Reginald Evelyn Peter Southouse-Cheyney (22 February 1896 – 26 June 1951) was a British

crime fiction Crime fiction, detective story, murder mystery, mystery novel, and police novel are terms used to describe narratives that centre on criminal acts and especially on the investigation, either by an amateur or a professional detective, of a crime, ...

writer who flourished between 1936 and 1951. Cheyney is perhaps best known for his short stories and novels about agent/detective

Lemmy Caution Lemmy Caution is a fictional character created by British writer Peter Cheyney (1896–1951). Caution was first portrayed as a Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) agent, and in later stories as a private detective. Cheyney's first book with the ...

, which, starting in 1953, were adapted into a series of French movies, all starring

Eddie Constantine Eddie Constantine (born Edward Israël Constantinowsky; October 29, 1917 – February 25, 1993) was an American singer, actor and entertainer who spent most of his career in France. He became well-known to film audiences for his portrayal of se ...

(however, the best known of these – the 1965 science fiction film '' Alphaville'' – was not directly based on a Cheyney novel). Another popular creation was the

private detective A private investigator (often abbreviated to PI and informally called a private eye), a private detective, or inquiry agent is a person who can be hired by individuals or groups to undertake investigatory law services. Private investigators of ...

Slim Callaghan Slim Callaghan is a fictional London-based private detective created by the writer Peter Cheyney. Like another of Cheyney's characters, the FBI agent Lemmy Caution, he was constructed as a British response to the more hardboiled detectives of Amer ...

who also appeared in a series of novels and subsequent film adaptations. Although out of print for many years, Cheyney's novels have never been difficult to find second-hand. Several of them have recently been made available as e-books.

Early life

Peter Cheyney was born in Whitechapel 1896, the youngest of five children, and educated at the

Mercers' School The Mercers' School was an independent school in the City of London, England, with a history going back at least to 1542, and perhaps much further. It was operated by the Worshipful Company of Mercers and was closed in 1959. History After the dis ...

in the

City of London The City of London is a city, ceremonial county and local government district that contains the historic centre and constitutes, alongside Canary Wharf, the primary central business district (CBD) of London. It constituted most of London fr ...

. He began to write skits for the theatre as a teenager, but this ended when the

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

began. In 1915 he enlisted in the

British Army The British Army is the principal land warfare force of the United Kingdom, a part of the British Armed Forces along with the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force. , the British Army comprises 79,380 regular full-time personnel, 4,090 Gurk ...

as a volunteer, in 1916 was wounded on active service and published two volumes of poetry, ''Poems of Love and War'' and ''To Corona and Other Poems''. The next year, 1917, his military service ended. Starting in the late 1920s, Cheyney worked for the

Metropolitan Police The Metropolitan Police Service (MPS), formerly and still commonly known as the Metropolitan Police (and informally as the Met Police, the Met, Scotland Yard, or the Yard), is the territorial police force responsible for law enforcement and ...

as a police reporter and crime investigator. Until he became successful as a crime novelist, he was often quite poor. It is said that he got his start through a bet; when Cheyney remarked that anyone could write a book in the idiom of the American thriller, he was wagered five pounds that he could not. Cheyney sold his first story as the result of this bet.

Career and characters

Cheyney wrote his first novel, the Lemmy Caution thriller ''

This Man Is Dangerous ''This Man Is Dangerous'' (U.S. title: ''The Patient Vanishes'') is a 1941 British thriller film, directed by Lawrence Huntington and starring James Mason and Gordon McLeod. The film is based on the 1934 novel ''They Called Him Death'' by Da ...

'' in 1936 and followed it with the first

novel, ''

The Urgent Hangman ''The Urgent Hangman'' is a 1938 thriller novel by the British writer Peter Cheyney. It introduced the fictional London-based private detective Slim Callaghan, the first in a series of seven novels as well as two short story collections. Adaptat ...

