det mesta lyckas otroligt väl med att undvika såpopera/b-filmskänslan som annars är så vanlig i just FMV-spelen, och levererar överlag imponerande prestationer förvånansvärt fria från stelt överspel.

Pusslen i spelet varierar kraftigt, från detektivarbetande, såsom insamlande av ledtrådar och förhör av diverse misstänkta till mer lösryckta “pussel/tankenöt”-pussel i “Myst”-stil och liknande, vilket förvisso ger variation, men som inbiten hatare av den sistnämnda sortens pussel och älskare av det Hammet-doftande snokandet efter spår kan jag ibland tycka att det blir lite väl många poänglösa uppvisningar i kluriga hjärnkliar-pussel som ofta känns ditslängda som tidsfördröjare utan egentlig relevans till handlingen. Men för den som uppskattar den typen av uppgifter lär man säkerligen svälja dem med hull och hår.

Överlag är dock “Black Dahlia” trots några tillkortakommanden en underhållande spelupplevelse med suggestiv atmosfär och välskriven handling, och näst efter “Gabriel Knight 2: The Beast Within” och “Tex Murphy”-serien kanske också det allra bästa exemplet på vad FMV-tekniken faktiskt kunde åstadkomma när den användes på rätt sätt.

(En tämligen taskigt filmad video, men det var dessvärre det enda jag kunde hitta på youtube.)

I love LA, and I love films set in Los Angeles, from Bladerunner to perhaps the most typical genre, film noir. 

I finally saw Black Dahlia today on HBO, and it was as bad as they say.  Worse, even.

It was one big acting lesson for the wooden juvenile leads, Josh Hartnett and Scarlett Johanson.  Watching Hartnett struggle to show grief and shock when his partner plunges to his death was a painful movie moment indeed.

The director was in love with mood shots and voiceover, both of which can be overdone. Then there’s the father daughter make out scene, not too much of a homage to Chinatown.  Not a surprise to learn that it was an over-the-top but past his prime Brian DePalma, bhind the violence and leering sex.

“She looks like that dead girl.  How sick are you?”  The line reading was so great that it repeated in the voice over.  “You’d rather fuck me than shoot me.”

And the script…well, the real Black Dahlia, of the dead woman found cut in half in 1947, is considered an iconic LA crime, although who know why compared to the thousands killed in ‘gang-related’ violence over the last   There’s not much to hang your hat–or the script-on, so a plot has to be invented, so the filmakers tapped the James Ellroy novel.  But the A and B lines about a mob tie-up, girls reading for Hollywood screen tests and a Hollywood gothic family don’t make much sense or cover incoherence with screaming and overacting and grand guignol.

LA Confidental still rules, for three reasons: 1. Actual great acting, particularly the way under-utilized Guy Peerce, but also the world-weary Russell Crowe and Oscar-winner Kim Basinger.  2. Curtis Hanson, really a great, understatted director who can work in any genre and make you care even about a chick flick, In Her Shoes.  3.  A well-written script that uses noir elemetns and period cars, sets and costumes but is not overwhelmed by them–and deals with a continuing Los Angeles problem, our ambivalence with the LAPD.

If you’re looking to add a copy of Le Grand Amour to your collection, an auction has just started at €1.

I wasn’t contacted to advertise the listing – it took me quite a while to find a discounted copy myself, so I thought I’d bring this to the attention of my fellow collectors.

The book is limited to 3000 copies worldwide. To my knowledge, it rarely sells for less then US$200 online, usually at a set price, not at auction. So you might be able to pick up a bargain here.

The black dahlia is set in 1940s l.A. Two cops bucky bleichert & his partner lee blanchard investigate the death of elizabeth short a young woman found brutally murdered. Bucky soon realizes his girlfriend had ties to the deceased & soon after that he begins uncovering corruption in the police department. Studio: Uni Dist Corp. (mca) Release Date: 01/27/2009 Starring: Josh Hartnett Aaron Eckhart Run time: 122 minutes Rating: R Director: Brian Depalma

The Black Dahlia drips with film noir atmospherics as it unspools a lurid and complicated story taken from James Ellroy’s true-crime-inspired novel of the same name. Two boxers-turned-cops–Lee “Mr. Fire” Blanchard (Aaron Eckhart, Thank You For Smoking) and Bucky “Mr. Ice” Bleichert (Josh Hartnett, Black Hawk Down)–are morally tested as they pursue the killer of a young would-be actress, grappling with corruption, narcissism, stag films, and family madness along the way. L.A. Confidential turned Ellroy’s heated prose into a taut, compelling movie, but The Black Dahlia collapses like a soggy meringue. Director Brian De Palma (who once made such vibrant, entertaining movies as Carrie and The Untouchables) can’t muster the energy to craft one of his trademark bravura action sequences and seems outright bored by the more mundane tasks of shaping performances and establishing mood. The actors flounder; Eckhart seems to be emoting for two, perhaps to compensate for Hartnett’s bland lack of affect; even actresses as dependable as Scarlett Johansson (Lost in Translation) and Hilary Swank (Boys Don’t Cry) give clumsy, unconvincing performances. The one exception is an unsettling performance by Mia Kirshner (Exotica) as the doomed actress, seen only in perverse screen tests and stag films. The story is incomprehensible (and when you can follow it, it’s silly); the dialogue is atrocious; the characters make hardly any sense from scene to scene. The movie is, however, good for many moments of absurd camp, such as when Bucky enters the most lavish, palatial lesbian bar you’ll ever see, featuring a Busby-Berkeley-style stairway of smooching babes and a crooning k.d. lang. –Bret Fetzer

The Black Dahlia (Widescreen Edition) is available at Amazon for $9.99. To Order click here
Amazon Product Pages contain a lot of other details on this product as Customer Reviews, Sales Ranking, Special Offers, Alternate products that customers are going for and much more.Want to read these details? click here

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Other Products of Interest

• Hollywoodland (Widescreen Edition)
• The Illusionist (Widescreen Edition)
• Babel
• The Good Shepherd (Widescreen Edition)
• The Prestige

Genre : Point & Click

Editeur / Développeur : Take 2 Interactive

Sortie : 1998

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