It is 1929, and the film industry is in chaos at the advent of "talkers"--talking pictures. Not everyone stands to gain from the demise of silent movies; some will do anything for revenge. And then the murders begin.
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It is 1929, and the film industry is in chaos at the advent of "talkers"--talking pictures. Not everyone stands to gain from the demise of silent movies; some will do anything for revenge. And then the murders begin.
Read Less
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Seller's Description:
Werner, Honi. Fine in Fine jacket. Book 1st edition, November 1990, so stated with complete number line beginning with 1. Fine in near fine dust jacket, very minor rubbing at edges, not price clipped, in protective mylar cover. The first Detective Herb Villon mystery. 1929 Hollywood and "talkies" are about to take over, but not everyone is happy. Not only does Baxt provide us with a cracking good murder case, but we really get to see what it was like when Hollywood was set on its ear with Talking pictures as opposed to silents. A lot of people were ruined with this big change, and lots made themselves more famous and more rich, but it was a collosal switch in the way motion pictures were made. The book is set in Hollywood in 1929. In true Baxt fashion we meet a lot of real people from this era (Sam Goldwyn, Hedda Hopper, Mary Pickford) as well as some great fictitious characters like Superintendent Villon and the Darling family.
Blessings for a few, catastrophes for most, accurately describes the advent of talking pictures. To lament the passing of silents isn't weepy nostalgia, but an acceptance of what was lost. Watching them one wonders why and how they could be considered inferior to talkies. Baxt doesn't pull any punches with his characters, their studios and the general atmosphere in Hollywood.