The Patrick Hamilton Appreciation Society discussion

JAMES CURTIS




James Curtis was the author of six novels - The Gilt Kid, They Drive By Night, There Ain't No Justice, You're In The Racket Too, What Immortal Hand and Look Long Upon A Monkey - and at least one non-fiction work, A Guide To British Liberties, which was published as part of the Fact series of political observations by left-wing authors in the 1930s. His life and work has remained unrecorded for many decades, and while much of his story is still to be discovered, information is at last coming to light.

Curtis was born in Kent in 1907, although his parents lived and worked in India. He was well educated and his life could have been comfortable and conventional, but he was a restless spirit who wasn't motivated by money or position. He rejected the easy path and embraced socialism, his beliefs influencing the direction of his novels and his style of his writing, as well as the course of his life.

As an author, Curtis was especially interested in the spoken word, the clever flow of everyday English. He would learn to speak six languages, so obviously had a leaning in this direction, but was open-minded enough to embrace the informal as well as the formal. He was familiar with the official classics, yet revelled in the use of slang, bringing the power and imagination of the vernacular alive in a series of books that go beyond fiction to offer a record of working-class London and those operating at the margins of society.

He would have been a regular face around the pubs and clubs of the West End, where the attractions of theatre and film rubbed up against London's underworld. The classes collided in central London, as did the various nationalities. Soho was cosmopolitan, flamboyant yet dodgy. It was the glamorous core of a huge industrial city. Writers such as Curtis, Gerald Kersh, Mark Benney and Robert Westerby could operate relatively easily here.

James Curtis dealt with the themes of injustice and equality, his characters often moving through the criminal twilight zone he had come to know. It has been speculated that he served time in prison, but there is no evidence to back this up. However, his characters do know a lot about the workings of the penal system, and it is not impossible that he spent some time inside.

During the Second World War, Curtis served his country and was even involved in the making of the Victory In Burma documentary, reaching the rank of Major. He was a patriot and is believed to have been involved in intelligence work, but returning to civvie street proved difficult. He wasn't alone, of course, as many men found it impossible to come to terms with the peace-time routine after their experiences during the war, but this doesn't diminish the sadness of his struggle.

Curtis separated from his wife Shirley and daughter Nicolette, and the change in his fortunes as a writer were also dramatic. Only one of his six novels was published post-war, and that was after a gap of twenty years. He worked as a porter in West End hotels, spent many hours reading and researching new ideas in the British Library, and much of his free time drinking in Camden Town and Kilburn. He also liked a bet on the horses. Camden and Kilburn were well known for their Irish pubs and he would later became a supporter of the republican movement, even going so far as to convert to Catholicism.

Curtis wasn't an easy man, and described himself as 'unemployable', yet he had impeccable manners and remained a gentleman. He was demanding, but this can be seen as a reflection of his idealism and his inability to compromise. He held firm beliefs and retained them to the end.

He died in Kilburn in 1977. He left nothing of financial value and none of his novels were in the flat where he lived. He was buried in St Pancras in North London, the only mourners at his funeral his daughter and her husband. Beyond the sad aspects of his life, Curtis was his own man and chose his path. He remained true to his beliefs throughout his life, the box of papers found after his death including an angry rejection of a film treatment for The Gilt Kid. Two of his novels were adapted in his lifetime - They Drive By Night and There Ain't No Justice - but he wasn't the sort of author who signs his ideas away for mere money.

It is a lasting tribute to James Curtis that while the writing of other more-celebrated, more-accommodating authors have aged, his novels remain incredibly fresh and vibrant. As such he fits into a continuing tradition of English-speaking authors - both English and American - who have tried to free the novel from the narrow limits of the literary establishment, to reflect and celebrate the lives and language of ordinary people.

From London Books

So far I've only read one book by James Curtis....



The Gilt Kid

"In the cold truth, nobody in the world cared a damn about him. He was as lonely here, at liberty in the streets of London, as ever he had been, sitting on the floor of his locked cell in prison sewing mailbags. It was a hell of a life."

Written in 1936 - and containing a cast of criminals, dossers, prostitutes and down-and-outs - this is an incredibly vivid and authentic evocation of a side of London seldom depicted in fiction during this era. Apparently James Curtis, the author, was a regular face around the pubs and clubs of the West End, where he rubbed up against London's underworld, and this first hand experience shines through. The book feels really authentic: peppered with colourful slang (and no glossary), the tale whips along. The Gilt Kid is a habitual housebreaker, just released from prison, who tells his own story of the next few days. He has no intention of working, and from his bedsit in Victoria spends his time in the West End drinking and scheming with criminals, dossers, and prostitutes. Whilst the book incorporates some politics - The Gilt Kid's one and only book being Marx's Das Kapital - it's more a visceral thriller. At the core of the book is a burglary that doesn't exactly go to plan and is superbly written. The book also incorporates some romance, social comment, politics and philosophy.

