Fredric Brown's "Arena" and The Outer Limits

by Jack Seabrook

            "Fun and Games" is based on "Arena," a science fiction story by Fredric Brown that was first published in the June 1944 issue of Astounding Science Fiction.  The Outer Limits credits do not list the story as a source, but reading the story and then watching the show make the inspiration clear—as clear as "He's So Fine" begat "My Sweet Lord" and "Soldier" begat The Terminator.

            The story begins with Bob Carson awakening in an unfamiliar setting, naked, lying on hot blue sand under a blue dome.  Moments before, he had been a fighter pilot, alone in a small ship on the edge of our universe, part of a fleet waiting to intercept the invading fleet of the Outsiders.  The two fleets were poised for a final, massive showdown.

            Just before his ship engaged with the enemy, both ships suddenly plummeted toward a planet that came out of nowhere.  On the planet, Carson hears a voice inside his head telling him that it belongs to a highly advanced being, one who is intervening to prevent the destruction of two races.

            The notion of a "watcher" from beyond pops up to this day in fantastic fiction, from The Watcher in the Fantastic Four comic books to the dapper, bald men on the current TV show, Fringe.

            The watcher has selected a champion from the human race and another from the Outsiders; they will fight to the death and the loser's race will be wiped out.  "Brain-power and courage," the voice tells Carson, "will be more important than strength."  Time stands still outside the dome, awaiting the result of the contest.  And the Outsider, Carson's opponent, is described as a "red sphere of horror . . . rolling toward him."

            The trick to the story is that an invisible barrier separates the combatants, and only "Brain-power and courage" allow Carson to solve the mystery of how to cross the invisible wall and dispatch the alien.  Along the way, the two are contrasted: Carson is young, filled with self doubt but compassionate, while the Outsider exudes waves of hatred and thoughtlessly tortures a lizard, the only other conscious being in the arena.

            The contrast between Carson and the Outsider is stark, and it mirrors the time of the story's writing.  Americans were fighting Nazis and Japanese, and it is no accident that the Outsider is a red sphere, much like the red circle found on the flag of Japan.  The war flag of the Japanese imperial army, used in World War Two, features a red ball with rays extending out from it on all sides—very much like the Outsider and his retractable tentacles.

            It must have been tempting to Fredric Brown and his war-weary readers to imagine that the Second World War could end in a moment after a battle of champions, with the winning side unharmed and the losing side eliminated.

Carson deduces that the invisible barrier is one of consciousness and knocks himself out with a stone so that his body rolls across to the other side.  On awakening, he brutally kills the Outsider, saving the human race.

            In David J. Schow's book on the Outer Limits, he writes that "Fun and Games" may have been inspired by Brown's story.  Robert Specht wrote a script called "Natural Selection" and Joseph Stefano rewrote it to make the program that was broadcast.

            The comparisons between TV show and story are instructive.  The show opens with stock footage of the Roman Coliseum and Roman soldiers marching, as the narrator talks about ancient times and fun and games.  The program then shifts to the present, as a card cheat in a poker game is shot to death and bitter ex-boxer Mike Benson finds himself in the wrong place at the wrong time.

            Soon enough, Benson and Laura Hanley, a pretty woman who lives in the same building, are "electroported to a planet called Andara.  It is a million million light years away from your own."  The watcher of this story is visible (though he always appears in shadows), rather than the telepathic voice Carson hears in the short story.  As in the story, Benson wonders if he is dead, but instead learns that he and Hanley have been selected as Earth's representatives to fight two representatives from another planet in the "arena."  The winner's race will be preserved, the loser's will die.

            Unlike the short story, this contest is a game, a spectacle presented for the enjoyment of the watcher's race, who are so far advanced that they essentially have nothing better to do.

            There is some back and forth with Benson and Hanley going back to Earth until Benson agrees to participate in the contest; he is not a heroic character and he only agrees because he fears being arrested for the poker player's murder and being locked up.  The arena where the contest takes place looks suspiciously like the usual Outer Limits woods, and while the watcher tells Benson and Hanley that it resembles Earth of a million years ago, the only difference seems to be a fiery, bubbling river.

            The aliens of "Fun and Games" are not very frightening, with their rubber ape masks and furry gloves, and when they first appear they utter a combination of a roar and a meow.  One alien apparently kills the other right away and spends the rest of the contest winging a serrated boomerang at our heroes with the accuracy of a gangster shooting at the cops in an old Warner Brothers flick.

            Benson is not smart or heroic; those qualities belong to his partner, Laura Hanley.  Both have psychological problems that prevent them from doing much beyond talking, and the watcher monitors their every move and comments mockingly.  "Fun and Games" is as grounded in the world of early 1960s television as "Arena" is a product of World War Two-era fear and desire—Benson is a cheap, semi-tough ex-boxer with a sort of a Brooklyn accent; Hanley is pretty, serious, and right-thinking—I was waiting for her to identify herself as a schoolteacher, but she never did.

            Laura runs away from Mike, either out of self-sacrifice or fear, and he finally meets the alien on a log spanning the fiery river.  Mike falls and hangs by his fingers as the alien tries the old trick of stomping on those same fingers with his big, furry foot.  It is up to Laura to save the day with some boomerang throwing skills she probably did not know she possessed.

            The Watcher wearily admits that Mike and Laura's actions have saved the human race, and the program ends with neither the participants nor the rest of humanity having changed as a result of the ordeal.

Although the story has been adapted and expanded to fill a 50-minute time slot, the basic premise of "Fun and Games" tracks that of "Arena" closely.  One clever and subtle aspect of the TV show is the way it comments on us, the viewers—the Watcher follows the action on a TV screen, and his fellow citizens presumably do the same.  Mike, Laura, and the aliens perform for the viewers' enjoyment, as do the actors every week on The Outer Limits.

            On a side note, I suspect that "Arena" was the first Fredric Brown story I ever read, when it was reprinted in the March 1977 issue of Starlog, along with Boris Vallejo's illustration reproduced above.  Almost 34 years later, I still enjoy reading Fredric Brown's work.

Sources:

"44: Fantastic Four #13." Marvel Genesis. Web. 05 Feb. 2011.

Brown, Fredric.  "Arena."  The Best of Fredric Brown.  Ed. Robert Bloch.  Garden City, NY: Nelson Doubleday, Inc., 1976.  Book Club Edition.  8-34.

"Hulu - The Outer Limits - Original: Fun And Games - Watch the Full Episode Now." Hulu – Watch Your Favorites. Anytime. For Free. Web. 05 Feb. 2011.

"Rising Sun Flag." Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia. Web. 06 Feb. 2011.

Schow, David J. and Jeffrey Franzen.  The Outer Limits: The Official Companion.  NY: Ace Science Fiction Books, 1986.

Topel, Fred. "All Is Revealed about Fringe's Bald Alien-like Observer." Blastr. Web. 05 Feb. 2011.

"Weimar World Service: The Starlog Project – My Favorite Magazines." This Is Weimar World Service. Web. 05 Feb. 2011.

The Complete Guide to Manhunt Part 19

by Peter Enfantino

Vol. 3 No. 1            January 1955

The Killer by John D. MacDonald
(5000 words) ***   illo: Houlihan

A fishing club called The Deep Six becomes witness to a nasty bit of violence when macho man John Lash won’t leave Croy Danton’s wife alone. A discussion of how John D. MacDonald changed and popularized the crime story during the late 1950s through to his death in 1986 would take up more room than this blog has apportioned to it. I’m also the wrong guy to write that essay. I’ve only read four JDM novels (The Executioners, Slam the Big Door, April Evil, and One Monday We Killed Them All) but I considered each all of them to be top-notch and one is firmly ensconced in my  Top 10 Favorite Crime Novel of All Time list (that would be April Evil). I’ve read dozens of JDM’s short stories and was equally floored by the variety and uniqueness of them. Several of his “slick” stories (those found in Saturday Evening Post, Collier’s, etc.) could have been expanded into novels. Of course, MacDonald is probably best known for the creation of Travis McGee, a character MacDonald fashioned 21 novels around. John D. MacDonald appeared 4 times in Manhunt.

