I’ve been reading W. C. Tuttle’s tales of Sheriff Henry Harrison Conroy for almost a decade now. Popular Publications (aka, Steeger Books (formerly Altus Press) has been reprinting Tuttle’s entertaining Western stories featuring a seemingly bumbling former actor who has been elected Sheriff of Tonto Arizona, a town with plenty of problems.

Blind Trails at Tonto is Volume 8 of this reprint series. The three stories included in this book also feature Sheriff Conroy’s loyal deputy, Judge Van Treece (a man with a serious drinking problem, but with an uncanny intelligence), and jailer, Oscar Johnson (a massive man with incredible strength). For comic relief, Frijole Bill and Slim Pickins are always around with their powerful prune whiskey laced with high octane alcohol.

“Henry the Silent” involves Frijole and Slim finding a dead body…and some money. Sheriff Conroy suspects the young woman who had just been hired at the Tonto saloon as a violinist, is connected to the case. Another murder and the disappearance of Mary McLean, the violinist, leads the Sheriff to a treacherous plot of counterfeiting and duplicity.

“Tracks in the Sand” begins with a plot to gain control of a mine outside of Tonto Arizona. The owner of the mine, Frank Travis, is found dead just outside of town. Yet, another man, claiming to be Frank Travis shows up to chase a beautiful woman named Nola Terry, who comes to Tonto to become its teacher. As the bodies pile up, Sheriff Conroy sets a trip for the gang who hopes to steal the mine.

“Blind Trails at Tonto” begins with the local newspaper Clarion, calling for the defeat of Sheriff Conroy at the next election. Conroy’s opponent is “Honest” Ed Henderson, owner of the Circle H spread who is backed monetarily by Jim Nelson. Nelson purchased the King’s Castle, the biggest saloon, gambling house, and honkatonk in the country. Conroy takes a lot of heat as the number of murders pile up. But once again, Conroy has a plan to reveal what is really going on.

I’ve enjoyed all the Sheriff Conroy stories–all 8 volumes!–and recommend them to readers who like their Westerns with humor and mysteries. GRADE: A

TABLE OF CONTENTS:

“Henry the Silent” — 1

“Tracks in the Sand” — 137

“Blind Trails at Tonto” — 223

Kimberly Akimbo is a highly acclaimed, Tony-winning Broadway musical (2023 Best Musical) praised for its unique blend of heartfelt drama and dark, quirky humor. The story involves a girl in High School who celebrates her 16th Birthday. However, she’s afflicted with a rare genetic disease (1 in 50 million) that accelerates her aging process. Although she’s 16, she went through menopause four years earlier. Yes, this is Benjamin Buttons in reverse.

The musical follows Kimberly as she deals with her dysfunctional family: a con-woman aunt, an alcoholic father, and a pregnant mother. Kimberly also has a high school crush. Within these problems, Kimberly grapples with with her shrinking lifespan and failing health.

This is one of those musicals that will make you laugh…then make you cry. GRADE: B

Musical numbers:

All of us have watched thousands of hours of television programming. Jon Burlingame’s Music for Prime Time is the most comprehensive book I’ve ever read that traces the origins of all the TV theme music for those TV programs.

I’m a big fan of Peter Gunn–both the TV show and the theme music created by Henry Mancini. Here’s an example of Burlingame’s approach:

“Mancini happened to be getting a haircut on the Universal lot when he ran into [Blake] Edwards, who as then planning Peter Gunn. Edwards casually asked if the out-of-work composer might be interested in writing the music. His positive response altered the direction of television scoring practically over night. Peter Gunn was an entirely jazz-based score. Reflecting later on the choice, Mancini said, “It was an idea that, I think, was obvious. Blake had set it in a jazz club. The minute that hit, the rest of it all fell into place.” (p. 34)

Even though Peter Gunn was a half hour program, there was often 15 minutes of music in those episodes. “By early 1959, The Music from Peter Gunn reached Number 1 on the Billboard popular album charts, spending 10 weeks at the top and 117 weeks on the chart overall.” (p. 37)

The level of detail Burlingame infuses into his survey of TV theme music is astonishing! And, as an unexpected bonus, AMAZON is offering Music for Prime Time–$37.00 everywhere else–for $17.00! What a bargain! I’ve ordered my copy, you should order yours before the price goes up!

