Since retiring from his job as a government flack, Darryle Purcell has written and illustrated 13 Hollywood Cowboy Detectives (HCD) paperback books, some of which also contain bonus HCD short stories. Oddly enough, his main protagonist in that series is a flack, Curly Woods, who writes for various Tinseltown poverty-row studios during the seemingly never-ending FDR Administration. With the help of a variety of B-western stars (Hoot Gibson, Ken Maynard, William S. Hart, Tom Mix, etc.) and his chauffeur pal Nick Danby, Woods battles the mob, foreign saboteurs and other no-good blackguards. The latest HCD novel is Mystery of the Midnight Soldiers. Purcell has also written and illustrated three Man of the Mist paperback adventures. Those HCD and Man of the Mist (Renaissance e-book Buckskin Edition) historical fiction novels and short stories are action-packed along the lines of the Saturday matinee serials of the 1930s and ’40s and Purcell illustrated them in the style of the adventure pulps of the same era.Through pulp publisher Airship 27, Purcell created the color cover and inside illustrations for his time-travel novel, Buck Jones in the 21st Century. The company also published his alternate-history adventure, Apocalypse 1952, of which he illustrated the cover. And, finally, Purcell wrote the humorous action pulp Geezers, on which he also did the black-and-white inside illustrations. Geezers Volume 2, with Purcell's inside illustrations, is coming soon.He has also written two humorous contemporary neo-pulps (Vermin Calling and Vermin 2 – MindBeasts) for OffBeatReads publishing. Those adventures feature comic-book artist Vernon Jiles (AKA Vermin) who, with the help of his slightly facetious comic-book characters, battles Evil in southern California. Purcell illustrated the covers.And OffBeatReads has released Hell to Humor, a paperback compilation of Purcell’s commentaries and cartoons concerning a variety of social and political issues. All of Purcell’s books and short stories are also available in Kindle format.Prior to his government-flack work, Purcell was managing editor of a western Arizona daily newspaper from 1993 into 2005. During that time, he earned seven statewide (Arizona) first place editorial and column writing awards as well as many corporation and regional writing wins. He also earned two first-place and one second-place Arizona Newspaper Association Freedom of Information awards as well as a Society of Professional Journalists Sunshine (freedom of information) award.In California, Purcell worked in daily newspapers from 1982 until 1993 as everything from editorial cartoonist to assistant managing editor. During those years his editorial cartoons garnered several statewide and regional awards.Prior to his daily newspaper career, he had also worked in magazine and weekly newspaper editorial cartooning and illustration, educational comic book illustration and art direction, children’s books and as a layout and character design artist in Saturday-morning television animation. Purcell has a bachelor’s degree in art from Cal State University Long Beach.Following high school, Purcell served as an infantryman in the First Battalion (Airborne), Eighth Cavalry, First Cavalry Division in Vietnam during 1965-66 and stateside as a medic in the 101st and 82nd airborne divisions during 1967-68.Read more about this authorRead less about this author