The World is a Lot Closer Than it Appears

   In my business, as a publisher and book seller, I deal with people all over the world. When Japan was faced with the Tsunami in 2011, the after effect of an earthquake in their part of the world, we were in touch with one of our customers there. He had to spend the night at his job, along with a few of his co-workers (some did get out of the fray before it hit) and wait for the water to recede, and the train to be made right again for travel. He made it home okay.. but we didn't know for a couple of days what happened to him. I don't know these people "in person," but you do form a connection with some of your long distance customers and working associates over the years.

   With facebook I've come to know them even more, and in some cases they've visited our bookstore when they've come through Atlanta. It's usually our only face-to-face meeting, but we have the best time catching up and discusses our love of books, movies and music. It's just like we've always known each other... just through the mail, the internet, and social media. I've got customers that I've known so far back that they were single at first, but now are married, with a mortgage and five kids in the SUV. One in particular is T. in Macau. Yes, that's how I've known him... "T" for almost 15-20 years. Just in the last decade did I find out his first name is "Tim." Now I can put a picture with the face, his wife is in touch for special gifts, and I can see his whole family. I like that.
Scratch that. I love it.

After all these years you form bonds, relationships, and trust.

With all the recent trouble in Israel I checked in with one of our customers yesterday.

This morning I awoke to Moshe's e-mail, with the following communiqué:

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Israel compared to the US. I've placed the size of this country
over my own state of Georgia.. which is about a 1/3 the
size our state. Puts it into perspective doesn't it?

 








Hi Dave,
                  Good to hear from you. I & my family are ok. I live in the North and the Hamas terror organization is rocketing the SOUTH and UP to Tel-Aviv & Jerusalem. My daughter lived deep in the South and escaped from there because of the bombings 2 years ago. They are shelling us every couple of months. They're a thorn in our lives. 6 years ago the Hizballah was rocketing the North, hitting Haifa, my town. A hell to live here, sometimes we are tired and fed of all these political issues. There is no end, no light in the horizon.

Thanks for your caring,

Best, Moshe

PS: Dave, one second I have finished writing you, as if it's not enough - a bomb exploded now in a bus in Tel-Aviv. It's on the news , TV airing from the area. Couple of years ago Hamas used to bomb  buses with people during traveling, killing hundreds in a minute. This is now the beginning of it again. F...king lousy situation. They don't leave us alone peacefully.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Israel is outlined in red.
Moshe lives in Haifa, which is the green dot.

Moshe is a world away, physically, but now I have a face and a concern that is just more than the CNN reports that we all see daily. This is real, and it alarms me. It's a hopeless feeling sitting here in my fairly calm world. At least we can talk, and discuss this and the fiction we love, and hopefully, for a bit, it brings some solace and calm in a wacky world.

I can also blog about this, which I've done here, and put a real face on the horrible situation at hand. People are bombing people. People are dying, and it's more than just the video we're shown. We're constantly bombarded with information. It's easy to become desensitized to so much overload. 

If you're in a calm part of the world, be thankful.

It's Thanksgiving here in the US, and a nation of millions is celebrating with their family and friends, and having a nice day. In this world of real, and possible, chaos, be thankful for the peace we have.
 

I am.

FIFTY Going on Eighteen

As I write this I’m FIFTY today. 

Wedding Day

   Every year for at least the last fifteen plus years I have been receiving a Halloween /  birthday card and well wishes from a long time customer, Jim Colson. As I will sometimes do I always responded to him as “Jimbo” which has stuck all these years. This year  was no exception as Jimbo sent me another card this week with the Halloween stickers adorning the orange envelope. This must really be my year though ‘cuz this one has an official us postage stamp of Pixar’s “The Incredibles”  in the corner. Hey, the day’s young.. let’s see what it brings. If the Pixar theme continues I might get enough balloons to lift the house!

 

   

What is FIFTY? I dunno. I can only tell you that I don’t feel twenty-five, thirty seems young to me, and it’s a few shades different than forty. Be that as it may, the mind is still planted in my teens (which may explain a lot) so it’s all working out pretty good I think…

In the grand scheme of this thing called “life” I feel very fortunate. I’ve got some great kids (mostly adults at this point J) that I’m proud of, a wife who looks out for me in so many ways, and some of the best friends any person is lucky enough to have. One thing I have learned is: there’s the family you grow up with, and the family of friends you gather along the way. In that respect I’m the richest guy I know. 

