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0:09
Hello, and welcome to another installment of living in the sprawl.
0:13
So the California's most adventurous podcast I am as always your humble host and correspondent.
0:20
My name is John Steinberg and I am joined in tandem by my lovely and infinitely talented producer slash my wife.
0:28
Her name is Lisa Steinberg. We are the team here at sprawl enterprises.
0:33
Ready to bring you yet? Another exciting foray into the vast expansive terrain that we have lovingly dubbed the sprawl.
0:43
On today's show. We hit the books.
0:46
We get a bit. Uh, learned on the program today.
0:50
We're taking a look.
0:52
At the 10. Must read mystery novels that are set within the glorious.
0:59
Bounds of the Southern California sprawl.
1:03
When I was a kid, I first picked up a copy.
1:06
Of LA confidential. I was about seven.
1:09
And, um, well, let's just go ahead and say that I was hooked.
1:14
The mystery at the center of the novel.
1:18
The juicy. Todd Reed elements surrounding the action.
1:23
The seemingly endless array of supporting characters.
1:27
With motivations that were sometimes.
1:30
Abundantly clear and sometimes not clear at all.
1:33
In short. I became an early adopter of all things, mystery.
1:39
Over time. Agatha Christie.
1:41
Dashel Hamot. James M.
1:44
Cain. Patricia Highsmith.
1:46
And there. Other noted.
1:49
Literary brethren. And snared me with tales ranging from.
1:54
Private investigators seeking the identity of dastardly culprits behind a series.
2:01
Of landmark crimes. Or it could be.
2:04
The disappearance. Of an error.
2:06
Shrouded. And a mysterious.
2:09
On determinable Hayes.
2:11
That certain authors just happen to calculate exactly right.
2:17
Los Angeles and Southern California.
2:19
More broadly speaking. R.
2:21
One of the greatest locales for mysteries in the modern era.
2:27
That never ending stream. Of Hills mountains.
2:32
Canyons. Reservoirs.
2:34
Hidden mansions. Hillside estates.
2:38
Beaches desert.
2:40
Mountains. Snow sun.
2:44
Everything. All of the possibilities exist within the sprawl.
2:49
And lucky for us. As we'll come to understand.
2:53
This area has been and will continue to be a fertile breeding ground.
2:59
For all things mystery.
3:03
So. Let's take a look this week.
3:06
At the 10 must read mystery novels set within the bounds of the Southern California spur Raul.
3:15
And number 10. In a lonely place.
3:18
By the famed poet, Dorothy B.
3:21
Hughes. Now those of you unfamiliar with the novel might.
3:26
I have heard. Of the quintessential 1950 filmed war annotation and that starred one Humphrey Bogart and Gloria Graham.
3:36
Dorothy B. Hughes was not a lifelong, so Cal resident.
3:41
She bided her adult time.
3:43
In New Mexico. Missouri dispel in New York and did enjoy a brief period.
3:51
Out in LA LA land. And it's in this.
3:54
Wicked novel. That Ms.
3:57
Hughes. Crafts. A wonderfully engaging narrative.
4:01
Centered around the exploits.
4:04
Of Dixon steel. He's a serial killer question, mark.
4:09
He's trying to help track down a serial killer.
4:13
Period. There are a plethora of twists and turns in this.
4:19
Unsettling. Paige Turner.
4:21
And the way in which. Post world war two.
4:25
Los Angeles is depicted.
4:27
Remind those of us living in current day.
4:30
L a. That the city once.
4:34
Really was a place where you could zip around from Manhattan beach to Alhambra back to Hollywood and over the hill to Tarzana.
4:44
Not so much today. But that's okay because we get to celebrate the legacy of this wonderful place in pieces of literature.
4:53
Like. The all time great mystery novel in a lonely place by Ms.
5:00
dorothy b hughes Number nine inherent vice by noted literary recluse, Thomas Pynchon.
5:11
Now Pinchin along with figures like Don DeLillo.
5:15
Laurie Moore. Paul Auster and a host of others have come to define post-modern literature in the 20th century.
