Tag Archives: Bayport

33: THE YELLOW FEATHER MYSTERY

33

 

Who Wrote It?: Franklin W. Dixon

C’mon, Who Really Wrote it?: William Dogherty in 1953.  His one and only Hardy Boys book.

Was It Revised?: Yes, in 1971 by Pricilla Baker-Carr.

Cover: Rudy Nappi.   A burnt orange/yellow cover, with a mixture of symbolism (the feather) and realism (Frank and Joe looking at the cabin in a scene right from the book).  To be honest, this nearly monochromatic cover put me off when I first reread this book as an adult.  But as we shall see, I should not have judged a book by its cover.

Setting: Bayport and nearby.  They don’t travel too far afield here.  

Where’s Fenton This Time?: He is working on the same case, and shows up quite often.  The author even has some fun with Fenton’s appearances in a couple of cases.  When Frank tackles his father thinking he caught a crook, you know the author is winking at us.

Which Chums Show Up?: Chet, Biff, Tony, Callie, Iola.

What’s Chet’s Hobby This Time?: He built a catamaran on ice, as it were.  A fan-driven ice boat.  Yes, it comes in handy.  Chet is the third Hardy Boy in this book and he really steps up.  No cowardice in this one, he just does the job.  When the gang is all together and Frank and Joe realize they have to check a place of danger out, it’s only Chet they ask to come along.  The author must have really liked Chet.

Aunt Gertrude’s Dessert: Nothing doing, check back later.

Plot: The headmaster of a boarding school dies, leaves behind a clue to where to find his will, and two people are after it.  Both of them ask the Hardys for help finding it.

Review:  Does that plot sound boring?  I assure you, this is pure Hardy Boys distilled to its essence:

  • Set in Bayport
  • All the chums show up
  • Chet has a hobby and is useful
  • The boys stubbornly stick to it despite threats to their lives
  • Inheritance is involved
  • A mysterious code
  • A mysterious enemy

It’s got everything you want in a Hardy Boys book. A bit dated, what with that mid-50s we-can-rehabiliate-a-juvenile-delinquent subplot — not to mention a character named Skinny — but the essence of the book is a well-told mystery with hidden rooms, hidden motives, a crook in plain sight (but which one is the crook?), good detective work, a deadly threat at the end, and lots of misdirection about the Yellow Feather.  I was surprised at how much I enjoyed the book despite not being wild about the cover.  And so I give this book…

Score: 10 (if you want to hand someone a Hardy Boys book to see if they like it, this is a good choice)

32: THE CRISSCROSS SHADOW

 

32

Who Wrote It?: Franklin W. Dixon

C’mon, Who Really Wrote it?: Richard Cohen in 1953.  His one and only Hardy Boys book.

Was It Revised?: Yes, in 1969 by Pricilla Baker-Carr.

Cover: Rudy Nappi.   We continue in the green period, but there is plenty of yellow and some red too. This is more of an abstract cover as the scene is a thematically accurate depiction of something that doesn’t occur like that in the book.  That is, the crisscross shadow does NOT go across Frank and Joe’s bodies.  And unlike other covers that give away the plot, this one only sort of does that (as you will see when you read the book)  A decent cover.

Setting: Bayport and somewhere else.  Not explained exactly where, just a plane ride somewhere.  But true to the 1950s, this one involves Native Americans, or as they might have said back then, injuns.  I’ll explain later, but is it significant that my spellchecker wanted to change that to “indians”?  Hmmm…

Where’s Fenton This Time?: Here, there and everywhere.  It’s odd, he keeps sending messages from all over, but isn’t there.

Which Chums Show Up?: Chet, Biff, Tony, Callie, Iola.

What’s Chet’s Hobby This Time?: None.  At this point he’s merely the third Hardy Boy.  Well, maybe football is the hobby in this book.

Aunt Gertrude’s Dessert: Chocolate walnut cake, and you can just taste it, can’t you?

Plot: Swindlers try to cheat a Native American tribe out of their land, Frank and Joe save the day.

