Hi Gomez --

You're welcome for starting the list; however, Dylan's
my name, not Mark.  (See
http://www.iowamufon.com/octobercountry/brainsbenton.htm
).  Perhaps some of the confusion lies in a quote from
Mark on that page.  If so, I'll have to make it
clearer.

Dylan

http://dylan1371.blogspot.com


--- Gomez ORoark <gomezoroark@...> wrote:
> Hi All,
>
> I found the group about a half-hour or forty-five
> minutes ago, and
> joined immediately. I've been skimming through the
> messages, and
> thought I better introduce myself.
>
> While I was laid up in the spring of 1964 with a
> badly broken leg, my
> Aunt bought me, among other books, "The Case of the
> Stolen Dummy".  I
> loved it, and thought it even better than the Hardy
> Boys simply
> because it was more plausible than the Hardy's
> adventures and
> lifestyle.  Brains and Jimmy were two (reasonably)
> normal kids who
> had to walk or ride their bikes while dealing with
> local crime and
> real parents, instead of having cars, motorcycles,
> speedboats and
> even airplanes at their disposal when their famous
> father got them
> involved with organized crime and international
> intrigue.
>
> I have re-read that one a number of times over the
> years.  I knew
> from the ad on the back cover there were more books
> in the series,
> but I never found any until recently.  In just the
> past year I have
> found "The Case of the Missing Message" and "The
> Case of the Painted
> Dragon".  While they'll never have the nostalgic
> appeal for me
> that "The Case of the Stolen Dummy" has, I thought
> they were just as
> well-written and enjoyable.  I'm still looking for
> the other three (I
> know I could find them on e-bay, but I'm still
> enough of a Boy
> Detective myself to enjoy that electric thrill of
> unearthing them in
> the back corners of a second-hand book store).
>
> I was really surprised to find this list.  Thanks
> for starting it,
> Mark.  Like you, over the years I have mentioned
> Brains Benton to
> people who are familiar with other kids book series,
> and the
> responses have been nothing but blank stares.  It's
> good to know
> there are at least a few of us out there who are in
> the know, and I'm
> looking forward to talking with you all.
>
> Thanks again,
>
> RC Roark
>
>
> ------------------------ Yahoo! Groups Sponsor
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>

Last night I finished my reread of all six of the Brains Bentons.
The last one, The Case of the Painted Dragon, seems a little
different from the others. The personalities of Jimmy and Brains are
still recognizable, but seem somewhat different from how they were
presented in the first five books. In book six, Brians seems more
aloof, superior, conceited, and even controlling to the point of
being manipulative, and Jimmy is--well, kind of absurd. He makes a
number of foolish blunders that he wouldn't have made in the
previous books, and his reluctance to get involved in dangerous
situations seems exaggerated in this book. The two young sleuths
argue more than in the other books, and it's not pleasant bantering,
either.

The plot itself is pretty good and comes across as plausible for a
book of this genre, though there are some places where plausibility
is stretched. A few scenes stand out for their atmospheric impact.

Overall, the Brains Benton series seems like a plain or less
sophisticated version of the Ken Holt series--in both series, the
mysteries are complex and solving them requires some good deduction.
In both series, the lead characters make occasional blunders and
there is some conflict between them from time to time. At the end,
the victory is recounted in a newspaper. The Brains Bentons are just
a little "younger" and, taken at face value, are very satisfying to
read.

In both the last Ken Holt book (The Mystery of the Sultan's
Scimitar) and the last Brains Benton book, the friendship between
the two lead characters appears to be unraveling. It is a sad note
on which to end two good series.

However, The Case of the Painted Dragon ends on a promising note
which, regretfully, is never fulfilled. The mysterious shooting of a
carrier pigeon is most intriguing. We never find out what its
message was or why it was important. Maybe we should refer to this
teaser as The Case of the Missing Message and then start the series
over again.

