Mob Month at the Las Vegas-Clark County Library District concludes in a fitting way. This series of lectures and discussions ends with a "duel" between two authors reading excerpts from their Mafia tell-alls, while two local artists create live works of art from their explosive words.

Painted Stories: Duel in the Library happens January 31 at Clark County Library’s main branch. The Painted Words series is the brainchild of Eric James Miller, president of the Vegas-based nonprofit Writers of Southern Nevada, who observed that all this town’s literary conferences featured only "talking heads." It inspired him to come at a classic idiom from a new angle.

"If a picture is worth a thousand words, then aren’t a thousand words worth a picture?" Miller says. He felt a reading series with local artists would be something new for Vegas, and thus Painted Stories was born in early 2015.

This month’s event features Randy Sutton, a former Metro police lieutenant and actor (he first appeared in Martin Scorcese’s Casino) and Vito Colucci Jr., a former officer with the Stamford, Connecticut Police Department and now a private investigator. Sutton will read from his book A Cop’s Life, while Colucci Jr. will read from Rogue Town, his account of working undercover to topple organized crime in Stamford, which he co-authored with Dennis N. Griffin.

As compelling as the authors’ stories are, the artists could steal the show. Meegan Boiros and Michael Davies will be painting live, on a shared stage, as the authors read aloud.

"It’s a unique experience," Miller says. "You’re watching a one-of-a-kind artwork unfold on canvas right in front of you. Words evoke a dream state in the listener as well as the painter."

Both are seasoned local artists, so the match should be a good one. Boiros, a member of the Las Vegas Artists Guild, is an art instructor for Pinot’s Palette in the District. And Davies was recently named the 2015 Las Vegas RAW Artist of the Year.

The Painted Stories format has evolved over time. Initially, as many as four writers read short stories while a single artist painted a unique artwork for each one. The process has since been refined, Miller says.

"Having only two readers makes it easier on the artists," Miller says. "Now the artist has 25 minutes to paint, rather than just 10 to 15."

And those 25 minutes are like nothing else you’ve seen, promises Miller.

"Except for sound of the authors reading, you can hear a pin drop in the room. The audience is mesmerized, giving both reader and artist their undivided attention."

Considering today’s technology-blunted attention spans, that’s almost more extraordinary than the tales of Mafia, murder and mayhem.

By Elisabeth Daniels - VegasSeven.com
January 13, 2016
Original Article

Get The Book

Buy it Now

A Cops Life - By SGT. Randy L. Sutton

After September 11, 2001 Las Vegas Police Sergeant Randy Sutton began soliciting writing from law enforcement officers-his goal being to bridge the gap between the police and those they serve, with a book that offers a broad and thoughtful look at the many facets of police life. Hundreds of active and former officers responded from all over the United States: men and women from big cities and small towns, some who had written professionally, but most for the first time. Sutton culled the selections into five categories: The Beat, Line of Duty, War Stories, Officer Down, and Ground Zero.The result is True Blue, a collection of funny, charming, exciting, haunting stories about murder investigations, missing children, bungling burglars, car chases, lonely and desperate shut-ins, routine traffic stops, officers killed in the line of duty, and the life-changing events of September 11. Here, officers reveal their emotions-fear and pride, joy and disgust, shame and love-as they recount the defining moments of their careers. In these stories, the heart and soul behind the badge shines through in unexpected ways. True Blue will change the way we think about the deeply human realm of police service..