Review:  This is an odd book in that when it was written in the 1950s, it probably felt very progressive in its views on Native Americans.  They even make fun of stereotypical speech while having the tribe talk quite normally, act quite normally, etc.  Well done, right?  Wellll….no, there is still racism.  Frank and Joe solve the mystery by using basic common sense.  So why couldn’t the tribe figure this one out?  Why does it always take the white folks to be the saviors?  See what I mean?  A deeper level of racism.  Oh well, it tried.  The mystery itself is so-so, football comes in at the end, there are some moments of good suspense.  It’s OK.

Score: 6

30: THE WAILING SIREN MYSTERY

 

30

Who Wrote It?: Franklin W. Dixon

C’mon, Who Really Wrote it?: Andrew E. Svenson in 1951.  The third of three-in-a-row that he did in the late 40s/early 50s.  And the last one he did until he writes what, for me, is one of the highlights of the entire series (you’ll see).

Was It Revised?: Yes, in 1968 by Pricilla Baker-Carr, and it’s Ms. Baker-Carr the rest of the way until we hit 1960 and the original stories stand alone at last.

Cover: Rudy Nappi.  Not much red or yellow, it’s all shades of green and blue.  But what a great cover this is!  Unlike the recent abstract covers, this one is almost a photograph.  I think I like the night covers in the rain a lot (see my raving over What Happened at Midnight).  And unlike other covers that spoil the endings, this one is basically chapter one.  That’s the actual scene from the book, and it’s portrayed exactly as written.  If you don’t want to know why that helicopter is flying in the rain to meet that yacht, you don’t deserve to read Hardy Boys books.  I mean, Frank and Joe would see that scene and leap to figure it out…

Setting: Bayport and the woods north of there.   

Where’s Fenton This Time?: Back and forth to Washington, showing up at times to help, and then making one of the most dashing Chapter XX Deus Ex Helicopter entrances ever.

Which Chums Show Up?: Chet, Biff, Tony, Callie, Iola.  It’s more or less a camping trip for the boys.

What’s Chet’s Hobby This Time?: None.  

Aunt Gertrude’s Dessert: None.  I’m hungry.

Plot: See the cover?  What’s that all about?  Well, that’s the plot, trying to figure out what’s going on.  Oh, OK, I’ll tell you it involves crooks doing some gunrunning, thefts, wolves in the woods ready to rip people’s throats out (what?  That’s what the book says, so don’t yell at me if your 10-year-old just complained I got too graphic).

Review:  This one is OK, not great.  You know, that cover is funny because of course Frank and Joe would just happen to be there while this event is going on.  If they don’t take the Sleuth out for a spin, they don’t see that scene.  If they don’t see that scene, they have no idea anything is happening.  Well, Fenton is working the D.C. angle, so he would eventually figure it out, but man, the crooks pick Bayport as their base of operations again?!  Have they not read books 1-29?

And Frank and Joe stumble into so many mysteries by being in the right place at the right time I’m surprised there isn’t a series of historical Hardy Boys books: The Mystery of Ford’s Theater, for instance, when Frank and Joe happen to have tickets to see a show in 1865 when … well, you know.

And what’s with the wailing siren of the title?  It keeps going off, and the only ones who seem to care are Frank and Joe.  Huh?  If you hear a massive siren going off from the woods, don’t you think someone would figure out what’s going on?  The police would, if no one else, simply to stop all the citizens calling in to complain about that noise going off again.  Seriously, if this is the method chosen by the crooks to signal their moves, they are genuine idiots.

Score: 7

29: THE SECRET OF THE LOST TUNNEL

29

 

Who Wrote It?: Franklin W. Dixon

C’mon, Who Really Wrote it?: Andrew E. Svenson in 1950.  The second of three-in-a-row that he did in the late 40s/early 50s.

Was It Revised?: Yes, in 1968 by David Grambs, the last of his four revisions after 6: The Shore Road Mystery, 12: Footprints Under the Window and very recently 27: The Secret of Skull Mountain.  That represents two 9 ratings and one 6.  Which will his fourth revision get, the 9 end or the 6 end?

Cover: Rudy Nappi.  There’s yellow, there’s red, got some blue, and a lot of brown.  Instead of the boys peering at danger, they are investigating the secret of the lost tunnel.  Yes, a massive spoiler is placed right on the cover…

Setting: Bayport and then Virginia.  This is another Frank and Joe Down South story.  

Where’s Fenton This Time?: Testifying in Washington.  Until Chapter XX, of course.  Saves the boys’ life. Of course. 

