WHO SHALL HANG? — Marcus Magill — 1929 Grosset & Dunlap — Golden Age Mystery — Vintage Anne Shirley Paramount Pictures Portrait Laid In

Early American Grosset & Dunlap edition of Who Shall Hang?, a scarce Golden Age murder mystery by Marcus Magill, the pseudonym associated with British mystery writers Brian Hill and Joanna Elder Giles. Copyright page states "Copyright, 1929, by Brian Hill" and "Printed in the United States of America." Title page bears the Grosset & Dunlap, New York imprint. A classic country-house mystery centered upon a Guy Fawkes celebration: during a house party, host Maurice Strang disappears, only for the evening's festivities to reveal a decidedly macabre development. An appealing example of the obscure and increasingly rediscovered Golden Age school of British detective fiction. Marcus Magill produced only a small group of mysteries, including Who Shall Hang?, Death in the Box, I Like a Good Murder, Murder Out of Tune, Murder in Full Flight, and Hide, And I'll Find You! EXCEPTIONAL LAID-IN ANNE SHIRLEY / PARAMOUNT PICTURES EPHEMERA Of particular interest, this copy retains a vintage color portrait of Hollywood actress Anne Shirley, printed on the image: "Anne Shirley PARAMOUNT PICTURES HOLLYWOOD, CALIF." The reverse is completely blank. The portrait was found laid into this copy and is included with the book. Especially noteworthy is the physical relationship between the photograph and the volume. The portrait is closely sized to the book and fits neatly within it, allowing it to lie flat and protected between the leaves. Its age, condition, dimensions, and manner of preservation strongly suggest that it was intentionally retained with this volume for an extended period, rather than being a recently added piece of ephemera. The photograph exhibits age consistent with a vintage Hollywood promotional piece and appears to have benefited from its long-term protection within the closed book. Anne Shirley, born Dawn O'Day, was a prominent Hollywood actress of the 1930s and 1940s. The use of the professional name "Anne Shirley," together with the Paramount Pictures identification, necessarily places the portrait later than the book's original 1929 publication. Thus the laid-in photograph represents an intriguing later chapter in the history of this particular copy. There is no evidence that Anne Shirley owned this book, and no such association is claimed. Rather, the significance lies in the survival of the vintage Paramount Pictures portrait together with the book and its apparent long-term preservation within this specific copy. An unusual crossover collectible combining Golden Age detective fiction, 1920s mystery publishing, Hollywood history, Paramount Pictures memorabilia, and vintage film-star ephemera. The Anne Shirley portrait will remain with the book as found. Laid-in Anne Shirley portrait: Vintage condition with visible age toning and minor handling/edge wear. Image remains attractive with strong color and detail. Printed identification reads "Anne Shirley / Paramount Pictures / Hollywood, Calif." Reverse completely blank. What makes this copy particularly appealing is not simply the presence of a loose celebrity photograph, but the apparent history represented by the two objects surviving together. The mystery dates from 1929. The Anne Shirley Paramount Pictures portrait necessarily dates from a later period. At some point in the life of this book, a previous owner appears to have deliberately placed the closely fitted Hollywood portrait inside the volume, where it was protected and apparently remained for an extended period. Its original owner's reason for preserving Anne Shirley's portrait inside Who Shall Hang? is now unknown, but the photograph remains exactly the sort of ephemeral personal artifact that frequently disappears as books pass from one generation to another.…