Karavansara

East of Constantinople, West of Shanghai

Category Archives: Other People’s Pulp


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Miranda (1950)

As I mentioned, this and next week I’ll be doing a few posts about John D. MacDonald.
And because I have to start somewhere, I’ll start with Miranda.
Because Miranda is almost perfect, and it’s one of the scariest things you’ll ever read.

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Miranda is a short story MacDonald wrote in 1950 and sold to 15 Mysteries Stories – that, as you can guess, was pretty much what it said on the cover: a 25 cents pulp mag featuring 15 mystery stories.
Nice and smooth.

The mag had been called Dime Mystery Book back in the early 1930s, and later the name had changed to Dime Mystery Magazine, and then in 1950 it had become 15 Mysteries Stories. Continue reading →


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The Olivia de Havilland Centenary Blogathon – Raffles, 1939

What’s wrong with Olivia de Havilland and me?
I don’t know – probably it’s all those movies with Erroll Flynn, but lovely de Havilland is one of those actresses that are a delight to watch, but for the life of my I never remember when it comes the time to make a list of the favorites.

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But that’s ok, anyway, because this is The Olivia de Havilland Centenary Blogathon, organized by the In the good old days of Hollywood blog and the Phyllis Loves Classic Movies blog – and you should follow the link and go there to check out the other entries in this blogathon.

Here on Karavansara, we’ll spend some time with Raffles – the amateur cracksman. Continue reading →


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Bud Spencer, 1929-2016

CarloPedersoliItaliaYesterday night I got the news of the death of Carlo Pedersoli, better known as Bud Spencer.
He was born in Naples in 1929, and had started out as an Olympic swimmer and water polo player.
He was also a car racer and a songwriter – but his CV included a lot of odd-jobs.

Then, after a number of bit parts in Cinecittà, he was offered a role in Dio perdona… io no – a seminal spaghetti western in which he teamed up with Mario Girotti, also known as Terence Hill.
It was 1967.
The year I was born.

Now, it is complicated to explain what the Spencer & Hill team meant for Italian kids in my generation.
This connects with the post I did two days ago, about needing heroes when we grow up.
So, if you don’t mind, I’ll digress… Continue reading →


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The Murdoch Mysteries

While it is absolutely certain that we are living in a very exciting time for TV series, I’m not particularly fond of the recent explosion of superhero shows.
I watched Arrow out of loyalty for a character I had loved in the comics, but apart from a savage crush for Felicity Smoak, I did not enjoy the show that much.
Granted, YMMV, but… I don’t know – I still prefer superheroes in comic books.

Green_Arrow_The_Longbow_Hunters001

What I get into, a lot, these days, are mystery shows.
And having already waxed lyrical about that absolute gem, the Australian Miss Fisher’s Murder Mysteries, I thought I might as well do a few posts on a few other shows I enjoy a lot. Starting with Canada’s own Murdoch Mysteries (which, I just found out, is called The Artful Detective in some quarters).

Murdoch Mysteries Series 4

Continue reading →


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Robert E. Howard, 80 years after

Robert E. Howard died eighty years ago today.
He was a troubled young man, and a writer – not necessarily in that order.
At his worst, he was not very good – but still enjoyable, and entertaining.
At his best, he was a master storyteller and had an extraordinary control over his prose. He infused such an energy in his stories, that it was impossible not to get caught and carried along, dragged along screaming, almost, by the plot, the action, the imagery.

carried away

Howard’s role in the development of imaginative fiction and of fantasy in particular cannot be summarized in a single post on a backwaters blog like this.

But I’m going to list a few good stories – because that’s what we always do, right, when we talk about an author we love?
We suggest a few good titles for the uninitiated to check out and see what it’s all about.
And please, do the same, in the comments, and list your favorite Robert Howard stories. Continue reading →


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Merian Cooper’s “She”

Sometimes we look for something and we find something different – maybe something better.
Two nights ago I was talking with my friend Franco Pezzini about the Hammer version of H. Rider Haggard’s She – the one featuring Peter Cushing, Christopher Lee and Ursula Andress.
It’s a very unfaithful adaptation, but a fun movie.
So I decided I’ll watch it again, and do a post or two on it.
But while I was looking for the old Hammer flick, I stumbled on something even older, something I did not know existed – the Merian C. Cooper production of H. Rider-Haggard’s She, dating from 1935.

she2

The movie was considered lost for decades, it was found in Buster Keaton’s garage, restored by Ray Harryhausen, and right now you can find it on Youtube, of all places – in a rather decent , if sadly colorized, copy. Continue reading →


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Other People’s Pulp: The Villa Diodati Club

Yesterday I spent a wonderful afternoon with the other members of the Club Villa Diodati, a professional organization of writers and fantasists.

Villa Diodati

Here, in a shot caught by the esteemed Paolo Cavazza, I share the stage with (from left to right): Franco Pezzini, Danilo Arona, Cristiana Astori, Anna Berra & Massimo Soumaré.

And yes, I’m the only ugly one.
I’ll have to deal with it.