A Man & a Woman
Joseph Wambaugh, 83, has had a terrific literary run, using his background in law enforcement to great effect. Born in Pittsburgh, his dad a cop, he enlisted in the Marines at 17 and married at 18. He joined the LAPD in 1960 and served 14 years, rising to the rank of Detective Sergeant. His earliest works were published while he was still a member of the force. His Wiki profile lists 16 novels and five works of non-fiction bearing his name. There are 12 titles under his name at IMDb, mostly in TV, adaptations of his own work he did himself, and the creation of the series Police Story, which ran several seasons. I just finished Finnegan’s Week, which was published in 1993. It’s the story of a 45-year San Diego detective wannabe actor even more cynical than Law & Order’s Lenny Briscoe, set during the final days of the 1992 presidential campaign. He is not enthused about a case that comes his way involving theft and a toxic substance. Soon the investigation involves two females, a Navy cop and one working in the nascent field of environmental abuse. The main plot is solid, interesting and easy to follow. The protagonist’s character is fleshed out very well, and the portraits of the criminals rings true. The romantic aspects are not convincing, although I realize that coupling is occasionally unpredictable and odd. A long drinking bout with each woman tried my patience, which may simply reflect my natural aversion to such behavior. Fortunately, the novel is otherwise a very fast read. Its best aspect is the portrait of life in Tijuana. The metaphors and wisecracks come fast and furious. Many fall flat but some are winners. Here are four I liked: “… after he’d completely lost count of his drinks Fin decided they were more bombed than Bosnia.” “The guy’s oilier than Kuwait.” “A gull hovered in the sky above him like the Holy Ghost.” “… the Marine broke into a grin wider than the Halls of Montezuma.” Although there is violence, it’s a lot less than in similar fare. Profanity is not overused. The politics is all over the place, favoring none of the three contenders. Recall that Ross Perot was running at that time. 190 readers at Amazon have rated Finnegan’s Week, forging to a consensus of 4.2 on a scale of five. I’ll go with three. It’s 335 pages read like a heck of a lot less, enjoyable but forgettable.
RIP Conchata Ferrell, 77, a Hollywood stalwart and scene-stealer, one of those actors blessed with uncanny naturalness, ease in front of the camera. She will be remembered most for her 211 episode run in Two and a Half Men, but she did so much more. Her career began in 1974 and will conclude with a posthumous film release in 2021. There are 131 titles under her name at IMDb, mostly in TV, but her big screen credits are impressive. She appeared in Network (1974), Mystic Pizza (1988), Edward Scissorhands (1990), True Romance (1993) and Erin Brockovich (2000), among others. She received three Emmy nominations, two for her work in the sitcom, the other for L.A. Law. She also did stage work. Kudos, madam. Thank you.
On the heels of one scandal, this follows, from an article at nypost.com: “Wells Fargo has reportedly fired more than 100 staffers after an internal investigation found they had fraudulently applied for and received coronavirus relief funding for themselves.” Maybe bank regulators should step in, fire everybody at the company, and start over.
I didn’t think there would ever be a worse candidate for president than Hillary Clinton, but Joe Biden is fast gaining ground on her. Still, with the mainstream media, academia and social media in the tank for him, he has a good shot at winning.
Almost all of the trade at today’s session of the floating book shop was of Russian fare. My thanks to the kind folks who bought, and to the woman who purchased a bunch of kids books; and to the home attendant of the Brainiac Brothers, who delivered three works of non-fiction.
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