You Can’t Trust a Man by Helen Nielsen

(4000 words) ***

            Years after taking part in a robbery, Crystal Coe has changed her name and married into money. Her real husband, meanwhile, has been rotting in jail for seven years, having taken the fall for Crystal. But, as he tells his wife after he tracks her down, his hands have not been idle in the pen. The story’s not new (though it might have been in 1954) but the writing’s just dandy:

            They were a couple of very special jobs – the convertible and the woman. Blonde, streamlined, and plenty of fire power under the hood. The convertible was a later model, at least twenty five years later, but it didn’t have any more pick-up and not nearly as much maneuverability in traffic.

            She came across the parking lot like a stripper , prancing out on the runaway, a healthy, old-fashioned girl who believed that whatsoever the Lord hath cleaved asunder no Parisian designer should join together.

 

            Helen Nielsen wrote dozens of short stories for Ellery Queen, The Saint, Mike Shayne, and Alfred Hitchcock Magazines (among the 22 stories she wrote for AHMM is “Never Trust a Woman,” proving that Helen couldn’t trust anyone) as well as novels such as Detour, Obit Delayed, Sing Me a Murder, and Borrow the Night.  Several of her stories were adapted for television, including “You Can’t Trust a Man” for Alfred Hitchcock Presents, starring Polly Bergen as Crystal. The show aired May 9, 1961.

May I Come In? by Fletcher Flora

(2000 words) ***   illo: Dick Francis

            A man is pushed to the brink by a personal tragedy. Another mini-near-masterpiece by Fletcher Flora, this has a stunning kick in its climax.

The Blood Oath by Richard Deming

(4000 words) ***   illo: Coughlin

            Manville Moon must protect his beautiful girlfriend Fausta from the mafia when they target her for not paying her monthly “tribute.” Manville Moon continues to be a solid and fun character.

Panic by Grant Colby

(1500 words) ***   illo: James Sentz

            A woman riding a streetcar is terrorized by a man with a sickle. Viciously nasty ending. I loved it!

The Floater by Jonathan Craig

(6000 words) ***   illo: James Sentz

            Lucille Taylor is found dead, floating in the Hudson. Detectives Paul Brader and Jim Coren piece together what and who put her there. Though there’s really not much difference in style between this Craig police procedural and his last (or the one before that), there’s a good enough story to carry the reader past the “Yes, ma’am”s and “We’re just doing our job, sir”s that these stories come equipped with.

Green Eyes by Hal Ellson

(3500 words) ** illo: Houlihan

            Jim Withers and his wife Kathy are vacationing at an Acapulco resort. Jim begins to suspect that Kathy is stepping out on him with a servant named Juan. This could have been a decent read at half the length but all this story does is recycle the same image of a “white shirted image jumping from the balcony of the Withers room and running into the forest.” There’s no mystery to what’s going on.

Morning Movie by Muriel Berns

(1000 words) * ½   illo: Lee

            Carol hears several juvies talking about a candy store heist while she’s waiting for her matinee to begin.

Epitaph by Erskine Caldwell

(2000 words) *   illo: “GHP”

            Amelie has been carrying on an affair with Walter while married to Ray. Now she’s pregnant and she’s unsure who the father is. Peyton Place drivel totally out of place in Manhunt.

The Drifter by Robert S. Swenson

(1500 words) ***   illo: Dick Francis

            Joe and Pete are waiting for their ride when a fellow drifter named Manny comes walking up, holding a toad. Manny is a simpleton ala Lenny from Of Mice and Men. Pete sadistically stomps on the toad and then tries to get Manny to off himself. Instead, in a scene that would have made Richard Laymon proud, Manny disembowels Pete:

... he stared down at the wound watching the blood flow like a river through his fingers.

He began sagging to the ground almost at once and his white shirt and pants were already red with blood. When he had sagged almost to the ground, he dropped suddenly into a sitting position, it was only a foot or so, but he dropped with enough force so that his intestines spilled out into his shirt, and he sat holding his insides and staring at his hands. He was like a man stealing sausage.

            1950s splatter. The mind boggles!

One of Evan Hunter's soft-core titles

The Death-Ray Gun by Evan Hunter

(15,000 words) ***   illo: Houlihan

            TV producer Cynthia Finch is found burnt to a crisp and the weapon suspected id the Death-Ray Gun used in her hit science fiction show, The Rocketeers. But how could a harmless prop be turned into a killing machine? Rocketeers head writer Jonathan Crane turns amateur sleuth to get to the bottom of the mystery. Whimsical (albeit violent) change of pace for the usually very straight and sober Ed McBain is thoroughly enjoyable fluff.

Kiss Me, Dudley by Hunt Collins

(1500 words) ***   illo: Richards

            Ed McBain’s parody of Mickey Spillane has quite a few laughs in its brief word count. McBain was obviously having a good time at the expense of another writer:

            The pulse in her throat began beating wildly. There was a hungry animal look in her eyes. She sucked in a deep breath and ran her hands over her hips, smoothing the apron. I went to her and cupped her chin in the palm of my left hand.

            “Baby,” I said.

            Then I drew back my right fist and hit her on the mouth. She fell back against the sink, and I followed with a quick chop to the gut, and a fast uppercut to the jaw. She went down on the floor and she rolled around in the fish scales, and I thought of my sea captain father, and my mother who was a nice little lass from New England. And then I didn’t think of anything but the blonde in my arms, and the .45 in my fist, and the twenty-six men outside, and the four shares of Consolidated I’d bought that afternoon, and the bet I’d made on the fight with One-Lamp Louie, and the defective brake lining on my Olds, and the bottle of rye in the bottom drawer of my file cabinet back at Dudley Sledge, Investigations.

            I enjoyed it.

Mugged and Printed this issue spotlights John D. MacDonald, Erskine Caldwell, Helen Nielsen, and Evan Hunter.

Also appearing are Vincent H. Gaddis' Crime Cavalcade, You Detective #2: The Green Beard by Wilson Harman, What's Your Verdict #7: The Loving Wife by Sam Ross, and Portrait of a Killer #18: Evan Thomas by Dan Sontup.

A Tangled Web: The Annotated Guide to Web Detective Stories Part 2

by Peter Enfantino

(originally appeared in Bare Bones #3/4, Spring 1999)

WEB DETECTIVE STORIES

Vol. 2/#3            June 1959
(this was the second issue to be labeled Vol.2/#3)

Satan Thumbs a Ride! by Al James **1/2 (2800 wds)

            Dopey thief steals a car, kills its owner. On the run, he picks up a babe, who turns out to be on the run as well. She steals the car and is later picked up by the cops, who suspect her of killing the car's original owner. Nice ironic twist.

Murder's Lovely Stand-in! by Art Crockett ** (2700 wds)

            While enduring a third degree from some tough bulls, Harry Ross dishes all the dirt he knows on his boss Raymond, and now the mobster is understandably peeved. Being the scum bag that he is, Harry heads to his girlfriend's pad and uses her as a decoy to ensure his escape.

Tide of Evil! by Richard Hardwick ** (4700 wds)

            After serving a few years in the stir, Gus Leach runs into his old partner Marta one day and discovers she's in the middle of a big con. Marta's about to become Mrs. Walter Telfair and Gus wants a piece of the action or he'll let ol' Walter know what his fiancé was up to before he gave her a ring.

One Foot in Hell! by Bill Ryder ** (3400 wds)

            Roger Townshend intends to take the big dive off a 22nd story ledge unless his estranged girlfriend is brought to him. The woman turns out to be the wife of the cop who's trying to talk Roger down. Ryder (showing unusual restraint in his writing here) cheats all the way from the beginning of the story to mask the identity of the woman until the big 'surprise' climax. This has been done before, and better.

Crash Out to Doom! by Micky Fairbanks *1/2 (4200 wds)

            Burger and Jim bust out of prison by kidnapping the warden's wife and stealing her car. They head off into the swamps where they run into some nasty swamp critters, but all's well that ends well for the captive woman because it turns out that the real reason Jim broke out was to get away from the bullying Burger. Once Burger is dispatched, Jim gives himself up and goes back to peace in the prison.