5:25
And here at vice. If we're talking about pensions.
5:28
Bibliography is one of the more accessible works.
5:33
That he ever put out to the public.
5:36
Here. We're transported back.
5:38
To a greasy time in Los Angeles history.
5:43
We're introduced to doc Spilotro.
5:46
A pot smoking. Private eye.
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Uh, tasked with tracking down.
5:51
A mega wealthy. Industrialist who's gone missing.
5:56
Enter some shady characters.
5:58
Uh, bizarre police detective.
6:00
Multiple. Damsels in distress.
6:04
And you've got yourself the makings of a classic mystery novel.
6:10
For those of you that haven't. Sat with one of Mr.
6:13
Pensions books. I dare you to read gravity's rainbow the all time example of a book.
6:20
That universally has elicited the response.
6:24
I got through it when people complete the story.
6:28
Here. It's a low down.
6:31
In the mud. Reckless version of the city of angels.
6:36
Albeit contrasted with the.
6:39
Ever flowing sunshine.
6:41
Matriculating in the air. Thomas Pynchon.
6:45
Never intended for the work to be turned.
6:47
Into a film, but that's exactly what happened when.
6:51
Living in the sprawl. Favorite son, Paul Thomas Anderson.
6:54
Adapted this book. For the big screen.
6:57
Some years back. Joaquin Phoenix portrays.
7:01
Doc's below TRO in the movie.
7:04
Josh Brolin's involved. Reese Witherspoon, Owen Wilson.
7:08
A cast of cinematic luminaries.
7:11
But go back and read this engrossing novel.
7:16
That'll transport you back to a time.
7:18
When people showered far less war, significantly more hair product.
7:23
And everyone seemed to have an a Pfarius side hustle.
7:28
Uh, number eight. I Q.
7:31
Bye Joe EDA. A more recent entry.
7:35
On our list, this 2016 Edgar award finalist.
7:41
Demonstrates. That be it in the 1940s, the 1970s or in the present day.
7:48
The city of angels. Has the market cornered on mysterious.
7:54
Here, the action takes place largely in the south Los Angeles portion.
7:59
Of the city. Where amateur.
8:02
Sleuth Isaiah Quinn Taba.
8:04
Attempts to piece together.
8:06
Some truly horrific events.
8:10
Now we get. Some action concerning the music industry.
8:15
Some downright nasty rappers are in the mix.
8:19
And all the action is neatly juxtaposed.
8:23
With the. Stark reality imposed by the socio economic reality.
8:29
Of the Southern part of the city.
8:32
This is far removed from.
8:35
The Hilltop mansions that dot.
8:38
The roads. Hovering over Hollywood.
8:41
It's a gritty. Blue collar.
8:44
Landscape that is heavily divorced from the more glamorous.
8:50
Side of Los Angeles. Joe Or EDA.
8:54
Who was raised in south Los Angeles draws upon.
8:58
His own set of experiences growing up in the area.
9:01
Tapping into is Japanese American background.
9:06
And using all the tools at his disposal to craft a truly memorable.
9:12
Work. Of fiction. It's IQ by Joe EDA.
9:19
And number seven, damage control by Denise Hamilton.
9:24
Again. On the newer side of things.
9:28
The book. Concerns. A dead girl, a corrupt politician.
9:32
A series. Of wrongdoing folks up to.
9:37
No good. In west Los Angeles.
9:40
The way in which Hamilton. Draws upon the city's unique character to flesh out the narrative is truly impressive.
9:50
Our main. Protagonist here.
9:52
Comes to her unique set of circumstances.
9:56
Slightly jaded. But still clear-eyed enough.
10:00
To be able to see a situation for what it is.
10:04
The writing here is terrific.
10:07
Ms. Hamilton. Also a Southern California native.
10:11
Has. Curated. Some excellent.
10:14
Mystery oriented and thought In the last 20 years or so.
10:20
So it's no surprise that her own work would be this suburb.
10:25
And number seven, we highly recommend.
10:28
That you dive into.
