 | #070 "The Blue Sphinx"
Vol. 12, No. 4 Published: 01/15/35 Submitted: 04/06/34 under the same title Author: Walter Gibson Review date: Dec 14, 2001 |
THE BLUE SPHINX was originally published in the January 15, 1935 issue of The Shadow Magazine. A relic of the Eighteenth Dynasty, a four-thousand-year-old statue known as the Blue Sphinx has been pried from its moorings in the Libyan Desert. It's small by Egyptian standards - twenty feet in length, five-tons of limestone, with a bluish tinge. And around this ancient relic swirls a mysterious riddle, a secret that The Shadow must penetrate.
Our story starts in Manhattan when Hawkeye, agent of The Shadow, spies Tinker Furris, his former prison mate at Sing Sing. Yes, in case you forgot, Hawkeye had been in prison before he went straight and joined The Shadow. Sensing crime in the making, Hawkeye meets with Furris and learns that Furris is readying to leave New York for the city of Latuna. There, he'll join up with the infamous Konk Zitz and his gang.
Konk Zitz - what a name! Any crook with the name of "Zitz" would have to be infamous. As I read this story, I had a hard time keeping a straight face whenever I can across that name. I'll admit, it did make taking this story seriously a little bit of a challenge. But let's get past poor old Mr. Zitz...
Tinker Furris wants to commit one final robbery before leaving New York. Hawkeye hooks him up with Cliff Marsland, so Marsland and Furris can high-tail it out of town after the robbery, and Marsland can worm his way into Konk Zitz's gang. Hawkeye has been informed that The Shadow wants to know what Zitz is up to, and Marsland will be his inside-man.
After the robbery, which naturally The Shadow foils, Marsland and Furris head out of state to the city of Latuna. And following right behind is The Shadow with his two agents Clyde Burke and Harry Vincent. Arriving at Latuna, they find Konk Zitz and his gang holed up at the Phoenix Hotel. They haven't committed any crimes, so are living openly. Just waiting for the mysterious "big job" that's in the works.
Everything in our story now revolves around the Latuna Museum and the Blue Sphinx. Curator Joseph Rubal is murdered just before he can resign and confess to something sinister. Who did the murder? What did Joseph Rubal know? And what strange things are going on in the museum?
Let's take a quick look at our cast of characters... or suspects, if we can characterize them as such. First is Mayor Quirby Rush who lives beneath the shadow of doubt for not having exposed the graft he discovered when he took over from the previous administration. And then there's Police Chief Lawrence Grewling, who allows strangers of criminal caliber to remain in town unmolested.
There are two newpapers in town, and the owner of each plays a part in our story. Howard Dunham is the tall, cadaverous-looking editor of the Latuna Gazette, a morning paper. The owner and editor of the Latuna Enterprise, the afternoon newspaper, is Harrison Knode.
And then there are the two philanthopists, Barnaby Soyer and Strafford Malden. Malden donated the land for the museum, and also donated the Blue Sphinx itself to the town. Soyer donated his entire collection of priceless art treasures: statuettes of silver and gold, beautiful sets of carved cameos and gems, golden vessels, objects of jade and gems. It doesn't take much to figure out that this treasure must be close to the center of the mystery.
So there you have it. Who killed the museum curator? What was his mysterious secret? What are the crooks after? Who is their hidden chief? And what is the riddle of the Blue Sphinx? Whew! Lots of questions, but only one person can find the answers. And that person is... you guessed it... The Shadow!
Most of the familiar characters appear in this story, albiet sometimes briefly. We have Police Commissioner Barth and Detective Joe Cardona. Moe Shrevnitz, Hawkeye, Tapper, Burbank, Rutledge Mann and Lamont Cranston all appear early in the story. But the main part of the story centers around Clyde Burke, Harry Vincent and Henry Arnaud. Henry Arnaud, of course, is one of The Shadow's many disguises.
Several points of interest. Hawkeye originally worked with criminologist Slade Farrow, and then gradually moved into The Shadow's service. It was Slade Farrow who turned the ex-crook straight. In this story, when Hawkeye wants to make a report to The Shadow, he doesn't follow the usual routine of going through Rutledge Mann or Burbank. Instead, he writes his report in the blue disappearing ink and sends it to his mentor Slade Farrow. Farrow then forwards it to Rutledge Mann, from which it then is delivered to The Shadow. It seems that, at this point in time, Hawkeye still technically works for Farrow, not The Shadow.
Appearing twice in this story are the famous rubber suction cups, with which The Shadow can scale the outside walls of buildings. If you've ever wondered about the soft, squidgy noises that they make, and wondered if that could give away The Shadow's presence in the dark to nearby hoodlums, The Shadow himself acknowledges that concern in this story. It points out that he had never been able to eliminate the give-away sounds from these concave disks without impairing their necessary efficiency.
Also appearing in this story are The Shadow's famous girasol ring, and that vial of strange purplish liquid that gives mysterious extra strength. I've always suspected that The Shadow carried some illegal drugs in that vial. Whatever the contents, they sure work fast. When he gives a few drops to an injured man in this story, he revives and regains his strength quickly. What makes me think this wouldn't have been FDA approved?
One last point of interest. If you ever wondered how much Clyde Burke got paid to work on the New York Classic as a reporter, this story indicates it's a whopping $60 a week. That's in 1935 dollars, mind you. In 2002 dollars, accounting for inflation, that would be about $25 per hour. Not too bad!
(And ponder the name Zitz.)