EQMM Cover Art: Nov. 1954, Frederic Kirberger

The marvelous cover illustration for the November 1954 issue of the digest, Ellery Queen’s Mystery Magazine [Vol. 24, No. 5], was created by Frederic H. Kirberger. And wow do I like its stark realism.    The issue is packed with big names and good stories, too, including: “How Does Your Garden Grow?” by Agatha Christie “The Candy Kid,” by Erle Stanley Gardner “I Always Get the Cuties,” by John D. MacDonald “The Suicide of Kiaros,” by L. Frank Baum “Taste,” by Roald Dahl “Only in Chinago,” by Jack London And the first published story, “Whistle While You Work,” by the guys that created the television series, Columbo, William Link & Richard Levinson. Link & Levinson were 20-year-old students of University of Pennsylvania at the time. The back cover—below right—is from EQMM’s longtime advertiser, the now-defunct The Detective Book Club. A club that printed three books in one and spared no expense for its cover design. But I have to admit I have a few in my personal stacks.

 

Review: "How's Your Mother?" by Simon Brett

 

“How’s Your Mother?” by Simon Brett Ellery Queen’s Mystery Magazine Oct. 1983   Simon Brett’s, “How’s Your Mother?” is a traditional mystery with a humorous edge and a perfectly surprising twist. Humphrey Partridge and his ailing 86-year-old mother live quiet lives in a charming, if gossipy, English village. Humphrey is a doting son—he prefers the company of his mother over anyone else. But a rumor, started by a busybody at the post office, that Humphrey will inherit a bundle from his mother and that he would emigrate “to Canada if only he hadn’t got the old girl to worry about” raises suspicions about Humphrey when his mother mysteriously disappears. “How’s Your Mother?” is a snappy and funny whodunit—with a marvelously ironic ending—and a dead mother and gossip at its center. Brett adroitly plays with the reader’s expectations to deliver more than one surprise and he does it in his usual light-hearted style. But the real thrill is the smile it will spark on the readers’—at least this reader’s!—face with its perfectly ghoulish final words.

“How’s Your Mother?” was first published in the U.K. in The Mystery Guild Anthology, edited by John Waite (1980).

Review: "Little Old Ladies" by Simon Brett

 

“Little Old Ladies” by Simon Brett from Ellery Queen’s Mystery Magazine May 2010   I’m ashamed of how few of Simon Brett’s mysteries I’ve read. A handful of shorts and a novel so long ago I don’t recall its title; although, I do remember it featured Charles Paris and that I liked it. I was thinking all this while I was reading his excellent tale, “Little Old Ladies” with a smile on my face and only a smidgen of an idea of where the story was going. Morton-cum-Budely is a swank Devon village—“of almost excessive prettiness”— mostly inhabited by retirees. And those retirees tend to be little old ladies since their husbands “were made of frailer stuff” and now spend their time lying about in the graveyard. When the Chair of the Morton-cum-Budely Village Committee, Joan Fullerton, is murdered, the village’s women are aflutter and the investigating detective, one D.I. Dromgoole, is flummoxed. In fact, Dromgoole’s bafflement is so great he follows the Golden Age tradition of enlisting the help of a little old lady, Brenda Winshott, to solve the village murder, which (of course) she does in short order. “Little Old Ladies” is a delightful, somewhat slanted—in the best possible way—traditional detective story with a light mood and a good deal of humor. Brenda Winshott, the quietest and most competent resident of Morton-cum-Budely, is a perfect sleuth. She is liked by everyone, a little sneaky, and her tactful manner puts everyone at ease. The clues are scattered in the narrative and there are three solid suspects—none of them with an alibi. I only cracked the case a few paragraphs before Brenda revealed it on the page. If you enjoy a solid whodunit with an English Village setting, “Little Old Ladies,” will do just fine. Did I mention, I smiled from the first page to the last, which is something in these harrowing times.

“Little Old Ladies” was first published in the U.K. in Women’s Weekly Special, January 2008.

