Joan of Arc... and Nancy Drew

Nancy’s (female) friend George finds inspiration in Joan of Arc…

“The idea of a girl soldier appeals to me.  What terrific courage she had!”….  Nancy smiled.  “I wish we had Joan on this trip with us.  She was a pretty good detective, too.” 

- The Mystery of the 99 Steps (Nancy Drew Mystery Stories, 1966) 

 

 

Image: Philadelphia Museum of Art

The Difficult and the Impossible

“With an inward smile she recalled a placard she had seen recently in a store: The difficult we do right away.  The impossible takes a little longer.”

- Beverly Gray’s Scoop (1954)

 

High Praise for Nancy

Is there a brilliant girl detective in your life?  Have you just been rescued from terrible danger or had a troubling mystery resolved in spectacular fashion?  Don’t forget to pay your heroine an appropriate compliment…

“Miss Drew, you’re the most ingenious girl I’ve ever met! … I wish I could think that fast.”

 - Nancy Drew and the Bungalow Mystery (1960)

Darkness at Assateague

An evocative image from The Haunted Lagoon (1959), an installment of The Dana Girls Mystery Stories.

Adventure Calls... and Trixie Answers

“Honey wanted to be the kind of detective who sat in an office and directed other people… Trixie was just the opposite.  The more involved a situation seemed to be, the better she liked it.  Adventure – even danger beckoned her and found her willing… Trixie was scrupulous, though, about doing work that was expected of her.”

- Trixie Belden and the Mysterious Code (1961)

"You got types?"

Only you, Myrna Loy.

Nick and Nora Charles… probably the cutest detective couple in movie history.

 

 

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I4vjitQH-tU

 

No Romance Tonight!

Chuckling to herself, Nancy said aloud, “Romance and detective work won’t mix tonight!”

- Nancy Drew and the Bungalow Mystery, 1960 edition.

 

Bringing Up Baby

Katharine Hepburn’s character in “Bringing Up Baby” – described in the trailer as “a flutter-brained vixen with love in her heart” – may not be her most feminist role.  Yet the amazing Ms. Hepburn somehow manages to make Susan Vance simultaneously mischievous, anarchic, clever, and utterly endearing.  Cary Grant’s snowballing exasperation with Susan is priceless – especially because, deep down, he loves every minute of it.

Trailer:

 

Ending (Spoilers!):

Following Trixie

One night, coming home from the movies, Honey’s brother sees her shivering and asks whether she is cold – ready to offer her his scarf ...

‘Not cold,’ she answered.  ‘Those western pictures frighten me.’

‘How you could have followed Trixie into some of the tight spots she led you into, I’ll never know,’ Mart said.

‘I didn’t know about them until I was into them.’ Honey sighed.  ‘When I did know I’d have been more frightened to have her go on alone.’

 

- Trixie Belden and the Mysterious Code (1961)

 

Jane and her Parachute

“The leap from the plane had been so sudden Jane had no time to analyze her feelings while she fell…. She tried to relax as the chute neared the ground… landing in a parachute was anything but a lark.”

- Jane, Stewardess of the Air Lines (1934)

Trixie's Big Idea

When the principal cracks down on clubs at school, Trixie needs to find a new project to justify the “Bob-Whites of the Glen”… 

‘How about something to help UNICEF, the United Nations International Children’s Emergency Fund?’  Trixie asked.  Then she added, dramatically, ‘That would cover the whole world!’ 

‘Say, Trixie, that really sounds like something,’ Mart said, excitedly.  Just let the school board try to put the heat on us when we’re doing something for the United Nations!’ 

- Trixie Belden and the Mysterious Code (1961)

 

 

Illustration by Paul Frame

Nancy Drew, Detective

Original art, adapted from the cover art of the Grosset & Dunlap 1959 edition of Nancy Drew Mystery Stories.