Mildred Wirt Benson, who wrote 23 of the first 30 original Nancy Drew mysteries, died Tuesday at the age of 96. The series has sold 200 million books world wide and has been translated into 17 languages. Benson, who was a contract writer for the Stratemeyer syndicate, received a flat fee of $125 per book and no royalties.
Millie Benson had been a newspaper reporter in Toledo for the last 58 years and was at work when she felt ill and went home. She died later that evening.
The Toledo Blade has archives of her columns. I like the one she wrote about discarding her old log books. She decided to become a pilot when she was 59 and received both her private and commercial licenses.