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Born in Sedalia, Missouri, in 1896, Joel Townsley Rogers was one of the most prolific and versatile writers of the pulp
magazine era. While an undergraduate at Harvard, he wrote for The Advocate and was part of the editorial board of The
Crimson. He left Harvard a year early in order to serve in the Army in the First World War. After the War, he married
Winifred Whitehouse, an artist, with whom he raised a family in Georgetown and where he wrote five novels -- Once In A
Red Moon (1923), The Red Right Hand (1945), Lady With The Dice (1946), The Stopped Clock (1958) and
a revision of Clock re-titled Never Leave My Bed (1963) -- as well as literally hundreds of short stories in
a variety of genres. His work appeared in many of the pulps, including Adventure, Argosy, Detective Fiction
Weekly, Snappy Stories, Thrilling Wonder Stories, and Wings. He died in 1984 in a nursing home in
Washington, DC.
The only one of Rogers’ novels that I have read is The Red Right Hand, fortunately it is considered Rogers’
masterpiece. It has been reprinted a number of times, remaining continuously in print, so it is the one novel of his that
is readily available. It is a terrific thriller told in the first-person. His style might be compared to Cornell Woolrich
on methamphetamine. It maintains a constant rush of action, sustains suspense, includes some Grand Guignol frissons,
and ends with the unmasking of the most “least likely” villain since The Murder of Roger Ackroyd.
Rogers’ other four novels are now available from Ramble House so I hope to find the opportunity to read them in the near future. This is a free plug; I’m not affiliated with the
publisher.
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