Mayhem at the Museum

=Episode 1: Mayhem at the Museum=

Date: May 24, 1937

(click the date above for the front page of the New York Times on that date)

Location: Paris, France

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Historical Timeline
Welcome to the 1930's! The world is in the grip of the Great Depression, the Great War is a recent memory and its effects are still an ongoing wound, and another world conflict is brewing. Prohibition has ended but corruption and organized crime still flourish. It's a tumultuous time, rife with intrigue and danger!

Here is a brief list of historically-important events that have happened in 1937 up to this point:
 * Jan 19 - Howard Hughes sets a new air record by flying from Los Angeles to New York City in 7 hours, 28 minutes and 25 seconds.
 * Jan 20 - FDR is inaugurated for his second term
 * Jan 30 - Hitler calls for German withdrawal from the Treaty of Versailles. In his words, “The time of so-called sunrises has been ended.”
 * Feb 8 - Francisco Franco’s tanks overwhelm the city of Malaga. Franco’s troops take the West bank of the Jarama, cutting off supply lines to Madrid.
 * Feb 21 - The League of Nations signs a Non-Intervention Pact, forbidding foreign nationals from fighting in the Spanish Civil War.
 * Feb 27 - The Spanish Civil War reaches a stalemate on the Jarama, each side having lost between 6,000 and 25,000 troops.
 * March - The first issue of Detective Comics is published in the United States.
 * March 17 - The Atherton report, detailing vice and police corruption in San Francisco, is released.
 * April 17 - Daffy Duck makes his film debut in a Looney Tunes animated short.
 * April 26 - Guernica, Spain is bombed by Franco’s forces. Three quarters of the city’s buildings are destroyed, killing civilians. The dead number at least 1600 (though this figure would later become a topic of much debate). Two days later, British journalist George Steer reports finding German bomb casings among the wreckage, connecting the Luftwaffe with the attack. This event inspires Picasso's painting Guernica, which makes its debut later this year at the Spanish Pavilion in the Paris World's Fair.
 * May - Unemployment in the United States reaches 7 million people.
 * May 1 - A worker’s strike occurs in Paris, delaying the opening of the Paris World's Fair
 * May 6 - The German airship Hindenburg bursts into flame in New Jersey.
 * May 7 - The German Condor Legion Fighter Group arrives in Spain to assist Franco.
 * May 12 - King George VI is crowned King of the United Kingdom in Westminster Abbey.
 * May 15 - War Admiral wins the Preakness.
 * May 24 (today) - Opening day of the Paris World's Fair (Exposition Internationale des Arts et Techniques dans la Vie Moderne). Paris is expecting 50 million visitors in the next 6 months. See the New York Times front page article about it

Current Events for Paris in '36 and '37:
Paris is the world capital for freethinking individuals. However, it is currently a time of political and social turmoil for Paris. Two years ago, a mob of Fascists attempted to storm the National Assembly in a failed coup attempt. One day later, a citywide riot led to the fall of the government. In response, Socialists and Communists united into a Popular Front which won the May 1936 elections. Presently, Leon Blum and his Radical-Socialists are still in control of the government, though they govern a troubled populace. The franc has devalued by 30 percent since last year. Homeless and starving young men crowd park benches and metro entrances. None of this has dampened Parisian optimism, however, especially on the eve of the 1937 World’s Fair. Millions of foreign visitors are flocking to Paris for the spectacle of the Exposition Internationale des Arts et Techniques dans la Vie Moderne.

Clues Obtained
Dr. Livingston's speech about ancient cartographers:


 * Cartography is an ancient science. The earliest known cartographer of classical antiquity was Anaximander of ancient Greece, a school master whose students included the illustrious Pythagoras. Anaximander’s depiction of the world centered on the Aegean Sea, his home, and included the Mediterranean, with the Greek islands and Italy clearly – if crudely – shown, and the blank masses of Europe to the north, Libya (i.e., North Africa) to the south (including the Nile River), and Asia (i.e., the Middle East) to the East. Surrounding these was the ocean. It was simple, but it was all they knew of the world at the time.


 * Later maps improved in their accuracy. The map of Hecataeus shows a more clearly defined boot of Italy and Peloponnesian peninsula, the island of Syracuse, and the locations of cities such as Athens, Carthage, Thebes on the Nile, and Babylon.


 * Sometime later, at the beginning of the Christian era (i.e., 0 AD), Strabo published his 17-volume work Geographia, which was less an atlas and more an anthropological treatise of the peoples and cultures of the known world.


 * The world map that eclipsed all its predecessors in accuracy was that of Ptolemy, who invented the system of latitude and longitude coordinates much like we still use. This map, first written circa 150 AD, became the basis for all maps that followed through the Middle Ages. However, this map was not without errors. And furthermore, an original copy of the map has never been found. All copies that exist of the map today were reconstructed mathematically from Ptolemy’s original coordinates that he recorded in his own Geographia.