Hate Goes Courting! by Lawrence Block **** (3200 wds)

            Very short and very stark, "Hate Goes Courting" (yet another stupid title) tells the story of two brothers, John and Brad, and John's fiancé Margie, a girl with a questionable past. Brad knows about that past and continually taunts his brother until the man finally bursts out in rage:

            When you're up close a shotgun makes a big messy hole, big as a man's fist, but when I squeezed that trigger the shell went through him like a sword through a piece of silk, like the wind blowing outside. He let out a moan and sat down slowly. His eyes were staring like he couldn't believe it happened.

            Much more indicative of Block's future work than the previous issue's "Look Death in the Eye!"

The Hunger of Death! by Buck Grimes **1/2 (4200 wds)

            Sandy's a starving artist and now he's hooked on junk. Once he runs out of daddy's dough he turns to a life of crime to get his daily fix. Not a bad story, but a bit uninspiring in its delivery.

Terror's Sultry Sister! by Sam Holt * (3400 wds)

            Try to follow me closely: Don is keeping time with Lila, whose brother Archie is a j.d. thug. When Archie plays like Lila's pimp and demands bucks for her time, Don puts the kid on the ground. Later, driving home from work, Don thinks he hits a man in the street. Turns out Archie has just pulled a robbery and been shot. He's the man Don has run over! Archie dies naming Don as his accomplice and Don heads for a nice cell. The king of Ripley's Believe It Or Nots. If I gave out zeroes, Sultry Sister would earn one. Under his "Samuel Holt" pseudonym, Donald E. Westlake wrote four novels: One Of Us Is Wrong (1986), I Know A Trick Worth Two Of That (1986), What I tell You Three Times Is False (1987), and The Fourth Dimension Is Death (1989). All four feature the retired cop turned actor character of Sam Holt and all four were recently reprinted by Felony & Mayhem Press.

Company for a Corpse! by Bruce White *1/2 (2000 wds)

            Monk Donzeg is mad as hell after being a fall guy and goes after the cop who framed him.

Hot Slug - Cold Dame! by Jim Allen * (3200 wds)

            Frank, not at all pleased about spending ten years in the pen for a job he did with Claude Sanders (who got away), goes looking for the fifty grand that was to be his cut. When he finally finds Claude, his former partner has been given a third eye by his wife, who quickly frames Frank. Entry two in this issue's Ripley's sweepstakes.

Lust's Lone Witness! by Don Unatin * (5900 wds)

            Mousy Henry Wiggins blurts out to the police that he witnessed the murder of his lovely neighbor, the latest victim of a serial lust killer, and gives a false description of the fiend. Problem is, Harry saw nothing because he was busy cowering in his apartment at the time of the murder. Obsessed with his new found fame and morose over the soon-fleeting aforementioned fame, Wiggins decides the best way to stay on top is to become a lust killer himself. Of course, the woman he stalks turns out to be the latest target of the real killer and Ripley see three strikes and he's out.

Vol. 2/#4             September 1959

Murders Flashes Dark Eye! by Grover Brinkman ***1/2 (4600 wds)

            (Note: Title given is the one on the actual title page. The contents page reads: "Murder Flashes Dark Eyes," which makes a little more sense.) Ollie and Clint pull off a bank heist but it gets messy and two end up dead. They hightail it over the river into Mexico, only to find themselves wanted by scavengers more deadly than the police. Excellent tale ends dark when Ollie's back is to the wall and there's only one way out.

           

Love Nest in Hell! by Flip Lyons * (3950 wds)

            Escaped con takes honeymooners hostage in snowbound cabin. A complete and total snoozer, right up to its' laughable expository climax.

Her Knife Carved "Love"! by Jay Folb * (5200 wds)

            Dreamboat Ernie Scorr decides that Shirley Diamond must die. To accomplish this he enlists Maria, who's madly in love with him and will do anything he says. Or so he thinks.

Slaughter Will Find You! by Luke Hogan *** (3900 wds)

            With that title, you're probably expecting something like one of those 70s blaxploitation flicks, but what you get is a real good gripper. Syl Myers has been dreading the inevitable day when his brother Pete would come calling, after spending fifteen years in prison. Pete wants Syl to be the driver in another stickup, but Syl just wants to be left alone to his good life and home. Unfortunately, Pete is well-versed in the art of coercion.

No Guts to Die! by Jim Arthur * (3350 wds)

            Ex-stripper Tina Bondi hasn't gotten over being dumped by mobman Lennie Rogers and spends her waking hours in the bottom of a glass of booze. She's decided that before she drinks herself to death, she'll tell the world all about the dirty life of Lennie Rogers.

Fear Finds a Mate! by Pete McCann * (3950 wds)

            Because of Carol's strict upbringing, sex has always been something evil to her. No man ever gets to second base with Carol until the serial-rapist "The Cat" comes knocking on her door and Carol finds out what it's like to be a fulfilled woman. Another in the WEB sub-genre of stories where the female protagonist "had it coming to her and when she finally got it...she liked it!"

A Slob Can Hate! by Robert Silverberg *** (3950 wds)

            Poor Theodore Reese is tortured by the other boys in his cabin at summer camp. They make up derogatory nicknames, dump buckets of water on his head, pants him, and generally make life for him a living hell. Then comes the night of the dance, when one of the most beautiful girls in camp asks Theodore to accompany her. The unwitting boy doesn't know it's a set-up, and when he finds out, he explodes in a fit of violence. An above-average revenge saga. I'd make a joke about Stephen King reading WEB in his early days, but he has a lot of lawyers.

Beautiful Bait for Benny! by Al James ** (2950 wds)

            Pickpocket Benny runs into fellow hoodlum Angie at the track one day. Benny's just served ten years for a job he pulled with Angie. Now Angie's got a great pickpocket scheme all worked out and, in the end, suspicion will fall on Benny. The joke's on Angie though when, after the cops converge on the two men, it's learned that Benny couldn't be the culprit because his hands have become gnarled from arthritis.

The Added Mourner! by Donald Honig *1/2 (3800 wds)

            Joe Barton might be the world's stupidest murderer. Barton and his wife Janet despise each other but, for some reason, stay together. Joe's spineless ways irk Janet, and he just can't stand her nagging. Joe finally decides to off her but can't come up with a plan 'til one day in a bar when an old man stumbles in, claiming he watched his family drown in a ferry accident. The light bulb goes on over Joe's head. He races home, offs the ol' ball and chain, and dumps her body in the bay. Only later does he find out that the old man had lost his family years before.

Reserve My Hot Seat! by James Allen *** (3250 wds)

            Nick Norris believes he's committed the perfect crime while he sits on death row, hours away from execution. He kills his boss, robs him of half a million bucks, and pays another crook to use Nick's gun in a similar crime while he's rotting in a cell. This way, Norris is convinced the cops will listen to his pleas of innocence. The hired crook gets ideas of his own though in a neat twist.

I.O.U. - Lust! by Bill Ryder *1/2 (4300 wds)

            Racy S&M/bondage fairy tale about Hilda Queen, little girl lost, who must turn to the kinkier side of prostitution to pay off gambling debts, only to find out that the ringleader of the bondage gang (and her prospective lover) is none other than her dear old dad, a wealthy, influential man of the community. Real sleazy stuff, bordering on softcore porn (though very tame compared to today's stuff).

Vol. 2/#5            December 1959

Come Home to Hell! by Al James * (3900 wds)

            Prison life is rough on Phil, but parole finally comes and his loving wife Mira (celibate for five years, Phil thinks in awe) is there to help him to pick up the pieces. One of those pieces is the box of embezzled loot Phil has hidden on their property. Problem is, Mira hasn't been as faithful as Phil had hoped. Out of left field wrap up expository doesn't help at all.