David Baumann

Hi All,

I found the group about a half-hour or forty-five minutes ago, and
joined immediately. I've been skimming through the messages, and
thought I better introduce myself.

While I was laid up in the spring of 1964 with a badly broken leg, my
Aunt bought me, among other books, "The Case of the Stolen Dummy".  I
loved it, and thought it even better than the Hardy Boys simply
because it was more plausible than the Hardy's adventures and
lifestyle.  Brains and Jimmy were two (reasonably) normal kids who
had to walk or ride their bikes while dealing with local crime and
real parents, instead of having cars, motorcycles, speedboats and
even airplanes at their disposal when their famous father got them
involved with organized crime and international intrigue.

I have re-read that one a number of times over the years.  I knew
from the ad on the back cover there were more books in the series,
but I never found any until recently.  In just the past year I have
found "The Case of the Missing Message" and "The Case of the Painted
Dragon".  While they'll never have the nostalgic appeal for me
that "The Case of the Stolen Dummy" has, I thought they were just as
well-written and enjoyable.  I'm still looking for the other three (I
know I could find them on e-bay, but I'm still enough of a Boy
Detective myself to enjoy that electric thrill of unearthing them in
the back corners of a second-hand book store).

I was really surprised to find this list.  Thanks for starting it,
Mark.  Like you, over the years I have mentioned Brains Benton to
people who are familiar with other kids book series, and the
responses have been nothing but blank stares.  It's good to know
there are at least a few of us out there who are in the know, and I'm
looking forward to talking with you all.

Thanks again,

RC Roark

Austin Dolby wrote:

> where did you get the series?

Dylan wrote that you can get them on ebay. You can also find them through
addall. I just did a check at http://used.addall.com/ Many copies of the
Brains Benton books are available. They are neither scarce or expensive.

> May God richly Bless You!
> Austin
> Psalm 134:3

Thanks for the blessing!

David Baumann

You can usually find most of them on eBay...

Dylan

http://dylan1371.blogspot.com


--- Austin Dolby <gandalfmithrindir@...> wrote:
>
> where did you get the series? I've had to content
> myself with "Counterfeit Coin". Great book!
>  David Baumann <dbaumann@...> wrote:For the
> past two or three weeks I've been rereading the
> entire Brain
> Benton series. Tonight I started on the last, The
> Case of the
> Painted Dragon. Reading the stories in quick
> succession has
> confirmed for me how well they are written,
> especially the first
> three. I did notice, however, that the The Case of
> the Stolen Dummy
> certainly didn't feature the dummy, and the dummy
> was never stolen.
> Editors usually give books their titles, not the
> authors.
>
> Anyway, in The Case of the Painted Dragon, Jimmy as
> usual is
> hesitant to face danger. When Brains was telling
> Jimmy about how a
> secret agent can kill people, I was amused to read
> this sentence on
> page 38: "Right there it occurred to me that maybe I
> ought to retire
> from the detective business and take a vacation
> trip--say, to
> Afghanistan!"
>
> Great books!
>
>
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> http://www.geocities.com/dylan1371/brainsbenton/
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>
>
>
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>
> May God richly Bless You!
> Austin
> Psalm 134:3
>
>
> ---------------------------------
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where did you get the series? I've had to content myself with "Counterfeit Coin". Great book!

 David Baumann <dbaumann@...> wrote:

For the past two or three weeks I've been rereading the entire Brain
Benton series. Tonight I started on the last, The Case of the
Painted Dragon. Reading the stories in quick succession has
confirmed for me how well they are written, especially the first
three. I did notice, however, that the The Case of the Stolen Dummy
certainly didn't feature the dummy, and the dummy was never stolen.
Editors usually give books their titles, not the authors.

Anyway, in The Case of the Painted Dragon, Jimmy as usual is
hesitant to face danger. When Brains was telling Jimmy about how a
secret agent can kill people, I was amused to read this sentence on
page 38: "Right there it occurred to me that maybe I ought to retire
from the detective business and take a vacation trip--say, to
Afghanistan!"

