Despite last Sunday’s shocking 20-17 loss to the NY Jets, Vegas claims the 6-2 Buffalo Bills are 6 1/2 point favorites over the 7-1 Minnesota Vikings. The Bills are suffering from a number of key players being injured so I’m dreading to see what will happen in this game if Josh Allen, who has an elbow injure, can’t start. How will your favorite NFL do today?

At 161 minutes, Black Panther: Wakanda Forever is one of the longest Super-Hero movies ever. Director Ryan Coogler tries to solve the problem of continuing the Black Panther series after his star, Chadwick Boseman, died unexpectedly. Coogler includes numerous tributes to Boseman in the film which helps to explain the extraordinary length of the movie.

In the first Black Panther movie, the villain was the scary Michael B. Jordan as Killmonger. In Wakanda Forever the villain is the undersea Namor (Tenoch Huerta), king of the ancient underwater world of Talokan. Sure, Namor has super strength, but he also has silly wings on his ankles which allow him–somehow–to fly.

Both Wakanda and Talokan find themselves threatened because the rest of the world wants their precious Vibranium. A meteorite made of vibranium, one of the most powerful metals in the universe, crashed in Wakanda which allowed the hidden African country to develop advance technologies. The same scenario happened in Talokan under the ocean. Another meteorite of vibranium landed in their area and the quasi-Aztecs developed astonishing technology, too.

You would think that two threatened countries would become allies to resist their common enemies. Wakanda Forever shows you would be wrong. Plenty of fighting and destruction result. Martin Freeman and Julia Louis-Dreyfus find themselves thrown into the mix for no particular reason.

Although our showing of Wakanda Forever was packed (and Diane and I were the only ones wearing N95 masks) I suspect attendance will dip sharply after this opening weekend. GRADE: B-

When I first began to listen to music in the late 1950s and early 1960s, I really enjoyed the instrumental songs I heard on the radio. Loved “Walk Don’t Run” by The Ventures. I couldn’t get enough of “Out of Limits” by The Marketts. And, of course, there’s the classic “Tequila” by The Champs that showed up years later in a Pee Wee Herman movie.

I have no idea why this instrumental genre faded away. Just listen to The Ventures playing the theme songs like “Hawaii Five-O” and “Secret Agent Man.” Just terrific!

Do you remember these instrumental hits? Any favorites here? GRADE: A (for both CDs)

TRACK LIST:

TRACK LIST:

Last week I posted about Black Is the Night: Stories in Tribute to the Author Who Inspired Hitchcock’s Rear Window (you can read my review here). I was dissatisfied with some of the stories because they failed to capture the tone and tension of Cornell Woolrich’s unique noir style–there was too much “sugar-coating” the danger. So, I turned to Darkness at Dawn: Early Suspense Classics by Cornell Woolrich (1985) to read the Real Deal.

When you read a Cornell Woolrich story, Woolrich takes you on a guided tour of the Dark Side of Life. Along the way, the you’ll meet foxy harlots, con artists, grifters, vamps, thieves, pimps, punks, femme fatales, liars, thugs, cheaters, and…of course, murderers.

Take “Death Sits in the Dentist’s Chair” for an example. Most of us dread dental work, but Cornell Woolrich turns the experience into a nightmare in this story. If you can imagine something worse than torture by dentistry, how about “Walls That Hear You” where the story begins with: “Eddie’s tongue had been torn out by the roots and all ten of his fingers had been cut off at the base, leaving just the stumps of both hands.” (p. 19) Eddie’s brother vows to avenge his brother’s attack…and finds himself in deep trouble! Woolrich amps up the fear and horror while the characters generate more and more suspense as they panic in fear.

Or how about setting an actress on fire in “Preview of Death. “Kiss of the Cobra” ends with a man and woman facing death in a snaky, poisonous Mexican stand-off.

Cornell Woolwich created pressure-cooker situations, racing against the clock to force his characters to find a way to survive…or die. Most of the stories in Darkness at Dawn: Early Suspense Classics by Cornell Woolrich were published in the 1930s, a particularly grim time in U.S. history. High-octane suspense, stark menace, and extreme situations highlight these vintage Cornell Woolrich stories. Don’t accept any weak-kneed substitutes! Woolrich’s undiluted noir delivers a rush that will etch itself into your memory! GRADE: A

TABLE OF CONTENTS:

INTRODUCTION By Francis M. Nevins, Jr. — ix

Death sits in the dentist’s chair — 1

Walls that hear you — 19

Preview of Death — 44

Murder in wax — 63

The body upstairs — 82

Kiss of the cobra — 102

Red liberty — 126

Dark melody of madness — 149

The corpse and the kid — 190

Dead on her feet — 215

The death of me — 235

The showboat murders — 260

Hot water — 277

Cornell Woolrich: a checklist — 299

You can read my review of the first Enola Holmes movie here. Enola Holmes 2 just appeared on Netflix this weekend. Unlike the first movie, Enola Holmes 2 is not based on any of the Nancy Springer novels. Enola Holmes 2 stars Millie Bobby Brown reprising her role as Enola Holmes–Sherlock and Mycroft Holmes’s little sister–with Henry Cavill, Louis Partridge, Susie Wokoma, Adeel Akhtar, and Helena Bonham Carter also reprising their supporting roles, while David Thewlis and Sharon Duncan-Brewster are added as new cast members.