Review: "The Tin Man" by Henry Slesar

 

“The Tin Man” by Henry Slesar Ellery Queen’s Mystery Magazine June 1984   Henry Slesar is best remembered for his television writing. He wrote episodes for Alfred Hitchcock Presents and The Alfred Hitchcock Hour, The Man From U.N.C.L.E, and a bunch of other programs from the late-1950s to the 1980s. He was a maestro of the ironic twist ending so popular in 20th century television anthology series, and short stories from every generation. Speaking of short stories, Slesar’s output numbered in the hundreds. He primarily wrote science fiction and mystery for, in the beginning, pulps like Manhunt and Amazing Stories, before moving into digests like Alfred Hitchcock Mystery Magazine, Mike Shayne Mystery Magazine, and Galaxy. His 1984 tale, “The Tin Man,” which I read recently, is an unabashed example of Henry Slesar at his best. The henpecked Harry Budnar is a clothing salesman by necessity—his wealthy wife, Jasmine, insists he keep working—and a technology junkie by aspiration. When the unhappy couple arrive at their friends’ home, Tom and Fleur Polanski, Harry is astounded with the robot that answers the door. Rex, which is the robot’s name, can speak—it responds to Harry’s greeting with, “Hello, Dummy!”—it can traverse the Polanski’s cluttered house, and, once Tom has attached the arm, it will be able to grasp and lift objects. Harry is instantly smitten with the idea of building his own robot. A robot he is certain would be far superior to Rex. But, of course, the domineering Jasmine steps in with her demands and threats, which leaves Harry looking for a solution to his problem. It’s possible the well-read mystery reader may see where, “The Tin Man,” is going early in the narrative (or maybe not since there is a bastard of an ironic twist ending), but it is told so well—with humor, suspense, and an almost tongue-in-cheek style—that it doesn’t matter a whit. Harry as the downtrodden spouse is played perfectly and the reader, by increments, finds himself rooting for the less than perfect husband. The old school technology of the 1980s is fun, too. Did I mention the ending? It may or may not surprise you, but I guarantee it will make you smile.

Review: "Is Betsey Blake Still Alive?" by Robert Bloch

 

“Is Betsey Blake Still Alive?”
by Robert Bloch
Ivy Books, 1987

 

A couple things I like: 1) stories written by Robert Bloch; and 2) stories about Hollywood. So it was inevitable I’d love Bloch’s “Is Betsey Blake Still Alive?”—which was originally published in the April 1958 issue of Ellery Queen’s Mystery Magazine—since it satisfies both criteria nicely. Steve is a struggling Hollywood writer with a handful of production credits, but without a steady gig or paycheck. His life is tough, but as the third-person narrator says:

“Then he met Jimmy Powers, and things got worse.”

Jimmy, at 23 years-old, is just a kid but he drives a late-model Buick, wears silk suits, and has a regular job as a studio public relations hack pulling down two bills a week. The death of an aging starlet in a boating accident, the titular Betsey Blake, puts a major Hollywood studio in a bind. Betsey’s next picture is set for a November release, but without the starlet around to push the film, they’re afraid it will flop. This potential disaster for the studio provides Steve—through his new pal and neighbor Jimmy—a big opportunity to save the film with some slight-of-hand and outright dishonest P.R. stunts like creating a sensation about Blake’s private life and even questioning whether she is dead. Well, it plays out as one would expect, until it doesn’t…
     “Is Betsey Blake Still Alive?” is a sharp tale with a nice twist. The narrative is crisp with Bloch’s shiny prose and the characters, both Jimmy and Steve, are expertly sketched into what I think of as post-WW2 sunshine boys—bright and ambitious in a world ripe for harvest—with a grimy corruption about them. “Is Betsey Blake Still Alive?” is a solid piece of mid-century crime that, almost seventy years after it was written, had the audacity to surprise this 21^st century reader.

“Is Betsey Blake Still Alive?” appeared in the excellent 1987 anthology, Suspicious Characters, edited by Bill Pronzini and Martin H. Greenberg, along with 12 other crime stories written by the likes of John D. MacDonald, Sara Paretsky, Ed McBain, John Lutz, and Brian Garfield.
     According to the official Robert Bloch website, “Is Betsey Blake Still Alive,” has also been published with the title, “Betsy Blake Will Live Forever” in volume two of the Selected Stories of Robert Bloch.