Great books!



Get more information on Brains Benton at:
http://www.geocities.com/dylan1371/brainsbenton/
=============
To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to:
brainsbenton-unsubscribe@yahoogroups.com



Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to the Yahoo! Terms of Service.

For the past two or three weeks I've been rereading the entire Brain
Benton series. Tonight I started on the last, The Case of the
Painted Dragon. Reading the stories in quick succession has
confirmed for me how well they are written, especially the first
three. I did notice, however, that the The Case of the Stolen Dummy
certainly didn't feature the dummy, and the dummy was never stolen.
Editors usually give books their titles, not the authors.

Anyway, in The Case of the Painted Dragon, Jimmy as usual is
hesitant to face danger. When Brains was telling Jimmy about how a
secret agent can kill people, I was amused to read this sentence on
page 38: "Right there it occurred to me that maybe I ought to retire
from the detective business and take a vacation trip--say, to
Afghanistan!"

Great books!

To everyone on the Brains Benton list:

An assistant to Steve Waterman, the producer of the
Stuart Little movies (and others) just contacted me,
wanting to know if I could find out who owns the
rights to Brains Benton.  Does anyone know?

Also, I need a contact for Mr. Verral's estate, if
anyone knows that.

Thanks,

Dylan

http://dylan1371.blogspot.com

[David Baumann:]

>Fred Woodworth, who publishes the Mystery and Adventure Series Review. One of
>the articles in the publication, years ago, was about the Brains Benton series:
>"The Last of the Best."

      This article is still available at this web site:
http://users.arczip.com/fwdixon/seriesbookcentral/benton.html.
      I do have the beginnings of a web page about the Brains Benton series at
http://www.foxall.com.au/users/mje/VerlWyat.htm.  At the moment, it is little
more than a listing of the titles (which will be part of a larger project to
provide complete listings of titles by various authors); but the page does
already list all of the few web pages I know of about the series, which some
members of this group may be interested to look at.
      If anyone knows of any further pages I haven't listed, I would be
interested to know of them, and would like to add them to the meagre list on my
page.  Ultimately I do intend to add a companion page discussing the books a
little; but it probably won't be soon - there's so much else I also need to do.

                          Regards,
                           Michael Edwards.

> Subject: Re: New brainsbenton member
>
> Hi there.  Just wanted to welcome "ahmanyan" to the
> group.  What started your interest in Brains Benton?

Thanks. I've been collecting series books since 1989 and have complete sets
of about 17 different series. Early on I became friends with Fred Woodworth,
who publishes the Mystery and Adventure Series Review. One of the articles
in the publication, years ago, was about the Brains Benton series: "The Last
of the Best." As a result of that, I collected the books and enjoyed them.
Recently I learned about the reprints of the Mad Scientists' Club stories,
located a website to those stories, and from there found a link to the
Brains Benton site and message board. There you go. I'm just now going to
start a second read-through of the Brains Benton books.

David Baumann

Hi there.  Just wanted to welcome "ahmanyan" to the
group.  What started your interest in Brains Benton?

Dylan

http://dylan1371.blogspot.com


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> group.

Hey everyone --

I updated the Brains Benton webpage with the information that Mark
provided a while back.  Mark, if you have a website you want me to
link to, or if you want me to provide your full name, or email
address, please let me know.

You can see the new information at:

http://www.geocities.com/dylan1371/brainsbenton/

Thanks,

Dylan

> Just wanted to welcome our two new members.  What's
> your interest in Brains and Jimmy?

The usual.  :-)  Read them as a kid.  I had 4 of the six.  Not sure what
happened to the books.  I think my Mom gave them away.  :-P  Have kids of
my own and will eventually pony up the $60-70 for the set.

