Episodes Three and Four prove that Levinson and Link were not trying to create another Burke’s Law where the detective has some lovely run-ins with a bunch of old stars before one of them is randomly shown to be the killer. Here, they’re going for a cleverer show, with actual clues leading to surprise endings. There are … Continue reading ELLERY QUEEN: Episodes Three and Four
TV
HAIL TO THE QUEENS: Ellery Queen Eps 1 and 2
Ellery Queen Mysteries, the brainchild of ace screenwriting team and lifelong EQ fanboys Richard Levinson and William Link, last only one season consisting of twenty-two episodes. With one exception, every one of these was an original story conceived by the team (although some episodes were written by others) and co-produced with Peter S. Fischer, with … Continue reading HAIL TO THE QUEENS: Ellery Queen Eps 1 and 2
FROM THE PEN OF LEVINSON AND LINK (and Queen)
If I had had a little bit of luck, on my first day of junior high school a group of my friends might have introduced me to the fellow they had been talking about since 5th grade - the kid who, like me, loved magic tricks and puzzles and a mystery writer named Ellery Queen. That … Continue reading FROM THE PEN OF LEVINSON AND LINK (and Queen)
BITING OFF MORE . . . (My 2022 Resolutions)
Here it comes – the moment when all the bloggers you visit try and entice you to keep coming back with our promises of things to come. Some of my plans are rather amorphous: I hope to do some spiffing up of the site itself so that Ah Sweet Mystery will be better organized, sport … Continue reading BITING OFF MORE . . . (My 2022 Resolutions)
HALLOWEEN PARTY HEARTY WITH FLEX AND HERDS
Recently I played along with the genial hosts of the Australian podcast, Death of the Reader, where each week Flex and Herds tackle a wide array of mystery tales, both classic and modern. Their most recent guest, one JJ von JJ (my pal, who created The Invisible Event and the podcast In GAD We Trust) … Continue reading HALLOWEEN PARTY HEARTY WITH FLEX AND HERDS
MUST-SEE TV: Only Murders in the Building
I have been known to complain slightly about bad mystery series on TV. And so it gives me great pleasure to announce that a really good one dropped on Hulu a couple of months ago. Only Murders in the Building was created by actor Steve Martin and John Hoffman and stars Martin, Selena Gomez, and Martin Short … Continue reading MUST-SEE TV: Only Murders in the Building
PLOT-TWIST AND SHOUT, or All’s Well That Doesn’t End Well
If you’re like me, you’ve probably been watching more TV than normal during this Foule Pandemique. Folks tend to divide themselves into two groups: those who seek out and view as many thrillerish mini-series as they can find, finally breaking down in tears if they mistakenly view three programs from Finland in a row, and … Continue reading PLOT-TWIST AND SHOUT, or All’s Well That Doesn’t End Well
A LOOK AT BRIDGERTON: #MeToo with a Dash of Mmm Hmm Hmm
My friends are chattering about Bridgerton, the new Shonda Rhimes-produced series on Netflix. They compare it to Sanditon, the recent series based on an unfinished novel by Jane Austen that recently played on Masterpiece Theatre. There is little, however, of Austen beyond the surface of this new series. Bridgerton is more Agnes Nixon than Jane Austen; it is All My Children wrapped … Continue reading A LOOK AT BRIDGERTON: #MeToo with a Dash of Mmm Hmm Hmm
FAST FORWARDING INTO ‘21
“Life is infinitely stranger than anything which the mind of man could invent.” (Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, The Complete Adventures of Sherlock Holmes) Does anybody want to hear me vent about 2020? Because, you know, I can do it, and I will . . . that is, if anyone wants to listen. To be honest, however, … Continue reading FAST FORWARDING INTO ‘21
A HUNDRED YEARS OF CHRISTIE – THE FINAL CHAPTER: The Millennium and Beyond
“In my end is my beginning.” Many books begin with an epigraph; Agatha Christie’s characters speak in them. The occasion, more often than not, is dark. After all, these people are bearing witness to – or maybe committing – murder. “Who would have thought the old man to have had so much blood in him?” … Continue reading A HUNDRED YEARS OF CHRISTIE – THE FINAL CHAPTER: The Millennium and Beyond
Ah Sweet Mystery! 