Lawrence Block

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Lawrence Block (born June 24, 1938 in Buffalo , New York ) is an American writer . He wrote over 50 novels and over 100 short stories , mostly in the field of crime fiction . His series heroes include the New York private detective, ex-police officer and ex-alcoholic Matthew Scudder, the "day book dealer" and "night thief" Bernie Rhodenbarr and Evan Tanner, agent on behalf of the US government.

Life

Lawrence Block is the child of the Jewish couple Arthur and Leonore Block. His father died in 1960, his mother in 2001. At the age of 15, Block knew that he wanted to be a writer. He attended Antioch College in Yellow Springs , Ohio , and found during the holidays in 1956 as a post editor at the New York publishing Pines Publication his first job. In the summer of the following year, he sold his first short story, You Can't Loose , for $ 100 , which appeared in Manhunt magazine in February 1958 . In the following years he wrote other stories for various crime magazines , including Alfred Hitchcock's Mystery and Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine .

In addition to crime stories, Block wrote so-called “adult books” under various pseudonyms, series published novels whose only publishing stipulation was a pornographic scene per chapter (from today's point of view not very explicit, consisting mainly of allusions). In addition to earning money, Block used these novels primarily as a writing school where he could try his hand at writing. One of the few books in this genre that Block later admitted to is $ 20 Lust , which appeared under the pseudonym Andrew White, which was also used by other authors. Block also wrote detective novels under pseudonyms such as Paul Kavanagh or Chip Harrison. They have now been reprinted under his own name. As far as is known, he has only published as Lawrence Block since 1975.

In 1960, Block married Loretta Ann Kalett, with whom he has three children. After several moves, the family ended up in Racine , Wisconsin , in the mid-1960s , where he accepted a position as an editor at Whitman / Western Printing . Inspired by the adventurous smuggling life of a retired work colleague named Bill Higgie, Block wrote the novel The Thief Who Couldn't Sleep in the winter of 1965/66 , in which he introduced the character of the adventurer and globetrotter Evan Tanner. For Block the novel was a literary breakthrough. After his previous works processed his own reading in a more imitative way, Tanner was his first really independent character. In the following years, Block added more adventure novels to Evan Tanner. In the early 1970s he developed his best-known fictional character, the New York private investigator without a license Matthew Scudder. The three novels did not appear until 1976.

Despite his writing success, Block got into a personal crisis in the early 1970s. His marriage ended in divorce in 1973, his alcohol consumption grew, and he experienced writer's block and motivation problems for the first time in his career . In 1975, Block closed his New York apartment and drove across the United States to Los Angeles , where he arrived nine months later. The character of the burglar Bernie Rhodenbarr, who repeatedly involuntarily becomes a detective, emerged from a discussion of his possible life perspectives. In a month Block drove back to New York, there finished Burglar's Can't Be Choosers and had more novels in the funny-ironic style follow the series. The decisive factor for the rest of his life was, however, above all his abrupt decision to renounce alcohol: “In early April 1977 something monumental happened. I stopped drinking. "(" Something tremendous happened in early April 1977. I stopped drinking. ")

In 1983 Block married his second wife, Lynn Wood, with whom he made numerous trips around the globe. Despite changing places of residence, New York always remained his hometown. Block returned to the character Matthew Scudder in the 1980s and traced his fight against alcohol. Since then, the novels of his series heroes, to which the hit man Keller joined in 1990, have alternated with independent novels. A particular success with critics and audiences in 2003 was the New York novel Small Town , which was written after the terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001 . Block received numerous important awards for his novels and life's work. He passes on his experience as a writer in columns and writing courses. In 1984, Block was President of Private Eye Writers of America , and in 2000 of Mystery Writers of America .

