The smoke had barely cleared from the booze-fueled gun battles of Prohibition and the Roaring 20s when a new breed of gangster stepped onto the American stage. Unlike the slick mobsters of New York and Chicago, the new outlaws were often born from the hunger and desperation of the Great Depression. These back-road bandits emerged from the farmlands of Indiana, Oklahoma and Texas to launch wild and daring crime sprees that captured the imagination of the nation. In Dustbowl Desperadoes you’ll enjoy a rogue’s gallery of bad guys and diabolical dolls, from bank robber John Dillinger to criminal mastermind Ma Barker to the star-crossed duo Bonnie and Clyde.
Johnny Depp–Hollywood bad boy? Rebel? Or simply misunderstood. His name and photo have been on the covers of the major entertainment ‘zines and the tabloids for both his powerful portrayals and his eccentric exploits. After making his film debut in A Nightmare on Elm Street, he shot into the hearts of the teen population in 1987 as Detective Tommy Hanson in the hit TV series 21 Jump Street. Never feeling comfortable with the teen idol mantle, he’s since been very choosy about the roles he has accepted. From Cry-Baby to Captain Jack Sparrow, Depp puts an indelible stamp on the characters he portrays, and his performances have often been singled out. Stone Wallace shows us a singularly sensitive man, who is passionate about his work, is selective about the films he puts his name to and fiercely guards his family and his private life. Johnny came from nothing to become one of the most sought-after names in Tinseltown, as well as a loving husband and father who is completely over the moon about his wife and children.
Russell Crowe has been compared to Marlon Brando, Errol Flynn, Spencer Tracy and Humphrey Bogart. He demonstrates a versatility as an actor rarely seen among today’s generation of Hollywood stars. His cast of memorable characters ranges from the raw physicality of the Roman general Maximus in Gladiator or the skinhead Hando in Romper Stomper to the psychological complexity of the brilliant but mentally ill mathematician John Nash in A Beautiful Mind. Crowe’s climb to the top of Hollywood’s A-list has been a tough one, made all the more difficult by his feisty temperament and a cocky–some say arrogant–self-confidence. His off-screen brawls and romantic dalliances have made headlines as often as his Oscar-winning performances. This biography reveals the larger-than-life personality that fuels both the fiercely dedicated actor and the Australian bad boy–a personality that has taken Russell Crowe from a one-time rock ‘n roll wannabe Down Under to his status today as a true Hollywood superstar.
Canada has contributed some of the most recognizable names and faces to the marquees of Hollywood. Here is a fascinating behind-the-scenes look at their humble beginnings, discovery, successes and failures:
It seems that so many of today’s Hollywood stars come from Canada, but at one time only a few could claim to have conquered Tinseltown. Here are the biographies of those Canadians who crossed the border and beat down the studio doors of Hollywood to leave an outstanding legacy that inspired later generations of talent: – Mary Pickford, a Canadian dubbed America’s Sweetheart, was instrumental in creating the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences and in helping to form United Artists – Lorne Greene, famed patriarch of Bonanza’s Cartwright clan, was a generous father figure to a younger generation of Canadian actors – Fay Wray, a young girl from southern Alberta, became famous as Hollywood’s Queen of Scream and is forever remembered for her role in King Kong – Raymond Burr, the actor who seemed indistinguishable from his two renowned television roles as Perry Mason and Robert Ironside – Christopher Plummer, who came to motion picture fame opposite Julie Andrews in The Sound of Music, has enjoyed a long and diverse career in film and on stage – Norma Shearer, considered the very definition of glamour during her glory days in Hollywood, had a trophy case filled with five Oscars by 1936 -William Shatner, forever an icon of film and television as Captain James T. Kirk of the Starship Enterprise, has more recently found fame again with his unique brand of self-deprecating humour – Leslie Nielsen, possibly one of the most original talents to come out of Canada, earned his fame through comedic roles in Airplane! and the Naked Gun series and more…
During his lengthy show business career, George Raft achieved the reputation as one of the screen’s toughest and most convincing movie mobsters. His roles in Scarface, Each Dawn I Die, Invisible Stripes, Rogue Cop and Some Like it Hot were so convincing that audiences frequently thought they were watching the genuine article. Yet to classify Raft merely as a cinema gangster is to do him a disservice. He delivered equally strong performances in such classics as Night After Night, Bolero, Souls at Sea, Spawn of the North, They Drive by Night and Manpower, his success in these roles quickly establishing him as one of the top box office draws during the 1930s and 40s. But Raft just missed the brass ring of superstardom – due to his notorious friendships with men such as “Bugsy” Siegel and, more significantly, his famous rejections of films that his rival Humphrey Bogart turned into major triumphs: Dead End, High Sierra and The Maltese Falcon. Written with the generous cooperation of many of Raft’s friends and co-workers, George Raft: The Man Who Would Be Bogart details the fascinating life and career highs and lows of a man who created an unforgettable image – onscreen and off.
