Hi everyone,

If an average picture is worth a thousand words, then Ichiro Okada’s portraits of Lawrence Block in the Summer Issue of Mystery Scene add up to a magnum opus. We asked Ichiro to give us images that reflected both the man and the writer and, as you can see, the results are stunning. For more of Ichiro’s work, visit his website at <www.ichirookada.com>.

Larry himself likes to supplement the written word with pictures and other interesting items. Be sure to read about the “Philatelic Edition” of the latest Keller novel, Hit and Run, in our interview; an example of the specially-printed U.S. stamp is is shown here.

In Stanley Ellin’s classic short story “The Day of the Bullet,” a young boy’s future—and eventual death—is determined the day he sees his idolized father humiliated by a local mobster.

A similar—albeit more positive—turning point in the life of a young Florida boy came the day he turned on the TV and found Police Story, Joseph Wambaugh’s groundbreaking anthology series.

That day sent Jim Born into law enforcement, then into a career writing about cops, and eventually into this issue with a heartfelt tribute to his literary hero.

Other highlights of this issue include a chat with southern cozy writer Mary Saums; an appreciation of Thomas B. Dewey; and a look at what happens when lawyers go to the movies.

In the intriguing “Music, Murder & Mayhem,” Kevin Burton Smith considers “The Long Black Veil”— a song which has become something of an obsession of mine. Kevin calls it “timeless backwoods noir” and plumps for The Band’s 1968 cover as the best ever. Well, he’s right about the song but so wrong about the singer. After listening to dozens of versions—my iPod playlists are a strange brew—I’m here to tell you that nothing beats the Dave Matthews duet with Emmylou Harris. Unfortunately it hasn’t been released for sale and the only way to hear it is in a TV video clip from the 1999 All Star Tribute to Johnny Cash. Check it out on YouTube, it will give you shivers.

Best wishes,
Kate Stine
Editor-in-chief

P.S. What’s your favorite crime song? Let us know and we’ll create a Mystery Scene Playlist for the Fall Issue.

Hi everyone!

Our Winter Issue #103 is out! And as the Brits would say, here’s what’s on offer:

• A chat with Minette Walters whose dark suspense has made her the UK’s bestselling female crime writer.

• A history of the Great (Dane) Detective, Scooby-Doo.

• An insider’s look at law enforcement on feminism’s TV frontlines with Cagney & Lacey.

• A look at Joan Druett’s seafaring mysteries of the early 19th century and conversation with new author Cornelia Read who has only to open the family album to find a blue-blooded rogue’s gallery of inspiration.

• Jon L. Breen’s consideration of William Campbell Gault’s work which combined great entertainment with a strong social consciousness.

• New Books essays from Michael Sherer, Pari Noskin taichert, Karen Harper, Betty Webb, Rosemary Harris and Jack Getze.

• A fiendishly difficult mystery quiz, a chat with Sheri Tepper (aka A.J. Orde, B.J. Oliphant) and Gary Phillips’ look at comic books and their creators as depicted in mystery TV shows.

• Hundreds of reviews of novels, short stories, films, TV shows, paperback originals, reference works, audio books, children’s and YA mysteries, and more.

Enjoy! Mystery Scene is available in bookstores nationwide or you can buy an issue at our website. www.mysteryscenemag.com

Kate Stine, Editor

Hi everyone,

Brian has pointed out more than once that my entire life could be neatly summed up as an ongoing quest for entertainment.

As Exhibit A — a thoroughly entertaining spouse — I think he may have a case.

Certainly entertainment has been my criteria for picking jobs. And after five years at Mystery Scene, I can honestly say that boredom has never threatened. We work with hundreds of interesting people — writers, editors, booksellers, critics, and librarians.

Just as importantly, we work for mystery readers — people who demand and properly value entertainment.

True entertainment is not only the pleasure of a moment. It’s a layer added to life — a joke that illuminates, a character that inspires, a story that pulls us into its world and shows us new aspects of our own.

So onward with our quest!

From the time he was four years old, Joshua Green has been an avid Sherlockian — a passion he shares with his father, Richard, and a growing circle of friends. A photo essay chronicling their activities is on page 12.

For years, Charlaine Harris produced well-written, interesting mysteries that made excellent use of their southern settings. Her career hit the stratosphere, though, when she added elements of the supernatural to her books. The Southern Vampire Mysteries are funny, romantic, action-packed, and scary, although it’s often the humans who chill the heart rather than the “monsters.” Equally effective, although darker in tone, are her Harper Connelly books about a woman who can “sense” the dead. Charlaine discusses both in her interview this issue.

