Selling My Books on the Streets of Brooklyn 8/21 - Ugly Realism in Film

Now and then a serious film comes along in which the proceedings are so abhorrent that objectivity is challenged. I’m not talking about the over the top violence of certain foreign flicks created as strict entertainment, but those that explore the dark side of human nature in depth and in a realistic tone. I thought 8MM (1999) was a good film, although it focused on the sexually depraved. Most reviews were negative. It is the only work of Joel Schumacher I think is above average. Last night I watched Graceland (2012), a Filipino production, courtesy of Netflix. It is the story of the lengths desperate men will go to in order to achieve an end, a theme explored in 7 Boxes (2012), a Paraguayan production I recently viewed. The grimness of that film was allayed considerably by the likeability of the teenage leads and a quirky plot. Graceland is completely uncompromising, downbeat from start to finish, almost entirely ugly, yet I was absorbed, viewing its 90+ minutes without pause. Karma is another of its themes. I know almost nothing about life in the Philippines. I don’t think the director, Ron Morales, who also wrote the screenplay, is making a blanket statement about the country. An ex-co-worker has spent more than a month there and continuously posts pictures on his Facebook page which project beauty and happiness. Anyway, I think Graceland is good work despite its ugliness. I’m not sure I understood all the plot elements, as the subtitles were tiny and frequently lost in the background. I don’t understand how this occurs in this age of technical marvels. I don't understand what the title signifies. My guess is it refers to spirituality. 886 users have rated the film at IMDb, forging to a consensus of 6.7 of ten. I rate it 3.5 of five. This was Morales’ second film. It will be interesting to see where he goes from here. Anyone turned off by gritty, hardcore material should pass. There are many films more violent and more sexually explicit than this one, but few approach its grittiness.

I got a kick out of this week's episode of ABC's Motive, a crime show that reveals the killer in the first few minutes. The victim was a successful author of mysteries who stole the manuscript of the perpetrator and had published under her own name. Poetic justice, I suppose.

When Lev approached the floating book shop today I was sure he'd pass on my wares. As he was thumbing through the sex manual in Russian, a dude pulled up to the bus stop, opened his hatch, and gave me a large bag of books, half in Russian. Lev bought the manual and ten others. My thanks, gentlemen, and to the other kind folks 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 8/20 - Output

Texas Governor Rick Perry has been indicted and booked on the charge of abuse of power. His crime? Refusing to fund an agency headed by a woman convicted of drunk driving (three times the legal alcohol limit), who was abusive to the arresting officers. He demanded she be fired. The woman is a liberal, Perry a conservative. Will a President be subject to the same treatment next time he uses veto power? Perry smiled broadly for his mug shot. Hell hath no fury...

Last night I caught a flick I’d never heard of on This-TV, 111 on Cablevision in NYC. Attack on the Iron Coast (1968), a British production, stars Lloyd Bridges as the Canadian officer in charge, haunted by the catastrophic failure of the previous mission he led. Except for the Major’s psychological struggle, the film is standard. It was directed by the late Paul Wendkos, a name that rang a bell. His career was impressive, if not great. He has 114 credits listed at IMDb, not counting multiple turns at the helm of several 60’s TV series such as The Untouchables, The FBI and Dr. Kildare. He worked largely on the small screen, but did two notable, at least in terms of nostalgia, films: Gidget (1959) and Gidget Goes Hawaiian (1961). I saw both at the Loew’s Oriental on 18th Avenue, which is now a Marshall’s. I remember them fondly, though vaguely -- and it’s probably best that way. Both starred James Darren as Moondoogie. Sandra Dee was the first Gidget, Deborah Walley the second. Innocence was cool back then.

My thanks to the three people who made purchases today and to the woman who donated about 30 children's books from the popular series The Baby-Sitter's Club by Ann M. Martin and Sweet Valley High by Francine Pascal. The first is comprised of about 300 books, the second less than 200. Granted, they are the equivalent of short stories, but that is still an amazing output. Kudos, ladies.
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 8/19 - Spam

RIP Don Pardo, 96, voice of Saturday Night Live since its inception. He also worked on The Price Is Right and, of course, Jeopardy. During WWII he was a correspondent for NBC Radio. He is a member of the Academy of Television Arts and Sciences Hall of Fame. Imagine a conversation in heaven between Pardo and legendary Yankees public address announce Bob Shepperd, who died in 2010. Either would fit the voice of God in any biblical epic.


