My Scrapbook
P.S. Magazine, Special “Private Eye” edition
“With this, the third issue of P S., we have expanded our special section on a single subject, as we warned you we would. This issue investigates those investigators of fiction — the legendary private eyes. Who has not peered with them through a London fog, or prowled knowingly by their sides in the intricate jungle of Manhattan? Who has not, Walter Mitty-like, felt the thrill of being a deductive genius or an invincible pulverizer of thugs? Whoever he is, he has missed a great deal of fun. We issue an open invitation, to buff and novice alike, to pick up your trusty magnifying glass, turn to page five, and enjoy, enjoy.”
— from the introduction to the August 1966 issue
P.S. was a short-lived general interest magazine, a tongue-in-cheek, heady mix of pop culture, nostalgia and humor. Their third (and final) issue, from August 1966, was dedicated to “the rise of the gumshoe” and included an interview with Rex Stout,  “The White Rabbit Caper,” a tongue-in-cheek detective story by James Thurber, an essay on “The Private Eye” by Ron Goulart, whose classic collection, The Hardboiled Dicks (1965), had just come out, and “I Dunit” by Ed Lacy, wherein Lacy details the lot of a mystery writer.
It was a fine-looking magazine, well-designed, with some cool sixties-style photography, typography and layout, some goofy typeface choices and even a few cartoons, and the articles were for the most part thoughtful, substantial and generally well-written.
Repectfully submitted by Kevin Burton Smith.