'' in 1938. The immediate success of these two novels assured him of a flourishing new career, and Cheyney abandoned his work as a freelance investigator. Sales were brisk; in 1946 alone, 1,524,785 copies of his books were sold worldwide. A meticulous researcher, he kept a massive set of files on criminal activity in London, but these were destroyed during the Blitz in 1941; he however, soon began to replace his collection of clippings. He dictated his work. Typically he would "act out" his stories for his secretary, Miss Sprauge, who would copy them down in shorthand and type them up later. The Caution books read very much like what they are: pulp stories written in ersatz American by a British writer. With the private detective Slim Callaghan however, he invented a non-American who is based in Cheyney's home territory of London. Callaghan in the first book works from Chancery Lane in a Marlowe-type shabby office and he has difficulty paying the bills. However, unlike Marlowe, Callaghan is ambitious and after a success helping a rich female client, he is able to make the step up to having his own agency, with a fancy office and pretty secretary, in swanky Berkeley Square. Subsequent novels in the series follow very much the tried and tested pattern. Callaghan's services are sought by rich and attractive female client. The Lady in question is, of course naturally involved in some upsetting business (often blackmail) that precludes going to police. Callaghan meets the lady, likes what he sees (Cheyney appears to have studied women's fashion for he never fails to describe in detail every lady's clothes and jewellery), is nonchalant and impudent, which simultaneously both upsets and attracts lady. The Lady of course is either afraid to tell all facts or is being deliberately misleading and Callaghan must work out truth for himself. Callaghan begins his investigating, in Marlowe-style, by putting himself about and stirring up trouble, which attracts the attention of a number of people (including at least one shady nightclub owner) involved in the puzzle who supply him with enough pieces to get the whole picture and to plan strategy. During these cases (usually over a period of days) Callaghan will push himself to the limit. He will get no sleep, drink continually ('three fingers of straight whisky'), and drive his Jaguar long distances (to Torquay or Weymouth to visit refined clients, and then back to London all in the same night) as part of his overall plan. At the same time, he will meet a string of attractive women who will, of course, throw themselves at him during the story--but he however only has eyes for his refined client--hand out and receive beatings, tamper with evidence, and outsmart both criminals and the police until the case is solved and his refined client is extricated from trouble and danger. Only then (to the chagrin of his secretary, who has a long-standing crush) will he reap the dual reward of favours from the refined client, accompanied by a substantial cheque. Peter Cheyney grave Putney Vale 2015

Cheyney's "Dark" series was widely praised during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

for bringing more realism to espionage fiction. In their casual brutality and general "grubbiness," the "Dark" novels seem to have foreshadowed much of the Cold War fiction of the mid to late 1960s.

Anthony Boucher William Anthony Parker White (August 21, 1911 – April 29, 1968), better known by his pen name Anthony Boucher (), was an American author, critic, and editor who wrote several classic mystery novels, short stories, science fiction, and radio d ...

placed these later works in the context of

Graham Greene Henry Graham Greene (2 October 1904 – 3 April 1991) was an English writer and journalist regarded by many as one of the leading English novelists of the 20th century. Combining literary acclaim with widespread popularity, Greene acquir ...

and

Joseph Conrad Joseph Conrad (born Józef Teodor Konrad Korzeniowski, ; 3 December 1857 – 3 August 1924) was a Poles in the United Kingdom#19th century, Polish-British novelist and short story writer. He is regarded as one of the greatest writers in t ...

. The characterisation of Ernest Guelvada in the "Dark" series is one of the high points of Cheyney's career. A cheerfully sadistic war operative whose objective is to deplete the ranks of opposing forces in a leisurely but thorough fashion, the loquacious Guelvada still finds the time to dress immaculately, drink immoderate amounts of alcohol and remain a counter agent. Cheyney published one volume of short stories, advice to critics and a few poems in ''No Ordinary Cheyney'' (London: Faber and Faber, 1948). Cheyney makes a cameo appearance in the Dennis Wheatley/J.G. Links "dossier" mystery "Herewith the Clues," published in 1939. He appears as man-of-fortune William Benson, one of the suspects. He died at age 55, after having fallen into a coma. He was buried at

Putney Vale Cemetery Putney Vale Cemetery and Crematorium in southwest London is located in Putney Vale, surrounded by Putney Heath and Wimbledon Common and Richmond Park. It is located within of parkland. The cemetery was opened in 1891 and the crematorium in 1938. ...

in London.

Personal life

From all accounts, Cheyney lived much like his characters, working too hard, living the fast and careless life with a breathtaking abandon that eventually caught up with him. In addition to his literary skills, "he was a fencer of repute, a golfer, a crack pistol-shot, and a jiu-jitsu expert." He joined the New Party (set up by Sir

Oswald Mosley Sir Oswald Ernald Mosley, 6th Baronet (16 November 1896 – 3 December 1980) was a British politician during the 1920s and 1930s who rose to fame when, having become disillusioned with mainstream politics, he turned to fascism. He was a member ...

and precursor to the later British Union of Fascists or BUF) in 1931, heading its youth detachment, which protected public meetings. He was married three times: in 1919 to the stage actress

Dorma Leigh Dorma Leigh (1890-1969) was a British dancer, actress and playwright. Leigh was born Dorothy Mabel Woodley. She danced with Jan Oyra in '' The Girl on the Film'' in 1913. In 1919 she married the writer Peter Cheyney Reginald Evelyn Peter ...

