Some years ago, at a summer camp in Maine, I heard a story I have never forgotten. A lady, hearing about my father’s story in the Mexican Revolution, now the published book “Dos Gringos,” told me about her Jewish grandmother and Pancho Villa. It … [Read more...]
“Pancho Villa’s Air Force”
It is amazing who you meet at the beach. Learning I had written "Dos Gringos," a book set in The Mexican Revolution, a nice woman introduced me to her friend saying the friend’s father was involved with building an air force for Pancho Villa. The … [Read more...]
Getting the Microstory of the Mexican Revolution
I have been asked to join a panel discussion on October 30 at The El Paso Central Library, part of their celebration of the Mexican Revolution centenary. The host of the discussion will be David Dorado Romo and that is what this post is about. He is … [Read more...]
The St. Patrick Battalion
It is amazing what develops out of the exercise of writing a novel. Things you never thought about come to mind. If you had been watching TV or at the gym instead of secluding your thoughts into your story, it simply would not happen. In writing … [Read more...]
“Dos Gringos” for Latinos
The interest in “Dos Gringos” amongst the Latino community is growing. As Dena Burroughs writes in the “LatinoLA” and earlier in “LA Arts Examiner,“ the story in Dos Gringos is of particular interest this year as November 2010 will mark the … [Read more...]
The Jews of El Paso
Someone ought to write a book about the Jews of El Paso. When I grew up in that Texas border town, I was very aware of the Jews. My mother bought our shoes at Given’s Shoe Store. Some of the leading Jews were 32nd Degree Masons, as was my dad. … [Read more...]
Texas History Rewritten
Napoleon said, “History is what men have decided upon.” When I saw a PBS television show a few years ago about The Battle of the Alamo, I knew what he meant. As a high school student in El Paso, Texas, we dutifully learned all about the founding of … [Read more...]
Pancho Villa in “Dos Gringos”
Readers of “Dos Gringos” know that the infamous Pancho Villa is not a major character in the story. But surely his side of The Mexican Revolution is very much there, and represented by “The Hawk” who personifies the spirit of the revolution and is … [Read more...]
German Texans in the “Dos Gringos” Story
Beautiful Pauline in El Paso, Texas, is the love interest of Arthur, the immigrant Norwegian mechanical expert who in “Dos Gringos” risks his life to raise a few dollars to buy a wedding ring. He volunteers, with his Irish partner, in the midst of … [Read more...]