Celebrating 91 Years of Nancy Drew

91 YEARS OF NANCY DREW

HOW DO YOU NANCY DREW?

As we pass the 91st Anniversary of Nancy Drew, I often wonder how we're all celebrating the milestones that keep coming. Are we collectively celebrating or are we individually doing our own Nancy thing in our own Nancy way as we Sleuths often do. What do you do to celebrate Nancy Drew? What do you know about the series and how it began and those who created it? Are you interested in the history or are you more into the collecting aspect? What level of a collector are you and how do you collect? These are some questions that intrigue me as I meet new collectors and interact with many of you online.

It's often said, that if we don't learn from history we'll be doomed to repeat it. But what of Nancy Drew's intricate history over the years? What is the history there, lessons to be learned, things one should know about? What's that mysterious Stratemeyer Syndicate and who was Edward Stratemeyer?

If you think about the mystery behind Stratemeyer, his businesslike demeanor, his ability to create and put out a lot of stories through ghostwriters employed by his Stratemeyer Syndicate, even with what we know, he still has an air of mystery about him. One can picture Stratemeyer commuting to NYC to his office, stories running through his head, characters all around him in the lively streets of New York. His days at work spent churning out story ideas capturing the latest adventures in the world and capitalizing on popular themes and farming out manuscripts to publishers around such beloved characters as the Bobbsey Twins, The Hardy Boys, Tom Swift and Nancy Drew. After whipping up adventures with the stroke of a pen, off he went back to New Jersey to his storybook home and family, most unassuming in his manner and what he did and all those amazing ideas on his mind. His was certainly a storybook life. I think he's quite fascinating. To many, he's a mystery of sorts. One which you can get a sense of by picking away at the puzzle pieces throughout the Syndicate's business files at the New York Public Library. Letters, plots, manuscripts, and news clippings all tell part of the tale there.

What about his untimely death nearly two weeks after Nancy Drew debuted in May 1930? The fate of the Syndicate in the hands of his daughters, Harriet and Edna. It was a cliffhanger that Stratemeyer might never have imagined. One that would engage the publishing world for over 50 more years until the Syndicate closed its doors and sold to Simon & Schuster in 1984.

And what of the ghostwriters who have churned out over 600 Nancy Drew books since 1930? Most have vanished into the literary netherworld, without a trace. Some more infamous, we know about today. Including the original Carolyn Keene, Mildred Wirt Benson, who I'm writing a biography about.

There have been so many real life characters involved in creating Nancy Drew and in ensuring her enduring appeal over the many generations of loyal fans. It's a very fascinating history and it's a very important history to study and not sweep under the annals of history rug.

There are websites dedicated to Nancy Drew, like mine at nancydrewsleuth.com and other similar series and Stratemeyer. Numerous essays, articles and books have been published over the years that touch on various aspects of this literary history. Many were published before the Stratemeyer Syndicate records were available for research and those records have cleared up a lot of mysteries and some misconceptions in print over the years like some of the more slanted versions of facts put out by the Syndicate in later years in an effort to keep some of its history a mystery. Who wants to think Carolyn Keene is a "dour-looking naval captain," after all, ghostwriter Walter Karig once joked. Nancy's history though, is full of some of Nancy's best mysteries waiting to be fully solved and revealed. There's missing pieces of the puzzle, real life ghosts, real life Nancy Drews, conspiracies, legal threats to "stay off the case or else," even court room drama. Nancy's journey over the last 91 years has included some real cliffhanger moments just like in a Nancy Drew mystery. Some you've read about, some you've no clue about, but that will soon change.