Brothers, Sister, Mom, Nieces, Nephew at
Atlant's Olympic Park

Oh, wait, phone’s ringing… it’s Mom... I’ll be right back.

Dad Hinch

   I don’t care how old you are, when you’re with your Mom, you’re a son or daughter again. They know all.. or enough.. and they’ve been with you on this trip that we’re still travelling on. Be sure to let your mother and father know you appreciate them. It may not always have been easy, but they’re your mom and pop. 

   So Mom reminds me I was a little over 8lbs 50 years ago today. Man how things have changed.

BOYS to MEN: John and Ian, my first two.

During birthdays Mom used to give us cards with dimes within… you remember those cards? This card is the one that spreads delight when as a young one you open the card to see all the glittery money sitting in the cut-out pockets within. Those were very cool surprises, plucking the dimes to feel our new loot (card? What card?).  Eventually the change  turned to dollars, and the dollars matched our current age. For some reason I remember receiving 23 dollars on my 23^rd birthday… but I don’t really remember receiving more bucks in future years. It’s okay Mom, I never expected it to go on forever ;-). The fact that you’re the mother of five children, the yearly dole becoming ever larger on our anniversaries, well, who could keep up with that? At some point I’m sure the bank clerk knew Mom by name. “Good morning Anne. Another withdrawal? All in one’s I take it? Oh, two tens and three ones this time eh? They do grow don’t they?”

   One ringy dingy... two ringy dingy... it’s Lee and Sue, my in-laws, calling to wish me the best on my day of FIFTY. Lee, or “Pops” as he’s called, is singing to me from Panama City Beach, Florida. “Just called to wish you a happy FIFTYith Dave, but can’t talk long.. we’re on our way out the door to Hunt’s Oyster Bar for lunch and we’ll be thinking about you when we munch down a dozen Cajun’ baked oysters with those garlic, buttered new potatoes you like so much. In your honor of course.” If you know Pops, you know he’s grinnin’ on the other end of the line. Me, I’m already droolin’ after one of my favorite moments that will come in the future when we get back down to Florida. ‘til then I’ll just have to savor the phone call from them today. Somebody pass me the cocktail sauce and some crackers, and a Tecate with lime…. I can dream can’t I?

Four Brothers Hinchberger, youngest to oldest.. some time ago.

   In 6^th grade we lived in Jerome Prarie, Oregon. A little community in the South of the state where my Dad was going to college and we lived for short time. My sister Heidi, who was 7 at the time,  pronounced it “Jah-rome, Pah-rare-ree,” I’ll never forget it.  I clearly remember that school. We lived so close that I could walk to and from school every day. I remember sitting in math class one day thinking about how old I would be in the year 2000 – a thought that was truly “science fiction” –  as that was “forever” to come and so far out of my mental reach. At the time, it was. Nothing could come fast enough when you’re young. You see the possibilities, earning money for all the comic books, toys and bubble gum you want. Girls were starting to show up on the radar, but still too early to see any financial issues in that area. Rent? Utilities? Car payments? Never entered my  mind of course. Mom and Dad took care of those things.  Thirty-Eight was to be my number for the year 2000. Man…  no problem.. I’ve got lots of time.

A GREAT and WONDERFUL DAY!
The Groom side from 2007, June 23rd.
Kyle Smith, Clay Culver, Pops, Dr. John, Reece, Brother Chris,
Groom Chick Susan!, Gene Byrum, Ian, John, and Kevin

ON TOP OF THE WORLD MA!
Dave and Clay with the family at the
Space Needle in Seattle June, 2012

   The phone rings yet again ( I should be so lucky). It’s my buddy Kevin. We met while we worked at Relativity Records. That’s almost twenty years ago. Again, another weird moment as time pops up it’s ugly head. I’ll call Kevin back. I’ve got to finish this blog, a newsletter, and then get ready to go see my 16 year-old and the Hiram Band play in competition today. It’s a gorgeous day and the best part is I get to go with my sweetheart, Mrs. LeeAnn Hinchberger, and see our boy and his band play their stuff. Ironically they’re playing “Mad World” by Tears for Fears in their repertoire this year. That was one of the first bands I worked with at Polygram Records back in the mid 80’s. Working on that record, and at that company, was a grand time for me. Thank you Larry Hensley for making it a great place to work. It was the time of my life. It changed my life. Now I get to revisit it with my son today as he plays Tears for Fears on the field. It doesn’t get much better than that people.

