Customer Reviews

And Be a Villain: A Nero Wolfe Mystery (Nero Wolfe Mysteries)

5 star:		(12)
4 star:		(9)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Meet it is I set it down
That one may smile, and smile, and be a villain.
- Hamlet, Act I, scene 5, soliloquy before swearing vengeance

As with all of Stout's Wolfe mysteries, the setting is contemporary with the time of its writing - in this case, 18 March - 3 April 1948, which makes it a period piece today. Radio, rather than television, was the dominant communication medium in the United States. Commercials were live, rather than pre-recorded; in the case of a talk show, the host would participate in the commercial in front of a live studio audience. (This persisted even into the early years of television. A Timex commercial that went seriously wrong, wherein the watch couldn't even be *found* after the it's-still-ticking test, persisted for decades in Johnny Carson's list of funniest incidents on his show, for example.) And at that time, a national income tax was a relatively new feature of life in the United States, and fell due on the 15th of March. All these factors matter in setting the stage for this story.

Hi-Spot, one of the sponsors of the Madeleine Fraser show, revelled in her live commercials for their product, wherein she and her guests would drink 'the drink you dream of.' But the PR dream turned into a nightmare when someone spiked one glass with cyanide, and Cyril Orchard, one of the show's guests in a discussion of gambling, died 'live' on the air.

But was the editor of _Track Almanac_ the intended victim? Among the suspects - some of whom may have been intended victims - emotions, blood, and money may have become entangled. Deborah Koppel, Fraser's business manager, is also her sister-in-law through Fraser's late husband - and her principal beneficiary. Does she blame Fraser for her brother's death? Bill Meadows is her on-air sidekick - did he want a promotion to top billing? Or did he resent being kicked off the show recently, despite his reinstatement? Tully Strong represents the sponsors' council, and there'd been some bad blood over shifting accounts between shows, and retaliation by persuading accounts to change agencies. Nancylee Shepherd, an overgrown schoolgirl who's obsessed with Fraser, may be more than an annoying tagalong running a fan club. In the background, a rumour of anonymous letters taints the atmosphere, with a whiff of possible blackmail.

Most unusually, Wolfe solicits this case, rather than waiting for clients to come to him (granted, due to prodding by Archie, after he prepared Wolfe's form 1040). Another uncommon feature is that they have not one client, but a group; each individual or corporation owes a percentage of the fee, which is contingent on Wolfe's finding the murderer with evidence to convict. (Typically, when Wolfe's client is a corporate entity, the client's real goal is to control a serious publicity disaster - which results in friction where it clashes with Wolfe's goal of catching a culprit, and this case is no exception.) The group in this case consists of several corporate sponsors and Madeleine Fraser herself. (As Archie points out, Wolfe's fee is tax-deductible.)

Wolfe, ever true to his principles, refuses to allow one sponsor to join the client list - because he and Fritz tried their product, and it's awful. Archie won't let Hi-Spot even try to get Wolfe to participate in some PR photos, and quashes Fraser's hope of getting Wolfe on her show. The surviving guest from the fatal show, a professor specializing in probability, has an unrealistic opinion of his ability to predict things. The continuing character of Arnold Zeck makes his first major appearance in this story...and his interests don't align with Wolfe's. Deputy Commissioner O'Hara, horning in since it's a high-profile case, makes the mistake of ordering Archie's arrest as a material witness late in the story - and Wolfe's payback is beautiful to see.

Also titled More Deaths Than One, this is the first and best of the Arnold Zeck trilogy. If you want to read it in order, follow this with The Second Confession and Even in the Best Families, although personally I rate the latter a very poor Wolfe. None of this stops And Be a Villain from being one of the better stories, with Stout having lots of fun at the expense of the commercial world, a frequent theme during his post-war period.

A guest on a radio talk show drops dead after taking a drink of the sponsor's beverage. Everyone involved lies through their teeth. Most lie to protect the host's embarassing secret, but one lies to escape the gallows. Nero Wolfe, who usually avoids cases, uncharacteristically seeks employment. He undertakes to solve the case on a contingent fee basis--no solution, no pay. Of course, he solves the case and earns his fee, but manages to please nobody in the process.

Wolfe is his usual gruff, eccentric, mercenary self. He is easy to dislike, but his powers are hard to disrespect. Archie Goodwin and the ensemble of regulars help to cushion Wolfe's rough edges.

