Frederick Lewis Nebel (November 3, 1903 - May 3, 1967), was an American writer. He wrote over 300 works that were published. He is best known for his
hardboiled
Hardboiled (or hard-boiled) fiction is a literary genre that shares some of its characters and settings with crime fiction (especially detective fiction and noir fiction). The genre's typical protagonist is a detective who battles the violence o ...
detective fiction
Detective fiction is a subgenre of crime fiction and mystery fiction in which an investigator or a detective—whether professional, amateur or retired—investigates a crime, often murder. The detective genre began around the same time as s ...
.
Nebel was a prolific writer, penning up to five thousand words a day, often keeping five to six serial heroes in action from week to week for
the pulps. Nebel also wrote three novels and many of his works were adapted for the screen.
["Frederick Nebel (1903 - 1967),"](_blank)
IMDb
IMDb (an abbreviation of Internet Movie Database) is an online database of information related to films, television series, home videos, video games, and streaming content online – including cast, production crew and personal biographies, ...
, retrieved May 23, 2018.
Early life
Born in Staten Island, New York, Nebel dropped out of school at 15 after only one day in high school.
He worked as a dockhand and a valet before moving to Canada where he worked as a farmhand on his great-uncle’s homestead. He enjoyed the wilderness and became a self-taught expert in Canadian history. This expertise helped launch his career writing adventure stories for ''Northwest Stories'', beginning in 1925.
["Frederick Lewis Nebel (1903-1966),"Detnovel.com](_blank)
retrieved May 12, 2018.["Frederick Nebel,"The Thrilling Detective Website](_blank)
retrieved May 12, 2018. He returned to New York and got a job working as a brakeman on passenger trains and writing in his spare time.
Career
Pulp magazines
In 1926, Nebel sold his first ''
Black Mask'' story, “The Breaks of the Game,” to editor Phil Cody. That same year
Joseph Shaw took over as editor, and throughout his tenure with the magazine, he mentored Nebel as he published his work.
Over the next 12 years, Nebel published at a fast pace, writing up to 5000 words a day, while publishing in ''Black Mask'' and numerous other pulp magazines, including ''
Action Stories
''Action Stories'' was a multi-genre pulp magazine published between September 1921 and Fall 1950, with a brief hiatus at the end of 1932.Cottrill, Tim. ''Bookery's Guide to Pulps and Related Magazines, 1888-1969''. Bookery Press, Fairborn, OH, 200 ...
'', ''Danger Trail'', ''Dime Detective'' and ''Sea Stories''.
Shaw encouraged his authors to develop series characters, and Nebel created the detective duo of Captain Steve MacBride and newspaper reporter Kennedy of fictional “Richmond City”.
MacBride was a hardboiled homicide detective while drunken, wisecracking Kennedy provided comic relief.
The pair was featured in 36 of Nebel’s stories spanning 8 years.
In the 1930s, Nebel sold the rights to
MacBride and Kennedy stories to Warner Bros. who made ten film adaptations.
The
CBS Radio
CBS Radio was a radio broadcasting company and radio network operator owned by CBS Corporation and founded in 1928, with consolidated radio station groups owned by CBS and Westinghouse Broadcasting/Group W since the 1920s, and Infinity Broadc ...
series ''Meet MacBride'', beginning in 1936, was also adapted from the series.
Nebel created Donny “Tough Dick” Donahue at the request of Shaw for a character similar to
Dashiel Hammett’s Sam Spade
Sam Spade is a fictional character and the protagonist of Dashiell Hammett's 1930 novel '' The Maltese Falcon''. Spade also appeared in four lesser-known short stories by Hammett.
''The Maltese Falcon'', first published as a serial in the pulp ...
.
Following the huge success of ''
The Maltese Falcon'', Shaw wanted more Spade stories but Hammett, a personal friend of Nebel’s, had quit the pulps for Hollywood.
Donahue was an ex-cop discharged for not giving into corruption, now working for the Inter-State Detective Agency.
From 1930 to 1935, Nebel wrote 15 Donahue stories for ''Black Mask''.
From 1931-1937, Nebel wrote nearly 50 stories for ''Dime Detective'' featuring the character Jack Cardigan, a tough, Irish detective working for the Cosmos Detective Agency in
St. Louis
St. Louis () is the second-largest city in Missouri, United States. It sits near the confluence of the Mississippi and the Missouri Rivers. In 2020, the city proper had a population of 301,578, while the bi-state metropolitan area, which e ...