This is some of what makes me happy at FIFTY.

   Now it’s FIFTY and my life is so full it’s amazing. I don’t have enough time to see, do, and read all the things I want too. And there’s some old friends I’d like to catch up with. I have to make the time. There’s nothing like good people in your life. 

Trey and Pop on the wedding day!
June 23rd, 2007

Seriously. If you think about your life in years, let’s say I’m here ‘til eighty. Good safe number. That’s thirty years. Seems like a lot right? But if you break it down to weeks I have 1,560 weeks left. That puts it in a whole different perspective. “Years” seems huge. Weeks? Well those go by pretty fast don’t they. That’s not a question, they do go by fast. This isn’t a concern but an observation.  I’ve got some kind of back log on reading that I “want” to get through. I would say out of everything this is what does concern me. Why? Because I enjoy it, but with work and life, there just doesn’t seem to be enough time.
   Thankfully I have enough time to sleep!

   I’ve posted a few photos here. This isn’t a slide show of my FIFTY years – did you notice that FIFTY is prominent in this piece?  Just giving it it’s due ya know – if it was we’d never get out of here.. you’d be stuck for awhile ;-) But some people to recognize that is my family and life today. 

   Thanks for stopping by and visiting with me on the big ol’ day. As David Byrne says “It’s the same as it ever was,” it is.. but it isn’t. If it were wouldn’t that be boring? No time to lose (literally!) so y’all have a great day too and I’ll catch ya on the flip side. I’ve got to save a house from burning and get those FIFTY candles blown out before it all comes down.

   Oh, and my Mom also said when she first took me to church back in '62 a lady said “what a beautiful baby”

Man.. how things have changed ;-)

Thank you for a great day. Thank you for a great life. Love and hugs to all.

Dave

Can't stand the heat?

Big political year this year. It's become very nasty out there in the "arena of the parties" as we come closer to the new Presidential election in November. It's become nastier than I think I have ever seen, at least in my adult lifetime.

Because of this climate I lost a friend on Facebook today. Someone I've known a long time, but that's the rub: she kept posting inflammatory political rhetoric, posting dumb Obama pictures, and anti-President comments that I eventually responded to by asking her questions. She is one of those who has posted "I will move out of the country if Obama is elected again." Yes, it's that kind of odd. I don’t agree with everything Obama has done either -  however -  these comments and the like are not helping. I asked her questions, tried to get an intelligent discussion going, but I was usually met with a couple of words, and then, eventually cussing with the last comment being "He (Obama) is a f**cking Marxist." I thought I knew her better than that. It's unfortunate but here's the issue: if you're on any public forum, and FB is a public forum, then expect to be put to task if you're posting controversial remarks, etc. 

Since being removed was the last thing she had to say to me, it also showed me just how much of an echo chamber she and others have become to the right wing media. This was evidenced by the fact that she couldn’t voice any concrete responses to any of my questions. You should at least know “why” you’re so angry at the political powers that be. Instead her, like so many others, just get stirred up by the fear mongering that is created by the right wing media. Ever listen to them? I do. I am amazed at what comes out of their mouths at times. They may have a good point every now and then, but for the most part they inflame instead of inspiring.
You can create an atmosphere of discontent and rebellion, but in the end does your listeners truly know why they're so upset?

This is why I don’t get into religious or political discussions much. I don’t believe you’re going  to change your position, but I ask to understand yours when I ask questions. Who knows, I might even learn something!  After I receive the usual pat responses that most people in these  groups respond to, what I eventually only get back are a couple of words or just “crickets.” 

This leaves me to wonder how you got to your conclusion on these topics in the first place.
Oh, yeah, Rush, maybe Hannity, and I’m sure Beck’s in there somewhere.

All I ask is you learn the facts for yourself and let's come together as a people and try to figure these things out together.

Calling politicians names and claiming you'll "move out of the country" just isn't the answer.

End of an Era?

Original Band Art and a 1998 Bangor Concert Poster

Have They Rocked Their Last?

As you may have heard Stephen King, Dave Barry, Ridley Pearson, Amy Tan, Roger McGuinn and the rest of the authors and artists that make up "The Rock Bottom Remainders" rock band gave two farewell performances in late June. They decided since their founder and fellow band member, Kathi Kamen Goldmark, passed away from cancer in May, that they would make this their farewell shows.

