La Mollie and the king of tears

by Arturo Islas

Meet Louie Mendoza, a jazz musician who likes to talk - who can't seem to stop talking for the life of him, in fact. It's 1973, the comet Kahoutek is crossing the earth's path, and some think the world is about to end. It doesn't quite end for Louie, but the morning hours find him at San Francisco General Hospital, telling the tale of his day to a stranger with a tape recorder while he waits to hear the fate of his lover, La Mollie. As Louie recounts his journey from La Mollie's apartment to his gig in the Mission District, from a shooting to a broken leg and his frustrated efforts to find his way home, he lets us in on what's brought him to this place, this moment, and his love for this woman.