Dumb Blondes are Murder! by Don Unatin **1/2 (5200 wds)

            Tony and his number-one hooker, Nikki, have been running con games on married business executives. Tony plays the murderous husband who walks in on his wife in the act of adultery and, hopefully, the John pays in spades. Unfortunately for the goofy couple, this particular John doesn't act as he should and ends up with a big black smoking hole in his head compliments of Tony's rifle. Things get real wild when the two fugitives make their escape into the woods. After beating the hell out of Nikki, Tony manages to get himself caught in a bear trap and then eaten by the trap's intended victim! A gruesome (but nevertheless funny) climax makes up for a ho-hum build-up. Probably the best short story in history with "Dumb Blondes" in the title.

My Love is Death! by G. G. Revelle * (4800 wds)

            Author tires of the couple upstairs exchanging blows. When he falls in love with the unfortunate female, he realizes the only out is... boredom.

Fear Casts a Long Shadow! by Hal Ellson * (1900 wds)

            Tod is a mugger who keeps several women company throughout the city. A weak tale devoid of anything resembling suspense or logic.

Terror Town! by Art Crockett *** (3200 wds)

            After a steamy rendezvous, Rod Baxter learns to his chagrin that the town vixen is actually an "innocent teen." To add to his troubles, the townsfolk don't cotton to their innocents being deflowered by total strangers, and drag Rod out to the woods to string him up. Good twist at the conclusion as we learn that the town might just suspect the truth after all.

Evil's Executioner! by Jim Barnett ** (4000 wds)

            William Leighton seems to be a bit of a split personality: by day, dapper, well-to-do war hero; by night, rapist and murderer. So-so story builds to a peak of nastiness and gore, wildly so. Entertaining, but the first-person narrative loses any of its surprise by the second page. You'll know who's really telling Leighton's story.

Gang Girl's Revenge! by Hal Crosby **1/2 (3400 wds)

            Detective Ben Sommers has a security problem since bringing down mob boss Maxie Grant. Every shadow could be an armed mobster. Every move could be his last. When he's approached by Grant's moll, Carrie Powell, he naturally suspects the worst of her. Turns out though that Powell has been running a double cross on her beau and wants nothing more than to see him burn. As with most of the really effective WEB stories, "Gang Girl's Revenge" has a nice twist ending.

Lust Tells Big Lies! by Richard Hardwick * (3300 wds)

            Yearning for the good life that his prosperous brother leads, Howie Potter borrows his brother's caddy and drives down to Florida for a little vaca. Along the way, he picks up a dame, stacked to the nines, who falls for Howie's line that he's an oil magnate. Of course, the woman has set up Howie for a shakedown (in a scene that screams "quite illogical") and finds himself regretting his new fantasy life.

Woo Her With Slugs! by Flip Lyons * (2700 wds)

            Myra Nolan loves living high on the hog, thanks to her husband the hit man, but she just hates to hear him brag about his job.

Passion Must Die! by Leslie G. Sabo * (2000 wds)

            Ray Miller plans to off his mistress before his rich wife finds out about his adulterous ways and cuts him out of her fortune.

A Skeleton for Her Bed! by Bill Ryder * (5700 wds)

            Connie Sorrel thinks she's finally found happiness after years spent in a woman's prison manned by sadistic guards. Her happiness comes in the form of her parole officer, who she falls in love with. In a twist that comes as a surprise only to the dim-witted Connie, her new found love also happens to be involved in the same S&M racket as the guards. "Women in Chains" done WEB-style. Misogynistic and vile, with not a trace of the goofball charm found in the "Women Prisoner" movies of the 1970s.

Vol. 2/#6            March 1960

The Framing Frail! by Al James *1/2 (4300 wds)

            Cynthia thinks she's found the perfect dweeb in Albert Franklin to pin her husband's murder on. Little does she know that Franklin is the notorious Albert Franklin, the sex killer who's just murdered his wife. Coincidence? You be the judge.

Gang Job! by Zack Steele **** (3050 wds)

            No, that's not a typo--4 stars! A beat cop has to bring in a retarded boy who has been tricked into murdering his own brother by a street gang. Not the usual j.d. story, "Gang Job" focuses on the damage the gang leaves in its wake rather than the sensationalistic aspects inherent in a j.d. story. In fact, the gang itself is never actually featured in the story. Powerful, almost too powerful for WEB, "Gang Job" brings to mind the best 1950s youth crime fiction of Ed McBain.

Terror Springs the Trap! by Bill Ryder *** (4050 wds)

            Another dumb title for a fairly good story, the narrative of Dirk, aka Mr. Death, a gallows hangman, whose latest execution is a bit different than those in the past: two vicious teens accused of sexually molestation and murder. You can tell there's a twist in the offing all the way from the beginning of the story, but when the payload is delivered, it's pretty effective and quite original.

Don't Cheat on Passion! by Art Crockett ** (5050 wds)

            Officer Paul Harkness walks in on his wife while she's playing hide-the-salami with her side dish. Harkness plugs her with lead (in a delightfully graphic description of bullets-meet-arteries damage) and quickly turns himself in. The twist here, which is pretty farfetched even for a WEB story, is that the escaped lover turns out to be the D.A. who'll prosecute Harkness.

Show Her His Blood! by Leslie G. Sabo * (1800 wds)

            Meek Andy helps young thug Bart drag nubile Rita Kemper into the woods and rape her. After Andy gets a case of the guilts, he lets Rita talk him into murdering Bart.

Hot Dames Spell Trouble! by Jack Kavanaugh **1/2 (3700 wds)

            There's a new kid in Sammy's organization and everyone loves him. Everyone, that is, except Sammy's right hand man Butchie. Seems "the kid" is seeing Butchie's moll on the side and Butchie's bound and determined to put the youngster six feet under. Decent mob story with a good twist.

Bodies Won't Sink! by Grover Brinkman **1/2 (4450 wds)

            Sheriff Milt Brady investigates the disappearance of one of his deputies, Pete Wiley. Seems Wiley was a nasty fella, beating on his girlfriend and generally raising hell with the local populace. Evidence leads the sheriff right to the patch of quicksand just outside town. Is Wiley down there or in the lake? "Bodies Won't Sink" is just the kind of story you'd find in Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine in the 1950s, with a long expository at its climax just in case we can't connect the dots ourselves.

Mark Her for Murder! by Jay Richards *** (1600 wds)

            Johnny and Frankie, two likable hitmen (yeah, just like Travolta and Jackson) are given a tough assignment from the syndicate: rub out Anne Carpenter. Right off the bat, the reader knows that Carpenter is no stranger to these gentlemen and this won't be one of their usual hits, but the darkly humorous double whammy in the final line is still effective.

Tease Me and Die! by Jim Barnett ***1/2 (5000 wds)

            A psycho with delusions of grandeur and a mousy physique chronicles his stalking of a co-worker who has spurned him. Some genuinely creepy writing elevates what might have otherwise have been just another madman saga. For example:

            "No matter what I do to you tonight, you'll never feel the agony I've suffered at your hands. In a way it's poetic justice that I'll follow you into the freezing night. You've already killed my soul with your cruelty. All that is left is my body and my lust for vengeance. I will have that revenge. You can't deny it to me."

Take My Slug, Killer! by Hal Crosby * (2500 wds)

            And then you get dopey clichés like this: Author writes short story about a cop killer, but keeps cop's name secret all through narrative. Only problem is: only a dolt would be surprised when the identity is revealed.

Penny Cost Plenty! by Don Unatin ** (4500 wds)

            Arnie and Penny have a great racket going. Penny seduces middle-aged millionaires and Arnie gets it on film for blackmail money. Unfortunately for Arnie, Penny gets ambitious about her stage career and decides to do away with her cameraman.

Vol. 3/#1             May 1960

Sisters of Slaughter! by Edward D. Hoch *1/2 (5050 wds)

            Steve Bradburg has a way with the ladies. Most of them, that is. His way doesn't work with Myra Nolan and he delivers her a good beating. Naturally, when Myra's corpse pops up, Steve is the prime suspect.

