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!
Death, destruction and sabotage in the great invincible steel mills follow in the wake of a fiendish murder mob — and an industrial secret of vast importance is the hub of a baffling murder mystery! Follow The Phantom Detective as he smashes through the darkness of the underworld to the solution of an amazing case!
Even though he was indeed a one-man army against crime, The Phantom Detective did not live in the world alone. From the beginning, the crimefighter’s identity was known to one man. A friend of his father’s, Frank Havens was the powerful publisher of The Clarion, the city’s newspaper. He was also the man who not only knew the Phantom Detective’s identity, but he had also suggested Van Loan take on a case to solve that had the police baffled. Havens’ suggestion not only led his young charge to solve the case, but also to become The Phantom Detective! The connection with Havens would also provide The Phantom Detective with a love interest and, in some stories, somewhat of a partner. Muriel Havens was not only Frank’s daughter, but also proved to be The Phantom Detective’s love interest and, in many instances, a near equal rather than a damsel in distress. Another character that Havens provides the connection for is tough guy and sometimes hardboiled Clarion reporter Steve Huston. By 1939, comic books had begun influencing Pulp magazine heroes to a degree. This meant The Phantom Detective acquired a sidekick, a boy named Chip Dorlan, a character that would age as stories progressed. Another ally that appeared several times was Jerry Lannigan, once Van Loan’s personal mechanic and pilot.
‘The Phantom Hits Murder Steel’ was originally published in the June 1940 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: Strange Visitors
Chapter 2: Asylum Escape
Chapter 3: The Phantom Bides
Chapter 4: Message in Blood
Chapter 5: Maddened Magnate
Chapter 6: Deadly Rivalry
Chapter 7: Special Delivery
Chapter 8: Payoff Murder
Chapter 9: Death Doublecross
Chapter 10: New Larry Colter
Chapter 11: Murder Brewing
Chapter 12: Murder Heat
Chapter 13: Murderer Fights
Chapter 14: Chip’s Complex
Chapter 15: Over Roaring Fires
Chapter 16: Chip Takes a Trick
Chapter 17: A Climb From Hell
Chapter 18: Mysterious Manton
Chapter 19: Blood Will Tell
Chapter 20: Double Torture
Chapter 21: Blind, They Die
Chapter 22: Out of Death Trap
Milton Bagby is a veteran radio announcer and voiceover specialist who first turned to audiobooks in 2010. Since then, Milton has worked on several hundred audiobook projects and is a 2017 Audie Awards winner, the audiobook industry's highest award. Drawing upon years of stage acting and the occasional bit part in films, Milton uses his experience to create characters that stand out in the ear of the listener.
“I am very much aware that a perfect stranger is going to invest many hours listening to me tell a story. I do my best to give the listener an experience in which the characters in that story come alive and sound real.”
When not behind a microphone, Milton is a writer. In addition to the well-received Rick Burkhart crime novels, Milton writes a line of 1950s style pulp stories, and is the author of dozens of magazine articles and two non-fiction books. Milton and his wife live in Nashville.