Dr. Livingston's last words:
 * Dr. Livingston: "My notebook. Find it before they do."
 * "Where? What does it look like? Who's they?"
 * Dr. Livingston: "In safekeeping. Ministry..."
 * "What ministry?"
 * Dr. Livingston: "French... Ministry... of Culture""
 * Who wants it?"
 * Dr. Livingston: "Don't... know.... been watching me... for months..."
 * "What do they want from you?"
 * "You must find.... spear... of the dragon slayer... "

Episode Summary
Today is opening day of the World's Fair in Paris. Two of the protagonists -- Milo Milliken and Aliester Wickersham -- are already in town for the exhibition. For Milo it's an opportunity to write a story for his publisher and hang out at his favorite gin joints in Paris. Aliester, ever interested in rare and unusual curios, is interested in seeing the unveiling of a new artifact that's occurring the following day. The rest of the cast arrives in Paris by ship, train, or plane, all paid for by a mysterious stranger named Nick Danger. Enclosed in an envelope with each ticket was a flyer for the World's Fair (see photo, right) and a letter. The letter mentions a "business proposition" involving "world travel", "some risk to your health and maybe your life", and something about "protecting the world from dangers it doesn't know about". It suggests meeting in the Dingo American Bar on the 24th, followed with "you'll know me by the black trench coat" and a simple signature of Nick Danger.

Enticed by the expenses-paid trip to Paris, the invited adventurers begin to arrive at the Dingo Bar. Nick is already there, sitting in a corner where he can see all the exits and where no one is at his back. The Dingo Bar is a popular hang out for English-speaking patrons, it's one of the only bars in Paris open all night, and it's frequented by writers and artists such as Hemingway and F. Scott Fitzgerald. Naturally, Milo and Aliester are there socializing with the crowd as well.

The Dingo Bar is a lively place, and in May the weather is warm enough at night that the cafes spill out onto the sidewalks (see photo, below).



The entrances of two protagonists in particular garner some attention: Ellie St. Domaine, the buxom blonde, catches the eye of most of the men in the bar. And Zhang Wei finds he's the only non-Caucasian face in the place. Nevertheless, Zhang boldly approaches Ellie and offers to buy her a drink. They engage in friendly conversation, and Ellie's talent at distinguishing truth from fiction leads her to realize that Zhang is much more than he's claiming to be. Zhang is unable to get any such read on Ellie, however, because she seems to have a knack for hiding her true intentions.

Adway Baynes has a personal interest in decoding the unusual appearance of the Chinese man and decides to strike up conversation with him. They exchange stories about how they each came to be in Paris. Attracted to things unusual, Milo decides to approach Adway, Zhang, and Ellie and crash their party.

Dick Victory arrives, surveys the scene, and pulls up a seat at the bar. Aliester and Gary Silverstein (the Boston cop) also take a seat at the bar. Beverly Brooks sits quietly reading a book rather than socializing, though surreptitiously keeps a keen eye on how things are developing.

Those that had received an invitation from Nick Danger have noticed him by now -- the man in the black trench coat in the corner -- but initially keep their distance to see what the stranger in black does. Aliester, having no such information on the mysterious man in the black trench coat and also attracted to things that look out of the ordinary, approaches Nick Danger and strikes up conversation. Before long Aliester has learned of Nick Danger's recruiting efforts.

Having seen that all of his invitees have arrived, Nick announces to the club that he's retiring to a private booth. Several people follow, with the exception of Dick Victory, who is uncomfortable with this gathering and skeptical of the whole scene.

In the private booth, Nick Danger explains to those assembled that he is assembling a team. His former team narrowly averted an eldritch threat and the members of that team have since gone their own way. Convinced now that the world needs protection from such a group of daring adventurers, Nick has set out to build a new team.

To begin with, Nick suspects that something may happen at the unveiling of a new artifact that's to take place tomorrow at the Carnavalet Museum. He implores the other protagonists to attend the lecture and unveiling ceremony the next day. Then putting aside the business aspect of their meeting, the group engages in a favorite pastime: drinking and socializing, in the process learning a bit more about each other (click here for a summary of the cast of characters).

Milo notices fellow author F. Scott Fitzgerald at another table and excuses himself from the group to go have a few drinks with him. Fitzgerald gets more animated with each drink, and Milo keeps buying. Fitzgerald talks about Hemingway, his wife Zelda, and the conflict between Zelda and Hemingway. He reminisces about the Roaring 20's. As he gets more drunk, though, the conversation takes on a more melancholy tone. Fitzgerald admits that he doesn't think he's lived up to the success of his earlier works. Now he writes for the movies, and that's just degrading.

