Inspector Lewis On The Case

This coming Sunday, on most PBS stations, the venerable Masterpiece Theater series Mystery! brings us a new mystery featuring Inspector Robbie Lewis.

Played by Kevin Whatley, Lewis is the former sergeant of the late Inspector Morse, whose own series of mysteries was among the most popular filmed crime stories in the world.

The character of Endeavor Morse--opinionated, passionate, easily irritated and relentless in the pursuit of the truth--is one of the greatest fictional detectives ever created. As originally conceived by novelist Colin Dexter in a series of books, and then brought to vivid, unforgettable life by the late great actor John Thaw, Inspector Morse was our skeptical and inquisitive guide to the world of a modernized, rapidly-changing Oxford. A place where venerable college dons and rare-books collectors coexisted with phony religious gurus and Internet porn. And the crimes themselves were almost always intriguing and surprising.

Without a doubt, it was my favorite filmed TV crime series. So much so that the on-screen death of Inspector Morse, followed regrettably by the real-life passing of John Thaw a short time after filming ended, brought a real melancholy and sense of loss.

John Thaw and Endeavor Morse were the perfect blend of actor and character; I doubt whether any viewer could imagine anyone else playing the cranky Chief Inspector. Nor would they want one to.

Then, last year, PBS ran the pilot episode of a new series of mysteries, in which a widowed Robbie Lewis, now promoted to Inspector himself, returns from abroad to Oxford to find his own young sergeant, a baffling case to solve, and echoes of his old mentor everywhere. I thought it was an excellent episode, and a much-needed return to those old Oxford haunts.

I hoped then, as I'm sure a lot of other viewers did, that more Lewis adventures would follow. Happily, that's now the case.

So, if you're a fan of modern-day British crime dramas, and haven't yet investigated a newly-minted Detective Inspector named Robbie Lewis, I recommend you do so this coming Sunday evening.

I know I'll be watching.

UCLA/Skirball

In case you're interested, I'll be at the Skirball Center in Los Angeles on Wednesday evening, June 11, for the UCLA Extension Faculty Published Authors event. Joining me for the reading and book-signing event (followed by a coffee and cake reception) will be many other UCLA colleagues with books out this year.

Here's the info:

Reading/Book Signing
June 11, 7-9:30pm
Skirball Center
2701 N. Sepulveda Blvd (at Mulholland Drive)
Los Angeles, CA.
For info, call: 310-825-0107

Hope to see you there!

Memorial Day Weekend

In my view, Memorial Day ceased to exist some years back. Now the focus is only on the "Memorial Day Weekend," which means different things to different people.

To Hollywood, it's the weekend of the fourth Indiana Jones sequel.

To chain stores, it's a weekend selling barbeque grills, picnic tables and lawn dart sets.

To school kids, it's the last 3-day weekend during the school year. The Fourth of July weekend, coming during the summer break, doesn't count.

To the automobile industry, it's a 3-day blow-out sale of all the new models they've been having trouble moving off the lot since January.

To the news media, it's a 3-day vamp, re-treading old stories and controversies, until---Thank God!---Tuesday rolls around again.

And, of course, to countries outside the United States, it's just another 2-day weekend, followed by another Monday.

However, before it was merely embedded in a 3-day sale-a-thon, Memorial Day itself was a day when the nation reflected on those who died in various wars, here and abroad. Regardless of one's position on the various wars we've been involved in, I think it's still a good idea to remember the sacrifice of those who've served.

Not a highly original or controversial position, I know. But there it is.

Hollywood on the Couch: KCRW Radio Interview

After reading an article of mine called "Hollywood on the Couch," NPR producer Matt Holzman asked me to guest on his weekly show about the entertainment industry.

In case you're interested, the first of that two-part interview aired this week on KCRW-FM's program "The Business," and is available for listening from their site.

Here's the link: Click here: Hollywood on the Couch — KCRW | 89.9FM

If so inclined, let me know what you think. Thanks!

A WRITER'S LIBRARY

Everyone has a list of his or her favorite books on writing.

