A couple of years back Nathan Ward popped me a link to an article — a very good, long article — about the popular Mean Streets topic Frederic Dannay, one half of the “Ellery Queen” writing team, and his continuing feud with his cousin Manfred B. Lee, the rest of the team.
Turns out old Manfred was the more literary one of the two — in short, the one who wanted to write more literary works, not just clever puzzle mysteries.
Surf over to the article for details.
(Also evoking Mean Streets landmarks, the article appeared in a mag titled The Smart Set — not THE Smart Set, where some of the earliest Hammett saw print, but a new incarnation of the Set. Or at least a revival of the name.)
