Just last week, I came across these images from an ebay auction. A '46 noir starring Burt Lancaster as "Machine Gun" Kelly and Ava Gardner as Kathryn!

It sounded too good to be true -- the only MGK flick I knew about was a really cheesy one from the '50s starring Charles Bronson. I quickly scanned imdb for any mention of such a movie but couldn't find it.

Turns out, the stills were shot as a promotion for the classic movie THE KILLERS -- a film based on one of my favorite short stories of all time by Ernest Hemingway.

Why did the case of THE KILLERS decide to get decked out as the Kelly Gang and reenact the Charlie Urschel kidnapping? I'm not sure. But in these photos, you'll see some real legends acting out scenes you'll recognize from INFAMOUS.

* George's arrest by a G-Man.
* Kathryn being pushed around by Charlie Thorne
* The gang hatching the kidnapping plot
* Kathryn in all her glory
* Harvey Bailey's arrest on the Paradise, TX farm
* Charlie Urschel trying to escape.

I even went to my good pal, noir czar Eddie Muller, for a little direction. Apparently these stills were so rare that even Eddie hadn't seen them.

I will say a couple of 'em are now in my possession. But the one I really wanted, that great photo you see of Ava Gardner as Kathryn, fetched a price that went in the stratosphere. Isn't that just like Kit?

-- Ace

It's been more than a month of press and promotion for INFAMOUS. 15 cities. Phoenix, Houston, Austin, Dallas, Memphis, Birmingham, Atlanta, New York and all those great places in between. It's been by plane and by rental car. Morning shows and NPR. Phone interviews for the next stop.

Lots and lots of coffee. I really do appreciate the good folks at Starbucks.


So here I am now in Oklahoma City after the final book signing and sitting in the Skirvin Hotel where some of the action in INFAMOUS took place.

For those of you who've read the book, I can't help but think of ole Luther Arnold checking in with Kathryn's old jalopy and renting out that suite.

What a fitting end to the tour here in Oklahoma City -- the town that launched Machine Gun Kelly into infamy. After the book signing (attended by the granddaughter of the man who sentenced George and Kathryn), I was invited out to Charlie Urschel's mansion to take a tour of the house where he was snatched.

**See the photo of the sun room where Urschel was playing bridge with his wife and another couple when MGK and his partner Albert Bates burst through the door.


For dinner, I headed down to the old Stockyards and worked on a terrific T-bone at Cattlemen's -- a legendary OK City joint that's been around forever.

And on the last night of book tour, I'm having a nice glass of Gentleman Jack and toasting all those who came out to say hello and my good friends at G.P. Putnam's Sons for sending me out on the road.

After eight books and twelve years of doing this for a living, I can't tell you how much I appreciate the support of my readers.

Yesterday started off with a 101 fever that forced me to miss an anticipated signing at Big Sleep Books in St. Louis. Several hours later, I was feeling better and hit the road only to be stopped by the state patrol for speeding. I almost forgot today's hail storm that that spider-webbed the windshield of my rental.


Well . . you can't stop an author on tour.

Until next year! Adios.

It's been a wild past week. Since the last post, I was headed to New York for signings and to attend the 64th annual Edgar Awards. I got to catch up with a lot of friends including Otto Penzler at the Mysterious Bookshop (see photo) and ate some terrific food at the Katz and Carnegie delis. Also seems I was strolling through Time Square just about the time Faisal Shahzad was making a dry run to park that SUV.

My congratulations to Otto for winning best critical work for The Lineup and to Luis Alberto Urrea for his work in Phoenix Noir.


From NYC, there it was a fast flight back down South to the Alabama Writers Symposium. Year after year, these folks always make me feel so welcome in the hometown of Harper Lee. Here I am with Bert Hitchcock presenting me with a gift for being their keynote speaker.

I was also extremely impressed with a new Southern bookstore on the scene -- Beehive Books. After visiting the store, I'm confident this is going to become one of the great literary stops in the South.

After a brief rest back in Oxford, I'm headed down to one of my other favorite bookstores tonight for a reading. I'll be visiting my old friends Jamie and Kelly Kornegay owners of Turnrow Books, situated right in the heart of Greenwood.

Only two stops left on the INFAMOUS tour -- Big Sleep Books in St. Louis on May 15th and Full Circle Books in Oklahoma City on May 16th. The good folks at Putnam thought it was fitting that we wrap the tour where it all began for George and Kathryn Kelly. I hope to have some photos posted of the Urschel mansion where the kidnapping took place and my travels on Route 66. More soon, including a link to a short documentary filmed by my buddy Thad Lee about the Kellys.

-- Ace