“California Dreamin'” (John Phillips, Michelle Phillips) – 2:31
“Imprevu” (Johnny Richards, Lois Geraci) – 2:55
“Listen People” (Graham Gouldman) – 2:28
“What the World Needs Now Is Love” (Burt Bacharach, Hal David) – 2:50
“In Times Like These” (Bacharach, David) – 3:02
“Norwegian Wood (This Bird Has Flown)” (John Lennon, Paul McCartney) – 2:39
“Woman” (Bernard Webb) – 2:24
“Monday, Monday” (John Phillips) – 2:55
“Daydream” (John Sebastian) – 3:02
“Gotta Go” (Marty Paich, Rod McKuen) – 2:53
“The End of the World” (Arthur Kent, Sylvia Dee) – 2:53
“Husbands & Wives” (Roger Miller) – 3:10

FRANCIS BONNAMY – The King Is Dead on Queen Street. Duell, Sloan & Pearce, hardcover, 1945. Penguin #629, paperback, 1947.

   The combination of the Great Intellect and his Loyal Chronicler has been a mainstay of detective fiction since Watson first began keeping records. Academics with plenty of time on their hands to devote to travel and detection have also always been popular. Mix these elements with a colorful wartime setting in Alexandria, Virginia, and eclectic characters who are both native to the area and transient, and you have a perfect recipe for murder.

   Peter Shane, former professor and head of the Department of Criminology at the University of Chicago, and his assistant, Bonnamy, are now living in a third-floor apartment in Alexandria while on military assignment. Both are present at a neighborhood party when much-disliked Joe Long, a well-known photographer known as “The King,” is found dead — presumably from a fall down the steps of his home.

   When it is discovered that someone had tied a string across Long’s steps, Shane and Bonnamy must attempt to clear their friends and landlady from suspicion, and their investigation focuses on the interrelationships between the party guests, each of whom had an intense reason for wishing to see Long dead. Even the family dogs and the layout of the house do not escape the pair’s scrutiny as they study the past histories of this set of oddly associated people.

   Francis Bonnamy is a pseudonym for Audrey Boyers Waltz; she wrote seven Shane/Bonnamy novels, taking full advantage of local color and geography of Chicago, Maine, Arizona, and other interesting locales. All loose ends are convincingly tied up at the ends of these humorous books, and the treatment of Shane’s detective skills is particularly good.

   Other noteworthy titles are Death on a Dude Ranch (1937), which has a Wyoming setting, Dead Reckoning (1943), which deals with murder in Washington, D.C., and buried pirate treasure on Cape Fear; and Portrait of the Artist as a Dead Man (1947), which, like The King Is Dead on Queen Street, is set in Alexandria and involves interplay among a group of diverse people in the art world.

         ———
   Reprinted with permission from 1001 Midnights, edited by Bill Pronzini & Marcia Muller and published by The Battered Silicon Dispatch Box, 2007.   Copyright © 1986, 2007 by the Pronzini-Muller Family Trust.

Bibliographic Note:   Other books in this series are: Death by Appointment (1931), A Rope of Sand (1944), Blood and Thirsty (1949) and The Man in the Mist (1951).

R. B. DOMINIC – The Attending Physician. Harper & Row, hardcover, 1980. Pinnacle, paperback, 1981.

   The pair of ladies who write as R. B. Dominic [Mary Jane Latsis & Martha Henissart], as well as the more famous Emma Lathen, obviously do not care much for doctors. This is the first murder adventure their series character hero, Congressman Ben Safford (D-Ohio), has stumbled across in some time. Where the medical industry fits in is right from the beginning, with a series of hearings Safford’s subcommittee as part of their investigation into widespread fraud in the Medicaid program.

   According to Dominic, doctors are an arrogant lot, but in works of fiction, at least, authors have a distinct advantage over the rest of us. They can make sure that at least one prime specimen chosen from among their targets of outrage gets, for once, what’s coming to him.

