Another great one gone

Rico is saddened to note the passing of a great writer, as Josh Voorhees explains in this Slate article:

Elmore Leonard, the prolific American crime writer whose work was adapted for the big and small screens with remarkable success, died this morning, according a post on his website. He was 87.
Leonard suffered a stroke in late August of 2013, and had been recovering in a Detroit-area hospital, his research assistant told the Detroit News earlier this month. At the time, those close to him were hopeful that he would recover. "He’s showing great spirit," Gregg Sutter, the assistant, told the paper then. "He’s a fighter, and we’re glad to see that"
Leonard was said to be in the middle of his 46th novel when he was admitted to the hospital. In November of 2012, he was awarded the Medal for Distinguished Contribution from the National Book Foundation. He began publishing novels and short stories in the early 1950s, and kept at it until the end. His most well-known works of fiction were probably these: Get Shorty, which was turned later turned into a film with the same name starring John Travolta and Danny DeVito; Rum Punch, which became the basis for Quentin Tarantino's Jackie Brown; and Out of Sight, which would become a Steven Soderbergh movie starring George Clooney.

Rico says that, ignoring all the money the man (justly) made in his career, Rico would love to write as well as Elmore did...