The
Cocktail Waitress by James M. Cain was edited by Charles
Ardai from Cain’s last manuscript. Its publication is something of a literary
event. Cain was part of that hard-boiled group of the 30s and 40s who helped
define pulp fiction. Cain has been described as one of the fundamental creators
of “noir fiction” (“noir” means black
in French) and the term noir fiction
is a variant of “film noir” so named
because French critics so defined post-war films as “film noir” because of their dark, gritty realism. Cain’s novels
have also been described as roman
noir or “dark novel.” What
these convoluted facts really means is that James M. Cain wrote realistic
dramas about people down on their luck His books are populated with grifters
and con-men, hookers and corrupt businessmen. Cain’s famous novel, The Postman Always Rings Twice, was
published in 1934. He published over twenty books before his death in 1977. In The Cocktail Waitress down-on-her-luck Joan
Medford is broke and in need of a job after the death of her abusive alcoholic
husband. The cops suspect Joan had something to do with her husband’s death but
can’t prove it. She takes a job as a cocktail waitress at a place called The Garden
of Roses. She attracts immediate attention with her revealing outfits and sexy
figure. She is soon involved with two men – a millionaire named Earl K. White and a handsome man named Tom Barclay. Told
in the first person from Joan’s point of view, the novel explores the very real
world of despair and of dreams for something better. Joan knows that Mr. White
can offer her the financial security she craves but she finds him sexually
repulsive. Tom Barclay, himself a bit of a dreamer, offers her both romance and
sexual fulfillment. In the midst of this she wants her toddler son back who is
staying with relatives. Cain handles his twisting plot skillfully although at
times it almost gets away from him. Beneath this layer of despair is the not
too subtle hint that Joan did have something to do with her abusive husband’s
death. Naturally, other characters perish and Joan becomes a suspect. The Cocktail Waitress is typical Cain
all the way, with an ending that left me quite stunned. He sets it up and then deftly
slips it onto the last page. Will Joan survive her turmoil’s? Is she guilty or
innocent, and does it matter? At what price is happiness sold? This is James M.
Cain territory and Charles Ardai and Hard Case Crime have given us all a gift
with this final novel from a great American author.
