> I don't remember where I read it, but I seem to
recall that MacDonald
> used to pull out the Black title at contract renewal
time, threatening
> to kill off the lucrative hero during
negotiations.
>
> Hey, Willeford's Grimhaven exists, maybe this one
does, too.
>
> Mark
>
I understand the "Black" McGee, unlike "Grimhaven", is a
myth, perhaps started by MacDonald - if the threat is
sufficient, why bother writing the novel? Was MacDonald, like
Travis, presumably (the Busted Flush), an accomplished poker
player? While on the topic of the Busted Flush, reading
Marvin Albert/"Tony Rome"'s "Miami Mayhem" was quite a
revelation for me when I discovered that it was published
approx 2 years before the first Travis.
(For those unaware of this book, Tony Rome is a private dick
who lives on a Florida houseboat, which he won in a crap game
& re-named, IIRC, the Straight Pass in honour of how he
won it. Does anyone know if anyone ever asked John D about
this? I would think the most likely explanation was that the
big fella had read "Miami Mayhem", or heard about it &
later borrowed the idea unconsciously/inadvertently. I can't
imagine that he deliberately pinched the concept, it doesn't
seem in keeping.
Rene.
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