Blog Archives

Black Snake: The Forgotten Life of George Raft

Posted on July 2, 2015 by ronbase — 2 Comments

Please click HERE to download The Confidence Man The difference between Humphrey Bogart and George Raft came down to this: Bogey was an actor; Raft was a gangster. Bogart acted tough. Raft was tough. Raft conspired to ensure…

Gary Cooper, The Confidence Man, and the Ghosts of Old Hollywood

Posted on May 23, 2015 by ronbase — 1 Comment

What fascinated me most researching the Los Angeles of 1928 for my new novel, The Confidence Man, was the lost world of movies I encountered. That was the year, as any film buff knows, sound movies were introduced (most notably…

Me and the Duke

Posted on November 15, 2011 by ronbase — 2 Comments

In 1975, I went down to Newport Beach, California to interview John Wayne at the rambling seaside bungalow where he had lived for ten years. Wayne promptly pumped me full of tequila, a drink I had never had before, and…