DARK WINDS: Second Season news

From the Albuquerque Journal:

The second season of the AMC series Dark Winds will premiere July 30 on both AMC and AMC+.

According to Anne Hillerman, daughter of Tony Hillerman, on whose series the show is based, will have six episodes.

“I’m excited to see the shows,” Hillerman writes. “I have really enjoyed this re-envisioning of my dad’s novels.”

Set in 1971 on a remote outpost of the Navajo Nation near Monument Valley, Utah, Dark Winds follows Lt. Joe Leaphorn of the Tribal Police as he is besieged by a series of seemingly unrelated crimes. The closer he digs to the truth, the more he exposes the wounds of his past. He is joined on this journey by his new deputy, Jim Chee. Chee, too, has old scores to settle from his youth on the reservation. Zahn McClarnon and Kiowa Gordon bring Leaphorn and Chee to life in the series, alongside Jessica Matten, who brings Bernadette Manuelito to the screen and Noah Emmerich as FBI Special Agent Whitover, Deanna Allison as Joe’s wife Emma Leaphorn, and features Rainn Wilson as Devoted Dan, a full-of-faith car salesman.

The series is directed by Chris Eyre and produced by Robert Redford, George R.R. Martin and Vince Calandra.

Anne Hillerman has continued the Leaphorn/Chee/Manuelito series. The eighth book, The Way of the Bear, is the most recent.

HT: SarahRH

TONY HILLERMAN: THE MYSTERY WRITER WHO WAS A CHANGE AGENT: Guest Post by James McGrath Morris

Tony Hillerman: The Mystery Writer who was a Change Agent - Guest post by James McGrath Morris 

When Tony Hillerman sat down at his typewriter in the late 1960s his plan was only to write a saleable mystery novel. As he typed away, his insecurity about the task ahead drove him to include a Navajo element. The Oklahoma native, and now New Mexico resident, was confident of his writing ability after years in journalism. But he remained unsure he could pull off a mystery. “I thought that the Navajos and the Navajo reservation were so intriguing that even if my plots weren’t so good, the background would be interesting,” Hillerman said. 

So he placed his protagonist, a white anthropologist, on the Navajo Nation and created a supporting character by introducing a Navajo Tribal Police detective whom he named Joe Leaphorn. He invented the name after reading Mary Renault’s 1962 novel The Bull from the Sea. She wrote about Cretans jumping over the bull’s horns and Hillerman made up the name Leaphorn. It didn’t matter that there were no Navajos with such a name. “Besides,” Hillerman thought, “the policeman wasn’t going to be that important anyway, the anthropologist was going to be the main character.” 

When he completed the book Hillerman recognized the significance of what he had done, accident or no accident, by introducing Leaphorn as a secondary character in his first book. So did some reviewers, such as Allen J. Hubin in The New York Times Book Review. For Hubin, the great appeal of The Blessing Way lay not with the white archeologist who served as the protagonist but rather with Hillerman’s cast of Navajo characters. 

Bookstore mystery shelves back then were loaded down with detective novels set in urban milieus, like those written by Raymond Chandler, Ross Macdonald, and other masters of the form. Except for a little-known Australian writer, Arthur Upfield, the world of fictional detectives was white, male, and citified. A rez cop was something new and noteworthy. 

As soon as he finished his second novel—a book with no Native Americans—Hillerman began a new book in which he would make Joe Leaphorn the main character and fully fleshed out. The resulting novel, Dance Hall of the Dead, was published in 1973 and launched what is now recognized as a groundbreaking 18-book series that changed the genre. Hillerman, in the words of the Los Angeles Times, “reinvented the mystery novel as a venue for the exploration and celebration of Native American history, culture and identity.” 

In the end, Hillerman’s greatest achievement was not the writing of spellbinding mysteries. Rather, it was his use of the popular genre to unlock the mysteries of Navajo culture for non-Natives like him. Just as Mary Renault’s earlier novels did with ancient Greece, Hillerman’s books introduced millions of readers to the Diné way of life in a respectful and compelling manner that remains a relevant model for cross-cultural communication. 

James McGrath Morris is author of the new biography, TONY HILLERMAN: A Life (University of Oklahoma Press Hardcover; October 14, 2021).

