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After a brief introduction by Keith, all 3 parts of this story are presented. Enjoy. Be sure to check your local library for the volume of 4 short stories of Philip Marlowe that includes this mystery. It’ll be worth it.
Part 1. A cute little trick, a squeaky clean girl from Manhattan, Kansas, wants to hire Philip for a confidential family matter. Though she has only $20, far too little, Marlowe takes her case. Her brother Orin, is missingWhere could the photographer of candid shots have gone?
A visit to the boarding house reveals drunken staff who may also be involved in marijuana cigarettes, and other shady activities like a body on the premises.
Orphah May is secretive about her family, insisting all is above board, and quite Christian. Why hasn’t she gone to the police? How did nice church going girls learn to kiss like that? Marlowe is back on the streets, and turning up more bodies. Claim checks, photographs, and possible ties to gang activity.
The trail leads to a Hollywood starlet named Mavis Wells. Foul mouthed women who are scantily clad await Philip.
Part 2. Still looking for that photo,Marlowe finds a gangster who wants to buy him off. Orphan May is back, claiming she heard from her brother. Is Marlowe’s job over? Has he figured out that Orphan May’s black sheep of a sister is an actress in the movies?
A trip to a talent agent only makes the man think Marlowe wants to blackmail his client. Marlowe would rather connect the dots to the murder. Why are the photos so important? Who are they trying to implicate? Back to see Mavis Wells, can Marlowe get her to help?
After a phone call from Orphah May, Philip is once again tracking down Orlin. Will clues from a seedy doctor help figure where Orin is hiding after taking the photo that has caused so much murder, and entanglements? After a thump on the head, Marlowe finds Orlin, but not without bullet holes.
Matters seem to be blowing up for Marlowe. He can’t act as a blackmailer in all good conscience, Orphan May is mad at him at the death of her brother, and now the cops want to haul him for murder. Time for Marlowe to come clean with all he knows.
Part 3. In the hot seat for multiple murders, and in a bad place with a gangster for holding a compromising picture, Philip faces an uphill battle. Getting help from Delores, the oversexed friend of Mavis Wells, Philip heads into the lions den. Secrets begin to boil to the surface.
Connections from gangsters, to Mavis, to Orin, and more. Is it too late to prevent scandal? Philip sees a way out that will put a bow on the case for the cops, and give his client a second chance… right?
Philip isn’t quite finished taking beatings, and in epilog he tells about the aftermath, and that cute little trick Orphah May. Nobody is who they seem, they’re all sneaky and devious. Philip knows the truth, but what can he do about it now?
Phillip Marlowe 771205 BBC04 The Little Sister 1.mp3
Phillip Marlowe 771205 BBC04 The Little Sister 2.mp3
Phillip Marlowe 771205 BBC04 The Little Sister 3.mp3