The gist of this history, who the creators behind Nancy Drew were, and highlights of her history along the past 91 years are subjects I focus on in a nice overview in Nancy Drew History & Collecting Zoom talks I've been giving - mostly for libraries - about Nancy Drew for fans who want to learn a little more about their favorite sleuth. Growing up with these wonderful mysteries we solved along with Nancy Drew, for some of us, we're intrigued about the real life mysteries behind America's favorite teenage sleuth. I like to keep that history alive and give fans something more to think about and perhaps intrigue them enough to go sleuth a bit and learn even more. Donating my Nancy Drew collection to the Toledo Public Library is another way to enhance everyone's knowledge of the history behind Nancy Drew but also to showcase another aspect of my Zoom talks - Collecting Nancy Drew 101. With over 600 books to collect since 1930, many of which went through numerous formats, cover art changes, some with text changes, plus various types of editions from library to book club to foreign editions, there's a lot to learn and I like to give a nice overview of it all. Visiting my collection in Toledo is a great way to visually see it all and be inspired about what you can sleuth for out there to add to your collections. In addition to beloved books, there's a whole other category of Nancy Drew collectibles and paper ephemera one can collect. One can view the many hundreds of known items at my Nancy Drew Pinterest in various collectible board categories.

However you celebrate Nancy Drew's anniversary today and whatever your connection is to this intrepid  heroine, take a moment today to reflect on what you love about this character and these books. How did a fictional sleuth like Nancy Drew inspire so many of us in all walks of life even all the way on up to our lady justices on the US Supreme Court? Read  a Nancy Drew book. Stop by your favorite local book haunt and sleuth for something fun to add to your collections. Join us at our Facebook group "Nancy Drew Book Fans" and meet other fans. Ultimately, it's the fans and their loyalty and love of this character and her timeless history that will keep Nancy Drew alive for generations to come.

Nancy Drew & Her Mysterious History Featured on CBC q

I was interviewed for CBC Radio q on Nancy Drew and the segment aired today. The segment focuses on Nancy Drew and the new pilot for the CW and the new Nancy Drew & The Hidden Staircase movie from Warner Brothers, plus I discuss the Stratemeyer Syndicate and Nancy Drew and her mysterious history as I am writing a biography of the first Carolyn Keene - Mildred Wirt Benson - a real life Nancy Drew. Click here to listen.

31 Days of Nancy Drew #23 Nancy Drew History Behind the Mystery

Top: Edward Stratemeyer, Mildred Wirt Benson, Russell H. Tandy, Edna Stratemeyer Squier

Middle: Harriet Stratemeyer Adams, Grace Horton

Bottom: Harriet Otis Smith, Walter Karig, Alexander Grosset & George Dunlap

31 Days of Nancy Drew Topic #23

Nancy Drew - History Behind the Mystery 

Today's brief overview posting is a reprint of sorts - most of this posting appeared here at this blog in 2015 during the 85th anniversary of Nancy Drew and the year Nancy Drew Sleuths hosted 3 mini conventions in three historic locations celebrating the history behind Nancy Drew and The Stratemeyer Syndicate. I spoke briefly on this content at the Maplewood Public Library during our convention in NJ in 2015 when we put on a library program there to celebrate The Stratemeyer Syndicate and Nancy Drew and donated a full set of brand new classic Nancy Drew books to the library. This is a brief post about these individuals, you can learn more at my website and check out my source page at my website for books that go more in-depth into some of these people and the history behind Nancy Drew.
 

The DREW Team

She's solved mysteries so baffling that the River Heights police force couldn't ever solve. She's traveled far and wide to places like Turkey, Peru, Kenya and Charlottesville, VA. She's been knocked unconscious numerous times. Chloroformed. Kidnapped. Threatened with rocks, warning notes, telegrams and menacing animals. Strangled, tortured, and impersonated. Nothing foils Nancy Drew for too long, even the sometime annoying antics of chums Bess and George the fraidy-foodie and the tomboy-judo "master". She's even weathered the marriage and disappearance of pal Helen Corning, her father nearly being in the devious clutches of that sly Marty King, and numerous Emerson dances and chats about football and insurance sales with her "special friend" Ned Nickerson. With nary a retort at unruly suspects, grace under fire, and often a wan smile after coming to from being knocked out, she always got back in the saddle...er...roadster and eventually saved the day and rounded up all the dastardly villains for the police. All in a day's or vacation's work... To some, this might seem like perfection, but to most, we wouldn't have had it any other way. So, I say cloche hats off to Mystery's IT Girl and may Nancy Drew have many more mysteries to solve in her future!