The Devil is a Darling! by Hal Crosby ** (5350 wds)

            Mob priestess Tandy Morgan and her notorious prostitution ring have the town literally eating from her hand (and other parts of her body, I'm sure), until revenge-starved Cal Henderson attempts to bring her evil empire crashing down around her.

Madness Claims a Mate! by Bill Ryder *** (5575 wds)

            A maniac stalks the city and beautiful barfly bimbos are at risk of losing their lovely limbs. Turns out that goofball professor Roger Sylvester has a woody for torture devices and puts them to good use at any given opportunity. Another s&m wacko tale that would hint at the things to come for WEB, "Madness" is so bad, it's almost good. The three stars awarded are not for quality, obviously, but for entertainment value, and this one packs a lot of guffaws into its 5575 words. Searching for a standout proquote, I realized that none would do it justice. We'd have to reprint the whole damn thing! Well, okay, just one line: "A fiend stalked the streets and kissed Sherry. Was it a dream out of a horrible past? Hideous death did not claim its victims in this manner any longer!"

You Can't Escape! by Bob Shields * (2950 wds)

            PI is stuck with one very jealous girlfriend who ends up using the guy's own investigative tricks on him. The opening quote: "She stood over me stark naked with a gun in her hand..." must have eluded the artist, since his illo depicts the woman in a nightie.

The Glory Kids! by John Block *1/2 (1650 wds)

            There's nothing much to this short-short about teenaged cop killers who eventually get theirs in a nasty shootout.

Die Hard, Lovely Cheat! by Greg Burns * (4100 wds)

            James Harlan is arrested for the murder of one beautiful red-headed babe and grilled by Homicide detective Johnny Daniels. The detective himself is telling the story in first person, filling in details he couldn't possibly know, or so you think until, about half way through, the pieces start falling into place. The redhead was married to...surprise, surprise, surprise!

Passion Fears No Peril! by Frank Cannon **1/2 (5050 wds)

            When Jed Gage is labeled a stoolie, he must escape or die at the hands of a crooked warden.

Mask of Hate by Jay Richards ** (2625 wds)

            The cops need a little help when the local mobster ends up in the river minus his head and hands, so they question a shopkeeper whose specialty is shrunken heads.

Lust Steals the Scene! by Art Crockett * (4625 wds)

            Marcia Henry comes to the Big Apple to become a star. The parts just don't come up for her, but her disgustingly obese agent has a swell idea: Marcia puts out and her agent will work double-time for her career. The would-be Monroe doesn't cotton to his advances and puts a bullet in him, or does she? A loser from the word go, "Lust Steals" at least can lay claim to one of the just plain stupidest twist endings in crime story history.

You'll Die Laughing! by Jack Kavanagh *** (2625 wds)

            Artie has a falling out with his mob boss Christy over, what else, a dame, and becomes target practice for the mobster's gang. Wounded both mentally and physically, Artie decides to confront and mow down the big man before he himself becomes part of the sidewalk. Strictly average crime short until the closing paragraphs which find the crazed Artie at last face to face with the boss man.

Terror Trail! by Grover Brinkman * (2950 wds)

            John Daly's been messing with a tiff-miner's girl (please don't ask), a big no-no in the backwoods. When he forces himself on the girl, he lives in fear that a knife will find its way into his back.

Coming Soon: The Exciting Conclusion!

The Complete Guide to Manhunt Part 18

 by Peter Enfantino

Vol. 2 No. 11            December 25th, 1954

Crime of Passion by Richard S. Prather

(3500 words) **   illo: Dick Sheldon

            Shell Scott goes to a beach party where the host’s later found on a spit, cooking like a pig. Unpleasant off day for Shell.

The Purple Collar by Jonathan Craig

(6000 words) *   illo: Tom O’Sullivan

            An 18th Precinct short mystery starring Pete Selby and his partner, Ben Muller. This time, the boys must solve the riddle of a hanged man who didn’t die by hanging. Various characters are introduced, but the story never seems to be populated by real people. Again, this just seems to be a knockoff of DRAGNET, and though the 18th Precinct stories and the 87th Precinct tales of Ed McBain ran concurrently, the Craig stories come off as nothing more than weak imitations.

Flowers to the Fair by Craig Rice

(6000 words) **   illo: Houlihan

            John J. Malone’s latest client is a mousy accountant who’s been embezzling money from his boss. The boss offers to loan the mouse enough money to pay him back and the next day the accountant is found dead. Smelling something fishy, John J. investigates the killing. Not a very entertaining read. John J. seems to be able to take many of his cases on for little or no money (because the client is a sympathetic character), much like the good guy PIs of TV like MANNIX or BARNABY JONES.

The Scarlet King by Evan Hunter

(3500 words) ***   illo: “GH”

            Our narrator has a problem with his temper. Whenever somthing irritates him, he thinks of the King of Hearts (from a deadly poker game he played in the Korean War) and dispatches anyone unlucky enough to nearby. Another minor Hunter gem with a trademark kick at the climax.

The Pickpocket by Mickey Spillane

(1000 words) * ½   illo: Houlihan

            Willie’s worried that his past will come back to haunt him.

Big Steal by Frank Kane

(8000 words) **   illo: Tom O’Sullivan

            Johnny Liddell becomes involved in a stolen diamond racket when a woman asks him to hold a small package for her. When the woman ends up dead, her throat cut, and thugs rough up Johnny, Liddell enlists the aid of Inspector Herlihy to catch the “big man.” You can find a complete list of Frank Kane's "Johnny Liddell novels and stories here.

Dead Issue by Harold Q. Masur

(4000 words) *

            Scott Jordan (in his 10^th Manhunt appearance), the lawyer who thinks he’s a PI, investigates the murder of a nice old woman. The case involves the upcoming reading of a multi-million dollar will, a will that has mysteriously disappeared. A judge, admonishing Jordan in our opener, says “The Assistant District Attorney tells me you have a tendency to take the law into your own hands.” Indeed.

Death Sentence by Richard Deming

(4000 words) **   illo: Tom O’Sullivan

            Isobel Banner has a strange substance she wants analyzed strictly on the q.t., so she hires Manville Moon to take the “strange white powder” from her. When he arrives at the party she’s invited hi to, he finds her dead. What was the curious substance and why did she feel the need to keep it a secret? Moon never likes it when a potential client ends up dead before he’s paid so he takes it upon himself to find out what the mystery is. This brings up a problem with several of these PI stories – why do so many of Moon’s, Jordan’s, Liddell’s (etc) clients seem to end up on a slab by the third page? Yet they’re known throughout their respective towns as guys who get the job done. Nice twist ending though!

Precise Moment by Henry Kane

(11,000 words) ** ½   illo: Houlihan

            Peter Chambers becomes the target of repeated gunfire after he takes part in a midnight graveyard delivery of $750,000 in ransom money. The kidnapee, the newly wed husband of a multi-millionaire Florence Fleetwood Reed, may have had something to do with his own kidnapping.

Six Fingers by Hal Ellson

(2000 words) **

            The appropriately named “Six Fingers” is a very shy boy but his friends want him to grow up fast so they involve him with a girl named Cissie.

This issue’s Mugged and Printed features bios of Mickey Spillane, Henry Kane, Craig Rice, and Frank Kane.

Also featured this issue are Vincent H. Gaddis’ Crime Cavalcade, What’s Your Verdict? #6: The Young Lovebirds by Sam Ross, and Portrait of a Killer #17: Arthur Eggers by Dan Sontup.

A new feature, “You, Detective” debuts. A very short story is presented without a climax. The readers are invited to finish the story in less than 200 words. The winner of the contest wins $50 and will have their name and winning climax published in a later issue. Richard H. Gaynes won the first contest and his wrap-up of Wilson Harman’s “The Bathing Beauty” appeared in the June 1955 issue.

