Extra, Extra! Noir City!

First, an extra extra for you—hang on, is that right amount of extras? OK, yeah, it is. Rosemarie and I are very happy to be the guests on the new episode of Noir Talk, the podcast dedicated to the Film Noir Foundation’s efforts and hosted by Haggai Elitzur. We talk about the Noir City film festivals, how issues of the magazine are assembled, and the Foundation’s role in inspiring the work of our mystery fiction-writing alter ego Renee Patrick. Tune in here.

Speaking of Noir City the magazine, the latest issue of the FNF’s house rag is out this week, boasting a glorious new layout courtesy of ace designer Michael Kronenberg and bursting with top-notch material. A sampling of the treasures contained therein—

Sharon Knolle’s cover story on psychiatrists as heavies onscreen and off in Hollywood;

FNF honcho and TCM host Eddie Muller on Tod Browning’s crime drama Outside the Law, which just wowed audiences at the San Francisco Silent Film Festival;

A double dose of Noir City mainstay Jake Hinkson, with a look back at Bruce Springsteen’s bruising masterpiece Nebraska and a consideration of Elisabeth Sanxay Holding’s peerless domestic noir The Blank Wall and its two screen incarnations (The Reckless Moment and The Deep End);

A survey of Donald E. Westlake films by Ben Terrall, perfectly paired with novelist Danny Gardner’s appreciation of his favorite neo-noir, the Westlake-as-Richard-Stark-based The Outfit.

Plus we welcome back Noir City Sentinel scribe Eric Beetner with his new column The Dark Page. This look at noir fiction kicks off with an interview with the one and only Bill Crider. We also add whip-smart film writer Nathalie Atkinson to our roster of critics. And like all good meals there’s a sweet treat at the end in the form of a new book review from our ol’ pal Ray Banks.

Yes, I’m in it, too, with my usual Cocktails & Crime column. I also get in on the Westlake lovefest by recounting a favorite production story in our On The Set feature, spotlighting Point Blank.

How, you may ask, do I acquire such treasures for my own edification? Simply make a contribution to the Film Noir Foundation and all this, and more, can be yours!

Coast to Coast

I’ve trumpeted this news on both my social media feed and my alter ego’s, and I sing it here from the rooftops. Because it is, in my world, a pretty big deal.

Renee Patrick is going to be on Turner Classic Movies. This Sunday, June 11, to be precise.

Rosemarie and I will be the guests of our friend and Film Noir Foundation cohort Eddie Muller on his TCM show Noir Alley. Eddie will be showing the brilliant 1944 film Phantom Lady, directed by Robert Siodmak from the novel by Cornell Woolrich. This one packs a wallop, full of astounding visuals and one did-I-just-see-that? scene after another. It’s worth getting up for. As a bonus, you get me and the missus, talking about the essential role costume design plays in the story as well as the real-life Tinseltown mystery connected to the film.

The fun begins Sunday, June 11, at 10:00 am Eastern, 7:00 am Pacific. So set the alarm or the DVR and get in on the action.

And if you can’t wait that long to see us, last month we appeared on Book Lust with Nancy Pearl. It was a pleasure to sit down with Nancy—librarian, NPR mainstay, and novelist—and talk about how Rosemarie and I got into the Renee Patrick business. As of today, our episode of Book Lust is available on YouTube and is presented here for your delectation.