Selling My Books on the Streets of Brooklyn 12/31 - Karma

For the past few days news sources have been reporting on a ship trapped in ice in Antarctica. One minor detail has been omitted, perhaps due to embarrassment or refusal to challenge liberal orthodoxy. The passengers are global warming zealots, there to study disappearing ice! Al Gore is not on board. He is supervising from his armchair in his energy inefficient home, his private jets fueled and ready to fly to the next conference in a hospitable climate. This is my favorite story of the year by far, kick-ass karma, although I'm sure the phrase "climate change" will be used as an explanation by these men and their lackeys in the media, who revel in bad news. Unfortunately, the radicals of the religion of peace and their homicidal ways taint any celebration, remind us that the greatest danger to mankind is often posed by human beings.

I received notice from my health care provider, Empire. My policy was hospitalization only, $169. Thanks to ObamaCare and its forcing of individuals to get more coverage than one wants, the new price is $457. They will get nothing. I'll pay the fine. In less than 16 months I will be eligible for Medicare. My retirement money will be my emergency fund until then. I'll pay out of pocket for doctor visits, as I have for the past few years. Fortunately, I've been healthy and the costs have been minimal.

The floating book shop earned a little more than it did last year, and I sold more print copies of my books than in 2013, but I'm still on the bottom rung of the literary ladder. So far, making two screenplays and Adjustments available on Kindle has not moved the needle very far. My resolution remains the same: To sell as many copies of my books as possible. Given the weather forecast, the year will get off to a slow start. I don't anticipate setting up shop again until at least Sunday.

Happy New Year. May your hopes and dreams come through in 2014.
Vic's 4th Novel: http://tinyurl.com/bszwlxh
Vic's 3rd Novel: http://tinyurl.com/7e9jty3
Vic's Website: http://members.tripod.com/vic_fortezza/Literature/
Vic's Short Story Collection (Print or Kindle): http://www.tiny.cc/Oycgb
Vic's 2nd Novel: http://tinyurl.com/6b86st6
Vic's 1st Novel: http://tiny.cc/94t5h
Vic's Horror Screenplay on Kindle: http://tinyurl.com/cyckn3
Vic's Rom-Com Screenplay on Kindle: http://tinyurl.com/kny5llp
Vic’s Short Story on Kindle: http://tinyurl.com/k95k3nx

Selling My Books on the Streets of Brooklyn 12/30 - Enduring

The local pro football teams have finished out of the playoffs. I believe the Jets are on an upward trend, the Giants downward. Pre-season prognosticators had Gang Green winning four to five games. They won eight, demonstrating good defense and a sound running game. They need help at wide receiver, tweaking elsewhere, and management must hope that Geno Smith develops into a solid QB. The team seems to play hard for its coach, who dialed back his blowhard tendencies a bit this season. Expect those to return if the Jets continue to improve. Fans should be optimistic. As for Big Blue, not one of its seven wins was impressive. The entire offense is suspect except Victor Cruz, who has had minor knee surgery. There are holes to fill everywhere. Defensively, they are okay and will be even better if Jason Pierre-Paul, who has been a shell of his former self the past two seasons, returns to peak form. I don’t see how anyone can be optimistic about the team’s near future, but one-year turnarounds have become fairly common in the NFL. Both franchises will pick in the middle of the first round of the draft, so they will have to get lucky.
Also on the NFL front: It is black Monday, when many coaches get fired. The first, which actually occurred Sunday, was surprising -- Rob Chudzinski of the Browns, at the helm only one season, going 4-12; also let go, the Vikings Leslie Frazier, 21-32; the Buccaneers Greg Schiano after two years; the Lions Jim Schwartz, 24-51, who failed to motivate what seems a talented bunch; and the veteran Mike Shanahan of the Redskins, 24-40, once regarded as a genius when the Broncos won back to back Super Bowls with John Elway at QB. No word yet on the Cowboys Jason Garrett. I don't know how he can survive all those blown games the past three seasons.

How many times is the phrase "They don't make 'em like they used to" bandied about, especially by older folks? I wouldn't say things were better in the past, but items were built to last. Case in point: the New Zealand Antarctic Heritage Trust recently made an amazing discovery -- 100 year old negatives in a hut explorers used as a way station. It was left behind in a failed expedition. The team was stranded when its ship blew out to sea. The accompanying article at the Business Insider Australia website did not state whether the crew was eventually rescued. The film was processed by experts. Here's one of the pics:

My thanks to the gentlemen who purchased books in Russian. Mikhail, 81, laughed sheepishly as he picked up the translation of Giovanni Boccaccio's bawdy The Decameron. I'd figured the book was a classic but had no idea which one. "A man my age - sex," he chuckled, reddening. What a beautiful man he is. The book was written in the mid 1300's.
Vic's 4th Novel: http://tinyurl.com/bszwlxh
Vic's 3rd Novel: http://tinyurl.com/7e9jty3
Vic's Website: http://members.tripod.com/vic_fortezza/Literature/
Vic's Short Story Collection (Print or Kindle): http://www.tiny.cc/Oycgb
Vic's 2nd Novel: http://tinyurl.com/6b86st6
Vic's 1st Novel: http://tiny.cc/94t5h
Vic's Horror Screenplay on Kindle: http://tinyurl.com/cyckn3
Vic's Rom-Com Screenplay on Kindle: http://tinyurl.com/kny5llp
Vic’s Short Story on Kindle: http://tinyurl.com/k95k3nx

Selling My Books on the Streets of Brooklyn 12/29 - Water

I read Sara Gruen’s terrific novel, Water for Elephants, several months ago, then added the film adaptation to my list at Netflix. I watched it last night and was pleased. Was it as good as the book? No, the movie version is usually lacking. I can think of three off the top of my head that are superior: The Godfather series is miles above Mario Puzo’s novel, as is The Dirty Dozen (1967) to E.M. Nathanson’s work, and Breakheart Pass (1975) is to Alistair Maclean’s, although the latter does not come close to the greatness of the other two. Richard LaGravanese, a Brooklyn-born Italian, adapted Gruen’s book to the silver screen. Scanning his credits, I see he also adapted Nick Evans’ The Horse Whisperer (1998), which I really liked. In WFE, he combined two of the male characters, the circus owner and Marlena’s husband. It worked, providing the economy necessary to a two-hour film. A mini-series of at least four hours would have done more justice to the novel, allowing the inclusion of the wonderful color that characterizes it. Within the time frame, a solid film was created, although it feels rushed. There are at least two elements missing that will likely disappoint admirers of the book: no scenes are set in the old age home, and development of Kinko’s character is almost non-existent. Although Reese Witherspoon is supremely talented, she did not match the image of Marlena conjured in my mind. This was my first look at Robert Pattinson, who shot to fame via the Twilight series. He is fine in the lead, another Brit totally at ease with the American idiom. Christoph Waltz continues the major roll he has been on since his performances in Quentin Tarantino’s Inglorious Basterds (2009) and Django Unchained (2012). He is by far the best aspect of the latter film. Hal Holbrook, approaching 90, brings his usual excellence to the role of the old-timer recounting his life. Made on a budget of 38 million, it took in 58 million in the U.S. alone, a modest success by Hollywood standards. The film was directed by Francis Lawrence, who made his bones doing videos for JLo, Britney Spears and Green Day. Of his previous works in cinema, I’ve seen only Constantine (2005), which has faded from my memory. He recently struck gold at the helm of the second installment of The Hunger Games: Catching Fire (2013). On a scale of five, I rate Water for Elephants 3.5. It is rated 6.9 of ten at IMDb. Anyone interested in a change of pace from usual Hollywood fare would likely find it refreshing.

Tons of water fell from the sky today, putting the kibosh on the floating book shop.
Vic's 4th Novel: http://tinyurl.com/bszwlxh
Vic's 3rd Novel: http://tinyurl.com/7e9jty3
Vic's Website: http://members.tripod.com/vic_fortezza/Literature/
Vic's Short Story Collection (Print or Kindle): http://www.tiny.cc/Oycgb
Vic's 2nd Novel: http://tinyurl.com/6b86st6
Vic's 1st Novel: http://tiny.cc/94t5h
Vic's Horror Screenplay on Kindle: http://tinyurl.com/cyckn3
Vic's Rom-Com Screenplay on Kindle: http://tinyurl.com/kny5llp
Vic’s Short Story on Kindle: http://tinyurl.com/k95k3nx

Selling My Books on the Streets of Brooklyn 12/28 - Dozens

I was hangin' with my buddy Bags today, watching the first hour of one of my favorite films, The Dirty Dozen (1967), when he mentioned Duck Dynasty, which he has seen many times and I haven't seen at all. He mentioned an odd, amusing stat he'd heard somewhere, which I just researched on the web and found at LibertyNews.com, which apparently has a conservative bias. A column gleefully announced that, according to the President, 500,000 Americans signed up for healthcare on the government website this month, despite all the crashes and error messages. He did not mention how many of those “signups” represented people who actually enrolled in a plan. It should be said that while 500,000 people signed up for ObamaCare in December, 1.3 million Americans joined the Stand With Phil Facebook page in just 24 hours to show their support for Duck Dynasty patriarch Phil Robertson, who was suspended from A&E for calling homosexuality illogical. The move by the network and sponsors created an overwhelming backlash that had them reverse course. Everyone knows money talks, always did, always will. It's encouraging to see millions of Americans rise up against the far left and political correctness.