When Nancy Drew debuted in 1930, she truly was in many respects a trailblazer of series heroines and by the end of the year, sales were going very well and steadily grew--by the first few books, she was quite a success if you go by sales figures in the New York Public Library. Considering the time period was during the Great Depression when many series went out of print and faltered, just what was it about Nancy Drew that helped her weather this dreary economic time and prepare her for the war years to come and all the paper shortages which also caused various series to take hits?

Before she became Mystery's IT Girl, there was the "Dream Team" or "Drew Team" who guaranteed her success in life, as she morphed from "Stella Strong" to "Nan Drew" to "Nancy Drew" and then got right down to business solving mysteries in her first case, The Secret of the Old Clock. Without this dreamy "Drew Team," who knows what fate might have had in store for generations of readers, why Nancy Drew Sleuths might be the "Elsie Dinsmore Sleuths" and that would be, frankly, just too namby pamby for words!

The "Drew" Team, who helped create and produce Nancy Drew and who made her the success she would become, is who we owe a hearty thanks to, for without them, I don't think Nancy Drew would be the pop culture icon that she is today. Let's take a moment and reflect on who helped make Nancy Drew such a success in her early 1930s years, which guaranteed a foundation that would transcend to her still today, modern-day sleuthing.

The 1930s "Drew Team":

Edward Stratemeyer

Inventor of Nancy Drew. He brought to the table years of experience at capitalizing on very popular themes with young people as he wrote and  produced many popular series like the Rover Boys, Ted Scott, Tom Swift, the Bobbsey Twins and the newer Hardy Boys series which debuted 3 years before Nancy Drew in 1927. He produced the outlines for the first four books and edited on these. He also knew that his current Ruth Fielding ghostwriter, Mildred A. Wirt, was just the right person to handle the treatment of the Nancy Drew series and that with a little work and adjustment, she'd turn out a fine story.

Mildred Wirt Benson

Iowa native, Mildred Wirt Benson, having grown up with a doting father and lots of freedom like Nancy Drew, gave life to Nancy Drew with a bright, bold fresh characterization and a snappy visualization of mid-western River Heights. She had been writing since she was a child and had chanced up on an advertisement Stratemeyer placed in a trade publication - The Editor - it led to her ghosting the Ruth Fielding series. She had always preferred boys' series books growing up as they were more exciting and adventurous. She always felt that girls could do the same things boys could, and therefore, so could Nancy. She wrote books 1-7, 11-25, and 30. I am currently writing a biography about Benson.

Walter Karig 

Navy man and Syndicate ghost - when he stepped in to write #8 Nancy's Mysterious Letter, it could have made or broken Nancy Drew. His amicable style of writing with overtones of humor and drama--a dramedy of thrills, that helped bring alive Ned Nickerson's world at Emerson College, handle a family drama and darker twisted set of villains in The Sign of the Twisted Candles and the dastardly doings in The Password to Larkspur Lane, were such that no great continuity problems are to be found between Wirt and Karig's Nancys--and the mysteries all flowed well together.

Harriet Otis Smith

Stratemeyer's very capable assistant, Smith, who assisted Edward on volumes 1-3, was heavily involved on volume 4 during Stratemeyer's illness, is often unknown and uncredited for all her hard work at the Syndicate. It was Smith who wrote the outline for book 5, The Secret at Shadow Ranch, and who most likely created the mostly beloved characters of Bess and George. It was also through her efficient management, that once Stratemeyer passed away on May 10, 1930, that the publishing of Syndicate series didn't grind to a halt and the transition to Stratemeyer's daughters would be reasonably successful.

