Sorry, he lost the halo long ago. If he ever had it. Or
possibly he simply hocked it for the blow job of
celebrity.
Too little editing, too much self-indulgence. When even his
most vocal defenders (enablers?) tag much of his work as
"unreadable," you know the guy's star has faded.
I remember Otto Penzler once discussing at a conference how
much editing his first (and arguably best) books needed.
Somehow, I wonder if anyone would dare edit him that much
now. If not, it's a shame, because the guy is still an
original, with a brave and unique voice. That's what drew us
all to him in the first place.
Or was it even a halo? Given the Mad Dog's carefully
manipulated persona as a damaged and deranged hep cat enfant
terrible
(mommywaskilledbuymybook), they were probably a set of
horns.
Kevin Burton Smith www.thrillingdetective.com
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