***

James McGrath Morris is an award-winning and New York Times best-selling author. His books include The Ambulance Drivers: Hemingway, Dos Pasos, and a Friendship Made and Lost in War; Eye on the Struggle: Ethel Payne, the First Lady of the Black Press; and Pulitzer: A Life in Politics, Print, and Power. He is the former president of Biographers International Organization, of which he was among the original founders. In 2019, he received the BIO Award, which is given to a writer who has made a major contribution to the advancement of the art and craft of biography. Previous winners, among others, include: Jean Strouse, Robert Caro, Arnold Rampersad, Ron Chernow, Stacy Schiff, Taylor Branch, and Candice Millard. He lives in Santa Fe, New Mexico. For more information, visit: https://jamesmcgrathmorris.com and https://oupress.com/books/16548294/tony-hillerman

 

New Home for the Tony Hillerman Award

Minotaur Books / A Thomas Dunne Book and Wordharvest announced that they have joined forces with Western Writers of America, who will host the Tony Hillerman Prize going forward.

With this change come a new submission deadline, an option for electronic manuscript submission, and a new venue for the announcement of the winner at the annual Western Writers of America convention. FYI: The competition for 2016 has been suspended. The deadline for the 2017 competition will be January 2, 2017. View guidelines and online submission form online at http://us.macmillan.com/minotaurbooks/tonyhillermanprize.

Tony Hillerman’s Joe Leaphorn/Jim Chee mysteries, set on the Navajo reservation, were the first “regional” mysteries to become national bestsellers. His work has been praised by reviewers and the Navajo Nation for its ability to combine Navajo traditions and beliefs with a well-told mystery story. Hillerman’s writing reflects his appreciation for the natural wonders and stark beauty of the American Southwest and its people, particularly the Navajo. His books have been translated into many languages and frequently make the New York Times bestseller list. At age 83, Hillerman passed away on October 26, 2008.

In 2013, Leaphorn and Chee returned in Spider Woman’s Daughter by Anne Hillerman, Tony Hillerman’s daughter. Her second novel, Rock With Wings, appeared in 2015. In 2004, she launched the first Tony Hillerman Writers Conference: Focus on Mystery through Wordharvest, the business which she co-founded with Jean Schaumberg. With Peter Joseph of Thomas Dunne Books/ Minotaur Books, Wordharvest founded the Tony Hillerman Prize in 2006.

The Tony Hillerman Prize is awarded annually to the best debut crime fiction set in the Southwest. Previous winners include John Fortunato’s Dark Reservations, CB McKenzie’s Bad Country, Andrew Hunt’s City of Saints, Tricia Fields’ The Territory, Roy Chaney’s The Ragged End of Nowhere, and Christine Barber’s The Replacement Child.  For more information about past prizewinners, please visit http://www.hillermanprize.com/. The 2015 winner, Kevin Wolf’s The Homeplace, will be published in September 6, 2016.

Incorporated in 1953 to promote and honor the literature of the American West, Western Writers of America also awards Spur Awards annually for the best published works in the genre and the Owen Wister Award to an author for lifetime contributions. WWA also inducts writers into the Western Writers Hall of Fame, housed at the Buffalo Bill Center of the West in Cody, Wyoming.

Like the Western landscape itself, WWA and the books, songs and stories produced by its members have evolved immensely. No longer representing just traditional Western fiction authors, WWA boasts historians, nonfiction authors, young adult, romance writers, songwriters, poets and screenwriters for film and television. All have one thing in common – their work in every medium is set in the ever-changing American West. Today, WWA has more than 600 members who have garnered awards and made The New York Times best-sellers list. Members include C.J. Box, Anne Hillerman, Craig Johnson, Mark Hall-Patton, Thomas Cobb, Chris Enss, Kat Martin, Kirk Ellis, Lucia St. Clair Robson, Paul Andrew Hutton and David Morrell.

Anne Hillerman to continue Tony HIllerman's series

Breaking news! 

According to the Albuqueque Journal, Anne Hillerman, the daughter of the late Tony Hillerman plans to continue her father's Joe Leaphorn and Jim Chee series. Spider Woman's Daughter will be published in Fall 2013 (HarperCollins). Anne Hillerman has published several non-fiction books. This will be her first novel.

Read more at Omnimystery News

Craig Johnson guest post

Janet Rudolph & Craig Johnson

Craig Johnson sent this post to his fans and readers, so I asked if I could repost it for all and sundry to read. I'm looking forward to Longmire which starts on A&E in June, and I've just finished Craig's lastest novel, As the Crow Flies. It's terrific!

Craig Johnson:

We were filming the pilot episode for A&E’s Longmire last March, when the director, Chris Chulack, turned to me and said, “Do you want to be in this scene?”
          