As for The Dirty Dozen, I would have sworn that a word, perhaps deemed too offensive, has been edited out since the release of the movie. I was certain that Major Reisman (Captain in the novel) says to Victor Franko, whom he has pulled aside for failing to do close order drill: "You little wop bastard." Suddenly it occurred to me that the pejorative may have been used in the novel, which I read months before the film came out. I also believe the author, E.M. Nathanson, erred in the spelling of the name Franko, an Italian-American, which would be spelled with a C rather than a K. I just scanned the first few chapters at Amazon, which end before the confrontation. Unfortunately, I no longer have a copy of the book. The first thing I'll do if someone donates one is look that up. I don't think I could have imagined it, or heard what I wanted to hear. What's it matter, really? From the novel came one of the greatest popcorn flicks ever, a war movie that has no actual combat until the final 20 or so minutes, which relies on character development and humor in its first two hours, delivered by a great cast. Sadly, such a classic would not likely be made today.

My thanks to my old buddy Joe Marx, Groucho's biggest fan, who purchased Exchanges and now has all five of my books. Thanks also to the two women who bought a total of five mysteries.
Vic's 4th Novel: http://tinyurl.com/bszwlxh
Vic's 3rd Novel: http://tinyurl.com/7e9jty3
Vic's Website: http://members.tripod.com/vic_fortezza/Literature/
Vic's Short Story Collection (Print or Kindle): http://www.tiny.cc/Oycgb
Vic's 2nd Novel: http://tinyurl.com/6b86st6
Vic's 1st Novel: http://tiny.cc/94t5h
Vic's Horror Screenplay on Kindle: http://tinyurl.com/cyckn3
Vic's Rom-Com Screenplay on Kindle: http://tinyurl.com/kny5llp
Vic’s Short Story on Kindle: http://tinyurl.com/k95k3nx

Another highlight from today’s presser is news that, according to Obama, 500,000 Americans signed up for healthcare on the website this month, despite all the crashes and error messages.
The President did not mention how many of those “signups” represented people who actually enrolled in a healthcare plan.
However, it should be said that while 500,000 people signed up for Obamacare in December, 1.3 million Americans joined the Stand With Phil Facebook Page in just 24 hours to show their support for the Duck Dynasty Patriach, Phil Robertson, who was suspended from A&E for calling homosexuality illogical.
- See more at: http://www.libertynews.com/2013/12/stand-with-phil-facebook-page-gets-1-3-million-facebook-likes-in-24-hours-while-obamacare-only-sees-500000-sign-ups-in-december-meanwhile-healthcare-gov-crashes-two-hours-before-the-presidents-bi/#sthash.KEf6mi4x.dpuf

Selling My Books on the Streets of Brooklyn 12/27 - Rhubarb

Just the other day the NY Post informed readers that there was a new defining term, JuBu -- Jewish Buddhist, in vogue. Another has popped up, used by Carolyn O’Laughlin, a college teacher, in an op-ed piece in today’s edition: Snowplow Moms, those who will eliminate any obstacle in a child’s path.

As I stepped into Delmar Pizzeria this afternoon there was a rhubarb underway. A short, muscular customer was having words with the thin young man behind the counter. The moron felt it was his turn to order and was too pig-headed to realize another customer was there to pick up something ordered earlier. He was acting like a giuche and the employee wasn't any better. Instead of walking away or taking a break, he got stupid and taunted the idiot, and told one of the owners to Stahte zeet, shut up, that is. A couple of big young men seated at a table got up and approached the cretin. He was undaunted, threatening anybody who would dare put a hand on him. He challenged the guy behind the counter to step outside and went out himself. A few minutes later he returned and the argument resumed, and the guy behind the counter had the temerity to use the term "wife-beater." The boob punched at a cup that had been placed on the counter and soft drink flew everywhere. Worse thing was, his wife and kids were at a table and the younger son began to cry. He again left, making threats. His family followed. The cops were summoned. In a matter of minutes four cars responded. A couple of employees went outside and soon a cop was standing in the middle of Sheepshead Bay Road, gun drawn, pointing it an SUV. The nincompoop, cowed, exited the vehicle and stood leaning against a parked car, uncuffed, the officer beside him. At that point I finally got my two slices and exited. It is amazing how stupid some people can be and how a situation can escalate. If I were the owner, I'd fire the guy behind the counter. Only thing is, he might be a relative, perhaps even his son.

Other than that, it was a great day. My most faithful customer, Marie, said she loaned Close to the Edge to her friend Gina, who read it in one night and raved about it. Of course, that got me all misty. And then Marie said she wanted a copy of A Hitch in Twilight for Gina, the fourth time she has bought one for a friend. Thanks, my dear, and also to the gentleman and lady who purchased a total of four books in Russian.
Vic's 4th Novel: http://tinyurl.com/bszwlxh
Vic's 3rd Novel: http://tinyurl.com/7e9jty3
Vic's Website: http://members.tripod.com/vic_fortezza/Literature/
Vic's Short Story Collection (Print or Kindle): http://www.tiny.cc/Oycgb
Vic's 2nd Novel: http://tinyurl.com/6b86st6
Vic's 1st Novel: http://tiny.cc/94t5h
Vic's Horror Screenplay on Kindle: http://tinyurl.com/cyckn3
Vic's Rom-Com Screenplay on Kindle: http://tinyurl.com/kny5llp
Vic’s Short Story on Kindle: http://tinyurl.com/k95k3nx

Selling My Books on the Streets of Brooklyn 12/26 - Generosity

To  my delight, no one brought up ObamaCare at the dinner table yesterday. My niece’s husband, Ron, and I reminisced about old movies, particularly The Magnificent Seven (1960), which features one of the oddest and most compelling exchanges in the history of westerns. The bandit Calvera, played with gusto by Eli Wallach, and his men ride into the village they plunder annually and meet a band of hired gunmen, played by Yul Brynner, Steve McQueen, James Coburn, Charles Bronson, Robert Vaughn, Brad Dexter and Horst Buchholz. The ensuing conversation has existential touches, which make it even more impressive -- absurd, perhaps, but rousing. The entire script is posted on Drew’s Script-O-Rama: http://www.script-o-rama.com/movie_scripts/m/magnificent-seven-script-transcript.html Here’s the dialogue from one of my all-time favorite movie scenes, written by the late William Roberts. Kudos, sir. I added the actors' names. In a couple of instances, I may have the wrong speaker.
Wallach: l should have guessed. When my men didn´t come back, l should have guessed. How many of you did they hire?
Brynner: Enough.
Wallach: New wall!
Brynner: There are lots of new walls. All around.
Wallach: They won´t keep me out.
Brynner: They were built to keep you in.
Wallach: Did you hear that? We´re trapped! All forty of us! By these three. Or is it four? They couldn´t afford to hire more than that.
Dexter: We come cheaper by the bunch.
Wallach: Five! Even five won´t give us too much trouble.
Brynner: There won´t be any trouble - if you ride on.
Wallach: Ride on? l´m going into the hills for the winter. Where am l going to get food for my men?
McQueen: Buy it or grow it.
Bronson: Or maybe even work for it!
Wallach: Seven! Somehow, l don´t think you´ve solved my problem.
Brenner: Solving your problems isn´t our line.
McQueen: We deal in lead, friend.
Wallach: So do l. We´re in the same business, huh?
McQueen: Only as competitors.
Wallach: Why not as partners? Suppose l offer you equal shares?
McQeen: ln what?
Wallach: Everything. To the last grain.
Buchholz: And the people in the village? What about them?
Wallach: l leave it to you. Can men of our profession worry about things like that? May even be sacrilegious. lf God didn´t want them sheared, he would not have made them sheep. What do you say?
Brynner: Ride on.
Wallach: You hear that, Sotero? You hear what he said? Ride on. To me! (Wallach angrily thrusts his thumb at his chest at least twice) You tell him to ride on before l become angry. Him, and the others! Because if l leave with empty hands, everybody in this village will answer to me when l come back!
Brynner: You won´t come back.
Wallach: Why not?
Brynner: You won´t have any guns. Take them off right now and drop them.
Wallach: Generosity. That was my first mistake. l leave these people a little bit extra and they hire these men to make trouble. lt shows you: sooner or later, you must answer for every good deed.
And the guns blaze.
We also mentioned famous lines spoken by Edward G. Robinson, James Cagney, Jackie Gleason and Art Carney. It was a lot of fun, at least for the two of us. My great nephew Ronnie, on the heels of a $16,500 scholarship offer from Farleigh Dickinson, received one for $9,000 from St. John's. He and his dad's band mates were recently supposed to play a bluegrass gig. They were the next act up when one of the members of the preceding group collapsed due to diabetic complications during its last song. Junior has yet to appear on any Pastimes CDs. I suspect he will be on the next, if there is one. As for his sister Danielle, 14, she quit the JV basketball team and is obsessing about a large dresser she no longer wants in her room.

I ran the floating book shop from the car today, as it wasn't as warm as had been predicted. My thanks to the man and woman who bought novels in Russian.
Vic's 4th Novel: http://tinyurl.com/bszwlxh
Vic's 3rd Novel: http://tinyurl.com/7e9jty3
Vic's Website: http://members.tripod.com/vic_fortezza/Literature/
Vic's Short Story Collection (Print or Kindle): http://www.tiny.cc/Oycgb
Vic's 2nd Novel: http://tinyurl.com/6b86st6
Vic's 1st Novel: http://tiny.cc/94t5h
Vic's Horror Screenplay on Kindle: http://tinyurl.com/cyckn3
Vic's Rom-Com Screenplay on Kindle: http://tinyurl.com/kny5llp
Vic’s Short Story on Kindle: http://tinyurl.com/k95k3nx

Selling My Books on the Streets of Brooklyn 12/24 - Christmas Eve

My most faithful customer, Marie, loaned me the first season of Boardwalk Empire. I watched the premiere episode last night. It was exactly what I expected. So similar was it to past shows and films, I felt I was watching a rerun, a modern take on The Untouchables. Martin Scorsese’s signature cynicism is present. Gleeful corruption is everywhere. There wasn’t a hint of freshness in the entire episode. If I heard correctly, Al Capone claimed to have served in combat in World War I. Having never heard that fact before, I researched it and found it wasn’t true. He had an older brother who served. Of course, it’s possible that it was a lie that would be revealed in a later episode. The only aspect of the initial hour that was above average was Vincent Piazza’s intensity as Lucky Luciano. I’ll watch the second episode, but I’m not optimistic, despite its popularity. It is rated an impressive 8.4 of ten at IMDb. Even the cinematography turned me off. It was drab. Then again, I’ve frequently found Scorsese’s work to be much better on second viewing -- after the initial shock value is past. Only thing is, I wasn’t at all shocked by the events. I’ve seen them many times in other works.