With only three books published, Theresa Schwegel is a newcomer. But what books! Cheryl Solimini catches up with this fast-moving writer to discuss her signature blend of crime, cops, and Chicago.

We also offer for your inspection two authors whom time seems to have forgotten: Erle Stanley Gardner, creator of Perry Mason, and mystery innovator Anthony Berkeley aka Francis Iles. Then there’s Steve Hockensmith’s amusing interview with Roger Corman, the legendary B-movie producer and one of Edgar Allan Poe’s greatest fans.

The always entertaining Donna Moore turns on the light in the genre bedroom, revealing all. We’re shocked! Shocked!

In addition we have a mini-interview with TV reporter-turned-novelist Hank Phillippi Ryan, and Ed Gorman chats with suspense writer Tom Piccirilli. Brian has tracked down Jerome Doolittle for a “What’s Happening With” interview and, of course, our Mystery Scene Gift Guide offers all manner of delights.

We’ll have our final report on the Mystery Scene Fund Drive for the New Orleans Public Library in our next issue. It’s looking good, though—$4,270.00 and counting! We’ll continue to donate $5 for every back issue or gift subscription purchased through 2007, so solve some holiday gift dilemmas and help out New Orleans at the same time. Happy New Year!

Kate Stine

Editor-in-chief

Mystery Scene Magazine

Hi everyone,

The annual avalanche of fall books has arrived at our office and there are some real gems this year. Just out and already receiving great reviews is Walter Mosley’s latest, Blonde Ambition. No surprise there but as you read our interview, you may be taken aback by the number and dazzling variety of new projects Mosley has in the works. We won’t even comment on the rumor that this might be the last Easy Rawlins novel…

Another new book getting great reviews is Jonathon King’s Acts of Nature. In search of local color, our fearless Oline Cogdill ventures into the Everglades with King, a former colleague of hers at Fort Lauderdale’s Sun-Sentinel.

In the publishing world, writers are often dubbed “beloved.” In most cases, it’s simply marketing speak. But love is really the only word that does justice to how generations of readers feel about Harper Lee, author of To Kill a Mockingbird.

First published in 1960, To Kill a Mockingbird won the Pulitzer Prize and has sold more than 30 million copies worldwide. It is taught in the majority of American schools, and is regularly chosen for “One Book, One City” programs. Recently, librarians across the country voted it the best novel of the 20th century.

In this issue, Art Taylor considers the enduring impact of this tale of racial and class injustice in the Deep South of the 1930s.

Lee is one of those rare authors who lets her work speak for itself. It was news recently when she broke her customary public silence at a ceremony inducting new members into the Alabama Academy of Honor. The Academy’s chairman joked with Lee, saying he knew she had something she wanted to say to the crowd.

Lee responded “Well, it’s better to be silent than to be a fool.”

According to AP, the audience burst into laughter and gave Lee a standing ovation.

Donna Moore—whose novel …To Helena Handbasket was a recent winner of the Lefty Award for Funniest Mystery—has turned her talents to poetry. Be sure to read her clever ode to alphabetical annihilation in “A to Z Killing Spree: A Poem.”

Ever wanted your very own Batcave? Creative Home Engineering in Arizona can help you out. Hidden passageways, secret cubbyholes, and doors disguised as bookcases are their specialty. For the owner, it all started with that revolving fireplace scene in Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade.

Speaking of entertaining films, our latest guide offers a selection of great cop movies. The hidden treasure here, in my opinion, is Out of Sight. George Clooney and Jennifer Lopez steam up the screen like Bogie and Bacall in their heyday. Add to this a script by Scott Frank based on the Elmore Leonard novel, a first-rate cast of supporting players (Don Cheadle, Albert Brooks, Ving Rhames), and an outstanding shoot ’em up at the end. Honestly, I’ve never understood why this movie isn’t better known. Take a look, you’ll be happy you did.

Also in this issue, Gary Phillips makes his way through hordes of Star Wars Storm Troopers, elves, superheroes, and scantily clad barbarian women, all to bring us tidings of the 2007 Comic-Con. Ron Miller sorts through the new fall TV season and finds a number of mystery-themed shows with supernatural tinges. Ed Gorman tells us 15 things we should know about pulp writer Charles Williams, and Twist Phelan recounts her adventures in an outrigger canoe off the coast of Australia while researching her latest book.

Have you read something great lately? Whether it’s hot off the press or a classic that you’ve finally gotten around to, please drop us a line for the new feature “Our Readers Recommend” at info [at] mysteryscenemag.com

Kate Stine
Editor-in-chief