Everyone also knows the better-selling ones, and I can pretty much recommend them without reservation: Writing Down the Bones by Natalie Goldberg, Anne Lamott's Bird by Bird, Julia Cameron's The Artist's Way. And for the mythological underpinnings of narrative, Joseph Campbell's justly-famous Hero with a Thousand Faces.

I'm also a big fan of William Goldman's book about movie writing, Adventures in the Screen Trade. (I once mentioned it glowingly to a studio executive I knew, who exclaimed, "I hate that book!"--a ringing endorsement if I've ever heard one.)

However, I'd like to suggest some other books, personal favorites, that I think speak more powerfully and tellingly to the inner life of the writer. Though not all these books are about writing specifically, the issues explored are relevant to anyone living the writer's life.

In Praise of What Persists, edited by Stephen Berg. A collection of essays by a variety of writers detailing the personal experiences that influenced their work.

Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance, by Robert Pirsig. A great book on the dynamic--and often crazy-making---process of striving for quality, however you define it.

The Writing Life, by Annie Dillard. Elegant and personal, as well as hard-nosed and pragmatic. Wonderful reading.

Life Work, by Donald Hall. A beautifully-written book by the much-honored poet and man of letters, exploring his obsession with--and consolation from--a life devoted to the craft of writing.

Mastery, by George Leonard. A primer on the value of practice, the consistent doing of a craft. A strong rebuttal to a goal-oriented approach to creativity--and to life.

The Courage to Create, by Rollo May. The title says it all.

On Moral Fiction, by John Gardner. Densely written, frankly pedantic, and inevitably self-righteous--and those are the things I like about it. A stirring, sometimes maddening call-to-arms on behalf of writers taking what they do--and its effects on society--seriously.

The Great Gatsby, by F. Scott Fitzgerald. Sixty thousand perfect words. A masterpiece of lucidity, banked emotional fire, sustained tone, depth and heart. I try to read it once a year, just to clear out the cobwebs.

That's just a sampling of my favorite writing books, of course. An eclectic group, I admit. There are other worthy books I could've included, by writers as diverse as E.B. White and Ray Bradbury, Ben Hecht and Stephen King.

But for now, I'll stick with my list. Good companions on the writer's journey.

Naturally, if you have any favorite writing books to add to my list, I'd be happy to hear about them!

I Know I Have a Book in Me: Writing for Therapists

In the name of shameless self-promotion, I'm making a pitch:

For those who might be interested, I'm teaching a workshop this Sunday, May 4th, at the California Association for Marriage and Family Therapists Annual Conference. The 3-hour intensive workshop is called "I Know I Have a Book in Me: Writing For Therapists."

Who might benefit from this workshop? Glad you asked.

It's perfect for therapists, psychologists, social workers and psychiatrists who want to write for either clinical journals or the general public.

This workshop addresses everything from writer's block and procrastination to the plain facts about editors, publishing and the changing marketplace.

Using anecdotes, examples, and in-class writing exercises, the mental health professional yearning to write will learn how to turn their clinical expertise--as well as the lessons of their own personal journey--into marketable material for magazines, newspapers and books.

The Conference takes place at the Marriott Hotel at the Los Angeles Airport. My workshop runs from 9:00 AM to Noon. For registration info, call 888-892-2638.

End of pitch. Hope to see you there!

LA Times Festival Of Books

I just got back from signing copies of my new book, From Crime to Crime, at the LA Times Festival of Books at UCLA.

What a crowd of book-lovers, authors, Festival volunteers and food vendors. Pretty impressive gathering, given that the temp hovered around 100 degrees!

So much for the idea that Southern Californians aren't readers, or interested in literature. Some of the most eager attendees gathered around small press booksellers booths, or took a chance on books (and authors) they hadn't heard of.

The most exciting thing about the whole event was how happy, engaged and curious the attendees were. Glad to be among others who loved books. Glad to meet their favorite authors. Glad, I think, that such a festival exists.

I know I am.

ATTACK OF THE TEENAGE BRAIN!

From the pages of medical journals to feature stories on the network news, there's been a swell of media coverage the past few years concerning "the teenage brain."

