Mary Roberts Rinehart

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Mary Roberts Rinehart, 1914

Mary Roberts Rinehart (August 12, 1876-September 22, 1958) was an American author and the source of the phrase "The butler did it."

1 Biography
2 Writing
3 Bibliography
4 External link

[edit] Biography

Rinehart was born near Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania in 1876. Her father was a frustrated inventor, and throughout her childhood, the family often had financial problems. She was left-handed at a time when that was considered inappropriate, and she was trained to use her right hand instead. She married Dr. Stanley M. Rinehart in 1896. She died in New York City, where she had been living for some time.

[edit] Writing

Rinehart wrote hundreds of short stories, poems, travelogues and special articles. Many of her books and plays, such as The Bat (1920) were adapted for movies, such as The Bat (1926), The Bat Whispers (1930), and The Bat (1959). While many of her books were best-sellers, critics were most appreciative of her murder mysteries.

Spoiler warning: Plot and/or ending details follow.

The phrase "The butler did it", which has become a cliché, came from Rinehart's novel The Door, in which the butler actually did do it, although that exact phrase does not actually appear in the work. [1] Tim Kelly adapted Rinehart's play "The Butler Did It." This play includes 5 lead female roles and 5 lead male roles.

[edit] Bibliography

[edit] Novels and plays

Seven Days (Broadway comedy, 1909)
The Window at the White Cat (1910)
Where There's a Will (1912)
The Cave on Thundercloud (1912)
Mind Over Motor (1912)
The Case of Jennie Brice (1913)
Street of Seven Stars (1914)
The After House : a story of love, mystery and a private yacht (1914)
K (1915)
Bab, a Sub-Deb (1917)
Long live the King! (1917)
The Amazing Interlude (1918)
Tenting To-Night : a chronicle of sport and adventure in Glacier park and the Cascade mountains (1918)
Dangerous Days (1919)
Salvage (1919)
A Poor Wise Man (1920)
The Bat (with Avery Hopwood, 1920)
The Breaking Point (1922)
The Red Lamp (1925)
The Mystery Lamp (1925)
Two Flights Up (1928)
The Door (1930)
The Double Alibi (1932)
The Album (1933)
The State Vs Elinor Norton (1933)
The Wall (1938)
The Great Mistake (1940)
The Yellow Room (1945)
The Swimming Pool (1952)
The Wandering Knife (1952)
The Frightened Wife (1953) (Special Edgar Award, 1954)

[edit] Series

Miss Cornelia Van Gorder
- The Man in Lower Ten (1906)
- The Circular Staircase (1907)
Letitia (Tish) Carberry
- The Amazing Adventures of Letitia Carberry (1911)
- Tish (1916)
- More Tish (1921)
- The Book of Tish (1926)
- Tish Plays the Game (1926)
- Tish Marches On (1937)
Hilda Adams
- Miss Pinkerton (1932)
- Haunted Lady (1942)
- Episode of the Wandering Knife (1950)