alissa m.

me JK

my dearest p...

we'll get around to writing a play dirty review eventually but in the meantime im still thinking about lakeith's amazingly girlish grofield scream before getting hit by a truck. that's not really a spoiler he's ok

Lots of exciting things coming up soon over on Tough Business but my god, Play Dirty was a dream come true!

play dirty was all we dreamed of and more by the way. our beautiful grofield…

Discussing the Parker hiatus in The Getaway Car nonfiction book

Discussing the Parker hiatus in The Getaway Car nonfiction book

Sources continued here

From the NPR tribute to Donald Westlake.

From Brian Garfield's intro to the 1981 Gregg Press edition of The Outfit

From the AV Club interview with Donald Westlake

Discussing the Parker hiatus in The Getaway Car nonfiction book

That's patently incorrect info. While that's an oft repeated anecdote, it's never once been mentioned as the cause of the hiatus, see the attached quotes w/ source in the alt text. Of course, the second wave of novels sadly ended when Mr. Westlake passed.

by the way, you can see an array of wonderful international parker covers on our website here: toughbusiness.neocities.org/reviews

"knock on wood, grofield" (or rather the italian equivalent) is an all time title for lemons never lie and could stand to be a subtitle for his entire solo series. impeccable work, he's my favorite damsel in distress

Lemons Never Lie Italian cover

the artist for the italian il giallo mondadori covers, carlo jacono, also adheres to the blonde grofield belief system like i do, despite him technically canonically having dark hair and green eyes

The Dame Italian cover

The Seventh Italian cover

sometimes it appears that parker is on a grofield cover and vice versa. that’s fine!

The Score Italian cover

Deadly Edge Swedish cover

The Man with the Getaway Face Swedish cover

The Hunter Finnish cover

showing some appreciation for various international parker covers by picking out some with depictions i feel look the most like him. titles in alt

Always a pleasure to work with my favorite artist in the world/ideal partner @lilyslabo.bsky.social - I'm permanently amazed by the quality of your work, the pulpy tone and the subtext brought out into the open and the delicious layered approach to our little story. Couldn't be prouder!

got our zines in the mail today, written by my love @alissadmc.bsky.social

and you can read it here! archive.org/details/fort...

as one half of tough business and as someone who generally really likes lee marvin, this is the kind of performance we should’ve had happening in point blank but unfortunately he was nearly unconscious the entire time

and it's a parker film at heart. on top of everything else

we just watched prime cut (1972) for the first time and why was this the all-time greatest lee marvin performance.. and film

um the most gentle intimate touch parker has ever been permitted outside of sex. thank you & goodnight

Excerpt from The Handle by Richard Stark that reads: "Once around the park, driver," Grofield said. "I believe I'll take a nap." His smile got glassy and he passed out, his head falling over on Parker's shoulder. Parker said, for England's benefit, "That's a good idea. Sleep the whole trip, why don't you?" The first part of the trip, cross-country, was rough, and it was just as well Grofield had passed out at the beginning of it.

this bit from the handle makes me smile wonderfully every time

extremely solid last four

Seeing a lot of great stuff coming from the advance screenings of Play Dirty! Here's a reminder we've got the scoop on the latest Parker & Grofield adaptation right here on our site, and it sounds like they're doing it surprisingly Stark style!

It's been the greatest joy & pleasure of my life to work with my partner everywhere @lilyslabo.bsky.social on this pulpy little zine!

(4/4) afterword also written by @alissadmc.bsky.social

thank you for reading!!!

(3/4)

(2/4)

(1/4) proud to present our new parker comic, forty kinds of trouble! this was such a delight to draw and I'm sooooo lucky to get to work with the best writer in the world, my beloved @alissadmc.bsky.social :)

please enjoy this pulp-inspired take on what happens after the end of the handle!

Our new Parker & Grofield zine is now out! With delicious art by the master storyteller @lilyslabo.bsky.social we expand on the rich subtext of Richard Stark's The Handle through the lens of '50s-60s romance pulps. archive.org/details/fort...

How was LaKeith's Grofield?

Endorsed by the other half of Tough Business! My god!

Question: Parker's work often seems unglamorous—he spends lots of time alone, driving, thinking, planning, waiting around, making phone calls, negotiating, checking numbers. He seems to value the bourgeois virtues of self-control, discipline, consistency, and focus. Do you agree Parker might make a great accountant? Westlake: I'm not sure he has the patience for accountancy, but I've always believed the books are really about a workman at work, doing the work to the best of his ability. However, I see him more as working stiff than professional class.

in many of his crime films he exemplifies the “workman at work” attitude westlake applied to parker, and he sure wasn’t faking it, either.