Forced into retirement following a stormy career as Captain of the last three masted schooner still sailing the Atlantic in the 1950s, Cisco da Silva hopes for a better life on Cape Cod with his new bride. They settle into a cozy cottage alongside Codfresh Lake - an eerie body of water compounded of three disparate sections; one of which contains beasts that threaten his life and that of his pregnant wife. 'Jimmy Catfish' is at once an epic adventure and an examination of ill fate peeling away the layers of a man's resolve, decency, and will to battle both his personal and physical demons.
About the Author: Bill Russo lived in an area of Massachusetts called the Bridgewater Triangle for many years and never knew that it was inhabited by scary swamp creatures until he met one. It happened on a midnight walk. Years later, two film producers read his blog about it and featured him and his story in their documentary, "The Bridgewater Triangle". He also was approached by Discovery channel producers and was featured in the opening segment of Monsters and Mysteries in America - Season two, Episode two. Among his work, are two anthologies featuring the Bridgewater Triangle Universe. One (Swamp Tales) is strictly fiction and the other contains his account of meeting the swamp thing - plus other stories from New England. In "Jimmy Catfish" Russo expands upon a dark short narrative first told in "Swamp Tales" - a story of a disfigured amphibious boy. The new book expands Jimmy's legend by going back in time before his birth, when his father was Captain of the last three masted schooner still sailing the Atlantic. Misfortune led him to the historic whaling ports of Fall River and New Bedford. Later with his new wife, he settled on Cape Cod - where his troubles really began. As a disc jockey, Bill Russo was the first person to play and promote the trucking classic "Tombstone Every Mile". He counted as a friend, the first man to cross the musical color line, in a 1940s Jazz Band. Sleepy LaBeef, The "Human Jukebox", who opened for both Elvis and Roy Orbison, was a neighbor of his. Stories of these and other artists are included in "Crossing the Musical Color Line". Bill's background for writing comes from a Boston education at the venerable 'shirt & tie' Huntington School for Boys. He followed that up with a study of journalism, music, and broadcasting at the famed Kenmore Square institution, "Grahm Jr. College", where he said he learned more about music from an African American gentleman who was the school's janitor, than he ever could in a classroom. "He introduced me to Gloria Lynne," Bill said. Years after he learned of her, she had a mega hit with "I Wish You Love". One of Grahm's well known graduates was performance artist Andy Kaufman who created his Taxi TV character 'Latka' while at Grahm. Andy also claimed he learned Transcendental Meditation at Grahm, although it was not taught there. But who knows? It could be true. Bill Russo learned music from the Janitor. Maybe someone in bookkeeping was a 'guru' and gave Andy the secrets of TM!