Enola is about to give up her detective agency because of lack of business when she’s approached by a match-stick girl named Bessie. Bessie wants Enola to find her missing sister, Sarah Chapman. Enola goes undercover at the match-stick factory and discovers missing pages of an employment journal.

Enola follows her clues and discovers that her case and Sherlock Holmes’s case intersect. Sherlock is investigating a financial case and learning of Enola’s case leads him to believe the match-stick factory lies at the center of the scheme.

The screenplay by Jack Thorne features several action scenes. Millie Bobby Brown gets to show off her fighting skills. Helena Bonham Carter–Enola’s mother–gets to blow things up. Enola also engages in some romance. If you’re in the mood for a fun and frothy movie with some clever twists and a solid cast, consider giving Enola Holmes 2 a try. GRADE: B

Russell Foster, director of the Sleep and Circadian Neuroscience Institute (SCNI) and head of the Nuffield Laboratory of Ophthalmology at the University of Oxford, presents the latest findings on sleep research. Foster believes our lives can be greatly improved if we make the effort to apply this new knowledge to our lives.

Everyone reading this blog would find Chapter 10–When to Take Drugs–enlightening. Most of us are on various medications–high blood pressure, statins, Viagra, etc.–but the effects of these drugs diminish if you take them at the wrong times.

While much of Life Time involves improving sleep, Foster also focuses on the immune system, which is affected by sleep…good and bad. Chapter 13–Finding Your Natural Rhythm–outlines ways to better manage your eating, sleeping, exercise, and circadian cycles to live a longer and healthier Life. I also found Foster’s research on sleep and sex insightful.

Russell Foster writes clearly and expresses the research findings in understandable language. Life Time is a brilliant guide to improving your Life and happiness. How’s your sleep? GRADE: A

Table of Contents:

List of Figures ix

List of Abbreviations xi

List of Tables x

Introduction i

1 The Day Within 17

2 A Heritage from Our Cave Days 32

3 The Power of the Eye 51

4 Out of Time 70

5 Biological Chaos 93

6 Back in the Rhythm 117

7 The Rhythm of Life 144

8 The Seven Ages of Sleep 168

9 Time Out of Mind 200

10 When to Take Drugs 224

11 A Circadian Arms Race 254

12 Eating Time 272

13 Finding Your Natural Rhythm 287

14 The Circadian Future 308

Appendix I Studying Your Own Biological Rhythms

Part I Developing a Sleep Diary 330

Part II Chronotype Questionnaire 331

Appendix II The Key Elements and Overview of the Immune System 337

References 343

Acknowledgements 431

Index 433

Vegas has made the 6-1 Buffalo Bills a 13-point favorite over the surprising 5-3 NY Jets. The Jets QB Zach Wilson threw for nearly 400 yards last Sunday against the New England Patriots–but also threw THREE game-killing interceptions. How will your favorite NFL team perform today?

Devices and Desires, first published in 1989, involves a serial killer, a nuclear facility hiding a number of secrets, and additional murders. P. D. James’s Scotland Yard detective, Adam Dalgliesh, settling the estate of a relative, gets caught up in the investigations. The crimes take place on Larksoken, a fictional isolated headland in Norfolk.

P. D. James begins with a psychopath called “The Whistler” (because he whistles as he kills young women), but pivots to the more complicated and sinister events at the nuclear facility.

The TV version of Devices and Desires was broadcast in 1991. Roy Marsden plays Adam Dalgliesh and seems stiff and aloof for much of the time. But, as the bodies start to pile up, the plot and the action accelerate into some satisfying storytelling following James’s mystery novel. Are you a P.D. James fan?

DEVICES AND DESIRES NOVEL: GRADE: B+

DEVICES AND DESIRES TV SERIES: GRADE: B

Yes, I’m that George Kelley who wrote the INTRODUCTION to this new Stark House edition of Harold R. Daniel’s The Girl in 304. Thank you Greg Shepard, Editor and Publisher of Stark House, for inviting me to be part of the Black Gat Books series!

I discovered Harold R. Daniel’s work in the early 1970s when I bought plenty of old Dell paperbacks back then and found Daniel’s first novel, In His Blood (1955), full of suspense and surprises. In His Blood was nominated for an Edgar for Best First Novel.

The Girl in 304 was Daniel’s second novel, also published by Dell, and featured the investigation of the murder of Lucy Carter, a carhop (remember them?), who had been stabbed to death and whose stripped body was dumped near the side of the road. Sheriff Ed Masters delves into Lucy’s troubled life and discovers perplexing questions. Why did Lucy suddenly quit her job at Benny Zurich’s drive-in? What was Lucy’s connection to Lieutenant Cox, a dirty cop who shook down working girls who lived in the same hotel that Lucy did?

The Girl in 304, with its hints of deadly secrets and hidden motives, takes the reader to dark places and sinister schemes.

Norman R. Daniel’s wrote a series of excellent mysteries and hopefully Stark House will reprint more of them for a new audience. GRADE: A

HAROLD R. DANIEL’S NOVELS:

In His Blood (Dell, 1955)

The Girl in 304 (Dell, 1956)

The Accused (Dell, 1958)

The Snatch (Dell, 1958)

For the Asking (Fawcett, 1962)

The House on Greenapple Road (Random House, 1966; Dell 1969)