Three Plays about Crime and Criminals

The ANTA Series of Distinguished Plays

by Joseph Kesselring, Edward Chodorov, Sidney Kingsley

Arsenic and Old Lace, Kind Lady, and Detective Story

Genres: Plays, Drama, Theatre

279 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1962

About the author

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joseph_K...

Reviews

[Christine · Rating 3 out of 5]

This has three plays - Arsenic and Old Lace, Detective Story, and Kind Lady. The first two take place in NYC, and the last in London.

I have to say the Arsenic and Old Lace film was where I first saw Cary Grant, and I love the movie. It was a treat to read the play. It does hold up, despite the character of Elaine.

Detective Story doesn't quite. I found it to be dull and the most dated.

Kind Lady was interesting, and was based on Walpole story. Maybe because you can see it happening today. The important thing is that the Kind Lady is able to save herself in away

[Christopher Vertosick · Rating 3 out of 5]

Loved the plays but didn't like the format of the book. It didn't have a cast of characters before each play or a description of all the characters when they first appeared which made it confusing at times and less enjoyable to read.

[Drucilla · Rating 3 out of 5]

Arsenic and Old Lace
Such a funny story about murder! This play definitely makes the audience take to heart the saying, "Don't judge a book by its cover."

Detective Story
I love that this play takes place only in the police station. Because the location is static, the audience is able to learn much more about the various characters and in a more interesting way. I also love the intertwining of the professional and the personal in this play.

Kind Lady
This story is kind of a horror play. I think what makes it just as scary today as when it premiered is that this still happens today, albeit perhaps a little differently.

[Genevieve Paquette · Rating 5 out of 5]

I found this gem in the basement of my local used bookstore. What a lucky find! Arsenic and Old Lace is one of my favorite movies, and it was interesting reading the play. The second piece, Detective Story, was a look into the attitudes and opinions of big city cops in the 40s, with a surprising ending. And Kind Lady and genuinely distressing.
All in all, an entertaining read.

[Tracy · Rating 3 out of 5]

I particularly liked Kind Lady. The other two were good as well, but I didn't like the format of the book. There was no cast of characters at the beginning of any of the plays, which would have been nice.

[Cassidy Shea · Rating 3 out of 5]

i picked this up because i wanted to read arsenic & old lace, but it ended up being my least favorite of the 3. detective story takes a while to get interesting, but it's pretty good. kind lady is not as 'horrifying' as the back cover would have you believe, but it's still an engaging quick read.

[Katherine · Rating 4 out of 5]

Three really great plays. Kind Lady is really desturbing and if performed properly, could be really creepy.

[Aaron Lewis]

Good play