San Joaquin Sisters in Crime Meeting

Going to San Joaquin Sisters in Crime is a real treat.

I'm one of the founding members and it's the closest chapter of Sisters in Crime--though it's in Fresno and can take up to two hours to drive there. 

My hubby has now joined because he likes to hear the speakers--and eat the lunch afterwards, and it's cheaper for members. And all the Sisters in Crime chapters welcome Mister Sisters. 

This past Saturday we went primarily because Tony Piazza was going to speak. Tony is the president of the Central Coast Sisters in Crime which I am also a member of and he's been a guest on this blog.Tony and his wife are friends and I we asked them to join us at our table.

Tony at part of his display.

Tony told us he'd been an avid reader as a kid and he also loved movies from the '30s and '40s. He learned film making at school. His father was a San Francisco police officer who worked with many companies making movies and TV shows, and Tony and his mother saw a lot of the action and even got to be extras--he started when he was 4. 

Because of this he met many stars like Steve McQueen, Raymond Burr, Peter Lawford, Walter Matthau, Jack Lemmon, Barbara Streisand and many others. He joined a casting agency in 1970 and played bit parts, was a stand-in and served as an extra and even did some stunt work. 

He showed still photos and a fun montage of bits of movies he was in. 

He doesn't think today's crime shows are nearly as much fun as they are far too graphic.he said today's movies don't leave enough to the imagination.

He also talked about his latest book, Murder Amongst Angels.Though the book is based on fact, the mysterious death of Thelma Todd, a popular comedian of the thirties. He told how he turned this true story into fiction while still using similar locales. He likes to experience the locales he writes about and did extensive research into the places he used in the book.

It was a fun morning and fun to hear another author speak about how he goes about writing and researching.

Marilyn Meredith

Comments

M.M. Gornell said…
Sounds like a wonderful time. Hope to meet Tony one day. In the meantime ordered A Murder Amongst Angels, sounds really interesting! You guys up north and west have all the fun! (smile)

Madeline
February 4, 2014 at 7:44 AM
Sisters in Crime Central Coast Chapter said…
We love having Tony as our president. He's had such an interesting life. --Sue McGinty
February 4, 2014 at 8:09 AM
Sunny Frazier said…
I sent your blog to the Sacramento Sisters and they are excited to host Tony at one of their meetings. He really was an excellent speaker. Very entertaining.
February 4, 2014 at 12:47 PM
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