The Crimson Stain Mystery
as taken from the Episode Summaries in The Moving Picture World (September 2 to December 16, 1916)
The origin of The Crimson Stain Gang is best introduced with an Episode 1 quote:
"Dr. Burton Montrose, a scientist, discovers a biological element which he believes will improve the faculties of the human race. Tested on several human subjects, the discovery reacts, making of them murderers."
The group is dubbed after their leader, who bears a crimson stain on his eye.
From there, we're treated to episode after episode of murdered newspaper magnates, traitorous assistants, hypnotized victims, forged notes, exploding buildings, secret panels, "swift" poisons, stolen necklaces, disguised telephone voices, police chases, drugged heroes, elaborate plans, masked villains, strange laboratory apparatus, phony cripples and startling revelations.
For some unknown reason, MPW did not publish episode 11. They did make a tantalizing statement that could conceivably remedy this omission: "'The Crimson Stain Mystery' will be given the most extensive newspaper advertising campaign yet attempted in any previous serial. The story will be printed serially in a list of the leading newspapers throughout the United States. This list will be headed by the New York World and papers of similar standing will be used in all parts of the country."
Following this lead, hoping for a fleshed-out rendition of the plot and uncovering a microfilm of the NYW, I found only that the story had been serialized in the Thursday evening edition by Albert Payson Terhune. Since, there is no known archiving of the evening editions of the NYW and because I have no idea what the "papers of similar standing" could have been, the trail, for me, ended there.
The majority of this serial's 16 chapters are seemingly extant in Canadian and/or Library of Congress archives.
written: 12/23/2004
