American Tabloid | James Ellroy
episode SUMMARY:
In this episode of the Books for Men podcast, host Douglas Vigliotti discusses the book American Tabloid by James Ellroy. He acknowledges that Ellroy's writing style can be challenging at times, but admires his ability to depict the world as he sees it without pandering to the reader. He believes that Ellroy accomplishes what he intends to do with his writing, even if readers may disagree with his language or style. American Tabloid explores the events leading up to the assassination of JFK, and Vigliotti expresses his belief that the government covered up the truth about the assassination. He discusses the book's theme of the undercurrent of power and dirty work that happens beneath the surface, and how the assassination of JFK was the first domino contributing to the American people's distrust of the government. Vigliotti praises Ellroy's ability to weave real-life characters and events into a fictional narrative, creating an entertaining read. He concludes by encouraging listeners to share the podcast and connect with him on Instagram @douglasvigliotti, and provides information on how to access full transcripts and sign up for the newsletter on BooksforMen.org.
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Welcome back to Books for Men, a podcast to inspire more men to read and bring together men who do. So this week we are starting the new year, so nappy New Year to everybody. I hope everyone had a wonderful and great holiday season. So I wanted to start the year off with a bang, and I thought that there would be no better book to do that than American Tabloid by James Ellroy. So first, let me just start by sharing some of the basics. So it's historical fiction or loosely historical fiction. Anyway, it's a crime novel that came out in 1995. It's probably around 550, 600 pages. It reads a lot longer than that though, just because, the type font is super small, at least in the paperback version. And also the author's style can be a bit challenging at times only because he's really like a take-it-or-leave-it type of guy.
(01:06)
As in, he's not pandering to the reader at all. I appreciate that. But it does mean that sometimes you have to stop and reread the passage just so that way you can fully comprehend it. I think it's worth noting though that the style itself is one of the things that makes this book extremely unique. So yes, it's hard-boiled, it's staccato-like, it's terse, it's abbreviated. There's a ton of patois and inferences, and often Ellroy has been docked and drilled for his offensive language or depiction of women of different races. But as you've heard me say time and time again on this podcast, I'm less concerned with the morality of the author or the author's work or what the book is actually about and more concerned if it does what it intends to do. And I think that this book, and Elroy as a whole, accomplishes that almost all the time with all of his books.
(02:07)
And that is something to admire in its own way. Even if you disagree with his usage of language or the style of how he writes, he, to me is a real writer's writer in that sense, where he's not afraid at all to depict the world how he sees it. And yes, he came up during a different time and things were different then, but this could be a challenge in multiple ways if you are used to a more massaged style of writing, so to speak. I know that you could really shortchange this writing by just calling it hard-boiled, and I'm using air quotes. It is, but it's a lot more than that if you are willing to appreciate it for the nuance that really is in the writing itself. It's funny, really, I heard Ellroy in an interview not too long ago, and he said, “I force them to read and he's talking about the audience, my books in as few sittings as possible, which will allow them in approximation of the level of obsession that I write at and live at. And it also aids them in their comprehension and retention in difficult, complex texts.”
(03:19)
And so all great writers, he's aware, I believe, of what he's doing and how he's writing and why he's writing the way that he is. And again, you don't have to agree with it, but this book in particular, American tabloid to me, is really a herculean feat. I mean, there is nothing else that is like American Tabloid. Love it or hate it, it is a book that you will remember if you read it. That is something I am certain of. So you're probably wondering if you don't know already what this book is actually about. So in the shortest words possible, it's about the events that potentially could have led up to the assassination of JFK. So the assassination of JFK is not only a landmark moment in our nation's history, but it's been a well-documented moment in our nation's history.
(04:28)
There are a lot of movies, books, and documentaries about the subject matter. And from my perspective, there's really no other way to conclude that something other than what was depicted to the American people is what happened to JFK. Now, I'm not going to go on record as saying I know what happened or who did it or what have you, but any rational mind who looks at the facts of the JFK assassination can easily see that the government covered up what actually happened to JFK or how he was murdered on that November 22nd, 1963—I think it was day—in Dallas. Look, I'm not going to get into all of the facts and the specifics, but go watch the countless documentaries and the countless things or go read about it. I'm confident that if you do, you will conclude that there's no way what they said happened actually happened.
