A New Blog To Love Executed Today is billed as "history, sociology, biography, criminology, law, and kismet —- an unrepresentative but arresting view of the human condition across time and circumstance from the parlous vantage of the scaffold. This blog each day chronicles an historical execution that took place on that date, and the story behind it." This blog is intelligent, well written, and has a wonderfully broad world view. I've added it to my favorites (right column).
'One of the Best Texas True Crime Books Ever' Court TV recently featured an old true crime case on its TV program Murder by the Book. The episode was hosted by fiction author Sandra Brown but delved into the shocking-but-true story of the suburban housewife who took an axe to her female neighbor in 1980 in North Texas.
After seeing the show, "John Council," a Texas lawyer who blogs at Tex Parte (clever!), wrote an essay on Revisiting the Story of An Axe-Wielding Suburbanite to demonstrate that he would've made a better host for the program than Sandra Brown. I too have long wondered why Court TV chose fictionists for hosting duties for true crime shows. Sheesh. Anyway, Mr. Council says --
If you’re bored one lonely evening, flip over to Court TV; you might catch a repeat of a recent episode of “Murder by the Book,” featuring one of the greatest courtroom dramas ever to go down in Texas. The show, inexplicably, uses crime fiction writers to introduce and analyze real murder cases.
Unfortunately, author Sandra Brown has little if anything to add to the murder story of Candy Montgomery, who killed neighbor Betty Gore with an axe in 1980. The Collin County murder captivated people in North Texas -- a fact Brown repeatedly points out, because she “lived in the area” at the time. Somehow, this qualifies her as an expert and allows for ridiculous commentary such as “You can’t make this stuff up, and I’ve tried!” Thanks for that insight, Sandy....
For those interested in the case, read Evidence of Love
for the serious lowdown on how the Montgomery trial went down. Authors John Bloom and Jim Atkinson spent more than a year researching and writing that book, which was published in 1985. And they wrote one of the best Texas true crime books ever in the process.
On The Nightstand I've read Fatal Vision author Joe McGinniss's newest book, Never Enough, and will jot up a book review shortly; I've been distracted by author Mark Gado's riveting account of the case of Father Hans Schmidt, the bluntly titled Killer Priest. The mailman just brought me the promising new book A Soul On Trial: A Marine Corps Mystery at the Turn of the Twentieth Century by Robin R. Cutler - a blend of military history and true crime. Early winter is the best time of year for the literary end of the true crime genre.
Quote of the Week.... Courtesy a 1972 edition of the San Antonio Express. Interestingly, the sob sister tradition is in the midst of revival.
Thanks so much for the link and the generous words. I've been through these parts during research phases, and I love the smart way you cover this beat. I'm not sure any of mine have yet been in the "true crime" milieu ... but I'll be linking to your background on Crippen, this Friday.
Posted by: Jason | November 20, 2007 at 02:53 PM
Yay, Laura! I've missed you - glad you are Back!
Posted by: Fiz | November 20, 2007 at 03:41 PM
Re: "Evidence of Love" - if I remember correctly, c0-author John Bloom is better known by his alter-ego - Joe Bob Briggs - drive-in movie critic extraordinaire.
P~
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