Welcome to the third issue of the Bayport Gazette! January 2002 Austin Johnson and Nancy Hardy, Editors E-mail the Bayport Gazette Staff! Would you like to write an article, share your real life Hardy Boys story, submit a undiscovered collectible or just have a comment or question? E-mail us today by clicking on the button!

I hope everyone had a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. This is the year of 2002, which means that on May 16, the Hardy Boys turn 75! The Bayport Gazette has something special planned for this event. Surprisingly, the Detective Handbook is still being sold in stores, being that I saw it at "Books-A-Million" last Saturday. I would have thought that by now it would be retired. The Hardy Boys Ghost Stories gets new cover art, and The Tower Treasure and The House on the Cliff are released on audio tapes! Recently I sent off for some information about the "Haileybury Heritage Museum," and received some very interesting things. (Haileybury is the hometown of Leslie McFarlane.) Among the packet (that was sent to me by Chris Oslund, Curator) was a "Ghost of the Hardy Boys" pamphlet, which provides information on McFarlane, The Hardy Boys, and a walking tour of Haileybury. Also included were several issues of the TAHA (Temiskaming Abitibi Heritage Association) Newsletter; one of which featured an article on a tribute to Leslie McFarlane in which Brian, his son, and Nora, his daughter, were present.  Also included was a brochure of 'Devil's Rock,' which many people think was Leslie McFarlane’s basis for the cliffs in Bayport.  I want to thank Mr. Oslund for taking the time to send me this. If anyone plans on visiting Haileybury or just would  like some more information, The Haileybury Heritage Museum is great. You can contact the museum at: Haileybury Heritage Museum P.O. Box 911 Haileybury, Ontario  P0J 1K0 Canada Anyway, here's what's in this issue: This time's Bayport Exclusive is an in-depth & behind-the-scenes look at how the WILDCAT GHOSTWRITERS, who write fanfiction for the Moonstar Site, write their stories. This article is written by Stephanie, a Ghostwriter herself. Also, we have the fortune to get another fanfiction author interview! As always, there's New Releases & Hardy Happenings, and Fan Mail. The "Favorite Female" poll has been extended to issue four! Which is your favorite: Callie, Iola, Vanessa, Laura, or Gertrude? Just click on your choice to vote. This time, we have an article about the Stratemeyer Archives in New York from Bob Nelson, a review of Ghost of a Chance by Scott Bishop, a real life detective story by Lil' Mickie, a wordsearch from Nancy Hardy, and many, many others! Check it out below! Austin Johnson Editor

It was back in September of 1996.  At the time, I was in the fourth grade and a small group of us liked the Hardy Boys.  We got together in study hall and decided that we wanted to write stories with our own characters.  With Mrs. Lewis's help, we created our characters - Adam and Jason Kramer.  In October, after hearing at the Hardy Boys were written by ghostwriters, we officially became the Wildcat Ghostwriters. So this past October was the 5th anniversary of the Wildcat Ghostwriters.  We celebrate the event on October 29th by watching "The Hardy Boys and Nancy Drew meet Dracula" and "House on Possessed Hill." It is tradition.

It is funny that the Ghostwriters have been writing stories way before they ever came to Moonstar's site, but it is true.  Our stories were enjoyed by the many students who came in to the library. They are written in pencil and kept in trapper keepers.  The stories range from 6 chapters to 20 chapters each and I have never heard an official count, but I do believe that there are over 20! So we have our own section in our school library.

We also have a Ghostwriter code that we follow, sort of like a set of commandments that future ghostwriters must follow.  These rules include a certain code of conduct and respect, a team effort and things that the characters will never do or say.  We follow that code and it has never been violated or challenged. We want to keep the Wildcat Ghostwriter name a respectable name among our peers, old and young.

Through the years, we have lived with the Kramers and soon we started to include the special ed kids. They had great ideas, but just could not do everything needed to write a story on their own.  It was then that we decided that one of the brothers needed to represent that part of the ghostwriters and  we chose to model Adam Kramer after our good friend Michael.  He was in an accident and his mother was the school librarian and good friends of our teacher. That story changed our series forever and debuted as the first story by the Wildcat Ghostwriters at the Moonstar Fan Fiction Site. We were very proud of that and many people loved our stories.  People from all over e-mailed us and sent us posts of encouragement. It was a sight to see. The Kramers went from a small town in Ohio to a "world wide" public library.

