The Dragon Murder Case
Encyclopedia
The Dragon Murder Case (first published in 1934) is a novel in a series by S. S. Van Dine
about fictional detective Philo Vance
. It was also adapted to a film version in 1934.
A guest at an estate in northern Manhattan
(Inwood Hill Park) dives into the swimming pool and disappears. His murder brings up references to a mythological dragon which is said to prey on the incautious, but Philo Vance uses his knowledge of both dragons and criminals to demonstrate whodunnit.
The estate in the novel was based on Tryon Hall, a mansion in Fort Tryon Park
built after 1900 by Cornelius Kingsley Garrison Billings, a retired president of the Chicago Coke and Gas Company. In 1917 he sold the mansion to John D. Rockefeller Jr.. The mansion burned down in 1925, and Rockefeller donated the land it was on to the city. (More information on the building and land under the "Fort Tryon and Frankfurt-on-the-Hudson" section of Hudson Heights article.)
The decline in the last six Vance books is so steep that the critic who called the ninth of them one more stitch in his literary shroud was not overstating the case. '
The estate and its denizens are meant to be as picturesque as the persons and the plot, but all succeed only in being as egregious and improbable as Philo Vance and his antics. This tale is one of the author's worst ...
as Philo Vance and featured a dragon behind the opening and closing credits
. Robert Barratt played the character Rudolph Stam
S. S. Van Dine
S. S. Van Dine was the pseudonym of Willard Huntington Wright , a U.S art critic and author. He created the once immensely popular fictional detective Philo Vance, who first appeared in books in the 1920s, then in movies and on the radio.-Early life and career:Willard Huntington Wright was born...
about fictional detective Philo Vance
Philo Vance
Philo Vance featured in 12 crime novels written by S. S. Van Dine , published in the 1920s and 1930s. During that time, Vance was immensely popular in books, movies, and on the radio. He was portrayed as a stylish, even foppish dandy, a New York bon vivant possessing a highly intellectual bent...
. It was also adapted to a film version in 1934.
A guest at an estate in northern Manhattan
Manhattan
Manhattan is the oldest and the most densely populated of the five boroughs of New York City. Located primarily on the island of Manhattan at the mouth of the Hudson River, the boundaries of the borough are identical to those of New York County, an original county of the state of New York...
(Inwood Hill Park) dives into the swimming pool and disappears. His murder brings up references to a mythological dragon which is said to prey on the incautious, but Philo Vance uses his knowledge of both dragons and criminals to demonstrate whodunnit.
The estate in the novel was based on Tryon Hall, a mansion in Fort Tryon Park
Fort Tryon Park
Fort Tryon Park is a public park located in the Washington Heights section of the borough of Manhattan in New York City, USA. It is situated on a 67 acre ridge in Upper Manhattan, with a commanding view of the Hudson River, the George Washington Bridge, the New Jersey Palisades and the Harlem River...
built after 1900 by Cornelius Kingsley Garrison Billings, a retired president of the Chicago Coke and Gas Company. In 1917 he sold the mansion to John D. Rockefeller Jr.. The mansion burned down in 1925, and Rockefeller donated the land it was on to the city. (More information on the building and land under the "Fort Tryon and Frankfurt-on-the-Hudson" section of Hudson Heights article.)
Literary significance and criticism
This book is the first of the final six Vance books.The decline in the last six Vance books is so steep that the critic who called the ninth of them one more stitch in his literary shroud was not overstating the case. '
The estate and its denizens are meant to be as picturesque as the persons and the plot, but all succeed only in being as egregious and improbable as Philo Vance and his antics. This tale is one of the author's worst ...
Film adaptation
The Dragon Murder Case (1934) starred Warren WilliamWarren William
Warren William was a Broadway and Hollywood actor, popular during the early 1930s, who was later nicknamed the "king of Pre-Code". He was born Warren William Krech in Aitkin, Minnesota to parents Freeman E. and Frances Krech. He had a certain physical resemblance to John Barrymore. He attended the...
as Philo Vance and featured a dragon behind the opening and closing credits
Closing credits
Closing credits or end credits are added at the end of a motion picture, television program, or video game to list the cast and crew involved in the production. They usually appear as a list of names in small type, which either flip very quickly from page to page, or move smoothly across the...
. Robert Barratt played the character Rudolph Stam