Dick Victory waits at a cafe table outside until the small hours of the morning when Nick Danger eventually retires. Dick approaches and interrogates Nick Danger about the team he's building and its purpose. Dick remains skeptical but he is talked into at least attending the museum lecture tomorrow. Dick next returns to his hotel and bribes the bell boy to give him the room number of Ellie. He picks the lock on the door and enters to find there's indeed a blonde woman staying there, but it's the wrong one. Frustrated by the misinformation, he confronts the bell boy. The bell boy is not too bright, having made an honest mistake, and is also terrified of Dick Victory. After a brief shakedown, Dick gets his bribe money back.

The next day, the group arrives at the Carnavalet Museum for the 2 pm event. The Carnavalet museum is a short walk to the northeast of Notre Dame (click here for a period map of central Paris; notice Carnavalet to the northeast of Notre Dame and the Hotel de Ville). The museum occupies a Renaissance-era mansion. Within the chateau there are two major courtyards -- split by a columned walkway -- with nicely manicured gardens (see photo left). A wooden platform has been constructed at the northernmost end of the north courtyard, which will function as a stage. Benches for spectators have been set up in the north courtyard. The assembled crowd spills over into the southern courtyard, which is standing room only.

Some arrive early and use their influence to get good seats. Ellie is noticed by a gentleman on the first row who willingly gives his seat to the nice young lady. Milo strikes up conversation with a member of the press who turns out to be a fan of his novels, and he too offers Milo a front row press seat. And Aliester has enough connections in the archaeology world that he's also able to land himself a seat on the front row. The more paranoid types take up strategic vantage points: Zhang watches from a second story window, the Boston cop watches from a third story window, Dick stations himself in the central colonnade (away from the stage but not so far that his poor hearing doesn't prevent him from listening to the lecture), and Nick positions himself far from the stage, near the museum entrance at the southern end of the south courtyard. There's no sign of Adway yet; he must be running late.

The lecturer is a British archaeologist by the name of Malcolm Livingston. He is the researcher responsible for the "new find" that they are unveiling today. His presentation begins with a little background in which he describes the history of cartography of the world. He presents the first world map of Anaximander and a later map by Hecataeus (see images, left and right).

He then turns to the map of Ptolemy, about which he says, "The world map that eclipsed all its predecessors in accuracy was that of Ptolemy, the famous astronomer. He invented the system of latitude and longitude coordinates much like we still use. This map, first written circa 150 AD, became the basis for all maps that followed through the Middle Ages. Its legacy lasted 1000 years. It was more accurate than any map before because it was the first to be mathematically constructed. However, this map was not without errors. And furthermore, an original copy of the map has never been found. All copies that exist of the map today were reconstructed mathematically from Ptolemy’s original coordinates that he recorded in his Geographia. That is, an original version of the map has never been recovered, until now..."

Livingston pauses for dramatic effect and is about to get to his big reveal but his next sentence is never heard. There’s a loud bang, followed by a rumble and the sound of splintering wood. A plume of fire erupts from the spot where Livingston is standing. Members of the audience scream and dive for cover.

Dick takes cover behind a pillar and the Boston cop -- falling into his habitual mode of crowd control -- shouts from the third floor that everyone should "GET OUT!" Most in the audience also diver for cover, except Milo whose instinct is to run directly toward the mass of splintered boards that had been the stage. Through the haze of smoke Milo spots Livingston's body, bloodied and twisted, lying among the debris. Amazingly, he's still conscious. A quick analysis of the wounds to his abdomen reveals, however, that he probably doesn't have long to live.

Just as the members of the crowd are starting to peek up from behind their cover, there's a second bang and sound of splintering, this time coming from inside the museum just beyond where the platform had been erected. This second explosion is enough to motivate the crowd to jump to their feet and run full speed for the exit in the southern courtyard.

Ellie and Aliester are scanning the courtyards for any suspicious behaviors. Once the vast majority of the crowd starts to move for the exit, one individual does catch their eye: at the southern extreme of the southern courtyard, near the exit, a man stands in an archway. He's wearing a brown trench coat and a brown fedora pulled low over his eyes. However, that's common men's attire for the time, and not the reason he's so noticeable; he's noticeable because he's the only person not rushing for the exit. Instead, he stands calmly surveying the scene of panic.

Aliester rushes up to join Milo next to the body of Livingston. Although he doesn't have any field medicine experience, Aliester uses his intelligence to improvise some basic first aid: water and makeshift bandages made of torn clothing. This buys Livingston some time, and he manages to gasp a few words to Milo: "My notebook. Find my notebook before they do."

Meanwhile, Ellie is heading in the direction of Nick Danger to warn him of the conspicuously stoic man in the brown trench coat. From their high vantage points, Zhang and Gary have also noticed the man. The Boston cop starts working his way through the museum's third floor toward the corner where the man is standing and the Chinese businessman rushes down to the first floor in search of the source of the second explosion. He finds a pile of splintered wood and broken glass which at one time had been a museum display case, but he's less interested in that and more interested in looking for potential thieves. Seeing that the perp's mission was likely one of destruction and not theft, he moves on to the courtyard to pursue the man in the fedora and brown trench coat.