This was a big deal for us.  But then we learned that some people would not even give the Kramers a chance since we were young writers.  That type of discrimination did hurt our feelings.  Then we heard that people did not read them because they were not the Hardy Boys.  I personally never understood that since they were created as equals to the Hardy Boys.  These same people screamed that they wanted the Hardy Boys to be more real, but never gave the Kramers a chance, even though our stories were based on real people and events.  If you would take our stories and just change the name, they could easily pass for Frank and Joe Hardy.  So to me, the Kramers are the same, yet more real.

But enough of my harping!  Needless to say, we went back to the basics of our writing. Writing for our own pleasure and living out our fantasies through the Kramers. Now, our series has grown even more with several story ideas in the mix, including having the Kramer Boys actually meet the Hardy Boys someday in a story.  We are also going forth with a story that will cause some minor changes for the series.

It is funny that we all often daydream and even imagine what Adam and Jason would do in certain situations.  For example, in light of the past few  month's events, many of us wondered what the Hardy and Kramer boys would be doing or saying. It is powerful to us because it means that they all four live in our hearts. That is something that we, the original ghostwriters, never planned on in the beginning.

Now as for our story ideas, we get them from our area newspaper, news station, and our own lives and dreams.  Starting with a basic outline, we go from there.  Sometimes the story takes on a life of its own and we change the outline while other times we change it completely.  It is nothing for us to act out a scene, argue over a chapter event or cheer when someone comes up with a great idea. It is hard though, but I will always remember those debates and the friends I gained by being a ghostwriter. After that, our "writers" scribble the story onto paper and it is then typed by our teacher on her home computer and sent to Moonstar.

I hope that you enjoyed a look into how the Ghostwriters make their stories and see the driving force behind Adam and Jason Kramer.  We are always open to questions either via the board or through our e-mail addresses:

riptyde@zoomnet.net or rivertyde@hotmail.com.

We would love to hear from you and we hope you enjoy the Kramers as much as we do.

Written by Stephanie
 

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Released:
167. Trouble Times Two
168. The Castle Conundrum
169. Ghost of a Chance
170. Kickoff to Danger
171. The Test Case - January 2002

Coming Soon:
172. Trouble in Warp Space - March 2002
173. Speed Times Five - June 2002
174. Hide and Sneak - August 2002
 

Hardy Boys e-Books for Download Requires Microsoft e-Book Reader. Hardy Boys #166: Past and Present Danger Hardy Boys #168: The Castle Conundrum

Applewood Reprints:
Applewood's been having a bit of a struggle to get these last few books out. Several people I've talking to mentioned the difficulty of finding a suitable dust jacket as the problem. See all of the available Applewood Hardy Boys here.

13. Mark on the Door
12. Footprints Under the Window
11. While the Clock Ticked

As Applewood progresses on with their facsimiles, it makes me wonder how long they'll keep the "original look." When #14 was originally published, we had been seeing the brown cover with yellow spine DJ for two books. It'll be interesting to see what, for example, The Disappearing Floor will look like with red boards and a white spine DJ.

Hardy Boys Tower Treasure [UNABRIDGED]
by Franklin W. Dixon

List Price: $18.00
Our Price: $12.60
You Save: $5.40 (30%)

This item will be published in May 2002. You may order it
now and we will ship it to you when it arrives.
Listening Library; ISBN: 0807207667
 

Hardy Boys House Cliff [UNABRIDGED]
by Franklin W. Dixon

List Price: $18.00
Our Price: $12.60
You Save: $5.40 (30%)

This item will be published in June 2002. You may order it
now and we will ship it to you when it arrives.
Listening Library; ISBN: 0807207691

Plot Synopsis for The Test Case:

A. JOE STOLE THE TEST.
B. TONY STOLE THE TEST.
C. NONE OF THE ABOVE.
A new statewide test has all the students at Bayport High on edge. Then Joe and his friend Tony find one of the tests in Tony's books bag. Joe knows Tony didn't steal it, but the assistant principal isn't so understanding -- he suspends them both! Joe talks to the truck driver who delivered the tests, as well as the owner of a tutoring service who promises amazing improvements in test scores. Frank checks out who could have put the test in Tony's bag -- a bag just like the one belonging to a star of the hockey team. Joe and Tony are still in the penalty box, but the Hardys are determined to ace this case! (Buy The Test Case here.)
 
 
 

Some examples of the British Casefiles that are still being printed. Several sources list as "new," but a friend in Britain comments that they've been around "for ages." Amazon.co.uk says these are "Part of the re-launch of the popular Hardy Boys series." Oddly enough, there is no mention of "Casefiles" on the cover. Title #117, Blood Sport, was retitled "Duel with Death." Case 117, Blood Sport retitled Duel With Death  Amazon.co.uk is the ONLY way to acquire new copies of Casefiles. Buy now before it's too late!