One of the area drinking crew visited the floating book shop today and said he had something for me. I assumed it was a book another member had recently stolen from Stop n Shop, which he wanted to exchange for one of my inventory because it was so dull. It wasn't a book but a can of Spam. He'd already scoffed down two and didn't want to see any more. I'm not sure I've ever had it and, if I have, it was only once. I was hoping Ol' Smoky would pass by so that I could pass it on to him, but he was a no-show. Of course, whenever I hear that product's name I'm reminded of the crazy Monty Python sketch: "Spam, Spam, Spam, Spam,/ Spam, Spam, Spam, Spam,/ Spammmmmmm!" Here's a clip of it. It's a shade over three minutes. Warning to the uninitiated -- it is shrill and extremely silly, but it makes me laugh: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=anwy2MPT5RE

My thanks to the people who made purchases today, especially the middle age woman who bought How to Raise a Jewish Dog, which is currently #83 in humor at Amazon, and Cougar, which she claimed to be buying for a friend who is dating a much younger man. Thanks also to Steve, who purchased a reprint of Frank Edwards' Flying Saucers, Serious Business, which has been around since the mid '60'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 8/18 - Honorable

A retired upstate carpenter who died last week got the last laugh, leaving an obit filled with hilarious parting shots at friends and family. Jeffrey Albert Rieck, 61, of Middletown, had drafted the paid notice a few days before succumbing to cancer. In it, he zings his “good for nothing but beloved” sister, his “no sense of humor” son, and his ex-wife, “whose house he whole-heartedly built and is thankful he will never have to perform another renovation on again.” There’ll be no memorial, it says, because “he would prefer that no one gawks at him while he is deceased.” The obit was rejected by his local paper. Two New Jersey papers ran it. (Culled from the NY Post, edited by yours truly.) RIP, sir.

I made my Monday excursion to Park Slope and it looked like it would be a big winner. I found a parking spot less than a hundred feet from the corner of 5th Street and 7th Avenue, which allowed me to bring out the floating book shop's full arsenal. A school safety van parked at the curb at my back, which hid me from any officer in a bad mood passing in a patrol car. Although police have hassled me only once since I've been selling books full time, I'm always wary of them. I will go quietly if shooed away. Anyway, I was further encouraged when a nanny bought a romance novel minutes after I'd opened for business. Then there was nothing for a couple of hours, until a young, very pregnant woman asked about Mary Monroe's God Don't Make No Mistakes, which was a handsome large print edition. When I told her it was two bucks, she jumped on it. Finally, I sold a beautiful pictorial I've had on display for a month: Dan Madigan's Mondo Lucha A Go-Go: The Bizarre and Honorable World of Wild Mexican Wrestling. I have to laugh at "honorable" and "wrestling" being used in the same sentence, at least regarding the pro version. Also, shouldn't it be mundo? According to spanishdict.com, mondo means "plain." Anyway, it was bought by a tall, long-haired, tattooed guy, non-Hispanic, I believe. I'm surprised it took so long to move. It is filled with lush color photographs.

Thanks, folks.
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 8/17 - Humblerag

The Oxford Dictionary has added the following words, among many others, in 2014:
Neckbeard - pretty much what you’d think -- an unkempt neck.
Yolo - you only live once.
Binge-watch - watching a number of episodes of a TV show back to back.
Side-boob - needs no explanation.
Humblerag - self-deprecating false modesty. I’m probably guilty of this.
Listicle - an article that uses a list as its core, which I've done here many times.
I used to scoff at the changes in language. I am now fascinated by them. It, like everything else in life, evolves.

In an op-ed piece in today’s NY Post, Kyle Smith calls for the closing of all Atlantic City casinos. Many have already gone belly up and two more are just about there. It has been 38 years since the industry set up shop in that beautiful location. Unemployment has not changed. It remains 18%. Median household income is half of what it is in the average Jersey city. The poverty rate, 22.5% in 1970, was 29.3% in 2011. In that span Jersey has gone from the fifth-most taxed state to second behind New York. Governor Cuomo is an advocate of the gambling fix and an opponent of fracking. As someone with strong libertarian tendencies, I do not oppose gambling. I just think it’s a solution for lazy, spineless politicians, and it’s proving a failure, and the prime reason is probably that leaders spend revenues far faster than they come in. Leftists often deride the deficits of the Reagan era, omitting that tax revenues were at a then all-time high. The problem is spending, although there are probably too many casinos in the northeast at present. Customers are probably eschewing the long trip to AC for the short hop near home.

An interesting development is taking place in NYC. The leaders of the United Federation of Teachers have endorsed Al Sharpton’s proposed protest march against the police. Many of the rank and file have fired off angry emails of complaint. I expect union leadership to be dominated by the most ardent leftists, but I’d bet a vote of the entire constituency would show that a significant majority opposes the endorsement. Most members may be center-left, but I doubt many tilt all the way.

