The Writer's Life 8/3 - Scorchers

Last night This-TV, 111 on Cablevision in NYC, ran The White Buffalo (1977), which the summary at IMDb describes as a “strange version of Jaws.” Set in the Black Hills in the 1800’s, it stars Charles Bronson, Jack Warden and Will Sampson as the hunters. It was better than I expected. I went in with low expectations, as reviews were not kind upon its theatrical release, the special effects berated particularly. The flick has several assets: the cinematography of the location shots, the uncompromising, politically incorrect attitudes of the characters, and a great supporting cast: Kim Novak, Stuart Whitman, Slim Pickens, John Carradine, Cara Williams, Douglas Fowley, Ed Lauter, Martin Kove and an almost unrecognizable Clint Walker in full beard. Most pass in and out of the narrative rather quickly, some cruelly dispatched. The film was directed by J. Lee Thompson, who frequently partnered with Bronson in the latter portion of each's career. His most notable work is The Guns of Navarone (1962). Richard Sale adapted the screenplay from his own novel. Dino De Laurentiis took the heat for the “cheesy” production, which is particularly glaring now that CGI has spoiled everyone. Still, I enjoyed film, even though it is virtually empty of meaning. I was wondering if the buffalo was going to turn out to be a symbol of the white man’s rampaging through the west. If that was the intent, it got lost in the adventure. Typical of a 70's movie, the military is portrayed contemptuously, the brief appearance of cavalrymen disastrous.

Launched in 2006 as a humorous counterpart to the prestigious Stirling Prize for good architecture, the Carbuncle Cup has been awarded to a variety of projects across Britain. This year's "winner" came to be known as the Walkie Scorchie, as its south-facing concave facade, which, while unfinished, concentrated the sun's rays so that it warped the wing mirror, panels and badge on a Jaguar parked down below. Local business owners reported carpet burns and paint damage to their shops while TV crews filmed an egg being fried in the reflected sun beams. The facade was later fitted with horizontal fins to diffuse the sun's rays. The building is wider at the top than bottom. (From Google News) Here's a pic:

I transferred the file of my next book, a collection of short works, to the Create Space template. Even in eleven point font, it came in at close to 400 pages -- without the preliminary pages and breaks between stories. As I did with Rising Star, I’m going with ten-point. It knocked the page count down to 330 or so, which means it will be about 360 when finished. I may eliminate a story to save space, although it will be hard to choose one to ax. I plan to publish it after the start of the new year.

A couple of weeks ago I remarked that the Dodgers looked more like a pretender than a contender. Since then they have increased their division lead to six-and-a-half games. Still, their offense seems pitiful. IF I were the Mets, I'd rather play them than the Cards or Pirates in the first round. I'm not sure what to think of the Cubs except that their future is bright.
 
My thanks to the kind folks who bought books and CDs today, despite the heat. I will be very happy if the forecast is correct and the temperature plunges ten degrees, as I'm sure almost everyone will.
Vic's 5th Novel: http://tinyurl.com/okxkwh5

Vic's 4th novel: tinyurl.com/bszwlxh

Vic's 3rd Novel: http://tinyurl.com/7e9jty3

Vic's Short Story on Kindle: http://tinyurl.com/k95k3nx
Vic's Short Story Collection: http://www.tiny.cc/Oycgb
Vic's 2nd Novel: http://tiny.cc/0iHLb Kindle: http://tinyurl.com/kx3d3uf
Vic's 1st Novel: http://tinyurl.com/l84h63j

Vic's Rom-Com Screenplay: http://tinyurl.com/kny5llp

Vic's Horror Screenplay: http://tinyurl.com/cyckn3f

Vic's Blog: http://vicfortezza.blogspot.com/

Vic's Web Site: http://members.tripod.com/vic_fortezza/Literature/