Working Titlez

From the Nevada Historical Quarterly

We were recently delighted to read this comprehensive review of HOWARD HUGHES: Power, Paranoia, and Palace Intrigue by Geoff Schumacher. Fascination with Hughes never ends because, well, he was a pretty fascinating guy. His impact on Las Vegas lives on today.

—Stephens Press

“The buildings and institutions of Las Vegas don’t attract nearly as much attention as the personalities who have called that city home, even briefly.  Thus far, there has been no great Vegas visionary born in Las Vegas; those who have changed the city have, for the most part, come to town from elsewhere. Most of the stories, then, have the same trajectory: The genius moves to Las Vegas, does something never before seen, then reaps the fruits of his fortune, for better or worse.

Perhaps the most exhaustively written-about Las Vegan, Howard Hughes has attracted numerous biographers of all stripes. More than four-dozen books about him have been published since the 1960s. It would seem that there’s little more we can learn about his life. But a recent book places Hughes into what may be his definitive Las Vegas context. In Howard Hughes: Power, Paranoia, and Palace Intrigue, Geoff Schumacher has written a hybrid. In some regards, it’s a synthesis of the plethora of previous Hughes works. Schumacher combined through what must have been an endless array of news clippings and tomes of Hughesiana. But he also availed himself of rare and unique primary sources at University of Nevada, Las Vegas, Special Collections; the Nevada State Museum and Historical Society; and the treasure troves of private collectors. His thoroughness definitely shows. I doubt there’s much about Hughes particularly his four Las Vegas years—that Schumacher doesn’t touch on.

The book starts with a quick summary of Hughes B.V. (Before Vegas), then discusses his less-known earlier stays in Las Vegas, including his 1943 Lake Mead crash and his 1953 purchase of the Green House, which is still intact on the land of KLAS-TV. Then he brings in the story of Hughes’s right hand, Bob Maheu. Maheu’s story has been well documented, but seems to gain something by being placed more clearly in the critical context of Hughes’s time in Las Vegas, as presented by Schumacher.

As the Hughes roller coaster inches higher up the initial slope, Schumacher stops to describe “what Vegas saw” with a quick chronological survey of contemporary media coverage of the Hughes Las Vegas years (1966-1970). Then he dives into detailed chapters on Hughes in Vegas. These run the gamut from profiles of significant figures such as Hank Greenspun, Paul Winn, and John Meier, to discussions of key topics: the Clifford Irving hoax biography, the palace coup that brought Maheu down, and the sometimes outlandish fight over the estate in the face of competing Hughes wills, none of which was proved authentic. Melvin Dummar’s tragicomic tale—more tragedy than comedy, it now seems—gets ample space, and probably its best analysis yet.

Schumacher then jumps tracks, switching from biographer to critic with a section called “Hughesiana” that features a mix of non-Vegas profiles (Jane Russell, Rupert Hughes, and the RKO fiasco) and extended takes on “Weird Tales” (obscure Hughes texts) and “the Fictional Hughes,” which is an up-to-date consideration of the reams of paper and reels of celluloid fantasy that Hughes has inspired.

The book’s key strength is Schumacher’s attention to detail and thoughtful use of his sources. Without an axe to grind, he is able to write a dispassionate book about the eccentric billionaire, a decided rarity. Since Hughes was far from balanced, he invites wild speculation and still, more than thirty years after his death, an almost messianic fervor. Schumacher immersed himself in his sources without becoming captured by them—a hard task, indeed, where Hughes is concerned.”

—David G. Schwartz, Nevada Historical Society Quarterly

The Nevada Historical Society is a perfect way to embrace your fascination with Nevada’s rich history. Membership fees are very modest (just $35 for an individual) and garner all sorts of advantages including a subscription to the Nevada Historical Society Quarterly, free admission to seven museums, discounts, and other benefits. For more information, go to the Nevada Culture website.

Book review reproduced with permission.

My colleague Geoff Schumacher recently presented a workshop on journalism for the Las Vegas Writers Conference. Included in his handouts was this essay about writing. I thought it deserved to be shared with other writers and lovers of writing, so I sought his permission to post it here.

“I write because I can’t do normal work like other people.”

Orhan Pamuk, winner of 2006 Nobel Prize for Literature

“Words on a page give the world coherence.”

Alberto Manguel, Into the Looking-Glass Wood: Essays on Books, Reading, and the World

Photo courtesy Scriatic (CC)

Writers write. If you’re a writer, you can’t help yourself. Putting words on paper, or onto a computer screen, is part of who you are. Writing helps us understand and give order to our chaotic lives and to a turbulent world.

Most writers want others to read their work. We want attention, validation, reassurance, fame. We want to be praised, questioned, challenged. We can’t help but write, but we like it better when our words are disseminated widely.

Despite our economic troubles, there never has been a better time to be a writer, because there never have been so many avenues to publication. Consider: You can set up a Facebook or Twitter page in about two minutes and start publishing your words to your friends and colleagues. Or you can set up a blog in about five minutes and start publishing for all the world to see.