Do you have a favorite TV theme song? GRADE: A

TABLE OF CONTENTS:

Acknowledgments — vii

Introduction — 1

1. “Hi-yo, Silver!”: The Birth of TV Music — 5
2. “Book ’em, Danno”: Cop and Detective Shows — 33
3. “Head ’em up! Move ’em out!” The Westerns — 84
4. “You are traveling through another dimension”: Fantasy and Science Fiction — 115
5. “Man, woman, birth, death, infinity”: Drama — 159
6. “Just sit right back and you’ll hear a tale”: Comedy — 187
7. “Your mission, should you decide to accept it”: Action-Adventure — 253
8. “You are there”: Documentaries, News and Information Programming — 282
9. “Flintstones! Meet the Flintstones!” Cartoons in Prime Time — 311
10. “My name is Kunta Kinte”: Made-for-TV Movies and Miniseries — 325
11. “Mrs. Peel, we’re needed”: British shows aired in the U.S. — 374
12. “I couldn’t possibly comment”: Music in contemporary television — 399

Afterword — 426
Photo Credits — 429

Bibliography/Sources — 431

Index — 447

PEAKY BLINDERS: The Immortal Man delivers everything you could want in a Peaky Blinders movie. If you’re looking for angst, violence, sex, suspense, explosions, and the unexpected, it’s all here. Cillian Murphy returns as Tommy Shelby which shows in part why he won the Best Actor Oscar back in 2023.

“Written by series creator Steven Knight, the film reunites Cillian Murphy with co-stars including Sophie Rundle (Ada Thorne), Packy Lee (Johnny Dogs), Ned Dennehy (Charlie Strong), and Stephen Graham (Hayden Stagg). New cast members include Barry Keoghan, Rebecca Ferguson, and Tim Roth.”

I will watch anything with Rebecca Ferguson in it! GRADE: A

The Ultimate Encyclopedia of Science Fiction (1996)  includes a Who’s-Who, an A-Z of Science Fiction characters, a reference guide to writers, actors, directors, an in-depth glossary, listing of the seminal sf movies and much more.

This book is a browser’s delight! David Pringle managed to provide both information and fun in this encyclopedia. If you’re a fan of the genre, this is a handy tool. And, copies are available online at reasonable prices. GRADE: A

The 1980s was a decade of change. The impact of MTV cannot be over-estimated. Katrina and the Waves’ “Talking on Sunshine” became used in TV commercials for 40 years–it makes about a million dollars per year.

Frankie Goes to Hollywood’s “Relax” still gets airplay on our local Oldies radio station. And, so does Foreigner’s “I Want to Know What Love Is.” I never hear the Miami Vice Theme anymore. But I do hear one of Trump’s favorite songs: “Everybody Wants To Rule The World” by Tears for Fears.

I’m a big fan of The Honeydrippers’ “Sea of Love.” Do you remember these songs from the mid-Eighties? Any favorites here? GRADE: B+

TRACK LIST:

I really enjoyed Loren D. Estleman’s “A Hatful of Ralph,” where Ralph Poteet, a private eye with plenty of problems, is reduced to playing Santa in a department store where he’s supposed to find out who is stealing plenty of items. Of course, on top of the thefts, there’s a murder to spice things up.

I also liked Michael Collins and Gayle Lynds’ “A Delicate Mission” where two spies need to find a diary with sensitive information. The mission runs into trouble that changes the entire outcome.

John Lutz gives a whole new meaning to Hopper’s Nighthawks with his haunting story of the same name.

