Fact, Fictions, and the Forbidden Predictions of the Amazing Criswell by Edwin Lee Canfield

The life and times of showman prognosticator Jeron Criswell revealed through friends, appearances, and ample predictions. His public demanded a metric on the accuracy of his torrent of forecasts, so he responded with 87%, a predictable fabrication emphatically stated as fact. No matter, he knew accuracy was not the point. His decades of prophecies were entertainment—enthusiastic, creative, often shocking, and remarkably, nearly endless. (Only occasionally true.)

Author Canfield has given us the closest look we’re likely to get into the life of an American original. Exhaustively researched, with fascinating side trips into the lives of his estranged wife, Halo Meadows,  friends, and associates, Criswell presents an in-depth examination of the prognosticator’s lifelong pursuit of the limelight. His rise from publishing limited edition pamphlets to his move to Los Angeles, from his eventually widely distributed “Criswell Predicts” newspaper column to his numerous appearances on the talkshow circuit (Jack Parr, Johnny Carson, Merv Griffin, etc.), to his slow decline as his cashflow trickled downward. It includes details on his association with Ed Wood and his entourage, both behind the scenes and in front of the camera.

A must-read for fans of cult heroics with noirish tendencies.