"Hardy Boys" by Creative Education's "TV and Movie Tie-ins." This book is much like Peggy Herz's book on the '70s TV series, which also gave background information on Shaun and Parker. Written by Mark Turner.

In “Ghost of a Chance”, the 169th in the series, the Hardy Boys stumble into a bit of a mystery. Someone is trying to sabotage a movie being shot in the Smoky Mountains of eastern Tennessee, but who and why?

The movie is called “Dropped into Danger”. It's the story of Jake “Jumper” Herman, a daring criminal known for his narrow escapes. His small plane, loaded with a fortune in stolen archeological treasures, had crashed in the area twenty-five years earlier. It was unknown if he lived or died. His body was never found and only a small part of the stolen gold and jewels was recovered.

Joe and Frank work on the movie as assistants to the animal wranglers. They help manage the bear and mountain lion that appear in the film.

The boys soon learn that one of the stars, Cleo Alexander, has been receiving death threats warning her to quit the movie or else. An Olympic gymnast turned actress, Cleo attempts to perform her own stunt, but is nearly killed because of faulty rigging. The stunt coordinator, Terry Lavring, believes someone tampered with his equipment. He's fired and barred from the set, but continues to hang around in the area.

Sissy Leigh, a local folklorist, works on the movie as technical adviser. She fills the boys in on details of the Herman legend, such as the story that his ghost—along with a foul-smelling Bigfoot—have been spotted lurking in the forest there for years.

Frank, himself, has a couple of run-ins with Bigfoot and there are other tense moments, as when Joe is nearly attacked by a mountain lion that wanders onto the set, or when the boys are marched off at gunpoint after searching a cabin they find in the woods.

But the story is more an intricate puzzle than a thriller. There's not the sense of danger there was in “End of the Trail”, for example.  It's more Agatha Christie than Mickey Spillane and it's only at the end that the Hardy boys put all the pieces together and solve the mystery.

The book was generally well written. It gave a stronger sense of the setting than some others in the series. But I did have some complaints...

I was disappointed that Jumper got away in the end. It just didn't seem fair since a far less ambitious, secondary villain was caught and presumably sent off to rot in a Tennessee prison. The author seemed to have some sympathy for him as a daring, legendary, criminal.

Of course, Herman did completely waste twenty-five years of his life living alone in a cabin searching for his missing treasure. Perhaps that was punishment enough.

And it seems unlikely that Herman's ruse of dressing as Bigfoot to frighten people away while he searched for his treasure would work. Those who do not believe in it wouldn't be scared, and those who do believe would flock to area hoping to get a look at it.

Let it be known that real people do get involved in real life detective stuff.  For some, it might be to clear  a name of a crime or act. For others, it might be a situation of trying to find someone who committed the  crime.  However, I know of a story that involves using detective skills to commit a crime that was not  really a crime.  Sounds weird? Yes, it does.  But I know this story is true and I know the people involved  and I am hear  to tell the world about Operation Code Red.

OCR, or Operation Code Red, was a plan born from a bad situation.  Joleen had just had her second child by her husband, Earl.  But things were not perfect for the new mother of two. Her husband was seeing someone on the side, leaving her at home... alone without the use of her red Ford Thunderbird. This car  was not the greatest car, but for Joleen it was her first car and it took her three years of working part-time at McDonalds to pay for it. It was not long that Joleen found out about her husband's scandalous behavior,  it is a small town you know.  In her time of need, she became angry - very angry - especially when her husband took the car and never brought it back.  Leaving her at the doctor's office with her two sons,  Joleen took more than she could handle. She had to get that car back...no matter what it was going to take. But she did not know where Earl was staying, let alone the location of her beloved Thunderbird. The police told her that it was a domestic situation and they could not get the car for her. So Joleen then called in her two best friends, Callie Williams and Iola Lewis in on the case.

Meeting secretly one night while watching the kids, the three friends figured up a plan on locating the scoundrel. It was known that Earl called from a pay phone every night to make his rude remarks to Joleen on the answering machine since he was living with "the other woman." The dynamic threesome copied the pay phone number and went to the phone company to ask the location of the pay phone. Getting an address, the three waited for three days trying to see if there was a certain time that Earl, the two-timing cheat, would make the calls. Sure enough, there was a pattern - between 7-7:15 pm. So one night, Joleen waited by the phone waiting for her usual phone call.

