Mamet, David. Speed-the-plow, London : Methuen, 2002.

It is a pleasure to include a play in this blog.  Speed-the-Plow is usually described as a black comedy, a genre of dramatic literature that Mamet has made his own.  It's interesting to see how one of America's leading playwrights interprets Hollywood; and here he explores the art of the movie deal, the crass shenanigans of movie executives and the eternal dilemma of art versus commerce.  Speed-the-Plow, which has only three characters, premiered in 1988 on Broadway.  The production gained immense publicity because one of the characters - Karen - was performed by pop singer, Madonna.

This is a play of snappy one-liners yet the dialogue reveals a sub text of angst and corruption of the soul.

In truth, the play did not set the world alight but nor did the play diminish its author's  reputation. Mamet (born 1947) is regarded as one of America's elite playwrights: his output has been prolific and he writes for both stage and screen.  One of his most famous plays is Glengarry Glen Ross, which was awarded the Pulitzer prize for Drama in 1984 and filmed in 1992  Speed-the-Plow has yet to be adapted for the screen.

Rechy, John. City of night, New York : Grove Press, 1963.

City of Night belongs to the literary genre known as the "underground" novel.  The word underground usually denotes an activity that is forbidden, or an aspect of life which polite society chooses not to face in broad daylight.  And so it is here, as John Rechy depicts the world of male hustlers and their "tricks" in the big urban sprawl of America.

The novel has acquired a legendary status and it demands to be read, although no doubt the shock value has diminished over the decades.

City of Night is best described as one man's odyssey: an unnamed  male prostitute travels from the East Coast to the West Coast, picking up clients.  The Los Angeles portion of the novel emphasises the lives of transvestites.  The locales are seedy - the language equally so.  It has been suggested that the book inspired director Gus Van Sant to write and film My Own Private Idaho.