S. S. VAN DINE ARCHIVE OF PHOTOGRAPHS, CIRCA 1889-1938

N. P.: Privately photographed, ca.1889-1938., 1889-1938. First edition. A collection of 31 photographs and albumens of the famed mystery author, S. S. Van Dine (1888-1939) ranging in size from 1.75" x 3.75" to 8" x 10". The photographs date from when Van Dine was three months old, to the year before his death. With annotations on verso of some by various family members. Professional portraits taken by Eugene R. Richee, Disraeli, Jack Chinn, and various other studios. Photographs include Van Dine as a baby and a young boy; as an 18-year-old, having been expelled from Harvard; as an older man in various poses in his home and library; and as a successful writer, posed with Hollywood stars George Burns and Gracie Allen, who were to star in "The Gracie Allen Murder Case." Photographs have varying degrees of toning, edge wear, bumped corners, and silvering. Some chipping and material loss to some. Minor soiling in places. Good to Very Good. An impressive photographic archive of an author who helped to create the modern detective novel.