All the cards fell into place, because at exactly 7:00 pm, Earl showed up at the pay phone. He was not aware that across the
street and down by an alley, Callie and Iola were waiting in a borrowed vehicle. The two easily tailed the man and located his new residence, a town located 12 miles away. The house was a well known drug house. Callie and Iola returned to Joleen's house to find out that she had asked a final time for the car that she possessed the papers for. They were told firmly that he would not fork it over, and even worse, he was going to California with it.

Time was running short for OCR and the three knew that they had to act fast or he was going to get away!  It was then that OCR sprang into action. The plan was set, and they even sported watches that were perfectly timed together.  Armed with just a spare set of keys, a blocking car, and the pink slip to the beloved red Thunderbird, the three friends made their way to the town in the very early hours of the morning. Spotting the car, it was agreed upon that Callie was going to be the one who was going to spring the car from its captor. Dressed in all black, Callie sneaked from car to car. Iola and Joleen watched from a distance in the blocking car, Iola's own beloved camaro. Callie finally made it to the car and started the engine. Unfortunately, the Thunderbird needed some exhaust work, and the sound of the car easily woke up the people in the house.  Running out in his underwear, Earl spotted the car take off with a sputter.  Iola and Joleen enjoyed the sight and figured that they had it made, but then Earl made a move that no one expected. He ran and jumped into another smaller car, clad only in his bikini underwear, and the engine roared to life.  Realizing that Earl was going to chase Callie down, Iola sprang the Camaro to life. Being situated up the street, Iola was able to jump in front of the irate Earl. She kept him behind her all the way to State Route 93, a very dangerous two lane road that led back to their hometown.  Winding up and down and all around, Callie drove as fast as she knew she could get away with to get some distance between the Thunderbird and Earl. Finally, both Earl and Iola were out of sight, and Callie continued to their designated secret meeting place. Then she radioed over on the CB at the meeting place that she was safely hidden away. Meanwhile, Iola was holding Earl back by being slow and weaving in places to keep Earl at bay. After she got the CB call, Iola quickly made some distance between Earl and her own car and went to the meeting place. Celebrating their victory, the three treated themselves to a breakfast at McDonalds and went their separate ways for some well deserved sleep.

So you probably wonder...what happened to Earl?? Well, my good friends, that became a very funny incident in their small hometown. It seems that Earl's "other woman" reported her car stolen. He was picked up, dressed in his bikini underwear, in the middle of town and arrested. He did of course tell the police that he was chasing a stolen car, but the police thought it was just the alcohol talking.  He was arrested for DUI, stealing an automobile and indecent exposure.  And yes, he did call for Joleen to bail him out. She let the answering machine take care of the problem. The word soon spread of the caper, and many women who had been in the same situation reveled behind the three. Operation Code Red was a success and a great way to get even.  Through some investigating and some careful planning, the three friends got their car and their man.  So, when someone tells you that these things only happen in the movies and on television, just remember this very true story. Plan a trip to our neck of the woods and you will still hear about the famous late night run of Operation Code Red.

Lil' Mickie
 

Hardy-Har-Hars Contributed

I think it's just fantastic! Lighthearted, colourful, user friendly, informative and aimed at the right age/demographic group.
Someone who hasn't read a Hardy Boy book in their lives could probably dip in and find something of interest there. I hope it continues to be a success and, as people participate, continues to grow.
--Dawn Foster-Moore

Great job done! Keep up the good work! I love the part Nancy wrote about dating the Hardy Boys, and thanks for including
the synopses of the 90's TV series that I never got a chance to watch. Am eagerly looking forward to the future issues!
--Wendy

The Gazette is great! You did a beautiful job. I especially liked the Hardy Boys dating tips and the interview with Don. We got to trace Leslie McFarlane's gradual upward mobility with the shots of his houses. (I assume they're in chronological order and he wasn't going steadily down hill all those years.)  I'm looking forward to #3!
--Scott Bishop

Hey Austin,  Nice site.  You and Nancy did a good job on it.  Thanks for giving me credit for my Hardy Boys tv show trivia questions.
--Paul Pait

You guys did a great job, Austin & Nancy! I especially liked the "Guidelines for Dating a Hardy Boy!"
--JD

Very nice. Who's the artist of Callie, Vanessa, and Iola?  I thought those depictions were fun to see.
--Joseph Arendt [Editor's Note: Nancy Hardy was the artist]

I just had to tell Austin & Nancy that I, too, really enjoyed your first two editions of the Bayport Gazette. Excellent job both of you!
(P.S., Nancy, your dating tips had me in hysterics over here, I was laughing waaaaay too hard for work!) Kudos!
--Rokia

Great Work! The 'fan-fiction' part is brilliant. Looks like you two worked overtime. THANK YOU!
--Vinita Yeo

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