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MARLOWE

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Dave

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Jan 16, 2007, 2:39:17 PM1/16/07
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the news that ABC plans a spring replacement series of a modern-day
version of Philip Marlowe only serves to frighten -- one more thing on
a list of things that I'm sure will suck. On the other hand, why
expect any standards with the character? The PHILIP MARLOWE radio
program, pedestrian half-hour pot-boilers with heated over-the-top
narration, was on the air even while Chandler was cranking out his best
literary work.

Did Chandler have the rights to the character? Were they rights he
retained after the original sales to BLACK MASK? Why authorize the
second-rate radio show?

You can understand Hammett letting go of Sam Spade -- he was a
world-champion drunkard, in a writer's block ever since he started with
lillian, and in chronic need of $$$ -- not to mention serving some jail
time. Sam Spade was a character in a book he'd written years earlier,
not a series character. but why did Chandler let MArlowe out?

Dave

Andreas Decker

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Jan 16, 2007, 4:30:32 PM1/16/07
to
Well, the short-lived P.Marlowe, Private Eye with Powers Boothe wasn´t bad.
A nice period piece.

On the other hand, Flash Gordon from the guys who butchered Earthsee ... be
afraid :-)

"Dave" <matt...@bellsouth.net> schrieb im Newsbeitrag
news:1168976354....@s34g2000cwa.googlegroups.com...

boldvent...@aol.com

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Jan 16, 2007, 6:19:50 PM1/16/07
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"[Hammett] was a world-champion drunkard, in a writer's block ever

since he started with lillian, and in chronic need of $$$ -- not to
mention serving some jail time."

Not jail time. That was well AFTER the Spade radio series began.
During the 1940s, it was reported that he was earning $6,000 a month
... Money was an issue for the same reasons as it is for everyone ...

nickchas

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Jan 16, 2007, 7:47:03 PM1/16/07
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I'd guess that the money was good, plus the perk of having one's own
radio show was hard to resist. Also that retaining creative control
was very difficult.

The HBO Marlowe series was very well done, so maybe a suspension of
cynicism is in order.

-Charlie E

Jah

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Jan 16, 2007, 11:51:41 PM1/16/07
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http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Raymond_Chandler Wiki has a short and
interesting bio on Raymond Chandler.

Apparently he was buried in the pauper's section of a cemetary, because his
agent and his secretary were fighting over his estate; so Chandler got a
pine box and an unmarked grave.


jumpy

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Jan 17, 2007, 9:49:34 AM1/17/07
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Nobody "authorizes a 2nd rate series"! They authorize their agent to
sell and resell and license as much as possible and have nothing to do
with most dramatic versions.

boldvent...@aol.com

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Jan 17, 2007, 10:34:53 AM1/17/07
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Besides, a continuing series is a sort-of weekly commercial for your
books. Whether the show is good or not good. The weekly Mike Hammer
tv series may not have helped sales of Mikey Spillane's books, but they
didn't hurt. Darren McGavin or Stacey Keach ... in each instance,
Spillane's profile was higher than ever. I remember seeing Spillane
(in the 1980s) on Larry King's program, Miller Lite Beer commercials,
etc.

Kent Allard

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Jan 17, 2007, 11:21:16 AM1/17/07
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In article <1168976354....@s34g2000cwa.googlegroups.com>,
"Dave" <matt...@bellsouth.net> wrote:

> On the other hand, why
> expect any standards with the character? The PHILIP MARLOWE radio
> program, pedestrian half-hour pot-boilers with heated over-the-top
> narration,

Then I guess the only thing that separates the PHILIP MARLOWE radio program from
all the others was the "heated over-the-top narration". Personally I always
found the Marlowe shows to be very entertaining, especially when compared to a
lot of others, including the Shadow.

Shiflet

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Jan 17, 2007, 11:36:20 AM1/17/07
to
No radio show could compare to the books but I thought it was very
entertaining as well. It obviously was not of the same quality as shows
such as Suspense and Escape but still fun to listen to.

"Kent Allard" <evil@hearts_of_men.net> wrote in message
news:evil-756EF6.1...@sn-indi.vsrv-sjc.supernews.net...

tphile

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Jan 17, 2007, 4:13:57 PM1/17/07
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I really enjoyed those Miller Lite commercials from the 80's with all
the well known characters from Mickey and his "doll" to Rodney
Dangerfield to Joe Piscopo.
I can just imagine various pulp characters doing them. Hammer with
Spade and Marlowe.
Nick and Nora Charles without a doubt. They might have gotten Myrna Loy
out of retirement for it.
Perry Mason on trial
Monk and Ham howling calamities at each other
Sometimes I enjoyed the commercial more than the programs they were
sponsering. TVLand or someone needs to broadcast them or collect them
all on dvd.
Until then I found a bunch of them posted at YouTube.com
check them out sometime.
regardless if you drink beer or not, and I am a not.

tphile

Dave

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Jan 18, 2007, 7:45:32 AM1/18/07
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The MARLOWE radio show was pitched to adult listeners. It holds up
better than a lot of OTR stuff. THE SHADOW on radio is all over the
place -- sometimes just another kiddie-hero show, sometimes some grim
adult business going on.

More recently Rober B. PArker had SPENSER as a TV character, and it
didn't seem to affect anything about his novels; but then nobody has
accused Parker of attempting literature. Chandler becomes much more
literary in the years following the radio show.

Dave

Nealus

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Jan 20, 2007, 2:30:18 PM1/20/07
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I agree about the Powers Booth series. I recall it being enjoyable and
Powers Booth with his Mallet head a good choice.

"Andreas Decker" <Dec...@t-online.de> wrote in message
news:12qqgvn...@news.supernews.com...

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