10:30
The proverbial swamp. With damage control.
10:36
Uh, number six, California girl by T Jefferson Parker.
10:42
Now, right off the bat. The first thing that I was struck by was the fact that this author.
10:48
Has a first initial that doesn't actually stand for anything.
10:53
The T. Is merely a T.
10:56
And his mother thought.
10:58
That by listing T Jefferson.
11:01
It would make him appear more Regal and estimable in the eyes of others kind of reminds me of the world, according to Garp where Ts Garp.
11:11
Really stands for nothing.
11:13
In any event. Mr. Parker. Has said.
11:16
His relatively modern story.
11:19
Within the confines of orange county.
11:23
Here we get. Some of the seedier characters.
11:27
Breathing in. The ocean side air in places like Laguna beach and Newport beach.
11:35
The narrative is tight. The details.
11:38
Leap off the page. And one cannot help, but continue turning pages once they've really gotten started.
11:47
Mr. Parker has long been renowned.
11:50
As a Maestro in the mystery field.
11:53
Panning. A host of successful mystery novels that all pretty much derive.
11:59
Their essence. By looking in.
12:03
To the toddler, your side. Of the OSI.
12:06
At number six. It's California girl.
12:09
By T which doesn't stand for anything.
12:12
Jefferson Parker. And number five, the black Dahlia by James Ellroy.
12:20
I alluded to the work of Mr. Ellroy at the outset of the podcast.
12:24
And indeed you may be reasonably wondering, well then why isn't it higher on the list?
12:30
Well, I didn't want to put LA confidential on there.
12:34
See, I never liked repeating stuff on the podcast.
12:37
And for long time listeners, you may recall.
12:40
An episode early on where we discussed some of our favorite authors.
12:46
That draw from.
12:48
The sprawl as a character. James Ellroy was discussed at that point.
12:53
And though the black Dahlia is not on the same level as LA confidential.
12:58
It is pretty close.
13:01
This is actually one in a series of four.
13:04
The others being elite confidential, the big nowhere and white jazz.
13:10
In Mr. Ellroy's. Much ballyhooed Los Angeles.
13:14
Quartet series. Corrupt police.
13:18
Fast women. A little bit of all time boxing.
13:22
And some. Historical revision.
13:25
Make this an unforgettable novel.
13:28
Now of course the black Dahlia.
13:31
Which for those that don't know is the unsolved 1947 murder.
13:37
Um, Elizabeth Short. And then the subsequent.
13:40
Arrangement of the body in a grotesque gruesome manner.
13:45
In Leimert park. Has.
13:47
As I mentioned never actually been solved.
13:50
But Mr. Ellroy provides.
13:52
His analysis on the case.
13:55
And indeed. Comes up with a potential.
13:58
Culprit behind. The disturbing murder.
14:02
This one was also turned into a film.
14:05
Brian de Palma. One of my favorite directors.
14:08
Josh Hartnett, Aaron Eckhart. Scarlett Johannson.
14:11
Unfortunately, the film is not that great, but the book really is.
14:16
And for those of you. Like the team here at sprawl enterprises that are interested in all things, true crime.
14:23
This is a wonderful.
14:25
Must read. Novel.
14:28
That does its darndest.
14:30
To create. A reasonable solution.
14:34
To the unsolved murder of Elizabeth Short.
14:37
More commonly known as the black dahlia At number four, the black echo by Michael Connolly.
14:47
This is the first. In the Hieronymus Bosch series.
14:51
Written long before Mr.
14:53
Connolly. Would enjoy. Fame the world over in a much deserved reputation as one of the real Alions.
15:02
Of. Crime fiction. In this.
15:05
Novel. We learned a great deal about the tunnels.
15:09
Hiding. Beneath the city.
15:12
And. All of the skullduggery.
15:15
That could potentially go on.
15:17
Underneath the pavement. The success of this book prompted Connolly to continue on.
15:23
His Hieronymus Bosch series.
15:26
And as of this recording, He's been writing.
15:29
Bosch stories for going on 30 years now.