Block also markets e-books and paperbacks of his novels as self-publication . In doing so, he enters into partnerships with translators who translate his books into other languages. Since 2016, Stefan Mommertz has been translating some Matthew Scudder novels as well as various short stories as part of such a partnership. In addition, the translations by Sepp Leeb, which were originally published by Heyne Verlag , are being reprinted.

plant

With over 50 novels and more than 100 short stories, Lawrence Block is one of the most productive and versatile authors of crime fiction, according to Axel Bußmer. Block is also a quick writer. Most of his books are created within a few weeks and are already being edited during the creation process so that they are ready for printing when they are submitted. Block seldom starts from an exposé, but develops the plot while writing. This also explains his preference for the first person perspective . Almost all of his novels are written from the perspective of their main characters. Third person books, such as the Keller series, or some multi-perspective novels remain the exception. The plot is mostly told chronologically. Some early novels, such as the Evan Tanner series, prefer a chronologically later chapter in order to create tension with the immediate start of the plot.

The Matthew Scudder series is in the tradition of classic private decree novels by Raymond Chandler , Dashiell Hammett and Ross MacDonald . Like his genre predecessors, Scudder is a “ hardboiled detective ”, a “hard-nosed investigator”. In doing so, Block transfers the type of private detective of the 1930s and 1940s to the present. Scudder is a former NYPD cop who quit his job because he feels guilty about the death of a girl. His marriage breaks up, even with Scudder's heavy alcohol consumption. The detective earns his living without a license through “friendship services”, which are rewarded by voluntary gifts, of which he donates tithes to different churches. What distinguishes the series from other detective novels is its nature as a development novel : Scudder ages and is changed by his experiences. The first five novels show the path from alcoholic to teetotaler, whereby Scudder's descent can be understood as a symbol of social disintegration. From the sixth novel onwards, the city of New York becomes the main character, the detective story develops into a big city novel .

Like Matthew Scudder, Bernie Rhodenbarr is a passionate New Yorker, but he is also a passionate burglar with a fascination for the lives of the people he steps into with his break-in. He, who acts almost non-violently throughout, is confronted each time with a corpse during his break-ins, whose demise he feels compelled to clear up of suspicions. In the Rhodenbarr novels, Lawrence Block plays with the laws of the detective novel: a criminal acts as an investigator and solves the cases with the not always legal means of his profession. From the third volume onwards, he is accompanied by a Dr. Watson figure in the form of the lesbian Carolyn Kaiser . The “assembly of all suspects” at the end of each novel is reminiscent of Agatha Christie or Ellery Queen , but Rhodenbarr also pulls previously completely unknown figures out of the reader's hat and thus deprives them of the possibility of the perpetrator himself, as with the classics to guess. The hallmarks of the series are the interspersed speeches by the first-person narrator Rhodenbarr to the readers as well as the title quotations from the book, which (from Kipling to Spinoza ) Rhodenbarr reads in the respective volume.

According to Axel Bußmer, Evan Tanner is “a sleepless globetrotter, sympathizer and fighter for lost politically hopeless interests and the honors of young women”. Tanner is on behalf of an ominous American organization that operates on its own initiative and without government cover. At the beginning and the end of the novel he meets a nameless "boss" and never knows exactly whether he is actually working for or against him. He feels magically drawn to political splinter groups and their hopeless struggle for freedom. He serves as a kind of catalyst in this struggle that leads others to fight for their cause. The stories are set in the Cold War , in a world divided according to a good-evil scheme. In their knitting pattern, they are reminiscent of the Odyssey : the hero sets off to experience fantastic adventures and at the end of the day to return to his homeland. There are adventure novels in the style of Matt Helm or James Bond, free of any realistic claim . When Block followed up with another Evan Tanner novel after a 28-year hiatus in 1998, the world had changed. The agent Tanner's time is over and, according to Axel Bußmer, he has lost "the escapist innocence of the early years".

