Our Monthly Contest Masterminds
Question: In which Agatha Christie novel is the victim named Ruby Keane, a flamboyant girl with elaborate curls and blood-red enamelled fingernails, dressed in a tawdry satin gown and cheap silver sandals?
Answer: The Body In The Library, in our estimation one of Dame Agatha's best. Congratulations to Pamela Jackson of Huntington Beach, CA for the winning entry! Your prize is in the mail.
Question: What is the mystery of The Mystery of Edwin Drood?
Answer: The mystery behind this Charles Dickens murder mystery is, who did it? Dickens died before he could finish the book. A young man named Thomas James, of limited education and no writing skill, claimed to channel Dickens' spirit to finish the story after his death. Experts the world over pronounced the literary erudition and style of James' work to be an exact copy of Dickens. Congratulations to Jackie Young of Marshfield, MO for the winning response! Your prize is in the mail.
Question: What Mike Hammer novel involves a beautiful woman, wearing only a trenchcoat and newly escaped from a sanitarium, stopping his car on a lonely road?
Answer: It is Mickey Spillane's hard-boiled classic, Kiss Me Deadly. Congratulations to Hannah Beck for the winning entry. Your prize is on its way!
Question: Because of the fantastic prize we've uncovered, this month's contest is more movie trivia than mystery. Banff, Alberta has played host to many movie sets over the years. What film, set in the Rockies in 1953, starred Marilyn Monroe? What more can you tell us about it?
This month's prize is a collector's replica of the original metal Buffalo used as a Parks admission marker in the early 20th century.
Answer: "The River Of No Return", directed by Otto Preminger, is a little-heralded gem of Marilyn's early career, and arguably one of her best acting roles, alongside stunning scenery. Congratulations to Fred Pellerito of Belton, MO for the winning entry. Your prize is in the mail!
Question: This month, something a little different. Tell us, who is your favourite fictional detective, and why? Give us detail; give us flair; we'll pick the winner.
The winner this month is Ben Susser of Livingston, New Jersey, for his strong support of Inspector Jacques Clousseau. Mr. Susser wins the ornate, storied key rumoured to have opened the locked room in E.A. Poe's Murders In The Rue Morgue. The prize is in the mail!
Question: What can you tell us about the character, created by Erle Stanley Gardner, who delivered his first brief in 1933?
Answer: Erle Stanley Gardner created Perry Mason, the formidable attorney of both page and television. Congratulations to Gigi Wilborn of Nocholasville, Kentucky for the winning entry. Your prize is in the mail!
Question: This world famous author introduced himself to the great escape artist, Harry Houdini, because he wanted to convince Houdini of something. Who was he and what did he want Houdini to believe?
Answer: Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, a Spiritualist, tried and failed to convince Houdini of Spiritualism and contact with the afterlife. Congratulations to Carol Berghan of Australia for the winning entry. Your prize is in the mail!
Question: 'Gilbert Keith' are the first two names of a writer famed for being as absentminded as he was prolific. Who was he, and can you quote him?
Answer: Gilbert Keith is better known as G. K. Chesterton, with many quotable quotes to his credit. Thanks for introducing us to some new ones! And congratulations to Manuel Capitao, Jr, from Haines City, Florida, for the winning entry. Your prize is in the mail.
Question: This famous American author was one of several farm boys who attended St. Mary's Academy, a boarding school for Native American girls at Sacred Heart from 1930-38. Who is he and who are his two protagonists?
Answer: Tony Hillerman, whose name is likely to be on any rack of mystery books. His protagonists are Lieutenant Joe Leaphorn and Sergeant Jim Chee. Congratulations to Rose Hately of Bowmanville, Ontario, for the winning entry. Your prize is on its way!
Question: What British author writes under the name Bernard Bastable, and which famous music composer does he use as an amateur detective?
Answer: Robert Barnard, who writes under the nom de plume of Bernard Bastable, is noted for using Mozart as his detective. Congratulations to Shirley Jensen of Santa Barbara, CA for the winning entry - your prize is in the mail!
Question: What famous mystery writer's career began when the racehorse he was riding collapsed a few strides away from victory? What else can you tell us about him?
Answer: Dick Francis, of course, many of whose mystery novels surround events at the racetrack. Congratulations to Grant Baker of Campbellford, Ontario for the winning entry! Your prize is in the mail.
Question: Who wrote "The Death of Erik the Redneck", and what was it nominated for?
Answer: Featuring the lead character of Laura Fleming, it was written by Toni L. P. Kelner, and was nominated for the Agatha Award for Best Short Story. Congratulations to Mariana Trucco of Hornby Island, BC for the winning entry! Your prize is in the mail.
Question: Ellis Peters wrote the world's most popular series of 'medieval whodunnits', starring his devout detective, Brother Cadfael. What did Brother Cadfael do before he joined the monastery?