15:34
The team here at sprawl enterprises actually got to attend a recent.
15:39
Michael Connolly interview in person.
15:42
We got a book signed. He had a nice moment with the man.
15:45
And it was important that we did that because.
15:48
If we're talking about active mystery writers.
15:51
There are basically none that are as decorated as Michael Connolly, the Bosch series.
16:00
It's coming close to rivaling the output of other folks that we haven't talked about yet on this podcast.
16:08
And it all started. Within the pages of the black echo.
16:12
So for those of you. That adore the Amazon show.
16:17
By all the Harry Bosch books.
16:19
It may have been easy to have skipped this first.
16:23
Installment in the series. But we assure you, it is definitely worth your time.
16:29
The black echo from michael Connolly.
16:33
At number three. The moving target by Ross MacDonald.
16:38
This is the first. In the Lu Archer series.
16:43
By the end of it. And there would be 18 books in the series.
16:47
Multiple film adaptations.
16:50
And. The justification for a lengthy.
16:55
The spell at the top. Of the metaphorical crime fiction mountain.
17:00
Ross MacDonald real name, Kenneth Miller.
17:03
Created the Archer character.
17:06
Known. In the Paul Newman movies as Harper.
17:10
And here we've got a grizzled.
17:13
Private investigator. The guy that likes to drink, likes to smoke.
17:17
Chase women. What.
17:19
In the 1950s would have seemed like a quote unquote man's man.
17:24
And we transport that man's man.
17:27
To the fictional locale.
17:30
St Teresa. Sorry, Santa Teresa.
17:33
Which was McDonald's stand in for Santa Barbara.
17:39
And it would be decades later that Sue Grafton, who we also talked about on that aforementioned.
17:45
Episode concerning sprawl authors.
17:48
Who would also set her.
17:50
Alphabet series in.
17:53
Santa Teresa. And the moving target.
17:56
Uh, Lou Archer finds himself.
17:58
Attempting to track down. A missing.
18:02
Financial whale. Some less.
18:04
Then scrupulous daughters enter the equation.
18:08
And Archer finds himself. Plumbing the depths of the Southern California underworld.
18:15
A riveting tale. That has captivated audiences for going on 50 plus years now.
18:23
The moving target kicked off.
18:25
A glorious. Crime fiction run.
18:28
That continues to the present day.
18:31
Ross MacDonald. Perhaps isn't quite as famous as some of his literary counterparts.
18:38
But he is. More than deserving.
18:41
I have a place near the tippy top of the heap.
18:45
When we discuss. Great.
18:48
Crime fiction, mystery writers.
18:51
And it all started here the first book and the Lou Archer series the moving target And there were two devil in a blue dress by Walter Mosley.
19:04
Mostly grew up in the south land. And draws upon the experiences from his upbringing to craft this narrative.
19:12
With as much realism. And grit as humanly possible.
19:16
This is the first in the easy Rawlins series.
19:20
A. Ridiculously successful.
19:23
Compilation of novels. Focusing on.
19:26
Amateur private investigator, easy Rawlins.
19:30
The happenings on display here.
19:33
It take place. In Watts.
19:35
And other portions of the city. But it's Mosley's.
19:39
Seemingly effortless ability to capture the plight.
19:43
And desires. Of residents from Watts.
19:46
That really. Take this novel to the next level.
19:50
Some of, you may have seen the film adaptation with Denzel Washington.
19:54
And Jennifer Beals. But again, I think we're noticing a trend.
19:58
We've got some missing.
20:01
Uh, figures. Some fast women.
20:04
Character's not on the up and up.
20:07
A sorted collection.
20:09
Of thieves hula gains. And.
20:13
The elite. Mostly who we also mentioned on our episode from quite a while ago, concerning.
20:21
Sprawl based authors. Has.
20:24
Made a career. of documenting.
20:27
The lives. Of marginalized.
20:30
Communities in south Los Angeles.
20:33
Easy Rawlins. Mosley's most lauded creation.
20:37
Is a war veteran. With a knack for putting complex concepts together.
