Alfred Hitchcock’s Mystery Magazine. Vol. 18, No. 5, May 1973

Dear Reader:

Since everyone had a mother and a father, we will make a rather timely bow to that segment of our society this month and let them compare their own progeny with those of the authors who grace these pages. The chances are excellent that few readers’ offspring are able to match the miscreants depicted herein.

For instance, how many parents may claim a kidnapper for a daughter, or a strangler for a son? I am reasonably sure the list is not long.

Of course, no one is perfect, and so along with the infamous we also present a few shining examples of the more widely accepted methods of child-rearing. From A Message from Andrea by Robert Colby to The Graft Is Green by novelettist Harold Q. Masur, you may find a few random characters to gladden any proper parental heart. Never let it be said that I am biased in favor of evil (but isn’t it stimulating).

Good reading.

Alfred Hitchcock