January 2012
31 posts
4 tags
The Case of the Hair Driers
There was a fire at the Glade Theater, so Encyclopedia and Sally went to check it. No, don’t get excited, Encyclopedia wasn’t about to investigate an arson. No, this turnes into another “someone sneaked up behind someone else, hit them over the head and robbed them” case.
Mr. Jorgens, who owns the beauty parlor, emerged from the alley saying that he had been robbed. Officer Wilson questioned...
Sally Digs the Artistic, Bad Boy Types
Harold: Somebody stole the front wheel of my old bike. I'm pretty sure the thief was Pablo Pizarro.
Sally: How can you say such a thing? Pablo is no thief. Pablo is a great artist! Pablo has feeling! Pablo has –
Harold: Pablo has my front wheel. He stole it ten minutes ago.
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The Case of the Frightened Playboy
Mr. Mackey is an oil tycoon who owned several oil wells in Texas. The problem was that he didn’t enjoy his riches. Instead, he was pretty paranoid that someone was after him.
One morning, he called Chief Brown’s house saying that he thought someone was going to kill him. The Chief decided to go to his house on his way to work. He also brought Encyclopedia, because… yeah.
When the Browns got to...
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The Case of Sir Biscuit-Shooter
Lionel Fisk approached the Brown Detective Agency walking on his hands. The aspiring acrobat always got fired up when the circus was in town. This year, he had more reason to be excited because his Uncle Barney – who is an ex-con, just sayin’ – had recently joined the circus as a clown. Lionel had two extra tickets to the circus, so he decided to give them to Encyclopedia and Sally.
That’s nice,...
It's Funny When an Animal Almost Rapes a Child
Charlie: Benny Breslin (chronic snorer) is joining us.
Encyclopedia: Oh.
Charlie: It gets worse. Benny wants to share a tent with you.
Encyclopedia: Oh, no! I better bring my dad's crash helmet.
Charlie: You better bring a baseball bat. You might have to fight off a moose again. (Apparently, a bull moose poked his head into a tent last time when it confused Benny's snoring with a mating call.)
Encyclopedia: I don't have the heart to use a baseball bat.
Charlie: I suppose you are right. Any lovesick moose will suffer enough finding only Benny.
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The Case of the Wagon Master
Joe Cooper was a weird kid. Whenever he got angry at someone, he would get dressed up like Daniel Boone and point his rusty old rifle at the object of his anger. Why hasn’t anyone told this kid that you shouldn’t point a firearm at someone else?
One day, he sneaked up on Encyclopedia and Sally and gave him the “I’m pissed, so I’m going to ambush you and point my gun at you” treatment. No, he...
“If Merle hits you, you’ll walk around like a pig on ice for two weeks.”
– Harry, Hurricane member giving Encyclopedia some helpful advice about not getting punched. What does “walk around like a pig on ice” even mean, Harry? The Case of the Kidnapped Pigs
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The Case of the Super-Secret Hold
Bugs couldn’t really live with the idea that Sally Kimball (a girl!) once beat him up. He decided to enroll in a judo class so that he could better defend himself. He was proud of his progress and had Duke Kelly – the Tiger who once shot a boy – pay the Brown Detective Agency a quarter to go see the demonstration that Bugs and his classmates would be putting on. I guess that’s nice that he paid...
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The Case of the Missing Clues
Abner Nelson started selling fruit from his family’s backyard as a way to make some extra money during the summer. However, his fruit stand had become the target of extortion. Bugs Meany offered his protection services, accepting fruit as payment. The problem was that Abner’s fruit stand was never in any kind of danger, except for Bugs himself.
One afternoon, Bugs explained that Abner’s stand...
“If lies were peanuts, this kid could choke a hippo with a flip of the lip.”
– Bugs Meany, stopping in the middle of another lie to lie about Encyclopedia’s supposed lying. The Case of the Bird Watcher
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The Case of the Million Pesos
Encyclopedia and some other neighborhood children were playing a game of baseball. Encyclopedia’s team was being whupped pretty badly. Encyclopedia’s teammate, Tim Gomez, struck out for the final out of the game. Encyclopedia and some of the other children were concerned with Tim, as he wasn’t playing at his normal level. They asked Tim if he was feeling alright, and Tim confessed that he was a...
“I’m totally in favor of SOPA/PIPA.”
– Bugs Meany Okay, he didn’t really say that, but he probably would.
“Get Bugs talking, and he’ll cook himself in his own lies.”
