HILLMAN-CURL  [1936-1939]



    Hillman-Curl was founded in September of 1935 by Alex Hillman, president of Godwin and Arcadia House, and Samuel Curl, the firm’s sales manager.  Mysteries began appearing under the new imprint in 1936, priced at $1.50 per novel; the price went to $2.00 in 1938.  In 1937 the Clue Club line was begun.  Under the editorship of Edmund Clinton Woodbridge, Hillman-Curl established the following “bill of rights” for mystery readers.


A NEW BILL OF RIGHTS
FOR DETECTIVE STORY READERS!

1.  A Clue Club Mystery must have an exciting plot which is intrinsically interesting aside from the actual solution of the crime.

2.  All characters must be well-drawn flesh and blood people whose prototypes can be found in everyday life.

3.  The actual perpetrator or perpetrators of the crime or crimes must be prominent characters introduced early in the narrative.

4.  All purposely misleading circumstances must be carefully avoided.

5.  The crime or crimes must be solved by logical deduction derived from material clearly presented to the reader without the aid of supernatural devices or psychic power.

    This Bill of Rights, with only some minor changes in wording, was first devised by William Godwin, Inc., in 1933.  Later, on the jackets of other books this note appeared:

CLUE CLUB MYSTERIES

    Under this imprint Hillman-Curl, Inc., publishes each month outstanding mystery novels by distinguished writers.  The sign of the skull is a guarantee that the book is original and well-written.

    We search tirelessly for new writers of talent so that our titles will maintain their standard of leading the field.


   
NOTE:  The three 1936 titles were not Clue Club Mysteries.  The imprint didn’t begin until 1937.  As far as I can tell, the first title in the series was Steve Fisher’s Murder of a Pigboat Skipper.  And while Bill Deeck felt Photocrimes should be included among the 1937 entries, it is not a Clue Club title, and as far as I’m concerned only marginally qualifies as a crime fiction title.
                                                                                          – Bill Pronzini          


       1936
                                               

     
BERNARD NEWMAN
German Spy
   




BERNARD NEWMAN
Secret Servant



MIKE TEAGLE
Death Over San Silvestro






1937


JOHN DONOVAN
The Case of the Rusted
Room



STEVE FISHER
Murder of the Pigboat Skipper


SYDNEY HORLER
Lord of Terror



MILESON HORTON & THOMAS PEMBROKE
Photocrimes (Illustrated Puzzle Short Stories)

 See the NOTE above.




DANA HUGHSTON
You Stand Accused!




E. R. PUNSHON
Mystery of Mr. Jessop



SUTHERLAND SCOTT
Crazy Murder Show



BRAM STOKER
Dracula’s Guest


E. CHARLES VIVIAN
The Barking Dog Murder Case














1938


JOHN DONAVAN
The Case of the Beckoning Dead



MARIBEL EDWIN
Sound Alibi


J. S. FLETCHER
And Sudden Death

J. S. FLETCHER
The Mystery of the Hushing Pool


J. S. FLETCHER
Perilous Crossways

NORMAN FORREST
Death Took a Greek God

NORMAN FORREST
Death Took a Publisher

PAUL HAGGARD
Death Talks Shop




PAUL HAGGARD
Death Walks on Cat Feet

PAUL HAGGARD
Poison from a Wealthy Widow

COLVER HARRIS
Murder in Amber


ERIC HEATH
Death Takes a Dive




SIDNEY HORLER
A Gentleman for the Gallows

VIVIAN MEIK
The Curse of Red Shiva




E. R. PUNSHON
The Bath Mysteries

E. R. PUNSHON
Death of a Tyrant

E. R. PUNSHON
The Dusky Hour




COLIN ROBERTSON
The Yellow Strangler

SHIRLEY & ADELE SEIFERT
Death Stops at the Old Stone Inn

EDMUND SNELL
Murder in Switzerland

EDMUND SNELL
The Red Spinner




MIKE TEAGLE
Murders in Silk

ROGER TORREY
42 Days for Murder

E. CHARLES VIVIAN
The Man in Gray
   





1939


MINNA BARDON
The Case of the Advertised Murder



GREGORY DEAN
Murder on Stilts

ANN DEMAREST
Murder on Every Floor

GERARD FAIRLIE
Bulldog Drummond on Dartmoor

STEVE FISHER
The Night Before Murder



J. S. FLETCHER
The Clue of the Artificial Eye


SYDNEY FOWLER
The Jordans Murder

LEONARD R. GRIBBLE
Tragedy in E Flat




ERIC HEATH
Murder in the Museum

BERNARD NEWMAN
The Mussolini Murder Plot




BARRY PEROWNE
Im No Murderer

BARRY PEROWNE
They Hang Them in Gibraltar





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