Which Chums Show Up?: Chet.  Appearing to send them off down south are Callie, Iola and Helen Osborne (who?).

What’s Chet’s Hobby This Time?: Photography.  Yup, gets used.  But I have an official complaint: In 22: The Flickering Torch Mystery, Chet’s hobby is building airplanes from parts.  Yet in this story, Chet says at one point, “I’d sure like to learn to fly these things.”  Are you kidding me?  Seven books ago he’s building an airplane, yet he can’t even fly the things?!

Aunt Gertrude’s Dessert: Apple pie, the basic staple of pies.  Then it’s off down south for the rest of the tale.

Plot: Military general wants to hire Fenton to find some gold his ancestor was said to have buried, but reluctantly hires Frank and Joe when Fenton is called away to Washington.  Frank and Joe go down south, start sniffing around, and go figure, a gang of crooks is looking for the same gold.  Threats and knocks on the head ensue.

Review:  Not my favorite.  It’s almost a by the numbers attempt to get in the elements of a Hardy Boys book, but it doesn’t fly.  It’s a simple treasure hunt, if said hunt was accompanied by homicidal maniacs willing to kill you to get to the treasure first.  So actually, yeah, a simple treasure hunt.  It just doesn’t work as well as it should.  Goodbye Mr. Grambs, thank you for the two 9s you gave us, sorry about the two 6s.

Score: 6

28: THE SIGN OF THE CROOKED ARROW

 

28

Who Wrote It?: Franklin W. Dixon

C’mon, Who Really Wrote it?: Andrew E. Svenson in 1949.  His first since revising 23: The Melted Coins (which I gave an 8) and before that 7: The Secret of the Caves (which only got a 5).  Mr. Svenson will end up writing several of the later volumes.

Was It Revised?: Yes, in 1970 by Priscilla Baker-Carr, who will be revising most of the rest as we go along.

Cover: Rudy Nappi.  Yellow and red are back!  A bit abstract, not actually an event from the book, but thematically accurate.  Mid-level Nappi.

Setting: Bayport and then New Mexico.  Unlike Hunting for Hidden Gold, written originally in 1928, and very much reflecting the Old West in spirit, this one is very much a product of mid-century Americana.  In the late-40s and early-50s, the U.S. went Western mad, so this is very much a Frank-and-Joe-go-West story.  But unlike the Old West setting in Hidden Gold, this is more dude ranch western living.  

Where’s Fenton This Time?: He gets his sorry self shot by an arrow and spends lots of time in the hospital and then recuperating in bed.  In fact, this is why Frank and Joe have to fill in when his sister needs help on her New Mexico ranch.  Don’t worry, he wouldn’t miss his Chapter XX appearance, typically by air.

Which Chums Show Up?: Chet, of course.  Iola appears briefly.

What’s Chet’s Hobby This Time?: Judo.  Yup, gets used.

Aunt Gertrude’s Dessert: After three desserts in the last one, Gertrude had to rest a bit. Don’t worry, the boys get good western cooking.  Chet even eats too much to go riding.  What, like that surprises you?

Plot: Some crooks who knock people out and rob them decide to take their stuff made in New Mexico and travel to, oh, lemme think, what would be a good place to be swindlers?  How about Bayport, all the way across the country, and thick with crack detectives?  Yeah, that’s the idea.  And then they are forced to try to prevent Frank and Joe from going to New Mexico. Hint to crooks: If you hadn’t been stupid enough to set up shop in Bayport, Frank and Joe wouldn’t have a clue you exist!  Anyway, their aunt in New Mexico needs help because her ranch hands start going missing.  Yes, it’s all tightly connected.  And hint to readers: if you ever get invited to ride in a plane with the Hardy Boys, decline with extreme prejudice.  Guaranteed your plane will be tampered with and require an emergency landing.  The FAA should ban these books.

