David Matthews.

Regarding your Cornell Woolrich/Vertigo tie in. I too remember that incident in a Woolrich novel. Unfortunately like you I don't remember which one. I do remember it was in series of paperbacks with introductions by Francis Nevins. Nevins himself remarked on the similarity to Vertigo.

Interestingly enough Boilieau and Narcejac who wrote "The Living And The Dead" have always been strongly influenced by Woolrich. Perhaps that is where they got the germ of their idea.

I am looking to buy a copy of a 1974 novel called 'Good Girls Don't Get Murdered' by the black American mystery author Percy Spurlark Parker. It's impossible to get it in England, I don't think it's in print in America either. I'm also interested in buying any of James Mitchell's 'Callan' series of novels, these are all out of print. Can any fellow rare mystery book enthusiast out there help?

Cymric.

Thank you for your verification on the Woolrich/Vertigo connection. I do remember that series with the Nevin's introductions. I shall concentrate my search. Thanks again.

Does any one else remember those two fine suspense writers of the forties, Dorothy B. Hughes (she wrote "In A Lonely Place" and "Ride A Pink Horse" ) and Elisabeth Sanxay Holding ("The Innocent Mrs. Duff" "The Blank Wall")? Holding was one of Raymond Chandler's favorite writers.

Thank you, David Matthews, for reminding us that there were many good women writers in America. Some of the best mysteries (later filmed) were written by women:

... and don't forget the considerable output of Craig Rice. I always loved her sense of humor.

Come to think of it Craig Rice belongs in a different category. Something like "comic hard-boiled".

And don't forget that "In a Lonely Place" was a wonderful noir film, directed by Nicholas Ray, starring Humphrey Bogart and Gloria Grahame (married to Ray at the time, I believe). If it comes around on one of the classic movie channels, I highly recommend it.

I agree that "In A Lonely Place" was a good movie. I wish it would turn up on TV more often. Another good movie from a Dorothy B. Hughes novel is "Ride The Pink Horse", directed by and starring Robert Montgomery.

I have always had a special fondness for Gloria Grahame. I didn't know that she was married to Nicholas Ray but I can believe it. At one time or another she was married to just about everyone in Hollywood. She had a complex romantic life. One of her young lovers, Peter Turner, wrote a book about her "Film Stars Don't Die In Liverpool". In it he tells a story of how at one time she found out that she was married to her own son-in-law!!

A cool suspense trhiller I recently read was RED HEARTS by BARLOG. The book is about a serial killer in Albuquerque and the intense hunt to stop the killing. The hero of the story is an Apache police lieutenant which added and very interesting depth to the novel.

Some time back I asked a question about similarities between Hitchcock’s "Vertigo" and an incident in a Cornell Woolrich novel.

I described the incident as follows: -

In the novel the police are hunting for a man. They know the man is grieving for his lost love and sometimes visits the places where they were happy together. Working from photographs of the dead woman the police find someone who looks similar, make her up to make the resemblance even more striking then use the woman as a decoy by having her frequent the same places. The man catches glimpses of the woman and thinks that somehow his dead lover is still alive.

The incident occurs in the novel "Rendezvous in Black".

Thanks to all who helped.