I've put in an order to sell my shares of Facebook at $60, which would result in a profit of $1700 -- if the price gets there. It's now just shy of $58. Meanwhile, Twitter is a runaway train, finishing the day up more than five bucks to almost $70. I could have had it in the low forties, a bargain. Who knew?

Dinner is not until eight o'clock. It's 4:26 and I'm already hungry.

My thanks to young Alen, who bought two books, to the woman who bought one in Russian, and to all those who wished me well. To them and to you, I say:

Vic's 4th Novel: http://tinyurl.com/bszwlxh
Vic's 3rd Novel: http://tinyurl.com/7e9jty3
Vic's Website: http://members.tripod.com/vic_fortezza/Literature/
Vic's Short Story Collection (Print or Kindle): http://www.tiny.cc/Oycgb
Vic's 2nd Novel: http://tinyurl.com/6b86st6
Vic's 1st Novel: http://tiny.cc/94t5h
Vic's Horror Screenplay on Kindle: http://tinyurl.com/cyckn3
Vic's Rom-Com Screenplay on Kindle: http://tinyurl.com/kny5llp
Vic’s Short Story on Kindle: http://tinyurl.com/k95k3nx

Selling My Books on the Streets of Brooklyn 12/23 - Musical Canon

While perusing page six of the NY Post this morning I came upon a new social identifier: JuBu, short for Jewish Buddhist. What a world we live in.

One of the great things about selling books on the street is meeting other writers. Last week one gave me a copy of his latest work. I finished it this morning. It’s available in print and will probably be in Kindle shortly. Here’s my review. I won’t post it elsewhere until he corrects the many little errors I found:
Having enjoyed You Should’ve Heard What I Seen, Bill Brown’s collection of essays and reviews on the music scene of the early ‘80s, I looked forward to Words and Guitar: A History of Lou Reed's Music. I was not disappointed. Brown again takes a scholarly approach, eminently readable, to his subject. He is an admirer of Reed, but this is not a gushing love letter to a deceased rock star. It is objective analysis of an artist’s catalog. He renders an opinion, often in depth, on songs he believes rise to greatness, those that fail miserably and those that are forgettable. It is obvious that he has listened repeatedly and thought carefully about the tracks. In 110 pages he covers Reed’s entire canon, which no doubt will grow after posthumous releases. Although I like several of Reed’s songs, I wouldn’t classify myself as a big fan. The book introduced me to many obscure compositions and inspired several trips to youtube. Leftists will likely be pleased not only by a natural attraction to the themes of many of the songs but also to the occasional excoriating of Republicans along the way. The author frequently refers to Reed as Lou, which manifests the kinship he feels to the artist. I don’t know if that’s appropriate in such a work, but it is understandable. Anyone who takes Reed’s work seriously will find the book valuable, as long as they haven't placed Reed on the pedestal of “Can do no wrong.” I disagree with some of Brown’s assessments, but I would hesitate to argue with him because he has studied the material a lot more closely than I have, and his knowledge of music dwarfs mine.

Adjustments is now available as a Kindle book, $1. Check it out here: http://www.amazon.com/Adjustments-vic-fortezza-ebook/dp/B00HGTIHNK/ref=sr_1_1_title_0_main?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1387826351&sr=1-1&keywords=adjustments+vic+fortezza

The floating book shop was rained out today. I did the things I was going to do tomorrow, wrapping gifts, and burning CDs for sale on the street. I'm leery about opening up shop on Christmas Eve, but dinner isn't until eight PM, and I don't want to just sit around waiting.
Vic's 4th Novel: http://tinyurl.com/bszwlxh
Vic's 3rd Novel: http://tinyurl.com/7e9jty3
Vic's Website: http://members.tripod.com/vic_fortezza/Literature/
Vic's Short Story Collection (Print or Kindle): http://www.tiny.cc/Oycgb
Vic's 2nd Novel: http://tinyurl.com/6b86st6
Vic's 1st Novel: http://tiny.cc/94t5h
Vic's Horror Screenplay on Kindle: http://tinyurl.com/cyckn3
Vic's Rom-Com Screenplay on Kindle: http://tinyurl.com/kny5llp
Vic’s Short Story on Kindle: http://tinyurl.com/k95k3nx

Selling My Books on the Streets of Brooklyn 12/22 - Poll Result

Today’s NY Post published the results of a recent poll of Americans. I was surprised only in one instance. I’ll offer a brief comment on each finding:
Do you believe in God? Yes: 74%, No: 12%, Unsure: 14%. The question is too narrow to cover my beliefs. I don’t know whether God exists, but I don’t believe, if He does, that He effects outcomes on planet Earth. The percentage of believers is down from 82% in 2009.
Those who believe in:
Miracles: 74%. I believe the miraculous does occur, but not by God’s hand. I believe they are flukes of great fortune or human benevolence.
Heaven: 68%. I suspect belief in the afterlife is the ego’s response to the possibility that one will cease to exist.
Jesus is the son of God: 68%. I don’t believe it’s true, but I’m pleased many think it is. It must gall the far left, which is great.
Angels: 68%. I believe only in those humans who have a large positive effects on our lives. I refer to complete strangers who buy my books on the street in this way. I know they’re not angels who have taken on human form, but it’s a pleasant explanation for an unexpected boon.
Hell: 58%. I don’t believe in it. Although I wish it weren’t so, I think miscreants who live a long life laugh all the way to the grave and get away with their sins.
Evolution: 47%. This is the one that surprised me. It seems a low figure in this age.
Ghosts: 42%. I’ve never felt the presence of any.
UFOs: 36%: I’ve seen no convincing evidence of their existence, but I believe the universe is too vast for there not to be life elsewhere.
Astrology: 29%. I stopped reading my horoscope decades ago.

When I professed my desire to make Adjustments available in Kindle, my literary angel, Victoria/January Valentine, sent me a PDF file of it. For some bizarre reason, I'd deleted all of my own, including the one on my flash drive. I converted it to Word, which the instructions at Amazon claim work best with its program, a huge task given that the sentences didn't extend to the margin and had to be made to do so manually. Last night I decided to try to upload the PDF file to see what would happen. To my delight, it looks good. I checked the entire novel for formatting errors this morning and found only an occasional unwanted space between paragraphs. It is eminently readable. I finalized and am now waiting for it to go live. It's another small step in building the brand. I promise that is the last time I will use that phrase, which I had heretofore avoided. 

I had great luck with the weather. The rain held off until 1:45, so I was able to operate the floating book shop for a while. My thanks to the lady and gentleman who made purchases.
Vic's 4th Novel: http://tinyurl.com/bszwlxh
Vic's 3rd Novel: http://tinyurl.com/7e9jty3
Vic's Website: http://members.tripod.com/vic_fortezza/Literature/
Vic's Short Story Collection (Print or Kindle): http://www.tiny.cc/Oycgb
Vic's 2nd Novel: http://tinyurl.com/6b86st6
Vic's 1st Novel: http://tiny.cc/94t5h
Vic's Horror Screenplay on Kindle: http://tinyurl.com/cyckn3
Vic's Rom-Com Screenplay on Kindle: http://tinyurl.com/kny5llp
Vic’s Short Story on Kindle: http://tinyurl.com/k95k3nx

Selling My Books on the Streets of Brooklyn 12/21 - Pining

All of the ratings of films I've done here have been comparable to those at IMDb - until now. Last night I viewed The Place Beyond the Pines (2012), courtesy of Netflix. For only the second time since I've been a member, I failed to make it through an entire movie. The other was the adaptation of the beloved Rent (2005), which I abandoned after 20 minutes, stunned by the dreadful lyrics, unable to relate to any of the characters. I may have to take another look at it, as I recently enjoyed a song from it broadcast on a web stream. Anyway, back to the film in question. It features the types of characters actors and screenwriters love: a heavily tattooed, chain-smoking miscreant who rides a motorcycle expertly; corrupt cops (in Schenectady -- who knew?); and drug loving teens. The film is divided into those three story lines consecutively, although they are connected. The only thing I liked about it is that the male lead went from one character to another half way through. I don't recall having ever seen that before. I've enjoyed downbeat material in the past, but this seemed cliched and shallow. One of the teens, a gangsta wannabe, was absolutely infuriating. I made it through the first two hours and bailed on the last 20 minutes, sure of where it was going. Even if I'm wrong, I don't want to know what happens. A fine cast -- Ryan Gosling, Eva Mendes, Bradley Cooper, Harris Yulin and Ray Liotta, among other familiar faces -- is wasted. I rate it one on a scale of five. The consensus at IMDb completely disagrees, rating it 7.4 of ten. Several contributors thought it was great and, in the commentary section, excoriated those who didn't get it. To my great surprise, the film was successful at the box office, bringing in 23 million on a budget of 15 million. I feel almost traitorous in my contempt, as the director, Derek Cianfrance, who co-wrote the screenplay, and one of the other writers, Ben Coccio, have Italian last names. Fortunately, art is subjective and my opinion is drowned by the majority. That eases my guilt.