Review:  Not bad, not great.  Amazing coincidence as usual, a bit tiring with all the cliched western speech, amazing how Frank and Joe are expert at everything that the ranch hands spend their living at, but the mystery is interesting, and it keeps you guessing.  And hey, if a kid learns a bit about modern cowboy life, why not?  But remember how I keep drawing parallels with Scooby Doo?  Check out this line from the book: “I would’ve gotten the car, too, if it hadn’t been for you Hardys.”  I’m telling you, the Hardy Boys got there first…

Score: 7

27: THE SECRET OF SKULL MOUNTAIN

27

Who Wrote It?: Franklin W. Dixon

C’mon, Who Really Wrote it?: George Waller Jr. in 1948.  This is Mr. Waller’s only entry into the canon.  Mr. Waller, step on down, this is your book.

Was It Revised?: Yes, in 1966 by David Grambs, and the first one he revised since #6, The Shore Road Mystery (which I liked a lot and gave a 9) and #12, Footprints Under the Window (which I thought was merely OK, and just gave a 6).

Cover: Rudy Nappi.  Classic Nappi, great action moment with a landslide coming down the mountain, and Joe carrying a skull.  All described in the book, folks.

Setting: Bayport, and surroundings.  We never travel too far.

Where’s Fenton This Time?: Hanging around house waiting for word from Chicago, or headed to Chicago, because while the interesting crooks get to be rounded up by his boys, it’s Fenton who takes down an entire syndicate.  Show-off.  But he shows up at the end like the sheriff does at the end of each Scooby Doo episode.  Speaking of which, isn’t this a classic Scooby Doo title, The Secret of Skull Mountain?  Can you just see Shaggy’s legs quivering as he hears the gang’s plans to travel there?

Which Chums Show Up?: Chet, the third Hardy Boy by this point considering how often they include him, and how often he includes himself for Aunt Gertrude’s fine meals, making himself her personal gourmand.  Then there is Biff and Callie and Iola.  Fans of Callie Shaw: this is your book.  She gets to do some detective work and does a fine job of it.  I’m not kidding, she actually does well.  Frank should be proud.

What’s Chet’s Hobby This Time?: No hobby this time.  You’d think his fly fishing from the last book would come in handy by the lake in this book, but noooooo….

Aunt Gertrude’s Dessert: Your patience has been rewarded!  Not one, not two, but three different specific desserts are mentioned here: “generous slices of cherry pie,” as well as apple cake and a seven-layer chocolate nut cake that the boys use to bribe Chet into coming to Skull Mountain.  No, seriously, that’s how they convince Chet.  What?  It works.  Meanwhile Gertrude gets in a snide remark about how the Hardy house is “worse than a railroad station!  People racing in and out any time they please, expecting Laura and me to run a twenty-four hour restaurant service!”  You tell ’em, Gertrude!  You probably had to put down your copy of The Feminine Mystique to cook these beasts their food on demand — nah, she loves it, especially Chet who actually shows appreciation for the grub.

Plot: Something’s wrong with the water supply in Bayport, and the planned new dam that will be up on the lake by Skull Mountain is running into all kinds of resistance.  And a suspicious plumber is up to something.  And it’s amazing how people start acting all hillbilly just a few miles outside of Bayport which is, I remind you, in New York State.

Review:  Good job, Mr. Waller Jr. and Mr. Grambs.   This is classic Hardy Boys, a good mystery that is actually quite straightforward, a scientist is kidnapped, locals are threatening but of mixed motive, the bad guys are suitably rough, and the story moves along.  Plus Frank gets to have a solo adventure in the bay that is quite physically challenging.  And at the end the boys figure it out themselves, and they defeat the bad guys themselves.  Plus the cover is good, and Callie helps out, and Chet does a good job.  I will note that it’s always amazing how these boys will plunge into dangerous situations with little regard for personal safety, just as long as they can solve the mystery they will jump right in.  I hope we never get The Dante’s Inferno Mystery or these boys will be plunging into something they won’t get out of so easily.

Score: 9

26: THE PHANTOM FREIGHTER

 

 

26Who Wrote It?: Franklin W. Dixon

C’mon, Who Really Wrote it?: Amy McFarlane in 1947.  Yes, wife of Leslie McFarlane.  We’ve had Harriet Adams as the author several times, and she is their daughter, but this is the one and only book written by Amy.

Was It Revised?: Yes, in 1970 by Priscilla Baker-Carr.

Cover: Rudy Nappi.  Wow, I always hated this cover, and still do.  The yellow is so overwhelming, and the ghostly effect of the ship is so faint, it just repels me.  If you are a yellow admirer, and you’ve been waiting breathlessly for this cover to finally get reviewed, you now hate me.