For people familiar with Dolores Fuller only through her work and professional association with notorious 1950s film director Edward D. Wood, Jr., Hollywood, Ed Wood, and Me (A Fuller Life) will provide readers with a surprising revelation: throughout her career, Dolores has proven her talent and versatility in numerous facets of the entertainment industry. From fashion model, dancer, and actress to renowned songwriter and talent manager, she has done it all. In her autobiography, Dolores speaks honestly and with candor about her many triumphs, professional disappointments, and personal tragedies she has endured. Her remarkable story takes you on an unforgettable journey through her virtual partnership with Ed Wood during the making of his early films; her painful discovery of Wood’s transvestitism; their eventual break-up; her songwriting for Elvis Presley; her discovery and nurturing of Johnny Rivers; and her heart-breaking experience with Tanya Tucker. Finally, Dolores reveals her true feelings towards Sarah Jessica Parker’s unflattering performance of her in Tim Burton’s Ed Wood (1994). Filled with fascinating and humorous anecdotes about the many famous people she has known throughout her long career, Dolores’ autobiography reveals the informative and highly entertaining story of her fuller life.
In this exciting blend of action, suspense, and romance set in the Old West, a girl known as Denim Ryder rides into the town of Prosperity with a dark purpose: to exact revenge on the man who years before had betrayed her parents to the Apaches. The man she seeks is Brock Donovan, a powerful and ruthless landowner who has built his empire with the blood of the victims of his ambition.
In the male-dominated town of Prosperity, the independent and free-spirited Denim meets with suspicion and hostility. While single-minded in the pursuit of her own brand of justice, Denim develops an unexpected interest in notorious gunman Ben Straker, whom Brock Donovan has secretly hired to kill the girl. As events turn treacherous, Denim finds support in George Merrell, a former gunslinger-turned-pacifist farmer, and Merrell’s loyal friend Luther “Lucky” Grace. Merrell is determined to stay Denim from her deadly course of vengeance…while at the same time coming to realize the depth of his own affection for the girl.
But when Donovan’s brutal ranch hands force a showdown, a final confrontation between Denim Ryder and her quarry becomes inevitable–with only one left to survive!
When the remnants of a ruthless outlaw gang invade the peaceful desert setting Montana Dawn shares with her gentleman husband, little does the girl suspect that her long-dormant spirit for a life far removed from domesticity will be passionately reignited and that circumstances will soon brand her as the most wanted female criminal in the Southwest.
With a bounty on their heads and a determined posse hot in pursuit, Montana Dawn and her outlaw companion Walt Egan share romance and danger across the unrelenting Nevada terrain as they attempt to stay ahead of the law and escape into Mexico to start a new life. Freedom is close at hand. But will they survive to realize their ambition?
Cash McCall was destined to live outside the law. But after serving time in one of the most brutal prisons in the Southwest, he determines to hang up his guns and go straight. Cash soon discovers that a man cannot easily escape either his past or his destiny. Unable to find honest employment and saddled with a younger brother determined to pursue his own criminal path, Cash once again finds himself partnered with Steve Reno and his outlaw pack in a daring gold robbery. What follows becomes a trail of treachery and deceit, with Cash’s younger brother unknowingly becoming the pawn in a deadly game between two former friends turned deadly adversaries. Now a wanted man, Cash must free his brother from the clutches of the vicious Steve Reno and his murderous gang while keeping himself one step ahead of the law.
When they put Ehron Lee Burrows away for a crime he didn’t commit, they had no idea what the hellish desert prison would do to the once decent man. Escaping with the help of a murderous convict, Ehron Lee sets his mind to getting revenge on the two men he holds responsible for his imprisonment. Kidnapping their loved ones, he sets a ransom that can’t be paid in cash…but in lives.
But there is an even more dangerous threat to the huddled group of kidnappers and captives: an Apache uprising has cut them off from all help. As the danger grows, the group’s members are forced to work together—or face annihilation…
From the author of Black Ransom and Montana Dawn—a Booklist Top 10 Westerns of the Decade—comes a tale of desperate times and deadly bargains in the Old West.
He calls himself Neville. As he rides the lonely desert trail to Commercial City, the sweat on his brow is not from heat, but from knowing what awaits him. For the sake of his family, Neville accepted a grim bargain. When he gets to Commercial City, he will confess to a murder he did not commit.
Neville’s life started out tough and got worse from there. He made his share of mistakes, and never knew a place he could call home—until he met the woman who would become his wife. All he wants now is to provide for her and their children. And he’d give his life to do it. So when a killer offers money for his family in exchange for his confession, Neville accepts his fate…until the sheriff of Commercial City begins to question Neville’s guilt.
His name is Chance Gambel. His occupation: Witness Seeker. It’s a perilous profession where he is hired to search for witnesses to crimes so that they might testify for or against the accused in trials held throughout the frontier territories of the Southwest, circa 1880. He embarks on his most perilous assignment when he teams with a mysterious Mexican named Francisco Velasquez to search for the vicious outlaw gang leader, Silvano Ramos, who brutally murdered Francisco’s sister. Their journey is fraught with adventure, danger, prejudice — and mistrust, as Chance remains unaware of what Francisco’s true intentions are toward him: Friend or foe?This story will appeal to diehard Western fans as it highlights suspense, excitement, romance and a stirring climax the reader will not soon forget.
