The Connoisseur

The Connoisseur

Start date:	March 24, 1969
End date:	July 12, 1969
# of strips:	96 (16 weeks)
Writer:	Lee Falk
Artist:	Fred Fredericks
Preceded by:	"Battle of Xanadu"
Followed by:	"The Bribe"

"The Connoisseur" is the 140th Mandrake daily story. The story was written by Lee Falk and drawn by Fred Fredericks.

Plot Summary

The rich and eccentric Count Lode has got himself a new hobby, as a collector of the world's best. He has acquired electric platinum collars to control his victims, and and a chemical amnesia substance so he can return his victim when he is bored of them. Regrettably, the chemical substance have a side effect, the victim will forget his art.

Count Lode's new hobby was a great success, until he decided to kidnap the world's greatest magician and the world's strongest man.

Appearances

Recurring characters

Mandrake
Lothar
Narda
Jed
Hojo, at Xanadu only
The Police Chief, at the phone only.

One-time characters

Count Lode, one of the world's ten richest men.
Grischa, Count Lode servant.
Vivari, the world's greatest violinist.
Piotre, the world's greatest pianist.
Caretta, the world's greatest tenor.
Cy, the world's best pole-vaulter.
Orsella, the world's greatest ballerina.
Mrs. Vanderbuck, chief of United Charity.
Mrs. G, working for Count Lode.

Locations

Metcalf's ltd, an exclusive London shop.
Xanadu
Count Lode's private island just of Africa's east coast.

Organizations

Inter-Intel

Behind the scenes

The title for the story taken from the strip of March 24, 1969 (Beginning: The Connoisseur).
A new way to Inter-Intel, through a butcher shop, down a long slide, on a speeding sidewalk, then up a high escalator.