(from whom he was divorced in 1931), in 1934 to Kathleen Nora Walter Taberer, and in 1948 to Lauretta Theresa Singer. He had no children.

List of works

Lemmy Caution Lemmy Caution is a fictional character created by British writer Peter Cheyney (1896–1951). Caution was first portrayed as a Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) agent, and in later stories as a private detective. Cheyney's first book with the ...

*''

'' (1936) – filmed as ''

'' (France;

Jean Sacha Jean Sacha (1912–1988) was a French film editor Film editing is both a creative and a technical part of the post-production process of filmmaking. The term is derived from the traditional process of working with film which increasingly i ...

, 1953) *'' Poison Ivy'' (1937) – filmed as ''

La môme vert-de-gris ''La môme vert-de-gris'' ( French for "The Greyish-Green Dame"), released in the USA as ''Poison Ivy'', is a 1953 French crime film. It was French director Bernard Borderie's first film, as well as American-born French actor Eddie Constantine's ...

'' (France;

Bernard Borderie Bernard Borderie (10 June 1924 in Paris – 28 May 1978 in Paris) was a French film director and screenwriter. His father, Raymond Borderie, was one of the producers of ''Children of Paradise, Les Enfants du Paradis'' (''Children of Paradise'', 1945 ...

, 1953) *'' Dames Don't Care'' (1937) – filmed as ''

The Women Couldn't Care Less ''The Women Couldn't Care Less'' or ''Dames Get Along'' (French: ''Les femmes s'en balancent'') is a 1954 French crime film directed by Bernard Borderie and starring Eddie Constantine, Nadia Gray and Dominique Wilms. It features Peter Cheyney's ...

'' (France;

, 1954) *''

Can Ladies Kill? ''Can Ladies Kill?'' is a crime novel by British author Peter Cheyney first published in 1938 by William Collins, Sons & Co. Ltd. Set in San Francisco and featuring Cheyney's creation, G-Man Lemmy Caution, it belongs to the hardboiled school o ...

'' (1938) *''

Don't Get Me Wrong "Don't Get Me Wrong" is a song released by British-American alternative rock group The Pretenders. It was the first single taken from the group's 1986 album, '' Get Close''. It can also be found on the band's '' The Singles'' album, released in ...

'' (1939) – filmed as ''Vous pigez'' (France;

Victor Trivas Victor Trivas (July 9, 1896 – April 12, 1970) was a Russian-JewishSiegbert Salomon Prawer, ''Between Two Worlds: The Jewish Presence in German and Austrian Film, 1910-1933'', Berghahn Books (2007), p. 211 screenwriter and film director. He was nom ...

and

Jacques Doniol-Valcroze Jacques Doniol-Valcroze (; 15 March 1920 – 6 October 1989) was a French actor, critic, screenwriter, and director. In 1951, Doniol-Valcroze was a co-founder of the renowned film magazine ''Cahiers du cinéma'', along with André Bazin and Jo ...

, 1955) *''

You'd Be Surprised "You'd Be Surprised" is a song written by Irving Berlin in 1919 which Eddie Cantor interpolated it into Ziegfeld's ''Follies of 1919''. Cantor soon recorded it and it became a major hit. Other popular versions in 1920 were by the All-Star Trio a ...

'' (1940) *''

Your Deal, My Lovely ''Your Deal, My Lovely'' is a 1941 thriller novel by the British writer Peter Cheyney. It is the seventh in his series of novels featuring the FBI agent Lemmy Caution. Much of the action takes place in wartime London. Caution is called in to inv ...

'' (1941) – filmed as ''

Your Turn, Darling ''À toi de faire... mignonne'' ( it, L'agente federale Lemmy Caution), released in the US as ''Your Turn, Darling'', is a French-Italian thriller film based on the 1941 novel ''Your Deal, My Lovely'' by Peter Cheyney. It came out ten years after ...