Nancy Drew's Early Success Then & The Legacy

It shouldn't go without being mentioned, that by 1934 and through the Great Depression and when many series came and went, Nancy Drew series had became a hit - and this was recognized in an article in the April 1934 issue of Fortune Magazine - an Ayers Brinser profile on Stratemeyer, "For It Was Indeed He". A famous quote from this article is this one - "As oil had it's Rockefeller, literature had its Stratemeyer." Brinser wrote of the Nancy Drew series, "Nancy is the greatest phenomenon among all the fifty-centers. She is a best seller." What Edward Stratemeyer helped create would go on today to still be a very long running popular series still in print and new books being published and a character that has resonated with millions of fans over the years. I think Edward would be most proud of that legacy and that his own daughters continued the business for many years after his death.

Edna Stratemeyer Squier

Edna's huge contribution to Nancy Drew's early success is frankly often forgotten and little is mentioned about her in the mainstream. It was Edna who plotted and wrote the outlines for most of the early Nancy Drew books after she and her sister Harriet took over the Syndicate fall of 1930. Her interest in mysticism and spiritualism inspired some interesting plots and characters too. Previous to her, as noted above, books 1-5 were handled by her father Edward and then his assistant Harriet Otis Smith. Once the sisters took over running The Syndicate, until 1940, Edna handled most of the Nancy Drew outlines/editing with the exception of four that her sister Harriet did. Edna plotted books 6, 7, 8, 11, 12, 13, 14, 16, 18 before she left the Syndicate to move to Florida in the early 1940s. It was Edna, who truly had an influence on Nancy's character during the early years on the creative side of things along with Wirt. She later said to her sister Harriet about Wirt, "Her style made the Nancys!"

Harriet Stratemeyer 

Harriet, like her sister Edna, knew the Syndicate must go on after they couldn't find a suitable buyer - Great Depression and all - but her function for the early Nancy Drews was mostly as editor. She did outline 2 of ghostwriter Walter Karig's books--books 9 and 10 and then also outlines for books 15 and 17 before taking over with book 19 after Edna left in the 1940s. It was Harriet's outlines that especially became voluminous by the 1940s and it was Harriet who got Nancy through the war years and other trials and tribulations in the years after that. By the 1950s, she eventually began writing the books after the ghostwriting was brought in-house instead of being farmed out to other ghostwriters. Harriet's time with Nancy spanned generations, a testament to her dedication to her father's business and his work. She oversaw the revisions process for the first 34 books, and weathered the storm of transitioning from one long term publishing relationship with Grosset & Dunlap to a new publisher in Simon & Schuster and a stressful courtroom battle over that. Her ghost is said to haunt her NJ farm today, where she outlined and wrote some of her Nancy Drew books.

Russell H. Tandy

Commercial illustrator, Russell H. Tandy, won out for the job of bringing Nancy Drew to life over fellow illustrator Frank Townsend, when Edward sent samples of both Townsend and Tandy's work to Grosset & Dunlap. Tandy was a master at series illustration and was adept at giving Nancy Drew a very sophisticated style with boldness and lovely expressions. He also tended to use very patriotic colors like red, white and blue by the 1940s too, during the war years. Nancy Drew may have been 18, but she appeared very mature and capable--even a bit mysterious, as a plucky sleuth should be. He illustrated covers and internal illustrations through the late 1940s. His covers, almost like cliffhangers unto themselves, would have led kids to judge the books very well indeed by their appealing, almost beckoning scenes.

Grace Horton

She may have grown up on Horton Ice Cream, but her figure, like Nancy's, was just the look to bring Nancy Drew alive on the cover of the Nancy Drew books. Her up-to-date blonde all-American looks were just what Edward Stratemeyer had stated Nancy Drew to be, on the outline for The Secret of the Old Clock, and she was a match made in literary dreams. She would go on to be Tandy's muse for the duration of his time working on the series.

