Scary Monsters and Super Freaks: Stories of Sex, Drugs, Rock 'N' Roll and Murder

by Mike Sager

Mike Sager is to drugs, porn, and crimes of desperate delusion what Dominic Dunne is to the society murder. In addition to his long-classic Rolling Stone story "The Devil and John Holmes" (which helped inspire the upcoming Val Kilmer film, Wonderland) and his groundbreaking GQ piece about murdered Irish investigative reporter Veronica Guerin (also the subject of a major film starring Cate Blanchett), Scary Monsters and Super Freaks is a wonderful rogue's gallery of up-close pieces about the most public failures of the American dream. From Rick James and his drug-fueled detour into white slavery to the life and suicide of porn starlet Savannah, from deep inside the beating of Rodney King and the Heaven's Gate cult suicides to Chuck Berry's sexual predilections, this book brings to high-profile true crime a highly identifiable voice and style. Currently Esquire's Writer-at-Large, Sager takes us along for the ride with a raft of other figures including the late NWA Rapper Easy E. Winner, the FBI agent who fell in love with his informant, and the highest ranking DEA agent to be busted for drug trafficking. This is a brilliant debut collection by one of America's most respected and stylish crime writers.

Genres: True Crime, Nonfiction, Music, Crime, Essays, Biography, True Story

480 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2003

About the author

Mike Sager is a best-selling author and award-winning reporter. A former Washington Post staff writer under Watergate investigator Bob Woodward, he worked closely, during his years as a contributing editor to Rolling Stone, with gonzo journalist Hunter S. Thompson. Sager is the author of four collections of non-fiction, two novels, and one biography. He has served for more than fifteen years as a writer at large for Esquire. In 2010 he won the American Society of Magazine Editors’ National Magazine Award for profile writing for his article “The Man Who Never Was.” Many of his stories have been optioned for film. For more information, please see www.mikesager.com.

Sager is also the founding editor and publisher of The Sager Group. for more information, please see www.TheSagerGroup.Net.

Reviews

[Dolores · Rating 3 out of 5]

Quite lurid tales.

[npaw · Rating 2 out of 5]

Some good parts put poorly written.

[Kimberly · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ok, let me just get right to it, if you're going to have a title like "Scary Monsters and Super Freaks," you'd better have some remarkable stories within. However, I didn't read any that I would categorize as even slightly impressive.

I give it a solid 3 stars because there were a couple of well put together stories. I still can't get past the "Super Freak" reference to Rick James, you have got to be kidding me, I was expecting stories about all things depraved and unspeakable, but I got my name is Rick James Bitch lol. Moreover, if you want to read about Rodney King, Rick James and Janet Cooke then pick this one up for sure. If you want to read about Temple of Doom' the mass murder in a Buddhist temple in Arizona just know you will have to wade through stories like 'Little Girl Lost' the story about the adult film star Savannah.

[Michael Lee · Rating 3 out of 5]

This 2003 book of articles collected from Rolling Stone, GQ, and Esquire is organized with porn stars, musicians, and politicians first, then moves to corrupt cops, criminals, and cult leaders in the latter half. Some of the stories have a rubber-necking attraction, like the Rob Lowe DNC story. The story I enjoyed the most had nothing to do with pop culture, about the survival story of Lee Risler. The final (and longest) story about Carlos Castaneda was the longest and the most unfocused. I hoped the profiles of the people in Castaneda's orbit would be tied together, but it disappointingly it was not.

[Sarah Basile · Rating 2 out of 5]

The title of this book leads you to believe there will be sections on both David Bowie and Rick James. There is nothing about Bowie, so if that's your draw, as it was mine, this isn't worth your time. The stories are largely "surface" content that you could find in any news article, not a ton of in-depth information. I struggled to get through this book.

[Simon Sweetman · Rating 5 out of 5]

There are some gems in this book. Great yarns, and rip-roaringly told. Sometimes, Sager's style is too much - but the stories still reward. Other times, he is the right tonic to give a real push to the details. A blindingly great survey of pop-cultural profiles from another time altogether.

[George Wolfe · Rating 5 out of 5]

Mike's work is always solid!

[Bunny · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have no idea how I got the idea to read this book. It wasn't on the list of new books at the library, and when I went to see what section it came from, it was True Crime. Despite my liking for the genre, I get bored looking at the books in that section.

Yet I checked it out months and months ago, returned it without reading, and put it on my account's "to read" list.

Weird. Anyway.

What an amazing book! These are the kinds of stories that I live for when reading an otherwise uninteresting magazine (Rolling Stone for the last five years, I'm looking at you). Each story yanked me in tightly, and I ended up with three post-it notes to look up more information on the subjects later.

The only story that didn't interest me at all was The Teachings of Don Juan. It was beautifully flesh out, and well written, but it bored me.