Despite sounding like the title of Hollywood's latest horror-movie blockbuster, the phrase actually refers to recent neurological research on adolescent brain chemistry. To the surprise of practically no one not wearing a lab coat, it's finally been demonstrated scientifically that the teenage brain is different from that of a mature adult.

According to the data, these differences explain the average teen's inclination to stay up late, sleep until noon, and exhibit extreme mood swings (for example, from sullen and defiant to really sullen and defiant).

Some researchers have even blamed these brain differences for the adolescent's inexplicable devotion to high-decibel music, low-decibel mumbling and the piercing of unlikely body parts.

As soon as these results made national headlines, the usual social pundits weighed in: This new research, they claimed, clearly suggested that we should ban teen driving and even raise the voting age. After all, we now had proof positive that today's teens are simply too erratic to be entrusted with such responsibilities.

This may be. But what about the midlife brain? Perhaps the next time we embark on exhaustive, heavily-funded research into what's in the human skull, we should focus our efforts on the average middle-aged person--because if my friends and I are at all representative, I'd argue that whatever's going on in our collective brains is equally suspect.

Though not without good reason. Most adults I know are over-worked, over-stressed and generally overwhelmed from their daily struggles with careers, child-rearing and relationships. They're forgetful, obsessed with their health (popping pills to an extent no teenager would even contemplate), envious of their neighbors and co-workers, and always--always--sleep-deprived.

Frankly, even on a good day, our brains are nothing to write home about. It's everything we can do to keep our complicated, must-have Starbucks coffee orders straight in our heads.

I think it's too easy to blame all this on brain chemistry. The truth is, life is hard, no matter how old you are. Whether you're worried about making the track team or paying the mortgage, about fitting in with the cool kids or impressing your new boss, it's all about trying to cope.

Granted, your average teen's coping mechanisms rarely extend beyond junk food and video games. But are adults' choices any better? Addicted to Internet porn, "Deperate Housewivess," Tom Clancy novels and golf. Running from their yoga class to a Parents Without Partners meeting to the latest Donald Trump get-rich-quick seminar.

And, between all this, compulsively checking e-mails and sending text messages on their cellphones (all while nursing fantasies of winning the Lottery or running off to Tahiti with the office manager).

Let's face it, teens have just two basic goals: having sex and getting into a good college. Both pretty laudable and straightforward aims, especially when compared with the confusing and relentless demands of contemporary life with which adults have to contend. It's no wonder that at the end of the day, most adults just want to collapse on the sofa and channel-surf.

Sartre once said that the state of man is incomprehension and rage. Okay, maybe he was a bit of a Gloomy Gus. But isn't the bewilderment and struggle to which he alludes true at times for all of us, particularly at certain crucial stages in our life?

As a psychotherapist, I see daily the unfortunate consequences of assigning a diagnostic label to practically every kind of behavior under the sun. We need to remember that people are too complex to fit neatly into categories.

And that includes teenage people.

In fact, before we start debating whether teens should be allowed to drive and vote, we'd better be able to defend letting us adults do so. It's not as if our record in either of these endeavors is anything to brag about.

In other words, give the kids a break. They're not responsible for the way their brains develop, any more than they are for the world in which they have to grow up.

If anything, the latter is a result of brains much older, and supposedly wiser, than theirs.

GRAVE SECRETS

Given its obvious drawbacks, there aren't many good things to say about death. Sure, it's quiet, and you're unlikely to be bothered anymore by Internet spam and telemarketers. But, to many a noted person throughout history, perhaps the only real comfort of the grave has been the secrets you were allowed to carry to it.

Not anymore. A few years ago, a leading news story concerned the late Dr. Robert Atkins, whose popular diet has taken a bite out of the profits of bakeries, pizza parlors, and other purveyors of high-carb delights. Until a group of pro-vegetarian physicians obtained copies of Atkins' medical records and released them to the press.

Apparently, the happily-carnivorous diet guru's health was less than optimum for some years before his death.

Understandably, his supporters--including his widow Veronica--were outraged. "They're like the Taliban," she said. "The vegetarian Taliban."

Health issues aside, what I find alarming here is the increasingly common practice of violating the privacy of the departed. Just a few months after the Atkins story appeared, Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis' former priest broke his forty-year pastoral silence to disclose her private talks with him following her husband's assassination.

