Category Archives: Lit

Rediscovered: The Library of Brian — Inspiration, or Warning!?!

Posted on June 25, 2026 by Don

Brain Leno has a story about when he was a kid in Bismarck, beginning to buy paperbacks. He’d sit in front of the small bookcase he shelved them on and savor his library. His father made the bookstand “out of … Continue reading →

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Rediscovered: Get Yer Shiel Here

Posted on June 18, 2026 by Don

Aha. I’ve been waiting for this book — although technically I don’t really need it. You do. Beating the likes of Random House and Little Brown and their ilk to the punch, Hippocampus Press just gathered under one set of … Continue reading →

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Rediscovered: Ex Libris Virgil Finlay

Posted on May 30, 2026 by Don

Autograph Hound Saturday. You know the drill. Another week has passed, and Autograph Hound Brian Leno has added more signatures to his collection. A thousand John Hancocks in the naked city. . . . This is the story of one. … Continue reading →

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Hollywood Beat: That Photogenic Mug, Jim Tully

Posted on May 16, 2026 by Don

Autograph Hound Saturday yet again. . . . Back in 2012 I made a run down to Hollywood to hit Musso & Frank and hobnob with my fellow wizards. Leo Grin had mentioned that he noticed a nice signed photo … Continue reading →

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Mort: DMac & DSF

Posted on May 14, 2026 by Don

Man. A Couple of Really Bad Days at Black Rock. A few days after the fact I heard from fellow Posse McMillan member Kent Harrington that our pal, publisher Dennis McMillan, had passed away on Friday May 1st. Word as … Continue reading →

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Rediscovered: Belly Band Tuesday

Posted on April 21, 2026 by Don

We’ve done belly bands before — notably, one on Michael Connelly’s first crime novel. But now I sense that our maniacal book collecting pal Brian Leno might have picked up a jones for those bands. Just in case, I better … Continue reading →

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Rediscovered: Gene and Joe

Posted on April 18, 2026 by Don

Autograph Hound Saturday. Courtesy Brian Leno, today let’s spotlight a favorite writer here on These Mean Streets. “Some good news,” Brian reports, “I picked up a signed Eugene Cunningham’s Texas Sheriff for 20 bucks. No dj but it supposedly has … Continue reading →

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Rediscovered: Shiel and Floyd and an Absurd Adventure of Dennis McMillan

Posted on April 16, 2026 by Don

Just noticed a quick email from 2022 where Brian Leno told me: Came across a letter where Lawrence of Arabia — in his T. E. Shaw alias — tells a bookseller he will take a copy of Shiel’s The Purple … Continue reading →

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Rediscovered: And an Opinionated John Hancock

Posted on April 11, 2026 by Don

Autograph Hound Saturday, sure, but it’s always Autograph Hound Saturday in Autograph Hound Brian Leno’s redoubt. Here’s another one, which just fell into Brian’s clutches today — an hour ago. Only the latest, in a legion. Let’s allow Brian to … Continue reading →

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Rediscovered: Vathek You Very Much

Posted on April 11, 2026 by Don

Autograph Hound Saturday, and our favorite maniacal collector Brian Leno has landed a John Hancock he’s been after for years: William Beckford. Here’s Brian with some remarks: Just won the bidding on a William Beckford signed letter, an autograph I … Continue reading →

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