TV Review: Mannix

TV Review: Mannix Hey, a show I actually remember watching first-run!  Private eye show Mannix ran from 1967-75.  It had a memorable opening sequence with a jazzy tune in waltz time and split-screen credits reminiscent of a monitor bank. Joe Mannix (Mike Connors) was an Armenian-American Korean War veteran, a little rough around the edges.… Continue reading TV Review: Mannix

Book Review: The Third Chimpanzee for Young People

Book Review: The Third Chimpanzee for Young People by Jared Diamond, adapted by Rebecca Stefoff Disclosure:  I received this book as a Goodreads giveaway on the premise that I would review it. This is a young adult version of Jared Diamond’s The Third Chimpanzee, originally printed in 1992.  I have not read that book, so will… Continue reading Book Review: The Third Chimpanzee for Young People

TV Review: Public Defender

TV Review: Public Defender “If you cannot afford an attorney, one will be appointed for you.”  The office of the Public Defender is a special government department that  specializes in handling the cases of indigent defendants.  The first such office was opened in Los Angeles in about 1914. This series, which aired in 1954-55, was… Continue reading TV Review: Public Defender

Book Review: Wounded Tiger

Book Review: Wounded Tiger by T. Martin Bennett Disclosure:  I received this book as a Goodreads giveaway on the premise that I would review it. Mitsuo Fuchida was the flight leader in the attack on Pearl Harbor.  Jacob DeShazer was a bombardier who participated in the Doolittle Raid on Tokyo.  The Covell family were missionaries.  This… Continue reading Book Review: Wounded Tiger

TV Review: Decoy | The Shadow

TV Review: Decoy | The Shadow Decoy is a 1957-58 series about Casey Jones (Beverly Garland), a female police officer in New York City.  She often goes undercover, thus the series title.  This show is noteworthy as the first TV cop series to star a woman in the lead role.  Like Dragnet, the series fictionalized real… Continue reading TV Review: Decoy | The Shadow

Manga Review: Rin-ne

Manga Review: Rin-ne by Rumiko Takahashi Sakura Mamiya is not quite your normal high school girl.  Due to a near-death experience as a child, Sakura can see spirits.  One day, she meets the new boy in her class, Rinne Rokudo.  She mistakes him for a spirit at first, but the truth is a bit more… Continue reading Manga Review: Rin-ne

Comic Book Review: The Sixth Gun Book 1: Cold Dead Fingers

Comic Book Review: The Sixth Gun Book 1: Cold Dead Fingers written by Cullen Bunn, illustrated by Brian Hurtt Becky Montcrief’s stepfather is dying.  But the men who’ve come to their remote homestead aren’t willing to wait for him to finish.  It seems he’s been hiding a gun all these years, and they want it… Continue reading Comic Book Review: The Sixth Gun Book 1: Cold Dead Fingers

Book Review: The Avenger: Roaring Heart of the Crucible

Book Review: The Avenger: Roaring Heart of the Crucible edited by Nancy Holder & Joe Gentile Moonstone Books is a publisher that specializes in new material about pulp magazine characters.  This is their third anthology of stories about Richard Henry Benson, the Avenger, and his organization, Justice, Inc. For those who have not heard of the… Continue reading Book Review: The Avenger: Roaring Heart of the Crucible

Anime Review: Tonari no Seki-kun

Anime Review: Tonari no Seki-kun (The Master of Killing Time) Rumi Yokoi is a high school student who wants to study hard and get good grades.  But she’s constantly distracted by the boy sitting next to her, Toshinari Seki, and not for the reasons you might at first expect.  You see, Seki is easily bored… Continue reading Anime Review: Tonari no Seki-kun

TV Review: Dick Tracy

TV Review: Dick Tracy Dick Tracy has had many incarnations over the years, but the actor most associated with the character is Ralph Byrd, who played him in serials, movies and eventually a television show in 1950.  Unfortunately, Mr. Byrd was not in good health by this point, and the fast pace of TV production… Continue reading TV Review: Dick Tracy