Grosset & Dunlap

A powerhouse publisher compared to smaller publishers, Grosset & Dunlap must be credited too, with the publishing end of the deal for it was their very aggressive and well funded sales force whose distribution was key to ensuring that Nancy Drew might be found in every corner of the US, certainly eventually as sales and print runs began to grow great guns even that first year of publication! They also possibly chose the name "Nan Drew" from Stratemeyer's list of character names and lengthened it to Nancy Drew - a name that will forever remain infamous and our Mystery's IT Girl!

Nancy Drew's Enduring Popularity - The "Drew Team"

Top: Edward Stratemeyer, Mildred Wirt Benson, Russell H. Tandy, Edna Stratemeyer Squier

Middle: Harriet Stratemeyer Adams, Grace Horton

Bottom: Harriet Otis Smith, Walter Karig, Alexander Grosset & George Dunlap

Nancy Drew Turns 85!

She's solved mysteries so baffling that the River Heights police force couldn't ever solve. She's traveled far and wide to places like Turkey, Peru, Kenya and Charlottesville, VA. She's been knocked unconscious numerous times. Chloroformed. Kidnapped. Threatened with rocks, warning notes, telegrams and menacing animals. Strangled, tortured, and impersonated. Nothing foils Nancy for too long, even the sometime annoying antics of chums Bess and George the fraidy-foodie and the tomboy-judo "master". She's even weathered the marriage and disappearance of pal Helen Corning, her father nearly being in the devious clutches of that sly Marty King, and numerous Emerson dances and chats about football and insurance sales with her "special friend" Ned Nickerson. With nary a retort at unruly suspects, grace under fire, and often a wan smile after coming to from being knocked out, she always got back in the saddle...er...roadster and eventually saved the day and rounded up all the dastardly villains for the police. All in a day's or vacation's work... To some, this might seem like perfection, but to most, we wouldn't have had it any other way. So, I say cloche hats off to Mystery's IT Girl and may Nancy Drew have many more mysteries to solve in her future!

When Nancy Drew debuted in 1930, she truly was in many respects a trailblazer of series heroines and by the end of the year, sales were going very well and steadily grew--by the first few books, she was quite a success if you go by sales figures in the New York Public Library. Considering the time period was during the Great Depression when many series went out of print and faltered, just what was it about Nancy Drew that helped her weather this dreary economic time and prepare her for the war years to come and all the paper shortages which also caused various series to take hits?

Before she became Mystery's IT Girl, there was the "Dream Team" or "Drew Team" who guaranteed her success in life, as she morphed from "Stella Strong" to "Nan Drew" to "Nancy Drew" and then got right down to business solving mysteries in her first case, The Secret of the Old Clock. Without this dreamy "Drew Team," who knows what fate might have had in store for generations of readers, why Nancy Drew Sleuths might be the "Elsie Dinsmore Sleuths" and that would be, frankly, just too namby pamby for words!

The "Drew" Team, who helped create and produce Nancy Drew and who made her the success she would become, is who we owe a hearty thanks to, for without them, I don't think Nancy Drew would be the pop culture icon that she is today. Let's take a moment and reflect on who helped make Nancy Drew such a success in her early 1930s years, which guaranteed a foundation that would transcend to her still today, modern-day sleuthing.

The 1930s "Drew Team":

Edward Stratemeyer

Inventor of Nancy Drew. He brought to the table years of experience at capitalizing on very popular themes with young people as he wrote and  produced many popular series like the Rover Boys, Ted Scott, Tom Swift, the Bobbsey Twins and the newer Hardy Boys series which debuted 3 years before Nancy Drew in 1927. He produced the outlines for the first four books and edited on these. He also knew that his current Ruth Fielding ghostwriter, Mildred A. Wirt, was just the right person to handle the treatment of the Nancy Drew series and that with a little work and adjustment, she'd turn out a fine story.