Paul

Just wanted to welcome our two new members.  What's
your interest in Brains and Jimmy?

Dylan
http://www.geocities.com/dylan1371


--- Yahoo! Groups Notification
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>
> Hello,
>
> This is an automated email message to let you know
> that
> pfferraro <pferraro@...> joined your
> brainsbenton
> group.
>

[Dylan:]

>Hi - welcome to the Brains Benton group.
>
>--- Yahoo! Groups Notification
><notify@yahoogroups.com> wrote:
>>
>> Hello,
>>
>> This is an automated email message to let you know that
>> mje@... joined your brainsbenton group.

      Hallo, Dylan - I guess I should acknowledge this welcome.
      I guess I don't have a lot to say just now.  I read four of the Brains
Benton books when I was in my teens - even here in Australia, they were quite
easily available in the late 1960s and early 1970s, along with the Three
Investigators, Power Boys, and so on.  I got my 5th book a bit later (The Case
of the Roving Rolls); but the remaining book (The Case of the Counterfeit Coin)
remained elusive for quite a number of years, despite constant searching in
second-hand book-shops (we're talking about some time in the 1970s here).  But I
finally found it, and had the complete series.  (I completed my collection of
the 6 Power Boys books round about the same time, too.)
      But the years have gone by, and I haven't re-read the books for a while
now - so I can't talk much about them for the time being.  But I saw a mention
of a Brains Benton group just recently, and decided to join and just see what
happens here.  If any discussion occurs, I may join in as and when I have
something interesting to say.  But I might have to read the books again before I
can say much.
      I may write a Brains Benton web page for my web site once I've read them,
and discuss the series a bit.  Currently, I do at least have a page listing the
series, but not much discussion on it.
      Actually, I do have a Power Boys page - the only one on the Internet, I
believe, other than sites offering the books for sale; it comes out at the top
of any search for "Mel Lyle" and "Power Boys".  So, considering this is a Brains
Benton list, it's perhaps a pity I didn't choose to start that page instead -
but that's the way it happened.
      Once I've read some of the books again, I may well start a Brains Benton
page, on similar lines to the Power Boys page I already have.  Meanwhile, I'll
just wait and see if any discussion happens here.

                          Regards,
                           Michael Edwards.

Hi - welcome to the Brains Benton group.


--- Yahoo! Groups Notification
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>
> Hello,
>
> This is an automated email message to let you know
> that
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>

Mark-

If it's OK, I'd like to add your information below,
and the other email, to the Brains Benton webpage at
http://www.geocities.com/dylan1371/brainsbenton .
I'll give you credit, or not, whichever you prefer.

Let me know --

Dylan


--- "crestwoodone <mandm6692@...>"
<mandm6692@...> wrote:
> Dylan,
>
> Verral was born Ontario, Canada, Nov. 7, 1904, and
> died Apr. 1, 1990.
> He was 85. I talked to him either 1988 or 1989. He
> would have been
> about 54 or 55 years old when he wrote "The Case of
> the Missing
> Message." Now that I know this, it strikes me as
> funny that Jimmy
> Carson described Bimbo the clown as "...pretty old,
> close to fifty,
> anyway." Verral must have chuckled as he wrote that.
> When I talked to
> him in his eighties, he seemed so young at heart.
>
> I just found a letter I wrote to a friend in 1997,
> and in it I say
> that Verral told me he stayed in touch with the
> other writers to make
> sure Brains and Jimmy stayed in character. Character
> must have been
> his main concern. It's just my guess that he was
> even more involved
> with the final book, "Painted Dragon."
>
> I wish we could discover who wrote those last five
> mysteries. My
> favorite will always be the first in the series,
> "Missing Message,"
> because I read it so many times without even knowing
> the other books
> existed. Plus, we know it's pure Verral.
>
> By the way, there is more information on Verral in a
> reference book
> called "Something About the Author," (Vol. 65). From
> 1934 to 1943,
> Verral wrote numerous stories for the "Bill Barnes
> Air Adventurer"
> magazine under the joint pseudonym George L. Eaton.
> Bill Barnes was a
> pilot who demolished villains in dogfights.
>
> I also have information that Verral wrote "...The
> Frenchy Beaumont
> series (six titles published 1953-56), which had a
> strong family
> focus, described the adventures of a boy
> participating in various
> sports." I've never seen or read any of them.
>
> Mark
>
>
> Get more information on Brains Benton at:
> http://www.geocities.com/dylan1371/brainsbenton/
> =============
> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to:
> brainsbenton-unsubscribe@yahoogroups.com
>
>
>
> Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to
> http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/
>
>

