A James Ellroy Playlist: The Loves of Freddy Otash Part I
The news that James Ellroy’s latest novel Red Sheet will be published in June of next year has inspired me to revisit my James Ellroy Playlist series. For those of you unfamiliar with this series it is, quite simply, an exploration of music that is important to the fictional world Ellroy has created in his novels.
Red Sheet is a continuation of Ellroy’s Freddy Otash series of novels. I wanted to explore the musical influences on the Otash novels, specifically by looking at songs by women who, for better or worse, could be considered the loves of Freddy Otash. As there was more material on this subject than I anticipated, I am splitting this post into two parts, with the second part to be published soon.
Wade in the Water
One of the most intriguing snippets from the Red Sheet synopsis came in this line, ‘the long-forgotten but still-stunning folk singer Judy Henske is on a collision course with the love of her life, the freewheeling Freddy O’. Judy Henske was born in Chippewa Falls in 1936. She moved to San Diego in 1959 and lived ‘on a sloop in a yacht basin’. Her singing career received a boost when she appeared on the musical variety show Hootenanny, and she became a prominent figure in the folk music craze of the early 1960s. Henske was noted for her booming voice. Crime writer, and for a time Ellroy confidante, Andrew Vachss noted in his novel Blue Belle that ‘If Linda Ronstadt’s a torch singer, Henske’s a flame thrower.’ In a recent interview with The Objective Ellroy said of Red Sheet, ‘Freddy meets a woman he can’t escape. She’s the folk singer, Judy Henske. She represents a kind of goodness he’s never encountered before and encourages him to tell the truth.’
The Red Sheet synopsis describes Judy Henske as ‘long-forgotten’, but the October-December 1962 setting of the novel covers a time-period when she was in her mid-twenties and her career was in its ascendancy. Below is a stunning Judy Henske performance of the African-American spiritual ‘Wade in the Water’ from her only film appearance, the 1963 musical Hootenanny Hoot.
Happy Birthday, Mr. President
It might be a stretch to consider Marilyn Monroe as one of the loves of Freddy Otash’s life, but it’s fair to say they had a mutually important, albeit indirect, impact on each other’s existence in Ellroy’s novel The Enchanters. Monroe was praised for her singing ability. Her rendition of ‘Diamonds Are a Girls Best Friend’ in Gentlemen Prefer Blondes is a standout performance in her career. For this post though, I feel it most appropriate, given everything James Ellroy has written about the moral corruption of the Kennedy clan, to include Monroe’s performance of ‘Happy Birthday, Mr. President’, followed by a few lines of ‘Thanks for the Memory’, at Madison Square Garden on May 19, 1962. It is unforgettable performance made all the more poignant by the fact that Monroe died less than three months later on August 4, 1962. Were the Kennedys involved? Only Freddy O has the goods!
Ellroy Reads – The Collector by John Fowles
For the latest episode of Ellroy Reads, I discuss John Fowles’ classic novel The Collector. The novel had a profound impact on James Ellroy and other authors as well, being a direct influence on Irving Wallace’s The Fan Club, which was the first book I covered on the show. I also discuss some real-life criminal cases that have a connection to the novel, namely the unsolved murder of Stephanie Gorman and the grisly case of Kansas City serial killer Bob Berdella.
Hope you enjoy the show, and please remember to subscribe and share. I’m currently working on a post for my old website series ‘A James Ellroy Playlist’, which some of you may remember. It’s inspired by the forthcoming release of Ellroy’s new novel Red Sheet. Anyway, enjoy this episode of Ellroy Reads in the meantime.
Ellroy Reads – In Cold Blood by Truman Capote
The latest episode of Ellroy Reads is a little different, as I am covering a book James Ellroy truly detests. Ellroy has described In Cold Blood as the most overrated book in American literature. Nevertheless, I argue that elements of the book, and the ‘non-fiction novel’ that Capote claimed he invented, have inspired Ellroy’s writing.
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Ellroy Reads – The Big Hurt by Erika Schickel
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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Reeling Bullets: W.R. Burnett on Film by Andy Rohmer
When William Riley Burnett moved from his hometown of Springfield, Ohio to Chicago he got a job as a night clerk at the seedy Northmere Hotel. He spent his evenings in the company of hookers, hustlers and grafters which inspired his first published novel Little Caesar in 1929. The novel was a critical and commercial hit and the film adaptation which followed two years, with Edward G. Robinson in the title role, launched WR Burnett’s screenwriting career.