Setting: Bayport, and seemingly every port within driving distance, and then at the end of the book a sea voyage.  But it takes until the end of the book for that to happen.  Because once again, crooks who so cleverly come up with an intricate scheme to rob people, pick Bayport and Aunt Gertrude as the scene and victim of the crime.  That’s just asking for trouble…

Where’s Fenton This Time?: Hanging around the edges as usual.  He’s always working on some other angle, hears about the boys and the clues they uncover, gets enthusiastic about what they got done, then goes back to his usual dead ends.  But hey, this time at the end he comes sailing to the rescue.  Literally.

Which Chums Show Up?: Chet, with Callie and Iola popping up briefly, Tony Prito, and Biff has graduated to the point where even Gertrude recommends him to provide muscle.

What’s Chet’s Hobby This Time?: Fly fishing ties.

Aunt Gertrude’s Dessert: Strawberry shortcake, baby!

Plot: An older gentleman contacts the boys, says he has a mystery, but first book me a vacation the three of us will take and I’ll tell you about the mystery later.  Meanwhile somebody is intercepting delivery packages and selling what they steal to stores.  And then there is the report of a phantom freighter out on the water.

Review:  Not bad, Amy.  You learned a lot from your husband, and you created a typical Hardy Boys story.  Where I have a problem, however, is the idea of the older guy trying to get the Hardys to go on vacation with him.  Amy paints it as Frank and Joe being bemused by the man, but I didn’t buy it.  I saw little in this guy’s attitude that made me want to spend time with him.  As for the bad guys, man, 2/3 of the book is them trying to keep Frank and Joe off any ship in port.  When will bad buys learn that trying to stop Frank and Joe from doing something is the fastest way to get them suspicious of you.  Silly smugglers, tricks are for rabbits and kids, not crooks.

Score: 7

25: THE SECRET PANEL

 

25

Who Wrote It?: Franklin W. Dixon

C’mon, Who Really Wrote it?: Harriet S. Adams in 1946.  No more Leslie McFarlane.  But this is the same Ms. Adams who rewrote both books 1 and 2, so she’s not new to this game.

Was It Revised?: Yes, in 1969 by Priscilla Baker-Carr.

Cover: Rudy Nappi.  More orange than red, and Frank is really letting down the side by wearing blue, but I quibble.  This is a great cover, full of action and menace.  Look at the threatening shadow on the wall!  Nicely done.

Setting: Bayport, and seemingly 10 minutes drive in every direction from there.  Read the book to get that.  You know what astounds me?  The crooks in this story move from city to city for their nefarious deeds.  They set up in a new city, pick a local hideout, steal and then move on.  So here’s my question: If Bayport is world famous for harboring the world-famous detective, Fenton Hardy, and his sharp sons who are also world famous, what idiot crook thinks that’s the spot for them to set up?

Where’s Fenton This Time?: He’s good this time.  He’s on the sidelines doing his thing, but when the boys get into a very serious scrape, we see Fenton on his game.  He cooly and methodically figures out how to save his sons.  It’s exciting to finally seeing the master in action.

Which Chums Show Up?: Chet, with Callie and Iola popping up a few times, and they even help out in the case briefly.  Phil gets mentioned once but does not actually appear.

What’s Chet’s Hobby This Time?: He bought a boat.  Which he promptly loses.  Then never buys another one again.  Natch.

Aunt Gertrude’s Dessert: Nothing.  Evidently Bayport has run out of flour or something…

Plot: A house with no visible locks, and a man who is supposed to have died showing up looking very much alive.  Add some crooks who decide to make the lockless house their hangout, and you’ve got trouble, right here in Bayport city.

Review:  A nice one.  There’s a marvelously creepy scene where one brother hears the other say, “let’s go” as they are exploring a deserted house.  Only it wasn’t the other brother saying it.  And the person saying it has no idea the brothers are present.  Very well done scene.  Nice exploration of locksmithing, Fenton gets to shine, it all takes place in Bayport, the secret panel is a rough fate to experience.  I like this one.

