4/27/1994 Grand Masterhood for Lawrence Block

April 27, 1994.  The Edgars Banquet was held on this day and the Mystery Writers of America granted Grand Master status to Lawrence Block for his contribututions to the private eye novel (with Matt Scudder), comic crime (Bernie Rhodenbarr), comic spy (Evan Tanner) and much more.

That autumn I was chairing a panel on short stories at Bouchercon in Seattle and, a month before, when I had settled everything with the panelists about what we would do and when, the bosses asked if we could squeeze in one more panelist who was interested in the panel.  Fella named Larry Block.

Not being a complete idiot I said, I said, hell yes.  He was terrific and the panel drew a huge crowd.  And the highlight of my writing career is walking from the green room to the conference room with Edward D. Hoch leading the way and Lawrence Block marching behind me.

9/19/2014 A Walk Among The Tombstones

September 19, 2014.  The best movie based on a Lawrence Block book (so far) opened on this date.  A Walk Among The Tombstones is the tenth novel about Matt Scudder, ex-cop, recovering alcoholic, and unlicensed P.I.  In this version, as played by Liam Neeson, he tires to help a drug lord figure out who kidnapped and brutally murdered his wife.  In Scudder novels there are no easy answers, no unsoiled lives, and our hero has to do a lot of things he regrets.  Sometimes the big difference between him and the bad guys  is that regret...