Well, I've done it. After much work, I've solved the problem of Blinkin. See the obit thread about him. Took a lot of shoeleather, a lot of brainwork, but using ol' Sherl's adage that when you've eliminated the impossible whatever is left is the truth I did it.

We called him "Sherl" back in the detective school. Sherlock Holmes, who was born "Sherringford" but changed his name. Well, actually, we called him "Sherl" because he was really a she, and the names were "Shirley" and "Sheri" respectively. "John" Watson was really named "Joan", too, but nobody at detective school gave a rat's ass about the relationship between the two. They were nice people, bought the rounds when their turns came, and went on to make a bit of a name for themselves in the detecting biz.

Someday I'll tell you about "Mickey" Spillane. But here's a hint: "Mickey" was a cover name; the REAL name was one closely associated with another "Mickey."