One of our commenters raised the question as to whether or not JDM was aware of Sterling Hayden. I am sure he would have been aware, but I did not see a copy of Wanderer in JDM’s personal library of 800 or so books.
cal
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One of our commenters raised the question as to whether or not JDM was aware of Sterling Hayden. I am sure he would have been aware, but I did not see a copy of Wanderer in JDM’s personal library of 800 or so books.
cal
April 8, 2010 at 3:27 am |
I am pleased to see your blog. I have never read JDM, but he was one of my (late) Father’s favorite writers. He has 18 of the Travis McGee books in paperbacks, which I am sending to my sister at her request. So now I shall have to track down my own copies.
Have fun with your blog. You ought to write a biography of the man.
April 8, 2010 at 4:17 pm |
Thanks, Andrea. I have pondered writing a bio of JDM, having spent so much time in the Collection, and my wife and I have finished transcribing all of the World war 2 letters between JDM and his wife, Dorothy. I/we feel that we know him more intimately than simply relying on the books for clues. D.H. Lawrence aside for the moment, JDM owed a lot to his wife, especially in terms of encouragement in those early days.
The previous efforts at writing a bio of JDM have been unsuccessful, although the last: The Red Hot Typewriter tried harder than the previous two.
cal
July 12, 2010 at 8:29 pm |
I’m glad to see this site honoring a superb writer. I think I’ve read all his books, except for the non-fiction, and I kind of gave up during the comedic ones. While the Travis McGee titles are first rate, especially A Tan and Sandy Silence and Dress Her in Indigo (they are the most sinister), I sometimes wonder if the final novels were written 100% by JDM. A couple of them don’t quite ring true. (I had the same feeling about the final Sharpe book, Sharpe’s Devil).
Equally enjoyable are the non-McGee books set in corporate environments in the fifties, well summed up in The Solid Gold Trap. Probably my favorite of all is Clemmie, with its marvelous images of a decaying town, a failing firm, and a corrupt young woman.
There’s a great homage in Mitchell Smith’s Sacrifice to JDM, where the protagonist ( a bank robber searching for his daughter’s serial killer in Florida) glances at the sidewalk and sees briefly two men; who are unmistakably McGee and Meyer. If you are not familiar with Mitchell Smith, give him a try.
John,
All of the JDM manuscripts are in the Collection; no doubt that he was the author of all the stuff. thanks for the tip on Mitchell Smith…will have to take a look.
February 13, 2011 at 11:47 am |
Your efforts on transcribing letters, viewing photos and maintaining the JDM website are appreciated. You mentioned a bio being released this year. Do you know the title, author, and publisher? I encourage you to write a bio yourself.
March 9, 2011 at 6:30 am |
Brilliant thought