Patrick Quentin
Encyclopedia
Patrick Quentin, Q. Patrick and Jonathan Stagge were pen names under which Hugh Callingham Wheeler
(19 March 1912 – 26 July 1987), Richard Wilson Webb (August 1901 – December 1966), Martha Mott Kelly (30 April 1906–2005) and Mary Louise White Aswell (3 June 1902 – 24 December 1984) wrote detective fiction
. In some foreign countries their books have been published under the variant Quentin Patrick. Most of the stories were written by Webb and Wheeler in collaboration, or by Wheeler alone. Their most famous creation is the amateur sleuth Peter Duluth. In 1963, the story collection The Ordeal of Mrs. Snow was given a Special Edgar Award
by the Mystery Writers of America
.
, Somerset
, an Englishman working for a pharmaceutical company in Philadelphia) and Martha Mott Kelly collaborated on the detective novel Cottage Sinister. Kelly was known as Patsy (Patsy Kelly
was a well-known character actress of that era) and Webb as Rick, so they created the pseudonym Q. Patrick by combining their nicknames—adding the Q "because it was unusual".
Webb's and Kelly's literary partnership ended with Kelly's marriage to Stephen Wilson. Webb continued to write under the Q. Patrick name, while looking for a new writing partner. Although he wrote two novels with the journalist and Harper's Bazaar
editor Mary Louise Aswell, he would find his permanent collaborator in Hugh Wheeler, a Londoner who had moved to the US in 1934.
Wheeler's and Webb's first collaboration was published in 1936. That same year, they introduced two new pseudonyms: Murder Gone to Earth, the first novel featuring Dr. Westlake, was credited to Jonathan Stagge, a name they would continue to use for the rest of the Westlake series. A Puzzle for Fools introduced Peter Duluth and was signed Patrick Quentin. This would become their primary and most famous pen name, even though they also continued to use Q. Patrick until the end of their collaboration (particularly for Inspector Trant stories).
In the late 1940s, Webb's contributions gradually decreased due to health problems. From the 1950s and on, Wheeler continued writing as Patrick Quentin on his own, and also had one book published under his own name. In the 1960s and 70s, Wheeler achieved success as a playwright and librettist, and his output as Quentin Patrick slowed and then ceased altogether after 1965. However, Wheeler did write the book for the 1979 musical Sweeney Todd
about a fictional London mass murderer, showing he had not altogether abandoned the genre.
"whodunit
" conventions, with elaborate puzzle mysteries reminiscent of Agatha Christie
or John Dickson Carr
. From the time when Wheeler joined the writing, the stories become more psychologically acute, with increasingly realistic, fleshed-out characters. In the 1940s, the stories start to move away from the traditional detective pattern (with mixed success): Puzzle for Fiends is a Hitchcockian thriller, Puzzle for Pilgrims a film noir
in written form, and Run to Death a pulpy spy novel.
The majority of the Webb-Wheeler collaborations feature one of their recurring characters: Peter Duluth, a Broadway director, WWII veteran and recovering alcoholic who, with his wife Iris, always seems to stumble across murders; Inspector Timothy Trant of the New York
Police, a Princeton
-educated dandy whose remorseless investigations often seem to be aimed at some innocent person before he reveals his real target; and the country doctor, Dr. Hugh Cavendish Westlake with his daughter Dawn. When Webb bowed out on the writing, these characters disappeared or receded into the background.
The late Patrick Quentin novels are increasingly dark and brooding. Deceit and betrayal, particularly adultery, already a frequent theme, becomes even more central. Although at the end of the story the murder is solved, the impact of the crime, and the corruption uncovered in the investigation, remain.
Many of Quentin's stories have been filmed.
Hugh Wheeler
Hugh Callingham Wheeler was an English-born playwright, screenwriter, librettist, poet, and translator. He resided in the United States from 1934 until his death and became a naturalized citizen in 1942. He had attended London University.Under the noms de plume Patrick Quentin, Q...
(19 March 1912 – 26 July 1987), Richard Wilson Webb (August 1901 – December 1966), Martha Mott Kelly (30 April 1906–2005) and Mary Louise White Aswell (3 June 1902 – 24 December 1984) wrote detective fiction
Detective fiction
Detective fiction is a sub-genre of crime fiction and mystery fiction in which an investigator , either professional or amateur, investigates a crime, often murder.-In ancient literature:...
. In some foreign countries their books have been published under the variant Quentin Patrick. Most of the stories were written by Webb and Wheeler in collaboration, or by Wheeler alone. Their most famous creation is the amateur sleuth Peter Duluth. In 1963, the story collection The Ordeal of Mrs. Snow was given a Special Edgar Award
Edgar Award
The Edgar Allan Poe Awards , named after Edgar Allan Poe, are presented every year by the Mystery Writers of America...
by the Mystery Writers of America
Mystery Writers of America
Mystery Writers of America is an organization for mystery writers, based in New York.The organization was founded in 1945 by Clayton Rawson, Anthony Boucher, Lawrence Treat, and Brett Halliday....
.