I`ve looked up george wyatt and couldn`t find anything on him just a
link to verral.I think charles probably did write all of the books.It
would be very hard to copy someone else`s writing style.All the books
flow together to well to be a different writer.All but #6 that is it
is the only one where jimmy is not quite his self.But once he gets
going he seems to be normal,for jimmy anyway.

Dylan,

Verral was born Ontario, Canada, Nov. 7, 1904, and died Apr. 1, 1990.
He was 85. I talked to him either 1988 or 1989. He would have been
about 54 or 55 years old when he wrote "The Case of the Missing
Message." Now that I know this, it strikes me as funny that Jimmy
Carson described Bimbo the clown as "...pretty old, close to fifty,
anyway." Verral must have chuckled as he wrote that. When I talked to
him in his eighties, he seemed so young at heart.

I just found a letter I wrote to a friend in 1997, and in it I say
that Verral told me he stayed in touch with the other writers to make
sure Brains and Jimmy stayed in character. Character must have been
his main concern. It's just my guess that he was even more involved
with the final book, "Painted Dragon."

I wish we could discover who wrote those last five mysteries. My
favorite will always be the first in the series, "Missing Message,"
because I read it so many times without even knowing the other books
existed. Plus, we know it's pure Verral.

By the way, there is more information on Verral in a reference book
called "Something About the Author," (Vol. 65). From 1934 to 1943,
Verral wrote numerous stories for the "Bill Barnes Air Adventurer"
magazine under the joint pseudonym George L. Eaton. Bill Barnes was a
pilot who demolished villains in dogfights.

I also have information that Verral wrote "...The Frenchy Beaumont
series (six titles published 1953-56), which had a strong family
focus, described the adventures of a boy participating in various
sports." I've never seen or read any of them.

Mark

Mark,

Thanks for the very interesting information.  What was
the aprox. date you spoke with Verral, do you
remember?

Dylan
http://dylan1371.blogspot.com


--- "crestwoodone <mandm6692@...>"
<mandm6692@...> wrote:
> This is in reply to John's question. When I talked
> to Verral on the
> phone years ago, he said in effect that George Wyatt
> was a pseudonym
> and that he practically wrote the remaining books
> himself. How
> involved he was in particular with each individual
> book was not
> clear. I wondered at that moment if he wasn't
> admitting he wrote them
> all. But he seemed to be holding back some
> information for whatever
> reason, possibly, I thought, to protect private
> publishing industry
> agreements.
>
> I have read one or two descriptions of the Brains
> Benton series that
> say the shift in authors is undetectable. So perhaps
> Verral did write
> them all. Or, as he said, he "practically" wrote
> them.
>
> I've noticed, too, that number 6, The Case of the
> Painted Dragon, is,
> as you said, different. For one thing, it appears to
> be about twice
> as long as the earlier stories, making me think that
> the writer knew
> this was Benton and Carson's last hurrah, the end of
> the series.
>
> But more importantly, everything about the
> characters and friendship
> of Brains and Jimmy in Painted Dragon seems to me to
> be more
> intensified and magnified. Jimmy was always a
> chicken in the earlier
> books, but in Painted Dragon it may be that he's
> chicken more often.
> Jimmy has goofed up before, but now he goofs up
> royally. And Brains
> may have been sarcastic towards Jimmy in the past,
> but in this last
> case he's harsher. Their friendship seems more
> strained while at the
> same time their loyalties to each other are even
> stronger.
>
> In a word, by the time he wrote book six, Verral
> seems to have fully
> developed the personalities of Brains and Jimmy,
> highlighting the
> antagonism and cooperation that makes the firm of
> Benton and Carson
> interesting. Then he just turned the boys loose on
> the story.
>
> Most of all, they act even more realistically, even
> more like friends
> really treat each other.
>
> By the way, when I called Verral, his wife answered
> the phone. She
> started to tell me he was in bad health, but he
> overheard and gently
> insisted on talking to me. He told me that he got
> calls from fans
> every now and then. To hear him speak, one would
> never know he was
> aged and ailing. His voice was young and lively,
> full of enthusiasm
> and friendliness. After I heard of his death later,
> I was very glad
> I'd spoken to him.
>
> Mark
>
>

