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Mystery and Crime Fiction: Mysteries on the Screen

A guide to printed and Internet sources of information on mystery and crime fiction, writers, organizations, and more.

Movies and Television Shows

Many films and television programs have mystery and crime plots. Check the sources below for examples.

Hagen, Ordean A. Who Done It? A Guide to Detective, Mystery, and Suspense Fiction. Z5917 D5 H3. Continas a section on the mystery novel on the screen, including a selected filmographyby author, a film and book cross-index, and a list of film detectives.

Hubin, Allen J. Crime Fiction II: A Comprehensive Bibliography 1749-1990. 2 vols. Z2014 F4 H83 1994.

Internet Movie Database. Check the genre listings under Mystery, Crime, Film-Noir, and Thriller.

Johnson, Kevin. The Dark Page; Books That Inspired American Film Noir [1940-1949]. Z1231 D47 J64 2007. As author Johnson explains, film noir is a film style, not a genre. It began in 1940 and ended by 1965. While many of the noir films deal with crime and detective stories, there are also Western, melodrama, science fiction, and other films that qualify. This book showcases books adapted to film noir, such as James M. Cain's The Postman Always Rings Twice and and Dashiell Hammett's The Maltese Falcon. It is especially useful for collectors.

Magic Dragon. The mystery/detective section of this web site offers information on more than 500 American and British television series. A little dated, but still very helpful.

Mystery Film. Wikipedia article includes lists of mystery movies by decade.

Mystery Television. Wikipedia list, with links to Wikipedia articles on specific programs.

MysteryNet.com. Top 50 mystery movies, profiles of tv shows.

Rollyson, Carl, ed. Critical Survey of Mystery and Detective Fiction. rev. ed. 5 vols. Ref PN3448 D4 C75 2008. Volume five discusses mystery and detective fiction adapted to radio, television, the stage, and film.

Thrilling Detective. Information on hundreds of mystery films and television programs.

Wlaschin, Ken. Silent Mystery and Detective Movies: A Comprehensive Filmography. PN1995.75 W58 2009. Arranged by film title, with an index by author. Each entry identifies the novel or story on which the film was based.

 

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