And he's not alone. In a parade of tell-all books, ostensibly scholarly biographies and TV show "exclusives," people are rushing to reveal the intimate details of the lives of (usually) famous friends and relatives no longer around to defend themselves. So much for the sanctity--let alone the silence--of the tomb.

It's as though we're in some new Age of Postmortem Debunking, a kind of sociological frenzy of hero-bashing that reflects our doubts about altruistic or intellectual integrity. Or, perhaps more to the point, confirms our cynicism.

How else to explain the spate of less than flattering portraits of formerly Great Men and Women that seem to be appearing weekly? Even such usually untouchable stalwarts as Einstein, Lincoln and Gandhi have taken a drubbing.

Lately, it's a truism of American life that privacy is under attack. From identity theft to "profiling" air passengers; from the inequities of the Patriot Act to the selling of personal information databases. But at least those of us troubled by these developments can complain about them. We can email our elected officials. Write scathing letters to the newspapers. Harrass radio talk show hosts.

Alas, these options are unavailable posthumously. Perhaps it's just the therapist in me, uncomfortable with the idea of confidentiality expiring just because the person in question has. Yet I can't help thinking of an interview I saw with Carl Jung, filmed shortly before his own death, as he politely but firmly refused to divulge the details of a painful dream Freud had disclosed to him.

In exasperation, the interviewer said, "What difference can it make now? He's dead."

To which Jung replied, "Because it was told me in confidence."

Bad television, maybe. An anecdote without a punch-line. Plus the fact that Jung--himself fodder for a number of recent idol-smashing biographies--was apparently something less than a paragon of integrity in either his personal or professional life. But in this moment he shone, merely by keeping silent.

For the rest of us, still above ground, not a such a bad model to emulate.

DATELINE HOLLYWOOD: Ageism vs. Dying Young

There's an old joke about a man working in the circus, whose job it was to follow behind the elephants, sweeping up their droppings. When asked why he doesn't find some other line of work, he replies, "What, and leave show business?"

What makes the joke funny, of course, is the truth behind it. Creative and talented people, once having tasted the wild nectar of Hollywood success, find it almost impossible to quit the field, even when the odds are stacked against them.

And nothing stacks the odds higher than committing the one unpardonable sin in Hollywood--getting older. As veteran TV writer Larry Gelbart said in a recent interview, "The only way to beat ageism in Hollywood is to die young."

Which reminds me of a story, from my own practice as a therapist working with creative people in Hollywood: At 58, my patient Walter has been directing episodic television for most of his adult life--except for the past five years, during which, despite Herculean efforts to get work, he's been unemployed. He also got divorced and lost his house, and had to move to a condo in Thousand Oaks.

At a recent session, Walter announced more bad news.

"My agent finally dumped me," he said quietly, without rancor.

"I'm sorry, Walter. I know you've been his client a long time."

"Twenty-one years. Lasted longer than my marriage. And the sex was better..." He managed a rueful smile. "Hey, I can't blame him. He busted his ass for me. But let's face it, nobody wants to see a gray-haired old fart like me on the set. Everybody there looks like my grandchildren."

As is often the case with patients in his situation, we talked about options. Walter agreed that he could probably teach, but that even teaching jobs were getting scarce and the money wasn't very good.

But the money wasn't really what bothered him. Right now, at 58, he felt he was a better director than at any time in his life. He knew his craft, he understood actors, he could keep his head in a crisis. But it seemed clear that nobody wanted to see a face much over 45.

"I might as well pack it in," he said gloomily. "My life in this town is over."

"Your life isn't over, Walter," I said to him. "Neither is your career. Unless you're ready for it to be over."

"What does that mean?"

"It means you don't have to let other people decide what you can do. Or how to feel about what you can do."

"Shit, don't get all therapeutic on me now."

"I'm not. I'm being pragmatic. If you want to teach, go teach. But if you still love directing, go find something to direct. A play. A short film. Maybe something you can show on the Internet. Everybody else is."

I leaned in closer. "Listen. You told me once you still have a few bucks. Okay, then hire someone to write something. Or rent an Equity-waiver theater down on La Cienaga for a week and put something up on its feet."

