From the editor:
Welcome to Black Cat Weekly #10. Carlton Clarke, the famed Chicago telepathic detective, returns to our pages with âThe Broken Marconigram.â First published in 1915, this tale takes Clarke and Sexton, his âWatson,â to New Orleans in search of a friend whoâs been kidnapped by a Satanic cult. These chronicles of the first âtelepathic detectiveâ originally appeared in newspaper syndication across the United States in 1908, and I continue to be impressed by them. There is much here for Sherlock Holmes fans to appreciate.
Our roving mystery editor, Barb Goffman, has tracked down by gem by David Dean, âThe Duelist.â Plus Hal Charlesâthe byline of writing team Hal Blythe and Charlie Sweetâcontributes another solve-it-yourself mystery.
Prolific pulp author Dale Clarkâwhose copyrights I purchased some years agoâmakes his Weekly debut with a terrific World War II-era tale about an undercover F.B.I agent. I donât think itâs ever been reprinted. And science fiction writer Murray Leinster (real name Will Jenkins) contributes one of his rare mysteries, âOne Corpse, Guaranteed!â They donât make titles like that any more!
This issueâs mystery novel is a Bull-Dog Drummond tale by âSapper.â See my introduction for more info on this series and author.
And thatâs just the mysteries!
For science fiction fans, we have âThe Dangerous Scarecrow,â by Carl Jacobiâhe was a member of the Lovecraft Circle, whose talents extended far beyond weird fantasy into science fiction. Plus Iâve snuck in another of my own tales, âTap Dancing,â a gentle ghost story. I never truly understood it when other writers said some stories were âgiftsâ that just came to themâuntil this story came to me. George Scithers placed it in the 300th issue of Weird Tales. It was the best thing I had written at that point in my career, and I wrote it almost word for word in its final form in one sitting. Truly it was a gift.
We have not one, but two science fiction novelsâEando Binderâs 1971 classic, The Secret of the Red Spot, and Stephen Marloweâs Revolt of the Outworlders. Good stuff.
Hereâs the complete lineup:
Mysteries
âOne Corpse, Guaranteed!â by Murray Leinster [short story]
âThievesâ Blueprint,â by Dale Clark [short story]
âOnly Time Will Tell,â by Hal Charles [Solve-It-Yourself short-short]
âThe Duelist,â by David Dean [Barb Goffman Presents short story]
Bull-Dog Drummondâs Third Round, by Sapper [novel, Bulldog Drummond series]
âThe Broken Marconigram,â by Frank Lovell Nelson [short story, Carlton Clarke #9]
Science Fiction & Fantasy
âTap Dancing,â by John Gregory Betancourt[short story]
âThe Dangerous Scarecrow,â by Carl Jacobi [short story]
Revolt of the Outworlds, by Stephen Marlowe [novel]
The Secret of the Red Spot, by Eando Binder [novel]