Cheyney, (Reginald Evelyn) Peter (Southouse) 1896-1951 (Harold Brust)

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CHEYNEY, (Reginald Evelyn) Peter (Southouse) 1896-1951 (Harold Brust)

PERSONAL: Some sources list name as Reginald Southouse-Cheyney; born February 22, 1896, in London, England; died June 26, 1951, in London, England; married, 1919 (marriage ended); married second wife (marriage ended); married third wife. Education: Attended University of London.

CAREER: Writer. Worked as law clerk and lawyer. Also worked as a bookmaker, journalist, politician, and song writer. Military service: English Army during World War I; became major.

WRITINGS:

crime novels

Another Little Drink, Collins (London, England), 1940, published as A Trap for Bellamy, Dodd Mead (New York, NY), 1941, published as Premeditated Murder, Avon (New York, NY), 1943.

Dark Duet, Collins (London, England), 1942, Dodd, Mead (New York, NY), 1943, published as The Counter Spy Murders, Avon (New York, NY), 1944.

Sinister Errand, Dodd, Mead (New York, NY), 1945, published as Sinister Murders, Avon (New York, NY), 1957.

Dark Hero, Dodd, Mead (New York, NY), 1946.

The Curiosity of Etienne MacGregor, Locke (London, England), 1947, published as The Sweetheart of the Razors, New English Library (London, England), 1962.

Try Anything Twice, Dodd, Mead (New York, NY), 1948.

You Can Call It a Day, Collins (London, England), 1949, published as The Man Nobody Saw, Dodd, Mead (New York, NY), 1949.

One of Those Things, Collins (London, England), 1949, Dodd, Mead (New York, NY), 1950, published as Mistress Murder, Avon (New York, NY), 1951.

Lady Beware, Dodd, Mead (New York, NY), 1950, published as Lady, Behave! Collins (London, England), 1950.

Dark Bahama, Collins (London, England), 1950, Dodd, Mead (New York, NY), 1951, published as I'll Bring Her Back, Eton (New York, NY), 1952.

Ladies Won't Wait, Dodd, Mead (New York, NY), 1951, published as Cocktails and the Killer, Avon (New York, NY), 1957.

"lemmy caution" series; crime novels

This Man Is Dangerous, Collins (London, England), 1936, Coward McCann (New York, NY), 1938.

Poison Ivy, Collins (London, England), 1937.

Dames Don't Care, Collins (London, England), 1937, Coward McCann (New York, NY), 1938.

Can Ladies Kill? Collins (London, England), 1938.

Don't Get Me Wrong, Collins (London, England), 1939.

You'd Be Surprised, Collins (London, England), 1940.

Your Deal, My Lovely, Collins (London, England), 1941.

Never a Dull Moment, Collins (London, England), 1942.

You Can Always Duck, Collins (London, England), 1943.

I'll Say She Does! Collins (London, England), 1945, Dodd, Mead (New York, NY), 1946.

"slim callaghan" series; crime novels

The Urgent Hangman, Collins (London, England), 1938, Coward McCann (New York, NY), 1939.

Dangerous Curves, Collins (London, England), 1939, published as Callaghan, Belmont (New York, NY), 1973.

You Can't Keep the Change, Collins (London, England), 1940, Dodd, Mead (New York, NY), 1944.

It Couldn't Matter Less, Collins (London, England), 1941, Arcadia House (New York, NY), 1943, published as Set-up for Murder, Pyramid (New York, NY), 1950.

Sorry You've Been Troubled, Collins (London, England), 1942, published as Farewell to the Admiral, Dodd, Mead (New York, NY), 1943.

The Unscrupulous Mr. Callaghan, Handi-Books (New York, NY), 1943.

They Never Say When, Collins (London, England), 1944, Dodd, Mead (New York, NY), 1945.

Uneasy Terms, Collins (London, England), 1946, Dodd, Mead (New York, NY), 1947.

"everard peter quayle" series; espionage novels

The Stars Are Dark, Dodd, Mead (New York, NY), 1943, published as The London Spy Murders, Avon (New York, NY), 1944.

The Dark Street, Dodd, Mead (New York, NY), 1944, published as The Dark Street Murders, Avon (New York, NY), 1946.

Dark Interlude, Dodd, Mead (New York, NY), 1947, published as The Terrible Night, Avon (New York, NY), 1959.

Dark Wanton, Collins (London, England), 1948, Dodd, Mead (New York, NY), 1949.

crime-story collections

You Can't Hit a Woman, and Other Stories, Collins (London, England), 1937.

Knave Takes Queen, Collins (London, England), 1939.

Mister Caution—Mister Callaghan, Collins (London, England), 1941.

Adventures of Alonzo MacTavish, Todd (London, England), 1943.

Alonzo MacTavish Again, Todd (London, England), 1943.

Love with a Gun, and Other Stories, Todd (London, England), 1943.

The Murder of Alonzo, Todd (London, England), 1943.

Account Rendered, Vallancey Press (London, England), 1944.

