Chapter Three: The Purloined Letter

**"Chapter Three: The Purloined Letter"** is the third episode in the series *Edgar Allan Poe's Murder Mystery Dinner Party.* During the episode, tensions rise when guests wonder what to do about figuring out who the murderer is.

## Plot

When the guests go into the hallway to check on Louisa May Alcott, they discover that she has died. On the spot, Mary Shelley recites a very good eulogy for Ms. Alcott. Then, a red handkerchief with the letter 'A' and a bell symbol is found by her mouth. Worries about contacting police and accusations continue to rise. When Charlotte believes that 'A' bell means Annabel Lee, she begins to accuse her. Some of the other guests follow Charlotte's lead. But, Poe and Annabel insist that she is the most innocent of all. Lenore points out that Annabel would never accessories with that colour, which sways several people to agree that she is innocent.. for the time being. They raise a few more questions, then they decide to shift their focus to the dead bodies.

HG Wells suggests that they move the bodies into the cellar. When they return to the dining room for Eddie's body, they find a note pinned to an apple with a knife. It threatens that they will all be killed if they seek help. Edgar decides they should head the advice, although, others, such as Ms. Shelley, are more skeptical of the warning. Edgar, Ernest, Fyodor, and HG work on taking the bodies down to the cellar.

When those men return, Mary, Charlotte, and George reveal that they all knew Eddie and seem to have motives to kill him. Mary says that during a writing retreat that included her, her husband (Percy Shelley), Lord Byron, his mistress, and Eddie they came up with ghost stories. She wrote *Frankenstein,* and Eddie suggested some slight changes. However, he insisted on taking lots more of credit than was deserved, so Mary had to publish anoynamously at first. Eddie did not like this. Charlotte then reveals that she is very infactuated with Eddie, despite the fact that he was the banker delivering the foreclosure note on her family home. After the second reveal, Lenore picks HG to take notes over it all. Then, George says she knew Eddie through her publisher. At the party, George was worried that he might reveal her identity as a woman...izer. The others turn to see who HG has noted as the most likely killer. The guests look to Poe as the possible killer, but HG reveals it is most likely Mary Shelley (according to the numerical form of motive, location, and temperment).

Mary is very offended by this concensus and agrees with Charlotte that they should go for help anyways. As Mary tries to leave the room from a different door than Louisa May did, she is electrocuted to death by the doorknob. Ernest Hemingway opens the door to reveal that the microwave that HG Wells brought has been hooked up to the other side of the door. Ernest kisses Annabel's hand, insists to keep her safe, then suggests they split up to scour the house for clues.

## Credits

### Cast

* Sean Persaud as Edgar Allan Poe
* Sinéad Persaud as Lenore
* Mary Kate Wiles as Annabel Lee
* Sarah Grace Hart as Emily Dickinson
* Whitney Avalon as Mary Shelley
* Ashley Clements as Charlotte Brontë
* Tom DeTrinis as Oscar Wilde
* Lauren Lopez as George Eliot
* Tara Perry as Louisa May Alcott
* Joey Richter as Ernest Hemingway
* Blake Silver as HG Wells
* Clayton Snyder as Fyodor Dostoevsky

### Crew

* Production Designer: Katie Moest
* Art Director: Kim Brunner
* Composer: Dylan Glatthorn
* Sound Design: Justin Lee Dixon
* Editor: Raymond Fraser
* Director of Photography: Alex Gallitano
* Assistant Director: Wes Middleton
* Executive Producers: Gregg Gibbons & April Morris
* Shipwrecked Comedy Producers: Sean Persaud, Sinéad Persaud, Mary Kate Wiles, & Sarah Grace Hart
* American Black Market Producers: Brent Madison & Ryan M. Murphy
* Gaffer: Devin Hassan & Zach Ziedman
* First Assistant Camera: Allan Chavarria & Daniel De Menezes
* Key Grip: Sebastian Johnson & James Sowka
* Wardrobe: Sarah Grace Hart, Sinéad Persaud, & Mary Kate Wiles
* Hair & Makeup: Morgan McDonnell
* Script Supervisor: Taylor Brogan
* Grip/Swing: Nick Leucking & Jamie Gonçalves
* Assistant Hair & Makeup: Keely Williams
* Logo, Animation, Thumbnail & Endscreen: David Cater
* Site Rep: Darlena Roberts
* BTS: Christopher Higgins
* Production Assistants: Tia Workman, Oriana Scafidi, Stacy Baker, Kelly Baker, Kelsey Geller, Erin Wert, Delaney Peterson, Caitlin Olsen, Ilana Elroi, Jennifer Richee
* Camera Services: Neinhuis Camera Services, Inc.
* Catering: Boyz in the Kitchen

## Production

Chapter One was filmed in parts over the 10 days in May of 2016 spent at Sunny Gables. To make the appearance of it being night, they blacked out the windows. To know other general details about production, you can read the production section of *Edgar Allan Poe's Murder Mystery Dinner Party*.

## Trivia

* After the credits, there is a scene where Ernest eats a ciggarette.
* The pictures used on HG's note board were taken from the Kickstarter character posters.