PITCH TAILORED TO THE RAGAZZI OF
THE RAG TRADE PRESS
(Los Angeles) Oct. 26 - Carlo Parigi is more than a fashion plate. he’s an entire dinner service. The roguish, ethically challenged
star of the new novel Murder On The Roadshow, has two passions: 20th Century pop culture detritus and men’s clothing of all types
and vintage.
The handsome New York collectibles dealer wangles his way onto the new TV series, Antiques On The Road, in an attempt to save his flagging Greenwich Village shop. He signs on for a summer of traveling from city to city, appraising treasure and trash. In his very first stop, Canonicity, he discovers a body during taping and from then on, in city after city, he’s up to his neck in the murder while trying to get some air time by competing against the other dealers on the show; a group whose fake smiles reveal pearly teeth.
Every taping day he allows extra time in the morning to assemble his selection of clothes for the show and dress properly while reflecting (in asides to the reader) on the designers and traditions of the wardrobe. Dressing for the day is one of Carlo’s greatest pleasures, enjoyed almost as much as creating a valued collectible out of a junk store purchase with the swish of a marker on a price tag.
Carlo goes into great detail about the suits and shirts and even, in some cases, the socks he is wearing and a place of special honor goes to the shoes he has bought over the years. All the usual suspects are present.Brioni, Armani, Prada, Dunhill plus some defunct houses and more obscure clothiers.There are snarky comments about the dress habits of the "civilians" attending the show. Anecdotes abound with stories from the dressing habits of Edward. Prince of Wales to the bizarre outfits worn by the show’s resident vintage poster appraiser. Tales are told of bargains found at the famed Winter sales held by the Les Grand Magasins of Paris and a dinner date which involved dressing entirely in a 1920s outfit that came complete with a story about the model in the jazz ads that featured the jacket. The romantic evening also included an explanation about the origin of the phrase “one night stand.” Word and expression origins are a passion of the book’s author and there are several other sprinkled throughout the text.(What is DAKS short and how did the term “to make your nut” come into the language?)
Not to spill a complete spoiler, Carlo finally runs down the killer.(by noticing a small clothing discrepancy) during the show’s stop in Bismarck, North Dakota - a city that brings out the worse in his New York centric chauvinism. So nasty are the comments about the state’s capital, that the author had to apologize to the people of Bismarck in the book’s opening notes.
The novel also contains dozens of brief appraisals of items brought into the show, some dishy insights about the backstage workings of the program plus Carlo shares some rather startling tricks of the antiques trade.
And what's a murder without romance. Carlo meets up with Renata, an old flame who left the business long ago and is now back as the wife of a rare book dealer doing the show. This marriage thing, which Carlo considers quaint, doesn't stop him from re-seducing Renata, this time in a tack room of a Bismarck hotel (and motor lodge.)
And what's a murder without romance. Carlo meets up with Renata, an old flame who left the business long ago and is now back as the wife of a rare book dealer doing the show. This marriage thing, which Carlo considers quaint, doesn't stop him from re-seducing Renata, this time in a tack room of a Bismarck hotel (and motor lodge.)
Author Rudy Franchi surveying his empire of junk.
Rudy Franchi was an appraiser on the PBS series, Antiques Roadshow for its first 14 seasons. He owned a business selling collectibles for 40 years. This is his first novel. A previous book was a guide to collecting original movie posters.
Murder On The Roadshow is published by Henchman press of Cambridge, MA.
********************
CONTACT: Rudy Franchi rudy@posterappraisal.com
310 360 0830 Info:/pics: www.murderontheroadshow .co
email or call if you have any interest in a story on the book with regard to men's fashion and/or Antiques Roadshow...or the collectibles game, etc. etc. There's enough pitch to waterproof an ark.
Author Rudy Franchi
IF YOU WOULD LIKE A COPY OF THE BOOK, PLEASE PROVIDE A SNAIL MAIL ADDRESS OR A KINDLE FRIENDLY E-MAIL.