   Such as a mammoth malpractice suit, right after the subcommittee learns that one such doctor has falsely billed the same welfare mother for two hysterectomies and one abortion. And in that order, no less.

   Standing nervously in line to await the authors’ wrath are nursing homes and pharmacies as well. At times you may feel that the ensuing murder investigation has been all but forgotten, but have no fear. You’ll probably spot the culprit(s) easily enough without it. If you tend to agree with Ms. Dominic, the fun lies here in foiling villains of quite another stripe.

      The Ben Safford series —

Murder Sunny Side Up. Abelard-Schuman 1968
Murder in High Place. Doubleday 1970
There Is No Justice. Doubleday 1971
Epitaph for a Lobbyist. Doubleday 1974
Murder Out of Commission. Doubleday 1976
The Attending Physician.Harper 1980
Unexpected Developments.St. Martin’s 1984

PETER CHEYNEY – Uneasy Terms. Slim Callaghan #9. Dodd Mead, US, hardcover, 1947. Collier, US, paperback, 1989. First edition: Collins, UK, hardcover, 1946. Film: British Pathe, 1948, with Michael Rennie as Slim Callaghan.

   Earlier recorded cases of Slim Callaghan, it has been suggested to me, were ersatz American PI thrillers — Cheyney’s ham-handed attempts to imitate hardboiled fiction on the behalf of British readers — what those on this side of the ocean could have a steady diet of, if so desired, but something of a rarity on the other side of the Atlantic. This is a fact that I may have misunderstood — I have not read anything by Cheyney in many years — so corrections to anything I may say in this paragraph or what follows are more than welcome.

   It may be relevant that this was the last of Mr. Callaghan’s adventuress, not counting a large number of short stories. I say this because what I read was a very well done combination of the British manor house mystery and a case tackled by a semi-enigmatic tough guy private eye, and I enjoyed it very much.

   Dead is the stepfather of three very individualistic women: Viola, beautiful and charming but perhaps not as strong as she should be; Corinne, beautiful but a very smooth liar; and Patricia, quite young and a bit of a vamp, or her idea of a vamp, based on the motion pictures she has seen. It seems that someone had sent the dead man a letter that caused him to try to engage Mr. Callaghan’s services, but the delay caused by a mysteriously drugged drink on the latter’s end means that the two never actually meet, not until it is too late.

   The case is complicated, and Slim does not make Scotland Yard’s investigation any easier by messing around with the evidence at the crime scene. While skating on thin ice with a detective in charge named Gringall, who knows him from before, Slim has to sort through a tangled web of lies, many of which involve who tried to make phone calls and when (and from where); who was married to who and when; a blackmailer named Donelly, the kind of guy women can’t resist; and what a simple enough will (on the face of it) can unwittingly disrupt, if not destroy, the lives of the next generation several times over.

   There is also a fight scene worthy of a film director such as William Witney, a brutal one that Slim is able to walk away from, but barely. A pure brain wizard like Hercule Poirot, Slim is not. Even though I had the twist at the end figured out early on, this was a tough one to put down.

KING OF THE JUNGLE. Paramount, 1933. Buster Crabbe, Frances Dee, Sidney Toler, Nydia Westman, Robert Barrat, Irving Pichel, Douglas(s) Dumbrille. Based on the novel The Lion’s Way, by Charles Thurley Stoneham. Directors: H. Bruce Humberstone & Max Marcin.

   King of the Jungle was one of the earliest and best of the flood of sequels, ripoffs and imitations that followed the success of MGM’s Tarzan the Ape Man (1932) and while it doesn’t have much going for it in the Originality Department, it’s a lively and inventive little film well worth a look.

   The story (in which Philip Wylie had a hand) chronicles the adventures of a shrill little brat raised by Lions (sound familiar?) after his father — played in a short scene, back carefully to Camera, by Douglass Dumbrille, who turns up later in a different part altogether — is killed on Safari.

