Publisher's Synopsis
This companion volume to Mystery Movie Series of 1940s Hollywood (McFarland, 2010) focuses on 22 different series and 167 individual films, primarily released during the 1930s. It was a decade that featured some of the most famous cinema detectives of all time, among them Charlie Chan, Nick and Nora Charles, Philo Vance, Nancy Drew, and some lesser known but equally entertaining figures, including Hildegarde Withers, Torchy Blane, Mr. Moto, Mr. Wong, and Brass Bancroft--the last-named character bestowing stardom upon a young Ronald Reagan in a quartet of breezy B-pictures. Each mystery movie series is placed within its historical context, with emphasis on its source material and the changes or developments within the series over time. Also included are reviews of all the series' films, analyzing the quality and cohesiveness of the mystery plotlines. For titles based on literary sources, a comparison between the film and the written work is provided.
