Sy Solomon’s specialty is ripping off the taxpayers—through shoddy construction practices in an IRS-occupied building and other projects. If, however, you want a nice overview of a whole litany of white-collar crimes, why not download a free copy of an American classic called The Money Changers? Upton Sinclair’s novel from the early 20th century gives […]
Read MoreD.C.’s power lunchrooms: Then and now
The Solomon Scandals mentions the Sans Souci, where so many members of the D.C. elite plotted and dined. In real life JFK almost surely ate there on occasion, and aides such as his press secretary, Pierre Salinger, most definitely came. So did dealmakers and celebrities like the late Art Buchwald, seen in the right photo. A […]
Read MoreSubway etiquette and the social order: Are you a Left-Stepper, Right-Stepper or Parker?
Washington, D.C., the main setting of The Solomon Scandals, is like Hollywood or an Army base. It’s a city of hierarchies, both official and social. Read on and find out where you stand in the social order. You don’t have to live in D.C. to take the related poll in this post—one visitor has even […]
Read MoreGood-bye, Sen. Kennedy
My protagonist, Jon Stone, gave me a good grilling about the actual investigation that inspired The Solomon Scandals. Among those who helped back then: Ted Kennedy. The Stone-Rothman page explains how. RIP, Senator.
Read MoreFrom Bob Dylan to D.C.’s white-collar crooks: U.K. music site’s 3,000-word Q&A with David Rothman
Pennyblackmusic, a U.K. music site, has just posted a 3,000-word Q&A with David Rothman. Here’s the start. Can Bob Dylan fit into a Washington novel? Actually yes, if you go by ‘The Solomon Scandals’ (Twilight Times Books). Investigative reporter Jon Stone loves to swap ‘Dylan albums and pulpy old spy novels’ with a friend. Stone’s […]
Read MoreScandals is fiction, but in real-life outrages, D.C. is catching up
The Solomon Scandals is fiction, but Washington is doing a great job of catching up. The latest scandal out of D.C. is the news that the Bush White House let politics influence whether it put America on terrorism alerts. So claims former Homeland Security Secretary Tom Ridge. Was the press skeptical enough? Or did the […]
Read MoreThe Jonathan Stone-David Rothman Q. & A.
Jonathan Stone, the reporter in The Solomon Scandals, grilled me for this Q. & A.—uncut. Last updated April 10, 2024. STONE: Why’s Scandals copyrighted in your name? It’s my newspaper memoir. ROTHMAN: Er, faux memoir. Without me, you wouldn’t even have been born…or have worked for the Washington Telegram…or have struggled to avert an IRS-CIA […]
Read MoreChapters One, Two, and Three—samples
Chapter One Wendy Blevin’s obituary in the Washington Telegram ran only 578 words—a notably miserly length. As much as anyone, she was a natural for a long feature in the “She had everything to live for” vein. I say this despite the Solomon scandals. She was thirty-three, slender, and WASP-pretty, with pale blond hair that […]
Read More‘About politics’: Is it or isn’t it? Plus three political novels recced on NPR
All the King’s Men has long been my favorite political novel. But is Robert Penn Warren‘s masterpiece truly about politics? Not in the opinion of Dick Meyer of National Public Radio, who, though describing it as "poetic and unforgivable," observes: …to say it’s about politics is like, well, saying War and Peace is about war […]
Read MoreA ‘snarky’ critique of modern humor? What would Saul Alinsky have thought? Or Lewis Carroll?
Several kinds of snarks exist in Lewis Carroll‘s poem The Hunting of The Snark (free online). Certain of these creatures bite; others scratch. David Denby, author of Snark: Polemic in Seven Fits, may been thinking of the teeth and claws when he titled his book. I look forward to catching up with Snark even if […]
Read More‘Watchdogs are dozing’ in D.C., say two Politico writers
The Solomon Scandals, begun 30 years ago on an ancient electric typewriter, is partly about unsavory ties between the press, government and business. But in a way it’s also a tribute to the bygone days when daily newspapers—without so much Net-based competition for readers and ads—could more easily splurge on investigative journalism. And now? Here’s […]
Read MoreTwo Chicagoans: President Bullard vis-a-vis Obama
Both are self-made men from Chicago—intellectual politicians with law degrees. And like me, both are on the liberal side. No doubt, a few superficial parallels exist between my fictitious Eddy Bullard and President-elect Barack Obama. And it isn’t even deliberate. Thirty years ago when I conceived The Solomon Scandals, President Bullard held a law degree […]
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