These may seem like mundane forms of publishing, but I disagree. I have 255 friends on Facebook. If I write an essay and post it on my Facebook page, it is immediately available for perusal by 255 people who, because they know me, are likely to take a look at it. How would you have accomplished such an endeavor 30 years ago? If you wrote an essay and wanted to share it with your friends and colleagues, you would have had to make photocopies and either hand them out or put them in the mail to reach those 255 people. That’s a lot of copies, a lot of envelopes, a lot of addresses to track down and a lot of stamps. This process also would take a lot more time – days, maybe weeks.

Of course, we also would like to be compensated for our writing. We want our writing to be a money-making venture, not just an obsession or hobby. This complicates matters, but it’s not an unreasonable request. In order to be paid for writing, though, we must write something that a publication is willing to buy. This often means writing that is substantially different in style and substance from what we might post on Facebook or in a personal blog.

More often than not, what we’re talking about is journalism: facts, figures, interviews, research. We must be thorough, accurate. We must explore multiple perspectives. We must delve into subjects we might not otherwise care about. And then, once we’ve gathered the materials we need, we must organize all those facts, figures, quotes and multiple perspectives into a coherent and entertaining piece of writing.

It looks easy. It’s not.

But it’s also not brain surgery. Journalism is a craft that requires a set of skills that can be developed by most people who know how to read and to write a clear sentence.

The most important trait of a good journalist is curiosity. Successful journalists are innately curious about how things work. They follow a road to see where it leads. They ask lots of questions and genuinely want to know the answers. They aren’t afraid of talking to strangers. They aren’t satisfied with the conventional wisdom.

Successful journalists also are persistent. When they ask questions, they expect answers. They aren’t deterred by roadblocks. They know there is more than one way to get the information they seek.

Sometimes, journalism isn’t such a serious business. But writing a restaurant review or reporting on a ball game still demands the same skills needed to uncover the Watergate scandal.

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Geoff Schumacher, a veteran journalist, is the director of community publications for Stephens Media. He is also the publisher of CityLife and Big Island Weekly. He has written two books, Sun, Sin & Suburbia: An Essential History of Modern Las Vegas and Howard Hughes: Power, Paranoia & Palace Intrigue (Stephens Press) and is working on two more. Schumacher was recently named editor of CityLife Books, a Stephens Press imprint. He writes a weekly column for the Las Vegas Review-Journal. For more information, see www.geoffschumacher.com.

Congratulations and good wishes to Geoff Schumacher, Lewis Kimberly and Jorge Betancourt Polanco — their books have been named FINALISTS in the Foreword Magazine’s Book of the Year awards. The competition was established to bring increased attention to librarians and booksellers of the literary and graphic achievements of independent publishers and their authors. ForeWord is the only review trade journal devoted exclusively to books from independent houses.

Geoff is the author of Howard Hughes: Power, Paranoia & Palace Intrigue while Lewis the author and Jorge the illustrator of Granny McFanny. Granny recently received two silver medals from the Mom’s Choice awards, one for humor and another for illustration.

The prestigious Foreword awards process brings readers, librarians, and booksellers together to select their top categories as well as choose the winning titles. Their decisions are based on editorial excellence, professional production, originality of the narrative, author credentials relative to the book, and the value the book adds to its genre.

Gold, Silver, and Bronze winners, as well as Editor’s Choice Prizes for Fiction and Nonfiction will be announced at a special program at BookExpo America at the Javits Center in New York City on May 29. The winners of the two Editor’s Choice Prizes will be awarded $1,500 each.

Keeping our fingers crossed!

Little did I know “Desert Contemporary” is a design style, but now that I’ve seen it, I’m a fan. The Las Vegas Business Press reception for the debut of the 2009 Book of Lists was an elegant affair, held at Blue Heron’s Marquis Las Vegas. The networking event drew over 300 business folks plus Howard Hughes (well, fabulous HH impersonator Michael Parris Newman). Top notch catering was provided by the uber-student-chefs of Le Cordon Bleu who circulated with yummy canapes — the stuffed mushrooms were incredible. But back to this amazing party house — 9,000 square feet on four floors (yes, there is an elevator) of the latest green technologies make it a net-zero energy home. The indoor/outdoor living spaces are jazzed up with an ultra-modern take on vintage Vegas decor. As for outdoor living — the walls disappear, making the transition from in to out seamless. There’s an outdoor living room with a two-story fountain and THREE televisions, an outdoor bedroom and even an outdoor shower. According to the RJ’s article on the New American Home, it is best described as Jetsons meet the Rat Pack. Best yet, Stephens Press was invited to provide the literary vibe, hosting four Las Vegas Review-Journal columnists and SP authors including John L. Smith, Heidi Knapp Rinella, Steven Kalas and Geoff Schumacher. Guests enjoyed the chance to talk to their favorite columnists and we even sold a few books. All in all, a first class event with kudos to Michelle Stewart and her able team from the Business Press.