   The lad grows to strapping manhood in the form of Buster Crabbe, who would later play every pop culture hero known to kids in the first half of this century, becomes leader of the tribe pride, gets captured by Circus Folk and eventually travels to San Francisco, where he (WARNING!) successfully resists the lures of the Big City, gets the Girl, sets his adoptive family free and returns with the lot of them to Africa. (END OF WARNING!)

   Admittedly, it’s all pretty damsilly, but Crabbe is fun to watch, Francs Dee makes an intelligent heroine, and Sidney Toler turns up as a sympathetic Sawdust Impresario. There’s also a spectacular Circus Fire (re-used in Road to Zanzibar and godknows where else) an impressive Elephant Stampede through Downtown Frisco, and even a touch of Artistry here and there, as in the opening when the hero’s father gets his Safari Permit: the camera pans in on the document, then dissolves to a tracking shot, still moving, of the tattered document blown listlessly past dead bodies strewn about a ravaged camp site.

   MGM spent more and went further with Tarzan, but they never surpassed the charm and energy of this shaggy-dog one-shot.

ADAM HALL – The Scorpion Signal. Quiller #9. Doubleday, US, hardcover, 1980. Playboy, paperback; 1st printing, June 1981. First edition: Collins, UK, hardcover, 1979.

   Quiller is asked to cut short his latest recovery leave six weeks early. He might have refused, but the man missing was a friend of his; they’d been on assignment together more than once. Shapiro had been caught by the Russians and was being processed in the brainwashing facility at Lubyanka when somehow he managed to escape. But now he’s disappeared, and if the Russians have him and break him, all kinds of secrets will suddenly not be so secret any more.

   And so Quiller agrees to take the job. Not all goes as planned, though, not hardly. There are lots of twists and turns and narrow escapes on the part of Quiller, who is both very good at what he does and very lucky. It is the people that he meets that makes the story go on high cylinders most of the way, however. Some are on “our” side, some on “their” side, and some have their own agendas, which is all to the good, as far as the reader is concerned, especially this one.

   The ending, though, is all action — which I daren’t tell you about, because getting there is where all the fun is — and while Adam Hall (aka Elleston Trevor) does action well, the closing climactic scenes mean almost as little to me as the CGI effects and fast camera work in whatever the latest suspense thriller is that’s being shown right now in a theater near you.

   All in all, then, not a boring (or bad) book by any means, but I enjoyed a earlier read, Quiller, which came later in the series (and was reviewed here ), quite a bit more. Cerebral action means more to me, you see, than several chapters’ worth of automobiles chasing each other, even around the Kremlin, right in the heart of Moscow.

COLORADO SUNDOWN. Republic Pictures, 1952. Rex Allen , Koko, Mary Ellen Kay, Slim Pickens, June Vincent, Fred Graham, Louise Beavers. Director: William Witney.

   Brutality meets slapstick comedy in Colorado Sundown, a perfectly enjoyable if forgettable matinee Western starring Rex Allen and his horse Koko. Directed by William Witney, the film contains more than its fair share of well-choreographed fight scenes.

   But it’s also notable for its skillful inclusion of physical comedy, thanks in no small part to the presence of veteran character actor Slim Pickens. Similarly, the inclusion of talented African-American actress Louise Beavers in the cast helps make the film a little quirkier than what I had initially expected. Unfortunately, Beavers is relegated to portraying a servant, which makes some of the humor surrounding her character tremendously dated.

   The plot isn’t a terribly interesting or complicated one. Rex Allen gets caught in the middle of a feud between loggers and ranchers. The loggers, led by the cold-hearted Carrie Hurley (June Vincent) seeks to obtain a local ranch in order to gain access to the trees.