(05:37)
And I know, and I'm laughing here because this is about the time that there's probably 50% of you who are going to label me some kind of conspiracy theorist, which it couldn't be farther from the truth. Anybody who knows me knows that I'm a pretty rational person in most respects. But like I said, to me, this is just cut and dry. If you go and you really look at what happened and you dig, you're going to find that there's no way that this is what actually happened. Now, I think where the conspiracy starts is who did it, and why they did it. And there's a lot of different opinions and theories. Some are probably more likely than others are, but I'm not going to get into all the details of that either. I think that there are a lot of people though that also agree with me and think that this marked the first domino in a succession of dominoes of the American people distrusting the American government and the establishment, which led all the way up into the distrust and chaos of the present day.
(06:42)
And I think you can't really go any further than to just look at the title of this book, right, American Tabloid. What is a tabloid? A tabloid is bullshit. So what is American tabloid American bullshit or the lies that we get fed about the things that are actually happening? I'm not the type of individual to think that the world is out to get me or my own government is out to get me, but the point is still made by the author and done so in a very entertaining and convincing way that as he states in the book, facts can be meant to conform any thesis. And I do believe that at face value that is true, whether you believe the fictional narrative that's being depicted to you or not, that to me is really secondary to the theme of the book, which is the undercurrent of what actually happens on the top level and the power and the dirty work that gets done below the surface to keep that facade nice and shiny.
(07:46)
And obviously, in this case, it results and ends in a very sad, real thing that happened to one of our American presidents. And Elroy accomplishes this by following two FBI agents and one ex-law enforcement. So those are the three primary characters, Kemper Boyd, Ward Littell, and Pete Bondurant as they work in swindle for all of these real-life characters. So J. Edgar Hoover and Bobby Kennedy and Jack Kennedy and Joe Kennedy and Jimmy Hoffa and Howard Hughes, and of course the mafia at the time, Sam Ana and all those people up in Chicago. And he uses all of these people and all of the things that are known to have actually happened at the time. So facts, whether it was the Bay of Pigs invasion or stuff that was going on with the Teamsters and all different things, and connects them into this fictional narrative that ultimately comes together and comes to ahead as I had just previously mentioned.
(08:56)
And that's why I said at the top of this episode, it's really a herculean feat because in order to do this and to pull it off, it's so hard, I can't explain it any other way. He's going into the depths of America and coming out alive, so to speak, with just a remarkable work of fiction. Now, a lot of people might not like how he utilizes known flaws and weaknesses of these individuals and has fun with them in a way and extrapolates them out to form their fictional characters in the novel. But it's still a fun read because of that. And ultimately, it's just a testament to the constant swindling of who ends up working with who. And it's all a matter of survival and everyone's trying to save face. And I don't know, it's just all this stuff that you could see potentially happening, but you're never really quite sure if it did or would or whatever, really.
(10:03)
But that's what makes the book so fun to read. It's interesting, I had this conversation with my dad who is reading the book right now. So he's reading it for the first time right now. And he said, well, do you think this really happened? And I'm like, I don't know if it happened. I don't think that that's the point of the book. The point is, the thematical element in that facts are not truth. This is really evident when you watch the news, right? Because the news will give you facts, but that doesn't mean it's the truth of what's actually happening. As Ellroy says in the book, and as I already mentioned, “Facts can be bent to conform any thesis.” And so I think that this book depicts a narrative that ultimately shows there is an underbelly and stuff that you don't see as the American people.
(10:57)
That is really what is moving society and culture. And a lot of times it is not flattering. And I get it. It's like, why would we want to know this or think about this? We have our own lives to worry about. And that's exactly the point, right? It's an American Tabloid, or as Ellroy says, as he opens the book, “America was never innocent. We popped our cherry on the boat over and looked back with no regrets. You can't ascribe or fall from grace to any single event or set of circumstances. You can't lose what you lack at conception. Mass market nostalgia gets you hopped up for a past that never existed.” Alright, I could probably go on a lot further here, but I'm going to save you and spare you any more. I want to thank you of course, for listening. And if you enjoyed today's episode, then please share it with friends, family members, or other people who you think might enjoy it, because word of mouth is everything.
(12:00)
And with this podcast, it's to inspire more men to read. If you want to double down on that support, you could do so by rating, liking, subscribing, following, or reviewing any of that good stuff on whatever podcast platform you're listening to this on. And as a reminder, you can always connect with me on Instagram @douglasvigliotti. It's the only social media I have. And lastly, of course, for more information, you could always visit BooksforMen.org where you can get full transcripts for every episode. As well as sign up for the newsletter, which is a monthly roundup of every episode, complete with full book and author information, all the best quotes, and newsletter-only book recommendations. Again, if you're interested in that, you could sign up at BooksforMen.org.
