Whitman Mystery Stories - Invisible Scarlet O'Neil

The more I read of these "Mystery and Adventure Stories for Girls and Boys" published by Whitman Publishing Company back in the '40s and '50s, the more I am enjoying them.  I always thought of them as the "poor boy" version of regular series books, such as Nancy Drew, Bobbsey Twins, Tom Swift, etc.  But, in actuality, a lot of these stories are actually very well written and quite enjoyable.  This latest book is one I was searching for in good condition for quite a long time.  I had heard about the character (she was a comic strip character created by Russell Stamm back in 1940 for the Chicago Times, who also later appeared in her own comic book stories and in two Big Little Books), and I knew that Whitman had published a prose novel based on the character - but the books I found either were lacking the dust jacket or were in such poor condition, I was afraid they would fall apart if I touched them.  Having been published in 1943, I knew it would take me a while to find one in good enough condition to satisfy me.  And this year, that wait finally paid off!

I found a beautiful copy of Invisible Scarlet O'Neil at the antique mall in Mount Dora, Florida, with full dust jacket in tact and in great condition (meaning the pages were not coming detached from the spine, as many Whitman books have a tendency to do!).  And, since the price was more than reasonable, I picked it up.  Now, after months of sitting on my shelf waiting, I finally had the opportunity to read it.  It was not at all what I expected, but it was definitely a fun read that was well worth the time spent.  Most definitely it is a product of its time, with some of the stereotypes one would expect from a book written back in the 1940s, but some of Scarlet's characteristics - such as her desire to help others, her frustration with self-centered, selfish people, and her humility in refusing to let those she helps know just what she has done for them - most definitely stand the test of time.  We need more people like her in today's world!

 

The story itself is not typical of the book-length novels that most children's mysteries were in that day.  Instead, the book is made up of a number of smaller stories, which follow one another sequentially, almost as if they were adapted from stories in the daily newspaper strip.  Each tale takes up two or three chapters, with 21 illustrations throughout the book.  The first story involves a case of mistaken identity (or mistaken car, as the case may be), when Scarlet witnesses a man get struck by a vehicle, but the police arrest the wrong man who happens to have an identical vehicle.  Scarlet uses her power of invisibility to track down the real culprits and trick them into confessing to the crime.  The second tale finds Scarlet determined to rescue a small puppy that belonged to a wealthy socialite who has died and left her fortune to the puppy instead of a niece, who is bitter over the loss of the fortune.  When the niece kidnaps the puppy, Scarlet uses her powers to get the pup back to its caretaker and away from the vicious woman who cares more about the money than the dog!  

The third story involves a former boxer who is down on his luck and needs to find work to support his son after his wife dies.  He thinks his luck has finally turned when he gets the opportunity to box again, but Scarlet happens to overhear the men who have given him the opportunity and she knows they are running a scam that could permanently ruin his life - so it's up to her to save the day!  The fourth tale takes Scarlet to a prison where a man is about to be put to death for a crime he didn't commit.  Scarlet uses her wits (and her power of invisibility!) to uncover the true culprits and lead the cops to them just in the nick of time to save the innocent man's life!  The fifth adventure is one in which Scarlet must stop a ring of tire thieves, who are about to embark on their biggest score yet when they hijack the trucks from a tire factory nearby.

The sixth, and final, story is the longest in the book, lasting for several chapters.  In it, Scarlet stumbled upon a very poor boy who finds a small lamp that he pretends to be Aladdin's lamp.  When some bullies give him a hard time, Scarlet decides to use her power of invisibility to appear and be the "genie" the boy believes is in the lamp.  Through a series of adventures and wishes, which Scarlet tries desperately to fulfill, the boy ends up in Hollywood, where he has always dreamed of being an actor.  But there are people in Hollywood who have other plans - from a jealous woman who wants her son to be the lead in these movies to an underhanded man who thinks he can take the lamp for himself and gain quick riches.  Scarlet inadvertently puts the boy's life in danger, so she must work hard to not only save his life, but convince him that he no longer needs the lamp to fulfill his wishes for his life.

I could easily see all of these stories being laid out as a daily three or four-panel serial in a daily newspaper strip; but when I tried to find some Invisible Scarlet O'Neil strips online, or even just determine whether these stories are new tales or adapted from the strips, I was not able to confirm one way or the other.  It seems information about this book is just as invisible as the star herself!  I was not even able to get confirmation as to whether the character's creator, Russell Stamm, wrote the book for Whitman and/or provided the illustrations.  There is no credit given to author or illustrator in the book, but several places indicate the book is "Based Upon the Famous Newspaper Strip by Russell Stamm."

The books was certainly enjoyable, and it makes me hunger even more for other "Authorized Editions" by Whitman from back in the day.  Watch out eBay, here I come!

RATING:  9 notes written by a ghost out of 10 for crafting enjoyable little tales that bring this strip character to life in novel form!