Summary of Joseph Wambaugh's The Onion Field

Everest Media

Description

Please note: This is a companion version & not the original book.
Sample Book Insights:
#1 The night in the onion field was a Saturday night. Saturday meant impossible traffic in Hollywood, so felony car officers did their best work on side streets off Hollywood and Sunset boulevards. The streets were full of revelers’ cars that were clouted or stolen.
#2 The smell of tar in the air reminded Ian of a park in the heart of the city, where he had once spent hours by the pits and stare into the tar until he vividly imagined great Pleistocene creatures there.
#3 The piper was trying to get the reeds to snap, but they were much harder than the piano. He took a deep breath, moistened the valve, and tried to play. He played Mallorca.
#4 The 17-year-old piper was alone in his apartment marching the twelve-foot square, lost in the music. His mother did not allow him to play his pipes in the apartment, but what did it matter. He lived across the street from Hancock Park and the tarpits, perfect for a piper.

Sujets

• True Crime
• General officer
• Murder
• General

Informations

• Publié par: Everest Media LLC
• Date de parution: 30 avril 2022
• Nombre de lectures: 0
• EAN13: 9781669395041
• Langue: English
• Poids de l'ouvrage: 1 Mo

Extrait

Insights on Joseph Wambaugh's The Onion Field
Contents Insights from Chapter 1 Insights from Chapter 2 Insights from Chapter 3 Insights from Chapter 4 Insights from Chapter 5 Insights from Chapter 6 Insights from Chapter 7 Insights from Chapter 8 Insights from Chapter 9 Insights from Chapter 10 Insights from Chapter 11 Insights from Chapter 12 Insights from Chapter 13 Insights from Chapter 14 Insights from Chapter 15 Insights from Chapter 16 Insights from Chapter 17 Insights from Chapter 18 Insights from Chapter 19 Insights from Chapter 20 Insights from Chapter 21
Insights from Chapter 1

#1

The night in the onion field was a Saturday night. Saturday meant impossible traffic in Hollywood, so felony car officers did their best work on side streets off Hollywood and Sunset boulevards. The streets were full of revelers’ cars that were clouted or stolen.

#2

The smell of tar in the air reminded Ian of a park in the heart of the city, where he had once spent hours by the pits and stare into the tar until he vividly imagined great Pleistocene creatures there.

#3

The piper was trying to get the reeds to snap, but they were much harder than the piano. He took a deep breath, moistened the valve, and tried to play. He played Mallorca.

#4

The 17-year-old piper was alone in his apartment marching the twelve-foot square, lost in the music. His mother did not allow him to play his pipes in the apartment, but what did it matter. He lived across the street from Hancock Park and the tarpits, perfect for a piper.

#5

Chrissie believed that she could give Ian culture and discipline, two great gifts. She found work, and they lived in the Park La Brea Apartments, a middle class neighborhood. It was hard to pay the rent, but what a marvelous neighborhood for Ian.

#6

The Communists’ takeover of southern Korea was disturbing to young Ian Campbell. He was planning on going to college, and the more he thought about what was happening in faraway places like Pyongyang, Taejon, and Taegu, the more secretly frightened Chrissie became.

#7

Ian’s favorite marine pictures of him were those he sent from Hawaii. He decided not to take his pipes the second time he volunteered to go overseas, but he finally asked his mother for them after many weeks.

#8

The story of the shark was told at the yacht club party. It was unusual for Ian to volunteer an opinion in a group of strangers, but he did so when the yachtsman asked him about sharks not being able to die of shock.

#9

The young man was checked in by a nurse and given a glance or two by the uniformed deputy sheriff on duty. He was Art’s patient, and he was very pale and wet beads were over his lip and around his temples.

#10

Ian was a piper who was studying philosophy. He was shocked to hear that his friend had dropped out of college, and he was becoming cynical. He knew he wasn’t improving society, just holding it down.

#11

Adah was a Las Vegas showgirl, and she looked like the others. She was tall and thin, with bony hips protruding from her costume. She was very shy, and never opened her mouth. She was afraid of Ian at first, but they eventually became friends.

#12

The piper was unable to play the pibroch, his solo piece, because his family was too small. He was able to play it exquisitely majestically in his imagination on monotonous evenings. He never had to stop working when he thought of the trials.
Insights from Chapter 2

#1

The two men in felony unit Six-Z-Four were becoming more and more acclimated to one another, and they were heading toward what might be a significant friendship. They were both frugal, and they had very little difficulty remembering where every dollar was.

#2

Karl Hettinger, the future police officer, dreamed of being a farmer since he was a young boy. His mother would tell him stories about clean, prosperous farms, which inspired him to pursue farming as a career.

#3

Karl grew up with two sisters who were several years older than him. He was a popular boy who was gregarious and self-sufficient. He never had to confess to his parents what he had done, as they did not socialize with others.

#4

Karl Hettinger was a college freshman when he was chosen as the student council president. He was also a varsity baseball player and a student leader. He blossomed in college, and became known for his honesty.

#5

Karl Hettinger was a student at Fresno State College, and he was also in the marines. He was stationed at Twenty-nine Palms, California, for most of his enlistment. His childhood friend Terry McManus talked of Karl: We went to a beer bar one night right after he got out of boot camp. The broad behind the bar was a tough old bat, and some guy was coming on pretty rank with her.

#6

Karl was assigned to the vice detail, which was both enthralling and appalling. He found the bookmaking detail best, and was surprisingly good at working bookies. The prostitutes were difficult for him to deal with, as he was not an actor.

#7

The homosexual who was to emerge later in Karl’s life was cruising that day, and he spotted Karl standing on the hillside by Ferndale Nine. He reached for Karl’s crotch, and when Karl grabbed his wrist, the young man erupted in a flurry of fists and feet. They were on the ground fighting.

#8

The gardener saw a picture of himself in a store, looking at an untended counter. He saw himself glancing to his right at a clerk whose back was turned to him. He hadn’t stolen anything yet, only pocket loot. But the bulkily packaged electric knife looked irresistible. Where could he secrete it.
Insights from Chapter 3

#1

The three men in the Ford coupe were Ian Campbell, Karl Hettinger, and Jimmy Smith. They were driving to Hollywood to rob a market there. They had begun their partnership on the same day as Ian and Karl.

#2

When Greg’s mother, Ethel Powell, began to get well, she started to fix her face and pay attention to her clothes. Then she began to discipline the younger ones, and it was too much for Greg, who was now 14. The fights began.

#3

When Greg was 15, he ran away. He was always in charge of the family, but now he didn’t care about anything. He lost interest in his saxophone and in music. He began losing weight and dropping off the football squad.

#4

Greg, the boy, was going to Florida. He was met by a priest who offered to let him stay in his parish house. The priest had a voice that blended nicely with his clear booming baritone. They spent the rest of the evening singing together.

#5

The priest took Greg to bed with him. Was that the first time you’ve done that with a man. the priest asked afterward, lying beside him. Yes. The first time with anyone, Father. The priest said Greg had to leave the rectory. He was becoming like a girl, people were starting to notice.

#6

Gregory Powell, the boy who was picked up by the wings, was not even remotely