Interviews

10 QUESTIONS FOR NANCY DREW
Interview conducted by Randy Sluganski

We recently had the rare opportunity to sit down and chat with the legendary (and I might add beautiful, dressed as she was in a simple green linen sports dress) Nancy Drew. While she was extremely busy researching her next case – Ghost Dogs of Moon Lake – this star of film, television, computer and the printed page was still gracious enough to take the time to respond to the following questions:

How does it feel to have your adventures on computer after so many years of appearing only on the printed page?

There are over 100 million copies of my books out there, in 22 languages, so after 70 years in print I needed a new case to crack. It was such a mystery to me why game creators were only making games for guys with a penchant for shooting whatever they see. ‘Those game companies are missing something’, I thought to myself, ‘and I’m just the person to take the case.’ I discovered that there are computer users everywhere who, like me, can’t resist a good mystery. Especially if they can see through my eyes and speak with my voice like they can in the computer games. So far, over 750,000 copies of the PC games have sold. Case closed.

Do you have a preference? Would you rather your fans read your latest book or play your latest computer adventure game?

Hm! What a difficult choice! I think the best solution would be for them to come up with a plan that would enable them to do both. Since there are only two new computer games every year, there should be plenty of time in between to read the books! With some careful planning, they should be able to enjoy solving new mysteries all year long.

Is there any chance that we may one day be able to play your adventures on one of the console systems such as the Playstation 2 or the Xbox?

My good friends the Hardy Boys love their new consoles. But the PC is such a perfect platform for all the detailed sleuthing in my games that my mystery fans seem to be happy to stay there for now. Of course, I’ll keep an eye out for clues that it’s time to add consoles or online play to my detective kit.

Okay, here’s a real toughie for you – out of your seven computer adventures, which one do you like the best?

(thoughtfully): “Oh dear, that is a tricky question! I’ll always prize my memories of my first venture as an interactive detective in Secrets Can Kill. I adored my Oriental bedroom in that creepy old house in Message in a Haunted Mansion. Oh, and that quirky castle in Treasure of the Royal Tower was fascinating. But I have to say that my most recent case, Ghost Dogs of Moon Lake, just might be my favorite. It was such a tough case; the clues were hidden in so many intriguing places. The people I met there were so charming, in a down-home kind of way, it was hard to believe that any of them could be hiding something. And those dogs, with their glowing eyes and mournful howls! It was one of the most frightening, and challenging, cases I’ve ever been on.

Your seventh game – Ghost Dogs of Moon Lake – is due out November 18. Can you share any inside information on this new adventure?

Just that it was one of the most harrowing experiences I’ve ever been through. You know, detective work isn’t always the safest occupation in which to engage. I felt my life was in danger several times, but never more so than when I was confronted by the yellow eyes and bared fangs of those dogs.

Is there any possibility that one of your future adventures may have you team up with the Hardy Boys?

Frank and Joe are good friends, and they can be of great help when I’m on a case. In my last three mysteries I’ve called them on the phone when I needed a hint. Who knows, some day I might just invite them along, or maybe even give them one of my cases if I get too busy!

We understand that you are about to be featured in a new movie on ABC television this December. Can you tell us a little about the movie?

(gaily): Yes, it’s a thrill to be back on TV – it’s been years! The new two-hour movie is scheduled to air Sunday, December 15, on ABC’s Wonderful World of Disney. It’s all about when I’m in college and writing for the student newspaper – what an exciting time. I encourage adventure fans of all ages to tune in – if enough people watch I might have my own series!

How have you survived - and thrived – in a marketplace that is oversaturated with violent games (and gamers)? To what do you attribute your success?

My dad – the lawyer Carson Drew – taught me to approach every challenge logically, and that’s just what I did here. In the past I’ve found secrets in old clocks, messages in haunted mansions, treasures in royal towers, but this retail channel mystery has been such a baffling case. So many dead end-caps! So many hard-core game guys! My job was to show them all that girls and their dollars are not to be ignored. At first, the retail channel ignored the evidence of the missing girl games and wouldn’t let me in. The secret was for me to start selling my games online. They were a smashing success, and that was the key to unlocking the retail channel. Now my games have thousands of fans eager to sleuth out whichever store gets the games first. It turned out to be no real mystery after all – all it took to solve it was to make great games for a group of players everyone else had overlooked.

Have you ever wanted to just hang up your adventure garb and move on into adulthood?

Oh my, no! With every mystery I solve, I wonder if I’ll ever have another one half as thrilling! What would happen to my good friends Bess and George if I were to grow up all of a sudden? Who would people look to when they needed a teen sleuth? I believe that one of the reasons I’m such a successful detective is that troublemakers don’t suspect that I’m on to them until it’s too late; they think I’m just another famous, attractive young woman.

You’ve hardly aged over the years, in fact you look younger now than you did in your first appearance in ‘The Secret of the Old Clock’ over 70 years ago! What is your secret?

Thank you for the compliment, Mr. Sluganski! Actually, I can’t think of anything more rewarding than being a famous teen detective. I lead such an exciting life; racing off day after day in my blue roadster on my way to the next thrilling case, that I simply don’t have time to grow up! And my faithful housekeeper Hannah Gruen always takes such good care of me – perhaps it’s the wonderful little treats she’s always baking for Bess, George and me that keep us so young. I sense there are many more exciting cases ahead that only a teen sleuth can solve. Why, just the other day someone mentioned something about a merry-go-round, and I’m afraid I need to cut this interview short so that I can do a little sleuthing . . .