Hal Schick

Dime Detective Hal Schick

It's the summer of 1944, and the U. S. is at war. Times are tough for Sidney Craven, who has to supplement the sporadic income from his one-man Los Angeles detective agency by writing crime stories for pulp magazines. Then, a wounded war hero--recently home from overseas--hires Craven to locate his missing wife, an actress who disappeared on the very day she was supposed to start a new film. Craven begins his investigation by visiting her Hollywood studio.

Before his snooping gets him run off the lot, a costar gives Craven a tip that eventually leads him to a jazz club in South Central L. A. Unlike with his usual divorce cases, he finds himself entangled in a narrative that includes blackmail and murder. His own life in danger, Craven doggedly tracks down clues and attempts to lure the prime suspect into what could be a fateful confrontation.