Rogue's Angels Presents: Velvalee Dickinson: The Doll Woman Spy by Barbara Casey

Please welcome Barbara Casey author of Velvalee Dickinson: The Doll Woman Spy

Barbara Casey will be awarding a $20 Amazon/BN GC to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour.

Velvalee Dickinson: The Doll Woman Spy

by Barbara Casey

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GENRE: Nonfiction/Biography/True Crime

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INTERVIEW:

1. What or who inspired you to start writing?

As an only child, I grew up in a military family, and we were transferred every two or three years. I think the exposure of living in so many different places and having to frequently adjust to new schools and make new friends not only taught me how to adapt to change, but it also encouraged me to develop my imagination. Even as a young child, I enjoyed writing.

2. What elements are necessary components for this genre?

Velvalee Dickinson: The “Doll Woman” Spy is nonfiction. Considered biographical/true crime, it is the first book to be written about Velvalee. Her life as an expert on antique, foreign, and domestic dolls and the whole world of doll collecting is fascinating, but her story is unusual in that she became the first American woman to face the death penalty on charges of spying for a wartime enemy. Writing this book took a great deal of research that involved the FBI, personal letters and documents, period newspapers, and material from FOIA (Freedom of Information Act).

3. How did you come up with your idea for your novel?

I was doing some research for another book I am writing when I came across some information about Velvalee and her doll collection. The more I discovered about her, the more fascinated I became. The fact that so little was known about her made it an even bigger challenge.

4. What expertise did you bring to your writing?

I have written two previous nonfiction books, both about strong women who turned to crime. The first of these books, Kathryn Kelly: The Moll behind Machine Gun Kelly, has been optioned for film/TV. The second book, Assata Shakur: A 20^thCentury Escaped Slave, is under contract for a major film. Both of these books required a tremendous amount of research, as do the novels I write.

5. As far as your writing goes, what are your future plans?

I am writing a young adult mystery series called THE F.I.G. MYSTERY SERIES. The first three books in the series are published: The Cadence of Gypsies, The Wish Rider, and The Clock Flower. I am now working on the fourth and final book in the series, which I hope will be published by the end of the year.

6. Can you give us a sneak peek into this book?

O

n January 21, 1944, federal agents followed Velvalee Dickinson to a bank in Midtown Manhattan and into a vault where she had unlocked her safety deposit box and was going through its contents. They immediately arrested her. A short time later, her arrest was announced by FBI Special Agent E.E. Conroy.

Velvalee Dickinson “fought bitterly, kicking, clawing, and screaming in an attempt to escape,” he commented, something that was immediately picked up and described with as much titillating detail as possible in numerous newspapers across the country. “Mrs. Dickinson sent many coded messages to South America containing military and naval information vital to our security and valuable to our enemies,” said Special Agent Conroy. The coded messages were “concealed in what appeared to be innocent letters discussing sales of dolls…. She signed the letters with forged names of her customers,” he explained, but citing national security, he refused to reveal the contents of the coded messages.

In an appearance before U.S. Commissioner Garret W. Cotter late in the day, Velvalee was accompanied by her brother, Oswald Blucher, who was still living with her at the time and assisted in running the shop whenever she was away. Federal attorneys asked that the bail be set for $35,000; however, bail was finally set at $25,000 after representatives of Velvalee’s attorney, Arthur Garfield Hays, vigorously protested a higher amount. Even so, a $25,000 bail at that time was certainly a large amount, indicating the seriousness of the charges and suggesting that the government considered Velvalee dangerous. “I’ll write a check,” snapped Velvalee, still defiant, “if they’ll return my checkbooks.”

7. When did you first decide to submit your work? Please tell us what or who encouraged you to take this big step?

Many years ago I was the Director of Public Relations at a small college in North Carolina. While there I also edited manuscripts written by many of the professors. At some point I decided to write my own book. I had an idea for a middle-grade novel, and gave myself one year to write it and try to get it published. Eleven months later, my first book was published and I was under contract for a second book. I have been writing ever since and now have had ten novels (written for both adults and young adults) published and three nonfiction books published.

8. What is the best and worst advice you ever received? (regarding writing or publishing)

When I was Regional Advisor for the Society of Children’s Book Writiers and Illustrators, I remember one of the authors I had invited to be a panelist talking about how important it was not to submit your work before it was ready. As an agent for over twenty-five years and a published author, I can’t stress that point enough. Too often I receive submissions that are unpolished, unedited, and don’t have the basic information needed in a cover letter. First impressions really do count, so writers need to always present themselves and their work professionally.

9. Do you outline your books or just start writing?

It depends on whether it is a novel (fiction) or nonfiction that I am writing. For Fiction, I have an idea for a beginning and an ending, the characters I want, and certain points of interest I aim for within the story itself. For nonfiction, I tend to be more structured from the outset. After I do the research, I break it all down into the chapters I want before I begin to actually start writing.

