ALTHOUGH HE WROTE IN numerous genres, Dale Clark, the pseudonym of Ronal Kayser (1905–1988), is best known for his many mystery, crime, and detective stories. Born in a small town in the Midwest, he took such disparate jobs at various times as a lumberyard worker, reporter, private detective, house-to-house salesman, editor, and creative writing teacher, but remained throughout his adult life a prolific writer.
In addition to more than a half-dozen mystery novels—Focus on Murder (1943), The Narrow Cell (1944), The Red Rods (1946), A Run for the Money (1949), Mambo to Murder (1955), Death Wore Fins (1959), and Country Coffin (1961)—Clark wrote more than four hundred stories for both the pulps and the more prestigious slick magazines such as Collier’s, Liberty, and This Week. Many of his tales of horror and the supernatural were written and published under his real name.
Many of his stories are set in Southern California, where he spent most of his writing life. Although he inevitably created a wide range of characters, an unusually high percentage of them have an interest in contemporary technology. A forest ranger’s station is jammed full of highly technical devices; Doc Judson, a detective-cum-criminalist, speaks frequently of the need for scientific methodology, though it is mainly limited to ballistics; the best-named of Clark’s series characters, Highland Park Price (High Price), has amassed a collection of high-tech toys which seldom work because he was too cheap to buy new ones or reputable brands. In these comical private eye yarns, High Price gouges his clients, frequently using blackmail.
“Behind the Screen” was published in the April 1934 issue of Weird Tales.