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Cozy Mystery (and Other Favorite) Books, Movies, and TV

Feels Like Summer…

May 18, 2011

Our daughter came home for a week before heading out to Washington, DC for her summer internship. She will be living in the same housing place as she did during her last summer’s internship. I have come to terms with her living so far away, although I wish she were closer. Between Cambridge for the school term and DC for the summers >>> I guess I should resign myself to the fact that she is now an east-coast adult.

My husband and I planned to visit her during her internship, as we did last summer, but the three of us have decided that since she won’t be there as long as she was last summer, we will probably wait until the fall and visit her in Massachusetts instead. I have to admit that visiting her in DC last summer sure calmed the “mother in me.” Seeing all the police officers patrolling the area set my mind at ease. It seemed like there were police officers on every corner – not at all like what it was like when we lived the area – way back in the 1980s and early 1990s.

Whenever my husband and I are away, our son takes on the responsibility of taking care of Sprite. And, at 16 1/2 years old, she is one finicky puppy. She has definite likes and dislikes, and she lets you know about them! I am almost embarrassed at what Sprite now has us doing just to get her to take her pills each morning and night.

Anyway, it’s not officially summer yet (June 21), but we’ve already had our yearly summer visit from our daughter. It does seem those visits are getting shorter and shorter…

 

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Maria Bello in USA Prime Suspect…

May 16, 2011

It’s official! NBC is trying to get its failing ratings up, and will be adding several new shows to their fall line-up. One of these shows is an American version of Prime Suspect. Jane will be played by Maria Bello:

“Other notable new programs include “Prime Suspect,” an adaptation of the celebrated British series that starred Helen Mirren as a tough police detective, with Maria Bello taking on the role;”

(The above quote is from an article in MarketWatch.)

So there you have it. Let’s all hope that Bello can make Jane a messed-up, hard-as-nails person, who the audience actually roots for.

PS>>> Also on the NBC fall line-up is a Steven Spielberg show starring Anjelica Huston. Love her!!! When my children were a whole lot younger, The Witches (Roald Dahl) was a movie we watched over and over… And, of course, who can forget Lonesome Dove, The Addams Family, Prizzi’s Honor, … the Anjelica Huston hits just keep going and going, and going some more!

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Is a Rose Still a Rose? Pseudonyms by Mystery Authors…

May 14, 2011

Getting back to the pseudonym question that I have been pondering for a while…

For some reason, this story has stayed with me – hidden in the deep recesses of my memory – as one of my “tid-bit interesting” stories relating to famous authors.

Stephen King was an English teacher before his books “took off.” Actually he worked many jobs, one of which was janitor at a school. Given his enormous writing talent, it was only a matter of time (and perseverance!) before his books became best sellers.

Once King’s books hit the best seller lists, he conducted an experiment. In the 1980s, he published several novels under the pseudonym “Richard Bachman.” He denied all rumors that Bachman’s writings were his. There was a phony author picture, and a phony author’s biography attached to the books. His Bachman books’ dedications were to Bachman’s significant loved ones, including Bachman’s loving wife. King deliberately distanced himself from the Bachman pseudonym. Apparently, King wanted to see if his “Stephen King” notoriety affected his book sales.

While Stephen King’s novels were all hitting the best sellers’ lists, his Richard Bachman novels did modestly well. One of his Richard Bachman novels sold 28,000 copies. When it was finally discovered that the Richard Bachman novels were actually Stephen King’s, that particular novel increased its sales by 10%! Stephen King had made an important discovery.

Name Brand, Name Recognition, Name Loyalty, Name Demand… call it what you will… There’s apparently a lot to be said about name recognition.

Pseudonyms may be nice, but it’s up to the loyal fans to track you down!

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Mystery Authors with Pseudonyms…

May 13, 2011

I’m confused! If I’m reading the latest Casey Mayes mystery, does that mean I’m enjoying Chris Cavender‘s writing? If I really enjoy J. B. Stanley‘s Supper Club Mystery Series, does that make it a sure bet that I’ll enjoy the Books by the Bay Mystery Series by Ellery Adams? I love the Julia Callahan Garrity Mystery Series by Kathy Hogan Trocheck, does it follow that I’ll also love the Weezie & BeBe Mystery Series by Mary Kay Andrews?

Do you see the source of my befuddled state of mind?!?

Why is it that more and more mystery book authors are going by pseudonyms? (Or did these same authors used to use their pseudonyms, and are now writing new mystery series using their real names?!?) I have enough trouble following the names of all the mystery series some authors are now writing >>> without having to find out about their new series under new names!

It is my opinion that it is beginning to be a new fad in the mystery book market place. Some mystery readers and/or authors may like it, others may not, but it does seem to be happening more and more these days.

Having said this, I will tell you a story that I find very interesting. It is something that occurred way back in the 1980s, and it concerns an author who my husband (a literature major in his under graduate studies) thinks is one of the best current story-tellers and authors of our times: Stephen King. Some of you may already know this story, but I am going to going to tell it anyway. Well, actually I think I’ll save it for tomorrow…

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