The Bishop Murder Case

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**Title** **The Bishop Murder Case**
First edition book front
Author	S. S. Van Dine
Country	United States
Language	English
Series	Philo Vance
Genre(s)	Mystery, Novel
Publisher	Scribners Press
Released	1928
Media type	Print (Hardback & Paperback)
ISBN	NA
Preceded by	The Greene Murder Case
Followed by	The Scarab Murder Case

The Bishop Murder Case (1928), was commonly cited as S. S. Van Dine's best book^{[citation needed]}. In this book, Philo Vance, Van Dine's popular detective character, solves a mystery built around a nursery rhyme. The Bishop Murder Case seems to be not only the first nursery-rhyme mystery book, but the first of any sort of mystery novel constructed around a formal scheme.

1 Plot summary
2 Characters in "The Bishop Murder Case"
3 Literary significance & criticism
4 Film, TV or theatrical adaptations
5 Footnotes
6 External links

[edit] Plot summary

Spoiler warning: Plot and/or ending details follow.

Plotted as a classical whodunit murder mystery book, the story involves a series of murders taking place in a rich neighborhood of New York. Each murder is publicised with an extract from a popular folk song. The focus of suspicion switches with each murder, and each new suspect is killed in turn, the last in a staged suicide, until finally Vance, seeing through the suicide identifies the correct murderer.

[edit] Characters in "The Bishop Murder Case"

Philo Vance – private investigator
S.S. Van Dine – narrator
John F.X.Markham – U.S. Attorney
Ernest Heath – PD Sergeant
Adolph Drukker – writer, scientist
Mrs. Drukker – Drukker's mother
Grete Menzel – Drukkers' cook
Bertrand Dillard – famous physics scientist
Bella Dillard – professor Dillard's niece
Sigurd Arnesson – University professor, professor Dillard's adopted son
Pyne – Dillards' butler
Mrs. Beedle – Dillards' cook
John Pardee – professional chess player
J.C.Robin – sport champion
Raymond Sperling – engineer
John E. Sprigg – Columbia University student

Spoilers end here.

[edit] Literary significance & criticism

Mondern interest in this book stems at least partly from its role as a precursor of other books with a similar design. Many other Golden Age mystery novels are constructed around a formal scheme: for example Ellery Queen and Ngaio Marsh where the chapter headings especially convey a fascinating sense of pure geometry. Even Agatha Christie used this approach in Ten Little Indians.

[edit] Film, TV or theatrical adaptations

A film starring Basil Rathbone was made of The Bishop Murder Case in 1930. The film was an early "talkie" and shows interesting effects because it was made so early after sound technology had been added to film; for example, it lacks a music soundtrack.^[1]