   Standing in their way are numerous obstacles, most prominently Jackie Reynolds (Mary Ellen Kay) who, along with Slim Pickens (portraying himself), has inherited a stake in the ranch. Hurley and her two brothers will go to great lengths, including murder, in order to advance their nefarious agenda.

   But no worry. Rex Allen is on the case and he’s determined to make sure justice is done. Not before he gets into a knockdown fistfight, complete with a bookshelf crashing down on the floor and blood on his face though. It’s a William Witney movie, you see.

   James Young Phillips, a/k/a James Atlee Phillips, a/k/a Philip Atlee, was my father. The man lived large and was somewhat of an enigma to us all. He was married three times and his last marriage was to my mother, Martha Phillips. Singer-songwriter Shawn Phillips is my half-brother from a previous marriage.

   I am the Copyright Holder of Record for all of his written works, excepting the screenplays which are the properties of the studios for whom he wrote them. We are working to get the books into digital format, including an unpublished autobiography, and at least one short story compilation. Jim wrote several unproduced screenplays as well, but the publication rights to those items is a bit more tricky. We will see what happens.

   To answer a few questions: My father resisted having his photograph taken under any circumstances. He reluctantly relented for obligatory family functions and even then often did so with a pair of his trademark dark sunglasses on. He was the subject of several newspaper articles over the years and always used the same picture — black turtleneck and dark glasses.

   Said photograph was taken for an article published in a Hong Kong newspaper in the late ’60s/early ’70s. There will be plenty of photos in the autobiography, including that one. The work is slow as I am at it by myself and struggled with serious health issues for over a decade. Thankfully, those problems are now fully resolved and I am capable of doing work again.

   The man pictured on the cover of the Joe Gall novels is an Irish bartender whose name may be lost to history. He was discovered by either Jim’s agent or a representative of Fawcett/Gold Medal and seemed to fit the description of Joe Gall. He was paid a flat fee for a photograph session and was thereafter pictured on the covers.

   We have had numerous inquiries over the years re: Joe Gall film projects. We had Clint Eastwood calling in the ’70s/80s and most recently David Mamet. We’ve also had some discussion about audio books and graphic novel versions, but the process is what it is in each case. There has never been any hesitance or reluctance (or greed) on my part, I can assure you. I, too, am a fan of the works and would love to get them out there for people to enjoy in whatever format I can.

   Jim went through life traveling light — he regularly discarded of documentation and paperwork for all aspects of his life. He did so to such a degree that the sum total of his possessions at the end of his life were a few pieces of clothing, a typewriter and a box of blank paper, and a few scribbles on notepads. Clarity on copyright, history, origins, all of that stuff, has been elusive to say the least.

   My intention is to get the works, including SOME of the unpublished material, onto Amazon this year. Digitizing via OCR, proofing, artwork – for a 22 book series, plus 5 other novels, and the short stories – is a MASSIVE amount of work for even a group of dedicated people. But we are determined! The autobiography will take a bit longer, what with the photos and so forth. The book itself is quite the read from a very opinionated character who didn’t have a PC bone in his body and we are all the better for it!

   I have cruised by Mystery*File over the years, but had nothing to add as I was too ill for even the obligations of a muted correspondence.

   I want to thank every single person who has said such positive things about my father and his works (and my brother as well). You are all truly appreciated and recognized. I hope that we can do your interests justice and produce material that meets your standards and that everyone can enjoy. Many thanks to all of you amazing people!

