Nancy Drew® 101
A classic and timeless sleuth, Nancy Drew® has endured through time from her plucky out in the world style beginning in 1930 to a modern day latte drinking heroine. She is a tried and true character–smart, resourceful, and independent. Nancy has many talents and is popular among her circle of friends and peers. There is no mystery too baffling that she cannot solve. What is the scoop on Nancy and her friends and family? A walk down memory lane, this section will attempt to unveil the mystery behind the intrepid girl sleuth. For more information on the history of the series and its creators as well as a timeline of various Nancy Drew® events, visit the Nancy Drew® History section.Currently, I am writing a book which focuses on the 75 year history of Nancy Drew®, Nancy Drew Sleuth: 75 Years of Mystery Revealed. While this website is a good introduction into the world of Nancy Drew®, you will find indepth analysis of all things Drew in my upcoming book. |
In the original texts, Nancy was 16, aged to 18 in later texts and revisions. She’s the daughter of famous mystery case
attorney, Carson Drew. Carson is a former prosecutor and his good reputation is known far and wide and comes in handy
during many of Nancy’s mysteries. Motherless since the early age of 3(10 in early original texts), she is close to her
father. Housekeeper, Hannah Gruen, more servant-like in early original texts, later became more motherly to Nancy in
later texts and revisions and played a greater role in bringing up Nancy. The semi-affluent Drews live in fictional River Heights, USA in a nice
neighborhood, their house set back some from the street.
Nancy is no longer in school and spends most of her time and energy focused on her passion for solving mysteries.
Early on, she was accompanied by
Helen Corning on adventures, but soon Helen was replaced by the classic foil characters,
Bess Marvin and George Fayne. Bess and George are cousins and help Nancy solve her mysteries. Bess is boy crazy
and likes to eat, forever on a diet. She is more timid and easily scared while involved in Nancy's cases.
George is the tomboyish athletic
foil, while Nancy falls in the middle. Nancy compliments them, keeping them grounded. Boyfriend Ned Nickerson is introduced
earlier on than Bess and George’s dates, respectively, Dave Evans and Burt Eddelton, but all three are
a staple of later text and revised versions. Ned, Dave, and Burt attend nearby Emerson college and are quick to help out in
solving a mystery. Ned is always there for Nancy, but knows her mysteries are a very important priority in
her life and remains very patient. He plays football for Emerson College. Nancy’s dog Togo, shows up in volume 14, The
Whispering Statue, and appears in volumes after that from time to time. A sometime pet, Nancy's cat, Snowball, appears in
the original text of volume 17, The Mystery of the Brass-Bound Trunk. In early volumes, Nancy drives a blue
roaster (with a few brief color variations). Later on, her transportation becomes a blue convertible and later is specified as a blue
Mustang convertible.
What would one expect from a sleepy tree-lined suburbian Midwestern town formed about the winding Muskoka River? A hotbed of
criminal activity! From burglars (often at the Drew's home) to jewel thieves to smugglers, kidnappers, and organized crime
syndicates, River Heights has it all. There is plenty of excitement for Nancy, whether she is eavesdropping on suspects at
Taylor's Department Store, chasing criminals down city streets in hot pursuit of her just snatched purse, or visiting a
friendly neighborhood baker or jeweler for a few clues. Life is clearly never a dull moment in Nancy's world.
Fictional, though it may be, many collectors and scholars have argued that a basis for River Heights may be found in Iowa,
Ohio, Illinois and even New Jersey--home of famous "Carolyn Keene", Harriet Stratemeyer Adams. At present, the
Nancy Drew: Girl Detective series places River Heights near Chicago, Illinois.
A Nancy Drew® mystery just wouldn't be the same without a fashion siting or a food mention!
Fashionable Frocks are a staple of Nancy Drew's appeal. The lastest fashions were depicted on many generations of Nancy
Drew® covers over the years by illustrators ranging from Russell H. Tandy to Bill Gillies to Rudi Nappi among others.
A sophisticated darling in the 1930s in a golden bob and cloche hat is depicted on the cover of volume 1, The Secret of the Old
Clock. 1950s Nancy reminds one of an young "June Cleaver" with matching handbag on the cover of volume 31, The
Ringmaster's Secret. A Polyester-pantsuited Nancy is an emblem of the 1970s leisure suits on the third cover of
volume 16, The Clue of the Tapping Heels.
Steaming waffles at the Drew's breakfast table, Hannah Gruen's pot roast, delicious cakes, roadside tearooms and quaint inns--these descriptive
elements whet one's appetite. Like comfort food, a Nancy Drew® mystery is at best--nostalgia savored with a rich cup of cocoa and a crisp
slice of Twisted Candles cinnamon toast.