.
Other series characters created by Nebel include: Bill Gales and Mike McGill for ''Air Stories'', Brinkhaus for ''Detective Fiction Weekly'', Corporate Chet Tyson for ''Northwest Stories'', and The Driftin’ Kid for Lariat.
Nebel sometimes wrote under the
pen name
A pen name, also called a ''nom de plume'' or a literary double, is a pseudonym (or, in some cases, a variant form of a real name) adopted by an author and printed on the title page or by-line of their works in place of their real name.
A pen na ...
s Lewis Nebel, Eric Lewis and Grimes Hill,
a name derived from Grymes Hill, near where he was born on Staten Island.
Novels and screen adaptations
In 1933,
Little, Brown
Little, Brown and Company is an American publishing company founded in 1837 by Charles Coffin Little and James Brown in Boston. For close to two centuries it has published fiction and nonfiction by American authors. Early lists featured Emily D ...
published Nebel’s first novel, ''Sleepers East'', based on his early experience as a brakeman on passenger trains.
The thriller is set entirely on a ten-hour train ride from the Midwest to New York.
''
The New York Times
''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...
'', while critical of the genre conventions of a story set on a train, praised Nebel for providing "thrills a-plenty." "Though lacking credibility as to plot, the story has full measure of action, suspense and emotional conflict."
["Drama on a Train; SLEEPERS EAST. By Frederick Nobel. 283 pp. Boston: Little, Brown & Co. $2. Latest Works of Fiction," Archived](_blank)
via the TimesMachine
''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...
,''The New York Times
''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...
'', June 25, 1933. The novel was later adapted to the screen as ''
Sleepers West
''Sleepers West'' is a 1941 American mystery drama film directed by Eugene Forde and starring Lloyd Nolan, Lynn Bari and Mary Beth Hughes.
This second entry in 20th Century-Fox's ''Michael Shayne'' series was a remake of the 1934 Fox romantic dr ...
'' (1941).
In 1934, he wrote ''But Not the End'', a novel set in Depression-era New York City. The book was praised for its "brilliant divergences from the standardized patterns of depression era fiction.
["The New Poor; BUT NOT THE END. By Frederick Nebel. 304 pp. Boston: Little, Brown & Co. $2.," Archived](_blank)
via the TimesMachine
''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...
,''The New York Times
''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...
'', March 18, 1934. In 1936, he wrote the novel ''Fifty Roads to Town''. ''
The New York Times
''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...
'' wrote,"This is a first rate, virile piece of story-telling. It moves dramatically but in a restrained and effective manner toward its ultimate goal."
[Mabel L. Rossbach]
In a Maine Hotel; FIFTY ROADS TO TOWN. By Frederick Nebel. 299 pp. Boston: Little Brown & Co. $2," Archived
via the TimesMachine
''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...
,''The New York Times
''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...
'', February 2, 1936. It was adapted into a comedy film of the
same name starring
Don Ameche
Don Ameche (; born Dominic Felix Amici; May 31, 1908 – December 6, 1993) was an American actor, comedian and vaudevillian. After playing in college shows, stock, and vaudeville, he became a major radio star in the early 1930s, which l ...
in 1937.
His story “The Bribe” was adapted into the 1949 movie by the
same name, starring
Robert Taylor,
Ava Gardner
Ava Lavinia Gardner (December 24, 1922 – January 25, 1990) was an American actress. She first signed a contract with Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer in 1941 and appeared mainly in small roles until she drew critics' attention in 1946 with her perform ...
,
Charles Laughton
Charles Laughton (1 July 1899 – 15 December 1962) was a British actor. He was trained in London at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art and first appeared professionally on the stage in 1926. In 1927, he was cast in a play with his future w ...
, and
Vincent Price
Vincent Leonard Price Jr. (May 27, 1911 – October 25, 1993) was an American actor, art historian, art collector and gourmet cook. He appeared on stage, television, and radio, and in more than 100 films. Price has two stars on the Hollywood Wal ...
.