Awards

Awards for life's work / special achievements

Literary awards

Publications

The Matthew Scudder novels

  • 1976 The Sins of the Fathers
    • Murder in private , German by Heinz Nagel, Rastatt: Pabel, 1977
    • The sins of the fathers , new translation by Stefan Mommertz, LB Productions, 2016
  • 1976 In the Midst of Death
    • In the middle of death , German by Heinz Nagel, Rastatt: Pabel, 1978
    • In the middle of death , new translation by Stefan Mommertz, LB Productions, 2016
  • 1977 Time to Murder and Create
    • Blood money from a dead person , German by Rudolf Ernst, Rastatt: Pabel, 1979
    • Three on the hook , new translation by Stefan Mommertz, LB Productions, 2016
  • 1981 A Stab in the Dark
    • Old murders don't rust , German by Renée Mayer, Bern, Munich, Vienna: Scherz, 1984, ISBN 3-502-50952-2
    • Deep with the first dead , new translation by Stefan Mommertz, LB Productions, 2017
  • 1982 Eight Million Ways to Die - Shamus Award 1983
    • Many roads lead to murder , by Sepp Leeb, Munich: Heyne, 1985, ISBN 3-453-10754-3
    • Eight Million Ways to Die , new edition of the translation by Sepp Leeb, LB Productions, 2017
  • 1986 When the Sacred Ginmill Closes - Maltese Falcon Award 1987
    • After the curfew , German by Sepp Leeb, Munich: Heyne, 1987, ISBN 3-453-00210-5
    • After curfew , new edition of the translation by Sepp Leeb, LB Productions, 2017
  • 1989 Out on the Cutting Edge
    • Angel of the night , German by Sepp Leeb, Munich: Heyne, 1991, ISBN 3-453-04644-7
    • At the Edge of the Abyss , new edition of the translation by Sepp Leeb, LB Productions, 2017
  • 1990 A Ticket to the Boneyard - Maltese Falcon Award 1990
    • A ticket for the cemetery , German by Sepp Leeb, Munich: Heyne, 1991, ISBN 3-453-04944-6
    • A ticket for the cemetery , new edition of the translation by Sepp Leeb, LB Productions, 2017
  • 1991 A Dance at the Slaughterhouse - Edgar Award 1992
    • Tanz im Schlachthof , German by Sepp Leeb, Munich: Heyne, 1993, ISBN 3-453-06464-X
    • Tanz im Schlachthof , new edition of the translation by Sepp Leeb, LB Productions, 2017
  • 1992 A Walk Among the Tombstones
    • Endstation Friedhof , German by Sepp Leeb, Munich: Heyne, 1994, ISBN 3-453-07878-0
    • Rest in Peace , new edition of the translation by Sepp Leeb, LB Productions, 2018
  • 1993 The Devil Knows You're Dead - Shamus Award 1994
    • The devil knows everything , German by Sepp Leeb, Munich: Heyne, 1995, ISBN 3-453-08986-3
    • In Teufels Küche , new edition of the translation by Sepp Leeb, LB Productions, 2017
  • 1994 A Long Line of Dead Men
    • The private club , German by Sepp Leeb, Munich: Heyne, 1996, ISBN 3-453-10866-3
    • Der Club der Toten , new edition of the translation by Sepp Leeb, LB Productions, 2017
  • 1997 Even the Wicked
    • In the name of the people , German by Sepp Leeb, Munich: Heyne, 1998, ISBN 3-453-13137-1
    • In the name of the people , new edition of the translation by Sepp Leeb, LB Productions, 2017
  • 1998 Everybody Dies
    • Losses , German by Katrin Mrugalla, Berlin: Shayol, 2008, ISBN 978-3-926126-75-7
    • Alle die , new translation by Stefan Mommertz, LB Productions, 2018
  • 2001 Hope to Die
    • The second death , German by Sepp Leeb, LB Productions, 2018
  • 2005 All the Flowers Are Dying
    • The flowers, they all die , German by Sepp Leeb, LB Productions, 2018
  • 2011 A Drop of the Hard Stuff
    • A sip of the hard stuff , German by Stefan Mommertz, LB Productions, 2019
  • 2013 The Night and the Music (collection of short stories)
    • The night and the music , German by Stefan Mommertz, LB Productions, 2018
  • 2018 A Time to Scatter Stones (Novella)
    • The last light of the day , German by Sepp Leeb, LB Productions, 2020

