Ask the Author: Thomas Hunt
Answered Questions (8)
Thomas Hunt
Thanks for the question.
Not quite that far back. Some earlier stuff is mentioned, but Deep Water basically deals with New Orleans from the 1860s through 1891.
Possibly of interest to you: A collection of Jean Lafitte information is held by the Sam Houston Regional Library and Research Center at Liberty, Texas. See: https://legacy.lib.utexas.edu/taro/ts...
Not quite that far back. Some earlier stuff is mentioned, but Deep Water basically deals with New Orleans from the 1860s through 1891.
Possibly of interest to you: A collection of Jean Lafitte information is held by the Sam Houston Regional Library and Research Center at Liberty, Texas. See: https://legacy.lib.utexas.edu/taro/ts...
Thomas Hunt
Hi Luanne. Thanks for your question.
My initial interest was sparked when I looked into issues relating to capital punishment. It has been argued that a number of those executed by the criminal justice system turn out to have been wrongly convicted. I noted that lists of the "wrongly executed" were assembled. Charles Sberna's name appeared on such lists. Additional research turned up Walter Winchell's old newspaper columns, in which Sberna was identified as the one executed man Sing Sing Warden Lawes knew was innocent.
Interesting story!
So, I picked up a copy of Lawes' book, Meet the Murderer, and found a name-changed account of the Sberna situation. It was then that I decided to do my first writing on the subject. I put together an article for a crime history journal in 2006.
During research, I stumbled on Sberna's connection to the Mafia, a subject of great interest to me. Sberna appeared in a family tree I assembled for U.S. Mafia boss of bosses Giuseppe Morello.
I didn't do much more with the Sberna story until what I thought was unrelated research - into a series of anarchist bombings in New York City - turned up the name of his father. Giuseppe Sberna fled the U.S. as local, state and federal officials closed in on him. That's when I began to wonder if the son of an anarchist-terrorist leader and son-in-law of a Mafia boss of bosses could possibly get a fair trial.
My initial interest was sparked when I looked into issues relating to capital punishment. It has been argued that a number of those executed by the criminal justice system turn out to have been wrongly convicted. I noted that lists of the "wrongly executed" were assembled. Charles Sberna's name appeared on such lists. Additional research turned up Walter Winchell's old newspaper columns, in which Sberna was identified as the one executed man Sing Sing Warden Lawes knew was innocent.
Interesting story!
So, I picked up a copy of Lawes' book, Meet the Murderer, and found a name-changed account of the Sberna situation. It was then that I decided to do my first writing on the subject. I put together an article for a crime history journal in 2006.
During research, I stumbled on Sberna's connection to the Mafia, a subject of great interest to me. Sberna appeared in a family tree I assembled for U.S. Mafia boss of bosses Giuseppe Morello.
I didn't do much more with the Sberna story until what I thought was unrelated research - into a series of anarchist bombings in New York City - turned up the name of his father. Giuseppe Sberna fled the U.S. as local, state and federal officials closed in on him. That's when I began to wonder if the son of an anarchist-terrorist leader and son-in-law of a Mafia boss of bosses could possibly get a fair trial.
Thomas Hunt
Not really my line, but I suppose I could do it.
How about:
Abby was disturbed from her slumber by the intense yellow-orange morning light streaming through the window of her country cabin.
A minute later, as a ferocious gust of wind shook the cabin, she awakened sufficiently to recall that her window faced not the rising sun of the east but the city of Chicago, west across Lake Michigan.
How about:
Abby was disturbed from her slumber by the intense yellow-orange morning light streaming through the window of her country cabin.
A minute later, as a ferocious gust of wind shook the cabin, she awakened sufficiently to recall that her window faced not the rising sun of the east but the city of Chicago, west across Lake Michigan.
Thomas Hunt
What fictional world would I like to visit?
The fictional world that interests me most is the one in which humankind's common instincts sprang entirely through a tradition of cooperation rather than competition. It is one where need is unknown, where greed and jealousy are rare psychological abnormalities, where all recognize our common bonds to each other and to the single planet that is our only home. It is one where the impulses that divide us are regarded as criminal offenses instead of accepted as the guiding principles of our political, social and religious institutions.
What would I do there?
I'm not sure what line of work I would fall into in such a place. But, mostly, I suspect that I would smile broadly and contentedly all day and sleep deeply and peacefully all night.
The fictional world that interests me most is the one in which humankind's common instincts sprang entirely through a tradition of cooperation rather than competition. It is one where need is unknown, where greed and jealousy are rare psychological abnormalities, where all recognize our common bonds to each other and to the single planet that is our only home. It is one where the impulses that divide us are regarded as criminal offenses instead of accepted as the guiding principles of our political, social and religious institutions.
What would I do there?
I'm not sure what line of work I would fall into in such a place. But, mostly, I suspect that I would smile broadly and contentedly all day and sleep deeply and peacefully all night.
Thomas Hunt
I do a lot of work-related reading these days, but I see that more as a form of mental digestion. I extract the information nutrition and pay little attention to the other aspects of the work. But occasionally I do find time to enjoy books.
I'm looking forward to reading "Dock Boss: Eddie McGrath and the West Side Waterfront" by Neil Clark.