[Thomas F. Brady]
"TAYLOR, GARDNER IN METRO PICTURE; Get Leads in 'The Bribe,' FBI Story of War Surplus Sales in Cuba -- Berman Producer," Archived
via the TimesMachine
''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...
,''The New York Times
''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...
'', April 8, 1948. On television, his work was adapted for such shows as
General Electric Theater
''General Electric Theater'' was an American anthology series hosted by Ronald Reagan that was broadcast on CBS radio and television. The series was sponsored by General Electric's Department of Public Relations.
Radio
After an audition show ...
and
Studio One.
Slick magazines
After selling the film rights to ''Sleepers East'', Nebel hired agent Carl Brandt.
After 12 years and more than 230 stories, Nebel stopped writing for the detective pulps in 1937 to focus on romance.
Under Brandt’s guidance, Nebel began selling to higher-paying slick magazines such as ''
Collier's
''Collier's'' was an American general interest magazine founded in 1888 by Peter Fenelon Collier. It was launched as ''Collier's Once a Week'', then renamed in 1895 as ''Collier's Weekly: An Illustrated Journal'', shortened in 1905 to ''Collie ...
'', ''
Cosmopolitan
Cosmopolitan may refer to:
Food and drink
* Cosmopolitan (cocktail), also known as a "Cosmo"
History
* Rootless cosmopolitan, a Soviet derogatory epithet during Joseph Stalin's anti-Semitic campaign of 1949–1953
Hotels and resorts
* Cosmopoli ...
'', ''
Good Housekeeping
''Good Housekeeping'' is an American women's magazine featuring articles about women's interests, product testing by The Good Housekeeping Institute, recipes, diet, and health, as well as literary articles. It is well known for the "Good House ...
'', ''
Liberty
Liberty is the ability to do as one pleases, or a right or immunity enjoyed by prescription or by grant (i.e. privilege). It is a synonym for the word freedom.
In modern politics, liberty is understood as the state of being free within society fr ...
'', ''
McCall’s
''McCall's'' was a monthly American women's magazine, published by the McCall Corporation, that enjoyed great popularity through much of the 20th century, peaking at a readership of 8.4 million in the early 1960s. It was established as a small-fo ...
'', ''
Redbook
''Redbook'' is an American women's magazine that is published by the Hearst Corporation. It is one of the " Seven Sisters", a group of women's service magazines. It ceased print publication as of January 2019 and now operates an article-comprise ...
'', ''
The Saturday Evening Post
''The Saturday Evening Post'' is an American magazine, currently published six times a year. It was issued weekly under this title from 1897 until 1963, then every two weeks until 1969. From the 1920s to the 1960s, it was one of the most widely c ...
'' and ''
Woman’s Home Companion
''Woman's Home Companion'' was an American monthly magazine, published from 1873 to 1957. It was highly successful, climbing to a circulation peak of more than four million during the 1930s and 1940s. The magazine, headquartered in Springfield, O ...
''.
In 1956 he returned to mystery writing biefly, publishing 6 more short stories for ''
Ellery Queen's Mystery 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 fict ...
''.
His last story was published in 1962.
Personal life
Nebel met his wife, Dorothy Blank, in Paris in 1928.
They married in 1930 and moved to
St. Louis
St. Louis () is the second-largest city in Missouri, United States. It sits near the confluence of the Mississippi and the Missouri Rivers. In 2020, the city proper had a population of 301,578, while the bi-state metropolitan area, which e ...
, where much of his fiction is set. In 1934, they moved to Connecticut and in 1937 they had a son, Christopher Nebel. Suffering from high blood pressure, Nebel moved to Laguna Beach, California in the late 1950s.
In 1967 Nebel suffered a cerebral hemorrhage and died three days later at age sixty-three.
Further reading
John Locke, "East by Northwest: Nebel's Passage to China," in ''The Complete Air Adventures of Gales & McGill, Volume 1: 1927-29'' (Boston, MA:
Altus Press
Altus Press is a publisher of works primarily related to the pulp magazines from the 1910s to the 1950s.
History
Founded in 2006 by Matthew Moring, Altus Press publishes collections primarily focussed on series characters, although they also publ ...
, 2017)
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Nebel, Frederick Lewis
1903 births
1967 deaths
Pulp fiction writers
American mystery writers
Writers from New York (state)
Writers from New York City
People from Staten Island
20th-century American male writers