The Last Detail by Darryl Ponicsan

(hb; 1970)

Review

In Norfolk, Virginia, two “lifer” Naval Petty Officers─Billy James Buddusky (a.k.a. “Billy Bad-Ass”), a book- and street-smart Polack with a temper, and Richard Mulhall (a.k.a. Mule), a black mostly level-headed man─pull “chaser” duty (escorting a fellow Navy man to the brig), a job considered to be choice work. Their prisoner, Lawrence Meadows, an eighteen-year-old, kind-hearted kleptomaniac, has stolen forty dollars from a charity box in commissary store. Because that charity box is favored a high-ranking officer’s wife, Meadows has been sentenced to a eight-year sentence in a Portsmouth, New Hampshire brig.

A fatalistic aura hangs heavy over this sometimes-hilarious, often heartbreaking story about three men who, for all their differences, become friends. It’s not just another detail for any of them─for Meadows, who’s inexperienced in worldly matters (“booze and broads”), it’s his first and (for a while) his last chance to enjoy relative freedom. For Buddusky and Mulhall it’s a disruption of their comfortable routine.

Unpredictable, full of wild behavior and sharp/raw dialogue, this is an exhilarating blast of a read. The ending is not Hollywood happy but it does not need to be because the heart of this novel is its memorable characters and their life-changing interactions. Great stuff, this. Followed by a sequel penned by Ponicsan, Last Flag Flying.

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The Last Detail was released stateside on December 12, 1973. Hal Ashby directed it, from Robert Towne’s screenplay.

Jack Nicholson played “SM1 Billy ‘Bad Ass’ Buddusky.” Otis Young played “GM1 ‘Mule’ Mulhall.” Randy Quaid played Seaman Larry Meadows.

Clifton James played “M.A.A.” Carol Kane played a “Young Whore.” Michael Moriarty played a “Marine O.D.” Nancy Allen played Nancy. Gilda Radner played "Nichiren Shoshu Member." Director Hal Ashby played "Bearded Man at Bar in Darts Scene" (an uncredited role).

Live And Let Die by Ian Fleming

(pb; 1954: second book in the original 007/James Bond series)

From the back cover

“James Bond vows to crush Mr. Big, the master criminal whose network of terror is reaping rich profits for the Kremlin. He enlists the help of a dangerous French beauty, and they seek out their quarry on a mysterious yacht off the island of Jamaica – a yacht guarded by savage sharks and blood-maddened barracuda... where voodoo drums beat out a rhythm of death.”


Review

Bond goes up against Mr. Big, who’s smuggling thought-to-be-lost, seventeenth-century coins from Jamaica to Harlem. While that’s a major concern, there’s something larger to be concerned about: Mr. Big is a member of SMERSH, who employs voodoo (specifically Baron Samedi, the loa of sex and death) to control his minions.

Helping Bond is Solitaire (a.k.a. Simone Latrelle), Mr. Big’s psychic ex-fiancee. Also aiding Bond is Felix Leiter, Bond’s friend and CIA agent (who appeared in Casino Royale), as well as Quarrel, a Jamaican boatman, who later appears in the sixth Bond novel, Dr. No.

The follow-up to Casino Royale is swiftly-plotted and a blast of a read, especially when Bond, seeking to stop Mr. Big (and rescue Solitaire, who’s been kidnapped), must enter Big’s fortress by swimming through Shark Bay, which is patrolled by gunboats, and vicious, specially-trained barracudas and sharks. The tension in that section is so well-written it may be one of my favorite sections of any Bond novel, thus far.

This one of my favorite Bond novels, a superb first sequel in the Bond series. Followed by Moonraker.

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The resulting film was released stateside on June 27, 1973. Guy Hamilton directed the film, from Tom Mankiewicz's screenplay.

Roger Moore played James Bond. Yaphet Kotto played Mr. Big. Jane Seymour played Solitaire. David Hedison played Felix Leiter. Roy Stewart played Quarrel Jr.

Bernard Lee played M. Lois Maxwell played Moneypenny. Clifton James played Sheriff Pepper. Julius Harris, billed as Julius W. Harris, played Tee Hee. Geoffrey Holder played Baron Samedi. Gloria Hendry played Rosie.