The Bernie Rhodenbarr novels

  • 1977 Burglars Can't Be Choosers
    • Thieves take what they get , German from Sepp Leeb, Munich: Zürich, Piper, 1993, ISBN 3-492-15598-7
  • 1978 The Burglar in the Closet
    • Freshly stolen is half murdered , German by Felix von Poellheim, Bern, Munich, Vienna: Scherz, 1980, ISBN 3-502-50779-1
    • also as: The thief in the closet , Munich, Zurich: Piper, 1995, ISBN 3-492-15636-3
  • 1979 The Burglar Who Liked to Quote Kipling - Nero Wolfe Award 1979
    • Whoever steals is hard to believe , German by Felix von Poellheim, Bern, Munich, Vienna: Scherz, 1983, ISBN 3-502-50888-7
    • also as: The thief who liked to quote Kipling , Munich, Zurich: Piper, 1993, ISBN 3-492-15603-7
  • 1980 The Burglar Who Studied Spinoza
    • A philosopher with long fingers , German by Hardo Wichmann, Bern, Munich, Vienna: Scherz, 1984, ISBN 3-502-50964-6
    • also as: Only dead witnesses talk , joke, 1995, ISBN 3-502-51519-0
  • 1983 The Burglar Who Painted Like Mondrian
    • Murder is not a fine art , German by Sylvia Denzl, Bern, Munich: Scherz, 1997, ISBN 3-502-51596-4
    • also as: The thief who painted like Mondrian , Munich, Zurich: Piper, 1992, ISBN 3-492-15594-4
  • 1994 The Burglar Who Traded Ted Williams
  • 1995 The Burglar Who Thought He Was Bogart
  • 1997 The Burglar in the Library
  • 1999 The Burglar in the Rye
  • 2004 The Burglar on the Prowl

The Evan Tanner novels

  • 1966 The Thief Who Couldn't Sleep
  • 1966 The Canceled Czech
  • 1967 Tanner's Twelve Swingers
    • Twelve Girls and the Superman , German by Heinz Nagel, Munich: Heyne, 1972
  • 1968 The Scoreless Thai , also as: Two for Tanner
    • Hot pants leave the murderer cold , German by Heinz Nagel, Munich: Heyne, 1972
  • 1968 Tanner's Tiger
  • 1968 Here Comes a Hero , also called: Tanner's Virgin
  • 1970 Me Tanner, You Jane
  • 1998 Tanner on Ice

The basement novels

  • 1998 Hit Man
    • Keller's Metier , German by Sepp Leeb, LB Productions, 2018
  • 2000 hit list
    • Keller's competitor , German by Sepp Leeb, LB Productions, 2019
  • 2006 Hit Parade
    • Keller's hit parade , German by Sepp Leeb, LB Productions, 2019
  • 2008 hit and run
  • 2013 Hit Me

Other novels and short stories

  • 1961 Cinderella Sims , also called: $ 20 Lust
  • 1961 Coward's Kiss , also as: Death Pulls a Doublecross
  • 1961 Grifter's Game , also as: Mona and as: Sweet Slow Death
  • 1961 You Could Call it Murder
  • 1965 The Girl With the Long Green Heart
    • Murder in the Hotel , German by Ingrid Lechleitner, Hamburg, Zurich, Vienna: Winther, 1967
    • Double game for three , German by Werner Gronwald, Munich: Heyne, 1967
    • Falsches Herz , new translation by Andreas C. Knigge, Berlin: Rotbuch 2009
  • 1967 Deadly Honeymoon
    • Deadly Honeymoon , German by Werner Gronwald, Munich: Heyne, 1970
  • 1969 After the First Death
    • Eva died in a double bed , German by Heinz Stockdorf, Munich: Heyne, 1970
  • 1969 The Specialists
    • The specialists , German by Hans Maeter, Munich: Heyne, 1970
  • 1969 Such Men Are Dangerous
  • 1971 Ronald Rabbit is a Dirty Old Man
  • 1971 The Triumph of Evil
  • 1974 Not Comin 'Home to You
  • 1980 Ariel
  • 1988 Random Walk
  • 2002 Enough Rope: Collected Stories
  • 2003 Small Town
  • 2007 My Blueberry Nights
  • 2020 Dead Girl Blues
    • Dead Girl Blues , German by Sepp Leeb, LB Productions, 2020