– Encyclopedia Brown, on Bugs Meany shortly before Bugs tangled himself in his own web of lies, as usual. The Case of the Electric Clock
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The Case of the Murder Man
The First Church was putting on its Children’s Interfaith Night, and the town’s young thespian, Cicero Sturgess, was going to put on a play as part of the event. The play had a title and a first line, but that was all Cicero could come up with.
The play was called Murder Man, because what better play for a church event for children than one involving someone being killed? To the church’s credit,...
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The Case of the Blueberry Pies
In this story, we learn just how crooked the Idaville Youth Fair’s pie-eating contest is. It’s downright Machiavellian, which is sad, considering it’s a pie-eating contest for kids. But then again, it’s Idaville.
The previous year, the morbidly obese Chester Jenkins easily won the contest. But the events of that race would lead to a permanent change in the contest when two twin contestants, Jimmy...
Chief Brown's Fishing Gear
Encyclopedia: Are we really going fishing, Dad?
Chief Brown: Of course. Why do you ask.
Encyclopedia: You brought a gun.
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The Case of the Chinese Vase
Ahh, Idaville’s eternal class struggle.
Bored one day, Encyclopedia decided to take the rest of the day off. He thought it would be a good idea to see if Nevin Mercer, an aspiring florist who enjoys nature walks, wanted to go to the Botanical Gardens with him. Sally told Encyclopedia that Nevin, who comes from a poorer family, wouldn’t be available because he got a job mowing the lawn at the...
“I wasn’t snooping. I saw you two sitting on the sofa. I thought...”
– Scott Curtis, explaining why he was standing outside Sally’s window, taking photos. Scott sounds like a creep in the making. The Case of the Falling Woman.
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The Case of the Coffee Smoker
I’d have to say that the mystery behind this story is a lot less interesting than the snapshot of life in Idaville it provides.
It started when Roscoe Kerr stopped by the Brown Detective Agency to explain that he was being blackmailed. You see, Roscoe smoked coffee grounds, and he didn’t want his parents to learn his dark secret.
This notion had me running to the Internet. Do people do this? From...
“Bugs Told Red to put a hat in his mouth. So Red emptied Bugs’ pockets and...”
– Encyclopedia Brown, talking about Bugs’ run-in with the one kid in Idaville who’s a bigger asshole than Bugs. The Case of the Money-Changer
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The Case of the Explorer’s Money
Chief Walker of Glenn City called upon the help of Chief Brown in hopes of recovering $50,000 that was stolen from the home of famous Arctic explorer, Sir Cameron Whitehead. Brown must have heard Walker say, “And be sure to bring your young son with you, as well,” because Encyclopedia came along.
This case was a little tricky because A) Whitehead died the day after the money was stolen and B)...
“He chased me with a knife big enough to chop down Grant’s Tomb.”
– Cicero Stugess, on being chased by an apparently murderous cook. Not sure what the reference to Grant’s Tomb means, but I guess he was a bit agitated from almost being stabbed. The Case of the Angry Cook
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The Case of the Whistling Ghost
Aspiring entomologist, Fabius Manning, reported to the Brown Detective Agency that his camera was stolen at the abandoned Morgan house. Fabius had gone in there – trespassing, by the way – hoping to get photos of some interesting insects. That’s when he noticed a beautiful spider web taking up most of the back door’s frame. (I hope he knows that spiders aren’t insects.)
As he was getting his shot,...
“Children are supposed to stay away from the bear cave. The hole is dangerous....”
– Encyclopedia Brown, warning Elmer Evans of one of the dangers of Idaville; possibly because no responsible adult would. The Case of the Cave Drawings
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The Case of the Underwater Car
Encyclopedia and a bunch of other boys went to the conspicuously generic-named State Park for a day of fishing and camping. However, they brought Benny Breslin, the kid who we were introduced to before as the possible narcoleptic. It turns out that on top of not being able to keep himself from falling asleep, Benny also has a severe snoring problem. This meant that his tentmate, Encyclopedia, was...
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The Case of Bugs Meany, Detective
Bugs Meany was sick of always being outsmarted by the Brown Detective Agency, so he decided to establish his own detective agency. Tigers, Inc. Private Detectives offered a “team of experts” at 80% the price of their competitors. With a deal like that, it was only a matter of time before their first customer came by.
Mario Martinelli’s violin had been stolen, and he needed it for the summer...
“He’s like a spinning restaurant – always trying to turn the tables.”
– Sally Kimball on Bugs Meany. I wonder how long she had been waiting to use that one. The Case of Bugs Meany’s Revenge 