Donald Bain

Murder HE Wrote
From a review: "For anyone wishing to travel with a raconteur, a true renaissance man, this volume is your ticket for the journey. Murder mysteries, comedies, investigative journalism, westerns, biographies, Mafia novels: Donald Bain has written them all in a remarkable career spanning more than 90 titles as author or ghostauthor."
The Purdue University Press edition of "Murder HE Wrote: A Successful Writer's Life," is now in bookstores and available through online booksellers. Buy or order it now. It was originally published in hardcover with the title "Every Midget Has an Uncle Sam Costume."

Nashville Noir.
An exciting tale of young talent, betrayals, double crosses, and murder, of course, all set to the twang of an acoustic guitar in the country music capital of the world.
Jessica comes to Music City, U.S.A., to help a home town girl, a talented songwriter, who finds herself enmeshed in more than she bargained for when the producer who promised to make her a star is found bludgeoned to death.

A Fatal Feast
Jessica Fletcher would like nothing more than to sit back and relax as Thanksgiving comes to Cabot Cove. But this year, she's already got more on her plate than she can handle. She suffering from a rare case of writer's block and the deadline for her new book is looming. With a Thanksgiving guest list growing by the day, Jessica must also see to the town's Thanksgiving pageant, organize a dinner for needy citizens, and what was the other thing? Oh yes, George is coming! That's special friend Scotland Yard Inspector George Sutherland. Lucky, too, because there's about to be a murder.

Madison Avenue Shoot
Jessica Fletcher is back in New York City, although as a visitor this time. Over her initial objections, she's taking part in the filming of a television commercial together with a television chef, a New Age guru and a writer of exposes. Fans of Jessica Fletcher's nephew, Grady, will be pleased that he'll be back in this book playing a major role. Donna is there, too, of course. And you'll get to meet their 9-year-old son Frank, named for Jessica's late husband.

A Slaying in Savannah
In a city renowned for mystery, Jessica Fletcher is invited to solve a 40-year-old murder case. If her efforts fall short, the local literacy program--the one established by Jessica and her friend the late Tillie Mortelaine--will lose a million-dollar bequest. As Jessica settles into Tillie's Savannah mansion and meets its collection of odd boarders, she discovers that the spirit of the murder victim haunts the grounds. And that there are those in Savannah who are looking to cash in on Jessica’s failure.

Murder On Parade
The Fourth of July has special meaning for all Americans. Cabot Cove celebrates it each year with traditional, festive parades, contests, special events for the youngsters, and, of course, fireworks. But this year, the "bombs bursting in air" includes a fatal gunshot that takes the life of one of the town's most controversial citizens. Jessica finds herself right in the middle of the investigation, aided (or perhaps hindered) by a stranger whose arrival in Cabot Cove has tongues wagging. Former sheriff Amos Tupper makes a return appearance in this novel. And Seth Hazlitt, who's seriously wounded by a mugger, faces a tough decision that has Jessica worried, and will determine whether he closes down his medical practice and leaves town.

Panning for Murder
Jessica's plans for a leisurely cruise to Alaska takes a dangerous turn when a Cabot Cove friend, whose flamboyant, free-spirit sister has disappeared on an Alaskan cruise, asks to tag along in the hope of tracking down her missing sibling. The sister, Wilimena, headed for Alaska in search of an alleged stash of gold hidden by a distant relative, Dolly Arthur, Alaska's most famous brothel owner during the fabled days of the Gold Rush. The search for Wilimena leads Jess and her friend, Kathy, into a minefield of trouble where Alaska's abundant wildlife includes some very nasty people hoping to find the gold before Wilimena can get her hands on it.

Coffee, Tea or Murder?
Jessica and Cabot Cove friends are invited on the maiden flight of a new trans-Atlantic airline from Boston to London. The airline's founder, a former Cabot Cove resident, has gone on to become a highly successful businessman, alienating plenty of people along the way. The flight to London is smooth. But once there, this celebratory event turns deadly, and it takes some sophisticated sleuthing by Jessica on the return flight, aided by an extra passenger, Scotland Yard Inspector George Sutherland, to bring a killer to justice at 35,000 feet over the Atlantic.

