Social Media and the Daisy Zick Murder

Daisy Zick near the time of her murder 

Now that I’m done with my Cuban Missile Crisis book, I’m turning my attention to my true crime book on the Daisy Zick murder in 1963.  The working title for this is: A Special Kind of Evil. I’ve spent a good six hours going back over the police case file and my notes on the case.  

Unlike my previous books, I’m leveraging social media (Twitter and Facebook primarily) to solicit information on the case and people.  I’ve made some postings simply letting people know I’m working on the project.  I wasn’t sure what kind of response I would get. 

The reaction has been incredible.  First off, there have been two tips that were solid enough for me to pass onto the State Police.   This is fantastic.  Secondly, a significant number of people came back with memories they had of the crime or of Daisy herself which I have been able to include in the book.  Some were unsure if their information was of interest or use – but it was.  Even the rumors they heard are part of the myth that has built up around this case over the decades. 

Social media like Facebook is changing the way authors connect with communities.  I’ve been able to leverage pages like “You know you’re from Harper Creek if you…”  same with Battle Creek, etc..   I have connected with Historical Societies via Facebook, as well as some people directly.  It never ceases to amaze me how connected we’ve all become.  I have been able to link up with relatives of some of the officers involved with the Zick murder over the years too.  I find with my true crime projects that people want to know about the men investigating the case almost as much as the victims and killers. 

So has this led to a resolution of the case?  Time will tell.  It has helped me produce a better book, and for that – I’m grateful.  And for those of you that weren’t sure about contacting me – don’t hesitate.  My email is at bpardoe870@aol.com  

Yes, I DO read comic books....

I read comic books. There, I said it. I'm a 50 year old guy that reads comic books. In my youth this was the equivalent of a tattoo that says 'GEEK!" back when being a geek simply drew the abuse of the jocks in school. I doubt at my age that anyone is going to give me a swirly or a titty-twister, but I am fully prepared for such attempts.   I don't live with my mom, I married a beautiful woman, I have two highly successful children, and have a pair of semi-successful careers.  

When I was a young adult I recognized comics for what they were - great stories. These were shared universes where the characters were fully developed yet every month, developed a little more. We had recurring characters (good and bad) that showed up on other intellectual properties. Of course at the time I didn't think of the words, 'intellectual properties,' but you get the drift.

There were a lot of us that were comics readers, we didn't talk to others about it. For decades there were two camps - DC fans or Marvel fans. I was a DC guy but enjoyed reading Spiderman from time to time. I was as stunned as everyone when Green Goblin killed Gwen Stacey.

The problem with comics is that they had a stigma associated with them. Society looked at a 30 year old purchasing the latest Iron Man as the kind of guy still living in his parent's basement. That wasn't necessarily the case. Most of us simply recognized good stories and characters. Still, for decades, we purchased comics in relative secrecy because of memories of the purple-nurples of our youth.

Then the Batman movies came out - followed by Spiderman. Suddenly, comic stories had become socially acceptable. The release of the Iron Man franchise and the reboot -of Christopher Nolan's Batman made that stand out even more. Face it, you enjoyed the Avengers, even if you never read Marvel comics as a kid. Welcome to the party pal.

There are times when I got a year or two without a comics. I'm a reader, not a collector. My comics are not an investment, that's whacked. I pick them up to read them. For a long time it was hard to jump back in with the complicated story lines and sub plots. But DC recently rebooted its entire franchise, starting all over with the classic comics. Marvel has started Marvel Now! which is not a reboot but a new set of storylines. In the last year or so, the comics industry has realized that it needs to make it easier for people to join our ranks as readers. I've been able to jump back in on the Batman miniseries (The Return of the Joker - Death in the Family) and in two of the Marvel lines (Iron Man and The Uncanny Avengers - a mix of the X-men and the Avengers). Oh yeah comics industry, I'm back!

As a writer of science fiction in shared universes, I've always wanted to author a comic book or two - and who knows , I may do just that at some point. For now, I consider my reading as "advanced research."

Now that I'm iPad enabled, I've found that comics have successfully become available in this venue as well. Marvel has the leg-up here. In each hard-copy comic is a code you can enter to get a free copy digitally. So, I can carry my Marvel collection with me. How cool is that? 

I am pleased that The Big Bang Theory features a comic store as a recurring locale.  I, like the characters, wear tee-shirts with super hero themes...in fairness I have been doing that for years, much to my wifes' chagrin.  I enjoy that show more because of the insider jabs at the nerd community - like when they argue about comic characters.  

Now my three year old grandson is into comics. Every so often we go to the comic store in Gainsville VA and he gets a comic from the kids rack and I pick up a few select titles. At least three times a week he comes to my office at night and we read the comics (I summarize them for him). You can see the glimmer in his eyes, he's hooked. Circle of Life man…that's what it is.

