NEW FROM CHRISTIE BOOKS:

THE CONTINUEING SEARCH FOR B. TRAVEN:

The German Mexican novelist B. Traven has been an unending mystery despite the popularity of his novels and the cinematic adaptions of same. The most popular theory about the real identity of Traven is that he was the Bavarian anarchist Ret Marut, but this itself probably an alias. A brief "antibiography" of the man and some of the theories as to his real identity is available at the LibCom site at http://libcom.org/library/b-traven-anti-biography . Another take on his real identity is given in a Wikipedia article devoted to him. This article quotes his wife as saying that Traven, "had something like ten identities and loved to tangle things up". The identity of Ret Marut can be traced back to 1907, and who he was before is a matter of speculation. The Wikipedia article gives a brief bibliography of his books. Those interested in a more complete list including those published posthumously can access it at http://www.kirjasto.sci.fi/traven.htm . Looking over all these stories all that can be said is that nothing has been definitely proven yet. Molly would like to add her own two cents worth to the debate by saying that she has yet to see anybody commenting on the obvious similarity of the pseudonom "Marut" to that of the French revolutionary "Marat". Is this perhaps the source of the nom-de-guerre ?

Anyways, the Christie Books outfit over in the UK who produce films free for downloading have put together a trilogy on B. Traven. The first is 'B. Traven. A Mystery Solved'(1979) by Will Wyatt and Robert Robinson (http://www.brightcove.com/title.jsp?title=1119131104 ) which purports to "solve" the mystery of who Traven was. The second is 'Discovering Treasure:Making the Treasure of the Sierra Madre (http://www.brightcove.com/title.jsp?title=570487966 ) about the making of the classic movie. The final is the 1948 classic itself (http://www.brightcove.com/title.jsp?title=572020959 ) 'The Treasure of the Sierra Madre' starring Humphrey Bogart. Pop on over if you are interested and enjoy. Don't forget to make a donation so that the fine work of Christie Books can go on.