author
Dale Clark
1905–1988
A prolific pulp storyteller and journalist, this mid-century mystery writer moved easily between detective fiction and eerie tales. Writing under several names, he built a career on fast-paced plots, hard-boiled atmosphere, and a knack for magazine fiction.
1 Audiobook
In the Dark
by Dale Clark
About the author
Dale Clark was a pen name used by Ronal Sherwood Kayser (August 27, 1905 – February 22, 1988), an American writer and journalist. Sources consistently describe him as a prolific contributor to pulp magazines, especially in mystery, detective, and horror fiction, and note that he also wrote under names including Dale Clarke, Clark Clayton, and Ronal Kaiser.
Accounts of his life say he was born in Minnesota and later lived in California, including La Jolla. Before and alongside his fiction work, he was connected with investigative and journalistic work; one source notes that he worked as a private detective, which fits the lived-in feel of his hard-boiled stories.
Under the Dale Clark name, he published novels such as Focus on Murder, The Narrow Cell, The Red Rods, Death Wore Fins, and Country Coffins. He is also remembered for numerous short stories in pulp and digest magazines, with work appearing in both crime and weird-fiction circles.