It was like early October, great book-selling weather, today in Brooklyn. My thanks to the elderly woman who stopped me and bought two Janet Evanovich thrillers as I was on my way to setting up shop, to the young man who overpaid for Jerry Toner's non-fiction Roman Disasters, to the Russian gentleman who purchased four more novels in his native language, and to Bad News Billy, exhausted after spending the night waiting on a line to buy sneakers, who bought the Modern Pop CD. He was so anxious to go home and get some sleep he hurried away. I can't wait to hear that story.
Vic's 4th Novel: http://tinyurl.com/bszwlxh
Vic's 3rd Novel: http://tinyurl.com/7e9jty3
Vic's Website: http://members.tripod.com/vic_fortezza/Literature/
Vic's Short Story Collection (Print or Kindle): http://www.tiny.cc/Oycgb
Vic's 2nd Novel: http://tinyurl.com/6b86st6
Vic's 1st Novel: http://tiny.cc/94t5h
Vic's Horror Screenplay on Kindle: http://tinyurl.com/cyckn3
Vic's Rom-Com Screenplay on Kindle: http://tinyurl.com/kny5llp
Vic’s Short Story on Kindle: http://tinyurl.com/k95k3nx

Selling My Books on the Streets of Brooklyn 12/20 - Media Mavens

It is the end of an era in NYC. John Gambling, host of a long running radio program on WOR-AM, has done his final program. The station was recently purchased by Clear Channel, which is going to war with its rivals, hiring Rush Limbaugh and Sean Hannity away from WABC. It has been dubbed The New 710. The Gambling family, three generations, has been on the station since 1925, except from 2000 until 2008. The current generation, three sons, has no interest in continuing the tradition, which is fine with their father, who has always done the job with class, minus bombast and controversy, although he was not reluctant to offer his opinions. I look forward to listening to Hannity at dinner time for 20 minutes or so. Limbaugh will air while I'm  out of the house at mid day. I enjoyed his TV show, which aired late at night in the '80's. I used to laugh whenever there was a black person in the audience. He would be seated in the front row. Good luck, Mr. Gambling, and thank you.

I've mentioned Hondo here several times. He writes a droll NFL prognostication column that ignores analysis and concentrates on wisecracks inspired by the foibles of those in the public eye. Here's a gem from today's predictions: "Broncos over Texans: From BarkingMut of SoBe: After Nancy Pelosi advocated for passage of the budget deal by encouraging Congress to 'embrace the suck,' Peyronie Bill Clinton said that was the same advice he preached when he was in the White House." There is a picture of Obama beneath the header, a comic strip-like balloon emanating from his lips, professing: "Hondo is having a great season!" The faux lie had me laughing out loud. Hondo is in last place among his peers at the NY Post in both the overall standings and in what he used to euphemistically call the "crucial best bets category." Unfortunately, the aforementioned picture is not available at the paper's website.

The floating book shop had a nice day. I didn't think I'd see Kinesha, aka Mrs. Eclectic, whose Jamaican blood does not like the winter, until spring, but the warmer weather brought her out and she purchased five novels and the New York Times non-fiction best seller Pledged: The Secret Life of Sororities by Alexandra Robbins. Natalia and Benedict dropped off four books in Russian. My thanks, and also to the woman who bought the Oldies 1 CD, and everyone else who made purchases. The crates were a lot lighter going into the trunk than they were coming out.
Vic's 4th Novel: http://tinyurl.com/bszwlxh
Vic's 3rd Novel: http://tinyurl.com/7e9jty3
Vic's Website: http://members.tripod.com/vic_fortezza/Literature/
Vic's Short Story Collection (Print or Kindle): http://www.tiny.cc/Oycgb
Vic's 2nd Novel: http://tinyurl.com/6b86st6
Vic's 1st Novel: http://tiny.cc/94t5h
Vic's Horror Screenplay on Kindle: http://tinyurl.com/cyckn3
Vic's Rom-Com Screenplay on Kindle: http://tinyurl.com/kny5llp
Vic’s Short Story on Kindle: http://tinyurl.com/k95k3nx

Selling My Books on the Streets of Brooklyn 12/19 - Rock Quiz 3

It's time for Rock Quiz 3. In my as yet unpublished rock n roll epic, Rising Star, each chapter begins with a quote from a song. Here are the ones from 21-30. Guess the artist and song. Degree of difficulty in parenthesis. Answers below:
21 "...They're all waiting there to sell plastic ware...." (7)
22 "...She couldn't believe what she heard at all...." (5)
23 "...It's been a hard day's night...." (Duh)
24 "...I'm in the high fidelity first class...." (6)
25 "...the time to hesitate is through. No time to wallow in the mire...." (1)
26 "...You can't always get what you want...." (1)
27  "...I need a new toy to keep my head expanding...Nothing too demanding...." (8)
28  "...Wake up in the mornin' the world still gets you up tight...." (7)
29  "...I know what it means to be alone...." (8)
30  "...All I have to give you is a love that never dies...." (8)

I've never seen Duck Dynasty. I just don't think it's a show I'd like. The main figure is under attack for comments made during an interview in GQ, and he has been suspended. In effect, he called buggering, as well as sleeping around, a sin. And this is news to the media -- that a devout Christian believes homosexuality and promiscuity are sins. I wonder what percentage of Americans agree. I'd bet it's at least 30-45%. I have no problem with gay organizations going after the guy. It is understandable, as the comments are a personal affront, whether one agrees with them or not. The sad aspect is that it gives leftists an opportunity to attack a show that ends every episode in prayer. They must have been salivating, dreaming of a reason to go after the popular show and get it off the air. When the owner of Barilla pasta defended traditional marriage, he too was attacked. I now buy the pasta, hoping to help do for it what the public did when the owner of Chick-fil-A suffered the same attack on his beliefs. Too bad I don't get the station on which Duck Dynasty is broadcast. Then again, anyone offended by attacks on freedom of speech should boycott that station.

It was warm enough today that I didn't have to retreat to my car. I stood beside the books for two-and-a-half hours, chatting with well-wishers and potential customers. My thanks to the gentleman who bought yet another book in Russian, to Mike, who purchased the Ultimate Sinatra CD, and to Abdul, a new arrival to America who hopes to improve his English. He asked for easy reads, and I suggested novels by Stuart Woods and Debbie Macomber. He spotted A Hitch in Twilight. I told him about it and suggested he open it and see if it were understandable to him, certain he would pass, torn between hoping he'd buy and dread at it failing to help him realize his goal of becoming confident in the American idiom. Of course he bought, and now silly me feels as if I've done something wrong, even though I gave him three other books for free.
Vic's 4th Novel: http://tinyurl.com/bszwlxh
Vic's 3rd Novel: http://tinyurl.com/7e9jty3
Vic's Website: http://members.tripod.com/vic_fortezza/Literature/
Vic's Short Story Collection (Print or Kindle): http://www.tiny.cc/Oycgb
Vic's 2nd Novel: http://tinyurl.com/6b86st6
Vic's 1st Novel: http://tiny.cc/94t5h
Vic's Horror Screenplay on Kindle: http://tinyurl.com/cyckn3
Vic's Rom-Com Screenplay on Kindle: http://tinyurl.com/kny5llp
Vic’s Short Story on Kindle: http://tinyurl.com/k95k3nx

And the answers are:
21. Rock ‘n Roll Star – The Byrds (McGuinn/Hillman)
22. Rock ‘n Roll – The Velvet Underground (Lou Reed)
23. The Beatles (Lennon/McCartney)
24. Money – Pink Floyd (Roger Waters)
25. Light My Fire - the Doors (Jim Morrison)
26. The Rolling Stones (Jagger/Richard)
27. New Toy – Lene Lovitch (Thomas Dolby)
28. Kicks – Paul Revere and the Raiders (Barry Mann/Cynthia Weil)
29. Good Times, Bad Times – Led Zeppelin (Page/Plant/Jones/Bonham)
30. The Symptom of the Universe – Black Sabbath  
To anyone who got all ten -- I'm impressed, and "I don't impress easy," as Jesse "The Body" Ventura used to say.

Selling My Books on the Streets of Brooklyn 12/18 - Time

The late Jack Finney had a wonderful career, producing 10 novels, five short story collections and two plays. Seven of his works have been adapted to film, (The Invasion of) The Body Snatchers four times. His most popular book, Time and Again (1970), is about time travel. He published a sequel, From Time to Time in 1995, months before his death. I have not read the first. I just finished the second and was  disappointed. Although it is only 303 pages, minus many that are taken up with photographs and drawings, it read as if longer. There is much dawdling that has nothing to do with the plot. I did enjoy some of it. The Al Jolson, Teddy Roosevelt and vaudeville segments were entertaining. Overall, the descriptions of the past tried my patience, and the ending, after a riveting build up, was unsatisfying. I expect his most loyal readers love it. I thought the prose and dialogue were only fair. Given the theme -- changing an event to produce a better history for the entire world -- the novel should have been better. Perhaps he was not well enough to fulfill his vision. As it is, From Time to Time, feels like a novella stretched into a novel. Time and Again is still popular, rated 4.5 of five at Amazon, ranked 11,000+ in sales, of the nine million or so books listed there. The sequel is not as popular, rated three and ranked just under 800,000. I rate it two. Still, Finney had a phenomenal run. Kudos, sir.