Some of you may remember when we had Rock Bottom Remainders videos and CD's at our Overlook Connection Bookstore. It was Kathi who got in touch with us to offer these cool items from this unique and wonderful group. We offered them for years until she was sold out of them. I was fortunate enough to see them in Atlanta on their 1993 "Rock Bottom Remainders Tour America with Three Chords and an Attitude" tour. That was a fun show. Yeah, there were some squeaks here, and a twang there, but they were having a blast and it spread out throughout the crowd. I remember back at the hotel bar I spoke with Roy Blount, Jr. for awhile (who's a Georgia boy), and Dave Barry bought me a drink. It was a night to remember. I even got into the press conference they held at the Hard Rock Cafe earlier that day and was able to ask quite a few questions. Steve came right over after it was done and shook my hand. "If you hadn't have been here Dave, I don't know what would have happened." He was referring to the fact that no one in the press was asking questions. Frankly the press didn't know what to make of this "authors-turned-musicians" idea. I had plenty of questions and then that seemed to break the ice as others began to chime in. 

That was the only time I was able to see them but glad I did. 

Oh, and I did bring Steve my first printing of The Shining to sign and we took a couple of photos with an Overlook Catalog ta boot. Sits in a frame in my hallway today, and, when I remember to look, it always brings a smile.


I'm very sorry to hear about Kathi's passing but she left behind a legacy with this unique band that's been playing now for twenty years. My guess is they'll be back again someday. When you get that "performing fever" it's never easy to give up.

Never say never.

See More Rock Bottom Remainders at the Overlook Connection Bookstore HERE! 

Rubber Chickens and Toynbee Tiles

Whuzzz Up?

Yep, it's me, I'm back, but it has been awhile since I've put anything down here in the ol' Dave Blog. "Blahog" is I think more appropriate as there are so many of us out here in the blogosphere just "chatting up a storm" (do they call the internet the super highway anymore?). Personally I rather like reading blogs of reviewers, and people I consider of interest. Facebooking..  people posting every-little-thing-they-do, every hour, every day, on Facebook, gets a bit tedious, and let's face it, once you have hundreds of people doing this.. who could keep up with it all? Facebook is good though for a quickie. I use it for the bookstore, and the press to promote and discuss products, and I can get a quick glimpse of family and friends near and far. However Dave's Blog is where I want to spend a little more time to share a few things. I'll try to get back here a bit more often.

I still use the phone to catch up, and conduct business. Had a wonderful hour-long visit with author Nancy Collins recently as we embark on some interesting projects for the future. First time I met Nancy was in Seattle in '89. She was up for the World Fantasy Con that year, which was also my first WFC, and had just arrived from an earthquake torn California which was all over the news when we arrived. First night there the one thing I distinctly remember is her giving me a rubber chicken key ring. The joke is that it's no joke. She did. I had that thang for years (yes thang people - I live in the South) and I wouldn't be surprised if I still had it tucked away somewhere. I tend to keep things like that. It was a memorable meeting, and when I brought it up to Nancy recently, she remembered. She had just procured it from some store in California that earthquake week. Why she gave it to me I have no idea. And here I am talking about this "thang" twenty-three years later.

The fact that you're still reading this means.. that damn rubber chicken has gone on a lot further than anyone knew it would. Now we're going to produce some special editions with the chicken's previous owner. Life is funny. Go figger.

Which leads me into another odd sort of "thang:" The Toynbee Tile Mystery. Know about it? Well yer about too. Because of an award-winning documentary by Jon Foy, ( who deserved the award let me tell ya), "RESURRECT DEAD: The Mystery of the Toynbee Tiles" is a fascinating, yet somewhat unbelieveable (but it's true) tale of these mysterious tiles that have been showing up in Philadelphia, around the US, and even down through South America on streets. Literally hundreds of these tiles have been spreading a message on the streets of the world.

What is a Toynbee Tile you ask? Watch this trailer for the film...

Jon Foy's work on this production, and anyone else who was involved, truly did an outstanding job of bringing this odd little story to the screen. I didn't know anything about this until it showed up on Netflix this week with this quick description:

"For three decades, strange plaques with messages about resurrecting the dead have mysteriously appeared on streets throughout North and South America..."

