Chandler's two weeks in a state of permanent intoxication

[Paul Mackin]

----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Joe Allonby" <joeallonby at gmail.com>
To: "Heikki Raudaskoski" <hraudask at sun3.oulu.fi>
Cc: <pynchon-l at waste.org>
Sent: Wednesday, August 12, 2009 11:52 AM
Subject: Re: Chandler's two weeks in a state of permanent intoxication


> Sometimes one little error jumps out and kinda ruins the whole effect
> of the article. La Jolla is a suburb of San Diego, not Los Angeles.

Los Angeles is so vast it may think San Diego is one of its suburbs..

P
> The writer is publishing on an Irish website, so he might not know the
> difference, but there definitely is one. What else did he get wrong?
>
> On Wed, Aug 12, 2009 at 7:32 AM, Heikki
> Raudaskoski<hraudask at sun3.oulu.fi> wrote:
>>
>>
>> "In January 1944, Paramount discovered that their biggest star, Alan 
>> Ladd,
>> was due to be drafted to fight in Europe, and it was suddenly realised
>> that there was no vehicle ready for release which would sustain his 
>> public
>> image while he was away. The studio heads were delighted, therefore, when
>> Chandler mentioned that he had some work on hand that might be suitable,
>> which he called The Blue Dahlia. Casting began instantly. Veronica Lake
>> was chosen to play opposite Ladd, and within weeks director George
>> Marshall was rapidly catching up on the existing written screenplay.
>> Pretty soon, there were only a few pages left to shoot, but the 
>> conclusion
>> was nowhere in sight, and nobody - including Chandler himself - knew who
>> would turn out to be the villain. Chandler had designated Buzz, a
>> brain-damaged veteran who was subject to amnesiac blackouts, for this
>> fateful place, but the U.S. army vetoed the idea, not wanting to suggest
>> to Joe Q. Public that the returning wartime heroes were anything other
>> than cerebrally solid citizens. Panic ensued. The nervous heads of
>> production promised Ray a five thousand dollar bonus if he finished on
>> time. He was affronted by the offer: he had every intention of completing
>> his assigned and paid-for task. This insulting bribe, in the opinion of
>> his producer and friend John Houseman, shattered his self-confidence, and
>> he withdrew from the project in despair and rage. The next day however, 
>> he
>> decided there was only one way he could finish the script: drunk.
>>
>> So it came about that Chandler spent two weeks in a state of permanent
>> intoxication, lounging about his house, now idly working on a couple of
>> pages of script, then lightly dozing for a couple of hours, maintaining
>> his optimum level of drunkenness with continual sips of bourbon, not
>> eating but receiving regular vitamin jabs from a specially-commissioned
>> doctor. All this required two limousines, six secretaries, and a direct
>> telephone line to the studio open day and night...."
>>
>> http://iol.ie/~galfilm/filmwest/31chand.htm
>>
>>