As Paul Willetts puts it in his introduction, "...reading The Gilt Kid for the first time is akin to watching some hitherto undiscovered classic black and white British crime movie, replete with memorable performances and tantalising glimpses of a lost world."

I really enjoyed the experience of reading a 1930s London novel from the perspective of an unapologetic, dyed-in-the-wool criminal.

4/5

Thanks for this. I invested in a copy of The Gilt Kid and enjoyed it - especially the language, some of which seems bizarre and dated, some surprisingly modern. Conjures up the atmosphere of lowlife, pre-war London too. For some reason, I particularly liked the idea of two burglars on their way to do a job...by bus.

Review, for what it's worth, at https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

^ I really enjoyed your review Peter - splendid stuff, you've really captured what's good about the book, and hinted at a few minor flaws. I really must crack on with more Curtis.

I have another book published by London to read soon, that is Wide Boys Never Work by Robert Westerby.

I suspect it's going to be cut from the same cloth.

New from London Books...





"There Ain’t No Justice" by James Curtis

Tommy Mutch is a working-class lad from the slums of West London, eager to escape the mean streets of Notting Dale. He gives most of his earned money to his mother, shares a room with his brother, attempts to help his single sister who is pregnant, and falls in love with a prostitute who he promises to save. Boxing is in its 1930s heyday and, like many in his position, Tommy sees it as an escape route from poverty. Father-like Harry and dodgy manager Sammy are in his corner.

As a ‘preliminary’ boy on the verge of making the breakthrough this is more than just a dream, but he hasn’t bargained for the obstacles he has to face outside the ring – crooked promoters, hucksters, pimps, small-time gangsters. Tommy has strong morals and a fierce sense of justice, but these are about to be put to the test.

As with all of James Curtis’ fiction there is another level to the story. While he captures the blood, sweat and tears of the sport, he also sets about questioning if it is right this should be the only way Tommy can emerge from the ranks of the downtrodden. Tommy’s inherent decency runs through the narrative, but he has been sucked into a world where losers are winners, and winners often lose out. Turned into a successful film, There Ain’t No Justice is raw, sad and exciting, but ultimately the uplifting story of a good family man battling hard times in pre-war London.

Picked up They Drive by Night recently and thoroughly enjoyed it (but is that a Dinky toy on the front cover? Very odd). Now, of course, I'd like to see the film...

Review at https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

I recently fell into email correspondence with Martin Knight, the co-founder of London Books alongside John King. He informed me that rights have been secured for their re-publishing of Curtis' third novel, You're In The Racket, Too [1937]. Possibly returning to print in 2015, though more likely to be 2016. Either way, something to look forward to.

Good intel. Thanks Mark. And, as you say....



Mark wrote: "...something to look forward to. "

Mark wrote: "...rights have been secured for re-publishing of Curtis' third novel, You're In The Racket, Too [1937].

Excellent news. I knew an original copy of the novel would be expensive, but my jaw dropped when I searched and found the cheapest one being offered for a cool £1380.00. Snapped it up, of course...

I'd been watching prices on eBay, as well. I'm very much in the wrong tax bracket...

I managed to pick up a copy of James Curtis's final novel Look Long Upon a Monkey but, perhaps predictably, it was a disappointment. I suspect Curtis had lost all inspiration by then. Ah well.

Review at https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Thanks Peter. An insightful review. As usual. What a shame the book was such a let down

Has anybody here seen the film of There Ain't No Justice?
I have an interest in the director Pen Tennyson and can't decide whether it is worth buying a copy of DVD. There are just a couple of short clips on YouTube but they suggest it might be worthwhile.

I haven’t Martin but, like you, would be curious about whether it’s worth a gander

I saw it many years ago and loved it, but I'm easily pleased by most anything from themat era. on the subject of Pen Tennyson, I can't help much but, as an aside, my mum used to work in an office where Nova Pilbeam's second husband was a frequent visitor. Not hugely interesting or helpful, but it's the best I can do...

That's good thanks. Any scraps people can add help to form an impression.

Love it CQM