Max Noel and Ted Kaczinski

Hi folks! This is my first blog! I'll use it to share info about all things noirish.

Today, the Mystery Writers Association, Northern California branch meeting hosted Max Noel, one of the FBI agents who arrested Ted Kaczynski. He taught all of us fiction and other crime writers about each bomb that Ted sent, a quick review of the investigation, and a lot of information in between that would round out any writer's education about how the FBI has worked. My favorite tidbits:

- They had a Sun SPARC to help them mine data!
- Max showed us a picture of Ted's mailbox with his name on it up in Montana, and said "This is what we in the FBI call....a clue!"
- Max was not like Clint Eastwood or any other lantern-jawed, humorless FBI agent you've seen on t.v. (though that does describe Kaczynski very well). He was warm, lively, smart, and very focused on the human prices everyone had to pay during Kaczynski's attacks.
- The only people who got good arrest photographs were the four Univ. of Montana journalism students who followed Max's car. All the national media went to the wrong place, because they thought they knew what was going to happen next.

The funny, smart, and interesting members of the Mystery Writers of America NorCal asked interesting questions, and John's Grill was kind enough to let the meeting run fabulously late. I love Noir City.