"Forget it. I'm used to working for studios. Networks. Guys with parking spaces on the lot, who at least have to pay me for the privilege of pissing all over my work."

"And I know how much you'll miss that. But at least you'll be directing. If that's what you still want to do."

"Hell, it's what I am."

He sat back, stroking the edge of his trim, salt-and-pepper beard. Then he laughed.

"Hey," he said, "remember that joke about the guy at the circus, cleaning up after the elephants?"

"One of my favorites."

"You think I'm that guy?"

"Walter, I think we're all that guy. These are the lives we lead, the things we do. If it's who we really are, all we can do is keep doing it. As a colleague of mine said once, about trying to achieve in any profession: Keep giving them you, until you is what they want."

He paused. "You know, Alvin Sergeant is in his seventies, and he wrote those Spider-Man movies. Huge hits. For years, David Chase couldn't get arrested, and then he creates The Sopranos. Hell, John Huston directed his last picture in a wheelchair, sitting next to an oxygen tank."

"All true."

"I mean, maybe I'm just kiddin' myself, but..." He nodded toward the door. "There's gotta be at least one more elephant out there, right?"

I smiled. "I've never known a circus without one."

Sue Grafton's Integrity

I just read a terrific interview with best-selling mystery novelist Sue Grafton in The Strand magazine. (Pretty terrific magazine, too---and I mean that sincerely, not just because they published two of my mystery stories!)

Anyway, the best thing about the interview was Sue's continual insistence on not selling the rights to her long-running Kinsey Milhone series of books to Hollywood.

Having worked as a TV writer for years before becoming a novelist, she's too well aware of what can happen when the Hollywood "development" process gets a hold of a beloved character.

As she reminds the interviewer, Strand editor Andrew Gulli, "From my perspective, they would ruin my series in a heartbeat. One of the lessons I learned many years ago was from Lawrence Block, who sold his Bernie Rhodenbarr series to Hollywood. Bernie Rhodenbarr is a white, male, Jewish burglar. They cast Whoopi Goldberg in the part!"

Sue goes on to point out that, regardless of which current "hot" actress was chosen to play Kinsey, many of her readers would be upset, or at least disappointed. And with good reason.

"They will cast anybody they think will sell tickets," she explains, "which means they most certainly would pick somebody totally inappropriate to play the part of Kinsey Milhone."

While I think Sue might be over-stating her case a bit--Kathleen Turner was perfect casting for the part of V.I. Warshawski; they just screwed up the movie--I do respect her integrity and allegiance to the character she created. As well as to her loyal fans who've supported her work over the past twenty years.

BTW, though I doubt she'd remember, Sue and I met many, many years ago, when we were both members of an awards selection committee of the Mystery Writers of America. I can't remember myself exactly what category we were deciding (best mystery short story, best TV crime show episode, etc.?), all I know is that at the end of a very pleasant--though long--afternoon at fellow writer Mark Schorr's house, we ended up giving the coveted Edgar award to something.

Anyway, I recommend the interview with Sue Grafton whole-heartedly. It contains a lot of great writing tips, as well as rueful advice about the writing life.

You can learn more about The Strand magazine by going to http://www.strandmag.com/.

It's worth the visit.

HOLMES AND WATSON IN THE GREAT OUTDOORS

A pithy little fable, for all you Sherlock Holmes fans out there (But I'll be damned if I can remember where I first heard it.)

Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson went for an outing one weekend far north of London. They pitched camp, ate a rustic meal over a wood-fueled fire, and sat contently as night fell, smoking their pipes and talking about nothing in particular.

Finally, they decided to turn in.

Some hours later, Holmes woke up his sleeping companion and pointed up at the ink-black sky, dotted with hundreds of luminous stars.

"Tell me, Watson," Holmes said. "When you look up at the night sky, what do you perceive?"

Watson blinked awake and contemplated the heavens above them.

"Well, meteorologically, I can tell from the striations of cloud that the weather will soon turn inclement. Astrologically, I can see that Orion's belt has shifted a bit toward the horizon. Astronomically, I understand that those stars twinkling above are actually roaring suns, giving off tremendous energy. Chronologically, I realize that the distances between those stars and our world are so vast, the light we see now actually shone from them millions of years ago. And, philosophically, I comprehend that in the limitless vastness of the universe, man and his works are quite small and insignificant."

