The Gaunt Stranger

Henry Arthur Milton is the gaunt stranger, better known throughout the haunts of London as The Ringer ... and a master of disguise. His former partner in crime is the arrogant lawyer Lewis Meister. Meister set him up, sent him to prison; then he escaped to Australia. But The Ringer has returned and now he’s back with only one thing on his mind—revenge! While the Ringer keeps his eye on Meiser, Inspector Wemberly is watching out for Meister’s secretary, Mary. He doesn’t trust Meister’s intentions—nor his unsavory reputation. Did Meister send up The Ringer? All Wemberly knows is that he trusts the motivations of The Ringer more than he does Meister, particularly as regards Mary.

Richard Horatio Edgar Wallace was born into London poverty as an illegitimate child on April 1, 1875. Joining the army at 21 as a war correspondent, he returned to London burdened with debts. He started to write thrillers in order to raise some income, and soon found success with books like The Four Just Men. Utilizing his experiences in the Congo, he also wrote a series of colorful stories featuring Commissioner Sanders. By 1921, he had become an internationally known author, eventually publishing over 170 novels, 957 short stories and 18 stage plays, with more than 160 films having been made from his work. Wallace moved to Hollywood in the early 1930s where he worked as a scriptwriter for RKO studios. While working on the rough draft of King Kong, he died suddenly on February 10, 1932, from undiagnosed diabetes.