Mildred Wirt Benson

This Iowa native, having grown up with a doting father and lots of freedom like Nancy Drew, gave Life to Nancy Drew with a bright, bold fresh characterization and a snappy visualization of mid-western River Heights. She had been writing since she was a child and had chanced up on an advertisement Stratemeyer placed in a  trade publication--it led to her ghosting the Ruth Fielding series. She had always preferred boys' series books growing up as they were more exciting and adventurous. She always felt that girls could do the same things boys could, and therefore, so could Nancy. She wrote books 1-7, 11-25, and 30.

Walter Karig

Navy man and Syndicate ghost - when he stepped in to write #8 Nancy's Mysterious Letter, it could have made or broken Nancy Drew. His amicable style of writing with overtones of humor and drama--a dramedy of thrills, that helped bring alive Ned Nickerson's world at Emerson College, handle a family drama and darker twisted set of villains in The Sign of the Twisted Candles and the dastardly doings on Larkspur Lane, were such that no great continuity problems are to be found between Wirt and Karig's Nancys--and the mysteries all flowed well together.

Harriet Otis Smith

Stratemeyer's very capable assistant, Smith, who assisted Edward on volumes 1-3, was heavily involved on volume 4 during Stratemeyer's illness, is often unknown and uncredited for all her hard work at the Syndicate. It was Smith who wrote the outline for The Secret at Shadow Ranch and who most likely created the mostly beloved characters of Bess and George. It was also through her efficient management, that once Stratemeyer passed away on May 10, 1930, that the publishing of Syndicate series didn't grind to a halt and the transition to Stratemeyer's daughters would be reasonably successful.

Harriet Stratemeyer

Harriet, like her sister Edna, knew the Syndicate must go on after they couldn't find a suitable buyer - Great Depression and all - but her function for the early Nancy Drews was mostly as editor. She did outline 2 of Karig's books--books 9 and 10 and then also outlines for books 15 and 17 before taking over with book 19 after Edna left in the 1940s. It was Harriet's outlines that especially became voluminous by the 1940s and it was Harriet who got Nancy through the war years and other trials and tribulations in the years after that. She began writing the books in the 1950s. Harriet's time with Nancy spanned generations, a testament to her dedication to her father's business and his work. However, it was her sister, Edna, who often is not recognized for being such a creative early force in the Nancy Drew series...

Edna Stratemeyer Squier

Edna's huge contribution to Nancy Drew's early success is frankly often forgotten and little is mentioned about her in the mainstream. It was Edna who plotted and wrote the outlines for most of the early Nancy Drew books after she and her sister Harriet took over the Syndicate fall of 1930. Her interest in mysticism and spiritualism inspired some interesting plots and characters too. Edna plotted books 6, 7, 8, 11, 12, 13, 14, 16, 18 before she left the Syndicate to move to Florida in the early 1940s. It was Edna, who truly had an influence on Nancy's character during the early years on the creative side of things along with Wirt. She later said to her sister Harriet about Wirt, "Her style made the Nancys!"

Russell H. Tandy

Commercial illustrator, Russell H. Tandy, won out for the job of bringing Nancy Drew to life over fellow illustrator Frank Townsend, when Edward sent samples of both Townsend and Tandy's work to Grosset & Dunlap. Tandy was a master at series illustration and was adept at giving Nancy Drew a very sophisticated style with boldness and lovely expressions. He also tended to use very patriotic colors like red, white and blue by the 1940s too, during the war years. Nancy Drew may have been 18, but she appeared very mature and capable--even a bit mysterious, as a plucky sleuth should be. He illustrated covers and internal illustrations through the late 1940s. His covers, almost like cliffhangers unto themselves, would have led kids to judge the books very well indeed by their appealing, almost beckoning scenes.

Grace Horton

She may have grown up on Horton Ice Cream, but her figure, like Nancy's, was just the look to bring Nancy Drew alive on the cover of the Nancy Drew books. Her up-to-date blonde all-American looks were just what Edward Stratemeyer had stated Nancy Drew to be, on the outline for The Secret of the Old Clock, and she was a match made in literary dreams. She would go on to be Tandy's muse for the duration of his time working on the series.

