The Room of Death — Hugh Wiley

Collier's, April 13th 1940
MR.WONG
THE ROOM OF DEATH
(later rewritten as Cigarette of Death - Saint Detective Magazine, April 1955)
by Hugh Wiley
illustrated by Irving Nubick

The Room of Death. James Lee shoots it out.
A telephone call at midnight and two shots from the dark start another exciting adventure for resourceful James Lee

3900 Words



The Saint Detective Magazine, April 1955
MR.WONG
CIGARETTE OF DEATH
(Originally published as The Room of Death �" Collier's, April 13th 1940)
by Hugh Wiley

“One cigarette before I die!” was James Lee's plea. To the Russian it seemed unlikely that a smoke ring could tighten into a noose.

Armchair adventure may be quite beguiling enchanting and remote from reality, or it may be so harsh, frightening and immediate that it seems to be happening right before your eyes in a room hazy with gunsmoke. But when a story is written with unsparing honesty the very harshness takes on an exciting quality we wouldn't trade for all the security on earth. Hugh Wiley who ruggedly realistic crime yarns featuring the spirited James Lee have appeared frequently in COLLIER'S scores here a veritable double bull's-eye.

(Publisher's note: This is a Cold War rewrite of a World War II story. See “The Room of Death” for the original. References to Japan have changed to Russia/The Soviet Union. Also, numerous conversational transitions have changed.)

4100 Words


This edition includes the illustrations from the stories, plus a Large Gallery of cartoons from the April 13 1940 issue of Collier's.