       The Joe Gall series —

The Green Wound. Gold Medal k1321, July 1963 [New Orleans, LA]
   — Reprinted as The Green Wound Contract, Gold Medal, 1967.
The Silken Baroness. Gold Medal k1489, 1964 [Canary Islands]
   — Reprinted as The Silken Baroness Contract, Gold Medal, 1966
The Death Bird Contract. Gold Medal d1632, 1966 [Mexico]
The Paper Pistol Contract. Gold Medal d1634, 1966 [Tahiti]
The Irish Beauty Contract. Gold Medal d1694, 1966 [Bolivia]
The Star Ruby Contract. Gold Medal d1770, 1967 [Burma]
The Rockabye Contract. Gold Medal d1901, 1968 [Caribbean]
The Skeleton Coast Contract. Gold Medal D1977, 1968 [Africa]
The Ill Wind Contract. Gold Medal R2087, 1969 [Indonesia]
The Trembling Earth Contract. Gold Medal, 1969 [U.S. South]
The Fer-de-Lance Contract. Gold Medal, Jan 1971 [Caribbean]
The Canadian Bomber Contract. Gold Medal T2450, August 1971 [Montreal, Canada]
The White Wolverine Contract. Gold Medal T2508, Dec 1971 [Vancouver, Canada]
The Kiwi Contract. Gold Medal T2530, Feb 1972 [New Zealand]
The Judah Lion Contract. Gold Medal T2608, Sept 1972 [Ethiopia]
The Spice Route Contract. Gold Medal T2697, April 1973 [Middle East]
The Shankill Road Contract. Gold Medal T2819, Sept 1973 [Ireland]
The Underground Cities Contract. Gold Medal M2925, Feb 1974 [Turkey]
The Kowloon Contract. Gold Medal M3028, August 1974 [Hong Kong]
The Black Venus Contract. Gold Medal M3187, Feb 1975 [South America]
The Makassar Strait Contract. Gold Medal P3477, March 1976 [Indonesia]
The Last Domino Contract. Gold Medal 1-3587, 1976 [Korea]

STEVE MUDD – The Planet Beyond. Popular Library/Questar, paperback original; first printing, September 1990.

   There is an elite among the population of Seelzar, and only they have access to the powers provided by the mysterious Wells. Cross them and wham! You’re in exile before you know it.

   As for me, I know I’ve read far enough when: I’ve read five chapters and suddenly realize that I haven’t come across anything of interest so far.

   I know I’m right when: I read the last page, and find that the last sentence is “It was going to be a challenge indeed to get out of this alive, let alone with the Scepter.”

[UPDATE]   I’ve just done some online research about this book, something I couldn’t have done back in 1993. What I’ve discovered is that this book is actually a sequel to an earlier one, Tangled Webs (1989), a fact not at all indicated on either the covers or the blurbs inside this one. Not only that, but another source suggests that this book was intended to be the middle of a trilogy (as that last line indicates), but for whatever reason, the concluding volume was never published. I have come across no information on the author himself.

ED GORMAN, MARTIN GREENBERG, LARRY SEGRIFF & JON L. BREEN, Editors – The Fine Art of Murder. Carroll & Graf, oversized trade paperback, 1993. Galahad Books, hardcover, 1995

   What can I say about a book that has pieces by: Bill Crider on Texas Authors; Marv Lachman on Rockey Mountain Mysteries; Ellen Nehr on Cat Mysteries, Dog Mysteries, and the Doubleday Crime Club; Walter Albert on Researchers; Bob Napier on Fandom; Janet Rudolph on Conventions and Mystery Weekends; Peggy Albert on Nancy & Jessica; and Steve Stilwell interviewing Al Hubin.

   Well, I can say that I can’t imagine any real mystery fan not finding enough of interest to make the book worth the $17.95 purchase price. Besides the luminaries listed above, there are pieces by such lesser lights as Larry Block, Bill DeAndrea, Harry Keating, Ed Gorman, Max Allan Collins, John D. MacDonald, Vin Packer, Carolyn G. Hart, Bill Pronzini, Margaret Maron and a further cast of dozens.

   Jon Breen contributed the introductory remarks for most of.the`various sections. Many pieces are original, some are reprinted, but all were written by people who know how to write and write well, and did. My own favorite sections were on pulps and paperbacks, but there’s something (and more than one something) for everyone. It’s a browser’s delight that covers just about every aspect of the field, written by a group of people who know their subject.