The Slayground predated Nothing Last Forever/Die Hard as well as The Captive Tower (a pre-Die Hard TV entry featuring Nicholas Hammond). Many people have pointed out the similarity between Die Hard and The Slayground.
http://www.austinchronicle.com/gyrobase/Issue/story?oid=oid:519304
By the way, the idea that Westlake denied the use of the name Parker due to people refusing to sign on for a comprehensive series of adaptations receives verification in the above link to The Austin Chronicle.
However, Westlake evidently did not realize that almost all attempts to produce planned out R-rated adventure films or hard-boiled films have flopped, with Shaft as something of an exception. Remember when Kathleen Turner bought the rights to all those Sara Paretsky novels? We only ended up with one V.I. Warshawksi film. Since R-rated film series tend not to produce ancillary merchandise, few people tend to plan them out. Meanwhile, Harry Potter has all its entries turned into PG-13 or PG films.
--- In rara-avis-l@yahoogroups.com, "tomarmstrongmusic" <tom@...> wrote:
>
> Well, the claustrophobia of it, being stuck in a seeming no-win situation against overwhelming odds. Parker in survival mode, being pushed to the limits of his ingenuity, patience, and physical abilities. I mean the physical ordeal alone was grueling - the cold, the wet, the hunger, the strains of action and inaction. It was brutal.
>
> The immediate predecessor to this one, "Deadly Edge" is Parker vs. a couple of Manson-esque hippies. Gee, who's gonna win that match-up? It's always a foregone conclusion that Parker is going to somehow get out of his predicaments. But this time, I really couldn't see how he was going to make it, and that ratcheted up the tension for me.
>
> The 'one man against many' thing is a common trope in all sorts of action fiction & movies. This book made it come alive for me and made me believe that if anyone could do it, it's Parker.
>
> "Slayground" does have an element of more obvious or self-conscious cleverness to it. The Parker variant of the ol' locked-room mystery. But Westlake really sold it to me. He kept it down & dirty and human. Parker just scrapes by on smarts and brass balls. This is one of my faves of the series.
>
> Tom Armstrong
>
> --- In rara-avis-l@yahoogroups.com, "J.C. Hocking" <jchocking@> wrote:
> >
> > Actually one of my least favorite Parkers.
> > I mean, it's good, really good, because it's Westlake and Parker, but to my mind
> > it couldn't match the better efforts in the series.
> > What made it work so well for you?
> >
> > John
> >
> >
> >
> > ________________________________
> > From: tomarmstrongmusic <tom@>
> > To: rara-avis-l@yahoogroups.com
> > Sent: Mon, August 30, 2010 2:00:56 PM
> > Subject: RARA-AVIS: Slayground
> >
> >
> > Got the latest batch of Parker reprints, tore through "Deadly Edge" and then got
> > to "Slayground". Wow. I don't even...I mean this book...it's...
> >
> > It's the ultimate expression of something. I don't know what exactly, but it's
> > the most...it's the epitome of...
> >
> > I'm just speechless, with my tongue hanging out. I found that book to be
> > incredible. What were other readers reactions to this thing?
> >
> > Tom Armstrong
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> > [Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
> >
>
This archive was generated by hypermail 2b29 : 30 Aug 2010 EDT