Grosset & Dunlap

A powerhouse publisher compared to smaller publishers, Grosset & Dunlap must be credited too, with the publishing end of the deal for it was their very aggressive and well funded sales force whose distribution was key to ensuring that Nancy Drew might be found in every corner of the US, certainly eventually as sales and print runs began to grow great guns even that first year of publication! They also possibly chose the name "Nan Drew" from Stratemeyer's list of character names and lengthened it to Nancy Drew - a name that will forever remain infamous and our Mystery's IT Girl!

(This article and more anniversary articles can be found in the May/June 2015 issue of The Sleuth.)

Nancy Drew's 85th Spotlight #27

Let's go behind the scenes of The Hidden Staircase for a few interesting items I've found in the Stratemeyer Syndicate files at the NYPL and also from my original outline of this story...

The original outline describes the Turnbull twin sisters as "eccentric but loveable."

The outline refers to Carson Drew several times as "daddy."

When Edward sent Mildred the outline for The Hidden Staircase in 1929, he included the outline for The Secret of the Old Clock for reference.

Edward wrote Mildred in a November 8, 1929 letter, "I trust that you will go a the new story immediately and try to carry it through in the style as the latter chapters of the story just received. Make the characters as vital as possible and connect the incidents as plausibly as possible and give it the intenseness of the latter part of the first story. Then I am sure we shall have what we want."

When he received the manuscript, he wrote Mildred on December 11, 1929 to say "I have received the manuscript of 'The Hidden Staircase' and read it with much satisfaction. It seems to me it ought to interest ay girl who likes mystery stories. I shall make only a few changes and those of small importance."

When writing Hidden Staircase, Mildred departed from the outline in one instance and wrote Edward about it. As the setting was the middle west, she changed the reference to The Mansion being from Revolutionary times to the Civil War to be historically accurate.

Nancy Drew's 85th Spotlight #14

Nancy Drew, Stratemeyer Syndicate, and series book enthusiasts and scholars attending the 2005 Nancy Drew 75th anniversary and 110th Syndicate anniversary Conference in NYC took a side tour to New Jersey to visit historical Stratemeyer Syndicate sites.

Included in the tour was a visit to the grave of the man who was behind it all - Edward Stratemeyer. His monument is quite a monument and features book spines in the design. It's quite fitting and the headstone reads, "With tender devotion we turn the last page...the final chapter closes leaving in young hearts the memory of fine ideals."

Edward was the genius behind many of your favorite series like Tom Swift, The Bobbsey Twins, The Rover Boys, The Hardy Boys and Nancy Drew. Though he passed away just about 2 weeks after the Nancy Drew series debuted in 1930, his daughters Harriet and Edna continued his legacy and the Stratemeyer Syndicate remained in business for another 54 years.

Members attending our Nancy Drew Mini Con #3 this June will get to visit this monument and pay our respects while we go on a literary tour of Syndicate related locations.

Nancy Drew's 85th Spotlight #11

Harriet Stratemeyer Adams, daughter of Edward Stratemeyer, along with her sister Edna, carried on the Stratemeyer Syndicate when their father Edward died just about two weeks after the Nancy Drew series debuted in 1930. From 1930, Harriet ran the family business for over 50 years until she passed away in 1982. Her family's dedication to children's series books--and her fondness for Nancy Drew--guided her all those years as she managed the Syndicate, created new series and eventually wrote quite a few of the classic Nancy Drew books. Read an article I wrote about Harriet for the 75th anniversary of Nancy Drew in 2005 and learn more about her at Nancy Drew Sleuth.com.

Nancy Drew's 85th Spotlight #2

Who is Edward Stratemeyer and what is his connection to Nancy Drew? He created Nancy Drew, one of many series his Stratemeyer Syndicate created and produced over the years. Other similar series include The Hardy Boys, The Bobbsey Twins, Tom Swift (celebrating 105 years this year!), and The Dana Girls. He hired ghostwriters to write stories in these and other series based on his outlines. 

