<DIV>Although best known today for his singular, stunning ?anti-novels” dazzlingly conjured from anecdotes, quotes, and small thoughts, in his early days David Markson paid the rent by writing punchy, highly dramatic fictions. On the heels of a new double edition of his steamy noirs <I>Epitaph for a Tramp</I> and <I>Epitaph for a Deadbeat</I> comes a new edition of his 1965 classic <I>The Ballad of Dingus Magee,</I> whose subtitle ? ?Immortal True Saga of the Most Notorious and Desperate Bad Man of the Olden Days, his Blood-Shedding, his Ruination of Poor Helpless Females, & Cetera” ? gives readers a hint of the raucous sensibility at work here. Brimming with blasphemy, bullets, and bordellos, this hilarious tale, which inspired the Frank Sinatra movie <I>Dirty Dingus McGee,</I> shows the early Markson at his outrageous best, taking down, as <I>Playboy</I> put it, ?the breeches of the Old West and blast[ing] what's exposed with buckshot.” </DIV>