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    Mystery Publishers

    • Academy Chicago Publishers
      An imprint of the Chicago Review Press. Features a number of interesting authors, most long out of print, plus some other odds and ends, including some horror stories by Conan Doyle.
    • Crippen & Landru
      Crippen & Landru publish mystery short story collections. Of particular interest is what they call "Lost Classics," a series of anthologies of mostly uncollected stories by authors who might be enjoyed by a new generation of readers.
    • Dean Street Press
      This small British publisher has a great many classic crime books in its much broader catalog. They are bringing back many Golden Age classics by authors who deserve another chance at a new audience.
    • Felony & Mayhem
      This publisher specializes in classic mysteries, broadly defined, including newer mysteries that adhere to classic standards. They have just overhauled their website to make it much more informative and user-friendly.
    • Locked Room International
      A small press, specializing in very good English-language translations of (so far) mostly-French authors of locked room and impossible crime stories. They publish in Print-On-Demand and electronic editions.
    • Merion Press
      The Merion Press is an independent publisher of out-of-print works that were originally published over 75 years ago, but are enduring even today.
    • MysteriousPress.com
      The brainchild of editor/anthologist/author/bookstore-owner Otto Penzler, the Mysterious Press has recently returned to life and now works with Open Road Media as an electronic book publisher. It is already republishing the work of a lot of classic authors, with more books on the way.
    • Oconee Spirit Press
      A small, independent publisher committed to publishing "lively fiction, and provocative non-fiction." Most of their list covers early works by established authors writing traditional mysteries, such as Carolyn Hart and Margaret Maron.
    • Oleander Press
      This small eclectic British publisher has begun publishing a series of classic British mystery novels, primarily from the Golden Age. The series is grouped into a section of their catalogue named "London Bound," as the books are set in London.
    • Ostara Publishing
      "Ostara Publishing re-issues titles that have unjustifiably become unavailable either through the ravages of time or the forces of publishing economics. We specialise in Crime and Thriller fiction titles and our range goes from the1920s through to the 21st century. We publish thematically and currently have six series available. All our titles are published in a 'trade paperback' format and printed to order."
    • Poisoned Pen Press
      Based in Scottsdale, Arizona, the Poisoned Pen Press publishes a fairly wide variety of mysteries. Some are reprints; many are new, by newer authors. Their website has a great deal of information about their books and authors.

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    June 15, 2010

    Birthday for a "Psycho"

    Happy 50th Birthday tomorrow to one of the best, and most frightening, classic mystery movies ever made. On June 16, 1960, Alfred Hitchcock's brilliant thriller "Psycho" was released to the public.

    "Psycho" broke all kinds of rules. One of the most noteworthy: a key star was murdered - very much onscreen - early in the movie. "Psycho" turned the act of taking a shower into a nightmare for millions of us. And the shocking ending of the movie still ranks as one of the most horrifying scenes ever.

    Those were the days, of course, when directors knew how to make effective horror films without needing buckets of blood and guts. "Psycho" was made in black and white. No 3D effects. Very little real on-screen violence. Just good acting and, of course, Hitchcock's incredible direction. Even in the classic horror scenes, you never saw what you might have thought you had seen. It was the direction, the editing, the acting (not to mention Bernard Herrmann's music) that made the movie work and scared the stuffing out of you.

    ABCNEWS.com has a fine article about the movie and its birthday. It reminds us that the audience HAD to be seated in the theater by the beginning of the movie - latecomers would not be allowed in. Those of us who had seen it knew there was a good reason for that. If you have never seen it - go ahead. Scare yourself. But take your shower before you watch it.

    Hat tip: Buck Wolf and AOL Weird News

    Posted at 10:35 AM in Film, Television, Thrillers |

    Tags: classic mysteries, horror movies, mystery movies, Psycho

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      That means that if you order anything from Amazon through a link from my site I get a small commission. As a result, I'd consider it a favor if you would consider making your purchases through my links. As always, though, if you have a local mystery book store, I encourage you to use them as your first choice. For anything else...thank you.

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