"Gunfire for the Entire Time"

By Paul, Rambling Man

I'm headed for the Miami this weekend, so naturally, I check the LAX website for travel advisories. What kind of a nebbish does that? Okay, here's what I found today.

"STREET AND FREEWAY CLOSURES ANNOUNCED FOR FILM PRODUCTION NEAR LOS ANGELES INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT"

The story goes on to explain that Imperial Highway, one of the main access roads into and out of LAX, is scheduled to be closed in both directions.

Why? Must be major road construction or airport renovations. Nope.

"Airline passengers are advised that a major motion picture production near LAX may cause delays in getting to the airport beginning this week. The film production for the movie "Live Free or Die Hard" starring Bruce Willis received [street closure] permits from the California Film Commission, Film L.A. and the City of El Segundo."

I suppose the filming will be done discreetly so as not to bother the neighbors or distract nearby drivers. Sure.

"The production company will use explosives and gunfire for the entire time of the filming. One helicopter is scheduled to be used during weekend filming, and 'there will be larger explosions' with accompanying smoke."

My flight's not until Friday morning. I think I'll get an early start down the 405. Maybe after lunch today.

MIAMI INTERNATIONAL BOOK FAIR

Family, friends, and the wonderful Miami Book Fair are in store this weekend. The book fair features hundreds of authors and several hundred thousand fairgoers. It's a week-long event called the "Congress of Authors," which sounds vaguely like something started by Lenin in Moscow. During the week, a major author makes a solo appearance each night, all free to the public. This week, it's Frank McCourt, Isabel Allende, Richard Ford, and Edward P. Jones, among others. Jones won a Pulitzer for "The Known World" and then was awarded a McArthur Foundation "genius grant." Seems like double dipping to me.

Over the weekend, books take to the streets in downtown Miami with hundreds of panel discussions. I'll be appearing on a panel Sunday at 3:30 p.m. with our own James Grippando, and fellow scribblers Barbara Parker and Richard Yancy. We'll be debating legal thrillers and mystery fiction and otherwise dispensing golden nuggets of information at every opportunity.

I'll miss the Saturday event for "Miami Noir," the short-story collection, which some literary type scheduled to overlap with the beginning of the Michigan/Ohio State game.

Next Tuesday, Nov. 21, I'll be at my favorite bookstore, Books & Books in Coral Gables, for an 8 p.m. talk. Then it's on to one of the great names in all the book world,Murder on the Beach in Delray Beach, for an event Friday, November 24, at 7 p.m.

TRAVELING TOPLESS

As I'm one of the last human beings who does not own a laptop, I won't be blogging next week while I'm on the road. I'll be traipsing the beaches and bookstores of South Florida and reporting back on Tuesday, November 28. In the meantime, Happy Thanksgiving and Happy Reading.

Paul