I dreamed the notes were not sounding on my guitar, however hard I pressed. I know exactly what it’s telling me: You suck; give it up. I was never more than a mediocre musician, perhaps not even that, but lately I’ve been brutal. I’m sure my neighbors agree. I’m tempted to quit, but it is a half hour that forces me to use my memory to remember riffs and the chords of songs, complicated in the case of standards. It’s a brain exercise. That’s the only reason I’ve stuck with it.

I don't know if there really is such a thing as karma. I want to believe that bad is punished and good rewarded, but I suspect, fear that many perpetual miscreants live a long life laughing at the rest of us. Anyway, there was some good karma for the floating book shop today. After Adjustments was published in 2008, I deleted the files from my computer, not envisioning making it available on Kindle down the line. I asked my literary angel, Victoria/January Valentine, the publisher, if perchance she still had it. It was one of the few files she was able to recover when her previous PC crashed. She emailed it to me this morning. I immediately thought how nice it would be if I sold one of her novels today. Sure enough, a gentleman on his way to visit his mom at Coney Island Hospital was in the market for a romance and bought Love Dreams. Thank you, sir, and to Herbie, Jen and the woman who speaks no English, who buys books in Russian at least once a week.
Vic's 4th Novel: http://tinyurl.com/bszwlxh
Vic's 3rd Novel: http://tinyurl.com/7e9jty3
Vic's Website: http://members.tripod.com/vic_fortezza/Literature/
Vic's Short Story Collection (Print or Kindle): http://www.tiny.cc/Oycgb
Vic's 2nd Novel: http://tinyurl.com/6b86st6
Vic's 1st Novel: http://tiny.cc/94t5h
Vic's Horror Screenplay on Kindle: http://tinyurl.com/cyckn3
Vic's Rom-Com Screenplay on Kindle: http://tinyurl.com/kny5llp
Vic’s Short Story on Kindle: http://tinyurl.com/k95k3nx

Selling My Books on the Streets of Brooklyn 12/17 - Pop Quiz

The bidding for the following painting at EBAY began at .99 cents and is now up to $99,000. It is by an unusual source. Guess who? Hint: he was involved in a notorious criminal case and is now 2 million in debt to his lawyers. Answer below.

Who is the top male box office attraction of 2013? Hint: he enjoys cooking. Answer below.

I had another vivid dream last night. I was visiting my friend Adam at my old work place, which had been transformed from a trading floor to an oppressive industrial center. I have no idea what inspired it or what it means. I doubt it was influenced by the Korean horror film, The Host (2006), I watched last night courtesy of Netflix. It’s theme is a sci-fi mainstay -- pollution that creates a monster, the country's answer to Godzilla (1954), I suppose. The special effects are terrific, as is expected in the CGI age, but its goofiness takes a lot of edge off the tone, although I did chuckle a couple of times. The scene of the main family's mourning is absolutely bizarre, so ridiculous it made me uncomfortable. The closed captioning is often completely different than the dubbed dialogue. And I was angered by who does not survive. Hollywood veteran Scott Wilson was in the opening scene, playing a doctor who orders his assistant to pour scores of bottles of aged formaldehyde down the drain. I assume it is what causes the deadly mutation, although it is never again mentioned, and Wilson is never again seen, a quick, lucrative payday, I imagine. The Koreans have created some rousing, over the top, violent crime thrillers in the past decade or so. One thing those films has in common with The Host is incompetent government response, proof that it is a free society. On a scale of five, I rate it two. Those who rated it at IMDb disagree, giving it a seven on a scale of ten. And my literary angel, Victoria/January Valentine, recommended it, so take my opinion with a grain of salt. It’s by no means a terrible way to spend about two hours. And gore is at a minimum.

I’m in a quandary over my investment in Facebook. I’m currently up ten points on the 100 shares. My instincts, which have been wrong so many times in the past, are telling me to sell, as I expect a huge market correction in the near future. I have not bought Twitter because of that anticipation. I believe both companies, trading now in the mid 50’s, have enormous potential. Amateurs like me are not supposed to try to time market moves. Sometimes investing is annoying.
Vic's 4th Novel: http://tinyurl.com/bszwlxh
Vic's 3rd Novel: http://tinyurl.com/7e9jty3
Vic's Website: http://members.tripod.com/vic_fortezza/Literature/
Vic's Short Story Collection (Print or Kindle): http://www.tiny.cc/Oycgb
Vic's 2nd Novel: http://tinyurl.com/6b86st6
Vic's 1st Novel: http://tiny.cc/94t5h
Vic's Horror Screenplay on Kindle: http://tinyurl.com/cyckn3
Vic's Rom-Com Screenplay on Kindle: http://tinyurl.com/kny5llp
Vic’s Short Story on Kindle: http://tinyurl.com/k95k3nx
Answers: The painting is by George Zimmerman, and the actor is former wrestler Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson. "Can you smell what the Rock is cookin'?"

Selling My Books on the Streets of Brooklyn 12/17 - Diehards

I've always been fascinated by the myth of celebrities dying in threes, so much so that I based a short story, Threes, on it. In the past day Peter O'Toole, 81, Tom Laughlin, 82, the force behind the wildly popular Billy Jack movies, and Joan Fontaine, 96, have passed. Fontaine won an Oscar for Suspicion (1941), the only Alfred Hitchcock leading lady ever to have been so honored. She and her sister, Olivia de Havilland, 97, are the only siblings to have won the big prize. Their feud is legendary and, unfortunately, Fontaine took it to the grave. They had not spoken to each other in decades. Here's a telling quote I found at Wiki: “I married first, won the Oscar before Olivia did, and if I die first, she’ll undoubtedly be livid because I beat her to it!" RIP. Here are pictures of them in their prime, Joan first:

The Dallas Cowboys have usurped the place of the San Diego Chargers in the matter of blowing games. Their fans must be chugging Maalox. I will paraphrase the title of Irish chanteuse Shone Laing's 80's song about the pains the Kennedys have endured: (Glad I'm) Not a Cowboys Fan... Also on the NFL front, I have eaten crow on my opinion of Arizona QB Carson Palmer, of whom I said he could just as easily throw interceptions for the Cardinals as he did for the his previous teams. He has been solid, particularly lately. He has thrown 21 TD passes against 17 interceptions. Although that ratio is ordinary these days, he is finally approaching the potential that made his services so coveted coming out of USC. Of course, it doesn't hurt to have future Hall of Famer Larry Fitzgerald as an option... As for the local teams: time seems to have passed the Giants by, while the Jets seem to at least have a foundation of young players on which to build. The latter's success will depend on the development of QB Geno Smith or the improvement of Mark Sanchez. Better receivers would help. Then again, turnarounds seem to be the rule rather than the exception in modern pro football. They occur week to week, as well as from one season to the next... How 'bout them Cowboys? Man.

Here's someone who personifies the term diehard: Tricia Drummond, a comedian in the DC area, attended the Capitals game at the Verizon Center last night. She was knocked cold by a puck that flew into the stands. She woke up in the building's medical room, a gash over an eye. When a roar went up, she was told her hero, Alex Ovechkin, whose jersey she was wearing, had just tied the score. She delayed the stitching she was to receive, returned to her seat, and witnessed her team's biggest win of the season. She later received five stitches at a local hospital. She played both youth and adult hockey, one tough broad.

There's another kind of diehard -- the author who tries to sell his books on the street when the wind chill factor is in the teens. Since the sun was shining, I decided I could stand it for an hour, hoping whoever parked the brand new SUV in the ideal spot would soon leave. Sure enough, he did, and I sat in my car for two hours, opening the door only to converse with well-wishers. My thanks to the woman who bought yet another crime novel in Russian. Small potatoes, but at least I'm set up nicely for the Wednesday and Thursday post latest snow storm sessions.
Vic's 4th Novel: http://tinyurl.com/bszwlxh
Vic's 3rd Novel: http://tinyurl.com/7e9jty3
Vic's Website: http://members.tripod.com/vic_fortezza/Literature/
Vic's Short Story Collection (Print or Kindle): http://www.tiny.cc/Oycgb
Vic's 2nd Novel: http://tinyurl.com/6b86st6
Vic's 1st Novel: http://tiny.cc/94t5h
Vic's Horror Screenplay on Kindle: http://tinyurl.com/cyckn3
Vic's Rom-Com Screenplay on Kindle: http://tinyurl.com/kny5llp
Vic’s Short Story on Kindle: http://tinyurl.com/k95k3nx

Selling My Books on the Streets of Brooklyn 12/16 - Stars

Coach Mack Brown of Texas has resigned under pressure. He restored the Longhorns to glory during his tenure, going 158-47, winning the national championship in 2005. The program has struggled, at least against its lofty standards, the past four seasons, 30-20 overall, only 19-17 in the Big 12. Many fans believe championships are the Longhorns’ birth right. The recent success of Alabama has to be grating to proud Texans. The Crimson Tide’s legendary coach, Bear Bryant, had his own tough period, going 6-5 in both ‘69 & ’70. Would one more year of such mediocrity have doomed him? It’s not hard to see why many coaches are ruthless. The ax is always poised.
Also in college football -- hail Navy, which defeated Army for the twelfth consecutive time and finished the regular season 8-4. The Cadets’ faithful must be scratching their heads wondering why its arch-rival has found success while it has eluded them for more than a decade. The Midshipmen will play Middle Tennessee State in the Armed Forces Bowl on 12/30.
Also in sports: Sergio Garcia won his first tournament of the year, the Thailand Golf Championship. His girlfriend served as his caddy. He may have to hire her permanently.

