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Recently I spent some time skimming through some of my Saint Mystery magazines reading various short stories. I read some of Leslie Charteris' Saint stories to see how they hold up NOW. When I was a pre-teen they couldn't be beat until I discovered Donald Hamilton's Matt Helm (and the Nick Carter Killmaster series but that's a whole other better left unposted story). Young adult to the mid-40s found me looking somewhat with disdain at them as mystery and adventure stories but mellowness has set in and the pendulum has turned back to where they'll do for time killers.

Having read two or three Saints I began looking for other authors in the magazines mostly by looking at the covers. Saint magazine covers rarely had illustrations (when they did they were generally pretty bad). There would be the famous stick figure symbol of the Saint with a list of authors featured in the magazine. There were 141 issues published Spring 1953-1967 and I currently have 105 of them including the first issue. Lot of reprints and very unlikely writers appear. For grins I'll list some famous (and unlikely) authors that appeared in the magaine along with a few personal favorites:

Spring 53--1st issue: Damon Runyon (think Guys and Dolls) --Butch Minds the Baby

Sax Rohmer (creator of Fu Manchu and others)---Murder Strikes in Lychgate

Cornell Woolrich (famous pulp fiction writer)--The Detective's Dilemma

Agatha Christie (needs no introduction)--The Face of Helen

Jan 54: Sax Rohmer--The Man Who Killed Blackbirds

May 54--Damon Runyon--Sense of Humor

G. K. Chesterton (creator of Father Brown)--The Green Man

Sep 54--P. G. Wodehouse--Mr. Mulliner, Private Detective

Edgar Wallace--Dishonor Among Thieves

Nov 54--Sax Rohmer--The Laughing Buddha

Jan 55--Graham Greene--The Fallen Idol

Jun 55--P. G. Wodehouse--The Harmonica Mystery

Sax Rohmer--The Smell of Dead Men

Edgar Wallace--The Poetical Policeman

Frederick Nebel--unknown today (one of the famed Black Mask writers) but literally the reason I'm on Litnet today--was working on a checklist of his stories when the computer referenced Litnet--and three looks at Logos picture sealed the deal--Reprieve at Eleven

Oct 55--Somerset Maugham--A Man of Conscience

Feb 56--John Dickson Carr (a master at locked room mysteries) the Black Cabinet

John D. MacDonald (creator of Travis McGee if you have to ask I shall weep)--Three's a Shroud

Mar 56--Theodore Sturgeon (fairly famous science fiction writer) The Half-Way Tree Murder

Apr 56: G. K. Chesterton--The Worst Crime in the World

Frederick Nebel--Ghost of a Chance

May 56--Erskine Caldwell--It's Against the Law

Edgar Wallace--The Disappearing Investors

Jun 56: Dorothy L. Sayers (I believe she's one of AndaveYa's favorites)--A Case for Lord Peter Wimsey

Isaac Asimov (famous for his Robotic Laws and Foundation stories)--Death of a Honey Blonde

Aug 56--Sax Rohmer--The Owl Hoots Twice

Theodore Sturgeon--Dead Dames Don't Dial

Oct 56: Agatha Christie--Problem at Pollensa Bay

Dec 56: Sax Rohmer--Omar of Ispahan

Mar 57: Edgar Wallace--The Man Who Sang in Church (Wallace is all but forgotten these days but he was FAMOUS in his time)

Apr 57: Dorothy L. Sayers--The Cave of Ali Baba

Sax Rohmer--The Turkish Yataghan (one of the rare Sir Denis Nayland Smith stories that does NOT feature his nemesis Dr. Fu Manchu in all his glory)

May 57: G. K. Chesterton--The Curse of the Golden Cross

Jul 57: John Buchan (writer of The 39 Steps)--Sing a Song of Six Pence

Edgar Wallace--The King's Brahm

Sep 57: Sax Rohmer--The Headless Mummies

Nov 57: Sir Arthur Conan Doyle--Adventure of the Priory School (about time THE master showed up)

Jan 58: C. S. Forester (creator of Horatio Hornblower)--Wanton Fate

Apr 58: Pearl Buck (famous for The Good Earth)--A Man's Foes

Sax Rohmer--Limehouse Rhapsody

R. Austin Freeman (creator of Dr. Thorndyke)--Fatal Ruby--Thorndyke is an early example of solving cases by a knowledge of science and medicine)

May 58: Edgar Wallace (Charteris loves publishing his stories)--Happy Travellers

Jun 58: G. K. Chesterton--The Crime of the Communist

Graham Greene--When Greek Meets Greek

Jul 58: Cornell Woolrich--Mimic Murder

R. Austin Freeman--The Blue Scarab

Aug 58: Sax Rohmer--Deadly Plot of Mr. Ko

Adrian Conan Doyle--The Pearl of Dying Boys' Reef (2nd son of Sir Arthur and first appearance
in print of this story)

Sep 58: Edgar Wallace--The Deadly Mr. Lyon

Rafael Sabatini--writer of my favorite novel Captain Blood a book GRACE86 swears she'll read someday for my pleasure and her entertainment. At the rate THAT is going should have Logos phone number any day now--The Night of Stranglers

Oct 58: R. Austin freeman--Message form the Grave

Cornell Woolrich--Shooting Going On

Jan 59: Joseph Conrad--Inn of the Two Witches

Mar 59: G. K. Chesterton--the Finger of Stone

Theodore Dreiser--Tabloid Tragedy

Edgar Wallace-- The Fortune of Forgery

Apr 59: Sax Rohmer--The Death Ring of Sneferu

Jun 59: Edgar Wallace--Under Sentence of Death

Rafael Sabatini--Night of Witchcraft

Oct 59: First cover illustration issue:

Edgar Wallace--The Englishman Konnor

Dec 59: C. S. Forester--Indecision

Jan 60: Johnston McCullley (creator of ZORRO)--Thubway Tham's Bomb Scare

G. K. Chesterton--The Shadow of the Shark

Robert Bloch (creator of the esteemed Mr. Bates from Psycho)--The Big Send

John Jakes--Doomsday (included here for a number of personal reasons--my father read his Bicenntenial historical novels that were huge best sellers in the 70s--I thought they were trash personally but Dad liked them. When I attempted to inform my father Jakes also created Brak the Barbarian I got the usual sooo???