Don't poke fun at those of us who read comics. If it wasn't for us you wouldn't have had your summer blockbusters this year. Remember, there are more of us out there than you know. Carry on true believers...

Veteran's Day 2012

I know the US government recognizes this holiday Monday, but I am a historian and recognize that on the 11^th hour, of the 11^th month, at the 11^th hour is when the Great War came to an inglorious end.  Because I write biographies of Great War figures (Graf von Luckner, Frank Luke, Frederick Zinn, and my upcoming book on Bert Hall,) I recognize the significance of getting the day right.  It’s not just about being a federal holiday in the US, it is a day of honor and respect with our allies overseas who lost a generation of men in a horrific meat grinder of a war. 

Honoring our veterans shouldn’t be limited a single day out of the year.  It should be an unconscious acknowledgment of the role of the military in our lives.  This is not just about the men and women in the service, but their families as well. 

When I wrote my book Lost Eagles, I became exposed to the MIA/POW issue as it pertained to WWI and WWII.  Honoring the living is important – but so is respecting those whose final fates still have not been determined; and their families who never received closure.  The plight of those that were prisoners of war or those that have gone missing whose remains have never been found has a profound impact on those they left behind.  When I started that book I thought it was important for the sake of honor to bring our missing men home.  I learned that it was more important to the families. 

So on this Veteran’s Day my heartfelt thanks and appreciation go to the families of those that serve and those that have never come home.  We have not forgotten, nor will we, the sacrifices that you all have made.  

Movie Review - Argo

I was 16-17 years old when the Iranian Hostage Crisis played out. My memories of it were not fond. We had given the corrupt former ruler of Iran refuge in the US. Protesters overran our embassy and took our embassy staff hostage. The US appeared impotent to do anything to get them free. We sent a rescue mission in at one point but it was a debacle that resulted in lost American lives and no hostages freed. 

In the middle of this six Americans were seemingly smuggled out of Iran by the Canadians. They had managed to flee the embassy and avoid being captured. What we didn't know at the time was that their flight was the result of a CIA operation that just barely was successful in getting them their freedom.

That is the core of what the movie Argo is about - the secret mission to get these Americans back home. And it is one of the best movies I've seen since The Avengers.

First and foremost the casting is brilliant. The people cast look almost identical to their real-life counterparts which I think is awesome. I'm not a Ben Affleck fan, nor do I dislike him. His character was incredible. This is not some over-the-top action thriller. This is a real-world CIA exfiltration mission and despite the low-key approach, you really ended up liking both Affleck and the character he played.

Here's the deal - you know these people get out of Iran in the real world. But the tension is so high in this movie you are on pins and needles the entire time. There are so many things working against these potential hostages and their CIA savior (Affleck) that you are riveted right until the end of the movie.

The character I ended up loving the most was Affleck's CIA boss - played brilliantly by Bryan Cranston. Let's be blunt, Cranston is one of the most stunning actors in Hollywood, doing everything from comedy to high drama. In this role he is stunning. The audience a few times actually applauded his character. How often do you hear that about a movie?

Finally, Hollywood is producing new, fresh movies rather than retreads/reboots of old franchises. Argo has moments of humor, a few minutes of pure terror, and acting that is worthy of an Academy Award. This is a must-see film that reopens the old wounds of the Iranian Hostage Crisis and provides just enough historical context to make it very pertinent even today. I would give this six stars out of five - Argo is THAT good.  

Anniversary of the Battle of Agincourt

"This story shall the good man teach his son;

And Crispin Crispian shall ne’er go by,

From this day to the ending of the world,

But we in it shall be remembered-

We few, we happy few, we band of brothers;

For he to-day that sheds his blood with me

Shall be my brother; be he ne’er so vile,

This day shall gentle his condition;

And gentlemen in England now-a-bed

Shall think themselves accurs’d they were not here,

And hold their manhoods cheap whiles any speaks

That fought with us upon Saint Crispin’s day."

Henry the V, William Shakespeare

It is October 25, the anniversary of he Battle of Agincourt (1415). Considered by many to be one of the most brilliant battles of the medieval era and certainly one of the most interesting of the Hundred Years War. I'm a fan of battles where one side is greatly outnumbered and prevailed. For me, my love of this battle goes back to my purchase of the old SPI boardgame Agincourt -Archery Over Armor - still a classic in my book.

The English expedition in France had been plagued with long wet marches, dysentery, and a French force determined to attack and capture/destroy them. When twenty-eight year old Henry the V's force of approximately 6000 moved towards the port of Calais to return to England he encountered a French force outnumbering him from 3-5 to 1. For the French it should have been an easy victory. The English force was nobles and commoners, many with the English longbow. The French had heavily armored cavalry, some crossbowmen, and legions of French noble knights.