Last night AntennaTV, channel 114 on Cablevision in NYC, ran back to back, black and white, gritty legal dramas from 1961: Town Without Pity, starring Kirk Douglas, and The Young Savages, starring Burt Lancaster, both men playing trial lawyers. The films hold up fairly well, whether or not one agrees with the prevailing opinions. The former introduced Austrian beauty Christine Kaufman, who plays the victim. She was the second of Tony Curtis’ six wives. He was the father of her two children. Kaufman, who speaks four languages, married four times herself. At 54 she posed for Playboy and was dubbed “Germany’s sexiest grandmother.” She has 109 titles to her credit at IMDb and is still acting at 68. Here is a picture:

Jody Fair, 27 at the time, had a small but pivotal role in The Young Savages as an Italian-American  teenager who involves herself in the aftermath of a heinous crime. She had a brief career. From ’58-’63 she amassed 20 credits, including the infamous High School Confidential, Hot Rod Gang and The Brain Eaters, all issued in ’58, and Sex Kittens Go To College (1960). I suspect she went on to something important, perhaps raising a family, after that. Here’s a picture: 

RIP actor extraordinaire Peter O'Toole, 81. Given his legendary drinking, it's amazing he lived so long. My favorites of his 94 titles listed at IMDb are Becket (1964), in which he spars with Richard Burton, and The Lion in Winter (1968), in which he goes toe to toe with Katherine Hepburn. In both those films he played Henry II. Born and raised in Ireland, he never won an Oscar, despite eight nominations. His body of work will endure and is worth more than a statuette that will serve as nothing more than a trivia question and answer.

It all went right for the floating book shop today. I quickly got a parking space in front of the bank, the grounds had been cleared of snow and were dry, and the sun was a constant, providing warmth, peeking past fast moving clouds. In the three hours I was there I didn't have to sit in the car even once to warm up. My thanks to the folks who bought books, especially Marion, a young male Ukrainian, who purchased Killing, and also to the Russian gentleman who donated five paperbacks.
Vic's 4th Novel: http://tinyurl.com/bszwlxh
Vic's 3rd Novel: http://tinyurl.com/7e9jty3
Vic's Website: http://members.tripod.com/vic_fortezza/Literature/
Vic's Short Story Collection (Print or Kindle): http://www.tiny.cc/Oycgb
Vic's 2nd Novel: http://tinyurl.com/6b86st6
Vic's 1st Novel: http://tiny.cc/94t5h
Vic's Horror Screenplay on Kindle: http://tinyurl.com/cyckn3
Vic's Rom-Com Screenplay on Kindle: http://tinyurl.com/kny5llp
Vic’s Short Story on Kindle: http://tinyurl.com/k95k3nx

Selling My Books on the Streets of Brooklyn 12/14 - Good Things

The floating book shop has been disrupted by the wintry weather, but the rest of the family news is good. My great nephew, Ronnie, has earned a scholarship for $16,500 to Farleigh Dickinson, which has just begun a program in pharmaceuticals, his choice of career. His dream has been to attend the University of North Carolina, but he may have to pass that up if he doesn't get a matching offer from it. I'm sure his mom is hoping he takes the former, where he would be 84 rather than a thousand miles from home. He now has his own car.
My third oldest niece, Luci, out of work for more than a year, has a promising lead on a job in the insurance industry. She worked in an office in lower Manhattan for many years. Maybe this is a sign that the economy is finally starting to pick up.

As I was channel surfing last night, I came upon yet another guitar master headlining a show on PBS. I'd never heard of Tommy Emmanuel. He is extraordinarily talented, as this clip of him banging out an old favorite will show. Enjoy: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S33tWZqXhnk

Since the weather wasn't conducive to selling books, it was time to finally get some Christmas shopping done. Although visibility wasn't too good, the roads were fine, the accumulation all on other surfaces. I went to Caesar's Bay and hit Kohls and Modells. In the former I bought two items, a watch and a chain with a pendant. They were marked down so much from their sticker prices that I felt like a cheapskate. In the other I bought eight pocketed T-shirts instead of four, so low was the price. I was in and out of both places fairly quickly. Now all that's left is the purchase of gift cards, which I can get Monday morning when I hit Stop n Shop. My family is so easy to shop for. I will be taking a snow shovel to the car tomorrow in case I have an opportunity to open up the floating book shop and the area in front of Chase bank hasn't been cleared. If things don't go right weather-wise, it may be two more days on the shelf. It's no fun. I hate missing any opportunity to sell my own books, especially after not having any web sales this week.
Vic's 4th Novel: http://tinyurl.com/bszwlxh
Vic's 3rd Novel: http://tinyurl.com/7e9jty3
Vic's Website: http://members.tripod.com/vic_fortezza/Literature/
Vic's Short Story Collection (Print or Kindle): http://www.tiny.cc/Oycgb
Vic's 2nd Novel: http://tinyurl.com/6b86st6
Vic's 1st Novel: http://tiny.cc/94t5h
Vic's Horror Screenplay on Kindle: http://tinyurl.com/cyckn3
Vic's Rom-Com Screenplay on Kindle: http://tinyurl.com/kny5llp
Vic’s Short Story on Kindle: http://tinyurl.com/k95k3nx

Selling My Books on the Streets of Brooklyn 12/13 - Grass

I’m happy to see that a portion of the young are rising up in defense of liberty and against government’s vast over-reach. In an item in today’s NY Post, two websites are cited: generationopportunity.org and OptOut.org There is still hope for America.

Whenever I think about the musicians who died young, Jimi Hendrix comes to mind first. How would he have evolved? Would he have stayed with rock? Would he have gone strictly to the blues or jazz? Would he have experimented in various genres? Last night ThisTV, channel 111 on Cablevision in NYC, ran the story of another rock star gone too soon, Ritchie Valens (Valenzuela), who had three big hits before he was taken in the plane crash that also killed Buddy Holly and The Big Bopper, dubbed so eloquently by Don Maclean as "The day the music died." La Bamba (1987) is not a great film, rated 6.6 at IMDb, but it has plenty of heart. I hadn’t realized Valens accompanied himself on guitar. The most interesting aspect of the movie is the sibling rivalry between Valens and his older brother, Bob. Amusingly, I used to get Lou Diamond Phillips and Esai Morales, the stars, mixed up early in their careers. Each is fine in his role, particularly the latter. How would Valens have evolved? Surprisingly, he did not speak Spanish. When he proposed covering La Bamba, a Mexican folk song, his manager was skeptical. Valens answered that if Nat King Cole could pull off singing in Spanish, why couldn’t he? The rest, as the cliché goes, is history. The song is still popular, as are Oh, Donna and Come on Let's Go to a lesser extent. The last few minutes of the film are gut wrenching. My eyes glazed. The commentary at IMDb reveals that Valens’ mom has a cameo. She is played wonderfully by Rosanna DeSoto. Directed by Luis Valdez, produced on a budget 6.5 million, it grossed an impressive 54 million. It deserved its success. On a scale of five, 3.25. I laughed as I read the closed captioning during the playing of the title track and saw that "one needs a little grass in order to dance La Bamba."

There was a drone strike on an al Qaeda wedding party yesterday, killing at least eleven. Since Springsteen, Bon Jovi, Streisand, Mellenkamp and other leftists artists haven’t said a word, I assume they now endorse the war on terror. Welcome aboard.

I operated the floating book shop from the comfort of my car today. Environmentalists take note -- I did not keep the motor running. I sat in the front seat about two hours. Several people stopped to take a look at the Russian books, but no one bought until Mikhail came along. He purchased a book he said is very funny. Spasibo, my friend. I packed up immediately thereafter. I hadn't realized how cold it was until I walked to Delmar Pizzeria. Winter hasn't even arrived officially, and I'm already sick of it.
Vic's 4th Novel: http://tinyurl.com/bszwlxh
Vic's 3rd Novel: http://tinyurl.com/7e9jty3
Vic's Website: http://members.tripod.com/vic_fortezza/Literature/
Vic's Short Story Collection (Print or Kindle): http://www.tiny.cc/Oycgb
Vic's 2nd Novel: http://tinyurl.com/6b86st6
Vic's 1st Novel: http://tiny.cc/94t5h
Vic's Horror Screenplay on Kindle: http://tinyurl.com/cyckn3
Vic's Rom-Com Screenplay on Kindle: http://tinyurl.com/kny5llp
Vic’s Short Story on Kindle: http://tinyurl.com/k95k3nx

Selling My Books on the Streets of Brooklyn 12/12 - Blue Christmas

With the wind gusting and the temperature in the 20's, I decided to forgo the floating book shop. Since the cold has arrived early this year, I've already begun the projects I expected to get me through winter -- nine days before the solstice even arrives. I've already proofed and offer A Truth Universally Acknowledged as a Kindle book, and now I've begun removing the huge rug that covers most of my large studio. I now know what's beneath it -- a wooden floor. It's in pitiful shape, but so were those in our old house. After sanding and staining, they look new. Of course, I can't do that myself, but I can lay a floor of interlocking wood tiles over it. I think I've had my last dust-collecting rug.

