Alfred Hitchcock's Mystery Magazine

Last updated
Alfred Hitchcock's Mystery Magazine
AHMM NovDec2023 cover.png
November/December 2023 cover
EditorLinda Landrigan
Former editorsCathleen Jordan
Categories Crime fiction, detective fiction
FrequencyBi-Monthly
Founded1956
Company Dell Magazines (1992)
Davis Publications (197592)
HSD Publications (195675)
CountryUnited States
Based in New York City
LanguageEnglish
Website www.alfredhitchcockmysterymagazine.com OOjs UI icon edit-ltr-progressive.svg
ISSN 0002-5224
OCLC 1479088

Alfred Hitchcock's Mystery Magazine (AHMM) is a bi-monthly digest size fiction magazine specializing in crime and detective fiction. AHMM is named for Alfred Hitchcock, the famed director of suspense films and television.

Contents

History

AHMM was founded in 1956 by HSD Publications, which licensed the use of the director's name. Though there was no formal connection with the television show, stories published in the magazine were sometimes adapted by the producers of Alfred Hitchcock Presents , and later, The Alfred Hitchcock Hour . A few writers, such as Henry Slesar, wrote for both. Other contributors during the magazine’s early years included Evan Hunter (pen name Ed McBain), Ed Lacy, Bill Pronzini, Jim Thompson, Donald E. Westlake and Charles Willeford (who briefly worked for the magazine). Patricia Hitchcock, Alfred's daughter, also briefly worked for the magazine.

In 1975, AHMM was acquired by Davis Publications, which later sold the magazine along with its sister publication, Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine to Dell Magazines in 1992.

Since 2002, it has been edited by Linda Landrigan.

After EQMM, AHMM is the second-longest-running mystery fiction magazine. In 2006, the magazine celebrated its 50th anniversary with the publication of the anthology Alfred Hitchcock’s Mystery Magazine Presents Fifty Years of Crime and Suspense.

In 2007, AHMM joined with The Wolfe Pack, a society founded in 1978 to celebrate the Nero Wolfe stories of Rex Stout, to sponsor the Black Orchid Novella Contest for stories in the “classic detective” style of Stout’s Nero Wolfe. [1]

Owners

Editors

Circulation Figures

YearNumber of Copies Printed
201319,270
201714,509
202310,275

Content

Each issue contains original works of short crime or mystery fiction, as well as a book review column “Booked & Printed”, a puzzle, a “Mysterious Photograph” story contest, and a "Mystery Classic" reprint.

Authors

Over its history AHMM has published short fiction by noted mystery novelists such as Robert Bloch, Lawrence Block, G. K. Chesterton, Ron Goulart, Dorothy L. Sayers, and Donald E. Westlake. The magazine has also regularly featured such short story specialists as John H. Dirckx, Kenneth Gavrell, Edward D. Hoch, Jack Ritchie, and Stephen Wasylyk.

Many writers have published their first mystery story in AHMM, including Mitch Alderman, Doug Allyn, Gregory Fallis, Steve Hockensmith, Martin Limón, D. A. McGuire, J. R. Parsons and I. J. Parker.

In recent years, regular contributors have also included Rhys Bowen, Jan Burke, O'Neil De Noux, John F. Dobbyn, Joan Druett, Brendan DuBois, Loren D. Estleman, David Edgerley Gates, Toni L. P. Kelner, R. T. Lawton, Robert Lopresti, [7] Beverle Graves Myers, Jas R. Petrin, Anthony Rainone, Stephen Ross, Gilbert M. Stack, Marianne Wilski Strong, Steven Torres, Elaine Viets, James Lincoln Warren, [7] Sarah Weinman, Mike Wiecek and Angela Zeman. [7]

Awards

AHMM stories have won almost every major mystery award, including The Edgar Award for Best Short story, presented by the Mystery Writers of America; the Robert L. Fish Award for Best First Short Story; the Agatha Award for Best Short Story, presented at the Malice Domestic conference; and the Shamus Award for Best P.I. Short Story, presented by the Private-Eye Writers of America.

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rex Stout</span> American writer (1886–1975)

Rex Todhunter Stout was an American writer noted for his detective fiction. His best-known characters are the detective Nero Wolfe and his assistant Archie Goodwin, who were featured in 33 novels, and 41 novellas and short stories, between 1934 and 1975.

Donald Moffitt was an American author who wrote a number of science fiction novels. Most famous among these are The Genesis Quest and Second Genesis. While he was the author of many titles under his own name he also used the pseudonyms Paul Kenyon, Victor Sondheim, and Paul King. In the 1950s, Moffitt published approximately 100 short stories under 15 or more pen names, in magazines like Man's Action, Wildcat, Gent, and Monsieur, while editing trade magazines by day. Known for his science fiction, Moffitt later turned his attention to historical mysteries.

<i>Ellery Queens Mystery Magazine</i> American crime fiction magazine

Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine is a bi-monthly American digest size fiction magazine specializing in crime fiction, particularly detective fiction, and mystery fiction. Launched in fall 1941 by Mercury Press, EQMM is named after the fictitious author Ellery Queen, who wrote novels and short stories about a fictional detective named Ellery Queen. From 1993, EQMM changed its cover title to be Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine, but the table of contents still retains the full name.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Henry Slesar</span> American novelist

Henry Slesar was an American author, playwright, and copywriter. He is famous for his use of irony and twist endings. After reading Slesar's "M Is for the Many" in Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine, Alfred Hitchcock bought it for adaptation and they began many successful collaborations. Slesar wrote hundreds of scripts for television series and soap operas, leading TV Guide to call him "the writer with the largest audience in America."