20:44
Rollins. Battles discrimination.
20:47
Doubt. And other elements.
20:50
To make a go at solving mysteries.
20:54
indeed Mosley. Has proven.
20:57
To be. One of the better mystery solvers working in contemporary crime fiction.
21:04
His books, breeze by you never feel as though.
21:08
You're stuck in the mud at the action always flows and there's no better example of that.
21:13
Then the narrative. Contained within the pages of this first easy Rawlins mystery devil in a blue dress.
21:22
Unequivocally a must read for any.
21:26
Mystery reader. Out there today.
21:30
And that means we've arrived at our number one.
21:34
So lot. So.
21:36
It simply has to be the big sleep by Raymond Chandler because of course it does.
21:42
Raymond Chandler only wrote seven novels.
21:46
But his legacy looms, large and vast.
21:50
A true underdog story. Chandler didn't even begin.
21:54
His work as a novelist until he reached his forties.
21:58
But what he gave to the world in the form.
22:00
Of iconic, private investigator, Philip Marlowe.
22:04
Will last. For generations across.
22:08
The globe. Philip Marlowe.
22:11
Who we meet? In this novel. Has a tendency to find himself in.
22:16
Some rather complicated scenarios.
22:20
I remember reading a quote where Raymond Chandler said, Hey, if.
22:24
I ever get to a point.
22:26
In the writing process where I can't really figure out where the next plot point should come from.
22:32
I just go ahead and throw in some henchman.
22:34
And I find that interesting. Because Chandler, unlike many of his peers.
22:40
As someone that made his bones on the back.
22:43
Of writing that.
22:45
Really gathered as much as possible. From stuff like atmosphere, vibe, mood.
22:51
The plot wasn't as central.
22:53
As Chandler saw it. So in this way.
22:57
He invites comparison to the Cohen brothers who have famously.
23:02
You mentioned. That in all of their movies, they are going for atmosphere as opposed to plot.
23:10
Philip Marlowe is an unforgettable private investigator.
23:14
Maybe the best. The team here at sprawl enterprises actually argues that it is the best.
23:19
Example of. A.
23:22
Character that can sustain.
23:24
An entire series of novels.
23:27
See, there's this trend in literature.
23:30
That has. The 25th book in the filled the blank series or the 50th book in the exploits of such and such person.
23:38
Here. Just because of the lateness in life.
23:42
When Chandler began his career, we've only got seven novels draw upon.
23:48
So he never got to the point in his career where the action became flabby and bloated.
23:55
It's a tight seven and it all starts.
23:57
With the. Web of deceit on display within the pages of the big sleep.
24:05
Now, of course, this is one of the more famous mystery movies of all time.
24:10
And Humphrey Bogart is involved and you should absolutely watch that film, but don't sleep on the book.
24:18
I hate making ponds and I did that without thinking about it.
24:22
The big sleep. Number one on our list of the quintessential mystery novels set within the bounds of Southern California.
24:32
And that's going to do it for another episode of the show.
24:36
We'd like to thank everyone from the bottom of our hearts for listening to the work that we put out a couple of easy ways to support the podcast, hop on apple iTunes, or wherever you listen to the show, leave us a five star rating and a nice review.
24:52
That stuff really helps us out on the business.
24:54
End. Follow us on Instagram.
24:57
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25:00
Write us an email. We always love to correspond with listeners living in the sprawl podcast@gmail.com is the address where you can send those.
25:11
Additionally, we'd like to remind you about our dynamic, incredible website.
25:17
And it's on this website where you can snap up living in the sprawl merchandise.
25:22
If you can think of it. And we can make it happen, which we can.
25:25
Living in the sprawl, our website, that's the place to order it up.
25:30
So on behalf of myself.
25:32
I am one half of the team, your humble correspondent and host.
25:36
My name is John Steinberg joined by my lovely and talented producer slash my wife.
25:43
Her name is Lisa Steinberg. Thanking you again for listening to another episode of living in the sprawl.
25:50
Southern California's most adventurous podcast.
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