This is in reply to John's question. When I talked to Verral on the
phone years ago, he said in effect that George Wyatt was a pseudonym
and that he practically wrote the remaining books himself. How
involved he was in particular with each individual book was not
clear. I wondered at that moment if he wasn't admitting he wrote them
all. But he seemed to be holding back some information for whatever
reason, possibly, I thought, to protect private publishing industry
agreements.

I have read one or two descriptions of the Brains Benton series that
say the shift in authors is undetectable. So perhaps Verral did write
them all. Or, as he said, he "practically" wrote them.

I've noticed, too, that number 6, The Case of the Painted Dragon, is,
as you said, different. For one thing, it appears to be about twice
as long as the earlier stories, making me think that the writer knew
this was Benton and Carson's last hurrah, the end of the series.

But more importantly, everything about the characters and friendship
of Brains and Jimmy in Painted Dragon seems to me to be more
intensified and magnified. Jimmy was always a chicken in the earlier
books, but in Painted Dragon it may be that he's chicken more often.
Jimmy has goofed up before, but now he goofs up royally. And Brains
may have been sarcastic towards Jimmy in the past, but in this last
case he's harsher. Their friendship seems more strained while at the
same time their loyalties to each other are even stronger.

In a word, by the time he wrote book six, Verral seems to have fully
developed the personalities of Brains and Jimmy, highlighting the
antagonism and cooperation that makes the firm of Benton and Carson
interesting. Then he just turned the boys loose on the story.

Most of all, they act even more realistically, even more like friends
really treat each other.

By the way, when I called Verral, his wife answered the phone. She
started to tell me he was in bad health, but he overheard and gently
insisted on talking to me. He told me that he got calls from fans
every now and then. To hear him speak, one would never know he was
aged and ailing. His voice was young and lively, full of enthusiasm
and friendliness. After I heard of his death later, I was very glad
I'd spoken to him.

Mark

did verral write all of the books or 1 to 5 or what?It seems as if
number 6 is a litte different than the others. Jimmy is a big chicken
in this one.1 to 3 are the best with #3 being the best.I would like
to know exactly which books verral wrote. john

I read my first brainsbenton book when I was in the 5th grade.A
friend brought me the case of the stolen dummy to school for me to
read.This was 1964.I loved it! I later got the case of the waltzing
mouse.After that I couldn`t find any more books.When I was grown I
looked still but no luck.Then I got serious and started going to old
bookstores. still no luck.Someone told me about these people that
could find old books(this was before I knew they were on the internet)
so I now have all six.I was giddy like a school kid when they
arrived.john

Just wanted to say hi to the new Brains Benton list
members.  This is a new group, but it's slowly adding
members.  Please feel free to introduce yourself, or
give the group your thoughts on Brains and Jimmy!