Mar 60: Cornell Woolrich--Soda Fountain

Last issue was Aug 60 in which the magazine is NOT published until the Sep 61 issue (which I don't have).

I do have the NEXT issue--Dec 61 and we're back to stick figure covers. Sigh--those attempts at painted/photo covers were just plain awful.

Mar 62: Robert Bloch--Untouchable

Apr 62: Cornell Woolich--Flowers from the Dead

Edgar Allan Poe--The Purloined Letter (well why not??)

May 62: Agatha Christie--The Apples of the Hesperides

Sax Rohmer--Spirit of the Black Hawk

Jun 62: R. Austin Freeman--The Anthropologist at Large

Aug 62: Edgar Wallace--The Slane Mystery

Sep 62: William Faulkner--The Liar (almost the last person I ever expected to see in a mystery digest)--But wait there's someone else down the pike even MORE surprising--No Virgil--it's NOT Shakespeare

Oct 62--Cornell Woolrich--The Poker Player's Wife (by now I should mention that Alfred Hitchcock's Rear Window is based on a short story It Had to be Murder from Woolrich here first published in Dime Detective--another pulp I have about 40 copies of and wish I had more)

Jan 63: Sax Rohmer (I might note Rohmer's name didn't always make the cover so I will be missing one here and there)--primarily focusing on names form the covers or might just as well publish an index.) Jamaican Rose

Feb 63: William Faulkner (surprise--he makes it again but still not the surprise author)--Jealousy

Mar 63: Erle Stanley Gardner (creator of Perry Mason)--The Law of Drifitng Sand

Apr 63: Sax Rohmer--Serpent Wind

May 63: Edgar Wallace--The Man Who Hated Amelia Jones

Robert Bloch--The Living End

Cornell Woolrich--Story to be Whispered

Aug 63: Robert Bloch--Deadly Joker

Oct 63: Cornell Woolrich--The Night of February 17th, 1924

Nov 63: First appearance of actor Roger Moore on the cover highlighting of course his playing Simon Templar on TV. Just a head shot in a drawn TV set screen. He'll make the cover four more times at the end showing scenes form the TV show.

Dorothy L. Sayers: In the Teeth of the Evidence

Dec 63: Erle Stanley Gardner--The Danger Zone

Jan 64: R. Auston Freeman--The Brazen Serpent

Feb 64: Edgar Allan Poe--Thou Art the Man

Orson Welles--Fifi and the Chilean Truffle--YES--it's Citizen Kane all right--but still not the author that surprised me being here--but darn close

Apr 64: Cornell Woolrich--If the Dead Could Talk

May 64: Dorothy L. Sayers--The Haunted Policeman

Sep 64: Sax Rohmer--Curse of the Veil of Isis

Robert Bloch--The Same Channel

Edgar Wallace--The Black Grippe

Oct 64: Alexandre Dumas--Trial by Battle (almost the one--but not quite) (Would be the runner up)

Dec 64: Rafael Sabatini--The Pastry Cook of Madrigal

Mar 65: THE WINNER of the MOST UNEXPECTED AUTHOR to appear in The Saint Mystery Magazine goes to:

MARY SHELLEY--Transformation (From The Keepsake -1831)

Jul 65: R. Austin Freeman--A Sower of Pestilence

Dec 65: Sax Rohmer--The Black Mandarin

Mar 66: Dorothy L. Sayers--Suspicion

Cornell Woolrich--Speak to Me of Death

Apr 66: This was the very first issue of The Saint Mystery Magazine I ever bought off the newstand at the tender age of 15. Issue 127 (out of 141)

Pearl Buck--Ransom

May 66: Robert Bloch--All in the Family

Jul 66: Cornell Woolrich--If I Should Die Before I Wake

Oct 66: Cornell Woolrich--Mannequin

Jan 67: Rex Stout-- Black Orchids (creator of Nero Wolfe of this is one story of him)

Mar 67: Cornell Woorich--Pulp Writer

May 67: Erle Stanley Gardner--The Case of the Crying Swallow -(a Perry Mason story at last)

Jul 67: Second Roger Moore cover (of five) and unknown at the time but the magazine is on its last legs--issue 138

Cornel Woolrich--Screen Test

Sep 67: When I young I wne looking for this issue and was unable to find it. The newsstand dealer assured me the magazine was still being published. Years later I discovered the sad truth--only one issue to go--which of course I own now but back then I didn't have the access to back ssues I have nowadays

Cornell Woolrich (sigh--of course)--Intent to Kill

Oct 67: Last issue--goes out with a sigh and a hint in Charteris' editorial there are problems but no formal notice of cancellation.

REBIRTH: June 1984: The first of three more issues--again published with Charteris providing input: Starts over a new #1.

Ray Bradbury--The Utterly Perfect Murder

If I ever get caught up on back taxes (2002 is finally paid-Federal that is) and The Avengers is completed it should be time to start hunting the missing 36 issues. Incentive.

Hope you all do not mind the change of pace blog and maybe found some stories oyu were unfamiliar with by certain authors.

Back to Logos dreaming next blog.