What? Resurrecting the dead? So this is where The Walking Dead originated. Seriously, what the hell was this about? The "play" button was immediately punched and I sat back to take this in. On so many levels this film is at once.. odd, interesting, peculiar, "what are those there?" "Why am I still watching this?" Wait, I'm sucked back in. The music works. Are they going to solve this mystery? They may have found out who's doing this. Maybe, maybe not. These three men have worked for years, one even a decade, trying to discover what this tile mystery is all about. Jon Foy has definitely turned in a class act doc on a very unusual subject. What I find interesting in the end is here I am watching these three, who have dedicated themselves to unlock this mystery, and they too are sort of an enigma. Why is this so important to them? It's especially important to Justin, who I think really kept this going. It's his passion that pushed to discover what was behind all this weird tile business. This was better than most mystery or thrillers out currently out there, and this is a documentary! I have to admit... where they putting me on? Was I now a part of this odd discovery that may be a film hoax? Life, as they say, is stranger than art, and this my friends is a prime example. I guarantee you'll get caught up in this. I did, and even LeeAnn popped her head out of her book, as we were getting towards the end to find out if the mystery was going to be solved. Did they unlock the mystery?
I dunno.. you tell me. Jon Foy also performed the music, which fit the film very well. I look forward to future work by him. This will be a tough one to beat and he's got his work cut out for him next time 'round.

PROMETHUS, the sorta prequel to Alien, by Ridley Scott. Good film. Not everyone's going to like it, but I did. By the time it finished up I was like "noooo... wait.. this can't end here.. I wanna see more." It's a gorgeous looking film, and it's top notch Scott on many levels. It's full of surprises, and I'm just not going to get into it here. It's not a "quiet horror" like we had with Alien, but it does have its moments. We saw it opening day when we were in Seattle vising our boy Clay. We were with a full theater that was there to see it. The tension was palpable as we waited for it to start. It's always great to be with "fellow fans" on the opening of a cult series. They get it, even if we don't know what we're getting exactly, we're here together. All of us in sci-fi-heaven-geekdom. You should have seen us.

A quick plug for the store...

We just received special merchandise to offer from The Overlook Hotel, in Sidewinder, Colorado. Now.. you may remember this is the hotel in The Shining... and that Room 237 isn't all it's cracked up to be, so might be better to buy this key and just say you were there. But this way you can wear your shirt, drink from the glass, and even put out an ashtray in your library (not to be used of course, don't wanna be smokin' up the books people) and "say" you were at the Overlook. You can see everything at the link here from our store The Overlook Connection Bookstore. There is limited stock on this sorta thing, so let me know soon if you'd like an artifact or two.

The Overlook Hotel - T-shirts, Glass, Ashtray, and Room 237 Key Ring!

Y'all keep on shining out there.. and I'll be back real soon with more news, fun, and updates on whaz happening at the Overlook and with me. YO!

Dave 

Dave Hinchberger,
Owner, Operatator of The Overlook Connection Bookstore and Press

Movie Madness Part 4

Ah... so many movies, so little time. These days there is so much available for us to watch it's impossible to keep up with it all. However I'm going to keep the Movie Madness going by giving you a few more of what I think are worth watching.

If you'd like to share some good flicks you've seen recently, by all means let us know here, I'd love to read about it. This post is a bit diverse with documentaries, action, and comedy. Grab a coke and a smile and read on. YO! Dave Hinchberger



THE LAST LOVECRAFT: RELIC OF CTHULHU

This movie is great fun, adventurous, comedic, nerdy, and if you're an H.P. Lovecraft / Cthulhu fan then it's a shoo-in that you'll get a kick out of this. I'm not a big Cthulhu fan, (I do enjoy horror though) however the writers and filmmakers of this film made this a lot of fun to watch whether you are or not. Between the acting and the good makeup job, and of course the writing, it was time well spent. WATCH THIS!

See The Last Lovecraft Trailer Here





GEORGE STEVENS: A FILMMAKER'S JOURNEY

The director of one of my favorite films , GIANT, still resounds with me today. This documentary narrated by his son George Stevens, Jr. features clips and interviews from so many stars and luminaries in the movie business that want to talk about Stevens, especially Katherine Hepbern, that you're thoroughly entertained and informed.