Dylan


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Get more information on Brains Benton at:
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Just wanted to say hi to the new Brains Benton list
members.  This is a new group, but it's slowly adding
members.  Please feel free to introduce yourself, or
give the group your thoughts on Brains and Jimmy!

Dylan


<notify@yahoogroups.com> wrote:
>
> Hello,
>
> This is an automated email message to let you know
> that
> renfaireman1557 <Daytime12345@...> joined your
> brainsbenton
> group.
>

I see we've got a few new members already!

Dylan


--- "crestwoodone <mandm6692@...>"
<mandm6692@...> wrote:
> Hardly anyone I've ever talked to over the years,
> and I am now 49
> years old, has heard of Brains Benton. And those few
> with whom I have
> spoken (located over the Internet) who did enjoy
> reading Brains as
> kids echo that sentiment. One thing some of us
> Brains Benton readers
> do have in common, though, is the conviction that
> Brains Benton
> stories were the best of all the many kids mysteries
> series including
> the Hardy Boys. And we all seem to agree that six
> books were far too
> few. We wanted more.
>
> A fellow fifth-grade friend introduced me to "The
> Case of the Missing
> Message" which he had found in the school library.
> We read that book
> over and over, so much so that we probably prevented
> any other kid
> from checking it out of the library that first year.
> A year or two
> later, I discovered the whole series of 6 books on
> sale in the Sears
> Christmas catalog (for some reason, it had not
> occured to us that
> more than one book existed about Benton and Carson).
> That series
> became my most urgent gift request that Christmas.
> Needless to say,
> when the treasured books arrived, my friend and I
> gobbled them up.
>
> We tried to emulate Brains and Jimmy by starting our
> own detective
> agency. My dad allowed us to use a cramped storage
> room in our
> garage. To the room we brought a kids chemistry set,
> a microscope,
> and a homemade fingerprinting set. My friend even
> typed up a few
> business cards modeled after the card used by Benton
> and Carson.
>
> We went snooping for mysteries, but we found nothing
> nearly as
> substantial as Benton and Carson. In fact, we spent
> more of our time
> building model rockets (it was the exciting age of
> the burgeoning
> space program)and just being kids. But the Brains
> Benton books added
> a lot of fun to our lives.
>
> I recently re-read them and they still have the
> power to pull me into
> the story.
>
> By the way, I did speak to author Charles Spain
> Verral over the phone
> years ago. He has since died. But he told me that he
> created
> Crestwood to be Anywhere, USA. I believe him because
> I've tried to
> find a geographical equivalent to Crestwood on the
> map, and I just
> can't.
>
> Verral also told me that Brains and Jimmy were
> inspired by his young
> son's and a friend's interest in detective work. And
> Verral implied
> that George Wyatt, who appears to be the author of
> the last five
> books, was a pseudonym. In fact, Verral told me that
> he himself was
> so involved in the process that he practically wrote
> the remaining
> books himself.
>
> I have more to say, but I hope first that others
> will join this site.
>
> Mark
>

Mark,

It's amazing that you spoke to the author over the
phone a while back.  That's pretty neat.  I anticipate
that it will take a couple of months to get a few
people on this list, but they're coming.  I get a lot
of traffic to the Brains Benton webpage, and I know
some of those people will sign up.

