Forged in war, The Phantom Detective wages a one-man battle on crime! Solving impossible mysteries and delivering his own justice, he is the underworld’s masked nightmare!
A famous cosmetician is murdered, half a dozen deaf mutes are snatched, a psychiatrist is killed — and The Phantom is confronted with elusive, scattered clues to a perplexing jigsaw puzzle of blood-drenched crime!
Although the title of the magazine was indeed The Phantom Detective, the lead character was referred to only as ‘The Phantom’ in the actual stories. The identity of this masked master sleuth was, as often was the case, a wealthy millionaire, although he took up crimefighting for an unique reason. Having served in World War One as a pilot known for his dogfighting prowess, Richard Curtis Van Loan left the idle rich gadabout he’d been in the skies of battle and returned home seeking a mission, wanting to give something back to the city and world he lived in.
With so many authors responsible for the tales of The Phantom Detective, there are obviously high points and not so high points throughout the series in terms of quality. A certain number of traits, however, seem to run standard for most, if not all the entries in the series. One aspect is how the plot moves quickly and usually efficiently, switching gears from intense action to actual mystery solving to focusing on the intent of the crooks and back again. The stories overall do not slow down enough, insuring the listener is engaged from beginning to end. Another similarity story to story is that although he is a master sleuth, he is also one that makes mistakes, encounters obstacles, and often ends up in spots that end with him just barely escaping. He is fallible, not some larger than life character that fans could never identify with.
‘The Counterfeit Killer’ was originally published in the September 1938 issue of The Phantom Detective Magazine and is read with pulse pounding intensity by award winning voice actor Milton Bagby.
Table of Contents:
Chapter 1: Invitation To Death
Chapter 2: Terror Speaks to the Phantom
Chapter 3: Murder Bait
Chapter 4: Night Shadows
Chapter 5: Wolves of Death
Chapter 6: Double Mystery
Chapter 7: The Murder Chain
Chapter 8: Cherchez la Femme
Chapter 9: Hidden Claws
Chapter 10: Disguise of Death
Chapter 11: The Phantom Trapped
Chapter 12: Horror’s Sentence
Chapter 13: Liquid Hell
Chapter 14: A Ride to Hell
Chapter 15: Killer’s Trail
Chapter 16: Flaming Fury
Chapter 17: The Devil’s Oven
Chapter 18: Death in the Open
Chapter 19: Showdown