He began taking pictures at the age of 10 with a box brownie camera his mother gave him and at 17 began working with the Hal Roach Studios. Because of this camera man at Hal Roach a little known Englishman was given a chance to be one of the most famous duo's in comedy history. Stan Laurel, yes, of Laurel and Hardy, had very pale blue eyes and they didn't show up on film! George Stevens went to Chicago to get some special film that was able to take care of this problem, thus Laurel's career was saved. And we were given some of the best slapstick comedy of all time.

He joined the war effort and filmed some of the only known color footage of WWII that is shown here for the first time. This footage is truly an amazing piece of history showing what we've seen in films, but here it is in real life.. and death. He even filmed bodies at Dachau. An amazing feat in a horrible situation on many levels. Hopefully this footage is available to history museums.
What must it be like to go back to filming "fiction" after seeing the horrors of war. His first film after the ware he decided to visit his youth in San Francisco with "I Remember Mama" with Irene Dunne.

Besides bringing wonderful films like GIANT, A PLACE IN THE SUN, and SHANE, he gave us THE DIARY OF ANNE FRANK. For this film he actually visited with Otto Frank at the room at the top of the stairs where these people stayed for two years in hiding from the Nazi's. He wanted to get at the heart of the story, and walking in that room helped him feel what it must have been like, to bring that essence, into the room.

George Stevens was, is, a man that brought the human face and emotion to film. His way was one of many thought provoking moments that he brought forward in each film. Many scenes that are emblazoned in our minds and cinematic history. They certainly are in mine. I would dare say that directors today like Steven Spielberg, and especially Frank Darabont, are in the same vein of Stevens story and emotional style.

Look, I gotta go, I just added the rest of Steven's films to my Netflix que and I'm gonna be busy for awhile. Y'all keep on keepin' on and let me know if you've seen something good recently. I'm always looking for the good stuff :-)


FORGIVING MENGELE

This documentary is focused on Eva (last name please) who, as a child, along with her twin, was part of the Dr. Mengele experiments that he performed on twins. Eva, who came to live in the United States, began giving talks to schools and organizations here and around the world discussing the horror and tragedy of her experience. One day someone put the question to her: "have you ever thought of forgiving Dr. Mengele ?" And ya know what? She did. Not just the doctor, but all Nazi's in general. This caused major discussions and controversial discussions as obviously a lot of survivors cannot come to this level of forgiveness, especially when there has been no apology, nor will there ever be since most have passed. Eva is an extraordinary person, and her education of the Holocaust is important and necessary. She created C.A.N.D.L.E.S, a Holocaust museum in Terre Haute, Indiana, even though naysayers didn't think people would come, the first year had over 15,000 visitors! Even after a hate act burned down the center( in the honor of Timothy McVeigh - idiots), they rebuilt it.

This documentary isn't graphic, but it's interesting to see the emotional response from children Eva speaks to in school presentations. Eva makes it real for them, and for anyone watching this documentary.

I've seen a lot of documentaries on WWII and especially the Nazi camps, however this one was different. It's about a woman who doesn't take the world for granted, and shows how you can survive and make others understand. Watching these films, at least for me, I have to be in the right mood to focus and understand. It's not always my first choice to watch stories about the devastation of another person, but I do like to know about the human condition. How people can do this to another person, and how these people survive. I think it's good for everyone to know and be informed. It's the investigative part of me that "wants to know." In this case, this Pandora's Box is a tragedy that I can learn from, and try to understand. In the end how can anyone understand how this cruelty and murder came to be.

The world is an ignorant place and with films about the history of mankind I hope that we can all learn and become aware of how to make this a better world. Even if it's just with our neighbors. Yep, my glass is half full people. Always will be.



FAST FIVE

Great action, didn't want to leave the room, so visit the facilities before you sit down to watch this. Pop some corn, with butter, and maybe even grab a candy bar or two. 'nuff said :-).





MARGIN CALL

When young analyst Peter Sullivan (Zachary Quinto) uncovers information that could destroy the firm, he brings it to their attention. When upper management is alerted to the precarious position of their risky investments, an emergency meeting is held to decide if they should alert clients or abscond with the profits.

The idea here is "greed is good" no matter what you have to do even when you've screwed the numbers up.. . Who knew you could take a marginal idea, (yes, pun intended people), and turn it into a thriller?
Character's you like and mostly despise, and it moves well.