White Jazz

White Jazz is a 1992 crime fiction novel by American author James Ellroy. It is the fourth and final installment in his L.A. Quartet, following The Black Dahlia (1987), The Big Nowhere (1988), and L.A. Confidential (1990).

Publication Details

Plot Summary

The novel is set in Los Angeles in 1958. The protagonist, Lieutenant Dave Klein, is a veteran LAPD vice officer who also works as a contract killer for organized crime. Klein is assigned to investigate a burglary at the home of J. C. Kafesjian, a heroin dealer sanctioned by the LAPD. As he investigates, he uncovers a far-reaching conspiracy involving corrupt police officials, organized crime syndicates, and the exploitation of the city's Southside black population through a heroin distribution scheme orchestrated by LAPD Captain Dudley Smith.

Klein also becomes entangled with Howard Hughes, who hires him to gather compromising information on actress Glenda Bledsoe. Throughout the novel, Klein works with Edmund Exley (a character from L.A. Confidential) to build a case against Smith while grappling with his own violent past and mounting legal jeopardy from federal investigators.

Style

The novel is written in a distinctive telegraphic, fragmented prose style that Ellroy developed to reflect the protagonist's fractured psychological state. The narrative employs heavy use of ellipses, sentence fragments, and staccato rhythms.

Reception

Reviews for White Jazz were generally positive. Publishers Weekly described it as "blacker than noir" and stated it "makes most other crime novels seem naive." The San Francisco Examiner wrote that the novel "makes previous detective fiction read like Dr. Seuss." However, Wendy Lesser of The New York Times offered a more critical review, describing the prose style as difficult to follow and stating she was "lost by page 56."

Connections to Other Works

The novel ties together storylines from earlier L.A. Quartet novels, resolving the fates of characters such as Edmund Exley and Dudley Smith. It also introduces Pete Bondurant, who becomes a central character in Ellroy's subsequent Underworld USA Trilogy (American Tabloid, The Cold Six Thousand, Blood's a Rover).

Film Adaptation Attempts

Multiple attempts to adapt White Jazz into a film have been made since the 1990s, but none have come to fruition. Notable efforts include:

• 1997–1999: James Ellroy completed a screenplay draft. Cinematographer Robert Richardson was attached to direct for Fine Line Features, but the project was put into turnaround in early 1999 due to budgetary concerns.
• 2001: Nick Nolte, John Cusack, and Winona Ryder were attached to star, with VIF Intl. Films co-producing. The project ultimately collapsed.
• 2006–2007: George Clooney was set to star, with Joe Carnahan directing and his brother Matthew Michael Carnahan writing the screenplay. Clooney later dropped out due to scheduling conflicts, and the project stalled.

As of 2009, Ellroy stated that White Jazz and all film adaptations of his books were "dead."