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jobustitch's review against another edition
3.0
The writing was great and the book was easy to read. I loved the short chapters. They seemed to push you on to "one more chapter before I go to sleep."
But I found the links between Darrow, Burns, and Griffith very tenuous. Darrow and Burns are easy to put together because of the trial. The D.W. Griffith angle was a bit of a stretch. Still, an overall entertaining read.
But I found the links between Darrow, Burns, and Griffith very tenuous. Darrow and Burns are easy to put together because of the trial. The D.W. Griffith angle was a bit of a stretch. Still, an overall entertaining read.
stlorca's review against another edition
4.0
Howard Blum's American Lightning: Terror, Mystery, the Birth of Hollywood, and the Crime of the Century is terrific reading--it completely envelops the reader in the atmosphere of 1900s Los Angeles. The central axis of the book turns on a series of bombings across America, culminating in the demolition of the Los Angeles Times building in 1910. The book concentrates on three central characters: celebrity lawyer Clarence Darrow, hired to defend two brothers accused of the crime; filmmaker D. W. Griffith; and America's greatest private detective, William "Billy" Burns.
Nobody involved in this has clean hands. Propaganda filmmaking, jury tampering, bribery, espionage...this sooo needs to be an HBO miniseries. If this were set in the 30s, it would be an awesome film noir starring Sam Spade. American Lightning makes an excellent companion piece to Cadillac Desert.
Nobody involved in this has clean hands. Propaganda filmmaking, jury tampering, bribery, espionage...this sooo needs to be an HBO miniseries. If this were set in the 30s, it would be an awesome film noir starring Sam Spade. American Lightning makes an excellent companion piece to Cadillac Desert.
duparker's review against another edition
3.0
Interesting history of the rise of labor in the country and the influence newspapers had on politics and society.
pierceinverarity's review against another edition
3.0
The fascinating historical events and personalities drew me to this book. The narrative, however, is often melodramatic and contrived.
I listened to an audio version, so was unable to assess any footnotes or bibliography, but the lengthy quoted passages of dialogue, and even internal monologues, made me doubt the historical veracity of the story.
Lastly, D.W. Griffith is a central character in the book. But the work he is most known for, "Birth of a Nation," is treated only passingly towards the end of the book, and the film's inflammatory racism is glibly glossed over, which I found utterly unconscionable.
I listened to an audio version, so was unable to assess any footnotes or bibliography, but the lengthy quoted passages of dialogue, and even internal monologues, made me doubt the historical veracity of the story.
Lastly, D.W. Griffith is a central character in the book. But the work he is most known for, "Birth of a Nation," is treated only passingly towards the end of the book, and the film's inflammatory racism is glibly glossed over, which I found utterly unconscionable.
tessisreading2's review against another edition
3.0
Like the last book of Blum's I read, this one occasionally suffers from an overly-breathless tone: he's writing for the movie adaptation, in a sense. However, he finds really good stories to tell, and this book is no exception.
labtracks's review against another edition
4.0
This was a great book. I'm a sucker for history books like these and this one did not disappoint. Enough research here to be interesting yet not enough written to get me to become bored with information overload. I am currently reading another book with Burns investigating and he really does seem like an amazing man. Clearly had made a name for himself which stands to this day and was involved in some of the most high-profile cases in America. And was paid well, but seemed to earn his payments.
This was a entire series of events that I was entirely unaware of prior to picking up this book and I don't have a whole lot of interest in labor disputes or other types of disagreements, but this was written in a way that it became part of the background and not the focus.
Well written.
This was a entire series of events that I was entirely unaware of prior to picking up this book and I don't have a whole lot of interest in labor disputes or other types of disagreements, but this was written in a way that it became part of the background and not the focus.
Well written.
susbro's review against another edition
4.0
Spoiler
The book follows the story of the McNamara brothers and the bombing of the LA Times building in 1910 through the eyes of three prominent men of the time: William J. Burns, the detective who made the case; Clarence Darrow, the crusading lawyer who took on the lost cause of defending the brothers; and DW Griffith, the director who was instrumental in moving the film industry to LA. Interesting piece of Los Angeles history and engrossing story.judyward's review against another edition
4.0
In October 1910, the Los Angeles Times office building was bombed killing 21 people and injuring over 100. This bombing was part of the struggle between labor and industry that had been on-going since the late 19th century and was now threatening to spill over into a wider, more violent, national conflict. Howard Blum weaves together the story of three prominent Americans who were affected by this bombing--Billy Burns, Clarence Darrow, and D.W. Griffith. William "Billy" Burns was a former Secret Service agent who was popularly known as the American Sherlock Holmes. He was hired by the city of Los Angeles to bring the bombers to justice. After a six month investigation, he discovered that the LA Times bombing was just one in a much wider plot. He ultimately arrested three men in the Midwest and brought them back to Los Angeles for trial. One of the three confessed and the evidence was overwhelming for brothers J.J. and J.B. McNamara. Clarence Darrow was brought in to defend the McNamara brothers and became embroiled in legal problems of his own. Rounding out the trio is fledgling film director, D.W. Griffith who are experimenting with silent films with social themes. Making appearances are Lincoln Steffens, the muckraking journalist, who wants to broker a plea agreement and Mary Pickford, who appears in many of Griffith's movies. A fascinating book about the first "crime of the century" of the 1900s.