Robert Leslie Bellem (1902–1968)

Blue Murder is not held in especially high regard among readers of hard-boiled crime fiction in general or even Robert Leslie Bellem's fan base in particular. (They prefer the Dan Turner stories by a mile.) Published in 1938, four years after Dashiell Hammett's final novel and one year before Raymond Chandler's first, this modest little book is written in the two-fisted Black Mask style that had become popular during the '20s. Bellem, an extremely prolific short story author (who also wrote for television, films and comic strips), penned only a few novels; this was his long-form debut and I found it quite entertaining.

What fans like best about the Dan Turner stories is the absurd language ("private skulk" for private detective; "roscoes" for handguns; "whatchamacallems" for breasts) that was Bellem's specialty. Unfortunately, he became so preoccupied with this synthetic slang that it got in the way of his storytelling, and Bellem was a pretty good storyteller otherwise. Blue Murder contains a few such indulgences (roscoes tend to say "Chow-chow!" or "Chud-chud-chud!" rather than simply "Bang!" or "Pow!"), but they don't become a hindrance to the momentum of the novel. Too dumb to be a good private eye, Duke Pizzatello is nonetheless amiable and determined, and I guarantee that his Los Angeles misadventures won't bore you. Vintage pulp aficionados can't go wrong with this book.

By the way, if you're curious about the Dan Turner stories, check out The Great American Detective (William Kittredge and Steven M. Krauzer, eds.) for "The Lake of the Left-Hand Moon." It's one of the better examples of what most fans consider to be prime Bellem.… (mais)

Below the pulp detective stories of Black Mask, where Chandler, Gardner, and Hammet cut their teeth, were magazines like Spicy Detective. Guys like Norvell Page and Robert Bellem published stories in this — and other — lesser-tier pulp magazines, entertaining readers for 1/2 penny a word when they couldn’t get their stories published in the top-tier pulp magazines, and earn a penny per word.

This collection of Dan Turner Hollywood Detective stories is fabulous as long as you aren't expecting Killer in the Rain (Chandler) or anything similar to emerge. Bellem was so over the top it was hard to see where the top was, and that is exactly the charm of his Dan Turner, Hollywood Detective stories.

Each story in this one is as good as the one which preceded it. It also includes the comic book style illustrated The Murdered Mummy, which is awesome for fans. These stories are fun, filled with some of the craziest pulp dialog you’ll ever read, and a likable hero in Dan Turner.

The first few stories here include some of the great illustrations which always accompanied the narrative of a Dan Turner story — always girls in peril, or women creating havoc with the roscoe they're pointing at someone; needless to say, all of them are scantily clad. Dan Turner is racy pulp not to be taken as serious pulp, but a guilty pleasure. If you can come at it from that angle, you’ll have a blast. If not, well, don’t say I didn’t warn you.

The stories featured in this one are as follows:

THE MURDERED MUMMY — The sole entry which is like a long newspaper comic book.

TEMPORARY CORPSE

DEATH’S BRIGHT HALO

BEYOND JUSTICE

DARK STAR OF DEATH

BLACKMAIL FROM BEYOND

CRIMSON QUEST

CAT ACT

LATIN BLOOD

Highly recommended if you’re into old pulp, and don’t mind some really wild and over the top dialog.… (mais)

One of the best collections of Bellem's Dan Turner: Hollywood Detective pulp stories out there. There is a tiny bit of crossover with the other collections from a different publisher, but negligible. This one is a must have, with some terrific stuff from Bellem. The other collections are highly recommended as well. B-Grade pulp, but great fun, and Bellem at his tangiest. In case you're checking against the stories you already have in other collections, to see if it's worthwhile picking this one up, the stories in this coffee table size book, are:

MURDER BY PROXY

DIAMOND OF DEATH

MURDER BY FAME

THE GIRL WITH GREEN EYES

DEATH ON LOCATION

DEAD MAN'S BED

SLEEPING DOGS

TEMPORARY CORPSE

DEATH'S BRIGHT HALO

BEYOND JUSTICE

THE MILLION BUCK SNATCH

CROONER'S CARESS

DARK STAR OF DEATH

SILVERSCREEN SHAKEDOWN

BRUNETTE BUMP-OFF

BLACKMAIL FROM BEYOND

CRIMSON QUEST

DRUNK, DISORDERLY, AND DEAD

CAT ACT

WITCH HUNT

The stories were culled from Spicy Detective Stories Magazine, from the years 1934, 1935, 1936, 1938, 1939, 1940, and 1941. A must for Robert Bellem's fans.… (mais)

Bellem may make Spillane read like Saul Bellow but his Dan Turner: Hollywood Detective stories which appeared first in Spicy Detective Magazine in the 1930s and continued through the 1940s is great fun.

The Lake of the Left Hand Moon is a particular highlight in this collection of Dan Turner stories, which happened to be the second one I read. They're all good, a few original risqué illustrations accompanying the over the top pulp dialog and racy (for its time) situations.

Reading Bellem is like watching a cliché noir "B" film that has enough zip to make it more fun than more distinguished films in the genre. But there exists something special about Dan Turner that separates Bellem from so many who wrote for the pulp magazines. He's a niche read, to be sure, but he's a guilty pleasure for a lot of fans of early pulp.

This is great fun as long as you know Chandler can't even be seen from the vantage point Bellem wrote his Dan Turner stories. Because the stories included are listed in the book's description, I won't rehash them. However, I will make one very important addendum: This is not the same Cat Act story which appeared in Spicy Detective Magazine, at least not exactly. This is the later Hollywood Detective version, from November 1943. Bellem toned down the more salacious - for its time - story which first appeared in Spicy Detective Magazine, and it's interesting if you have both to compare them.… (mais)