HOLLYWOOD TROUBLESHOOTER

    Like many crime writers in the 1930s, W. T. Ballard (1903-1980) began his career in the pulps. He eventually published more than 150 short stories in some 40 different mystery magazines. (The book reprints a photo showing Black Mask writers on the West Coast. Included in addition to Ballard are Raymond Chandler, Dwight Babcock, Dashiell Hammett, Horace McCoy and Norbert Davis.) Ballard used the Hollywood troubleshooter in his early novels then shifted his attention to westerns. He kept himself busy. The book’s bibliography lists 101 titles, mostly paperback originals, in all genres. Despite his proclivity for action stories, Ballard may be at his strongest in The Package Deal (1956) and Fury in the Heart (1959), two showbiz novels with nary a hint of gunplay.

    Hollywood Troubleshooter by W. T. Ballard. Bowling Green University Popular Press (1985), 156 pp.
    This collection contains five short stories originally published in Black Mask between 1933 and 1942. They run from 10,000 to 15,000 words and are illustrated by drawings from the magazine. Like most of the 43 stories that Ballard wrote for Black Mask, this quintet features Bill Lennox, not quite hardboiled troubleshooter for General Consolidated Films. Lennox works directly for irascible but tender-hearted studio chief Sol Spurck. This connection gives him more clout than the standard L. A. detective. The stories show Lennox working on a variety of cases. In "A Little Different" (1933) he must try to reacquire a kidnapped movie star. In "A Million-Dollar Tramp" (1933) he finds a dead guy in the apartment of a pretty dancer. In "Gamblers Don't Win" (1935) he suspects that the jockeys of Spurck's race horses are throwing the races. In "Scars of Murder" (1939) he investigates a woman claiming to be the sister of an actor who died in his trailer. And in "Lights, Action -- Killer" (1942) he accompanies Spurck to a location shoot and learns that a cameraman has gone missing.
    Ballard nails the Black Mask formula from the get-go. Bad stuff happens in these stories: shootings, knifings, kidnappings, fist fights, car chases. Bad people make it happen: racketeers, thugs, gamblers, devious dames. Everything is rendered in snappy prose that’s heavy on action, fairly strong on L. A. ambience, and light on character development. The stories are complicated but not to the point of silliness. They’re usually wrapped up without loose ends or lengthy explication. With a few exceptions the author keeps the focus on Lennox, who gets things done with little help from ancillary characters. It might be nice to report that Ballard hones his skills as the series moves along, but the opposite appears to be the case. The final story borders on the sluggish, perhaps not a good sign for someone about to embark on a long career as a novelist. The stories aren’t as polished as those of Hammett or Chandler, but they should still appeal to readers searching for noir in hour-long doses.