Score: 8

24: THE SHORT-WAVE MYSTERY

 

24

Who Wrote It?: Franklin W. Dixon

C’mon, Who Really Wrote it?: Leslie McFarlane in 1945.  And yes, as World War II comes to an end, so does the great Mr. McFarlane’s participation in this series comes to a close.  This is the last Hardy Boys book he wrote, so let me take a moment and thank him for wonderful childhood memories.  Yes, I know, his originals were 25 chapters and written in a more complex manner than the revisions, and what I’m reviewing are the revisions.  But he gave us the Hardy Boys, and for that I am thankful.

Was It Revised?: Yes, in 1966 by Priscilla Baker-Carr.  Just as we say goodbye to Leslie McFarlane, we now say hello to Ms. Carr for she will be revising most of the next dozen or so books.  Ms. Carr, you are now in the spotlight.  Welcome.

Cover: Rudy Nappi.  The red and yellow habit is being carried on by Joe.  This steps back from the recent abstract covers and returns to the classic look: Frank and Joe staring at danger.  This one is a night scene with blowing snow, Frank using his short-wave radio, Joe peering in at some nefarious doings.  Great cover.

Setting: Bayport, and briefly Canada.

Where’s Fenton This Time?: He’s got his routine down pat: be part of some related part of the case that keeps him out of his kid’s hair until he’s needed in chapter XX on Deus Ex Machina airlines.

Which Chums Show Up?: Chet, with Biff, Tony, Phil, Callie and Iola showing up a bit.

What’s Chet’s Hobby This Time?: Taxidermy.  No, he won’t use it after this book.  His closet must be stuffed with old hobby tools…

Aunt Gertrude’s Dessert: Made some nice meals, but no pie.  I’m getting impatient.  And hungry.

Plot: Some strange short-wave transmissions get picked up by Frank and Joe, and some business espionage, and missing jewels, and stuffed animal heads that carry a secret, and juvenile delinquents that Frank and Joe take care of (hi, 1966).  Yes, it all ties together.

Review:  Classic Hardy Boys.  A good mystery involving code words, Chet’s hobby is the center of the Bayport universe, the stuffed animal plot is fun and clever.  It moves.  It works.

Score: 7

23: THE MELTED COINS

23

 

Who Wrote It?: Franklin W. Dixon

C’mon, Who Really Wrote it?: Leslie McFarlane in 1944.

Was It Revised?: Yes, in 1970 by Andrew E. Svenson, one of two he revised, and the second since book 7, The Secret of the Caves.  But Mr. Svenson starts to write his own books soon, but his originals were written about twenty years earlier and were then rewritten by others about the time Mr. Svenson was revising this book.  Confused yet?  Imagine how Mrs. Svenson must have felt when Andy explained it to her.

Cover: Rudy Nappi.  Red and green, somewhat abstract, with Joe holding the secret contents of the briefcase from Pulp Fiction.  And a big, crooked mask looming over them that as a kid I found very helpful in picturing what they were talking about in the book.  A nice, bold cover.

Setting: Upstate New York.  You do know that Bayport is in New York for real, right? Well, they travel to various places upstate, including Niagara Falls.

Where’s Fenton This Time?: Stage left.  He’s off on a different angle of the same case, and then at the end he literally solves Frank and Joe’s case for them while staying offstage until the very end.  Very odd to have it happen that way, making for a bit of an anti-climax climax as the boys wait around waiting to hear if dear old dad wraps up their case for them.

Which Chums Show Up?: Chet, with Biff and Tony making the most deus ex machina entrance of all time and then disappearing again to go fishing.  I’m not kidding.

What’s Chet’s Hobby This Time?: Eating corn soup, evidently.

Aunt Gertrude’s Dessert: None, but she makes a brief appearance to make a salami and cream cheese sandwich for Chet.  Why that kind?  It’s needed later as a clue, so it had to be a weird sandwich that would stand out.

Plot: A Native American mask goes missing, the boys try to find it, while immersing themselves in the community.

Review:  It’s not bad overall.  In fact, despite the unfortunate use of “redskins” (and by a Native American character at that!) that can be chalked up to the ignorance of its time, this book tries hard to be fair to them.  They get nuanced characters, prejudice on both sides is shown to be pointless and harmful, and respect is shown to the culture.  As for the mystery, it’s limited, but interesting, and the bad guys are not the typical ones.  It’s a fun book.

Score: 8