I also attended this panel, and would like to comment on
it.
The Positive:
Megan Abbott, Con Lehane, Edward Wright, and Cornelia Read.
If these folks are a cross-section of the faces of
hard-boiled/noir writing today, the genre and its legacy are
in good hands. Cornelia Read struck me as a cross between
Bette Davis on her toughest day and Gerald Mohr on his
roughest (voiced) one. Megan Abbott's sweet face and gentle
demeanor bely the heart of a Woolrich. Con Lehane is as
eloquent as he is hirsute, and Edward Wright definitely has
me curious about his own personal take on 1940s Los Angeles.
Lastly were the questions from the audience (except for mine,
an admitted (and joking) softball to my friend Megan Abbott
about her book cover and Gloria Grahame modeling for it),
especially the one opening up the line of discussion about
the existence of a particular type of humor in
hard-boiled/noir writing.
The Mediocre:
Some of the questions posed by the moderator were so
long-winded and confusing that both panelists and audience
had trouble deciphering what the question actually WAS.
However, the panelists still managed to say something
interesting and entertaining once they were able to unravel
the knot, as it were. Also, there was the fact that Tim
garbled Con Lehane's name three or four times in a row during
his introduction, and then repeatedly stumbled over the title
of his first book: "Beware the Solitary Drinker." I don't
think the audience was ever really introduced to him
properly. The denizens of this list, who have every reason to
know Con's prowess both as a writer and as a first-class
gentleman know what a potential loss that is. To his credit,
Mr Lehane did not seem fazed by this, and handled himself
with good humor and professionalism, providing several
thoughtful comments during the ensuing conversation.
The Negative:
Sorry to say, there were several aspects of this panel that I
found incredibly disappointing. Not least of these was a
reference that I can only assume was intended to be a joking
one by Mr. Wohlforth to Ken Bruen, a writer referenced
frequently (and positively) on this list. Mr. Wohlforth
characterized Bruen as some sort of over-aged "hanger-on" of
the "coattails" of the Young Turks (Neil Smith, Victor
Gischler, et. al.) who helmed PLOTS WITH GUNS during its
brief run on the web. It didn't come across as a joke. It
came across as a nasty jab at a good writer and a swell
fellow. I wasn't the only one in the audience who took it
that way.
In this same vein, much hay was made of the contributions of
both PLOTS WITH GUNS and its spiritual descendant, THUGLIT to
the current state of noir/hardboiled writing. While
recognizing the contributions these two web entities have
made to the genre, I think their importance was over-stated
by Mr. Wohlforth when he referenced them. Because they were
referenced as part of a bizarre and rambling monologue given
by Mr. Wohlforth in the middle of the discussion, and no
panelist was really given much of a chance to respond to
these comments, the reference came across as a part of a
pretty blatant act of shameless self-promotion (It is my
understanding that Mr. Wohlforth has been published in both
of these entities. Would that make *him* the sort of
"hanger-on" which he "jokingly" accused Mr. Bruen of being?).
Mr. Wohlforth did this sort of thing several times over the
course of the hour, especially toward the end of the session.
All roads seemed to come right back to him and
his work.
Unfortunately, that is not the role of the moderator, at
least not as I understand it. In fact, he's supposed to be
there to keep that sort of thing from getting out of hand. I
take no pleasure in mentioning this. I simply felt compelled
to point out the fact that the view that Mr. Keenan expressed
of the panel session in his initial post on the subject was
not shared by many who participated in the same
session.
Overall I enjoyed the panel session, particularly the
contributions of the various panelists, and the questions
from the audience. But a more focused direction of the
discussion, without the moderator repeatedly inserting
himself into the dialogue without either basis or
justification would have contributed to the overall strength
of the session.
Your Mileage May Vary.
All the Best-
Brian Thornton
----- Original Message -----
From: Vince Keenan
To:
rara-avis-l@yahoogroups.com
Sent: Monday, February 05, 2007 12:16 AM
Subject: RARA-AVIS: Noir panel at LCC
Just wanted to commend Tim Wohlforth on the fine
job he did chairing the panel on noir at Left Coast Crime in
Seattle this weekend. He had a strong group of writers to
work with in Megan Abbott, Con Lehane, Cornelia Read and
Edward Wright. A nice range of topics were discussed -- the
flexible definition of the term, the connection with film
noir, the influence of online journals like Plots With Guns
and Thuglit, the role humor plays in the genre. Tim even got
the weather to cooperate so that it was suitably overcast
when the proceedings started. Nicely done.Vince
Keenanwww.vincekeenan.comPop culture, high and low, past and
present.One day at a time.
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