Filth (novel) of football hooligans committed in "Marabou Stork Nightmares". "Ghostie" Gorman – Ghostie was among the rapists mentioned above in "Marabou Stork Nightmares". In "Filth" Bruce kills Gorman by biting out his tongue, causing him to reel backwards and fall out of a two-story window, where he suffers fatal head injuries. Francis Begbie – Begbie was a main character in "Trainspotting", its prequel "Skagboys" and sequel "Porno". He is briefly mentioned a few times in "Filth", associated with Lexo as running a second-hand furniture store in Leith. Mention of the business Begbie and Lexo are in is also made in "Marabou
John Irving from his first publisher, Random House, Irving offered his fourth novel, "The World According to Garp" (1978), to Dutton, which promised him stronger commitment to marketing. The novel became an international bestseller and cultural phenomenon. It was a finalist for the National Book Award for Fiction in 1979 (eventually going to Tim O'Brien for "Going After Cacciato") and its first paperback edition won the Award next year. "Garp" was later made into a film directed by George Roy Hill and starring Robin Williams in the title role and Glenn Close as his mother; it garnered several Academy Award nominations, including