Andy Rohmer has been writing the excellent Writers-On-Film series for several years now. He employs a critical technique he dubs ‘reverse auteurism’, examining every film adaptation of Burnett’s work from the perspective of the writer, challenging the autonomy of the director, but at the same time acknowledging that film is a director’s medium. He has already written excellent volumes on Elmore Leonard, Donald Westlake and James M. Cain. This new volume on Burnett is the fourth addition in the series, and might just be the best yet.
For me, the best parts of Rohmer’s books are often the gossip and tidbits he reveals about authors lives or the production of the films. We learn that Burnett’s ideal form of government was democracy that ‘verges on anarchy’, and that Raoul Walsh, who directed four adaptations of Burnett’s work, had an ongoing feud with John Ford as to which one of them made a star of John Wayne.
All in all, Reeling Bullets lives up to its title as a punchy, hard-hitting tribute to WR Burnett’s contribution to literature and cinema, and is essential reading to students of both art forms.
Ellroy Reads – American Psycho by Bret Easton Ellis
For the latest episode of Ellroy Reads I discuss Bret Easton Ellis’s novel American Psycho. The life of Ellis and James Ellroy share many parallels. They are both Angelenos. They both lost a parent in mysterious circumstances, and both have struggled with addiction. Finally, they have both written about serial killers. American Psycho is a classic of modern American literature. But you might be surprised to learn that Ellis wrote to James Ellroy and described Ellroy’s novel Killer on the Road as ‘the best novel about a serial killer that I have ever read’.
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Ellroy Reads – Aurora 7 by Thomas Mallon
For the latest episode of Ellroy Reads, I look at Thomas Mallon’s Aurora 7, a novel which at its best, provides a profound insight into the now all but forgotten 1962 space flight. I also discuss some of James Ellroy’s surprising connections with science/speculative fiction writers through the decades.
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Ellroy Reads – Philip Roth: The Biography
For the latest episode of Ellroy Reads I look into the controversy surrounding Philip Roth: The Biography. I was writing Love Me Fierce in Danger: The Life of James Ellroy when serious allegations emerged regarding Blake Bailey, Roth’s eventual biographer. Ellroy was monitoring these events closely and I give some insight as to his take on them.
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Red Sheet – James Ellroy’s New Novel: Title Reveal, Synopsis and Publication Date
According to Amazon, the tile of James Ellroy’s new novel is Red Sheet. The publication date is set for June 9, 2026. Amazon also has a full synopsis:
Turn to the first page and disavow what you think you know. This is 1960s Los Angeles like you’ve never seen it before, in a daring work of historical fiction from bestselling author of The Enchanters and Widespread Panic.
It’s late October 1962. The Cuban Missile Crisis has just concluded. The U.S. prevailed. Attorney General Robert Kennedy fears reprisals from domestic Communist Party members embedded in L.A. He orders a red probe and puts the LAPD on the job.
Freddy Otash is named lead investigator. He encounters commie malfeasance at every turn. He homes in on a red-front trade union. There’s a murder on Halloween night. It links to ex-VP and gubernatorial candidate Richard Nixon and possibly two homicides eight years back. Now Freddy is working double duty: he’s commanding the probe and is hired to keep Nixon out of trouble. Meanwhile, integrationist fever is sweeping L.A. and the police department comes under its fire. Ex-cop/lawyer Tom Bradley is running for city council and pushing the Rumford Fair Housing Act. Playboy kingpin Hugh Hefner is along for the ride. And the long-forgotten but still-stunning folk singer Judy Henske is on a collision course with the love of her life, the freewheeling Freddy O.
The stage is set for chaos and Freddy thrives on chaos. Red Sheet is a work of subversive art. It embodies “indigenous American berserk” with a uniquely crazed and brilliant passion.
This is an exciting development for Ellroy fans. However, I would take the publication date with a pinch of salt. These dates tend to be provisional and are often too optimistic. I would even say the title might change with time. As I document in Love Me Fierce in Danger: The Life of James Ellroy, Ellroy has been left furious when incorrect titles to his novels have leaked online before. He even sacked his long-term agent Nat Sobel when the title This Storm appeared on Sobel’s website prematurely. Nevertheless, the synopsis is fairly detailed and gives the reader a tantalising glimpse of Freddy Otash’s next misadventure.
The Demon Dog is back!
The Venetian Vase 