Louis Joseph Vance, a renowned American novelist, was born in the nation's capital, Washington, D.C., in the year 1879. He pursued his educational endeavors at New York University's esteemed Brooklyn Polytechnic Institute. Vance's literary career began at the tender age of 22, initially focusing on the crafting of short stories and poems, before transitioning to the realm of novel writing. His most iconic and enduring works are undoubtedly the "Lone Wolf" series of detective thrillers, which features the enigmatic Michael Lanyard, alias "The Lone Wolf". This remarkable series, comprising eight books, achieved widespread success, and its popularity was further amplified through adaptations into radio, television, and over twenty films.
Tragically, Louis Joseph Vance met his untimely demise in his New York City apartment in the year 1933, under circumstances that remain somewhat shrouded in mystery. As a heavy drinker, Vance had been grappling with depression stemming from the breakdown of his marriage, which had endured for over three decades, although the couple was still technically separated rather than divorced. On the fateful evening, Vance, intoxicated according to the coroner's report, dozed off with a lit cigarette resting on a stuffed chair in his living room. The cigarette, it is believed, fell into a can of benzene, which was utilized to clean the chair (another account suggests that the benzene was intended to alleviate the pain he was experiencing due to a fractured jaw). The benzene ignited, the chair caught fire, and Vance perished in the blaze, with some sources suggesting he may have been asphyxiated rather than burned. The authorities ultimately ruled the death as accidental, yet suspicions persisted that it might have been, in fact, a suicide.