Since nothing in today's news caught my eye, I will follow my usual course and post an excerpt. With Christmas only two weeks away, I scoured my mind and realized I've rarely written about the yuletide. Maybe that's because I much prefer warm weather. Here's a 500-word clip from Killing. When considering a name for tonight's blog, Elvis' Blue Christmas came to mind. Dante's marriage is on the rocks. In fact, he's soon to go Out of the Blue and Into the Black, to use a phrase from Neil Young:

  The house was eerily quiet on Christmas Eve. Although the exterior was as intricately decorated as ever, the interior was more funereal than festive, despite the tree and its trimmings, which seemed hypocrisy itself. There was no hubbub, no brisk movement in and out of the house, in and out of rooms, no aroma of seafood frying, no last minute wrapping of gifts. Despite the many plants that hung in the windows, nothing in the house seemed to be living. Even the tree seemed to lack the intoxicating fragrance of past years.
   Dante lay on the sofa, listening to holiday music, awaiting his mother's call to dinner. His children were at the homes of their respective paramours. He'd given them his blessing, despite the pain he knew their absence would cause him. It was the first Christmas Eve the family would not be dining together, the second consecutive he would be spending without his son. He hadn't the heart to ask them to stay, to share his suffering. He now regretted having dismissed his daughter's concern and guilt. And tomorrow would be no better. Deanna would be dining with her parents. He'd heard her speak to her mother on the phone. She said he would be staying home because of the flu. The next day, upon failing to persuade her children to accompany her, she was forced to call again. His chest swelled with pride at his children's allegiance, although he realized that, overall, the situation may have been exacerbated. He hoped a grilling by her parents would shake Deanna to her senses, although he doubted she would reveal the true cause of their rift.
   Tears welled in his eyes as Sinatra's version of I'll Be Home for Christmas aired. He'd never understood the man's mystique, the reverence with which he was regarded, especially by his father's generation. The Rolling Stones and the Doors had been his favorites until he'd lost almost all interest in music. He still got goosebumps whenever he heard certain songs popular during the Vietnam era, especially Unchained Melody, which had been a favorite of "Motown."* Recently, it had been resurrected by a hit film. It was heard everywhere and, in public, Dante had to fight to block it from tapping into his emotions.
   Suddenly Sinatra's voice seemed deep and beautiful rather than flat and passe. The longing expressed exactly what Dante was feeling. How in the world had his father perceived such artistry? he wondered. He surmised it'd been simply a blind following of a large consensus. That was so unlike his father, however, as he was more likely to go against the grain. Dante also suspected his own aversion stemmed from the singer's alleged ties to the mob, or from the fact that he'd walked out on his wife. The more he thought about it, his father and Sinatra seemed a lot alike.
   An aching in his gut, Dante imagined Deanna was listening as well, weeping in bed. At least he hoped she was. He then realized she might be crying about Ryan and not her husband. He wondered when he would find the bottom of his despair.
*A soldier in Dante's outfit in Vietnam.
Vic's 4th Novel: http://tinyurl.com/bszwlxh
Vic's 3rd Novel: http://tinyurl.com/7e9jty3
Vic's Website: http://members.tripod.com/vic_fortezza/Literature/
Vic's Short Story Collection (Print or Kindle): http://www.tiny.cc/Oycgb
Vic's 2nd Novel: http://tinyurl.com/6b86st6
Vic's 1st Novel: http://tiny.cc/94t5h
Vic's Horror Screenplay on Kindle: http://tinyurl.com/cyckn3
Vic's Rom-Com Screenplay on Kindle: http://tinyurl.com/kny5llp
Vic’s Short Story on Kindle: http://tinyurl.com/k95k3nx

Selling My Books on the Streets of Brooklyn 12/11 - Nature

Sign of the times: Uruguay has become the first country to legalize the growing, sale and smoking of pot. It is trying to wrest the business from criminals.

The picture below was in today’s NY Post. By now it must have traveled around the world. I find it dazzling, beautiful. For anyone unfamiliar with the main subjects, it is supermodel Gisele Bundchen tending to the needs of her one-year-old daughter. Kudos to the photographer for capturing this Kodak moment. If it’s posed, it’s naturalness is even more impressive.

The temperature in East Antarctica has set a new record: -135.8 Fahrenheit. Since this can’t be listed under global warming, it will go under the all-inclusive term now embraced by paranoiacs: climate change. Whatever.

It's not nearly as cold in Brooklyn as it is in Antarctica, but it's cold enough. Since the wind wasn't as strong as I'd expected, and since my car was in the ideal spot, I gave the floating book shop a try. I felt compelled, as brutal cold is forecast for tomorrow and another storm for Saturday. I sat in the car more than half the two hours I was there. My thanks to the gentleman and lady who bought books in Russian and to the young woman who purchased Stuart Woods' Beverly Hills Dead.
Vic's 4th Novel: http://tinyurl.com/bszwlxh
Vic's 3rd Novel: http://tinyurl.com/7e9jty3
Vic's Website: http://members.tripod.com/vic_fortezza/Literature/
Vic's Short Story Collection (Print or Kindle): http://www.tiny.cc/Oycgb
Vic's 2nd Novel: http://tinyurl.com/6b86st6
Vic's 1st Novel: http://tiny.cc/94t5h
Vic's Horror Screenplay on Kindle: http://tinyurl.com/cyckn3
Vic's Rom-Com Screenplay on Kindle: http://tinyurl.com/kny5llp
Vic’s Short Story on Kindle: http://tinyurl.com/k95k3nx

Selling My Books on the Streets of Brooklyn 12/10 - Chutzpah

How’s this for chutzpah? I had another of my vivid dreams. This time I was playing right field for the Mets in the World Series - at 63, balky hip, bad throwing shoulder. Later in the dream the manager asked if I could play second base. I said yes. I  played every position more than once during my softball career. I suppose the dream was inspired by the snowy forecast, thoughts of warmer weather.

Speaking of baseball, here’s an interesting tidbit concerning Robinson Cano, who recently left the Yankees and signed a huge contract with Seattle. Over the course of the deal, he stands to save 42 million in taxes he would have had to pay in New York, had the contract been similar. There is no state tax in Washington. I am no fan of Cano, but if one of his reasons for leaving was to escape the tyranny of such taxation, I respect it.

At two PM it looked as if the snow had ceased. Bored, I decided to get some air and clean off the car. The streets and sidewalks were practically bare. As I was working, OWS Jack showed and ask me to come to his apartment and edit his web site. I was happy to have something constructive to do but leery of the crazy person, although he seems harmless. His flat was not neat, but I've seen far worse. As he paced back and forth chugging from large cans of Coors, I sat at the computer trying to make sense of his prose. It's a lot like his personality -- all over the place, quirky. He uses caps and lower case letters unconventionally, which is fine for a radicalism. I did not try to convince him to be conventional. That's me, not him. I simply corrected obvious errors and, after asking, clarified some of his thoughts. He promised to pay me, and I said it would be fine if he just purchased Exchanges, which captured his attention the other day. I think he'll be disappointed that it's not an anti-capitalist screed. We actually agree on some points, our disgust with the bailouts of the rich, the most obvious. We are also champions of freedom, although I doubt any of his ideas would make people freer. My only idea on it is to be as independent from government as possible. For two hours work I got a Milky Way bar and a can of spaghetti sauce. Thank you, sir. Here's a link to the site: http://occupyrus.com/
Vic's 4th Novel: http://tinyurl.com/bszwlxh
Vic's 3rd Novel: http://tinyurl.com/7e9jty3
Vic's Website: http://members.tripod.com/vic_fortezza/Literature/
Vic's Short Story Collection (Print or Kindle): http://www.tiny.cc/Oycgb
Vic's 2nd Novel: http://tinyurl.com/6b86st6
Vic's 1st Novel: http://tiny.cc/94t5h
Vic's Horror Screenplay on Kindle: http://tinyurl.com/cyckn3
Vic's Rom-Com Screenplay on Kindle: http://tinyurl.com/kny5llp
Vic’s Short Story on Kindle: http://tinyurl.com/k95k3nx

 

Selling My Books on the Streets of Brooklyn 12/10 - Surprises

The weather forecast was right on the mark today. The rain was predicted to stop from one to two PM. I set up the floating book shop at 12:45. Like yesterday, I didn't expect any business. Then Kofi came along. He buys from me once or twice a year. He picked out Everyday Acts and Small Subversions by Anndee Hochman, The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien, the City by the Sea DVD, starring Robert DeNiro, and, most surprising of all, Jethro Tull's Benefit CD, their third album. I imagine Tull's fan base is 99% white, so I assumed Kofi was just doing me a favor, then he started singing Living in the Past, which is from a later disc. Thank you, sir, and also to OWS Jack, who entertained me with one of his rants. Born in Israel, an Ashkenazi Jew, he has completely turned on that country and faith, siding with the Palestians. He believes religion is the source of most of the world's problems and does an ach-poo at the mention of Biblical figures. He seems to know a lot of the history of the middle east, but I have no way of knowing how accurate his points are. It's just a trip to see him go off.

