Hake Talbot

Who is Hake Talbot?

Hake Talbot was an American writer chiefly known for his impossible crime mystery novel Rim of the Pit. His real name was Henning Nelms, which he reserved for writing non-fiction about showmanship.

During a poll by experts in 1981 arranged by Edward D. Hoch for the preface of his anthology "All But Impossible!", Talbot's Rim of the Pit stood second, next only to Carr's The Hollow Man as the best locked-room mystery. Another novel, The Hangman's Handyman, which he wrote in 1942, was not so successful. He also wrote two short stories, The High House and The Other Side.