The Flickering Torch Mystery
Encyclopedia
The Flickering Torch Mystery is Volume 22 in the original The Hardy Boys
Mystery Stories published by Grosset & Dunlap
.
This book was written for the Stratemeyer Syndicate
by Leslie McFarlane
in 1943. Between 1959 and 1973 the first 38 volumes of this series were systematically revised as part of a project directed by Harriet Adams, Edward Stratemeyer's daughter. The original version of this book was rewritten in 1971 by Vincent Buranelli resulting in two different stories with the same title.
, the two Hardy brothers investigate the case and find themselves in greater danger than they anticipated.Frank and Joe suspect an oil beacon near the airport caught the pilots off track. The boys go to fictional Pittville and visit Martin Weiss's parents. They get a clue about a dance place called The Flickering Torch. This involves investigating the Flickering Torch where a band seems to be involved in something shady. Their friend Chet Morton
develops a new hobby of building airplanes, however when he buys a used fuselage
from an airplane junkyard
it gets stolen from his farm. Ultimately the Hardys smash an illegal plot to make industrial diamond
s using uranium
isotopes from smuggled
coal
from the United Kingdom
.
The Hardy Boys
The Hardy Boys, Frank and Joe Hardy, are fictional teenage brothers and amateur detectives who appear in various mystery series for children and teens....
Mystery Stories published by Grosset & Dunlap
Grosset & Dunlap
Grosset & Dunlap is a United States book publisher founded in 1898.The company was purchased by G. P. Putnam's Sons in 1982 and today is part of the British publishing conglomerate, Pearson PLC through its American subsidiary Penguin Group....
.
This book was written for the Stratemeyer Syndicate
Stratemeyer Syndicate
The Stratemeyer Syndicate was the producer of a number of mystery series for children, including Nancy Drew, the Hardy Boys, the various Tom Swift series, the Bobbsey Twins, the Rover Boys, and others.- History :...
by Leslie McFarlane
Leslie McFarlane
Leslie McFarlane was a Canadian journalist, novelist, screenwriter and filmmaker. McFarlane is most famous for ghostwriting many of the early books in the very successful Hardy Boys series using the pseudonym Franklin W. Dixon.- Early life :The son of a school principal, McFarlane was raised in...
in 1943. Between 1959 and 1973 the first 38 volumes of this series were systematically revised as part of a project directed by Harriet Adams, Edward Stratemeyer's daughter. The original version of this book was rewritten in 1971 by Vincent Buranelli resulting in two different stories with the same title.
Plot summary (revised edition)
When two suspicious plane accidents occur near Marlin Crag AirportAirport
An airport is a location where aircraft such as fixed-wing aircraft, helicopters, and blimps take off and land. Aircraft may be stored or maintained at an airport...
, the two Hardy brothers investigate the case and find themselves in greater danger than they anticipated.Frank and Joe suspect an oil beacon near the airport caught the pilots off track. The boys go to fictional Pittville and visit Martin Weiss's parents. They get a clue about a dance place called The Flickering Torch. This involves investigating the Flickering Torch where a band seems to be involved in something shady. Their friend Chet Morton
Chet Morton
Chet Morton is a fictional character in the The Hardy Boys book series by Franklin W. Dixon.-Fictional history:Chet grew up with Frank and Joe Hardy and has been one of their best friends since second grade. He usually says he doesn't want to have anything to do with the Hardy boys' mysteries,...
develops a new hobby of building airplanes, however when he buys a used fuselage
Fuselage
The fuselage is an aircraft's main body section that holds crew and passengers or cargo. In single-engine aircraft it will usually contain an engine, although in some amphibious aircraft the single engine is mounted on a pylon attached to the fuselage which in turn is used as a floating hull...
from an airplane junkyard
Aircraft boneyard
Aircraft boneyard is a term for a storage area for aircraft that are retired from service. Most aircraft at boneyards are either kept for storage or turned into scrap metal...
it gets stolen from his farm. Ultimately the Hardys smash an illegal plot to make industrial diamond
Diamond
In mineralogy, diamond is an allotrope of carbon, where the carbon atoms are arranged in a variation of the face-centered cubic crystal structure called a diamond lattice. Diamond is less stable than graphite, but the conversion rate from diamond to graphite is negligible at ambient conditions...
s using uranium
Uranium
Uranium is a silvery-white metallic chemical element in the actinide series of the periodic table, with atomic number 92. It is assigned the chemical symbol U. A uranium atom has 92 protons and 92 electrons, of which 6 are valence electrons...
isotopes from smuggled
Smuggling
Smuggling is the clandestine transportation of goods or persons, such as out of a building, into a prison, or across an international border, in violation of applicable laws or other regulations.There are various motivations to smuggle...
coal
Coal
Coal is a combustible black or brownish-black sedimentary rock usually occurring in rock strata in layers or veins called coal beds or coal seams. The harder forms, such as anthracite coal, can be regarded as metamorphic rock because of later exposure to elevated temperature and pressure...
from the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
.