Richard Toronto is a California writer and science-fiction historian best known for his detailed chronicling of the controversial “Shaver Mystery” and its central figure, Richard S. Shaver. Toronto became the leading chronicler of Shaver’s life and legacy, culminating in the groundbreaking biography, War Over Lemuria in 2013.
Rooted in pulp-era science fiction history and the preservation of esoteric subcultures, Toronto’s narrative blends biography, cultural criticism, and archival research. He documented the legacy of fringe sci-fi long before such sub-genres became academically studied.
Hollywood and Vain was the first installment of Toronto’s “Frisco Detective Mystery” series, introducing Alexander “Buster” Blade, former silent film child actor turned private eye in postwar San Francisco. Upon returning from military service, Blade sets up a detective agency and hires Paloma Liu Tsong, a Chinatown exotic dancer as his secretary. The story blends postwar noir atmosphere with Hollywood nostalgia, exploring post‑WWII social dynamics, race, and emerging detective‑fiction tropes in mid 20th century California. Its sequels are Half Past Satan and Nudist Camp Confidential.