Charlie and the Shawneetown Dame
Charlie and the Shawneetown Dame ia a dramatization of a true story from the Prohibition era, involving one of the more bizarre gang wars in the annals of American crime lore, replete with homemade tank battles, crude bombings from an open-cockpit aircraft, and chronicling the life of Charlie Birger, a flamboyant, slightly mad Al Capone wannabe. And then there's the dame, a beautiful young blonde society babe whose sexual double-dealing entices, then infuriates both rivals' renegade leaders. Of my more than 90 books, this one has always ranked as my particular favorite. It's a remarkable true story. A new edition by Purdue University Press is now available online, and in bookstores everywhere

Coffee, Tea or Me?
"Coffee, Tea or Me?" was published to great fanfare in 1967, and went on to become a national and international best seller. It showed up on all the important best seller lists as a hardcover, and its paperback edition sold more than 3 million copies. Together with its three sequels, it sold more than 5 million copies, was translated into a dozen languages, and became a CBS made-for-TV movie.

Penguin Books has reissued the book, with a new introduction by me, as a trade paperback. Back when it was originally published, Broadway legends Anita Loos and Jule Stein wanted to make it into a Broadway musical comedy. I opted to go the Hollywood route, my only regret. Now, there's building interest in mounting a retro-musical based upon the book.

The new edition, including all the wonderful original Bill Wenzel illustrations, is now available in book stores and online. Enjoy a look back at a better time in air travel. It truly was fun to be an airline passenger back then.

The CIA's Control of Candy Jones
In the 26 years since The Control of Candy Jones was first published, the controversy surrounding this wrenching, revelatory tale of how one of America’s most famous models was used by the CIA as a human guinea pig in its infamous mind control experiments, has never completely disappeared. Now, this important book, written by Donald Bain, author or ghostwriter of more than 80 books, and a close friend of Candy Jones and her husband, broadcasting legend Long John Nebel, is again made available by Barricade Books under the title THE CIA’S CONTROL OF CANDY JONES.

The "Murder, She Wrote" Series
Gin & Daggers – U.S. Hardcover McGraw-Hill (1989) – Jessica Fletcher & Donald Bain
U.S. Softcover Avon (1989)
British Hardcover Michael Joseph (1990)
British Softcover Michael Joseph (1991)

Published by Signet. Byline: Jessica Fletcher & Donald Bain
Manhattans & Murder – (1994)***
Rum & Razors – (1995)
Brandy & Bullets – (1995)
Martinis & Mayhem – (1995)
A Deadly Judgment – (1996)
A Palette for Murder – (1996)
The Highland Fling Murders – (1997)
Murder on the QE2 – (1997)
Murder in Moscow – (1998)
A Little Yuletide Murder – (1998)
Murder at the Powderhorn Ranch – (1999)
Knock ‘Em Dead – (1999)
Gin & Daggers (Reissue) – (2000)
Trick or Treachery – (2000)
Blood on the Vine – (2001)
Murder in a Minor Key – (2001)
Provence: To Die For – (2002)
You Bet Your Life – (2002)
Majoring in Murder – (2003)
Destination Murder - (2003)
Dying to Retire - (2004)
A Vote For Murder - (2004)
The Maine Mutiny - (2005)
Margaritas & Murder - (2005)
A Question of Murder - (2006)
Three Strikes and You're Dead - (2006)
Coffee, Tea or Murder? - (2007)
Panning For Murder - (2007)
Murder on Parade - (2008)
A Slaying in Savannah - (2008)
Madison Avenue Shoot - (2009)
A Fatal Feast - (2009)
Nashville Noir - (2010)
The Queen's Jewels - (2010)
Skating on Thin Ice - (2011)

*** Reissued in 2007

The “Coffee, Tea or Me?” Series
Byline: Trudy Baker & Rachel Jones
Coffee, Tea or Me? – Hardcover Bartholomew House (1967) Note: Reissued as a Penguin Classic in 2003 and widely available.
The Coffee Tea or Me Girls’ Round-the-World Diary – Hardcover Grosset & Dunlap (1970)
The Coffee Tea or Me Girls Lay It on the Line – Hardcover Grosset & Dunlap (1972)
The Coffee Tea or Me Girls Get Away From it All – Hardcover Grosset & Dunlap (1974)

NOTE: Softcover editions of all four books published by Bantam Books.

