FFB: Sylvia

Howard Melvin Fast (1914–2003) is perhaps best known for his popular historical fiction like Spartacus (the basis for the 1960 film by Stanley Kubrick) and his television scripts, including such programs as How the West Was Won and the Battle of Lexington and Concord, based on one of his novels. He was also blacklisted by the House un-American activities committee during the McCarthy era and became unpublishable. As a result, he started self-publishing (including Spartacus) and remade himself as the author of thrillers written under the pen name E.V. Cunningham, most featuring Masao Masuto, a Japanese-American detective in the Beverly Hills Police Department who's devoted to growng roses and Zen meditation.

Fast also wrote standalone crime fiction under his pseudonym, including the very first book he published as E.V. Cunningham, 1960's Sylvia, made into a film five years later, directed by Gordon Douglas and starring Peter Lawford, George Laharis and Carroll Baker. In his introduction to the 1992 reprint of the novel, published under the author's real name, Fast wrote "It began with a woman's name: Sylvia. I loved the name, I loved the (Franz Schubert) song, 'Who is Sylvia and what is she?' And the other sweet song 'Sylvia's hair is like the night.' Dark hair, raven black, a tall woman and beautiful. I could envision her as I might a living person."

Sylvia is a novel of suspense rather than crime-based detection story, focusing on would-be teacher of ancient history turned private investigator, Alan Macklin, who is handed a tough case by wealthy businessman Frederic Summers: trace the past of a beautiful woman you've never met, with only a book of poems, two lines of handwriting, and a fake story to go on. The mysterious woman in question is Summers' fiancee, Sylvia West, who owns property in Coldwater Canyon, raises prize-winning roses, is independently wealthy and fluent in French, Spanish and Chinese. But the story of her past doesn't check out, which is why the suspicious Summers hires Macklin to investigate.

Despite hating Summers for his cold objectivity and himself for taking the job for the money, Macklin sets out on an elusive trail through Sylvia's past, which grows more sordid yet strangely compelling as he travels to Los Angeles, Pittsburgh, New York City, El Paso, and across the border into Mexico. As he learns more of Sylvia's troubled past and her dark secrets, the down-on-his-luck private eye finds he's not only become obsessed with his phantom target, he's falling in love with her.

As Fast's first foray into the crime fiction genre, his neophyte chops become obvious when his characters tend to over-philosophize, such as Macklin noting, "There can be nothing as cold and deadly as an evening of pedagogues frozen in their timidity of thought and multifold institutional fears, or pompous and irrational in their half-knowledge and their book-bound ignorance. . . ." Yet Sylvia was popular enough at the time to be well received, praised in its reviews and sold to Paramount Pictures for the 1965 film. As an interesting aside, in France, where they didn't care about U.S. blacklists, Sylvia was published under Howard Fast's own name and sold over a hundred thousand copies.

Comments

[George Kelley]

I've enjoyed Howard Fast's work under his own name and his pseudonyms. I need to reread SYLVIA after enjoying your fine review.

[BV Lawson]

I need to seek out more of his other titles, George!

[Jerry House]

At one time there was a supicion that the pseudonymous mystery author K. C. Constantine was actually Fast. The rumor proved false, of course, but was a good indication of what good writers both Fast and Constantine were.

[BV Lawson]

Didn't know that, Jerry! Thanks for the insights.

[Matt Paust]

"There can be nothing as cold and deadly as an evening of pedagogues frozen in their timidity of thought and multifold institutional fears, or pompous and irrational in their half-knowledge and their book-bound ignorance. . . ."

I shall be savoring this the rest of the day. Thanks for the chuckle.

[BV Lawson]

Fun stuff, Matt! And thanks for stopping by. :-)

[Todd Mason]

Fast had a fair amount of success later with such novels as APRIL MORNING (a worthy followup in spirit to his early CITIZEN TOM PAINE) and the sequence that began with THE IMMIGRANTS back here in the States, as well...turned hIS hand a bit to sf and fantasy, with stories collected in THE GENERAL ZAPPED AN ANGEL, but the historical fiction was always his primary focus...I've been meaning to read Cunningham...

[BV Lawson]

I haven't read any of the sf or fantasy - more books to add to the TBR pile! Thanks for the suggestions, Todd.