'' (France;

(1963) *'' Never a Dull Moment'' (1942) *'' You Can Always Duck'' (1943) *'' I'll Say She Does!'' (1945) – filmed as ''

Women Are Like That ''Women Are Like That'' is a 1938 American drama film directed by Stanley Logan and written by Horace Jackson. The film stars Kay Francis, Pat O'Brien, Ralph Forbes, Melville Cooper, Thurston Hall and Grant Mitchell. The film was released by ...

'' (France;

, 1960) *'' G-Man at the Yard'' (1946)

Slim Callaghan Slim Callaghan is a fictional London-based private detective created by the writer Peter Cheyney. Like another of Cheyney's characters, the FBI agent Lemmy Caution, he was constructed as a British response to the more hardboiled detectives of Amer ...

*''

'' (1938) – filmed as ''

Meet Mr. Callaghan ''Meet Mr. Callaghan'' is a 1954 British crime film, crime drama film directed by Charles Saunders (director), Charles Saunders and starring Derrick De Marney. Based on the 1938 novel ''The Urgent Hangman'' by Peter Cheyney, which Cheyney had t ...

'' (UK; Charles Saunders, 1954) *'' Dangerous Curves'' (1939), US title: ''Callaghan'' *''

You Can't Keep the Change ''You Can't Keep the Change'' is a 1940 thriller novel by the British writer Peter Cheyney.Reilly, John M. ''Twentieth Century Crime & Mystery Writers''. Springer, 2015. p. 300. . . It is the third in his series of novels featuring the London pri ...

'' (1940) *''

It Couldn't Matter Less ''It Couldn't Matter Less'' is a 1941 thriller novel by the British writer Peter Cheyney. It is the fourth in a series of novels featuring the London-based private detective Slim Callaghan who enjoyed a series of dangerous adventures similar in s ...

'' (1941), US title: ''Set-up for Murder'' – filmed as ''

More Whiskey for Callaghan ''More Whiskey for Callaghan'' (French: ''Plus de whisky pour Callaghan'') is a 1955 French thriller film directed by Willy Rozier and starring Tony Wright, Magali Vendeuil and Robert Berri. It is an adaptation of the 1941 novel ''It Couldn't M ...

'' (France;

Willy Rozier Willy Rozier (27 June 1901 – 29 May 1983) was a French actor, film director, film producer and screenwriter who also used the pseudonym Xavier Vallier. Filmography Director * ''Les Monts en flammes'' (1931) * ''Calais-Dover'' (1931) * '' ...

, 1955) *'' Sorry You've Been Troubled'' (1942), US title: ''Farewell to the Admiral'' - filmed as ''

Your Turn, Callaghan ''Your Turn, Callaghan'' (French: ''À toi de jouer... Callaghan'') is a 1955 French thriller film directed by Willy Rozier and starring Tony Wright, Tony Wright, Lysiane Rey and Colette Ripert. It is an adaptation of the 1942 novel '' Sorry Y ...

'' (France; Willy Rozier, 1955) *''

They Never Say When ''They Never Say When'' is a 1944 thriller novel by the British writer Peter Cheyney.Reilly p.300 It is the sixth in his series of novels featuring the London private detective Slim Callaghan, a British version of the increasingly popular hardboi ...

'' (1944) *''

Uneasy Terms ''Uneasy Terms'' is a 1948 British crime thriller film directed by Vernon Sewell and starring Michael Rennie, Moira Lister and Faith Brook. It is based on the 1946 novel of the same name by Peter Cheyney. Premise Slim Callaghan is a private ey ...

'' (1946) – filmed under the same title in 1948 *''Calling Mr. Callaghan'' (1953) – collected short stories

Dark Series

A loose series grouping together several different protagonists: *'' Dark Duet'' (1942), also as ''The Counterspy Murders'' *'' The Stars Are Dark'' (1943), also as ''The London Spy Murders'' *'' The Dark Street'' (1944), also as ''The Dark Street Murders'' *'' Sinister Errand'' (1945), also as ''Sinister Murders'' – filmed as '' Diplomatic Courier'' (US;

Henry Hathaway Henry Hathaway (March 13, 1898 – February 11, 1985) was an American film director and producer. He is best known as a director of Westerns, especially starring Randolph Scott and John Wayne. He directed Gary Cooper in seven films. Backgro ...

, 1952) *''

Dark Hero ''Dark Hero'' is a 1946 thriller by Peter Cheyney featuring a Chicago gangster involved in the gang wars of the 1930s, who during the Second World War finds himself in Nazi-occupied Norway and becomes a hero of the anti-Nazi resistance - by app ...