THE 10  BEST MANHUNT STORIES OF 1954

Confession by John M. Sitan (July)

The Man Who Found the Money by James E. Cronin (February)

And Share Alike by Charles Williams (August)

Comeback by R. Van Taylor (February)

The Beatings by Evan Hunter (October)

Hit and Run by Richard Deming (December)

Pattern for Panic by Richard S. Prather (January)

A Moment’s Notice by Jerome Weidman (September)

The Choice by Richard Deming (June)

Tin Can by B. Traven (September)

A Tangled Web: The Annotated Index to Web Detective Stories Part 1

by Peter Enfantino

(Originally published in Bare Bones #3/4, Spring 1999)

            Of all the crime digests I've collected, the one title that gave me the most trouble was Web Detective (WD). It's not just that WD suffered from lousy distribution and rack placement (as did most of the lesser crime digests of the early 60s), but it also has the distinction of being one of the most confusing digests of all time.

            WD was born Saturn, The Magazine of Science Fiction (Candar Publishing) in March 1957. The editor was the respected Donald A. Wollheim, editor of Ace Books (later to found DAW Books), and the contents varied from non-fiction to reprints to fiction by such genre mainstays as Harlan Ellison and Robert Silverberg. Not able to distinguish itself from the dozens of other sf digests of the late 1950s, Saturn soon found itself facing extinction. For some unknown reason, the publisher chose to simply change its title to Saturn Web Detective Stories after only five issues, rather than kill Saturn SF and start up a crime digest (I'm assuming that the publisher, in his infinite wisdom, decided that the crime waters weren't as crowded as the SF sea). This contributes to some of the mass confusion surrounding WD. If it weren't for scholars and historians like Bill Pronzini and Mike Ashley, youngsters such as myself would still be searching the internet for those illusive first five issues of Web Detective. Add to the confusion the fact that there are actually two issues labeled Volume Two/Number Three, and that some issues are dated differently on their covers and contents page (presenting the dealer with a dilemma: which date do I list in my catalog?), and you understand why this run is such a collecting nightmare.

           

            So what constitutes WD, and is it worth plunking down from 20 to 30 bucks an issue? I think so, but then I'm a crazed crime digest collector. Obviously not many others side with my opinion since I've yet to see a WD story anthologized even though there are at least two dozen (out of 148 stories) that are worthy of a second look.

            Much of the time, the titles of the Web Detective stories made little, if any, sense and related to the story even less. For instance, "A Skeleton For Her Bed" from Volume 3/#1 not only omits the skeleton, but also the bed. The story could have and should have been titled "Woman in Chains." The formula for a WD title might just have been something resembling a "Mad Lib," a substitute word game -

"The (place noun here) Was a (place noun here) for the Mob!" or

"She (place adjective) Me For My (place noun here)!"

Try it, it'll work.

           

            After 14 issues, Candar decided that maybe the money wasn't in crime stories, so they folded WD and jumped into the (supposedly) profitable waters of bondage horror stories.

SATURN WEB DETECTIVE STORIES

Vol. 1/#6            August 1958

Night of Discovery! by Art Serra ** (4100 wds)

            Two juvenile delinquents break into the house of fiftyish Hugh Davy and his (much) younger wife Nan and threaten the woman with assault. Much to the husband's surprise, Nan seems up to the occasion. In fact, she welcomes becoming the object of molten desire after "being the good little wife for eight months." Seething with rage, Hugh manages to get the two youths stone drunk, offs his adulterating bitch of a wife, and successfully pins the murder on the two boys.

Blood Bath For the General! by Bill Ryder **1/2 (4600 wds)

            The narrator owns a cover bar (lots of illegal activities flourish in the back rooms) frequented by "the general," a big bruiser who's usually bombed and spouting stories about women he bedded during WW II. Enter Cora, an enterprising young dame who decides to cut herself in on the bar's action through blackmail. This doesn't sit well with our storyteller, so he rapes and murders Cora and attempts to frame the General. After murdering the General, he strips the body in anticipation of the arrival of the police. Our amazed, but not amused, protagonist then discovers why the General never bragged about his conquests after  World War II!

Too Hot to Handle! by Art Crockett *1/2 (3800 wds)

            Barry does some dumb gambling and ends up owing a bundle to big-time shark Matteo Fink. Fink gives Barry two days to cough up the dough, but on the way to pay, Barry gets rolled by luscious Leslie. The beautiful redhead, however, cops a tude, insisting she had nothing to do with the rip-off. Enraged, Barry brings Leslie to Fink (aka "The Mad Dog Lover") as "collateral" until the green shows up. After the mad Dog begins pawing Leslie's ripe vitals, Barry develops a sudden fondness for Leslie and stomps the big man. He flees with the nubile nymph and begins life of love (albeit on the run).

Jealous Husband! by Leslie G. Sabo * (2100 wds)

            Matt and Lila don't have what you'd call an ideal marriage: he drinks and she's an adulteress. When Matt swears to kill all of Lila's lovers, Lila pulls a fast one and cons her dopey husband into killing his own brother in a fit of jealous rage. She plans to hold this over Matt's head: she'll go the cops if he won't let her play the field. Matt agrees, but as the phone rings once again for his wife the lush, we see the thought balloon rise over Matt's head, warning us he'll kill again.

Rumble Bait by Jimmy L. Carroll *** (2950 wds)

            Cal Johnson's life has never been the same since he turned squealer on his partner. Now he's opened himself for beatings from everyone on the street, including our man of the moment, Slim. Our story opens with Slim doing the squealer stomp on poor Cal on his way to meet up with partner-in-crime, Fats (not to be confused with Abbott and Costello). The two are caught by a shotgun-toting farmer while lifting watermelons. Fats gets away but Slim goes right to jail without passing GO. To avoid severe beatings from the sheriff and his sadistic deputy, Slim gives up Fats on the condition that no one on the street is to find out exactly who gave up Fats. But the sheriff isn't known for his honesty and Slim becomes "open game" on the streets just like his old friend Cal. Not Harlan Ellison, but still an enjoyable j.d. tale.

Terror Has Many Faces! by Don Unatin ** (3350 wds)

            Aggie decides to turn in her vicious mob boss Big Mike after she witnesses the brutal murder of her friend, Jerry. The DA promises protection for Aggie if she'll testify against the Big Man, and she's whisked away to a remote cabin. There to greet her is Big Mike, who we learn has bought the services of the DA.

Daughters of Hell! by Jim Allen * (4000 wds)

            PI Calvin Dugan has been hired by Mrs. Lloyd Harrison to keep watch over her daughter Carol, who's joined a female gang dubbed the Brazen Beauties. Having dabbled in the horrors of cigarettes, alcohol, and dope, the BBs turn their attention to hot sex. Carol is to be initiated, by losing her virginity, when Dugan breaks up the gang and saves the day. Turns out that Carol is the mastermind behind the gang and had plotted to blackmail her socialite mother to keep the details quiet.

Alley of the Damned! by Tony Phillips * (2750 wds)

            Francine, a teasing alley cat, is found murdered and the suspect list includes many former lovers.

Murder a Dead Man! by Al James *** (2500 wds)

            Pete Brennan is conned by a lush into killing her rich old man, a stock investor. Every night the old man goes for a walk across San Francisco's Bay Bridge, so Pete plans the attack on the span. After shooting the man and watching the body hit the water far below, Pete is confronted by the police, who patrol the bridge for potential suicides. While fleeing, Brennan is shot and hangs from bridge, awaiting death. He overhears the cops discuss how ironic the case is after they find a suicide note in the old man's coat pocket. He had just lost his fortune on the stock market and, rather than face his wife with the failure, decided to cash in his chips.

Come Die With Me! by Les Samlie ** (1900 wds)

            Nasty short-short about a bank robber who kidnaps and rapes a passing motorist. The girl is so humiliated and shamed she ends up offing both of them by wrecking her car. "Come Die With Me" is one of the best illustrations of just how violent, dark, and downright vile some of these late 1950s crime stories could be.

Scream Bloody Murder! by Jim Barnett *1/2 (2750 wds)

            The musings of a sexually-driven serial killer. Below average chiller does have a neat twist ending to elevate it above total sludge.

