In Reference to Murder

Media Murder

MOVIES

After Martin Scorsese's film adaptation of Dennis Lehane's Shutter Island was moved back from October of this year to February 2010, Michael Morrison, president of HarperCollins, says it's all to the novel's advantage. "We were surprised to hear the release date was moved but look at it as an opportunity to sell more books."

Twenty-two classic noir films have been restored and will play at San Francisco's Roxie Cinema from September 17 to 30. Sony then plans on releasing several of the films in two DVD box sets in November. 

TV

NBC is pushing back the Fall opener of its police drama Southland by a month, to October 23. Allegedly, it's due to a desire on the part of execs to use the extra time to promote the show, which was getting lost in the fall marketing shuffle.

ITV is developing a remake for NBC of the British drama series Prime Suspect which starred Helen Mirren. Hank Steinberg (Without a Trace) will develop and write the pilot.

Brenda Blethyn will star in a new ITV murder mystery based on the novel Hidden Depths by crime writer Ann Cleeves.

Filming is scheduled to begin in November on Magma Films’ TV drama series, Jack Taylor, based on the bestselling novel The Guards by Irish crime fiction author Ken Bruen.

Idris Elba (The Wire) will star in the lead role for new BBC One crime thriller Luther, playing a "near-genius murder detective whose brilliant mind can’t always save him from the dangerous violence of his passions." The series will have six episodes, pennedy by Neil Cross (Spooks).

Author Jeff Lindsay, whose novels formed the basis of the Dexter TV series on HBO, is set to release his latest novel about the serial killer anti-hero. Titled Dexter by Design, Dexter himself is targeted by a homicidal artist.

WEB/RADIO

NPR's All Things Considered radio program took a look at Graham Green's unfinished mystery novel, recently serialized in The Strand.

THEATER

Edgar Allan Poe is at the heart of a new "atmospheric musical" called Tell-Tale Electric Poe, to get its world premiere by the family oriented Coterie Theatre in Kansas City, Missouri, starting September 15.

The Broadway musical 39 Steps, based on the thriller by Alfred Hitchcock, is set to go on tour soon. The cast is having preview performances in La Jolla Playhouse and Seattle Repertory Theatre before the full tour begins.

GAMES

SouthPeak Interactive is creating a new Nintendo game, Crime Scene, scheduled for release this holiday season. Crime Scene puts players in the role of a detective, "giving them a full arsenal of police tools to solve crimes and ensure justice is served."

'Zine World News

Tony Burton of Wolfmont Press sent along a notice that the Crime and Suspense ezine has changed hands and will now be handled by its new Chief Editor, Fred Snyder.  Snyder plans on having the site revamped soon and a new PDF issue will be e-mailed to subscribers in November. In addition to publishing new fiction monthly, Crime and Suspense will review books and discuss entertainment news in a blog.

Mike Ripley has his latest column, "Getting Away With Murder," on the Shots Ezine. In addition to other reports, new, and reviews, there's a notice to be on the lookout for the young American author Attica Locke, a gal whose works come highly recommended by James Ellroy, George Pelecanos and John Harvey; the list of forty books Lee Child is compiling for titles that have influenced him, and a look at Val McDermid's latest novel.

In case you weren't aware, Crimespree Magazine also has a couple of companion blogs, Central Crime Zone and Crimespree Cinema. The print version of the magazine is still going strong, though, and subscriptions are a bargain. Even in a dicey economy, it's good to support the mystery 'zines.

 

Conference Central: Good News & Bad News

This roller-coaster economy has taken its toll on many lives in ways great and small. It's also had an impact on mystery and writers' conferences, although there is still a silver lining to be found here and there.

First, the Good news:  if you are planning to attend Bouchercon in Indianapolis in October, you can win a chance to spend an hour with one of your favorite mystery authors, courtesy of the Midwest Chapter of the Mystery Writers of America. Ten winners will get to connect with one of the following: Lee Child, Michael Connelly, Joseph Finder, Sue Grafton, Charlaine Harris, Carolyn Hart, David Morrell, Sara Paretsky, PJ Parrish, SJ Rozan or Wendelin Van Draanen. To enter, register on the link above and describe in 150 words why you should win.

More good news: if you'd hoped to attend the Backspace Agent-Author Seminar but thought you couldn't afford it, Backspace is donating two scholarships for two lucky winners, but there are caveats -- you must have a finished book-length manuscript ready (any fiction or narrative nonfiction) AND you must postmark your entry by today. Details are available via the link here.

Now the bad news: on the heels of the cancellation of conferences such as Hardboiled Heroes and Cozy Cats comes the news of two more conferences that were unable to draw enough registrants -- Midwest Mysteryfest,  sponsored by the Sisters in Crime Greater St. Louis Chapter at St. Charles Community College, scheduled for September 25 and 26, and Dying to Write 3, sponsored by the Mid-Atlantic Chapter of Mystery Writers of America. 

Radine Trees Nehring's blog posting referenced the subject of conference cancellations, and asks the question, is it really due to the economy? Over-saturation of events? Social networking via the Internet? All of the above?

Congrats to the Lucky 5

Congratulations to the 5 lucky winners of a copy of Detectives Don't Wear Seatbelts by CiCi McNair, a book recently featured on In Reference to Murder. The five are:

Elizabeth Weiss
Carolyn Waring
Terrie Moran
Patricia M. Jones
Clare Toohey

Stay tuned for more book giveaways in the future, and as always, happy reading to all...

A Tour of Noir

If you find yourself in the Los Angeles area this month (and you can also find your way through the smoke), Esotouric Tours has a couple of noir-themed events coming up. On September 12th, it's the Birth of Noir tour based on the films of James M. Cain (The Postman Always Rings Twice, Mildred Pierce, Double Indemnity). On September 19th, you can take John Buntin's L.A. Noir tour, based on Buntin's true-crime book of "the haunts, hits, and harems where some of the most shocking and influential moments of 20th century crime history played out."

If hard-boiled is more your taste, Esotouric has two Raymond Chandler tours in October, Raymond Chandler's Bay City on the 17th and Raymond Chandler's Los Angeles on the 24th.

Once you've whetted your appetite for tours and saved up a few more pennies, you can also sign up for the Smithsonian's Classic Mystery Lovers England or the Stockholm City Museum's Millennium Tour, following the sights and sites featured in Steig Larsson's crime fiction trilogy.