Jim Thompson follow-up on Trotsky newsgroup

[Louis Proyect <lnp3@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

> Actually, Wald mentioned Thompson frequently in his talk.
>

I wish I had heard the talk. Thompson is a very interesting individual
and his involvement with the IWW and CPUSA is quite fascinating. There
is a fantastic biography of Thompson that came out a few years ago that
deals with his membership in the CPUSA and other parts of his life. It
is written by Robert Polito and is entitled *Savage Art.* It is the
most entertaining biography I have ever read. I knew a little bit about
Thompson's politics from reading *Now and on Earth,* but Polito's
biography manages to provide a great deal of obscure information on his
membership in the CPUSA in Oklahoma City, his association with Guthry
and L'Amour, and his work on the Federal Writers Project to provide a
history of Oklahoma from the view point of workers. In many ways
Polito's book reads like Thompson novel. This is not surprising given
the many autobiographical bits in most Thompson novels. Although it is
not a rigourous political and economic examination, Thompson's *Now and
on Earth* does provide a very interesting view of the life of workers
in San Diego during WWII from a Marxist point of view. I recommend both
*Now and on Earth* and *Savage Art* to anybody interested in the
American left during the 40s.

J. Otto Pohl


Louis Proyect

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