Dylan

--- "crestwoodone <mandm6692@...>"
<mandm6692@...> wrote:
> Hardly anyone I've ever talked to over the years,
> and I am now 49
> years old, has heard of Brains Benton. And those few
> with whom I have
> spoken (located over the Internet) who did enjoy
> reading Brains as
> kids echo that sentiment. One thing some of us
> Brains Benton readers
> do have in common, though, is the conviction that
> Brains Benton
> stories were the best of all the many kids mysteries
> series including
> the Hardy Boys. And we all seem to agree that six
> books were far too
> few. We wanted more.
>
> A fellow fifth-grade friend introduced me to "The
> Case of the Missing
> Message" which he had found in the school library.
> We read that book
> over and over, so much so that we probably prevented
> any other kid
> from checking it out of the library that first year.
> A year or two
> later, I discovered the whole series of 6 books on
> sale in the Sears
> Christmas catalog (for some reason, it had not
> occured to us that
> more than one book existed about Benton and Carson).
> That series
> became my most urgent gift request that Christmas.
> Needless to say,
> when the treasured books arrived, my friend and I
> gobbled them up.
>
> We tried to emulate Brains and Jimmy by starting our
> own detective
> agency. My dad allowed us to use a cramped storage
> room in our
> garage. To the room we brought a kids chemistry set,
> a microscope,
> and a homemade fingerprinting set. My friend even
> typed up a few
> business cards modeled after the card used by Benton
> and Carson.
>
> We went snooping for mysteries, but we found nothing
> nearly as
> substantial as Benton and Carson. In fact, we spent
> more of our time
> building model rockets (it was the exciting age of
> the burgeoning
> space program)and just being kids. But the Brains
> Benton books added
> a lot of fun to our lives.
>
> I recently re-read them and they still have the
> power to pull me into
> the story.
>
> By the way, I did speak to author Charles Spain
> Verral over the phone
> years ago. He has since died. But he told me that he
> created
> Crestwood to be Anywhere, USA. I believe him because
> I've tried to
> find a geographical equivalent to Crestwood on the
> map, and I just
> can't.
>
> Verral also told me that Brains and Jimmy were
> inspired by his young
> son's and a friend's interest in detective work. And
> Verral implied
> that George Wyatt, who appears to be the author of
> the last five
> books, was a pseudonym. In fact, Verral told me that
> he himself was
> so involved in the process that he practically wrote
> the remaining
> books himself.
>
> I have more to say, but I hope first that others
> will join this site.
>
> Mark
>
>

Hardly anyone I've ever talked to over the years, and I am now 49
years old, has heard of Brains Benton. And those few with whom I have
spoken (located over the Internet) who did enjoy reading Brains as
kids echo that sentiment. One thing some of us Brains Benton readers
do have in common, though, is the conviction that Brains Benton
stories were the best of all the many kids mysteries series including
the Hardy Boys. And we all seem to agree that six books were far too
few. We wanted more.

A fellow fifth-grade friend introduced me to "The Case of the Missing
Message" which he had found in the school library. We read that book
over and over, so much so that we probably prevented any other kid
from checking it out of the library that first year. A year or two
later, I discovered the whole series of 6 books on sale in the Sears
Christmas catalog (for some reason, it had not occured to us that
more than one book existed about Benton and Carson). That series
became my most urgent gift request that Christmas. Needless to say,
when the treasured books arrived, my friend and I gobbled them up.

We tried to emulate Brains and Jimmy by starting our own detective
agency. My dad allowed us to use a cramped storage room in our
garage. To the room we brought a kids chemistry set, a microscope,
and a homemade fingerprinting set. My friend even typed up a few
business cards modeled after the card used by Benton and Carson.

We went snooping for mysteries, but we found nothing nearly as
substantial as Benton and Carson. In fact, we spent more of our time
building model rockets (it was the exciting age of the burgeoning
space program)and just being kids. But the Brains Benton books added
a lot of fun to our lives.

I recently re-read them and they still have the power to pull me into
the story.

By the way, I did speak to author Charles Spain Verral over the phone
years ago. He has since died. But he told me that he created
Crestwood to be Anywhere, USA. I believe him because I've tried to
find a geographical equivalent to Crestwood on the map, and I just
can't.

Verral also told me that Brains and Jimmy were inspired by his young
son's and a friend's interest in detective work. And Verral implied
that George Wyatt, who appears to be the author of the last five
books, was a pseudonym. In fact, Verral told me that he himself was
so involved in the process that he practically wrote the remaining
books himself.

I have more to say, but I hope first that others will join this site.

Mark