Comic-strip syndicate house detective Jack Starr is back in STRIP FOR MURDER, Max Allan Collins’ follow-up to the enjoyable old-school mystery A KILLING IN COMICS. That 2007 whodunit was set in the world of comic books, while this one sets its sights on comic strips. Who knew the Sunday funnies were such serious business?
Jack is the veep for his late father’s Starr Syndicate, now run by his stepmom, Maggie, a red-hot former stripper whose comely curves belie her true age. She’s returning to the stage to take part in a Broadway musical based on the successful Tall Paul strip, but a party to celebrate its impending opening halts when a fresh corpse is discovered.
One floor down, dead via a gunshot to the temple, is Sam Fizer, creator of the Mugs O’Malley strip and bitter rival to Tall Paul’s Hal Rapp, his former apprentice. Looking at the scene, Jack and Maggie determine that Fizer’s expiration was no suicide, but murder. And not only that, but all evidence points to Rapp, who has everything to lose.
Could Rapp have been set up? Jack seems to think so, and starts investigating, uncovering affairs, accusations, illegal activity, mob connections, one solid smear campaign and a bunch of bad blood. He aims to clear Rapp’s name before the guy is arrested and the plug is pulled on the show.
Rapp and Fizer are loosely modeled, of course, on Al Capp and Ham Fisher, while
Tall Paul and Mugs O’Malley are obvious stand-ins for Li’l Abner and Joe Palooka. Because Collins has chosen to construct his mystery around these real-life events — with some creative license, of course, as Fisher did kill himself — half the fun is figuring out who inspired every other character. Actress Edie Adams, comedian Ernie Kovacs, Flash Gordon creator Alex Raymond and Batman’s Bob Kane are among them, and Collins works in loving references to other beloved strips of that era (here, being 1953), including Popeye, The Phantom and, naturally, Dick Tracy.
Continuing the gimmick of KILLING, STRIP FOR MURDER features chapter-opening illustrations by Collins’ MS. TREE collaborator Terry Beatty, and the brief chapter that recaps the investigation before the final reveal is entirely in comics form.
With the energy and excitement of 1950s New York captured, the mystery feels very much of that time — one where men like Jack wore hats and trench coats as if they were a uniform. As a result, STRIP instantly wins over readers of casual crime. Its dialogue is snappy, its pace is quick — in short, it’s a total delight for your three- or four-hour investment. —Rod Lott
OTHER BOOKGASM REVIEWS OF THIS AUTHOR:
• BLACK HATS by Patrick Culhane
• DEADLY BELOVED by Max Allan Collins
• DICK TRACY by Max Allan Collins
• THE FIRST QUARRY by Max Allan Collins
• THE GOLIATH BONE by Mickey Spillane and Max Allan Collins
• A KILLING IN COMICS by Max Allan Collins
• THE LAST QUARRY by Max Allan Collins
• MY LOLITA COMPLEX AND OTHER TALES OF SEX AND VIOLENCE by Max Allan Collins and Matthew V. Clemens
• QUARRY’S LIST by Max Allan Collins
• RED SKY IN MORNING by Patrick Culhane
• ROAD TO PARADISE by Max Allan Collins
• TOUGH TENDER by Max Allan Collins
• THE WAR OF THE WORLDS MURDER by Max Allan Collins
