I write things and talk about stuff. Sometimes I swim.
In November 2015, Debbie and I had the privilege of visiting Pearl Harbor. It was a cloudy day with intermittent sprinkles. The exhibit docents took great pains to remind each tour group that they were visiting a gravesite, and to comport ourselves with that in mind. Our group didn’t seem to require the caution, as […]
The Mannheim Steamroller is bringing its Christmas show to Cedar Rapids again this year. And it’s special, because 2021 is the thirty-fifth anniversary of the release of “Christmas,” their first holiday album, a collection that completely changed how people listened to Christmas music. And it’s all thanks to me. Because I was the first person […]
Trombonist Curtis Fuller passed away on May 8. The New York Times posted this remembrance. Here is my memory of the jazz great. In 2002, Curtis Fuller appeared at the Iowa City Jazz Festival as a part of “Legends of the Bandstand,” with Cedar Walton, Ray Drummond, Louis Hayes, and David “Fathead” Newman. One by […]
To say that Roger Zelazny’s Amber books were an influence on me is like saying Donald Trump doesn’t care to admit when he’s wrong. I’ve just completed what has become an annual winter tradition: a re-read/re-listen to all ten books, usually while shoveling snow and hanging Christmas lights. “Nine Princes in Amber” was published in […]
The History Center of Cedar Rapids recently invited me to do a live-streamed author event. Afterward, I edited out some long pauses and fixed other “live broadcast bumps” in the presentation. It was fun doing a reading that incorporated visuals and even a video of the climactic chase scene in Traitor. It’s only about 20 […]
Need a quarantine holiday binge? Or a last-minute gift you don’t have to ship? The Traveler Trilogy is now available as a Kindle box set. All three Traveler books, Traveler, Prisoner, and Traitor, in one discounted ebook, just $9.99. Traveler: Meet Trav Becker, a down-on-his-luck ex-cop who must hunt a deranged parallel version of himself […]
KCCK is posting staff Halloween favorites each day leading up to Oct. 31. Here’s mine. The first time I ever heard “That Old Black Magic” was when it was performed by that legendary jazz singer… Jerry Lewis. In the original “Nutty Professor,” Lewis (as his suave Hyde-persona Buddy Love) sings a quite serviceable version of […]