And of course, because I'm a reading exhibitionist, the best part was closing the book and leaving it, face up, when people were around. Waiting.

Doot dee doot dee do..."WHAT is the title of that book? WHAT is it about?"

Good times, good times.

Very, very recommendable.

[matt. singer. · Rating 4 out of 5]

I met Mike Sager at an alt-journalist convention in San Francisco earlier this year, where he discussed his work. He's a great pulp-nonfiction writer, specializing in the skeezy side of American culture (although perhaps his greatest piece is about murdered Irish reporter Veronica Guerin). Before hearing him speak, I had only read one of his articles, about a gang in Venice, California, slowly coming apart due to the influx of crack into their neighborhood in the early 1980s. The story has this perfect ending that I thought had to have been made up, or manipulated in some fashion. I asked him about it, and apparently there was no fabrication on his part. Of course, he also told me he was supposed to go along with the gang during a drive-by, but the hit never happened for some reason. Now that has to be bullshit.

[Phyllis · Rating 5 out of 5]

This guy is a great reporter! This is an anthology of his work for Rolling Stone and GQ. Not only does he have great profiles of John Holmes and Rob Lowe from the height (nadir?) of their infamy. He also has a great "where is she now" piece about his ex-girlfriend Janet Cooke, who wrote a fake story for the Washington Post, won a Pulitzer for it, gave it back, and then largely went into hiding. One of my few worries about the weakening business model of traditional media is that guys like this won't have a venue for their work. Maybe he would find it insulting that I would worry about him--maybe he's doing just fine--but where's the next Sager going to come from?

Check this guy out!

[David Corleto-Bales · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent book by free lance journalist Mike Sager, (who often writes for "Rolling Stone") on subjects from the Heaven's Gate cult, (who committed suicide back in '97 trying to follow the Hale-Bopp comet) the twisted saga of John Holmes and the weird story of Carlos Castaneda. Along the way he covers the Veronica Guerin story, and alot of true crime. He bottom dwells at times but can really tell a story.

[Gena Radcliffe · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fascinating collection of essays in the "new journalism" vein, focused on a number of high-profile criminal cases and shady individuals. Amongst the best pieces are the sad story of porn star Savannah, who committed suicide after a car accident, the murder of Irish journalist Veronica Guerin, and a creepy look inside the Heaven's Gate cult. A good, gripping read.

[Tom Schulte · Rating 3 out of 5]

I picked this up for reading on the Wonderland murders. that leads and following is an uneven collection of sex and true crime with a standout piece on murder in a southwest American Buddhist monastery. concluding is the most interesting piece. it pulls back the veil of Carlos Castaneda on both his dissembling and his parasitic sycophants

[Asmaa · Rating 4 out of 5]

I haven't finished reading this book, but I did read a few chapters. I mostly bought for the chapter on my favorite super freak and yours, Rick James and the chapter on the Wonderland murders. I'll let you know what I think of the book once I'm finished. :)

[Roxanne · Rating 1 out of 5]

Was not what I expected. Too much background detail that was not at all interesting. I read about 1/2 the stories, couldnt make myself stick with it and read the whole book as I was uninterested in it.

[James Cobo · Rating 4 out of 5]

Compulsively readable collection of essays on all manner of salacious topics. The best (and most famous) essay is Sager's feature about John Holmes and the Wonderland murders, but it's far from the only standout in this wonderful compilation.

[Grump · Rating 5 out of 5]

I liked it. I bought this book a while ago, probably for the John Holmes article. But I really enjoyed most of the other ones too. Heaven's Gate, Carlos Castaneda and Gary Fannon were probably my faves. Oh shit the Rob Lowe one was awesome too.

[Katie Parker · Rating 4 out of 5]

This books delivers on its title.

[Melissa · Rating 3 out of 5]

I liked the way Mike Sager made his non fiction seem like fiction. Really enjoyed his style of writing and liked to read about people I didn't know anything about (besides Rob Lowe!).

[Andie Nash · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really addictive so far.

[Staci · Rating 4 out of 5]

A great collection of stories that read like the best of Rolling Stone or Vanity Fair.

[Marc · Rating 4 out of 5]

Compilation of journalist Mike Sager's in-depth articles about some of the seamier cases he has reported on over the years. Well written, it covers topics that may be disturbing to some.

[Becky · Rating 3 out of 5]

interesting tales, terrible organization. seemed rushed.

[Amber · Rating 5 out of 5]

Absolutely stellar compilation of very compelling stories. I couldn't put it down.

[Diana · Rating 5 out of 5]

Mike Sager writes narratives about real life events and people. Gripping and complete. Enjoy.

[Gina Lacqua-catalano · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wild ride!

[Kevin Kacin · Rating 5 out of 5]

A wonderful anthology concerning the other side of stories about people we all have heard about but, didn't know much more about than their name and scandal.