I glanced through the twin monitors and onto the street outside the Absaroka County Sheriff’s Office set in Las Vegas, New Mexico, doing its best to appear as northern Wyoming. Across the street Katee Sackoff, the actress who plays Victoria ‘Vic’ Moretti, was rehearsing a scene with another actor, Rio Alexander, by yanking the much larger man from her unit, throwing him onto the hood of a parked car, cuffing him and dragging him across the street toward us.
         
 “I don’t think so.”
          
Chris smiled. “I meant you could stand on the sidewalk and do a cameo; all the authors do it.”
          
I remember seeing John Irving as the conductor in Cider House Rules, and even heard that Lee Child did a stint as an NYPD cop who hands his character Jack Reacher (Tom Cruise) his toothbrush in an upcoming film One Shot, and when I asked him about it, Lee told me he delivered his one line flawlessly. But the story that always hangs in my mind is the one when Tony Hillerman had a speaking line in the 1991 film The Dark Wind, where he played a state penitentiary warden. The scene is documented in one of my favorite books, Tony’s autobiography, Seldom Disappointed, with a photograph of Tony in a suit and tie alongside the young actor playing Jim Chee in the film—Mr. Lou Diamond Phillips. What goes around comes around in that Lou is now playing Henry Standing Bear in the televised version of my books. The looks on the two men’s faces in the photograph are priceless—Tony has a look of disappointed perplexity and Lou’s expression is one of devastatingly wry humor.

Lou tells it best, “Hillerman was a warm and kind gentleman, who made me extremely proud and grateful to bring such an iconic character to life. Every once in a while, we get blessed with the kind of writing that brings out the best in us and challenges us to bring our hearts, minds and souls to a role completely. Funny thing is, he could write the words so very eloquently but had a little more trouble making them come out of his own mouth.”

What Lou is graciously saying is that Tony blew his lines on every take, so much so that they decided that maybe it would be best if Tony simply ‘looked’ the line. I guess that didn’t work either because, in Tony’s own words, “I ended up on the cutting-room floor.”
          
I stood there looking at Chris Chulack, the captain of the ship, the man I was entrusting to coax the best performances from the best and brightest performers, the man who wanted me to go out on the sidewalk and represent some semblance of humanity. “I don’t think so.”
          
He studied me, a little surprised. “Really? You’re sure?”
          
“Um, yeah.”
         
 “You don’t have to say anything.”
          
I thought about it, figuring I’d trip over the curb. “That’s okay.”
         
A few days later, I guess not completely satisfied with my response, Chulack gave me another shot at a scene in Henry Standing Bear’s Red Pony Bar. There were dozens of extras in the place, loud and raucous so much noise that you wouldn’t have been able to hear me stumble through a line if I remembered it.
          
My wife, Judy hung on my arm in hopes that I would say yes, the two of us immortalized in television posterity.
         
 “Nope, I don’t think so.”
          
So Longmire is on Sunday, June 3rd at 10pm EDT/9c on A&E. I hope you enjoy the show but don’t look to see me peeking around trees or dancing at the Red Pony; I think I’ll stick with writing books.

As the Crow Flies, the newest in the Walt Longmire series was named the Barnes & Noble, Mystery and Crime Hardback Pick of the Month along with Hell is Empty as the Mystery and Crime Trade Paperback Pick of the Month—the first time a single author has received such an honor they tell me. Look for them both on the shelves (As The Crow Flies, Tuesday, May 15th) or get out there and pre-order, or better yet, come see him on tour.

Photo: Carol Fairweather

Tony Hillerman, a helluva guy, R.I.P.

I haven't been able to bring myself to write before about the loss to the mystery community of one of the greatest authors. Award winning author Tony Hillerman died last weekend of pulmonary failure. Particularly sad because Tony had a big heart. He was friendly and supportive to all he met. He was a gentleman and a gentle man.

Tony Hillerman was the acclaimed author of the Navajo Tribal Police mystery series featuring Joe Leaphorn and Jim Chee. Anne Hillerman said Sunday that her father was a born storyteller. "He had such a wonderful, wonderful curiosity about the world," she said. "He could take little details and bring them to life, not just in his books, but in conversation, too."

Deanne Stillman wrote a wonderful tribute at LA Observed. Marilyn Stasio, NYT mystery reviewer, also has a wonderful obituary.

I was lucky to meet Tony on many occasions at Bouchercons and other conventions over the years. I remember his cogent thoughts and comments on Native American religion, culture and spirituality on my panel on religion and the mystery at the 1985 Bouchercon. It was a Sunday afternoon, a time when most attendees would have left, but the room was full. They came to hear this great man, this great writer, this great friend who instilled his fans and readers with a respect and knowledge of Native Anmerican culture. He'll be missed.