A. E. MARTIN

The 1930s and 1940s were times of great opportunity for Australian writers. Magazines and newspapers published original fiction, publishers clamoured to sign new names, particularly in the mystery field, and for those capable of mastering the exacting art of scriptwriting, radio beckoned with almost non-stop work.

One of the more interesting talents of the time was Archibald Edward Martin. Born in Adelaide in 1885, Martin worked in a variety of fields including boxing promoter, showman, theatrical press agent for such groups as J.C. Williamson, film importer, travel agent, and sometimes journalist. In this latter role, he assisted C.J. Dennis in the establishment of the satirical weekly journal, The Gadfly.

In 1912 he travelled to Europe, signing acts for a variety circus that toured Australia the following year. The people he met in this endeavour, and throughout the next few decades in the theatre world, provided the basis for many of his future stories.

In 1942 he won the £1,000 first prize in a literary competition organised by The Australian Women’s Weekly. The novel, Common People, was published by Consolidated Press in 1944. With a circus background, this mystery had as its central character, a personable spruiker and con-man by the name of Pel Pelham.

Pelham made a return in a later Martin mystery, The Chinese Bed Mysteries (London, Max Reinhardt, 1955), which also used a circus backdrop. Among his many superior thrillers is the notable Sinners Never Die (New York, Simon & Schuster, 1944).

Martin’s short fiction was widely published in Australia and in such celebrated overseas publications as Collier’s and The Saturday Evening Post. Three Martin stories also appeared in the Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine. ‘The Power of the Leaf, ‘The Scarecrow Murders’ and ‘The Flying Corpse.’ The last, another with a circus background, won third prize in the magazine’s 1947 International Mystery Competition. He adapted Sinners Never Die and Death in the Limelight (New York, Simon & Schuster, 1946) into radio plays, and went on to write a number of 52 episode serials for producer George Edwards.

Martin died in 1955, soon after the publication of The Chinese Bed Mysteries. His last novel, The Hive of Glass, was completed by his son, Jim Martin. Interestingly, Martin’s last novel, just like his first, won a competition organised by an Australian publisher. It was released by Rigby in 1963.

The Power of the Leaf undoubtedly ranks among Martin’s finest stories. After it appeared in the Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine it was included in an anthology, The Queen’s Awards (London, Gollancz, 1950).

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