Reading Response Two (The Black Dahlia pt.2)

    "I crossed the border at dawn. Tijuana was just comig awake as I turned onto Revolucion,

 it's main drag. Child beggars were digging as for breakfast

in trash cans, taco venders were stirring pots of dog-meat stew, sailors

 and marines were being escorted out of whorehouses at the end of their

five-spot all-nighters. The smakrter ones stumbled over to Calle Colon

and the penicillin pushers; the stupidos hot-footed toward East TJ,

 the Blue Fox and Chicago Club-no doubt eager to catch the early morning

 Donkey show. Tourist cars were already lined up outside the cut-reate upholstry

 joints; Rurales driving prewar Chevys cruised like vultures, wearing black uniforms

 that looked almost like Nazi issue."



Betty Short



     Recently, I have found myslef still engulfed in the world of The Black Dahlia. I've re-checked out the book and have plans to have it finished in time to turn it in! The Black Dahlia was a very famous and publicized murder in the '40's. To this day it remains unsolved. In the novel, James Ellroy takes us into the crime with detective Bucky Bliechart. Along with his partner Lee, Bucky gets sucked deeper and deeper into the crime. The police have a few leads on the crime. They have found a girl who knew Betty Short quite well, Lorna. She admits to making a porn film with Betty and says it took place in Mexico. She couldnt remeber the name of the man who shot the film. A few detectives are sent to Tijuana to find the man. Bucky has also traveled down to Tijuana, Mexico to look for Lee who has been MIA for a few days after being suspended from the police department. In addition to searching for Lee, Bucky is also on the hunt for a man names Bobby De Witt who has recently been released from prison and has a bit of of a grudge on Lee for putting him away. De Witt is also in Tijuana and eventually, a mexican police official leads Bucky and another detective to De Witt who sits in a jail cell. After a bit of roughing up, De Witt admits everything he knows about Lee but swears that he is not in Tijuana to get Lee. After De Witt makes a deragatory remark about Kay, Lees girlfriend (Bucky loves her as well) Buckys beats him up and blacks out. Soon after, De Witt is released from the jail. He is then murdered by an unknown person, Lee remains lost and there are no leads on The Dahlia case.

Movie Poster for "The Black Dahlia."

   This is as far as I have gotten in the book. As I already stated in my last post, I am in love with this book. I've already watched the movie and it is one of my new favorites. The book is kind of hard for me to understand at times which is why it has taken me so long to read. I would deffinatly recomend this book to a friend as well as the movie. Even though the book is called The Black Dahila, The murder of Elizabeth short plays somewhat o a backstory to everything else that is going on! It is hard to keep the stories straight and the book is somewhat mature (I was surprised to see it in the school library) and very graphic. I am fassinated by the Dahlia case! It is just so strange and so many things could of happend to Betty Short.This is easily one of my favorite books and I have yet to even finish it!