Renzo and his wife, who is on maternity leave from a teaching position, stop by the floating book shop every Saturday and Sunday and wish me well. Today Renzo bought Killing. Thank you, sir, and Happy Birthday to Renzo Jr., who turned one Friday. I also had a visit from Conspiracy Man. He recently read four books banned in the USA. One links the Bush family to the Kennedy assassination. "They have a lot of blood on their hands," he said. Maybe W, then 17, was the second gunman. CM also believes that something is happening on the moon, that its face keeps changing. He sees little black dots. "Nobody's lookin' up," he lamented.
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 8/16 - Dark Rooms

Although I enjoy television and film mysteries, I’m not a big fan of the written genre. I prefer fiction that focuses on the human condition, especially that in which the average person tries to live a decent life in a world rife with temptation. When recently I needed a book to read, I chose Louise Penny’s A Fatal Grace because a woman whose literary taste is so different from mine said it was boring. It’s length also fit the bill -- 311 pages. It was so interesting it read like considerably less than that. It is far superior to all the mysteries I’ve sampled except for Tami Hoag’s A Thin Dark Line. The depth of characterizations rival those of any genre. It is set in a small, scenic town an hour-and-a-half outside Montreal. The main character, Inspector Gamache, is cut in the mold of the great detectives of literature. He has the unique gift of solving murders, of getting into the mind of killers, which he describes thusly: “…I spend my days looking into the last room of the house, the one we keep barred and hidden even from ourselves. The one with all our monsters, fetid and rotted and waiting. My job is to find people who take lives. And to do that I have to find out why. And to do that I have to get into the heads and open the last door. But when I come out again… the world is suddenly more beautiful, more alive, more lovely than ever. When you see the worst, you appreciate the best.” I’ve explored those rooms in my own work. I wish my reaction was as positive as Gamache’s. It has often been frightening. I’ve felt like a monster in waiting. A Fatal Grace is the second of eleven Gamache novels. Thus far, only one has been adapted to film, Still Life (2013), which I've added to my list at Netflix. I was surprised at the popularity of Penny’s work, although it is deserved, at least in this instance. I hadn’t heard of her. Although A Fatal Grace was published seven years ago, it is still selling. At last check at Amazon, where more than eleven million books are listed, it was ranked 6376 in paperback, 1721 in Kindle. More than 500 readers have rated it, forging to a consensus of more than four of five. I agree. My only quibble is the politically correct cast of characters. Then again, this is an error on the side of tolerance and inclusiveness. Penny also seems to use fewer commas than most writers. Outstanding, madam. Thank you. 



For the first two-and-a-half hours today on Bay Parkway, author Bill Brown was the floating book shop's only customer, buying two books geared toward the Russian women he has been tutoring in English. When Bad News Billy pulled up on his bike, I knew his car had gone under. He's buying a 1992 Dodge Spirit that has only 37,000 miles on it. He had one in the past and claims they are indestructible. Good luck, my friend. Ralph pulled up in his huge SUV a moment later. While the two were in the bank, a young woman and a middle age one bought two thrillers apiece. Billy bought up all the DVD, VHS, and CDs I had left, and Ralph purchased six works of non-fiction. Thanks, folks, and also to All Things That Matter Press, which sent along a royalty check for one copy sold of A Hitch in Twilight, a boost to morale.
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 8/15 - Guarded

Running the floating book shop, I meet a great variety of people. Jonathan, who's in his 20's, has the mind of a child and a sweet disposition. At first he would only point to the wares, smile, say: "Nice books," and continue walking. He moves about on his own and works at the local supermarket, bagging groceries. He proudly wears his I.D and work shirt. I called him "Mr. Stop n Shop." Our conversation was always brief. The other day he passed with his mom and I said Hi, even though he was was looking away. They had passed together a few times through the years and I sensed he didn't want to talk, so I said nothing. This time I spoke without thinking and he tensed. As they walked away it was obvious his mom wasn't pleased and she seemed to be lecturing him. Since then, he has kept his distance and I haven't said a word. Although I am stung by the slight, I know where the woman is coming from and know no one will ever love Jonathan as she does. She has done a great job with him. I imagine she warns him to beware of predators who would take advantage of him. She has no idea who I am. She may see me as someone incapable of holding a real job, someone so desperate enough to prey on the vulnerable. I don't like it, but I won't go against her wishes.

Tomorrow morning Sue-Ellen, who has taught History at Kingsborough Community College, is embarking on an adventure. She worked a couple of nights a week this summer tending bar at hot spot on the Boardwalk in Coney Island and was asked if she would be interested in working on a yacht. She has sub-let her apartment to a friend and will be driving to southern Florida, where her mom lives. There she will take a five-day course and then wait for a one-year assignment. When she first moved in to the building at the corner of Avenue Z & E. 13th, she donated a lot of books, all of which sold, so she has a soft spot in my heart. She then mentioned a husband, whom I've never seen. She doesn't wear a wedding band. Perhaps she was protecting herself from unwanted advances. I doubt she's reached 30 yet. I'll miss seeing her. Good luck, Sue.

It was one of those days when the floating book shop was almost like a regular business. My thanks to all the buyers, especially Stephanie, who purchased Close to the Edge. 
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