Joseph T. "Cap" Shaw (1874–1952) was the editor of '' Black Mask'' magazine from 1926 to 1936.

Life and career

Before becoming ''Black Mask'' editor, Shaw had worked as a newspaper reporter and as a soldier in

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...

, attaining the rank of captain (Shaw's friends gave him the nickname "Cap").''Danger is My Business: an illustrated history of the Fabulous Pulp Magazines'' by

Lee Server Lee Server (May 27, 1953 – December 28, 2021) was an American writer. He was a graduate of New York University Film School. Server wrote several books about Hollywood cinema and pulp fiction. His book on Ava Gardner, ''Love is Nothing'' (2006) ...

. Chronicle Books, 1993, (pp. 68-70). Shaw was also a professional fencer, and even won an

Olympic Olympic or Olympics may refer to Sports Competitions * Olympic Games, international multi-sport event held since 1896 ** Summer Olympic Games ** Winter Olympic Games * Ancient Olympic Games, ancient multi-sport event held in Olympia, Greece b ...

medal for fencing. ''Hired Pens : Professional Writers in America's Golden Age of print'' by

Ronald Weber Ronald is a masculine given name derived from the Old Norse '' Rögnvaldr'', Hanks; Hardcastle; Hodges (2006) p. 234; Hanks; Hodges (2003) § Ronald. or possibly from Old English '' Regenweald''. In some cases ''Ronald'' is an Anglicised form ...

. Ohio University Press, 1997 (p. 98) Under his editorship, ''Black Mask'' published many works of

crime fiction Crime fiction, detective story, murder mystery, mystery novel, and police novel are terms used to describe narratives that centre on criminal acts and especially on the investigation, either by an amateur or a professional detective, of a crime, ...

now recognised as classics of the genre, by authors such as

Dashiell Hammett Samuel Dashiell Hammett (; May 27, 1894 – January 10, 1961) was an American writer of hard-boiled detective novels and short stories. He was also a screenwriter and political activist. Among the enduring characters he created are Sam Spade (' ...

Raymond Chandler Raymond Thornton Chandler (July 23, 1888 – March 26, 1959) was an American-British novelist and screenwriter. In 1932, at the age of forty-four, Chandler became a detective fiction writer after losing his job as an oil company executive durin ...

, and Erle Stanley Gardner."Pulps" by

Robert Sampson Robert Sampson (March 4, 1925 – December 3, 2006) was a vice president at United Airlines. He was diagnosed with muscular dystrophy at age 5, and used a wheelchair for most of his life. Sampson, a lawyer, was an advocate for disabled persons. ...

, in ''Encyclopedia Mysteriosa'', edited by William L. DeAndrea. Macmillan, 1994, (p.287-9) Chandler greatly admired Shaw's ability to encourage ''Black Mask'' writers, claiming in a letter, "We wrote better for him than we could have written for anybody else." Despite ''Black Mask's'' critical and commercial popularity, Shaw was eventually fired from the magazine, succeeded by

Fanny Ellsworth Fanny Louise Ellsworth Davis (October 10, 1904 – 1984), known professionally as Fanny Ellsworth, was an American magazine editor, best known as the editor of pulp magazines including ''Ranch Romances'' (for western romances) and '' Black Mask ...

. Shaw then worked as a

literary agent A literary agent is an agent who represents writers and their written works to publishers, theatrical producers, film producers, and film studios, and assists in sale and deal negotiation. Literary agents most often represent novelists, screenwrit ...

, though without notable success.''Selected Letters of

'', Frank MacShane, ed., Columbia University Press, 1981, (pp. 5-8). Shaw was a writer himself, producing short stories, novels, and articles.

Works

Novels

* ''Derelict'' (New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 1930) * ''Blood on the Curb'' (Steeger Books, 2020) * ''It Happened at the Lake'' (Steeger Books, 2022)

Short stories

* "Alkali Ethics," ''The Scrap Book'', May 1911

irst known publication An infrared search and track (IRST) system (sometimes known as infrared sighting and tracking) is a method for detecting and tracking objects which give off infrared radiation, such as the infrared signatures of jet aircraft and helicopters. IR ...

* "Close Shootin’," ''Pioneer Tales'', July 1928

Articles

* "Do You Want to Become a Writer? or Do You Want to Make Money?," ''

Writer's Digest ''Writer's Digest'' is an American magazine aimed at beginning and established writers. It contains interviews, market listings, calls for manuscripts, and how-to articles. History ''Writer's Digest'' was first published in December 1920 under ...

'', May 1934. * "Dialogue," ''Writer's Digest'', June 1939.

Editor

* ''The Hard Boiled Omnibus: Early Stories from Black Mask'' (includes introduction) (New York:

Simon and Schuster Simon & Schuster () is an American publishing company and a subsidiary of Paramount Global. It was founded in New York City on January 2, 1924 by Richard L. Simon and M. Lincoln Schuster. As of 2016, Simon & Schuster was the third largest publ ...

, 1946)

References

American magazine editors American crime fiction writers Literary agents American male fencers 1874 births 1952 deaths Place of birth missing American male novelists American male non-fiction writers {{crime-stub