Behind the Scenes

About the Book

Behind the Scenes takes place during a time referred to as the Golden Age of Hollywood, bookended by the end of silent films and the advent of television. Follow the meeting and subsequent lives of LA transients, the strikingly beautiful Dinah Nolan from Chicago and the high-ranking mobster David Abrams from New York; and the peripheral influences of the beginning and end of Prohibition, the Great Depression, and World War II, along with the growth of Las Vegas as the gambling capital of America. Three members of the mob community: David Abrams, Aaron “Crackers” Cohen, and Sara Balin bond on the streets of New York, rise in the underworld, and move to the West Coast at the request of the “Commission”, the mob’s governing body. Unexpected circumstances await the three and Dinah Nolan. Their world meets an unexpected end in 1952 for two of the four…as well as a new beginning…for the remaining two. Follow Stanley’s suspenseful and sensual story in Behind the Scenes…

About the Author

Rob Beman was born a twin in Westfield, Massachusetts in 1942. His pen name couples the middle names of his twin brother (James) and his own (Stanley). The twins were raised in Westfield and Rob continues to reside there to this day, married 56 years in August 2020 to his high school sweetheart, Carole. Rob and Carole have four children, three daughters and a son, and ten grandchildren, all also residing in Westfield. Rob graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree, magna cum laude, from the University of Massachusetts in Amherst in 1964. He received a Master of Business Administration degree with honors from Western New England College in 1978, attending evening classes while employed on the corporate staff of a national-based firm in Springfield, Massachusetts, ten miles east of Westfield. Rob retired after 42 years at the same firm in 2007, his years reflecting increasing responsibilities in engineering, manufacturing, finance, and supply chain management. Rob began writing fiction in 2000 while in his late fifties, a life-long promise to himself, and he has accelerated his second career, following his retirement. Behind the Scenes is his 11th novel. He is currently formulating ideas for number twelve. In addition to writing, Rob is a prolific reader, devouring close to one hundred books a year, walks two miles daily, bets the ponies on-line, religiously follows and roots for the New York Yankees, plays in fantasy MLB and NBA leagues, attends family get-togethers and the varied activities of all of his grandchildren, and frequently visits Saratoga Springs, New York, its famous thoroughbred race track in August and September, as well as its casino and race-book, many times throughout the year with his wife and partner Carole, his special gift, who never fails to make him feel like the luckiest man alive. As stated in the dedication: from the start, his best part, his second heart.