Journey to Murder! by Jim Allway * (6500 wds)

            Harvey Muller exits the slammer with only two objectives: find his remarried ex-wife and get back the fifty thousand in stolen loot she's got stashed for him. His plans quickly fall apart when he's followed by cops right up to the ex's doorstep. "Journey's climax is proof that even nasty WEB villains can have a "happily ever after."

Vol. 2/#1            October 1958

The Lady Was No Angel! by Al James * (3400 wds)

            Ex-con Mike Brent loses his job and wife and is contemplating re-entering the safe cracking business when he has an afternoon fling with Mrs. Kessler, a neighbor down the hall. Mrs. Kessler confides in Brent that Mr. Kessler hasn't exactly been raising the pole lately. That same night, Brent returns to his apartment to find the police. Mr. Kesler has been murdered and the Mrs. is claiming Mike raped her and offed her hubby.

Life is Worth Dying! by Marvin Gray *1/2 (3400 wds)

            Steve McGann rescues Marcy from drowning, an attempted suicide. In a bizarre twist, McGann had come to murder the girl to avenge the death of his brother, who had fallen in love with Marcy and turned to crime to maintain a rich lifestyle. McGann nurses Marcy back to health (she has TB) and happiness, only to reveal that his intention is to carry out her murder once she attained that happiness.

For Sale - Death! by Pete McCann *1/2 (4600 wds)

            A drug pusher named Fang enjoys the immense power he holds over his customers. After a bad beating from a cokehead, Fang decides to restrict his clientele to women. At the same time, he decides that money isn't everything and puts the moves on a new druggie named Sylvia. Fang gets his just desserts in the end when it turns out that Sylvia is actually the wife of a former customer who was killed in a liquor store holdup, trying to get bucks for his drugs.

Murder's Icy Finger! by Bill Ryder * (4250 wds)

            Dan and Sylvia plot to steal an old woman's jewels by torturing her, but the cops show up in the middle of their fun. Cynthia escapes with the jewels and Dan is thrown in the big house for seven long years. When he's released, you guessed it, he tracks Cynthia down and threatens to kill her if she doesn't fork over the jewels. But Cynthia has a contingency plan all worked out for the thug and, before long, Dan is no longer a problem.

Lust Without Pity! by Art Crockett *** (3600 wds)

            Johnny Santos is hired by adulteress Grace Brandon to off a blackmailer. Santos does the hit and then finds he's been suckered into murdering Mr. Brandon. Grace stands to inherit a mountain of green, and makes the mistake of attempting a stiff on Johnny. Not a wise move.

The Lady Was Furious! by Hal Crosby ** (3000 wds)

            Flash Floran and his assistant Mona take dirty pictures of married men and then sell them to the wives to use in divorce cases. Flash becomes infatuated with one of his wealthy clients and reels her in. Mona, in a jealous rage, uses some of Flash's own tricks on him to bring him back to earth.

Bloody Holiday! by G. G. Revelle *** (5300 wds)

            Tracey, attending a real estate convention, decides to hire some female companionship and gets the voluptuous Marcia. Fearing that one of the other agents might tip-off his wife, Tracey suggests that he and Marcia should head off to a different spot. Marcia steers him towards a park bench, where the two are accosted by thugs who snap photos of Tracey in unpuritan poses with Marcia. The crooks threaten to send the photos home to the little lady. The joke's on the crooks though, as Tracey reveals that it they who have been set up. Seems one of his buddies fell prey in the past to Marcia and her camera-boys and committed suicide. Now Tracey and a batch of buddies, who soon arrive on the scene, exact a nasty revenge.

A Touch of Evil! by Jim Allen *** (3350 wds)

            Card shark Johnny Morgan rolls into town and joins in a game with the respectable, and quite wealthy, Lou Shero. Morgan takes Shero for every penny he's worth, which doesn't sit well with the big man. Morgan is set up as fall guy for a rape charge by one of Shero's "girls" and is hauled away. Last line is a hoot.

Short Cut to Hell! by John Thorn * (3200 wds)

            Unintentionally (I assume) hilarious story of Larry Fenton, whose only goal in life, it would seem, is to continually top his worst crime. In the course of this story, he smokes marijuana, drinks to excess, beats the whores he pimps for, and, oh yes, kills women and fondles the stockings he removes from their corpses. Fenton leads the good life until he picks up a hooker who turns out to be a serial killer as well.

You're Already Dead! by James Albert *1/2 (2100 wds)

            Pete Strand is the only man on a jury panel who votes to  hang a transient accused of murdering a well-known local named Quincy in Strand's barn. The other men are curious about Pete's behavior since it's widely known that Quincy had an affair with Strand's wife. Wouldn't Strand be happy to let loose the man who killed his wife's lover? Pete makes a convincing argument that, revenge be damned, there is just too much physical evidence to let the guy go (Quincy's body was never found but the barn was splattered with his blood). Strand finally gets his way and a guilty verdict is handed down. He drives home and takes a badly wounded Quincy out of a closet and puts a bullet in him, musing that a jury couldn't convict him of the murder now because Quincy has been ruled dead. A very average story that raises a couple amusing red flags. How could Strand serve on a jury at a trial that so obviously affects him and his judgment? Most importantly, how the heck did Strand manage to keep the mortally wounded Quincy alive all during the judicial process?

A Long, Violent Night! by Tony Phillips * (5500 wds)

            Undercover cop Don Cassidy's new hush-hush assignment is to roust prostitutes. This isn't sitting well with Don's conscience nor, it turns out, with his wife. Seems Don is so ashamed of busting call girls that he avoids notifying his wife, who, noticing the lipstick on Don's collars, follows him to one of his busts. She spills his guts before he can. "A Long, Violent Night" is a wildly bad story, one of those "so bad it's good" tales that usually populates the Mike Avallone universe. With priceless prose like:

"Somebody put another slug in the jukebox and the scratchy record came to life again. A girl's plaintive, whining voice told of wax heartbreak. Cassidy hated the song. He hated the cheap bar. He detested being there in the first place. But most of all he bathed (sic) himself tonight."

and:

"He saw the weazened man's yellow teeth glaring nakedly and obscenely from behind the leering smirk which creased the death's head skull."

Vol. 2/#2             February 1959 (inside cover indicates V.2/#1)

Scream the Night Through! by Don Unatin ** (3050 wds)

            MaryLou is savagely raped in an alleyway but doesn't report it to the police because her husband wouldn't emotionally be able to handle the violation. What author Unatin lets us in on towards the climax is that hubby Charlie is "too much of a gentleman" and MaryLou could no longer "deny her instincts schooled through the ages-of wanting to be over-powered and mastered." Something that Charlie could never give her. Misogynist, yes, but a curio that tells a lot about the climate in the 1950s. MaryLou dresses up sexily and gets what she deserves, but judging from the last line, it's also what she wants.

Hell's Deadly Lover! by Al James * (4200 wds)

            Steve Donovan, sadistic cop from hell, plays every angle he can to make extra dough, including muscling business owners. He happens onto a woman in a bar, goes to her place, beds hers, and then finds out she's a bank robber by stumbling onto her money sacks. "Hell's Deadly Lover" is a dopey read, filled to the brim with wild and unbelievable coincidences. This kind of story (bad cop on the take) was done to death in the 1950s by writers much more esteemed than Al James.

Terror Has No Face! by Jim Arthur *** (3200 wds)

            The Daggers are sick and tired of patrolman Dan Vinton busting up their action, so they take their complaint to his wife. They string her up, torture her, and warn her that, if hubby don't lay off, next time's fer keeps! The cop disappears and the Daggers are convinced that their troubles are over until their members start showing up dead, until the Dagger become the Dagger. Vinton and the Mrs. have returned.

You'll Die Laughing! by Arnold Sherry * (2100 wds)

            Marvin, a decorated war hero, and his wife Donna are closing up the diner they own for the night when two thugs enter. The men beat  Marvin and rape Donna repeatedly, all in the name of chuckles. A pointless, nasty exercise in torture and degradation. Brian De Palma would probably want to take out an option on this one.