I haven't heard anything particularly interesting in the news today, so it's time for an excerpt, this one from All Hallows, a screenplay. In it, five nuts escape an asylum and wreak havoc on a small town. It's sheer entertainment, available as a Kindle for one buck, link below. The excerpt is about a five-minute read:

   Part 28: Lover's lane. Angel, .45 at the ready, is squatting beside Rob's car, providing as little target as possible. Richards calls from the woods.
   Richards, imitating Ricky Ricardo: Yoo-hoo, Lucy.
   She scans with her eyes, remaining perfectly still.
   Richards: Smart girl. Knows she'd be a dead duck if she turned on the flashlight.
   She does not respond.
   Richards:
   Not speaking to me, mommy? I'm hurt.
   She remains silent. There is a pregnant pause.
   Richards: You are precious. I always wanted a woman like you, a real fighter. Gives a man such a sense of accomplishment.
   She purses her lips, fighting the urge to respond..
   Richards: You're from New York, aren't you? Let me guess - you ran away to the sticks to forget your ugly past?
   This jolts Angel, who bites her lower lip. A siren is heard in the distance.
   Richards:
   Oh, well, maybe some other time, mommy. I have a feeling we'll meet again. Until then, accept this as a gift on the day of my independence.
   The sound of the tape being pulled from Wally's mouth is heard. Wally cries out.
   Wally: Angel!
   She rises and shines the flashlight on the woods. She cannot spot them. A shot is fired.  She sees the flash.
   Angel: No!
   Richards laughs. Angel sobs, falling back against the car. The Sheriff's car speeds onto
the scene. He races toward Angel, gun drawn. She is seated on the ground, weeping.
   Angel: He killed Wally.
   The Sheriff's eyes contract.
   Sheriff: Where?
   Angel: There.
   She nods in the direction. He races into the woods. Angel rises, wiping tears. The Sheriff calls out to her.
   Sheriff : He's alive! Angel, he's alive. Get an ambulance. You hear me?
   Stunned, she fumbles for the phone.
   Sheriff: Angel?
   Angel: Got it.
   In the woods, the Sheriff has cut the tape that bound Wally. Wally's scalp is seared and
bloodied. The Sheriff pulls him to his feet and helps him walk. As they exit the woods,
Angel rushes toward Wally, throws her arms around him and kisses him. Wally is dazed.
   Wally: It's just a scratch, Mom. Why's the phone so loud? What? I can't bear you.
   Sheriff: Easy, partner.
   Angel: No ambulances available.
   Sheriff: Naturally.
   The Sheriff leans Wally against the car. Suddenly Angel is fuming, pacing.
   Angel: That creep. He took me apart. He had me sized up in a few minutes.
   Sheriff: Easy, cowgirl. You did great. You saved three lives.
   She is stunned by the realization. Suddenly Rob and Laura stamp their feet in
frustration. The Sheriff moves to free them. Angel races toward the woods, gun and
flashlight in hand.
   Sheriff: Get back here! Angel! Dammit.
   He cannot leave the others. He races to his car. Rob and Laura protest, stamping their
feet. Wally topples to the ground. The Sheriff picks up the radio microphone.
   Sheriff: “Beautiful?”                                                           
    Doris: Is everybody all right?
   Sheriff: Everybody is crazy. FBI make it?
   Doris: No.
   Sheriff: Where the hell are they?
   Doris: How should I know? Why're you yellin' at me?
   Sheriff: I wasn't yellin' at you.  It was a rhet'....
   Doris: A what?
   Sheriff: Never mind.
Vic's 4th Novel: http://tinyurl.com/bszwlxh
Vic's 3rd Novel: http://tinyurl.com/7e9jty3
Vic's Website: http://members.tripod.com/vic_fortezza/Literature/
Vic's Short Story Collection (Print or Kindle): http://www.tiny.cc/Oycgb
Vic's 2nd Novel: http://tinyurl.com/6b86st6
Vic's 1st Novel: http://tiny.cc/94t5h
Vic's Horror Screenplay on Kindle: http://tinyurl.com/cyckn3
Vic's Rom-Com Screenplay on Kindle: http://tinyurl.com/kny5llp
Vic’s Short Story on Kindle: http://tinyurl.com/k95k3nx

Selling My Books on the Streets of Brooklyn 12/8 - Film vs. Book

Having finished reading Alistair MacLean's Breakheart Pass two weeks ago, I put the DVD version at the top of my list at Netflix while the novel is still fresh in my mind. Since MacLean adapted the screenplay himself, released in 1975, I was curious if any changes would be made. It was very faithful to the book until the final shootout, which occurs at the pass rather than at a fort. Of course, the results are the same and predictable. Other than that the changes all are minor except that of the relationship of the Governor and the lady. Instead of uncle and niece, they are engaged to be married. It does not add to or diminish the story. The execution is standard. The film is no more, no less than solid. Its chief attributes are location shooting, which adds authenticity, and a stellar cast that would thrill any movie buff: Charles Bronson, Richard Crenna, Ben Johnson, Ed Lauter, Bill McKinney (one of the rapists in Deliverance {1972}), Dave Huddleston, Roy Jenson, former Minnesota Viking all-pro QB Joe Kapp, former light-heavyweight champion, '52-'60, Archie Moore, and NFL Hall of Fame DE Doug Atkins, a Chicago Bear. Jill Ireland, Mrs. Bronson, has the female lead. Like Bronson's approach to acting, the film is no nonsense, its running time a tight 95 minutes. This is a rare case of a film being better than the book on which it is based -- not by much. I'd guess one would spend one-quarter of the time watching the flick as opposed to reading the novel. Since it is light entertainment, I prefer the cinematic version. On a scale of five, three. It is rated 6.6 of ten at IMDb. I rated the book 2.5.

Make an effort and sometimes it will pay off. It was cold and gloomy this afternoon. I was lucky to get a parking spot in front of the Chase bank, so I set up the floating book shop along the curb and sat in my car, waiting for customers to show. My thanks to the gentleman and lady who purchased five books in Russian between them. By the time I got home, snow flurries were in the air.
Vic's 4th Novel: http://tinyurl.com/bszwlxh
Vic's 3rd Novel: http://tinyurl.com/7e9jty3
Vic's Website: http://members.tripod.com/vic_fortezza/Literature/
Vic's Short Story Collection (Print or Kindle): http://www.tiny.cc/Oycgb
Vic's 2nd Novel: http://tinyurl.com/6b86st6
Vic's 1st Novel: http://tiny.cc/94t5h
Vic's Horror Screenplay on Kindle: http://tinyurl.com/cyckn3
Vic's Rom-Com Screenplay on Kindle: http://tinyurl.com/kny5llp
Vic’s Short Story on Kindle: http://tinyurl.com/k95k3nx

Selling My Books on the Streets of Brooklyn 12/7 - Verve

Today is the anniversary of the dastardly attack on Pearl Harbor. A salute to all service personnel, past and present. Thank you.

Among recent book donations I noticed Split Skirt by Agnes Rossi. If a potential customer asked about it, I wanted to have something to say, so I read the front jacket blurb: “…two women share a weekend in a cell in the county jail…” It immediately captured my attention and I set aside to take home, especially as the author bears an Italian-American surname. Surprisingly, the novel has only a slight Irish influence. Many fellow Italian-American authors get bent out of shape at the exclusion of heritage. I don’t have a problem with it. I was interested chiefly in the interaction of the characters in their uncommon surroundings. The older, 53, a serial shoplifter, is upper middle class, having moved up by marriage. The other, thirtyish, arrested for drunk driving and possession of a small amount of cocaine, is one of eight sisters of a lower middle class family. They have several things in common besides having been busted. The most telling is abortion during youth. I give credit to the author for having the courage to suggest the act can have an effect decades later. It is mentioned early and then dropped. The characters are explored in depth. Their experiences are not uncommon. No easy answers are offered. The narrative is grounded in reality. There is little plot. The story is humanity seen largely through the two women, who befriend a pair of prostitutes in the latter stages of the novel. The prose is economical, much like my own. The dialogue is solid. Its 223 pages, minus several blanks, fly by. On a scale of five, 3.25. This was Rossi first novel. She has written one other and a couple of collections of short stories. She’s been on the sidelines for quite a while, not having published since 2000. There is very little information about her on the web. She is a Jersey girl, Rutgers grad, living in Manhattan with her husband. Random House thought enough of her work to publish it. Where has she gone? 

Last night Cozi TV, channel 109 in NYC, ran Bye Bye Birdie (1963), a colorful lampooning of teen idol hysteria, specifically that engendered by Elvis Presley, dubbed Conrad Birdie in the production. The network used a novel approach in its airing, jumping to wide screen during the large production numbers. I'd never seen that before. Although somewhat dated, the film holds up well because it’s upbeat and infectious. Most of the songs, music Charles Strouse, lyrics Lee Adams, are good. The Telephone Hour and A Lot of Livin' To Do rock. Ann Margaret is irresistible, as is is Janet Leigh. Although miscast as Hispanic, Leigh makes up for it with verve. Paul Lynde is riotous as the harried father: “What’s the matter with kids today?” And Dick Van Dyke, Bobby Rydell and Maureen Stapleton add able support. Although his role is relatively minor, I still get a kick out of Jesse Pearson’s performance as the faux Elvis. I’ve always wondered what happened to him. I now know, as his bio has been updated at IMDb. Unfortunately, he was taken by cancer at 49. There are only 12 titles credited to him for acting, most in TV. He does have two as a screenwriter, which he did under the name A. Frabitzi: The Legend of Lady Blue (1978), which he also directed, and Pro-Ball Cheerleaders (1979). I believe both are porn, or at least soft core. Adult film stalwarts Candida Royale and Lisa DeLeeuw are in the former, Gloria Leonard the latter. I wonder if that was a last resort, as there are no credits listed for Pearson from 1970 until Lady Blue. At least he had a wonderful moment in the sun as the pseudo rock star. RIP.

It was one of those special days when an angel visited the floating book shop. My thanks to Michelle, who purchased Exchanges and A Hitch in Twilight, and also to Jack and Ralph for picking up a book each, and to the gentleman who bought the two CDs.
Vic's 4th Novel: http://tinyurl.com/bszwlxh
Vic's 3rd Novel: http://tinyurl.com/7e9jty3
Vic's Website: http://members.tripod.com/vic_fortezza/Literature/
Vic's Short Story Collection (Print or Kindle): http://www.tiny.cc/Oycgb
Vic's 2nd Novel: http://tinyurl.com/6b86st6
Vic's 1st Novel: http://tiny.cc/94t5h
Vic's Horror Screenplay on Kindle: http://tinyurl.com/cyckn3
Vic's Rom-Com Screenplay on Kindle: http://tinyurl.com/kny5llp
Vic’s Short Story on Kindle: http://tinyurl.com/k95k3nx