FORGOTTEN BOOK: THE ICE-COLD NUDE

The Ice-Cold Nude by Carter Brown, 1962

Now let us sing the praises of Alan Geoffrey Yates (1923-1985), the English-born Australian author who developed a world-wide fan base writing as "Carter Brown."  He was more of a publishing phenomenon than a good writer, and the total number of books he sold may well number in the tens (perhaps hundreds) of millions.  Art Scott has described the Brown books as exhibiting "no pretentions to being other than lightweight, breezy entertainment, to be read in one sitting and forgotten."  Scott goes on:  "The Brown books are indeed formula potboilers, and can be cruelly picked apart on grounds of sloppy plotting, minimal characterization, uninspired prose and, of course, unbelievability (the plots and characters have tended to  become sillier over the years).  Yet the formula has proven consistently popular; this uncanny mix of action, sex, and humor, with its attendant refusal to be taken at all seriously, is escapism pure and simple."

I can personally attest to that.  The Carter Brown novels, which came in a steady stream from Signet Books, helped put me through college; they were far more interesting than many of my classes, and I once tore through five Carter Browns in a single day.  (The other thing that helped me through college was that there three barrooms within walking distance from my dormitory; well, four actually, but the fourth was a rough Mexican bar often cited in the local police report, a place where any student with a lick of sense and a hope for survival avoided.)  Think of the Carter Brown novels as potato chips, or peanuts, or popcorn.

I don't know if there is an actual count of how many books Alan Yates published.  There were at least over 220 Carter Brown books, as well as over 75 novellas, many of which were published separately; Wikipedia gives the count as 322 published Carter Brown novels.  Add to that uncounted western, horror, and science fiction novels under various pseudonyms.  Many l\of the early Carter Browns were published in Australia and England as  by Peter Carter-Brown (or Peter Carter Brown).

And then there were the characters.  Carter created at least fifteen series characters.  The most popular were:

• Al Wheeler, a California homicide detective (52 books, many being reprinted by Stark House, bless them)
• Rick Holman, a Hollywood troubleshooter for the stars (34 books)
• Danny Boyd, a New York private detective (33 books)
• Mavis Seidlitz, a tough and sexy female private eye (12 books)
• Larry Baker, a Hollywood scriptwriter with a perpetually drunk partner (6 books)
• other series detectives were Randy Roberts, Paul Donavan, Andy Kane, Mike Farrell, Mark Jordan, Joe Kahn, Ivor MacCullum, Max Dumas, Greg Ballard, and Carter Stanton.

The Ice-Cold Nude was the twelfth book in the Danny Boyd series.  Boyd is an egotistical (every woman should be falling for his profile; if  not, there's something wrong the the woman) and brutal private eye, the type that often appears the the '30s and '40s pulp detective magazines.

Boyd's normal beat is New York City, but this case brings him to Santo Bahio, California, tasked with finding and returning a one hundred thousand dollar (that's 1962 dollars) diamond tiara.  The tiara has been on display at a posh jeweler's and was intended to be a publicity ploy for a beauty contest sponsored by a plastics manufacturing company -- the winner to be crowned and photographed wearing the tiara.  There were three finalists in the contests and, under heavy security, each was photographed wearing the crown for advance publicity photos.  After the photo session, the tiara was placed back on display, only to be discovered later that it was a fake.  The switch had to have been made during the photo session.

The suspects were the jewelry store owner (Boyd's client), his assistant (who designed the original tiara and is fond of painting naked ladies), the president of the plastics company (a bully philanderer who likes to hit women), his wife (who hates him and constantly strays), the publicity manager for the plastics company (who first suggested using the tiara), the photographer, and the three finalists in the contest, lone of whom is a blackmailing "tramp" with what appears to be mob connections.  Ad o that list, that model's older sister (the only "plain jane" in the book, one of those who, at the end of the movie, releases her hair from a bun and takes off her glasses, and VAVOOM!), and the red-haired  buxom Jeweler's receptionist (who appears to be impervious to Boyd's charms -- what is wrong with her?).

And pretty soon we have a murder.  A naked lady in a shower, no less.  And Danny Boyd's local police nemesis is planning for Danny to take a fall.

And, just for fun, here's two examples of the author's deathless prose:

• Her eyes were moist, like wet olives, a she smile into my face and I felt my crew cut stand up in stiff revulsion.
• I left her still thinking about it, and I could tell she was thinking hard because of the disturbing thought waves that rippled down the front of her orlon sweater.

Reading a Carter Brown book is akin to wallowing in the shallow end of the detective novel pool.  I love it!

Somewhat off subject, but a few things should be mentioned.  A  number of sources, including the St. James Guide to Crime & Mystery Writers states that Yates was also gothic suspense writer "Caroline Farr," who published at least 48 books from 1966 to 1980, 45 of which were published by Signet in the U.S.  Not so.  "Caroline Farr" was a by-line of another prolific Australian author Richard Wilkes-Hunter (1906-1991).

The Yates estate says that he wrote all of his books himself, with the exception of ten books from 1958 when Yates was overseas.  Those were written by C. J. McKenzie, an editor for Yates's Australian publisher, Horwitz.

Stories have circulated that prolific writer Robert Silverberg once wrote four Carter Brown novels while he was client of the Scott Meredith Literary Agency, but the novels were never published.  I've seen no proof of this. but I believe it.