Wed 4 May 2011
The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette ran an article yesterday morning on the appearance of K. C. Constantine at the Mystery Lovers of American 16th annual Festival of Mystery, where he signed copies of Pittsburgh Noir, featuring short stories by Pittsburgh authors, and his previously published novels (the most recent of which was published ten years ago).
He confirmed his actual name, already available on the internet. He’s 76 years old, a native of McKees Rocks, and currently living in Greensburg PA. On the subject of why he maintained his privacy for many years, replied that he “wished he could remember,” but finally decided that “it was ridiculous to keep up [the] charade.” The article, with an accompanying photo, can be found at http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/11123/1143638-44.stm
May 4th, 2011 at 4:13 pm
Thanks for providing this link, Steve. It gives Pittsburgh a little boost in the radar of fans of mystery fiction.
The other news item to me of interest over the past few days was the lengthy obituary for Bill Blackbeard that was published in the Sunday NY Times. His “Sherlock Holmes in America” and his contributions to the publication of Hammett’s “Secret Agent X-9” comic strip certainly recommend him to mystery fans, with his many articles and books on newspaper strips enriching my knowledge of the field and also helping to propel a major collecting interest of mine.
It should be of interest to Pulpfest attendees that his collection is now part of the Ohio State University Cartoon Library and Museum in Columbus. I visited the museum a few years ago with Jim Goodrich to view the exhibition comprised of items from the various holdings. It’s probably time for another visit, since the make-up of the exhibition is frequently refreshed.
May 4th, 2011 at 4:51 pm
I don’t know if there’d be time during PulpFest, but it certainly sounds as though it would be worth the trip.
I didn’t know Bill Blackbeard personally, but he definitely was a true believer in the value of comic strips and pulp magazines, and I deeply admired him for that — especially the field of comic strips, which I always intended to start collecting, but decided I just didn’t have the space. I’m sorry I missed his obituary in the NY Times, which we subscribe to, but I just didn’t spot it.
Luckily it’s online at:
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/05/01/arts/design/bill-blackbeard-comic-strip-champion-dies-at-84.html
May 6th, 2011 at 11:12 am
Didn’t one of Constantine’s books – The Man Who Liked Slow Tomatoes – make a best of the century list? Or at least a best mystery list somewhere. Maybe it was in Jim Huang’s book of “forgotten books.” I know I’ve seen it listed somewhere. Makes me want to hunt down his works. I’ve never read anything by him but any writer who says that high tech and CSI style detection is b.s. is AOK in my book! (This now explains the mystery of why Louise Penny said she was going to Pittsburgh right after Malice Domestic. Never knew of that little festival.)
May 6th, 2011 at 1:20 pm
There is a list on Wikipedia, I have discovered, of fiction taking place in Pittsburgh, and SLOW TOMATOES is on it:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_fiction_set_in_Pittsburgh
But the book you’re thinking of, John, is 100 Favorite Mysteries of the Century (Selected by the Independent Mystery Booksellers Association) published by Jim Huang’s Crum Creek Press, and you’re right, SLOW TOMATOES is on that list too.