Dying Clue: Difference between revisions

If what they used to write was their own blood, see also [[Couldn't Find a Pen]]. See also [[His Name Is]].

* Ellery Queen's ''GI Story'': A man is murdered by one of his three stepsons (Wash Smith, Linc Smith, Wilson Smith, named after the Presidents), leaves the message "GI". But all three were former soldiers. {{spoiler|He was trying to write "GEORGE" for George Washington Smith. But he died after completing the downstroke on the E.}}

* Ellery Queen's ''The Scarlet Letters'': Adulterer is shot by a jealous husband, writes the message "XY" before dying. {{spoiler|He and the husband were in a conspiracy to blackmail the wife. He was trying to write "XX" to signify a double-cross.}}

* Ellery Queen's ''Diamonds in Paradise'': Victim steals diamonds at the Paradise Gardens Casino, but falls from a fire escape fleeing police. When asked where he hid the diamonds, he replies "Diamonds in paradise". {{spoiler|He was trying to say "Diamonds in pair of dice". He had a specially hollowed out pair in his pocket.}}

* Ellery Queen's ''The Last Woman in His Life'': The victim announces he will be changing his will to disinherit his three ex-wives (Alice Tierney, Audrey Weston, and Marcia Kemp) as he will be marrying his true love Laura. He is murdered that night, and dies saying "home". {{spoiler|The killer was his lawyer Al Marsh (nee C. Aubrey Marsh), who had an unrequited attraction for the victim. The victim had had a stutter even before he was stabbed and couldn't risk saying "Al" (Alice), "Marsh" (Marcia), "Aubrey" (Audrey), "Lawyer" (Laura), "Attorney" (Tierney), or "Man" (Laura Mannzoni). He was trying to say "homosexual".}}

* A ''Seven Minute Mysteries'' had an incomprehensible dying message typed out on a keyboard that made sense once the detective realized {{spoiler|that the victim had swapped all instances of the letter "c" with "v" and vice versa}}.

* A ''[[CSI]]'' episode features a seeming nonsense string of numbers left on a phone; the investigators soon realize that the victim was trying to write down her murderer's license plate number and began trying different combinations of numbers and corresponding letters on the number pad.