Comment by %3Ej3yBX%3BgG%3Cta0 on Serial Killers and Lew Archer

Sat, 17 Jan 2004 21:31:20 EST

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Comment by Rodney Welch on Serial Killers and Lew Archer

Wed, 12 Nov 2003 10:54:09 EST

Great thoughts on Ross Macdonald, whose The Galton Case and The Freeze, among others, are masterpieces of their genre. One of the things I love about Macdonald is that he's so compelling, with some turn of events every page, sometimes every half-page. Another point of interest, worth noting given the last few months: Macdonald, whose real name was Ken Millar, was an idol of Warren Zevon's, as well as one of several pals who helped Zevon kick the bottle. You can read the whole tale here. Zevon recalls their meeting: "Jesus, I remember that day well," Zevon says. "I was in such terrible shape. I don't think I've ever felt worse. Ken said a lot of things to me that nobody had ever said before. 'We writers are overcompensated in this society' he told me. 'In this house, at your age, you feel guilty.' We both got a laugh over our religious backgrounds. And I found myself telling him things that I'd never told anybody. I said I was disillusioned because I thought writing had to be fun. He just looked at me and smiled. I told him I drank to force the fun, to get rid of the anxiety and guilt I'd had all my life. For the first time, everything made a crazy kind of sense to me. Since what I felt guilty about was also destroying me, crime and punishment were taking place simultaneously, so I must have thought I didn't have anything to worry about. If somebody reprimanded me for my conduct, I could tell them, 'Don't fret. I know I'm being bad, but I'm punishing myself for it. I'm taking care of it.' "The scariest part about alcoholism -- about any addiction, for that matter -- is that you credit the booze for all your accomplishments. You could be dying from drink and unable to move anything but one finger, yet still be convinced that, without another shot, that finger was going to stop, too. Ken Millar made me realize that I wrote my songs despite the fact that I was a drunk, not because of it." "What did you think when you opened the door and saw him there?" I ask. "It was like a dream come true," Warren Zevon says. "At the lowest point in my life, the doorbell rang. And there, quite literally, was Lew Archer, on a compassionate mission, come to save my life." Zevon's masterful LP, Bad Luck Streak in Dancing School, is dedicated to Ken Millar. ]]>

Blogcritics Comments on Serial Killers and Lew Archer

Comment by %3Ej3yBX%3BgG%3Cta0 on Serial Killers and Lew Archer

Comment by Rodney Welch on Serial Killers and Lew Archer