Tag: dwight v. babcock

1941 Knopf hardcover

Babcock, Dwight V. THE GORGEOUS GHOUL. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 1941. Octavo, cloth. First edition. The second of Babcock’s three mystery novels, all of which featured crime journalist Hannah Van Doren. Babcock was a prolific contributor to the pulps, especially BLACK MASK, and later a Hollywood script writer. A fine copy in very good dust jacket with light wear to corners and spine ends and some age-darkening to spine panel and along flap folds.

December 1939 issue ~ cover art by James Lunnon

December 1938 issue

cover art by James Lunnon

better image than previously posted

~ Dwight V. Babcock, “Careless Killer”, 3rd of 7 Beeker stories, 17th of 21 stories in BM

~ Allen Beck, “Long Live the Dead”, ‘magician’, only story in BM

~ Hugh B. Cave, “Smoke in Your Eyes”, ‘unusually well-plotted’, 5th of 9 stories in BM

~ Frederick C. Davis, “Stop the Presses”, 2nd with reporter Murray Gifford, ‘see p. 51 for data on how FCD writes’, 6th of 16 stories in BM

~ M.P. Hall, “Ad Lib”, ‘short-short, radio broadcasting’, author’s only appearance in BM

~ Roger Torrey, “Concealed Weapon”, ‘10 (of 14) in Pat McCarthy series, with Marge Chalmers often his “sidekick”; he is ex-NYC cop, ex-agency man (Chicago & St. Louis) who dislikes cops’, reprinted in The Black Lizard Big Book of Pulps (Vintage, 2007), 37th of 50 appearances in BM

~ Donald Wandrei, “Come Clean”, last of 6 stories in BM

©Seattle Mystery Bookshop

January 1938 issue ~ cover art by Raymond S. Pease

January 1938 issue

cover art by Raymond S. Pease

~ Dwight V. Babcock, “The Widow Regrets”, 1st of 7 Beeker (“Beek”) stories, 15th of 21 stories in BM

~ Thomas W. Duncan, “The Cat and the Corpse”, ‘Dan Macey’, author’s only story in BM

~ Steve Fisher, “No Gentleman Strangles His Wife”, ‘Kip I. Muldane, p.i. in Hawaiian’, 2nd of 9 stories in BM

~ Nels Leroy Jorgensen, “Blood in the Fog”, 31st of 32 with Stuart “Black” Burton, ‘square-shooting gambler from the Southwest, often entangled with the law’, ‘Black Burton in London’, 38th of 39 stories in BM

~ Roger Torrey, “Relative Trouble”, ‘Shean Connell, private peep; last of 4 SC stories’, 32nd of 50 appearances in BM

~ Cornell Woolrich, “After-Dinner Story”, 9th of 24 (22 original) stories to appear in BM

©Seattle Mystery Bookshop

Homicide for Hannah x 4

1941 Knopf hardcover, 1945 Avon reissue

cover art by Paul Stahr

published by Hale in the UK as Murder for Hannah

better image than previously posted

1951 Avon reissue

1943 Avon Murder Mystery Monthly digest

cover art by William Frost (William Forrest)

1941 Knopf hardcover, first edition

“The second appearance of the character Hanna Van Doren, considered the first female hard-boiled detective in American literature.”

April 1938 issue ~ cover art by James Lunnon

April 1938 issue

cover art by James Lunnon

~ Dwight V. Babcock, “Murder in the Family”, 2nd of 7, ‘Beeker in the San Joaquin Valley’, 16th of 21 stories in BM

~ Hal Murray Bonnett, “Dynamite Deal”, author’s only appearance in BM [who signed the cover]

~ Gregor Endell, “Murder Suspected”, author’s only appearance in BM

~ Erle Stanley Gardner, “Muscle Out”, 65th of 73 Ed Jenkins with Soo Hoo Duck, Ngat T’oy, 92nd of 100 appearances stories in BM

~ Frank Gruber, “No Motive”, 6th of 14 stories in BM

~ Theodore A. Tinsley, “No More Limericks”, ‘21st (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’, reprinted in Station K-I-L-L: The Complete Black Mask Cases of Jerry Tracy, vol.3 (Steeger, 2024), 22nd of 26 stories in BM

©Seattle Mystery Bookshop

June 1935 issue ~ cover art by Rudolph Belarski

June 1935 issue

cover art by Rudolph Belarski

better image than previously posted

~ Dwight V. Babcock, “Hide-Out”, ‘1st G-Man Chuck Thompson story of 7; CT, Special Agent, FBI, in LA’, 6th of 21 stories in BM

~ W.T. Ballard, “Murder Makes a Difference”, 2nd of 2 Jimmy DeHaven stories, 14th of 43 stories in BM

~ Raymond Chandler, “Nevada Gas”, Johnny DeRuse, first book appearance Five Murderers (Avon digest, 2/3/44), first hardcover appearance The Simple Art of Murder (Houghton Mifflin, 1950), then Pickup on Noon Street (Pocket, 1/52), various paperback editions 5th of 11 stories in BM

~ George Harmon Coxe, “Thirty Tickets to Win”, ‘Flashgun Casey at the race-track’, 11th of 27 Casey, 11th of 31 stories in BM

~ Roger Torrey, “Dead Men Can Talk”, last of 11 Dal Prentice capers, Magna City police dick, ‘one tough guy’, 16th of 50 appearances in BM

©Seattle Mystery Bookshop

[cover updated 11/9/25]

December 1939 issue ~ cover art by Edgar A. Whitney

December 1939 issue

cover art by Edgar A. Whitney

better image than previously posted

~ Dwight V. Babcock, “Blood in the Snow”, Beeker (7th and last Beeker story), DVB’s 21st and last BM story

~ William R. Cox, “Accounting in Blood”, CCC bookkeeper, 2nd of 2 stories in BM

~ Bayard H(ardwick) Kendrick, “Clear As Crystal”, 12th of 14 stories with Mikes Standish (Stan) Rice, ‘The Hungry’[?], all set in Florida

~ Peter Paige, “Swastika Scourge”, ’Nazi spies on the high seas; see p. 111 for letter from PP’, 2nd of 12 stories in BM

~ Stewart Sterling (pseud. of Prentice Winchell), “Straight Across the Board”, last of 3 stories with Vince Mallie, ‘at the races’, 3rd of 12 stories

~ Cornell Woolrich, “Through a Dead Man’s Eye”, ‘boy vs. murderer’, 15th of 24 (22 original) stories to appear in BM

©Seattle Mystery Bookshop

February 1936 issue ~ cover art by John Drew

 February 1936 issue

cover art by John Drew

better image than previously posted

~ Dwight V. Babcock, “Rat Bait”, 4th of 7 Chuck Thompson stories, 9th of 21 stories in BM

~ George Harmon Coxe, “Portrait of Murder”, 15th of 27 with Flashgun Casey, 15th of 31 stories in BM

~ Nels Leroy Jorgensen, “Shylock Is Murdered”, 24th of 32 with Stuart “Black” Burton, ‘square-shooting gambler from the Southwest, often entangled with the law’, 31st of 39 stories in BM

~ Frederick L. Nebel, “No Hard Feelings”, 34th of 37 with Captain Steve MacBride and local reporter Kennedy, they reverse roles in this story, reprinted in Winter Kill: Complete Cases of MacBride & Kenney, v.4 (Altus, 2013), 63 of 67 stories in BM

~ Theodore A. Tinsley, “Body Snatcher”, ‘15th (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’, 16th of 26 stories in BM

©Seattle Mystery Bookshop

[cover updated 10/27/25]