History
In 1931 Richard Wilson Webb (born in 1901 in Burnham-on-SeaBurnham-on-Sea
Burnham-on-Sea is a town in Somerset, England, at the mouth of the River Parrett and Bridgwater Bay. Burnham was a small village until the late 18th century, when it began to grow because of its popularity as a seaside resort. It forms part of the parish of Burnham-on-Sea and Highbridge...
, Somerset
Somerset
The ceremonial and non-metropolitan county of Somerset in South West England borders Bristol and Gloucestershire to the north, Wiltshire to the east, Dorset to the south-east, and Devon to the south-west. It is partly bounded to the north and west by the Bristol Channel and the estuary of the...
, an Englishman working for a pharmaceutical company in Philadelphia) and Martha Mott Kelly collaborated on the detective novel Cottage Sinister. Kelly was known as Patsy (Patsy Kelly
Patsy Kelly
Patsy Kelly was an American stage and film comedic actress.-Early life and career:Kelly was born Sarah Veronica Rose Kelly in Brooklyn, New York to Irish immigrants, John and Delia Kelly, and made her Broadway debut in 1928...
was a well-known character actress of that era) and Webb as Rick, so they created the pseudonym Q. Patrick by combining their nicknames—adding the Q "because it was unusual".
Webb's and Kelly's literary partnership ended with Kelly's marriage to Stephen Wilson. Webb continued to write under the Q. Patrick name, while looking for a new writing partner. Although he wrote two novels with the journalist and Harper's Bazaar
Harper's Bazaar
Harper’s Bazaar is an American fashion magazine, first published in 1867. Harper’s Bazaar is published by Hearst and, as a magazine, considers itself to be the style resource for “women who are the first to buy the best, from casual to couture.”...
editor Mary Louise Aswell, he would find his permanent collaborator in Hugh Wheeler, a Londoner who had moved to the US in 1934.
Wheeler's and Webb's first collaboration was published in 1936. That same year, they introduced two new pseudonyms: Murder Gone to Earth, the first novel featuring Dr. Westlake, was credited to Jonathan Stagge, a name they would continue to use for the rest of the Westlake series. A Puzzle for Fools introduced Peter Duluth and was signed Patrick Quentin. This would become their primary and most famous pen name, even though they also continued to use Q. Patrick until the end of their collaboration (particularly for Inspector Trant stories).
In the late 1940s, Webb's contributions gradually decreased due to health problems. From the 1950s and on, Wheeler continued writing as Patrick Quentin on his own, and also had one book published under his own name. In the 1960s and 70s, Wheeler achieved success as a playwright and librettist, and his output as Quentin Patrick slowed and then ceased altogether after 1965. However, Wheeler did write the book for the 1979 musical Sweeney Todd
Sweeney Todd (musical)
Sweeney Todd, the Demon Barber of Fleet Street is a 1979 musical thriller with music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim and libretto by Hugh Wheeler. The musical is based on the 1973 play Sweeney Todd, the Demon Barber of Fleet Street by Christopher Bond....
about a fictional London mass murderer, showing he had not altogether abandoned the genre.
Writing
The early Q. Patrick detective stories generally follow the Golden AgeGolden Age of Detective Fiction
The Golden Age of Detective Fiction was an era of classic murder mystery novels produced by various authors, all following similar patterns and style.-Origins:Mademoiselle de Scudéri, by E.T.A...
"whodunit
Whodunit
A whodunit or whodunnit is a complex, plot-driven variety of the detective story in which the puzzle is the main feature of interest. The reader or viewer is provided with clues from which the identity of the perpetrator of the crime may be deduced before the solution is revealed in the final...
" conventions, with elaborate puzzle mysteries reminiscent of Agatha Christie
Agatha Christie
Dame Agatha Christie DBE was a British crime writer of novels, short stories, and plays. She also wrote romances under the name Mary Westmacott, but she is best remembered for her 66 detective novels and 14 short story collections , and her successful West End plays.According to...
or John Dickson Carr
John Dickson Carr
John Dickson Carr was an American author of detective stories, who also published under the pen names Carter Dickson, Carr Dickson and Roger Fairbairn....
. From the time when Wheeler joined the writing, the stories become more psychologically acute, with increasingly realistic, fleshed-out characters. In the 1940s, the stories start to move away from the traditional detective pattern (with mixed success): Puzzle for Fiends is a Hitchcockian thriller, Puzzle for Pilgrims a film noir
Film noir
Film noir is a cinematic term used primarily to describe stylish Hollywood crime dramas, particularly those that emphasize cynical attitudes and sexual motivations. Hollywood's classic film noir period is generally regarded as extending from the early 1940s to the late 1950s...
in written form, and Run to Death a pulpy spy novel.
The majority of the Webb-Wheeler collaborations feature one of their recurring characters: Peter Duluth, a Broadway director, WWII veteran and recovering alcoholic who, with his wife Iris, always seems to stumble across murders; Inspector Timothy Trant of the New York
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
Police, a Princeton
Princeton University
Princeton University is a private research university located in Princeton, New Jersey, United States. The school is one of the eight universities of the Ivy League, and is one of the nine Colonial Colleges founded before the American Revolution....