Answer: Brother Cadfael filled his pre-monastic life with time as a soldier in the Crusades, and as a sailor. This and other worldly experience helped him fathom the depths of human nature. Congratulations to Laurie Conover of Colorado Springs, Colorado for a superb answer! Your prize is in the mail.
Question: Who is Mary Roberts Rinehart, and what famous mystery phrase is attributed to her?
Answer: Mary Roberts Rinehart wrote some of the best American mystery fiction of the early 20th Century. She coined the phrase, "The butler did it". Congratulations to Christine Blanksvard of Salem, Oregon for the winning answer! Your prize is in the mail.
Question: One of the 1960's favourite TV spy/mystery/action series featured a fictional secret international agency that some viewers confused with the United Nations (hint: U.N....). What did the show's acronym stand for?
Answer: UNCLE stood for United Network Command for Law and Enforcement. The show stood for excitement, international cooperation, and a new era in TV adventure. Congratulations to Neville Thompson of South Africa for the winning entry - your prize is in the mail!
Question: Two cousins wrote a mystery story to enter a contest under a pseudonym, and ended up creating one of crime fiction's most mysterious and famous authors. What was the pseudonym, and how much can you tell us about the mystery surrounding the name?
Answer: Ellery Queen was both the fictional author of, and leading character in, stories and novels written by cousins Frederick Dannay and Manfred Lee. Congratulations to David Bertolo of SCottsdale, Arizona for this month's winning entry! Your prize is in the mail.
Question: One of Agatha Christie's main characters, Miss Marple, lived in a small village, and often remarked that living there helped her sleuthing skills. What was the name of the village, and how did her life there help Miss Marple solve crimes?
Answer: Miss Marple lived in St Mary Mead, a small village whose inhabitants' interactions and foibles provided counterpoint and insight for Miss Marple's investigations of the criminal mind. Congratulations to Nichelle Parsons of Ontario for her insightful winning answer! Your prize is in the mail.
Question: Thomas Perry has written several books (and we hope he's writing more!) with a young Native American woman named Jane Whitefield as his main character. What unusual profession keeps Jane Whitefield busy?
Answer: Jane Whitefield specializes in helping people to 'disappear', to leave the world and start a new life as someone else. Congratulations to Cynthia Booton of Sechelt, BC! Your prize is in the mail.
Question: Evan Hunter, who passed away this month, was arguably one of America's most powerful writers. Eight of his ten books were turned into movies, and he wrote the screenplay for The Birds. What was his most famous pseudonym?
Answer: Evan Hunter most often used the pseudonym Ed MacBain for his novels. Congratulations to Gloria Mitchell of Abbotsford, BC! Your prize is in the mail.
Question: Who are the Black Widowers?
Answer: The Black Widowers are a group of six members of a gentleman's club, created by the prolific writer Isaac Asimov, who puzzled out crimes in a series of mystery novels. Asimov based the characters on an actual New York men's club. Congratulations to Dianna Foster from Dayton, Texas for the best response! Your prize is in the mail.
Question: Who is considered to be 'The Father of the Detective Story'?
Answer: Edgar Allen Poe. His detective, a Monsieur C. Auguste Dupin, solves crimes in The Murders In The Rue Morgue, and The Purloined Letter. These stories revolutionized the genre of mystery fiction. Congratulations to Lynn Bushey of Oregon! Your prize is in the mail.
Question: Who said, "I shall know the murderer when I know the victim well"?
Answer: That famous saying was uttered - in English translation - by Inspector Maigret, the sleuth of French mystery writer Georges Simenon. Congratulations to Robert Hogan of Hilo, Hawaii! Your prize is in the mail.
Question: What is the name of the annual award given by the Crime Writers of Canada, and who is it named after?
Answer: It is the Arthur Ellis Award, and was named after Canada's official hangman. Congratulations to Katherine Clark for the answer with the most flair! Your prize is in the mail.
Question: On a cold December night in 1926, for eleven days, something happened to Agatha Christie. What was it?
Answer: Agatha Christie's Morris Cowley was found empty, with its front wheels over the edge of a cliff, the brakes off, and the ignition on. Her disappearance set off a nation-wide search. Arthur Conan Doyle tried to locate her by psychic means. She showed up eleven days later and refused to talk about her disappearance. It is still a mystery.
Congratulations (again) to Janet Ross of Youngsville, North Carolina! Your prize is in the mail.
Question: Donald E. Westlake, one of America's grandmasters of crime fiction, also wrote under two pseudonyms. What are they?
Answer: He wrote the hard-hitting Parker novels under the name of Richard Stark. After that, take your pick - he actually used at least 14 pseudonyms!
Congratulations to Piero Giorno of Toronto, Ontario for the winning entry! Your prize will be in the mail.
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