Shortly after the Nancy Drew series debuted in 1930, he passed away - his daughters Harriet and Edna carried on the business for many years after his death.

Happy Birthday to Edward Stratemeyer!

Happy 150th Birthday 

to Edward Stratemeyer!

Today we celebrate the 150th Anniversary of the creator of children's series books like Nancy Drew, The Hardy Boys, The Bobbsey Twins, and Tom Swift. Edward Stratemeyer's literary career was something to marvel at! Called the Father of the fifty-center by Fortune Magazine in 1934, they also stated "As oil had its Rockefeller, Literature had its Stratemeyer."

He formed the Stratemeyer Syndicate in 1905, which produced many of the above series and so many more. He had a great knack for capitalizing on what was popular and making it exciting for kids--from aviation series, to mystery series to sports series. Stories ran the gamut from rags to riches tales to far away adventuring, but always stayed "safe and sane" - a Stratemeyer mantra. His use of pen names and ghostwriters was a very successful strategy which allowed the Syndicate to produce a great number of series and stories.

One of his most famous creations, Nancy Drew, went on to achieve great success and longevity--which he never got the chance to realize for he passed away in May 1930, just two weeks after the Nancy Drew series debuted. His daughters Harriet and Edna went on to run his Syndicate and continue to make it a successful venture. It was eventually sold in 1984 to current owner and publisher Simon and Schuster.

For more information on Edward Stratemeyer you can visit the "Nancy Drew History" section of my website and I recommend Stratemeyer Expert James Keeline's website as well. He's a great resource for anyone wanting to learn more about Stratemeyer as well as series like Tom Swift. James is in the process of reproducing various Stratemeyer works and has some books and stories available for purchase at LuLu - Palmer Street Press Store like Stratemeyer's infamous story, Victor Horton's Idea.

Jenn:)

Happy Birthday Edward Stratemeyer!

Edward Stratemeyer
1862-1930

Today is the 149th anniversary of the birth of Edward Stratemeyer! He was the genius behind the creation of Nancy Drew and many other series like Tom Swift, Hardy Boys, and the Bobbsey Twins.

He formed the Stratemeyer Syndicate in 1905 and hired ghostwriters to write stories in various series under pseudonyms, paying them a flat fee for their work. For over 81 years now, a very "mysterious" Carolyn Keene has been churning out stories in the popular Nancy Drew series--and if you didn't know it, it's just one of these many pseudonyms.

A 1934 Fortune magazine article declared him the father of the 50-center and stated that as "oil had it's Rockefeller, literature had it's Stratemeyer." Many of his juvenile series were performing outstandingly in the market--he had really made his mark on the field of juvenile literature!

He passed away just 2 weeks after one of his most popular series, Nancy Drew, debuted and never had a chance to realize its success. It's success over 81 years later is a legacy indeed not only to Stratemeyer but to his daughters Harriet and Edna who carried on his Syndicate after his passing until it was sold to Simon & Schuster in 1984.

As secretive as the Syndicate was at that time Stratemeyer was running it, even today many people don't know a lot about this man behind all the mystery. Researchers and authors like James Keeline, a Stratemeyer expert, are working to change that. Visit James Keeline's website on Stratemeyer--it's a wealth of information.

Jenn:)

Edward Stratemeyer in Half Price Books Calendar

I was shopping in Half Price Books the other day and purchased over 30.00 so I got one of their calendars free--these calendars feature literary figures' birthdays and other information throughout the calendar as well as coupons in the back to save throughout the year.

I decided to turn to the April to see if perhaps Nancy Drew was mentioned, nothing. Then turned to October--and on the 4th of October it lists Edward Stratemeyer along with Brendan Gill and Damon Runyon--neat!

If you have one of these stores, check it out! It looks like they have then in AZ, CA, IL, IN, IA, KS, KY, MN, MO, NE, OH, OK, PA, TX, WA, and WI. Check out their website for locations near you:

http://www.halfpricebooks.com

Jenn:)