10. How do you maintain your creativity?

I look for subjects and themes that haven’t been over-written. So I spend a great deal of time searching for new ideas. Once I land on something or someone, however, my creativity seems to have no bounds. I love the journey of creating.

Thank you so much for your interest in my books and for your excellent questions. I hope to visit with you again soon.

My best,

Barbara

BLURB:

Velvalee Dickinson was born in Sacramento, California, graduated from Stanford University, married three times, and then in the early 1930s moved to New York City where she eventually opened her own exclusive doll shop on the prestigious Madison Avenue. It was there that she built her reputation as an expert in rare, antique, and foreign dolls. She traveled extensively around the country lecturing and exhibiting her dolls while building a wealthy clientele that included Hollywood stars, members of high society, and other collectors.

When medical bills started to accumulate because of her husband’s poor health and business started to fail with the onset of World War II, she accepted the role as a spy for the Imperial Japanese Government. By hiding coded messages in her correspondence about dolls, she was able to pass on to her Japanese contacts critical military information about the US warships. After surveilling Velvalee for over a year, the FBI arrested her and charged her with espionage and violation of censorship laws. She became the first American woman to face the death penalty on charges of spying for a wartime enemy. 

Velvalee Dickinson: The “Doll Woman” Spy is a carefully researched glimpse into the “Doll Woman’s” life as a collector of dolls, and as the highest paid American woman who spied for the Imperial Japanese Government during World War II.

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EXCERPT:

There was a great deal of interest in the Velvalee Dickinson doll shop, which attractively displayed her vast collection of the latest dolls from Paris and England, as well as other parts of the world, particularly since at that time the import of foreign dolls of all types had been cut off due to the war. There is a record, in fact, that one of her purchases, from Howard F. Porter of the Old Print Exchange, New York City, was four early wax dolls made about 1770 and presented in 1808 to Mary Dance, the famous British actress. These valuable dolls, which represent a clergyman and wife, and a soldier and wife, are made of yellow and pink wax over wood, and previously had been sold to Howard Porter by Mary Dance’s descendants.

Another doll that was part of Velvalee’s extensive collection was the Adelina Patti character doll. Patterned after the world-famous opera singer who was born in Madrid, Spain, in 1843, the Adelina Patti china shoulder head doll was created at the Alt, Beck, and Gottschalk porcelain factories of Nauendorg, Germany in the early 1880s. Simon and Halbig, based in Thuringen, Germany, fashioned the doll with authentic antique earrings and necklace, and a beautiful velvet and antique lace gown, making the doll quite valuable. This doll eventually found its way into the collection of Mrs. Hazel Leland, grandmother of fourteen grandchildren.

Always in the market to build up her extensive, eclectic high-quality inventory, in February 1940, Velvalee bought the rare Charles Jopp dolls to add to her own valuable collection. A month later, an article appeared in the Science Christian Monitor publicizing that the dolls were for sale:

When Dolldom Goes on Parade

A Part of the Rare Charles Jopp Collection

Walking dolls, nursemaid, boy bicycler, fashionable ladies - belonging in collection once owned by Charles Jopp, Danvers, Massachusetts, now by Mrs. Velvalee Dickinson of New York City

The Velvalee Dickinson doll store also had a few detractors, however. Doll collector, Mrs. Fred Mason of Chicago, would describe visiting the Madison Avenue store, “I didn’t like the shop…. It seemed sinister, although of course I didn’t know the owner was a spy.”

It was through Velvalee’s correspondence, frequent advertising, and lectures around the country that she made a name for herself as an expert in rare dolls. She exhibited her dolls in prestigious antique shows, and one doll in particular, an 18th century wooden doll, was mentioned in The New York Times in 1940. Her opinion was sought and respected on all doll subjects, and her frequent travels across the United States were treated as news worthy in newspapers and magazines because of her celebrity status.

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AUTHOR Bio and Links:

Barbara Casey is the author of several award-winning novels for both adults and young adults, as well as book-length works of nonfiction, and numerous articles, poems, and short stories. Her nonfiction true crime book, Kathryn Kelly: The Moll behind Machine Gun Kelly, has been optioned for a major film and television series. Her nonfiction book, Assata Shakur: A 20th Century Escaped Slave, is under contract for a major film. In addition to her own writing, she is an editorial consultant and president of the Barbara Casey Agency. Established in 1995, she represents authors throughout the United States, Great Britain, Canada, and Japan. 

In 2018 Barbara received the prestigious Albert Nelson Marquis Lifetime Achievement Award and Top Professional Award for her extensive experience and notable accomplishments in the field of publishing and other areas. Barbara lives on a mountain in Georgia with her husband, and three pets who adopted her: Benton, a hound-mix; Reese, a black cat; and Earl Gray, a gray cat and Reese’s best friend.

www.barbaracaseyagency.com 

www.amazon.com

www.barnes&noble.com 

www.goodreads.com

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GIVEAWAY INFORMATION and RAFFLECOPTER CODE

Barbara Casey will be awarding a $20 Amazon/BN GC to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour.

http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/28e4345f2957