Flesh & Blood: Guilty as Sin (2003), is as Max Allan Collins says on the cover, “This is the stuff of Literary Viagra.” GRADE: B

TABLE OF CONTENTS:

INTRODUCTION: Sinful Streets by Max Allan Collins and Jeff Gelb —xi
Low Tide / Dick Lochte — 1

Back o’ town blues / David Fulmer — 26

Dalliance at Sunnydale / Barbara Collins — 36

The Iberville mistress / O’Neil de Noux — 52

Service / Gary Lovisi — 72

The last reel / Gary R. Bush — 88

A delicate mission / Michael Collins, Gayle Lynds — 110

Perfection / Jeff Gelb — 127

Walking to Paris / Rex Miller — 136

Feel the pain / Michael Bracken — 141

Sex crimes / Michael Garrett — 160

Money-back guarantee / Marthayn Pelegrimas, Robert J. Randisi — 166

A hatful of Ralph / Loren D. Estleman — 182

Bank job / Thomas S. Roche — 199

The Windsor ballet / Deborah Morgan — 214

Good career moves / Robert S. Levinson — 236

Dicks are blind / James L. Traylor — 157

Lie beside me / Max Allan Collins, Matthew V. Clemens — 270

Mirror, mirror / Catherine Dain — 285

A Dick and Jane story / Jack Kelly — 294

The raiders / Gary Phillips — 303

The daffodil / Annette Meyers, Martin Meyers — 318

Nighthawks / John Lutz — 339

Contributors — 355

“By the end of 2020, Newsweek reported that videos of people burning Harry Potter books were spreading like wildfire across TikTok. Historically, Harry Potter has been burned by right-wing fundamentalists who accuse J. K. Rowling of promoting witchcraft.” (p. 2)

“When Toni Morrison, the first African American woman to win the Nobel Prize in Literature, gave the Tanner Lectures at the Univserity of Michigan in 1988, she placed William Shakespeare, Henry James, and Herman Melville on the list of authors she could never live without.” (p. 47)

“Ray Bradbury’s 1953 masterpiece [Fahrenheit 451] was itself silently rewritten by his publisher, without his knowledge, because it, too, offended some readers. His publisher was ‘fearful of contaminating the young.’ For six years, the censored edition was the only paperback edition in print.” (p. 84)

Adam Szetela’s That Book is Dangerous! explores the pressures exerted by groups on publishers to “modify” or simply not publish books that “offend” them. Szetela’s cites a dozen examples of books dropped by publishers because of social media hostility. And, we’re all too familiar with groups that attack books in school libraries that they claim are pornography or ideological.

I learned that most publishers today employ “sensitivity” readers to advise them on which books might generate negative reaction on TikTok or other social media platforms. Publishers are willing to go to great lengths to satisfy those “sensitive” readers–and to avoid confrontations. The result, of course, is censorship, thought-policing, and blatant editing of themes, characters, and situations that might be “provocative.”

Publishers are under intense pressure and scrutiny by groups threatening boycotts, public exhibitions like book burnings, and social media trashing. I knew publishers faced a lot a problems but That Book is Dangerous! shows in detail just how bad the situation is for authors, publishers…and readers today. Plus, if William Shakespeare, Mark Twain, Henry James, and Herman Melville are considered “Dangerous” by these wacky groups, we are in deep shit. GRADE: A

Adam Szetela earned his Ph.D. in English from the Department of Literatures at Cornell University. Before that, he was a visiting fellow in the Department of History at Harvard University. He writes for The Washington Post, The Guardian, Newsweek, and other publications.

Table of Contents:
Introduction: Welcome to the Sensitivity Era — 1
1 The Ideas of the Sensitivity Era — 9
2 The Behavior of the Sensitivity Era — 65
3 The Political Economy of the Sensitivity Era — 123
4 The Future of the Sensitivity Era — 169

ACKNOWLEGEMENTS — 197

NOTES — 206

INDEX — 259