Brett Halliday
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| Pseudonym(s): | Brett Halliday, Asa Baker, Mathew Blood, Kathryn Culver, Don Davis, Hal Debrett, Anthony Scott, Anderson Wayne |
|---|---|
| Born: | July 31, 1904 Chicago, Illinois |
| Died: | February 4, 1977 Santa Barbara, California |
| Occupation(s): | Novelist |
| Nationality: |  United States |
| Writing period: | 1927 - 1977 |
| Genre(s): | Mystery, Westerns |
Brett Halliday (July 31, 1904 - February 4, 1977), primary pen name of Davis Dresser, was an American mystery writer, best known for the long-lived series of Mike Shayne novels he wrote, and later commissioned others to write. Halliday wrote non-series mysteries and westerns under the names Asa Baker, Mathew Blood, Kathryn Culver, Don Davis, Hal Debrett, Anthony Scott, and Anderson Wayne.
He was born in Chicago, Illinois, but mostly grew up in West Texas. He lost an eye to barbed wire as a boy and wore an eye patch for the rest of his life. At the age of 14, he ran away from home and enlisted in the U.S. 5th Cavalry Regiment at Fort Bliss, Texas, followed by a year of Border Patrol duty on the Rio Grande. After his service was up, he returned to Texas to finish high school. Halliday graduated from Tri-State College with a degree in civil engineering, and he worked as an engineer and surveyor before turning to writing in 1927.
After his first marriage (to Kathleen Rollins, who had two daughters from a previous marriage), Halliday was married to mystery writer Helen McCloy from 1946 to 1961. Halliday and McCloy were also partners in a literary agency that bore their names, as well as in Torquil Publishing Company, which published his books from 1953 to 1965.
The film Kiss Kiss Bang Bang is based partly on Halliday's novel Bodies Are Where You Find Them.
He was a founding member of the Mystery Writers of America, and in 1954 he and McCloy were given Edgar Awards for their critical writings on the genre.
He lived in Santa Barbara, California, until his death at the age of 72.
[edit] See also
- Bill Pronzini, who also wrote under the pseudonym Brett Halliday
