Ernest’s Reviews > Black Dahlia: Murder, Monsters, and Madness in Midcentury Hollywood > Status Update

Elizabeth Short defied postwar social pressure on women to stay home, get married, and raise a family. Young men who venture out on their own, living by their wits and charm, are seen as folk heroes, the plucky protagonists of novels and films. That's how we should see Elizabeth Short as well.

William J. Mann has such a gift for sensitively discussing dark issues in a way that respects the victim. He's taking such great care to deconstruct the myths surrounding the life of Elizabeth Short and to let her life be the center of this work rather than just her death. Bravo.

William J. Mann did such fantastic work with “Tinseltown” and “The Contender” that I had to snag a copy of this.