Stakeout of the Damned! by Doug Flanders ** (4250 wds)

            A typically no-brains bad-luck WEB crook flees from a botched supermarket heist and kidnaps a woman and her child. Well, the dimwit assumes  it's the woman's kid until he's captured and the police inform him that they were actually after the woman, who had kidnapped the kid!

Twist the Knife Slowly! by Jay Folb * (3150 wds)

            After a bad real estate deal, Al Draper owes Tony Tibbett five big ones, and Tony, understandably, wants his money right now. Al doesn't have the moola but it turns out that Dot Draper, Al's vixen wife, has found a way to pay in full. No WEB mystery or detective in this one, just plain boring adultery.

I'll Blast You Yet! by Pete McCann *** (4250 wds)

            The horrors perpetrated by the killer known only as Doug are seen through the eyes of our narrator, who is forced to participate in Doug's reign of terror. Doug robs and murders women with obvious glee and our tour guide describes each and every painful detail. A fairly routine WEBber, but the obvious question (who is the narrator?), is averted by our storyteller, who avoids any personal details until the all-important last paragraph. Hey, McCann fooled me.

Cross Me and Die! by Art Crockett *1/2 (2950 wds)

            Jack Hogan makes a jailbreak and heads right for Terry Martin, a beautiful dame (with a nice set of headlights, of course!) who's been hiding Jack's stolen booty of 50gs in her fireplace for him. Little does Hogan know that Terry has married a cop while he's been in the big house and now the cop wants to keep Terry and the green, but erase Hogan from the picture.

Lust Sets the Scene! by Luke Hogan ** (3350 wds)

            Successful Broadway producer Matt Landers knows he owes 100% of his good luck to his secretary (and play reader) Ann Small. Landers can have any of the young chippies who try out for his productions, but still he lusts for the older, yet still vivacious, Ann, who, until recently, has spurned all of Landers' advances. Together the two mine gold on Broadway and they hope to continue that streak by producing a play by a young eccentric unknown playwright/dwarf hunchback named Oswald Upham. What is the startling secret from Ann's past that ties her to the misshapen Oswald? Why is the dwarf hunchback having such a hard time completing Act 3 of the smashing play? Will Matt finally get to lay his hands on Ann's hooters? These questions and more are answered in the story's startling climax. A wildly goofy story, "Lust" harkens back to the Spicy pulp days and is an indicator of the direction that WEB would follow soon. A guilty pleasure.

Death Bait! by Leslie G. Sabo * (2150 wds)

            Brad Sterne strikes up a deal with Lydia Winthrop: he'll steal her skinflint hubby's millions in diamonds from their wall safe, off the old dude, and split the loot with Lydia. All she has to do is revel in the pleasures of the flesh with Brad. But alas, like most of the WEB Black Widows, Lydia doesn't like to share in the end.

Don't Run From Evil! by Hal Pierce * (3250 wds)

            It's David and Goliath time as mousy alcoholic Marc Taylor takes on his new garbage collector, the sadistic youth known only as "Chin" (but better known to Marc's wife as "Big Chin"). Marc stumbles onto an attempted rape by the big man on one of Marc's lovely, nubile neighbors (who gets stripped down to her pink panties) and does the Thunderbird Two-Step on Chin's cranium, becoming a hero in the process.

Sure Bet on Death! by Buck Grimes *** (6100 wds)

            Boxing manager Sandy Michaels spots the surest thing he's ever laid eyes on: Mugsy Thomas. With no money, Michaels has to go to bone-breaking loan shark Whitie Malone for the bucks to train Mugsy. In the meantime, the big lug falls for Greta, a (hold the phones) busty, curvy knockout. The bimbo lures the fighter away from Sandy with promises of lust-filled nights and diamond-studded dog collars. All the walls seem to be coming down on Sandy Michaels at the same time and the nice guy is definitely finishing last. A really good sports/mob thriller that's about as close to a short Gold Medal novel as you're going to get in WEB. It's no secret that Sylvester Stallone devoured every issue of WEB when he was a little pug, and the influence of "Sure Bet on Death!" (in particular, in his screenplay for Rocky V) is evident in his fine body of work.

Vol. 2/#3             April 1959

Look Death in the Eye! by Lawrence Block * (2700 wds)

            A beautiful nameless woman frequents bars, picks up "hungry" mean, and murders them. A very early story from the author who would later go on to author the highly-acclaimed "Matt Scudder" novels. The only worthwhile passage is its' final paragraph (reprinted elsewhere in this article).

I'd Die For Her! by Art Crockett **1/2 (3450 wds)

            Pete is being held in the rape/murder of his girlfriend, Angela. He asks the sheriff if he can attend her funeral, where things get out of hand and Pete's strung up with a noose. He's saved at the last minute though when he averts the crowd's attention to Angela's boyfriend, whom Pete claims is the real murderer. The frenzied mob strings up the ex, while Pete (the actual killer, by the way) looks on in amusement. The prose equivalent of one of those great EC Comics ShockSuspenstories (the rapist is really the sheriff, the murdering bigot learns that he's half-Jewish, etc.).

Lady From Hell! by Don Unatin *1/2 (4625 wds)

            The wife of a prominent attorney (who longs to be on the school board!) is being blackmailed by a scummy little man known as "Old Gardiner." Seems the lady used to be a dominatrix at the local cathouse before becoming a wealthy socialite. Joke's on Gardiner though, when he finds out that not only does the attorney know about his wife's vixenish past, he helps her keep in practice.

The Lonely Doom! by Al James ** (2950 wds)

            A mafia hitman wipes out a former gofer who ran off with a hundred grand, then beds the dead man's wife. After he kills her, he finds out she was a leper and now he's infected. Seriously sick, goofy little fable. Here's one you can read out loud at a dinner party.

Murder Wins the Jackpot! by Zack Steele *1/2 (4625 wds)

            Taxi driver Charlie has the worst luck in the world until he wins an English cruise and meets a beautiful French babe onboard. As usual though, the odds are against him when Charlie finds out that the woman is a smuggler and has been using him. Outrageous climax has Charlie narrating his own death ala those creaky old horror stories wherein the writer ends his journal with "...it's breaking down the door...it's strangling me...aaaaahhhh...!"

Just Kill Him, Darling! by Jay Richards *1/2 (5450 wds)

            Danny Russo, "rehabilitated jd", comes into the employ of kindly Mr. Milner. But, of course, as with most WEB jd stories, there's the bad dame just itching to off her wealthy old husband. Danny falls for beautiful Stella Milner and helps Mr. Milner descend his basement steps at an accelerated rate. All kinds of sexual innuendo only leads to a one-plus-one-equals-three finish.

Mark Him For Me! by Jim Barnett *** (4200 wds)

            A violent gang with the moniker of The Pythons moves into town and immediately starts to shake everything up and everyone down. A rival gang, newly crowned The Mongooses, decides to do something about it. Decent JD tale with a nice surprise climax.

Death Muscles In! by Luke Hogan ** (4200 wds)

            Big mean casino owner Steve Peck has a way with the ladies, including his secretary, Kate. For reasons known only to the writers and editors, beautiful Kate falls madly in love with the big lardass despite the fact that he continuously uses her as a punching bag. Convinced that she's actually a plant fro the D.A., he murders her and eventually offs himself in a spectacular gore-soaked finale.

The Lusting Ones! by Jim Arthur * (3050 wds)

            "Gunther had that fearful ache. The girl could ease it. It all added up to murder."

            Goofball Gunther stalks tantalizing Toni, all the while musing about all the violence he'll do to her when he gets her alone. Could Gunther be the Tyler City Strangler? Will Toni be the next victim? Well, no. In an unconvincing and (hopefully intentionally) hilarious twist finale, it's revealed that, surprise, Toni is actually an escaped mental patient aka The Tyler City Strangler. So who is Gunther? Don't ask me.

Fright Prowls the Night! by Gil Grayson * (7350 wds)

            God's gift to the serial killer novelist, the abused child, grows up to be an abusing psychopath who stalks a lovers' lane, torturing couples for kicks. Bottom of the barrel, this could possibly be the worst story to appear in Web Detective.

Coming Soon: Part Two