You may be wondering what an original text (OT) and a revised text (RT) are in relation to the Nancy Drew® books. The first 34 volumes were published between 1930 and 1956. These books had 25 chapters and around 200+ pages. The key to identifying an original text, is that it has 25 chapters. These texts were rich in description and characterization. After volume 34, starting with volume 35 through volume 56, the books had 20 chapters and around 180 pages. Beginning in 1959 through the late 1970s, the first 34 volumes were revised. These revisions were now 20 chapters and were shorter and choppier.
Officially, the books were revised so that offensive ethnic stereotypes would be removed and the texts modernized. It was felt that new generations of “TV watchers” had less of an attention span than previous generations of readers, so the pace of the books was quickened.
Never fear, the originals have made a comeback in the publishing world of reproductions. Applewood Books has been issuing reprints of the originals since 1991 and has reproduced the original text and illustrations--they plan to reprint all the originals, at around 2 per year. Used bookstores, antique malls, grandma’s attic, and even eBay.com are great sources for finding the original books and also paperbacks and out of print spinoff series as well as some libraries that still carry the original versions.
At your local bookstores and online, you can still purchase the classic hardback 56 stories, although the first 34 are revisions. These come in the glossy flashlight yellow spine picture cover style. The paperbacks that continued the original series from volume 57 onward, are mostly out of print. However, Grosset & Dunlap has begun reprinting these paperbacks in sets of 8 beginning with volumes 57-64 in the glossy flashlight yellow spine picture cover style. Currently in bookstores, are the ongoing Nancy Drew and the Clue Crew series and the Nancy Drew: Girl Detective series.
The Classic Series:
The classic series consists of the original 56 Grosset & Dunlap hardback books from The Secret of the Old Clock to The Thirteenth Pearl. Continuing this series, is the Digest sized paperback series published by
Simon & Schuster. These paperbacks include volumes 57 through the last digest
175, Werewolf in a Winter Wonderland.
In the mid-1980s, the Nancy Drew Files® series debuted and lasted for 124 volumes, over 10 years. In this version, Nancy is more modernized and there is more romance entangled with mysteries. And murders!
Nancy Drew/Hardy Boys Super Mysteries:
The Super Mysteries series teamed Nancy up with the Hardy Boys®. Written in the style of the Files series.
This series debuted in the mid-1990s and lasted for only 3 years and 25 volumes. This series had Nancy going off to
Wilder University and forgetting she liked to solve mysteries!
This series, now out of print, has Nancy and her friends Bess and George in elementary school, age 8. These are very cute
books and each incorporates a good message or lesson for kids.
This series replaced the old Nancy Drew Notebooks series and has the same format.
This series picks up where the digest series left off at volume 175. Starting over at volume 1, Without a Trace,
Nancy is more real than she has ever been and the series is now written in first person.
Nancy Drew: Girl Detective Super Mysteries:
The Super Mysteries spinoff features volumes that are a little bit longer than the regular series.
In the early books, she is a blonde. Around 1957, the cover of volume 35, The Haunted Showboat came out and in the printing process her hair became Titian. Later books began to describe her as Titian-haired. Does a blonde Nancy have more fun?!
In the late 1930s, actress Bonita Granville, portrayed Nancy in
four films for Warner Brothers. These were slapstick
comedies and Nancy was portrayed as a more ditzy female than the book character. Ned became Ted in the movies and was played by Frankie Thomas. These are often shown on Turner Classic Movies channel. Some of them are available as videos or on DVD.
Visit the
1930s Movie Collectibles section
for more information on the movies and related collectibles.
In the 1970s, Nancy was played on the
Nancy Drew® TV show by actress Pamela Sue Martin, of later Dynasty fame. After Pamela Sue left the show,
Nancy was played briefly by Janet Louise Johnson. Pamela’s Nancy was rather brash and daring
like the book character, but she did not look much like the character from the books.
Visit the
1970s/1990s TV Collectibles section
for more information on the TV shows and related collectibles.
In 1995, there was a very short-lived
Nancy Drew® TV series in which Tracy Ryan starred as Nancy. The series was only a half hour and was not well
developed. In this series however, Nancy went off to college and majored in journalism much like the 2002 TV show. Tracy
did not look much like Nancy either. This series was not as well known and not distributed well. Only one season was aired.
In a
TV pilot shown December 15, 2002,
Nancy is portrayed quite fittingly by Maggie Lawson--who looked like a modern day Nancy Drew. She gave Nancy her own blend
of spunk.