Happy Belated Birthday To Joseph Wambaugh, Author Of 'The Onion Field' And 'The Choirboys'

Happy birthday to Joseph Wambaugh, author of the classic police novels The Choirboys, The Blue Knight and The New Centurions, and the classic true crime books The Onion Field, Lines and Shadows and Echoes in the Darkness.

Joseph Wambaugh turned 82 yesterday.

You can read my Washington Times piece on Joseph Wambaugh and the war on cops via the below link:

www.pauldavisoncrime.com/2017/07/why-war-on-cops-is-war-on-all-of-us.html

You can also read my Washington Times review of his novel, Harbor Nocturne via the below link:

www.pauldavisoncrime.com/2012/04/joseph-wambaughs-new-cop-novel-harbor.html

And you can visit his website at www.josephwambaugh.net/

‘The Father Of The Modern Police Novel’ Joseph Wambaugh On ‘Dragnet,’ Police Shootings And Hollywood’s Action Addiction

Alyssa Rosenberg at the Washington Post offers an interview with Joseph Wambaugh, a former LAPD detective sergeant and the author of classic police novels like The Blue Knight and The Choirboys, as well as classic true-crime books like The Onion Field. 

Joseph Wambaugh earned the title “father of the modern police novel” in 1971 when he published “The New Centurions,” a raw, emotional look at the experiences of a class of new Los Angeles Police Department cadets in the years leading up to the 1965 Watts riots. No matter who had written it, “The New Centurions” would be a masterpiece, as are Wambaugh’s other police books, including “The Onion Field,” a nonfiction account of the kidnapping of two LAPD officers. But Wambaugh drew special attention because of his day job: At the time “The New Centurions” was published, Wambaugh was a detective sergeant in the LAPD. His unique experiences helped usher in a new era in police storytelling.

You can read the interview via the below link:

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/act-four/wp/2016/10/24/the-father-of-the-modern-police-novel-joseph-wambaugh-on-dragnet-police-shootings-and-hollywoods-action-addiction/?utm_term=.242ed2fe7b5d

I interviewed Joseph Wambaugh a while back. You can read my Q&A with him via the below link:

http://www.pauldavisoncrime.com/2009/11/semper-cop-interview-with-novelist.html

And you can read my Philadelphia Inquirer review of Joseph Wambaugh's Hollywood Station below:

George Kennedy, Oscar Winner For 'Cool Hand Luke,' Dies at 91

The Hollywood Reporter offers a piece on the death of actor George Kennedy.

You can read the piece via the below link:

http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/george-kennedy-dead-cool-hand-721400?utm_source=Sailthru&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=THR%20Breaking%20News_now_2016-02-29%2013:37:13_ehayden&utm_term=hollywoodreporter_breakingnews