From the author that Western Report Magazine calls “The Stephen King of Manitoba, comes another macabre tale that will keep readers up past their bedtimes, with the lights on even after they finish. At the Midnight Hour beware of what lurks in the shadows.
Clear Vista, California is a picturesque town overlooking a tranquil bay on the Pacific. Quiet. Friendly. It’s a great place for children to grow up.
That is, if they grow up.
But an unusual number of children in Clear Vista don’t live long enough to grow up. A car accident. A hit-and-run. A tumble down the basement stairs. A suicide. So many tragedies fill the plots in the local cemetery, Resurrection Gardens. The worst is the disappearance of the eight-year-old Loewen twins, Heidi and Holly. When their bodies are found in the cemetery’s tool shed, the horrified townspeople are desperate to find the predator that has come into their midst.
Under mounting pressure, Police Chief Braden Powell searches for the culprit, but he soon finds himself investigating a string of additional deaths. Adults this time. All parents of lost children. They’re definitely not murders, but they’re definitely not natural, either. Is the town of Clear Vista just unlucky, or is something far more sinister moving over the horizon?
Ex-con Johnny Darrow is released from prison intending to go straight. But when he returns to the mean streets of his old neighborhood he quickly discovers that circumstances are against him. Unable to find honest employment and saddled with a reckless younger brother determined to pursue a criminal career as a means to escape his environment, Johnny soon finds himself drawn into a scheme with his gangster pal, Frank Lisanti, which, if successful, will provide him with the cash to solve his problems. However, returning to crime proves a dangerous maneuver as Johnny quickly becomes enmeshed in a web of murder and treachery with his brother becoming the pawn in a deadly game between two boyhood friends turned adversaries. Now on the run, Johnny must somehow extricate his brother from the clutches of Lisanti and his murderous mob while keeping himself free from police capture.
https://www.tell-talepublishing.com/the-whimsical-herald/requiem-for-a-gangster-by-stone-wallace
From the moment I first entered the room and found myself in his presence, I immediately sensed that this was no ordinary man. In fact, this was no ordinary movie star. As a writer in Hollywood, I’d met and worked with many of the giants in film and television. But this man was somehow different. He seemed to exude a powerful aura that filled the entire room. And yet . . . and yet . . . there was also a kind of warmth and gentleness in his presence that invited you closer.
He had hoped that his days as a witness seeker were behind him. But Chance Gamble once more is forced to return to his trade when the cruel actions of a wealthy and ruthless rancher result in a campaign of terror and violence executed by a vengeful, disfigured Comanche who calls himself Johnny Scarface, a formidable adversary who attacks swiftly, cunningly, and without mercy. Tensions arise within the small posse as they ride a treacherous trail and track a killer who may also be stalking them, and who has the panther-like skill to strike suddenly, without warning.
In the wilderness depths of the Canadian north is said to lurk an unimaginable horror; an ancient evil once considered a mere legend spoken about in hushed tones by campfire by the Chamrais people. A malignant spirit whose dark powers could possess those who encounter it with a violent and obscene hunger.
The town of Batesville has fallen victim to this evil, though a political committee has used its influence to cover up these gruesome incidents in an effort to promote and expand the financial future of the community. But when a young indigenous reporter from the city named Travis Randall begins working at the town newspaper, he starts to suspect that rampant alcohol abuse among the Chamrais and other suspicious events may have more sinister implications.
Warned not to probe into these situations, Travis’s determined investigations bring him into conflict with the town officials, a move that threatens to endanger not only his career . . . but possibly the life of both himself and his wife.
Although Travis exposes himself to a human threat, an even more ominous and supernatural menace awaits as he encounters the truth behind the legend of The Wendigo.
17 dark poems and stories come together to make you scream.With dark poetry from Linda D Addison Multi award winning poet And stories from Stone Wallace and Derek Austin Johnson and Justin GuleserianThere is something guaranteed to scare the hell out of you. Horror With Attitude Andrew Lennon Dale Hollin Dusty Davis Sravani Singampalli Ryan Woods Isaac J. Cooper Derek Austin Johnson John Barackman Eric Nash Linda Addison Theresa Scott-Matthews Justin Guleserian Thomas Gunther Stone Wallace Charles Lynne
Seven-year-old Krissie Carver is haunted each night by terrifying dreams where she is pursued by horrific, misshapen entities. The girl lives in constant fear and panic – until she meets Adamm.
He appears as a comforting presence, a beautiful, angelic-type being who tells her wondrous things and protects her from the hideous dream demons who want to claim her. Adamm explains to Krissie that she possesses a great gift, a mysterious power called the “ability” that he will teach her to use. A power that Adamm promises will benefit them both.
In her waking hours, Krissie experiments with her“ability” – with tragic and shocking results.
Who is Adamm? Only one person suspects the truth, and he must conquer his own demons before he can summon the strength and courage to confront the inevitable – a battle that he alone must fight, and one that ultimately may decide the fate of humanity.