The topography of the battlefield played well to the English. The flanks were heavily wooded, prohibited the cavalry from sweeping along the flanks to attack the bowmen. The field was wet and churned to mud easily. The land had difficult to see drop-offs which provided deceptive cover in the open too. Henry opted for a defensive fight, ordering his men to sharpen stakes and angle them towards the French position.

The French moved on the English first, sending their cavalry tearing at the English line, churning the field into a muddy ooze as they came. They encountered the English longbowmen, the machineguns of the medieval battlefield. With iron tipped bodkin arrowheads, these bows could rain down fire that could pierce the French armor - and did. The cavalry was devoured in raining waves of arrows.

The French crossbowmen moved forward to deal with the English bowmen. While effective, the crossbow took three times as long to load as the longbow. Soon these men were devastated under English bow fire.

The armored French knights slowly surged forward in dense formations, going over the muddy ground which slowed them considerably and made the trek even more difficult. The rain of arrow fire consumed them and the moving mass of men pushing forward often trampled the men ahead of them. The woods on the flanks served to funnel them into the English. The few knights that did reach the line found themselves dealing with the English knights who quickly finished them off or captured them.

The French sent a squad of knights to try and kill or capture Henry personally, only to have them cut to shreds in the process. A significant number of French knights were captured to be held for ransom, a common practice at the time. When Henry heard a rumor that French cavalry were moving to free the prisoners he ordered them killed so as to free up the men watching over them for battle.

In the end, the French force was decimated. Shakespeare did the rest - immortalizing the battle in his play Henry the V in the classic St. Crispin's Day speech.  

Following the Cuban Missile Crisis - Day-By-Day

I am just finishing work on a my book on the Cuban Missile Crisis (The Fires of October) and I thought now would be a good time to start posting a reflection back on the crisis – day-by-day.  This is the 50^th anniversary of the crisis, thirteen days that the world held its breath during. 

The missile crisis has an almost cult-like following by historians (if such a thing exists).  The reason is that there are so many different aspects to the crisis to explore.  There’s the crisis management and decision making processes that unfolded.  There’s the military build-up and the concept of an escalation to a global nuclear war.  The angle I’m writing about is the planned invasion of Cuba – OP Plan 316-62 which has been largely overlooked over the years.  Stepping into writing the Cold War is something that makes me cringe a little.  I’m not part of the ‘club’ yet with the historians who cover this subject.  I’m hoping they see some merit in the last three years of research I did on the topic. 

My reason for starting today, October 14, is that is the day that the crisis began to unfold.  A U2 surveillance flight by Major Richard Heyser over Cuba took photographs that would lead to the ignition of the crisis.  There had been previous flights, but his was the first that brought back tangible evidence of the strategic Soviet build-up on the island. 

Each day or so I will post up some other nice little tid-bits on the crisis.  Bookmark me and stay tuned.  

Getting Back To My Roots As A Writer

Back in college at Central Michigan University, for two years I wrote for the school newspaper, the award winning CM Life. I was an editorial columnist - which meant I had the privilege of writing about whatever I felt like. Some of my material was funny, some serious, a few pieces were political - while others simply poked fun at campus life.

I got the job by walking in with two of three samples and asking. The editor looked them over and offered me the job right on the spot. For me it was a catalyst for my writing career. I got to try out new techniques and approaches to writing and the feedback was instant…simply walk across the campus and people let you know what they thought.

Just before graduation the editor commented, "we never see you in our Journalism classes," and I told him that was because I wasn't a journalism student. I was in the College of Business. Writing was just something I enjoyed doing.

From the basement of Anspach Hall I started to write science fiction products for BattleTech, Star Trek, and then branched out into writing business management books, Sci-Fi, horror, true crime, biography, and military history. I have been fortunate enough that my books are sold around the globe and I have thousands of readers.

This summer while doing a TV interview on my true crime book Secret Witness, the editor of the Culpeper Times and I talked about my early days. She did something remarkable. She offered me a job as an editorial columnist. I hesitated a little at first. When you write such a column there's bound to be people that disagree with you and I live in small community where my family might catch some of that flak. It was a job with no pay and I am always busy working on my next book - careening towards that next deadline. There were a lot of reasons to not do it - but a part of me wanted to touch that part of my youth one more time. 

So I agreed.

It has been a blast. Here's my latest http://www.northernvatimes.com/culpeper/article/pardoe-prepares-to-pick-up-the-pace-at-army-ten-miler tid bit. I have enjoyed doing it and the feedback has been great. That hour I spend every month writing these columns takes me back to the 1980's and writing for the CM Life.

They say you can't go back in time…let me assure you, there are ways!