Dick Victory has also noticed the man in the fedora and brown trench coat and moreover has a hunch that this man may be the perpetrator admiring his handiwork. He draws a pistol and starts to calmly walk in that general direction. Around this time, Adway makes his fashionably late arrival at the museum's south entrance just in time to encounter a flood of people squeezing through the archway as they flee from the courtyard. Adway shoulders his way upstream, eventually breaking into the south courtyard just as Dick walks by brandishing his pistol. Seeing the chaos of panicked people coupled with a man wielding a gun, Adway momentarily contemplates tackling Dick, but then he recognizes Dick as one of the patrons at the Dingo Bar last night and instead approaches him as a potential ally. Dick explains that he is pursuing the suspicious man in the trench coat, so Adway joins him.

The man in the trench coat realizes he's been seen. He takes one step backward and melts into the shadows of the archway. Dick's eagle eyes can still discern a shadowy form; the man is moving down the colonnaded walkway towards the courtyard exit. Dick and Adway move to cut him off, but the man in the fedora has already merged into the crowd and is getting carried downstream. A practiced brawler that’s accustomed to fighting his way through people, Dick uses his elbows to cut a way through the crowd and tries to close the distance on the fleeing suspect.

The suspect emerges from the south archway of the museum just as Gary has arrived at the third floor window directly above the archway. Looking down at the street over 20 feet below, the cop decides to risk it and make a jump for the quarry before he can slip away. He throws open the window and makes a daring leap, attempting to land directly on the fleeing suspect. However, his timing is off and he lands on an innocent bystander instead! The bystander helped to cushion the fall, but nevertheless, Gary suffers a severe sprain of his ankle, to say nothing of the fate of the innocent bystander!

By this time, Nick has made his way to Livingston's position and is using his field med kit to treat his wounds and administer some morphine. This eases Livingston's pain and also buys him enough time to whisper a few more messages. His whisperings seemingly become more and more delirious as death nears (see above).

Beverly and Ellie move indoors to search the rubble of the museum exhibit. Among the wreckage they find shreds of parchment, the destroyed remains of what had been the archaeological find that Livingston was about to reveal. Whatever it was, it’s gone now.

By now Zhang has used his uncanny quickness to dash cross both courtyards, but the outgoing bottleneck of panicked patrons still stands between him and the fleeing suspect. Zhang springs high into the air, landing lightly on the shoulders of the crowd and hopping from person to person as he “crowd runs” his way across the sea of people like a stone skipping across water.

The man in the trench coat is sprinting full bore down the street, heading east away from the museum, with Zhang, Dick, and Adway in pursuit. Adway throws his boomerang but misses, catching the boomerang as it returns. Dick holsters his pistol so he can run at top speed. And Zhang tic-tacs around corners to try to gain some ground. To Zhang’s surprise, at a full sprint on flat ground, it’s a dead heat between him and the quarry. This guy is quick!

The quarry is headed towards the metro station entrance (photo left). Adway at this point is within grabbing distance of the fleeing stranger and attempts to shoulder him aside, but the quarry twists to evade the blow. Dick is now within spitting distance. Hoping to elude his pursuers, the quarry dashes down the stairs into the station. Zhang skips the stairs by doing a rail slide.

Inside the metro station, the trench coat clad man throws open an unmarked door and dashes down a hallway. The pursuers maintain the chase. Adway hurls his boomerang again, this time at closer range, and delivers a blow to the man’s back, knocking some wind out of him. The hallway has a low ceiling, just high enough to clear their heads, and is illuminated by occasional light fixtures in the ceiling. Those light fixtures eventually run out and the hall becomes nearly pitch dark, making it difficult to see the suspect.

Up ahead, the suspect dexterously jumps and grabs a rope that dangles from a vertical shaft in the ceiling. He shoots upward as he climbs with great agility. Zhang knows, however, that he can out-climb this chump and also shoots upwards, climbing by using a combination of the rope and the wall itself. The man in the trench coat has reached the top of the shaft where he's opened a manhole cover. And, to Zhang’s great misfortune, the devilish suspect kicks loose the grapnel that was holding the rope in place. In a jumble of rope and limbs, Zhang tumbles down the shaft. He manages to land on his feet, but soon after the metal grapnel thunks him on the head.

Will the mysterious and agile man in the brown trench coat make a clean escape? Why was Malcolm Livingston murdered? Is the fleeing man the perp behind the assassination? What was in the display case that was destroyed? And what are the meanings of the mysterious whisperings of the dying archaeologist? To find out, tune in next time… same pulp time, same pulp channel!