Steve Hockensmith is an American author. He was born in Louisville, Kentucky. He currently lives in California's bay area with his wife, two children, and pet dog.

The Nero Award is a literary award for excellence in the mystery genre presented by The Wolfe Pack, a society founded in 1978 to explore and celebrate the Nero Wolfe stories of Rex Stout. The Nero Award is presented annually at the Black Orchid Banquet, traditionally held on the first Saturday in December in New York City.

"Method Three for Murder" is a Nero Wolfe mystery novella by Rex Stout, first serialized in three issues of The Saturday Evening Post. It first appeared in book form in the short-story collection Three at Wolfe's Door, published by the Viking Press in 1960.

"The Rodeo Murder" is a Nero Wolfe mystery novella by Rex Stout, first published in April 1960 in the short-story collection Three at Wolfe's Door.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jane K. Cleland</span> American author

Jane K. Cleland is a contemporary American author of mystery fiction. She is the author of the Josie Prescott Antiques Mysteries, a traditional mystery series set in New Hampshire and featuring antiques appraiser Josie Prescott, as well as books and articles about the craft of writing. Cleland has been nominated for and has won numerous awards for her writing.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Disguise for Murder</span> Short story by Rex Stout

"Disguise for Murder" is a Nero Wolfe mystery novella by American writer Rex Stout, first published as "The Twisted Scarf" in the September 1950 issue of The American Magazine. It first appeared in book form in the short-story collection Curtains for Three, published by the Viking Press in 1951.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Omit Flowers</span> Short story by Rex Stout

"Omit Flowers" is a Nero Wolfe mystery novella by Rex Stout, first published in the November 1948 issue of The American Magazine. It first appeared in book form in the short-story collection Three Doors to Death, published by the Viking Press in 1950.

"Death of a Demon" is a Nero Wolfe mystery novella by Rex Stout, first serialized in three issues of The Saturday Evening Post. It first appeared in book form in the short-story collection Homicide Trinity, published by the Viking Press in 1962.

"Fourth of July Picnic" is a Nero Wolfe mystery novella by Rex Stout, first published as "The Labor Union Murder" in the July 9, 1957, issue of Look magazine. It first appeared in book form in the short-story collection And Four to Go, published by the Viking Press in 1958.

"Murder Is No Joke" is a Nero Wolfe mystery novella by Rex Stout, first published in the 1958 short-story collection And Four to Go.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jack Ritchie</span> American writer

John George Reitci was an American writer, primarily known for his vast output of crime fiction short stories under the pen name Jack Ritchie. He completed one novel shortly before his death; it was published posthumously in 1987.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Man Alive (short story)</span> Short story by Rex Stout

"Man Alive" is a Nero Wolfe mystery novella by Rex Stout, first published in the December 1947 issue of The American Magazine. It first appeared in book form in the short-story collection Three Doors to Death, published by the Viking Press in 1950.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kill Now—Pay Later</span> Short story by Rex Stout

"Kill Now—Pay Later" is a Nero Wolfe mystery novella by Rex Stout, first serialized in three issues of The Saturday Evening Post. It first appeared in book form in the short-story collection Trio for Blunt Instruments, published by the Viking Press in 1964.

"Blood Will Tell" is a Nero Wolfe mystery novella by Rex Stout, first published in the December 1963 issue of Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine. It first appeared in book form in the short-story collection Trio for Blunt Instruments, published by the Viking Press in 1964.

This is a bibliography of fiction by and works about the American writer Rex Stout, an American writer noted for his detective fiction. He began his literary career in the 1910s, writing more than 40 stories that appeared primarily in pulp magazines between 1912 and 1918. He then wrote no fiction for more than a decade, until the late 1920s, when he had saved enough money through his business activities to write when and what he pleased. In 1929, he wrote his first published book, How Like a God, an unusual psychological story written in the second person. He wrote a pioneering political thriller, The President Vanishes (1934), before specializing in detective fiction. His 1934 novel Fer-de-Lance introduced his best-known characters, detective Nero Wolfe and his assistant Archie Goodwin, who were featured in 33 novels and 39 novellas and short stories between 1934 and 1975. In 1959, Stout received the Mystery Writers of America's Grand Master Award. The Nero Wolfe corpus was nominated as Best Mystery Series of the Century at Bouchercon XXXI, the world's largest mystery convention, and Rex Stout was nominated as Best Mystery Writer of the Century.

The Wolfe Pack is a literary society devoted to Rex Stout's character Nero Wolfe.

References

  1. "Black Orchid Novella Award". Alfred Hitchcock. Retrieved 2023-10-30.
  2. "Magazine Contents Lists: Page 13". www.philsp.com. Retrieved 2023-09-18.
  3. "Magazine Contents Lists: Page 14". www.philsp.com. Retrieved 2023-09-18.
  4. "Magazine Contents Lists: Page 15". www.philsp.com. Retrieved 2023-09-18.
  5. "Magazine Data File". www.philsp.com. Retrieved 2023-09-18.
  6. "Alfred Hitchcock's Mystery Magazine - The Alfred Hitchcock Wiki". the.hitchcock.zone. Retrieved 2023-09-18.
  7. 1 2 3 Warren, James; Lopresti, Rob; Zeman, Angela (2009). "The Mystery Short Story WebLog Project". Crime Fiction. Los Angeles: Criminal Brief. Archived from the original on 10 February 2010. Retrieved 2010-02-20.