Voices In My Head (The Rick Lee James Podcast)
Episodes
Monday Mar 06, 2017
Voices In My Head Podcast Episode #199: Author David Morrell Returns
Monday Mar 06, 2017
Monday Mar 06, 2017
David Morrell is best known for his acclaimed thrillers, including The Brotherhood of the Rose, Creepers, Murder as a Fine Art, and his debut novel, First Blood, in which Rambo first appeared. But Morrell is also a master of nonfiction. Twenty of his essays about iconic writers, actors, and singers are collected in STARS IN MY EYES: MY LOVE AFFAIR WITH BOOKS, MOVIES, AND MUSIC.
Morrell describes how at the age of 17 he was fired from working on a construction project and walked home in despair, only to turn on the television and see Rod Serling’s Patterns, which gave him a life-long lesson about story construction. He tells how Stirling Silliphant’s scripts for the classic TV series Route 66prompted him to write to Silliphant for advice about becoming a writer. Silliphant replied with a two-page single-spaced letter that Morrell looks at every day. (Silliphant and Morrell eventually became friends and worked together on the NBC miniseries of Morrell’s The Brotherhood of the Rose.)
The essays in this captivating book range from Henry James’s ghost stories to Steve McQueen’s abusive personality to Bobby Darin’s tragic last days. Did you know that John Wayne was a master chess player or that Frank Sinatra had permanent facial scars or that when Marilyn Monroe was married to Joe DiMaggio, there was a reason apart from baseball for him to be called “the slugger”? Ever heard of Richard Harding Davis? In his day he was the most famous author in America. His adventures provided a model upon which Stephen Crane, Jack London, and Ernest Hemingway built their personas.
Alfred Hitchcock, Richard Matheson, Wilkie Collins, John D. Macdonald’s Travis McGee: these are some of the other fascinating figures that Morrell profiles in this mesmerizing collection that’s as compelling as it is revealing.
David Morrell's Web Site: http://davidmorrell.net
Gauntlet Press: https://www.gauntletpress.com/product/stars-eyes-love-affair-books-movies-music-3/
Tuesday Jul 14, 2015
First Blood Author David Morrell on The Voices In My Head Podcast Episode #146
Tuesday Jul 14, 2015
Tuesday Jul 14, 2015
David Morrell and Sylvester Stallone on the set of First BloodThis week on the Voices In My Head Podcast our special guest isNew York Times Bestselling Author, David Morrell.About David Morrell:In 1972, David Morrell published his debut novel about a veteran with PTSD who returned home from the Vietnam war, bringing the war home with him. The name of this groundbreaking novel is First Blood. It was called “the father of the modern action novel,” and was widely and enthusiastically reviewed. It was also taught in high schools and colleges. It became a 1982 film, starring Sylvester Stallone, and led to a series of films about Rambo, who joined the ranks of the top five internationally recognized thriller icons: Sherlock Holmes, Tarzan, James Bond, and Harry Potter. In addition to being Rambo's creator, David Morrell also holds a Ph. D. in American literature from Penn State and was a professor in the English department at the University of Iowa where he taught from 1970 to 1986. His numerous New York Times bestsellers include the classic spy novel, The Brotherhood of the Rose, The Fraternity of the Stone, and The League of Night and Fog. Eventually wearying of two professions, Morrell gave up his academic tenure in order to write full time. Shortly after, tragedy struck theMorrell family, as David's fifteen-year-old son Matthew was diagnosed with a rare form of bone cancer and died in 1987, a loss that haunts not only Morrell’s life but his work, as in his memoir about Matthew, Fireflies, and his novel Desperate Measures, whose main character lost a son.In 2007 after 40 years of novels, honors, and awards David Morrell was able to add comic book writer to his resume, writing the acclaimed mini-series turned Graphic Novel, Captain America: The Chosen. Since then he has also written stories for The Amazing Spider-Man as well as the Savage Wolverine. Find out even more about David Morrell on his official web site at www.DavidMorrell.net