Murder Party Kits
Case file · The Starlight Roof of a New York hotel, New Year's Eve 1966
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Murder in Black & White murder mystery party game

173 printable pages. Print characters 1 to however many guests you have.

nightlifeThe Starlight Roof of a New York hotel, New Year's Eve 1966 • Masquerade Ball

Murder in Black & White

"Masks on until midnight. Not everyone takes theirs off."

Guest count
8 to 20
Print 1 to however many
Duration
~2½ Hrs
Three murders
Rating
PG-13
Scandal, nothing explicit
Host
Host & play
Solution on a sealed page
Delivery
PDF download
Print at home
Casting
7 flexible roles
Man or woman
$29USD · the complete kit
Instant PDF download
Buy the kit

Download a free sample (PDF, 5 pages, 3 MB): the cover, cast list, prep checklist, a character card and an invitation. No email needed.

Includes: host guide, 20 character packets with sealed envelopes, evidence, play money, action cards, ballots, awards and invitations.
group_addScales to your guest list Characters join in order
8 GuestsThe core cast
12 GuestsCore + characters 9 to 12
16 GuestsCore + characters 9 to 16
20 GuestsCore + characters 9 to 20

Somebody cancels the morning of the party? Print one fewer character. The case never rests on anyone after number 8.

The story · read to your guests

Masks On. Three Murders. Midnight.

New Year's Eve, 1966, on the Starlight Roof of the Hotel Belvedere on Park Avenue. The dress code is black or white, and a mask until midnight. Your host, the wickedest novelist in America, has a new book going to the printer in two days, and every guest has a chapter in it under a cruel alias. At midnight the worst chapter will be read aloud: what really happened on this roof ten years ago tonight, when a diamond necklace vanished and the band's young singer fell from the terrace. The society queen, the fading Broadway star, the pop artist, the gossip columnist, the senator, the bandleader and the old concierge all have something to hide.

Your guests buy, charm and blackmail their way out of the book, crack each other's aliases for cash, write each other's New Year's resolutions and bid for the novelist's gold pen. Then the bodies start to drop. After each murder everyone opens a sealed envelope with new secrets and new jobs, and the dead push their masks up and keep playing as ghosts. Before the countdown the clues point to one guest, everyone votes on who, how and why, and at midnight the whole room unmasks at once for the reveal.

Setting: The Starlight Roof of a New York hotel, New Year's Eve 1966•Three murders•PG-13
The night at a glance

How the Party Runs

Three murders, three rounds of sealed envelopes, then the vote. The host guide has every line to read and when, so you only need to watch the clock.

Times assume doors at 7:00. Start whenever suits you and shift the whole night.

  1. 9:00

    Doors open

    Guests arrive in black or white and masks, and get their packet, name tag and dollars. Read the welcome.

  2. 9:05

    The receiving line

    Everyone reads their card and starts buying, charming and blackmailing their way out of the book.

  3. 9:15

    The novelist's announcement

    The book goes to press in two days, the pen is for sale, and the worst chapter will be read at midnight.

  4. 9:45

    Murder 1

    The first body drops. Read the murder aloud and lay out the first evidence. Everyone opens envelope 1.

  5. 10:15

    The resolutions bowl

    Everyone writes a New Year's resolution for someone else, and the room guesses who each is for.

  6. 10:40

    Murder 2

    A second death. New evidence on the table, and everyone opens envelope 2.

  7. 11:00

    The pen auction

    The novelist's gold pen goes to the highest bidder, with a decree attached.

  8. 11:20

    Murder 3

    A third death. The final evidence and the final envelope.

  9. 11:25

    The unmasking hearing

    The host puts the names on every tongue to the room. Then last call: trade clues and corner suspects.

  10. 11:45

    Ballots

    Who did it, how and why. A few accusations out loud.

  11. 11:59

    The countdown

    Ten, nine, eight... everyone unmasks at once.

  12. 12:00

    The solution

    The sealed solution, read slowly.

  13. 12:10

    Awards

    Closest Guess, Best Death, The Unmasker and Belle of the Ball.

The suspects

The Cast of Suspects

These eight are in every game. Each guest gets a character card with things to share, a secret to hide, goals for the night and three sealed envelopes.

Julian Ashcombe
Core castMan or woman

Julian Ashcombe

The Novelist

Costume suggestion:

Black tie or a black gown, a plain black mask, a gold pen to point with.

Babs Van Dusen
Core cast

Babs Van Dusen

The Swan of Fifth Avenue

Costume suggestion:

A white gown or white suit, pearls, a white feathered mask on a stick, a lorgnette.

Vivienne Starr
Core cast

Vivienne Starr

The Broadway Star

Costume suggestion:

A black or white gown with a white wrap or stole, a sparkly cat-eye mask, a cigarette holder.

Zero
Core castMan or woman

Zero

The Pop Artist

Costume suggestion:

All black, a turtleneck if you have one, sunglasses worn over a black mask.

Mitzi Kane
Core cast

Mitzi Kane

The Gossip Columnist

Costume suggestion:

A black cocktail dress, a white mask with feathers, a notebook and pencil, a fur if you have one.

Arthur Pendleton
Core cast

Arthur Pendleton

The Night Concierge

Costume suggestion:

A dark suit or a doorman's coat, white gloves, a plain black mask (or none: staff).

