black mask magazine

May 1920 issue ~ cover art by William Grotz

May 1920 issue – second issue published

cover art by William Grotz

~ Frank Blighton, “The Hop on Hyperspace”, ‘Hyperspace is a dog’, 1^st of 2 stories in BM

~ Hamilton Craigie, “Receipted in Full”, ‘Headnote is worth (partially) quoting from: “ …Another typical Black Mask complete novelette…which represent[s] the very best mystery fiction…printed in America today. Novelty of plot, nervous suspense and ingenious solutions are the keynotes…; 1^st of 3 stories in issue in which he figures’, 1^st of 7 solo stories in BM

~ Hamilton Craigie & Walter Grahame, “According to Specifications” and “The Jest Ironic” (2 stories by this pair)

~ Ashton Crowell, “The Prison Clock Strikes Nine”, ‘prison setting’, only appearance in BM

~ Captain Frank Cunningham, “The Best New Books”, ‘Regular column which reviewed new mystery & detective novels; also called “The New Mystery Books”; not indexed beyond this point.’

~ Schuyler Hamilton, “The Silvered Sentinel”, 1^st of 2 stories in BM

~ Clinton [aka Charles] Harcourt, “The Necklace of the Pharaohs”, 1st of 6 stories in BM

~ Greye La Spina, “The Seventh Step”, author’s sole appearance in BM

~ Maurice Level, “In the Light of the Red Lamp”, ‘short-short‘, 1st of 2 stories in BM

~ C.S. Montanye (Carleton Stevens), “Looking Out for Orchid”, ‘narrated by vaudevillian in dialect’, debut, 1st of 29 stories in BM

~ John Irving Pearce, Jr. and Joseph Faus, “The Belled Boomerang”, only joint appearance by these authors in BM, for JIP, see Oursler

~ Merlin Moore Taylor, “The Wheel Within the Wheel”, author’s debut in BM, 1^st of 8 appearances in BM

~ Harold Ward, “The ‘Tail’ of a Cat”, 2nd of 29 stories under this name in BM [2nd of 46 stories in BM under three different names– Ward Sterling and H.W. Starr]

~ Valentine Williams, “The Mystery of the Missing Finger”, ‘Desmond Okewood, British Secret Service’, 1st of 2 stories in BM

©Seattle Mystery Bookshop

Canadian August 1942 issue

Canadian August 1942 issue

January 1943 issue ~ cover art by Rafael DeSoto

January 1943 issue

cover art by Rafael DeSoto

better image than previously posted

~ Merle Constiner, “Why Meddle with Murder?”, ‘Luther McGavock, private detective; he works Atherton Browne who heads a Memphis-based agency, 3rd of 11 of the McG stories; usually rural setting’, reprinted in Let the Dead Alone: The Complete Black Mask Cases of Luther McGavock (Steeger, 2020), 3^rd of 12 stories in BM

~ George Harmon Coxe, “Blood on the Lens”, part 1 of 3 of Murder for Two (novel published 1943), 25th of 27 with Flashgun Casey, 29th of 31 stories in BM

~ C.P. Donnel, Jr., “Don’t Stand Under the Blackjack Tree”, 12th of 16 with Colonel Walter (Doc) Rennie, USA Medical Corps, 12^th of 20 stories in BM

~ Alan Farley [pseudonym of Mrs. W. Lee Herrington], “Buttered on Both Sides”, 2^nd of 2 stories in BM

~ Tom Marvin, “Bag o’Bones”, ‘1^st person narrator is a 23-year-old small town sheriff’, 1^st of 3 stories

©Seattle Mystery Bookshop

October 15, 1923 issue ~ cover art by Lewis Kennerly

October 15, 1923 issue

cover art by Lewis Kennerly

better image than previously posted

~ Edwin Baird, “Keep it Dark” short-short, last of 3 stories in BM

~ Eustace Hale Ball, “Little Miss Muffet – 1923”, 9^th of 13 stories in BM

~ Royce Brier, “The Thirteenth Tack”, ‘Spider Klein, criminal’, 2^nd of 5 stories in BM

~ Ray(mond King) Cummings, “T. McGuirk Tries the Luck Charms”, ‘7th of 14 McGuirk stories, billed as “the quaintest character in the Underworld” & honest, more of less’, 7^th of 15 stories in BM

~ Drayton Dunster, “Aided and Abetted by the Law”, 8^th of 9 stories in BM

~ ‘Peter Collinson’ (Hammett), “Slippery Fingers”, 1st story in this issue, ‘see p. 127 for letter by DH & discussion of story’, last of 4 stories under this name in BM, though Hagemann doesn’t note it, 2^nd of 25 Op stories reprinted in The Big Book of the Continental Op (Vintage, 2017), reprinted in Zigzags of Treachery: The Complete Black Mask Cases of the Continental Op, Vol. 1 (Steeger, 2023), though Hagemann does not list this as an Op story, 4^th of 51 total stories in BM