Non-fiction

  • 1979 Writing the Novel from Plot to Print
  • 1981 Telling Lies for Fun & Profit
  • 1986 Write for Your Life
  • 1987 Spider, Spin Me a Web

editor

  • 2016: In Sunlight or In Shadow. Stories Inspired by the Paintings of Edward Hopper
    • Nighthawks. Stories based on paintings by Edward Hopper , German by Frauke Czwikla, Munich: Droemer 2017, ISBN 978-3-426-28164-2
  • 2017: Alive In Shape and Color. 17 Paintings by Great Artists and the Stories They Inspired
    • The girl with the fan. Stories based on famous works of art , German by Frauke Czwikla, Munich: Droemer 2018, ISBN 978-3-426-28213-7

Filmography

script
Literary template

literature

  • Axel Bußmer (Ed.): Lawrence Block. A retrospective of a New York author . Nordpark, Wuppertal 2006, ISBN 3-935421-17-6

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Axel Bußmer: Lawrence Block - A murderous life . In: Axel Bußmer (Ed.): Lawrence Block. A retrospective of a New York author . Nordpark, Wuppertal 2006, ISBN 3-935421-17-6 , pp. 9-11.
  2. ↑ Axel Bußmer: Lawrence Block - A murderous life . In: Axel Bußmer (Ed.): Lawrence Block. A retrospective of a New York author . Nordpark, Wuppertal 2006, ISBN 3-935421-17-6 , pp. 12-14.
  3. ↑ Axel Bußmer: Lawrence Block - A murderous life . In: Axel Bußmer (Ed.): Lawrence Block. A retrospective of a New York author . Nordpark, Wuppertal 2006, ISBN 3-935421-17-6 , pp. 15-18.
  4. ↑ Axel Bußmer: Lawrence Block - A murderous life . In: Axel Bußmer (Ed.): Lawrence Block. A retrospective of a New York author . Nordpark, Wuppertal 2006, ISBN 3-935421-17-6 , pp. 18-19.
  5. ↑ Axel Bußmer: Lawrence Block - A murderous life . In: Axel Bußmer (Ed.): Lawrence Block. A retrospective of a New York author . Nordpark, Wuppertal 2006, ISBN 3-935421-17-6 , pp. 10, 20-23.
  6. ^ The Past Officers of Private Eye Writers of America . On the Private Eye Writers of America website .
  7. ^ MWA Presidents . On the Mystery Writers of America website
  8. ^ Joachim Feldmann: Nursing staff wanted. In: Culturmag , February 15, 2016.
  9. ↑ Welcome back, Jill Emerson! . Blog entry on Lawrence Block's website.
  10. ↑ Lawrence Block wishes you a happy 2017! . Lawrence Block newsletter.
  11. ↑ Axel Bußmer: Lawrence Block - A murderous life . In: Axel Bußmer (Ed.): Lawrence Block. A retrospective of a New York author . Nordpark, Wuppertal 2006, ISBN 3-935421-17-6 , pp. 9, 29-30.
  12. ↑ Claus Kerkhoff: Urban Noir: The Mathew Scudder series . In: Axel Bußmer (Ed.): Lawrence Block. A retrospective of a New York author . Nordpark, Wuppertal 2006, ISBN 3-935421-17-6 , pp. 44-69.
  13. ↑ Ina Lommatzsch: A thief as a detective: The Bernie Rhodenbarr series . In: Axel Bußmer (Ed.): Lawrence Block. A retrospective of a New York author . Nordpark, Wuppertal 2006, ISBN 3-935421-17-6 , pp. 70-82.
  14. ↑ Axel Bußmer: The sleepless globetrotter - The Evan Tanner series . In: Axel Bußmer (Ed.): Lawrence Block. A retrospective of a New York author . Nordpark, Wuppertal 2006, ISBN 3-935421-17-6 , pp. 31-43.
personal data
SURNAME Block, Lawrence
BRIEF DESCRIPTION American crime novelist
DATE OF BIRTH June 24, 1938
PLACE OF BIRTH Buffalo , New York , USA