Ellroy Reads – The Big Hurt by Erika Schickel
October 12, 2025
For the latest episode of Ellroy Reads, I look at Erika Schickel’s The Big Hurt. If you are unfamiliar with the book, The Big Hurt is Erika’s memoir of her relationship with James Ellroy. I go into some detail as to what it was like being Ellroy’s biographer when the book was released. Ellroy feared that it would be a tawdry kiss-and-tell, but it turned out to be a much more nuanced portrait of the man.
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The Venetian Vase 
Not quite the hit job I feared but I can understand Ellroy’s discomfort with some of the stories.
And speaking of Ellroy stories- I just heard about this new Ellroy documentary titled Ellroy vs LA that looks promising.
https://thefilmstage.com/exclusive-trailer-for-ellroy-vs-l-a-enters-the-mind-of-a-noir-master/
I saw that too. Looks quite experimental in terms of the archival footage synced with Ellroy’s narration.