~ Dashiell Hammett, “Crooked Souls”, the Op [3rd of 25], 2nd of 2 stories in this issue but 5th of 51 total stories in BM, reprinted in The Big Book of the Continental Op (Vintage, 2017), reprinted in Zigzags of Treachery: The Complete Black Mask Cases of the Continental Op, Vol. 1 (Steeger, 2023)

~ Robert Lee Heiser, “Fifty Dollars a Peep”, ‘alleged to be true’

~ Jones Jones, “The Talented Burglar”, author’s sole appearance in BM [hard to believe that name is correct]

~ J. Fortune Reade, “At the Bottom of It”, ‘A Strange Detective Problem’, 2nd of 3 stories in BM

~ Charles Somerville, “The Riddle of Room 14”, 17th of 47 articles in the ‘Manhunter’ series, 18^th of 49 total articles in BM

~ J. Paul Suter, “Beyond Justice”, ‘daytime story’, 2nd of 19 appearances in BM

~ Joe Taylor, “The Doublecross”, 10th of 12 tales in ‘My Underworld’ series, 11^th of 13^th appearances in BM

~ Merlin Moore Taylor, “The Young Squirt”, ‘advertised as “A Complete Mystery Novelette”’, 4th of 8 appearances in BM

~ Edward Parrish Ware, “The Snitch”, 1^st of 9 stories in BM

©Seattle Mystery Bookshop

February 15, 1923 issue ~ cover art by A. Rose

February 15, 1923 issue

cover art by A. Rose

better image than previously posted

~ Eustace Hale Ball, “The Trail of the Scarlet Fox”, part 3 of 6 parts with various subtitles, 3rd of 13 appearances in BM

~ Russell Arden Bankson, “The Ghost of Joe Speck”, 1^st of 2 stories in BM

~ Drayton Dunster, “The Conscientious Grave-Digger”, 3^rd of 9 stories in BM

~ Jack J. Gottlieb, “The Strength of the Weak”, 7th of 8 stories in BM

~ Francis James, “Sinister Images”, Prentice, Harvard-trained criminologist turned policeman (‘the young Central Office Man’) with Police Chief Shannon, 2^nd of 4 parts, 4th of 20 appearances in BM

~ George B. Jenkins, Jr., “Business and Pleasure”, last of 5 stories in BM

~ Wilson Clay Missimer, “Torn Fingers”, 2nd of 2 stories in BM

~ C.S. Montanye (Carleton Stevens), “The Jewel of Blood”, 15th of 29 stories in BM

~ Harford Powel, Jr., “The High Jackers”, 1^st of 6 appearances in BM

~ Walker J. Scott, “Fatal Fridays”, author’s sole appearance in BM

~ Charles Somerville, “The Clue of the Tattooed Arm”, 2nd of 47 articles in the ‘Manhunter’ series, 2^nd of 49 total articles in BM

~ Joe Taylor, “Stumbling Feet”, 5th of 12 tales in ‘My Underworld’ series, 5^th of 13^th appearances in BM

©Seattle Mystery Bookshop

August 1936 issue ~ cover art by John Drew

August 1936 issue

cover art by John Drew

better image than previously posted

~ W.T. Ballard, “Fugitive for Justice”, 4^th of 7 with ‘Red Drake, undercover investigator for the State Racing Commission, 1^st-person narrator’, 20^th of 43 stories in BM

~ John K. Butler, “You Can’t Bribe Bullets”, ‘Marty Lewis, 1^st person-narrator, & shady local politics’, 4^th of 11 stories in BM

~ James Duncan, “Heir to Murder”, ‘Jerry Blaze’, 4^th of 10 stories in BM

~ Nels Leroy Jorgensen, “Homicide Cue”, 27th of 32 with Stuart “Black” Burton, ‘square-shooting gambler from the Southwest, often entangled with the law’, 34th of 39 stories in BM

~ Frederick L. Nebel, “Deep Red”, last of 37 with Captain Steve MacBride and local reporter Kennedy, reprinted in Winter Kill: Complete Cases of MacBride & Kennedy, v.4 (Altus, 2013), last of 66 original stories in BM (plus reprints from outside BM)

~ Roger Torrey, “Border Blockade”, ‘4th (of 5) of George Killeen, private ‘tec in L.A., & 1^st-person narrator; with Lieutenant McFee, Homicide’, ‘California, i.e., Mexican border’, 20th of 50 appearances in BM

©Seattle Mystery Bookshop

June 1939 issue ~ cover art by Edgar A. Whitney

June 1939 issue

cover art by Edgar A. Whitney

better image than previously posted

~ Dwight V. Babcock, “Reward Chaser”, 5^th of 7, Beeker at SF World’s Fair, 19^th of 21 stories in BM

~ Tiah Devitt, “For a Million Dollars”, ‘Joey narrates a crime to the Warden’, 1^st of 2 stories in BM

~ Baynard H(ardwick) Kendrick, “Death Plays Seventeen”, 10th of 14 stories with Mikes Standish (Stan) Rice, ‘The Hungry’[?], all set in Florida