-educated dandy whose remorseless investigations often seem to be aimed at some innocent person before he reveals his real target; and the country doctor, Dr. Hugh Cavendish Westlake with his daughter Dawn. When Webb bowed out on the writing, these characters disappeared or receded into the background.
The late Patrick Quentin novels are increasingly dark and brooding. Deceit and betrayal, particularly adultery, already a frequent theme, becomes even more central. Although at the end of the story the murder is solved, the impact of the crime, and the corruption uncovered in the investigation, remain.
Legacy
At one time a relatively popular mystery writer (Francis Iles called Quentin "number one among American crime writers"), Quentin has largely fallen into obscurity in the US, his works out of print. He probably remains more well-known in Scandinavia, where he used to be among the most famous detective writers, although his reputation is fading also there.Many of Quentin's stories have been filmed.
As Q. Patrick
- Cottage Sinister – 1931 (by Webb and Kelly)
- Murder at the Women's City Club – 1932 (also Death in the Dovecote) (by Webb and Kelly)
- Murder at the 'Varsity – 1933 (also Murder at Cambridge) (by Webb)
- S.S. Murder – 1933 (by Webb and Aswell)
- The Grindle Nightmare – 1935 (also Darker Grows the Valley) (by Webb and Aswell)
- Death Goes to School – 1936 (by Webb and Wheeler)
- Death for Dear Clara – 1937 (by Webb and Wheeler)
with Inspector Trant. - The File on Fenton and Farr – 1938 (by Webb and Wheeler)
- The File on Claudia Cragge – 1938 (by Webb and Wheeler)
with Inspector Trant. - Death and the Maiden – 1939 (by Webb and Wheeler)
with Inspector Trant. - Return to the Scene – 1941 (also Death in Bermuda) (by Webb and Wheeler)
- Danger Next Door – 1952 (by Webb and Wheeler)
As Patrick Quentin
- A Puzzle for Fools- 1936 (by Webb and Wheeler)
with Peter Duluth. - Puzzle for Players – 1938 (by Webb and Wheeler)
with Peter Duluth. - Puzzle for Puppets – 1944 (by Webb and Wheeler)
with Peter Duluth. Filmed as Homicide for Three (1948) http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0040447/. - Puzzle for Wantons – 1945 (also Slay the Loose Ladies) (by Webb and Wheeler)
with Peter Duluth. - Puzzle for Fiends – 1946 (also Love Is a Deadly Weapon) (by Webb and Wheeler)
with Peter Duluth. Filmed as Strange Awakening (1958) http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0052252/. - Puzzle for Pilgrims – 1947 (also The Fate of the Immodest Blonde) (by Webb and Wheeler)
with Peter Duluth. - Run to Death – 1948 (by Webb and Wheeler)
with Peter Duluth. - The Follower – 1950 (by Webb and Wheeler)
- Black Widow – 1952 (also Fatal Woman) (by Webb and Wheeler)
with Peter Duluth and Inspector Trant. Filmed as Black Widow (1954) http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0046791/. - My Son, the Murderer – 1954 (also The Wife of Ronald Sheldon) (by Wheeler)
with Peter Duluth (briefly) and Inspector Trant. - The Man with Two Wives – 1955 (by Wheeler)
with Inspector Trant. Filmed as Tsuma Futari (1967) http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0310251/. - The Man in the Net – 1956 (by Wheeler)
Filmed as The Man in the Net (1959) http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0053045/. - Suspicious Circumstances – 1957 (by Wheeler)
- Shadow of Guilt – 1959 (by Wheeler)
with Inspector Trant. Filmed as L'Homme à Femmes (1960) http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0053918/. - The Green-Eyed Monster – 1960 (by Wheeler)
- The Ordeal of Mrs. Snow – 1961 (by Wheeler)
A short story filmed for TV as an episode of The Alfred Hitchcock Hour, "The Ordeal of Mrs. Snow" (1964) http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0394074/. - Family Skeletons – 1965 (by Wheeler)
with Inspector Trant. Filmed for TV as Familienschande (1988) http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0095129/.
As Jonathan Stagge
- Murder Gone to Earth – 1936 (also The Dogs Do Bark) (by Webb and Wheeler)
with Dr. Westlake. - Murder or Mercy? – 1937 (also Murder by Prescription) (by Webb and Wheeler)
with Dr. Westlake. - The Stars Spell Death – 1939 (also Murder in the Stars) (by Webb and Wheeler)
with Dr. Westlake. - Turn of the Table – 1940 (also Funeral for Five) (by Webb and Wheeler)
with Dr. Westlake. - The Yellow Taxi – 1942 (also Call a Hearse) (by Webb and Wheeler)
with Dr. Westlake. - The Scarlet Circle – 1943 (also Light from a Lantern) (by Webb and Wheeler)
with Dr. Westlake. - Death, My Darling Daughters – 1945 (also Death and the Dear Girls) (by Webb and Wheeler)
with Dr. Westlake. - Death's Old Sweet Song – 1946 (by Webb and Wheeler)
with Dr. Westlake. - The Three Fears – 1949 (by Webb and Wheeler)
with Dr. Westlake.