I dream in the dark tidals - pools of greed. Where unquenchable appetites shape the churning endless waves. Into a vortex of delirium and hatred. 
Sandman Mystery Theatre #3 is an issue of the series Sandman Mystery Theatre (Volume 1) with a cover date of June, 1993.
Synopsis for "The Tarantula (Act III of IV)"
Lieutenant Burke follows a lead to the Evergood Milk Company warehouse. He bursts into the upstairs offices, but finds that the Sandman has beaten him to the punch yet again. The Sandman pushes Burke backwards and knocks him out with another blast of sleeping gas. He grabs a handful of company documents and leaves the scene.
At 3:00 am, Dian Belmont visits the Dodds' residence. Wesley has just returned home, but pretends that he has had trouble sleeping. Dian is wound up, and obsessing over the disappearance of her friend. She talks with Wes for a bit and then returns home.
Later, Wes examines the papers he had stolen, and learns about a financial adviser named Fenton Devere. He goes to Devere's home and interrogates him concerning the ownership of the Evergood Milk Company. Fenton gives him the name Saul Ladman, but the Sandman knows that this is an alias. He eventually learns that the Evergood Company was once a front for Albert Goldman's booze running operations during the Prohibition era until it went bankrupt. The Sandman leaves Fenton and consults with his friend, Judge Thomas Schaffer.
Lieutenant Burke eventually revives and finds Fenton. He arrests him and brings him to the police station. After several hours of interrogation, he convinces Fenton to provide him with the same information that he had previously given to the Sandman.
At the Goldman residence, Albert Goldman finalizes a series of legal documents placing several of his holdings into a trust for his daughter, Celia. Celia seduces her father and the two make love in the bedroom. Celia's bitter brother, Roger, watches them through the keyhole of the bedroom, and then tells his mother, Miriam of the tryst.
That night, Wesley Dodds suffers from a horrible nightmare wherein he sees the shadow of a mysterious woman wearing a veil. He awakens screaming and his butler Humphries calms him down. Minutes later, Judge Thomas Schaffer visits the Dodds residence. He tells Wes that the Tarantula has claimed another victim – Celia Goldman.
Appearing in "The Tarantula (Act III of IV)"
Featured Characters:
Supporting Characters:
Antagonists:
- Tarantula
- Miriam Goldman
- Sammy (one of Albert Goldman's thugs) (Behind the scenes)
Other Characters:
- Fiorello H. LaGuardia
- Butcher (a guard-dog)
- Catherine van der Meer
- Albert Goldman
- Celia Goldman
- Fenton Devere/Abraham Berkowitz (a former mob accountant)
- Irving Davis
- Martha (Larry Belmont's maid)
- Moses Berman
- Ross O'Donald (a police detective)
- Judge Thomas Schaffer
Locations:
- New York City
- Dodds Manor
- Evergood Milk Company
- Sammy's Bar
Items:
Vehicles:
Notes
- Sandman Mystery Theatre is an ongoing series published under DC Comics' Vertigo imprint. Each issue is marked with a "Suggested for Mature Readers" warning.
- This issue is reprinted in Sandman Mystery Theatre: The Tarantula (trade paperback).
- Moses Berman appeared last in Sandman Mystery Theatre #1.
- It is revealed in this issue that Albert Goldman is the boyfriend that Catherine spoke of in the beginning of issue #1.
- Judge Schaffer's name is spelled Schaeffer in this issue.
Trivia
- The cover model for this issue is Mila Radulovic. It is unknown which character she is meant to represent (if any) in this series.
- In this issue, Commissioner Irving Davis can be seen talking on the telephone with Fiorello H. LaGuardia. LaGuardia was the real-life mayor of New York City from 1934-1945.
See Also