Then Watson turned to his friend.

"Now, Holmes, what do you perceive?"

Holmes sighed. "I perceive that someone has stolen our tent!"

----------

I don't think a Zen monk could have fashioned a better story about mindfulness, and the seductions of over-intellectualizing the world we experience. Plus, it's funny.

Anyway, happy to share it with you. And if anybody has any information about the story's origin, I'd love to hear about it.

WHODUNNITS ON TV

As the author of a forthcoming collection of mystery short stories (discreetly advertised just to the right of this post), I've been a long-time fan of TV crime shows.

So I was intrigued when TV Guide ran their listing of the 25 best TV detectives a few years ago. Though I had the usual complaints about some of the choices (for example, Charlie's Angels made the cut, while Jeremy Brett's Sherlock Holmes didn't!), I thought they did a pretty good job. I even agreed with their number one choice: James Garner as Jim Rockford.

How about now?

I mean, there's a fascinating new crop of detectives and crime-stoppers on the job, from Monk to Dexter, from series like The Closer and Saving Grace to Psych and--okay, it's a stretch--Reno 911. But are there any would-be classics in the mix? Shows that will stand the test of time?

What do you think of today's crime shows, and today's crime-catchers? Feel free to weigh in.

Quotes For Writers---And Those Who Love Them!

Over the years, I've collected some terrific quotes about writers and writing. Words to live by, as you navigate the perils and promise of the writing life. Here are some of my favorites:


"There is only one type of story in the world---your story." Ray Bradbury


"How do I work? I grope." Albert Einstein


"Good dialogue is not real speech--it's the illusion of real speech." Ernest Hemingway


"In the beginner's mind, there are many opportunities; in the expert's mind, there are few." Shunryu Suzuki


"All serious daring starts from within." Eudora Welty


"To believe that what is true for you in your private heart is true for all men---that is genius." Ralph Waldo Emerson


"Fiction reveals what reality obscures." Jessamyn West


"I write when I'm inspired, and I see to it that I'm inspired at nine o'clock every morning." Peter De Vries


"(Bad) writing is not easier than good writing. It's just as hard to make a toilet seat as it is a castle window. Only the view is different." Ben Hecht


"I have known happiness, for I have done good work." Robert Louis Stevenson


"Traveler, there is no path. Paths are made by walking." Antonio Machado


"I yam what I yam." Popeye the sailor

----------------------------------------------------------------

Well, that's a pretty good list---for a start. If you have any particular favorite quotes about writing, the writing life, or creativity in general, feel free to let me know.

Barack and the Preacher: What's the Crime?

Like many Americans, I watched Barack Obama's speech this morning about race and was, once again, inspired by his erudition, clarity of thought, and unwillingness to minimize his relationship with Pastor Wright. While clearly labeling the pastor's words as wrong-headed and entirely at odds with his own, Obama made it clear that the anger and resentment underlying those words reflected a legitimate expression of the African-American experience that stretches from slavery and Jim Crow, all the way up to today.

Furthermore, I think his speech highlighted an issue that has been viewed quite narrowly in the media, especially by the representatives of the pundit class: namely, why is it a crime to know or even like someone who expresses views with which you disagree? Frankly, this is a kind of guilt-by-association that has harmed many a good and worthy person in authority, whether running for office or not.

For example, I know many liberals who found the late William F. Buckley's views incorrect, or even repugnant, yet valued his friendship and erudition. Certainly, among the many praising epitaphs written since his death, most seemed to have been written by those whose politics veered sharply from his, yet treasured the fact that they'd known him.

I think each of us has had a relative, teacher, or friend whose qualities as a person made a powerful impression on us. Yet--and with doubtless great remorse--this person's views about certain subjects began to create a serious rift, to instigate a growing "parting of the ways," that--while regrettably necessary--didn't invalidate all that we'd learned or experienced in relationship to this person.