'' (1946), also as ''The Case of the Dark Hero'' *'' Dark Interlude'' (1947), also as ''The Terrible Night'' *'' Dark Wanton'' (1948), also as ''Case of the Dark Wanton'' *'' You Can Call It a Day'' (1949), also as ''The Man Nobody Saw'' *'' Dark Bahama'' (1950), also as ''I'll Bring Her Back'' *'' Lady, Behave!'' (1950), also as ''Lady Beware'' *'' Ladies Won't Wait'' (1951), also as ''Cocktails and the Killer''

Other novels

*''Another Little Drink'' (1940), also as ''Premeditated Murder'' and ''A Trap for Bellamy'' *''

Night Club A nightclub (music club, discothèque, disco club, or simply club) is an entertainment venue during nighttime comprising a dance floor, lightshow, and a stage for live music or a disc jockey (DJ) who plays recorded music. Nightclubs gener ...

'' (1945), also as ''Dressed to Kill'' *''

Dance Without Music ''Dance Without Music'' is the second studio album by British musicians Paul Downes and Phil Beer, and their first under the shorter name of "Downes & Beer", released as a standard 33 rpm 10-track stereo vinyl in 1976 only.https://www.vinylt ...

'' (1947). Serialised, ''

News of the World The ''News of the World'' was a weekly national Tabloid journalism#Red tops, red top Tabloid (newspaper format), tabloid newspaper published every Sunday in the United Kingdom from 1843 to 2011. It was at one time the world's highest-selling En ...

''. *''Try Anything Twice'' (1948), also as ''Undressed to Kill'' *'' One of Those Things'' (1949), also as ''Mistress Murder''

Short story collections

*''You Can't Hit a Woman'' (1937) *''Knave Takes Queen'' (1939; enlarged edition, 1950) *''Mr. Caution – Mr. Callaghan'' (1941) *''Making Crime Pay'' (1944), collected stories, articles, radio plays *''The Curiosity of Etienne MacGregor'' (1947), also as ''The Sweetheart of the Razors'' *''No Ordinary Cheyney'' (1948) *''Velvet Johnnie'' (1952) *''The Adventures of Julia'' (1954), US title: ''The Killing Game'' *''He Walked in Her Sleep'' (1954), also as ''MacTavish'' *''The Mystery Blues'' (1954), also as ''Fast Work''

Uncollected short fiction

*''The Snow Lady''. ''Morecambe Guardian'', 21 March 1930 (Alonso Mactavish) *''The Snow Man''. ''Hastings & St Leonards Observer'', 27 December 1930 (Alonso Mactavish) *''Angel Unawares''. ''Sheffield Daily Independent'' Christmas Budget, 19 December 1936 *''Bread upon the Waters''. ''Rugby Advertiser'', 18 February 1938

Uncollected non-fiction

*''Curse of the Crystal''. ''Belfast Telegraph'', 1 January 1931 *''Suicide Walkers - Are You One?''. ''Sunderland Daily Echo & Shipping Gazette'', 14 July 1937

Biographies and memoirs

A 1954 biography of Cheyney, ''Peter Cheyney: Prince of Hokum'', was written by Michael Harrison. (London: N. Spearman, 1954.) Cheyney published a semi-autobiographical volume, ''Making Crime Pay'' and after his death at least two biographical essays appeared in posthumous collections. An essay by Viola Garvin, "Peter Cheyney" appears in ''Velvet Johnnie'' a posthumous collection of Cheyney's short stories (London: Collins, 1952, pages 7–32). The other essay is anonymous. It appears in the Cheyney collection ''Calling Mr. Callaghan'' (London: Todd, 1953, pages 7–16).

References

External links

*
Complete Bibliography: British editions, international editions, short stories & magazine publications
*

* ttp://www.hrc.utexas.edu/research/fa/lfcheyney.html Peter Cheyney Collectionat the

Harry Ransom Center The Harry Ransom Center (until 1983 the Humanities Research Center) is an archive, library and museum at the University of Texas at Austin, specializing in the collection of literary and cultural artifacts from the Americas and Europe for the pur ...

at the

University of Texas at Austin The University of Texas at Austin (UT Austin, UT, or Texas) is a public research university in Austin, Texas. It was founded in 1883 and is the oldest institution in the University of Texas System. With 40,916 undergraduate students, 11,075 ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Cheyney, Peter 1896 births 1951 deaths 20th-century English novelists People educated at Mercers' School Burials at Putney Vale Cemetery English crime fiction writers English male novelists 20th-century English male writers British Army personnel of World War I