The Adventures of Julia, Poynings Press (Brighton, England), 1945, published as The Adventures of Julia and Two Other Spy Stories, Todd (London, England), 1954, published as The Killing Game, Belmont (New York, NY), 1975.

Dance without Music, Vallancey Press (London, England), 1945, Dodd, Mead (New York, NY), 1948.

Escape for Sandra, Poynings Press (Brighton, England), 1945.

Night Club, Poynings Press (Brighton, England), 1945, published as Dressed to Kill, Todd (London, England), 1952.

A Tough Spot for Cupid, and Other Stories, Vallancey Press (London, England), 1945.

You Can't Trust Duchesses, and Other Stories, Vallancey Press (London, England), 1945.

G Man at the Yard, Poynings Press (Brighton, England), 1946.

Date after Dark, and Other Stories, Todd (London, England), 1946.

He Walked in Her Sleep, and Other Stories, Todd (London, England), 1946, published as MacTavish, Belmont (New York, NY), 1973.

The Man with Two Wives, and Other Stories, Todd (London, England), 1946.

A Spot of Murder, and Other Stories, Todd (London, England), 1946.

Time for Caution, Foster (Hounslow, England), 1946.

Vengeance with a Twist, and Other Stories, Vallancey Press (London, England), 1946.

Lady in Green, and Other Stories, Bantam (London, England), 1947.

A Matter of Luck, and Other Stories, Bantam (London, England), 1947.

Cocktail for Cupid, and Other Stories, Bantam (London, England), 1948.

Cocktail Party, and Other Stories, Bantam (London, England), 1948.

Fast Work, and Other Stories, Bantam (London, England), 1948.

Information Received, and Other Stories, Bantam (London, England), 1948.

The Unhappy Lady, and Other Stories, Bantam (London, England), 1948.

The Lady in Tears, and Other Stories, Bantam (London, England), 1949.

Velvet Johnnie, and Other Stories, Todd (London, England), 1952.

Calling Mr. Callaghan, Todd (London, England), 1953.

The Best Stories of Peter Cheyney, edited by Viola G. Garvin, Faber (London, England), 1954.

The Mystery Blues, and Other Stories, Todd (London, England), 1954, published as Fast Work, Four Square (London, England), 1964.

radio plays

The Adventures of Alonzo MacTavish (serial), 1939.

The Callaghan Touch (serial), 1941.

Knave Takes Queen (adapted from Cheyney's story), 1941.

The Key, 1941.

The Lady Talks, 1942.

Again—Callaghan, 1942.

The Perfumed Murder, 1943.

Concerto for Crooks, 1943.

Parisian Ghost, 1943.

The Callaghan Come-Back (serial), 1943.

The Adventures of Julia (adapted from Cheyney's story), 1945.

Way Out, 1945.

Pay-off for Cupid, 1946.

Duets for Crooks, 1946.

other

Three Character Sketches, Reynolds (London, England), 1927.

(Under pseudonym Harold Brust) "I Guarded Kings":The Memoirs of a Political Police Offıcer, Stanley Paul (London, England), 1935.
(Under pseudonym Harold Brust) In Plain Clothes:Further Memoirs of a Political Police Offıcer, Stanley Paul (London, England), 1937.
(With others) Wife of General Ling (screenplay), 1937.

(Editor) Best Stories of the Underworld, Faber (London, England), 1942.

Making Crime Pay, Faber (London, England), 1944.

No Ordinary Cheyney, Faber (London, England), 1948.

Also contributor to periodicals. Editor, St. John Ambulance Gazette, 1928-43; news editor, Sunday Graphic, 1933-34.

ADAPTATIONS: Uneasy Terms was adapted for film in 1948; Sinister Errand (also published as Sinister Murders) was adapted as the film Courier, 1952; Lemmy Caution also appears as the protagonist in filmmaker Jean-Luc Godard's Alphaville, 1965; various other novels by Cheyney have been filmed in France.

SIDELIGHTS: Peter Cheyney was a prolific English writer whose publications include crime fiction featuring grim American detective Lemmy Caution. Cheyney published the first Caution tale, This Man Is Danger, in 1936, and in the ensuing ten years he completed nine more works, including Can Ladies Kill? and Your Deal, My Lovely. The Caution tales, which sold immensely well in England, also proved popular in France, where they inspired various film adaptations and variations, including Jean-Luc Godard's futuristic mystery Alphaville.

Cheyney's other publications include a series of novels featuring Slim Callaghan, a deceitful private detective based in London, and still others concerning Everard Peter Quayle, a tight-lipped, English espionage agent pitted against Nazi agents. Cheney produced eight Callaghan novels, including The Urgent Hangman and Uneasy Terms, and he published four Quayle mysteries, including The Stars Are Dark (also published as The London Spy Murders) and Dark Wanton. Cheyney ranked the Quayle tales as his finest writings.

In addition to issuing more than thirty mystery novels, Cheyney published more than thirty collections of crime stories and mysteries. His works in this genre include numerous tales featuring Alonzo MacTavish, a rakish burglar. Collections relating the exploits of the debonair jewel thief include Adventures of Alonzo MacTavish, Alonzo MacTavish Again, and The Murder of Alonzo.