Saturday, November 28, 2009
Los Angeles in the 1930's and a murder is committed. America is in the grips of the depression. Hollywood wannabe's Robert Syverten and Gloria Beatty meet by chance outside Paramont Studios. Both have come from hardship in the rural midwest to the bright lights on Los Angeles. Both have dreams of making it big. Both have so far failed.They decide to enter a dance marathon taking place in an amusement pier by the city beach. The prize is $1,000 and it's known that Hollywood producers frequent these marathons looking out for a new potential star.
All of life is contains within this novel, greed, envy, lust, the rupture of ideals. We see the depths to which the contestants are forced to debase themselves in order to win the prizemoney. The promoters of the dance marathon even propose holding a sham wedding in order to draw the customers in. The dancers become mini celebrities in their own right and the good and great of the entertainment industry come to observe and be observed.
Reading this short novel with the dance contestants searching for the elusive pot of gold that is fame the reader will be reminded of X-Factor. The constestants Robert and Gloria pushing themselves to the limit of endurance in pursuit of their dream.
Unusual in the sense that in this short sharp crime novel, the reader knows from the very first page the identity of the murderer and their motivation. This tale is one which will easily captivate the imagination of the reader.
Labels: by Horace McCoy, Don't They, They Shoot Horses
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