Senator Hollis Grant
Core castMan or woman

Senator Hollis Grant

The Senator

Costume suggestion:

Black tie or a white suit, a flag pin, a black domino mask, a big handshake.

Cal Bishop
Core castMan or woman

Cal Bishop

The Bandleader

Costume suggestion:

A white dinner jacket or a black gown, a black mask, a baton or a rolled-up song sheet.

group_add
Hosting 9 to 20 guests?

Twelve more characters join in order: Teddy Van Dusen, Ward Pruitt, Prince Dmitri Orlov, Penny Lark, Dolly Malone, Sy Mandel, Ned 'Flash' Fennimore, Gigi Laurent, Pixie Velvet, Lulu Bell Crockett, Mick Nolan, Lionel Pratt.

All in the kit
What's in the kit

Everything You Get in the Download

173 printable pages. Print only the characters you need.

menu_book

Host guide

16 pages: a prep checklist with honest timings, setup, rules, who's who, the night minute by minute with read-aloud murders and evidence, and the sealed solution. Every time is printed twice: the New Year's Eve clock with the countdown at midnight, and the same party two hours earlier for any other night.

mail

20 character packets

A character card plus three sealed envelopes each, opened after each murder. A goals checklist and costume tips on every card.

wc

Man-or-woman roles

Seven characters come in a man and a woman version, with their own names and portraits.

fingerprint

Evidence and props

Typeset evidence for all three murders, including a gossip columnist's notebook and a 1956 diary page, plus room signs for the coat check, the bandstand and more.

local_atm

Party extras

Dollars already counted into a bundle for each guest, 20 action cards, name tags, ballots, four awards, a welcome poster and bottle labels.

history_edu

Invitations

One per character, naming who they'll play and what to wear.

Real pages from the kit

Look Inside the Kit

Nothing here gives the game away. Tap a page to see it full size.

Murder in Black & White: real printed pages of the kit laid out on a party table
Real pages from the kit, printed at home: the cover, a character card, evidence, action cards and money.
Babs Van Dusen's character card (secrets blacked out in this preview)
Babs Van Dusen's character card (secrets blacked out in this preview)
Who's Who: print characters 1 to however many guests you have
Who's Who: print characters 1 to however many guests you have
Invitations name each guest's character and costume
Invitations name each guest's character and costume
Dollars for bribes, bets and buying lines out of the book
Dollars for bribes, bets and buying lines out of the book
Action cards, one in every guest's packet
Action cards, one in every guest's packet
Name tags with each character's ink portrait
Name tags with each character's ink portrait
Stress-free seating

Plays Seamlessly From 8 to 20 Guests

Print characters 1 to however many guests you have. Here's who joins as the list grows.

Up to Who plays Characters What changes
8 Guests The core cast Julian Ashcombe, Babs Van Dusen, Vivienne Starr, Zero, Mitzi Kane, Arthur Pendleton, Senator Hollis Grant, Cal Bishop Every clue the case needs
12 Guests Core + characters 9 to 12 + Teddy Van Dusen, Ward Pruitt, Prince Dmitri Orlov, Penny Lark More schemes, deals and gossip
16 Guests Core + characters 9 to 16 + Dolly Malone, Sy Mandel, Ned 'Flash' Fennimore, Gigi Laurent More schemes, deals and gossip
20 Guests Core + characters 9 to 20 + Pixie Velvet, Lulu Bell Crockett, Mick Nolan, Lionel Pratt More schemes, deals and gossip
Host questions

Frequently Asked Questions

How many people can play? expand_more

Anywhere from 8 to 20. Characters 1 to 8 carry the murders and every clue the solution needs, so print characters 1 to however many guests you have. Each extra guest adds a character with their own goals, so nobody's role is missing and no clue is lost.

What if someone cancels on the day? expand_more

Just print one fewer character. Because guests join in a fixed order and the case never depends on characters 9 to 20, the game still works at every headcount from 8 to 20.

Does it have to be New Year's Eve? expand_more

No. The host guide prints every time twice: the New Year's Eve clock, with the countdown and unmasking at midnight, and the same party two hours earlier for any other night, with the countdown at ten. It works for birthdays, anniversaries or any Saturday.

What do guests wear? expand_more

Black or white party clothes and a mask: the easiest costume we sell. Every invitation suggests a few touches for that character, like pearls, a white dinner jacket, sunglasses over the mask or a cigarette holder.

How does the masked ball part work? expand_more

Everyone keeps their mask on until the countdown, then the whole room unmasks at once and the host reads the solution. There's also a side game: every guest has a secret alias in the novelist's tell-all, and guessing someone's alias to their face wins money.

Can women play the men's roles, or the other way round? expand_more

Yes. Seven characters have a man and a woman version with their own name, pronouns and portrait, and anyone can play anyone if your group likes cross-casting for laughs.

Can the host play too? expand_more

Yes. Nobody knows who the killer is, not even the killer until the final envelope. The host runs the timeline and can play a character, the novelist included, as long as they don't read the solution page until the end.

How long does it take? expand_more

About three hours from doors open to the awards, with three murders spaced through the night.

Is it hard to solve? expand_more

You can guess after the first murder and prove it after the third. Ballots score who, how and why separately, so even close guesses earn points.

Do I need a colour printer? expand_more

No. The art is black ink illustration with a touch of red, so it looks right in black and white, and it's cheap on ink.

New to hosting? Read how to host a murder mystery party.

arrow_forwardBuy the kit — $29