Frankly, I believe the "crime" that Barack Obama has committed is simply that he's reinforced the reality that, despite the transcending of race that his campaign represented, he is in fact an African-American. For him to eschew this, and thus deny the myriad injustices, attitudes, and ancestral experiences that forged his identity, would be the worst type of pandering.

Though clearly not as bad as the kind of racist pandering this whole sorry episode will give rise to. Listening to those same pundits evaluating the effectiveness of Obama's speech today, and for the most part lamenting that it might do little to make this crisis go away, my heart sank. Because I thought his speech showed a degree of statesmanship, honesty about his own and his people's experiences, and acknowledgment of how far this nation has yet to go to heal its racial divide, far beyond that of most politicians today.

Can you imagine, for example, George Bush delivering such a thoughtful, candid speech? Or John McCain, whose reputation as a moderate and independent thinker is shrinking daily as he panders more and more to the Religious Right?

Okay. So Barack Obama had a long, intimate relationship with a pastor whose unfortunate racial rhetoric, on occasion, has reflected his post-WW II generation's experience of intolerance and bigotry. Whose intemperate words reflect the frustration of a whole group of people, whose struggle for freedom goes on even today.

Where is Obama's crime in this? Is he responsible for what another man says? Is he to be held accountable for another man's frustration and bitterness? Even for another man's seeming prejudice?

I suppose we'll just have to await the verdict of his jury, the American electorate. A jury of his peers.

Or at least I hope they behave, and react, as such.

Gabriel Byrne: He's No Hannibal Lecter!

A lot of my therapy patients watch the new HBO series, "In Treatment," and many wonder how accurate the portrayal of the therapist is. Paul, the therapist, is very well played by Gabriel Byrne.

But is he really representative of what therapists are like? Do most therapists have similar struggles in their personal lives?...with their relationships, their children, their sense of themselves?

The answer is simple: therapists are people, and people have issues. Therapists, like everyone else, handle some issues better than others. Therapists, like everyone else, are both insightful and clueless, sometimes in awareness and sometimes in denial, have good days and bad days. Nobody has the key to a stress-free, problem-free, issue-free existence.

In other words, no matter what the self-help gurus say, there's no cure for life.

So I guess I like that the therapist Byrne portrays is a flawed, conflicted person. Even when he does (and says) things that make me wince. Even when he's too intrusive with his patients, or too knowing. Hell, even when he seems like a selfish, self-pitying jerk.

Why? Because at least he's not depicted as diabolical, manipulative, and psychotic. Or, worse yet, homicidal.

Think about it: have you noticed how often male therapists are used as the villain nowadays on TV and film? Hollywood used to see male therapists as models of the patriarchal system: wise, nurturing, compassionate. Like Claude Rains in Now, Voyager. Gregory Peck in Captain Newman, M.D. Lee J. Cobb in The Three Faces of Eve.

So how the hell did we get from there to Hannibal Lecter?

Well, I happen to have some thoughts on the subject... If you're interested, you might want to listen to the Commentary I did for NPR's "All Things Considered." Here's the link:

Click here: NPR: A Male Therapist on Screen? Odds Are, He's a Heel.
Let me know what you think. --Dennis

Dennis Palumbo
15300 Ventura Blvd., Ste. 402
Sherman Oaks, CA. 91403

Phone and fax: 818-386-2070, Email: dpalumbo181@aol.com
Website: http://www.dennispalumbo.com/

Barack? Hillary? SpongeBob? WHO CARES?

If there's one thing all the pundits agree on, it's that this presidential primary fight has ignited the nation. More people are involved, debating--and voting--than ever before.

Except, it turns out, for some people. Which means...what, exactly?

Funny you should ask.

As a therapist, I read a lot of professional journals. Recently, one of them proposed that a new category of mental illness be added to the DSM, the clinical manual used by most therapists. They want to call this new condition Political Apathy Disorder, and its main symptom is showing a lack of concern for human suffering in the world.

In other words, you're not just an insensitive jerk, you're sick.

Do you have Political Apathy Disorder? The answer is a resounding Yes!--if, for example, you refuse to vote or, fail to consider the impact on the environment when making a purchase. Or buy something you really don't need, just because you like it.