~ Theodore A. Tinsley, “Guide to Murder”, ‘24th (of 25) Jerry Tracy capers, columnist on the (NYC) Planet, ‘mixer with poor and rich, the crooked and the straight, trailer of trouble and happiness’, ‘murder at the World’s Fair’, reprinted in Station K-I-L-L: The Complete Black Mask Cases of Jerry Tracy, vol.3 (Steeger, 2024), 25th of 26 stories in BM

~ Lawrence Treat, “Sing a Song of Murder”, ‘G-man’, 3rd of 5 stories in BM

~ Ralph Winnett, “Poison Gloves”, ‘boxing’, author’s only appearance in BM

©Seattle Mystery Bookshop

August 1921 issue

August 1921 issue

~ John Baer, “Circumstantial Evidence and Guilt”, 7^th of 24 stories in BM

~ Walter Deffenbaugh, “Glass Jade”, 4^th of 14 stories in BM

~ Ford Douglas, “The ‘Plant’”, 3^rd of 4 stories in BM

~ Arthur S. Garbett, “The Wax Witness”, 1st of 4 stories in BM

~ J.B. Harris-Burland, “Barbour’s New Book”, author’s only appearance in BM

~ J.B. Hawley, “Footprints”, 5^th of 12 stories in BM

~ J.L. Martin, “The Tip on the Market”, author’s only appearance in BM

~ Vincent Starrett, “The Case of the Shoeless Man”, last of 4 stories in BM

~ Ward Sterling, “The Mystery of the Chessmen”, 1 of 2 stories in this issue (see Ward), 8th of 16 stories under this name in BM

~ Harold Ward, “The Ship on Dunbar’s Breast”, 2^nd story in this issue, 16th of 29 stories under this name in BM [23^rd and 24^th of 46 stories in BM under three different names – Ward Sterling and H.W. Starr]

November 22, 2014

March 1, 1924 issue ~ cover art by Henry C. Murphy

March 1, 1924 issue

cover art by Henry C. Murphy

~ H.G. Addison, “The Pain Thermometer”, ‘Daytime story’, 2^nd of 2 stories in BM

~ Harry Adler, “The Impossible Murder”, ‘A Complete Novelette’, author’s only appearance in BM

~ Marjory Stoneman Douglas, “White Midnight”, 1^st of 4 parts, ‘South Seas setting’, author’s only story in BM

~ Dashiell Hammett, “Afraid of a Gun”, ‘Set in Kootenai River country (Montana)‘, 1^st of 2 stories in this same issue, which also includes 2 letters from the author, reprinted in Nightmare Town (Knopf, 1999)

~ Dashiell Hammett, “Zigzags of Treachery”, the Op [7^th of 25], 2nd of 2 stories in this same issue, reprinted in Nightmare Town (Knopf, 1999), reprinted in The Big Book of the Continental Op (Vintage, 2017), reprinted in Zigzags of Treachery: The Complete Black Mask Cases of the Continental Op, Vol. 1 (Steeger, 2023), 12^th and 13th of 51 stories in BM

~ Harford Powel, Jr., “What Did She See?”, ‘billed as ‘A Real Black Mask Mystery’, author’s 6^th and final appearance in BM, ‘for HP, see also under Albert LEE”

~ Charles Somerville, “The False Clue”, 26^th of 47 articles in the ‘Manhunter’ series, 27^th of 49 total articles in BM

~ Richard Hoadley Tingley, “The Sultan’s Diamond”, author’s sole appearance in BM

~ Edward Parrish Ware, “The Hay-Bag”, ‘Headnote: “Another mule skinner story, written in breezy slang.”’, 4th of 9 stories in BM

July 1922 issue ~ cover art by William Grotz

July 1922 issue ~ cover art by William Grotz

~ John Baer, “Have A Smoke?”, 20^th of 24 stories in BM

~ George Briggs, “By His Own Hand –“, 2^nd of 2 BM stories

~ T.B. Burt, “Red Hot”, 2^nd of 2 stories in BM

~ Frederick Ames Coates, “The Accident”, 4^th of 5 stories in BM

~ J.S. (Joseph Smith) Fletcher, “Exterior to the Evidence”, 4th of 5 parts, ‘serial re-run of novel 1^st pub in London (1920) with same title’, 4^th of 6 appearances in BM

~ Jack J. Gottlieb, “Crimsoned Baubles”, 4^th of 8 stories in BM

~ Harry C. Hervey, Jr., “The Devil at the Helm”, ‘A Complete Novelette’, last of 8 appearances in BM

~ George B. Jenkins, Jr., “Two Faultless Crimes”, 4th of 5 stories in BM

~ Lloyd Lonergan, “In the Grip of the Everglades”, 8^th and final story in BM

~ Fred B. Mann, “An Affair of Honor”, ‘short-short’, author’s only appearance in BM

~ Howard P. Rockey, “When Lightning Strikes”, 2nd of 5 stories in BM

~ J.J. Stagg, “Post-Mortem Murder”, 9th of 11 stories in BM

~ Harold Ward, “The Mystery of the Mary Ann”, 24th of 29 stories under this name in BM [39^th of 46 stories in BM under three different names – Ward Sterling and H.W. Starr]