Other Comedies
Tender Loving Care – Hardcover Bartholomew House (1969) – Byline: Joni Moura & Jackie Sutherland
Softcover Fawcett
Girlpower – Fawcett Softcover (1971) – Byline: Kathy Cole & Donna Bain
How to Make a Good Airline Stewardess – Fawcett (1972) – Byline: Cornelius Wohl & Bill Wenzel
If It Moves, Kiss It – Fawcett (1973) – Byline: Joni Moura & Jackie Sutherland
We Gave at the Office – Fawcett (1974) – Byline: Laura Mills & Pauline Burlick
Fly Me – Fawcett (1974) – Byline: Cornelius Wohl & Bill Wenzel
Teachers Pet – Fawcett (1975) – Byline: Janet McMillan & Mitzi Sims
The Casting Couch and Me – U.S. Hardcover Walker Publishing Co. – Byline: Joan Wood; British Hardcover and softcover Peter Elk
U.S. softcover Pocket Books (1976)
Wall Street & Broad – Dell (1976) – Byline: Teri Palmer

J.D. Hardin Western Series
The following nine softcover titles were published by Playboy Press between 1980 and 1983 under the byline J.D. Hardin.

Bloody Sands
The Spirit & the Flesh
Death Flotilla
The Lone Star Massacre
Raider’s Revenge
Raider’s Hell
Apache Gold
Bibles, Bullets & Brides
Death Lode

“Toma” Novels
The Airport Affair – Dell Publishing (1975) – Byline: David Toma & Jack Pearl
The Affair of the Unhappy Hooker – Dell Publishing (1976) – Byline: David Toma & Jack Pearl

Crime Novels
Sado Cop – Playboy Press (1976) – Byline: Nick Vasile
A Member of the Family – Hardcover Tor (1993) – Byline: Nick Vasile
Softcover – Forge (1995)
Raven – Lyle Stuart (1987) – Byline: Mike Lundy
Baby Farm – Lyle Stuart (1987) – Byline: Mike Lundy

Historical Romantic Novels
Daughter of the Sand – Playboy Press (1978) – Byline: Pamela South
The Eagle & the Serpent – Jove (1982) – Byline: Lee Jackson
Texas Lily – Charter Books (1987) – Byline: Stephanie Blake

Other Books
The Racing Flag – Pocket Books (1965) – Byline: Bloys Britt & Bill France
Veronica – British Hardcover W.H. Allen (1969) – Byline: Veronica Lake
U.S. Hardcover Citadel Press (1969)
The Case Against Private Aviation – Cowles Book Co. (1969) – Byline: Donald Bain
Long John Nebel – Macmillan Publishing Co. (1974) – Byline: Donald Bain
The Control of Candy Jones – Playboy Press (1976) – Byline: Donald Bain
Club Tropique – Fawcett (1978) – Byline: Donald Bain
War in Illinois – Prentice-Hall (1978) – Byline: Donald Bain
Charlie & the Shawneetown Dame (Reissue of War in Illinois) – Purdue University Press(2004) – Byline: Donald Bain
Caviar, Caviar, Caviar – Lyle Stuart (1981) – Byline: Gerald M. Stein & Donald Bain
The "Girls" in the Newsroom – Charter Books (1983) – Byline: Marjorie Margolies
The World’s Best Bartenders’ Guide – HP Books (1998)– Byline: Joseph Scott & Donald Bain