Other symptoms include acting in an "elitist" manner--whatever that means--and telling ethnic jokes. Believe me, I wish I were making this up. But even as we speak, people with Ph.D's are actually debating whether to add this diagnosis to the growing list of things that might be wrong with you, that you didn't know about.

For what it's worth, I'm against it.

True, refusing to vote may be irresponsible. Perhaps a shirking of your duties as a citizen. But evidence of mental illness?

My concern here is with this growing trend of assigning diagnostic labels to literally every human behavior. And we're starting 'em young. For example, we've spent the last two decades diagnosing an increasing number of children with Attention Deficit Disorder. (Which, by the way, has already become passe. Nowadays, the fastest-growing diagnosis for kids is bipolar disorder. I guess that means screenwriters and rock stars will just have to come up with another one.)

What's next? Will we soon be labeling "problem" children as sociopaths, because they can't empathize with another kid whose toy they took? Or don't show sufficient remorse for licking the icing off their brother's birthday cake?

Don't get me wrong. I'm not suggesting we throw out the whole system. But let's face it: diagnostic labels exist for the convenience of the labelers. And that's fine. There's nothing wrong with convenience. Or with a common language that enables all us clinical geniuses to talk with one another.

But it makes me wonder: does every trait, behavior, or private thought have to come with a label? In our haste to understand the human condition, do we want to smooth off all the edges, quantify all the quirks? Should we really reduce the many contradictions that make up an individual's personality to a category in some manual?

This isn't a rhetorical question. I really wonder about it. A lot. So much so, in fact, that it might indicate the need for a new diagnostic category: Pervasive Wondering Disorder.

I can imagine others: Excessive Daydreaming Disorder. Insufficient Outrage about Eliot Spitzer Disorder. Or how about: Dogmatic Belief in Diagnostic Labels Disorder.

Bet they won't put that in the manual.

But, really, where will all this labeling end? (A question, no doubt, symptomatic of Apocalyptic Obsessional Disorder.)
Or am I making too much of the issue? (Reflexive Self-Invalidating Disorder, with Mixed Emotional Features.)

See what I mean? That's the trouble with labeling. Once you get started, it's damned hard to stop.

Eliot Spitzer: just another Crime of the Heart

Why do people do the things they do? Good question.

As a former Hollywood screenwriter (My Favorite Year; Welcome Back, Kotter, etc.), now a licensed psychotherapist and mystery author, I figure I have as much right as the next guy to weigh in on the former governor of New York. Let's face it, Spitzer's story has everything a blogger could want: sex, crime, the downfall of the powerful, and a spouse standing by her man.

Not to mention the prostitute alleged to have been involved with Spitzer. Another case of Instant Celebrity: just add Fox News and stir. She's already being showered with book deals, talk show offers and speaking engagements. It wouldn't surprise me if she got her own cable reality TV show (maybe co-hosted by Heidi Fleiss?).

Wait a minute, I think I'm onto something...Get William Morris on the phone!

By the way, Instant Celebrity is just one of the things I'll be blogging about here---as well as creativity, the media, and psychology today. Or the latest trends in mystery and crime fiction. Or politics. Or---well, you get the picture.

I'll also try not to join the growing crowd of bloggers whining about the End of Western Civilization. Not that there isn't plenty of evidence for it. Like this current frenzy over Governor Spitzer. God knows, we've been here before. Where you don't know whether to laugh or cry. Where it's either another sad commentary on the human condition, or just more stand-up fodder for Leno and Letterman.

But what if it's neither? As the title of Beth Henley's play suggests, we're probably all guilty of "crimes of the heart." At least one time or another. So rather than make jokes about the Spitzer marriage, or demand that Mrs. Spitzer get a divorce, or guess how many times the word "hypocrisy" will be tossed around by media pundits, I'd rather just say this: let's hope the sorry couple get the professional help they need, and that the rest of us stay the hell out of their lives.

After all, don't we have our priorities screwed up, anyway? I mean, it's okay to lie to us about the reasons we're going to war, but our moral outrage is triggered when a penis goes astray? I guess that's one way to keep Iraq out of the headlines.

But that's just me. What do you think? Feel free to let me know.

And stay tuned.