Octavus Roy Cohen
Encyclopedia
Octavus Roy Cohen was an American
author, born in South Carolina
where he received his secondary education at the Porter Military Academy, now the exclusive Porter-Gaud School. He went on to receive a college education at the Clemson University
. Between 1910 and 1912 he worked in the editorial departments of the Birmingham Ledger, the Charleston News and Courier, the Bayonne Times, and the Newark Morning Star. He became popular as a result of his stories printed in The Saturday Evening Post
which concerned themselves with the adventures of the Southern Negro
. If his people seemed to possess the usual mythical Negro qualities of drollery and miscomprehensions, his tales at any rate were spirited. In 1913, he was admitted to the South Carolina bar and practiced law in Charleston for two years. Between 1917 and his death he published 56 books, works that included humorous and detective novels, plays, and collections of short stories. He also composed successful Broadway plays and radio, film, and television scripts. He wrote:
Cohen's character of Jim Hanvey, "a sort of backwoods Nero Wolfe
", "one of the earliest private eyes", appeared in two films; Curtain at Eight
(1933), based on his novel The Backstage Mystery, and Jim Hanvey, Detective
(1937), based on his original story. "Hanvey made most of his appearances in short stories in The Saturday Evening Post, where much of ... Cohen's other work was also published. ... Cohen created a few other detectives ... one of the first black eyes, Florian Slappey, although they're more famous now for their unflattering portrayal of blacks than their historical significance."
Jim Hanvey books by Cohen:
He pronounced his first name oc-tav'us, a as in have. (Charles Earle Funk, What's the Name, Please?, Funk & Wagnalls, 1936.)
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
author, born in South Carolina
South Carolina
South Carolina is a state in the Deep South of the United States that borders Georgia to the south, North Carolina to the north, and the Atlantic Ocean to the east. Originally part of the Province of Carolina, the Province of South Carolina was one of the 13 colonies that declared independence...
where he received his secondary education at the Porter Military Academy, now the exclusive Porter-Gaud School. He went on to receive a college education at the Clemson University
Clemson University
Clemson University is an American public, coeducational, land-grant, sea-grant, research university located in Clemson, South Carolina, United States....
. Between 1910 and 1912 he worked in the editorial departments of the Birmingham Ledger, the Charleston News and Courier, the Bayonne Times, and the Newark Morning Star. He became popular as a result of his stories printed in The Saturday Evening Post
The Saturday Evening Post
The Saturday Evening Post is a bimonthly American magazine. It was published weekly under this title from 1897 until 1969, and quarterly and then bimonthly from 1971.-History:...
which concerned themselves with the adventures of the Southern Negro
Negro
The word Negro is used in the English-speaking world to refer to a person of black ancestry or appearance, whether of African descent or not...
. If his people seemed to possess the usual mythical Negro qualities of drollery and miscomprehensions, his tales at any rate were spirited. In 1913, he was admitted to the South Carolina bar and practiced law in Charleston for two years. Between 1917 and his death he published 56 books, works that included humorous and detective novels, plays, and collections of short stories. He also composed successful Broadway plays and radio, film, and television scripts. He wrote:
- Polished Ebony (1919)
- Gray Dusk (1920)
- Come Seven (1920)
- Highly Colored (1921)
- Midnight (1922)
Cohen's character of Jim Hanvey, "a sort of backwoods Nero Wolfe
Nero Wolfe
Nero Wolfe is a fictional detective, created in 1934 by the American mystery writer Rex Stout. Wolfe's confidential assistant Archie Goodwin narrates the cases of the detective genius. Stout wrote 33 novels and 39 short stories from 1934 to 1974, with most of them set in New York City. Wolfe's...
", "one of the earliest private eyes", appeared in two films; Curtain at Eight
Curtain at Eight
- Cast :*C. Aubrey Smith as Jim Hanvey - Detective*Dorothy Mackaill as Lola Cresmer*Paul Cavanagh as Wylie Thornton - Actor*Sam Hardy as Martin Gallagher - Captain of Detectives*Marion Shilling as Anice Cresmer*Russell Hopton as Terry Mooney - Reporter...
(1933), based on his novel The Backstage Mystery, and Jim Hanvey, Detective
Jim Hanvey, Detective
- Cast :*Guy Kibbee as James Woolford "Jim" Hanvey*Tom Brown as Don Terry*Lucie Kaye as Joan Frost*Catherine Doucet as Adelaide Frost*Edward Gargan as O. R.Smith*Edward Brophy as Romo*Helen Jerome Eddy as Mrs. Tom Ellis*Theodore von Eltz as Dunn...
(1937), based on his original story. "Hanvey made most of his appearances in short stories in The Saturday Evening Post, where much of ... Cohen's other work was also published. ... Cohen created a few other detectives ... one of the first black eyes, Florian Slappey, although they're more famous now for their unflattering portrayal of blacks than their historical significance."
Jim Hanvey books by Cohen:
- Jim Hanvey, Detective (1923, short stories)
- Detours (1927, short stories, one featuring Hanvey)
- The May Day Mystery (1929)
- The Backstage Mystery (also published as Curtain at Eight) (1930)
- Star of Earth (1932)
- Scrambled Yeggs (1934, short stories)
He pronounced his first name oc-tav'us, a as in have. (Charles Earle Funk, What's the Name, Please?, Funk & Wagnalls, 1936.)