Focus On Death

Focus On Death – Five Stories from the Casebook of Dan Turner, Hollywood Detective. Dan Turner deals with the usual assortment of lowlifes in Hollywood: actors, directors, producers, agents, thieves, blackmailers and murderers.

Dead Heat (1944) – The cash customers paid plenty out to watch her emote on the screen. They looked upon her as a brunette angel, but there were a lot of substantial citizens in Hollywood who knew Linda for a rat.

Broken Melody (1942) – Nothing scalds Dan Turner so much as a threatening note. When there’s geetus in a case, and when there’s a little songbird like Chiquita in the picture, nobody’s going to tell Dan to layoff, and get away with it!

Focus On Death (1944) – They were making a cowboy picture, and of course the Indians’ arrows had all been blunted. Nevertheless it was an arrow with sharpened tip that came out of the welter of battle to kill the lovely star!

Dead Man’s Guilt (1943) – Everybody knew Kilgore had been killed trying to escape from San Quentin. Yet now this girl, who knew all the facts in the case, pleads with Dan to save her from the dead man!

Wired Alibi (1948) – The victim was no longer alive to deny or confirm his murderer but Homicide Donaldson was trying to finger Dan Turner for the kill—because in a Sunset Strip gin mill the Ace private eye had uttered public threats to feed the victim crooner a load of venom. . . it was evident that Dan was in a king-size jack-pot!
Chapter I
Chapter II – Dust on Her Heels
Chapter III – Twice-Made Goat
Chapter IV – Not A Joy Ride
Chapter V – Holes for a Head
Chapter VI – The Clay Pigeon Flies

Robert Leslie Bellem (1902-1968), the creator of legendary Hollywood private detective Dan Turner, was the definition of prolific, producing some 3000 short stories over a thirty year career. While his friends knew him as Leslie, his publishers were afraid he would be perceived as being female, and so he used his first name Robert to publish under. Not that it was likely that a woman would have written the Dan Turner stories. . .

Focus On Death contains 8 illustrations.