In this book we first meet Wolfe's nemesis, Arnold Zeck. Zeck is a shadowy figure of immense wealth, untold political power, and criminal bent. One might say he is New York's "Napoleon of Crime." He plays only a small part in this book, but he comes into homicidal conflict with Wolfe in two later books, "The Second Confession" and "In the Best of Families."

You can read a summary of the plot for this book in the other reviews -- I want to focus on the general outlines of the series for those, like me, who look for good story series with enduring characters:

I have to assume that since you are reading this you like good mystery books. You therefore must have read and exhausted Agatha Christie, Sherlock Holmes, Edgar Alan Poe and the like. If not, you may want to go there as well, as there is no replacing the classics. If you want, however, a more "American" and lighter (but not less intelligent) version of your mystery series, Rex Stout opens a new window for you full of short and fun mysteries with colorful characters. Reading Stout is like watching the wonderful black and white early Hitchcock mystery movies. Solid theatrical plots and performances were a must to succeed, as photography could not supplant a bad plot as often happens today. If you are considering Stout, my advice is to buy three or four Nero Wolff books as they are all good quality but short enough to read in a couple of days (or one long plane trip). They are fun, intelligent and entertaining books and are a quick read. Nero Wolff is as annoying as he is intelligent, and his aide is as charming as he is fun. Stout has constructed a regular series of characters that you'll be glad to meet over and over again.

For current fans of Rex Stout and his Nero Wolff series, there is little I can say but that this is another witty mistery solved by the unfailing Wolff. Buy it. Read it. Place it next to your other Stout books in your bookshelf. It makes for fast paced good reading as all other Nero Wolff stories do.

All the Nero Wolfes books I have read have been above par. But this one was excellent in every way. The characters are brilliant, the banter between them as clever and as witty as always. The plot is better than some of the other books and the ending is a surprise. All these books are worth reading but this one is well worth seeking out. I highly recommend it.

This has got to be my favorite of all the Nero Wolfe books. The interplay between Archie and Wolfe, Wolfe's rants about sub-par mass produced foodstuffs, to the dated slang used by teenager Nancylee, are all perfect representations of the best of Rex Stout. It all comes together in a truly delightful tale that had me smiling from start to finish.

Is it just me, or did you also like the way wolfe bullied that irritating little girl in this story? nevertheless, true-blue wolfe fans will agree that this is one of the best in the wolfe series. once again,you will marvel at how wolfe can summon murder suspects to his house, manipulate members of the police force, and push his lips in and out to come up with the murderer. an added bonus: read how wolfe rejects a fat fee from a client because its name is "Sweeties!"

In my opinion the best of the Wolfe opus. Plot, dialogue and that magical relationship between Nero and Archie are absolutely first rate. If you haven't yet read it I envy you!

The title of this book is taken from Shaekespeare. That someone could smile, and smile, and be a villain.

Shakespeare's wonderment was at human duplicity - that people can smile and project a wonderful image, and yet be duplicitous and, as in this story, even a murderer.

The plot is wonderfully wrought: a murder takes place during a live radio broadcast, and the station, at the height of its popularity, wants to make sure that it gets solved quickly and finally. Who else beside Nero and Archie can deliver the goods?

While it is not the best Nero Wolfe of them all, this is a strong story with some fascinating characters. As with others, it would have been wonderful to see Maury Chaykin take this role on for this story, but A&E couldn't see it.

So - who's the villain?

Wolfe's demeanor often gets us thinking that he is way too dignified to solicit business. Yet there are a few cases, such as this one, where he actually does "chase ambulances" in order to maintain his cash flow.

In 1948, the time frame for this case, radio was still king, and Cyril Orchard was a big name. He dies at the mike, very publicly, but no one knows what happened. Wolfe not only solicits the case from a corporation, he also agrees that he'll get paid only if and when he solves it.

This puts Wolfe right in there with the lowliest personal injury lawyer. Nowadays that's commonplace, but 57 years ago it was not the mark of a real professional.

This one's at its best when Wolfe confronts the problem of a "conspiracy of lies." All involved agree to maintain the same front to the police and investigators, and Wolfe and Archie have to figure out how to "get a crack started."

Great story - you'll love it.