A Hollywood Curse? Los Angeles newspaper columnist Neil Gulliver and his ex-wife Stevie Marriner, the "sex queen of the soaps," uncover a pattern in the supposed accidental deaths of movie icon James Dean's Rebel Without a Cause co-stars Natalie Wood, Sal Mineo and Nick Adams. Were they and others associated with Dean, in fact, murdered? Was Dean's tragic death in a fiery highway crash forty-five years ago also no accident, or is it possible that--as millions of his fans continue to believe--James Dean survived the crash and is still alive today?Neil and Stevie escape threats on their own lives while tracking those answers and a solution to a series of new murders on a trail that takes them over the same death route the star drove in his Porsche and, finally, to his boyhood home in Fairmount, Indiana, where nothing is as it seems about James Dean, not the truth and, for certain, not the lies. But--which is which?
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Book Description
Editorial Reviews
Amazon.com Review
The James Dean Affair may not be an affair to remember, but it's a pleasant enough romp through a contemporary Los Angeles that's even more haunted by ghosts of movie stars than you already think it is. The plot of the story turns on a James Dean impersonator--or is he the real thing?--who shows up at a party marking the release of the James Dean commemorative stamp. This impersonator kills one Nico Mercouri, who is one more link in the chain of bizarre deaths visited upon costars of Mr. Dean, including Natalie Wood and Sal Mineo. So reasons the detective team of Neil Gulliver, an L.A. Daily columnist, and Stevie Marriner, an aging but sexy soap opera queen. Ex-spouses and best friends (anything's possible in fiction, right?), they set out on a goose chase around the Southland, hunting down the true identity of the killer and getting into enough scrapes to fill a 1950s B movie.
It's their pal Augie, AKA Brother Kalman, a one-eyed Brother of the Order of the Rhyming Heart, who first sets them thinking that the Dean look-alike may be the real McCoy. "I'm sent packing to Santa Catalina to find Jesus and instead I find Jimmy Dean," he declares over doughnuts at Fred's 62, a '50s diner. "The man has been dead for going on 30 years, yet here he is, and now I know the truth: Santa Catalina is heaven." Part hero worship, part talk-show confessional, The James Dean Affair romps through a pop culture mausoleum with gleeful abandon. Robert Levinson has mixed in references to many '50s movies and sprinkled The Great Gatsby over the top for a little temporal texture. (In the course of hearing about pudgy, preteen Stevie's rape--an episode that is tonally dissonant with the rest of the novel--we learn she named her imaginary friends Zelda, Daisy, and Jordan.)
The meager plot of The James Dean Affair gets a big kick out of the Second Amendment: Neil and Stevie pack heat, and without those weapons, thrills would be scarce, along the lines of I-remember-Nat-during-her-Miracle-on-34th-Street-days. But no matter. Too much nostalgia, too many characters, and way too many car chases only make for a fairly likable if fluffy regional mystery that should appeal to fans of Hollywood glam. --Kathi Inman Berens --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
From Publishers Weekly
Sexy soap opera star Stevie (aka Stephanie) Marriner and her former husband, reporter Neil Gulliver, return for a second romp through Hollywood scandals, past and present. Stevie convinces Neil to attend a ceremony at the Hollywood post office for the issuing of the James Dean commemorative stamp. Stevie hopes that an item in Neil's column about one of Dean's long-ago co-stars, Nico Mercouri, will help Nico keep his job with Stevie's soap. Violence erupts at the ceremony, however, and Nico ends up dead, killed by a man eerily resembling James Dean himself. Aided by his old friend and mentor, Augie Fowler, now the self-styled "Brother Kalman," Neil sets off on a quest for the truth behind the murder, while trying to keep both himself and Stevie alive. At the heart of the present-day mayhem is the question: did James Dean really die on September 30, 1955? And if not, how did he turn into a heartless killer? The investigation takes Neil and Stevie on a tortuous course through Hollywood history, examining the fates of many of those connected with Dean in his heyday, like Natalie Wood and Sal Mineo, both of whom died under odd or brutal circumstances. Fans of Hollywood history and trivia will have a blast with the serpentine plot and arcane Dean lore that Levinson puts in the service of his puzzle. Others may find it all too convoluted and opt to rent one of Dean's old movies instead. Agent, Susan Crawford. (Aug.)
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
9 of 10 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A deligtful Nick and Nora type mystery,
This review is from: The James Dean Affair: A Neil Gulliver & Stevie Marriner Novel (Hardcover)
Every Hollywood insider including columnist Neil Gulliver and soap opera queen Stevie Mariner knew that the Rebel without a Cause teen idol was destined to be Elvis before Elvis. However, the giant screen star died in a fiery crash in 1955.Stevie is going to perform at the Hollywood Post Office branch as part of the James Dean commemorative stamp celebration. During the gala event, a Dean look alike interrupts the proceedings by killing an actor who worked with Dean. Unable to resist their curiosity, the formerly married to one another, but still friendly couple, Neil and Stevie investigate the mysterious stranger. However, instead of a simple case, the evidence they find points to Dean not dying in the car crash and a conspiracy in progress for years that kills several of his film co-stars. Now the assailants target Neil and Stevie. Robert S. Levinson uses his droll wit to provide readers with a humorous look at the seemingly surreal world of Hollywood. Stevie and Neil provide a charming and bickering duet that easily could have starred Lucy and Desi. Their relationship is cleverly intertwined to support the exciting story line of THE JAMES DEAN AFFAIR. The fast-paced plot makes filmdom seem darker and seedier than usual, but handled with a classy touch that enthralls the audience with the sub-culture and the mystery. Harriet Klausner
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Not bad,
By
This review is from: The James Dean Affair: A Neil Gulliver & Stevie Marriner Novel (Hardcover)
While reading this novel, I found it intensifying. It had few flaws (such as the fact that the story would have been better off if it was based on a fictional Hollywood star rather than James Dean). However, it is funny, witty, and most of all thrilling. Everyones entitled to there own opinion however. But to me it is a pretty great book.
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Decent Follow-Up,
By A Customer
This review is from: The James Dean Affair: A Neil Gulliver & Stevie Marriner Novel (Hardcover)
I've read all three books in this series, and while this is not my favorite of the three, it is still a far better read than much of what attempts to pass for reading material in today's throw-it-together publishing world.Stevie and Neil remain fun, and the never ending action kept me turning the pages so that I wouldn't have to go to sleep without finding out what really happened. You'll want to know too, I think, and like all series with developing characters it is a lot of fun to get to know them from the beginning.
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