"Dodge City: Wyatt Earp, Bat Masterson, and the Wickedest Town in the American West" by Tom Clavin looks interesting (despite the Oxford comma in the title), and I'll probably pick that up. (I wish I could understand why publishers make their Kindle books cost nearly as much as their hardcovers.)
I hope also to find some time to finish off "Fulk Nerra: The Neo-Roman Consul, 987-1040," by Bernard S. Bachrach.
I'm looking forward to reading "Dock Boss: Eddie McGrath and the West Side Waterfront" by Neil Clark.
"Dodge City: Wyatt Earp, Bat Masterson, and the Wickedest Town in the American West" by Tom Clavin looks interesting (despite the Oxford comma in the title), and I'll probably pick that up. (I wish I could understand why publishers make their Kindle books cost nearly as much as their hardcovers.)
I hope also to find some time to finish off "Fulk Nerra: The Neo-Roman Consul, 987-1040," by Bernard S. Bachrach.
Thomas Hunt
I don't read much fiction, but I guess my best answer is Nick and Nora Charles from The Thin Man. Their verbal playfulness is the primary reason. I also like to think Nick and Nora provided us a glimpse into the real world Dashiell Hammett and Lillian Hellman. (BTW, I wish the relationship had been less dependent on alcohol.)
Thomas Hunt
I think this may be much more of an issue for fiction writers. I don't know much about that (yet).
Through years of non-fiction writing and journalism, I'm not sure I ever have experienced a "block." Thinking things through is a huge part of the writing process. Sometimes you reach a point where your planning isn't what it needs to be to get you from where you are to where you want to go. You could continue to write - reporters on deadline tend to just plow through such things. But, if you aren't on a deadline, continuing to type at that moment is probably not as useful as looking back over your plan or outline, checking your source materials, reorienting yourself to the task or possibly taking a few moments just to clear your head.
I suppose that may seem like a "block," because it doesn't immediately put words on the page. But it is critical to producing a coherent and effective work and should be respected as part of the process.
Through years of non-fiction writing and journalism, I'm not sure I ever have experienced a "block." Thinking things through is a huge part of the writing process. Sometimes you reach a point where your planning isn't what it needs to be to get you from where you are to where you want to go. You could continue to write - reporters on deadline tend to just plow through such things. But, if you aren't on a deadline, continuing to type at that moment is probably not as useful as looking back over your plan or outline, checking your source materials, reorienting yourself to the task or possibly taking a few moments just to clear your head.
I suppose that may seem like a "block," because it doesn't immediately put words on the page. But it is critical to producing a coherent and effective work and should be respected as part of the process.
Thomas Hunt
The story of Charles Sberna first came to my attention during research into capital punishment errors. Listings of Americans believed to have been wrongly executed generally included Sberna and noted that he was convicted and executed for the murder of a police officer (John H.A. Wilson) though both he and a co-defendant testified that Sberna had no role in that killing.
Looking through newspaper archives, I happened across some Sberna mentions in the syndicated columns of Walter Winchell. Winchell was initially convinced of Sberna's innocence and even charged government officials of making "hush money" payments to cover up the matter. The columnist later changed his view very suddenly and then halted all comment on it.
At the time of these discoveries, I was email-conversing with historian Rick "Mad Dog" Mattix about his startup of the On the Spot Journal of "gangster era" crime and law enforcement history. I put together an article on Sberna, and Rick published it in the December 2006 issue of On the Spot.
That first article mentioned Charles Sberna's marriage into the Morello-Lupo-Terranova family, which had shaped the early Mafia in New York and across the U.S. I wondered if officials of the day may have had an unfavorable view of Sberna due to this connection. Sberna's own family link to early 20th Century anarchist-terrorists was unknown to me until later research into undercover NYPD Officer Amedeo Polignani.
It turned out that Giuseppe Sberna - father of Charles - was sought by local, state and federal authorities for his role in organizing a string of bloody bombings in major American cities. Despite law enforcement efforts that included inserting a spy into Giuseppe's inner circle, he managed to escape to Italy, leaving his wife and children behind in New York.
My decision to fully explore the Sberna case soon followed these revelations.
Looking through newspaper archives, I happened across some Sberna mentions in the syndicated columns of Walter Winchell. Winchell was initially convinced of Sberna's innocence and even charged government officials of making "hush money" payments to cover up the matter. The columnist later changed his view very suddenly and then halted all comment on it.
At the time of these discoveries, I was email-conversing with historian Rick "Mad Dog" Mattix about his startup of the On the Spot Journal of "gangster era" crime and law enforcement history. I put together an article on Sberna, and Rick published it in the December 2006 issue of On the Spot.
That first article mentioned Charles Sberna's marriage into the Morello-Lupo-Terranova family, which had shaped the early Mafia in New York and across the U.S. I wondered if officials of the day may have had an unfavorable view of Sberna due to this connection. Sberna's own family link to early 20th Century anarchist-terrorists was unknown to me until later research into undercover NYPD Officer Amedeo Polignani.
It turned out that Giuseppe Sberna - father of Charles - was sought by local, state and federal authorities for his role in organizing a string of bloody bombings in major American cities. Despite law enforcement efforts that included inserting a spy into Giuseppe's inner circle, he managed to escape to Italy, leaving his wife and children behind in New York.
My decision to fully explore the Sberna case soon followed these revelations.
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