Comedian Cullen among winners of annual crime-writing prize

Canadian comedian Sean Cullen, who has won acclaim for his roles on stage and screen, was honoured Thursday night for his achievement in a different artistic realm: crime-writing.

Cullen was among the winners at the 24th annual Arthur Ellis Awards, the country's premier literary prize honouring writing in the crime genre.

Cullen picked up an "Arthur" trophy named after the pseudonym that was adopted by those who served as Canada's hangman for his adventure-filled children'sbook Hamish X and the Cheese Pirates, which won in the best juvenile category at the Crime Writers of Canada's annual awards ceremony in Toronto Thursday.

Novelist and child psychologist Barbara Fradkin won the best novel award for Honour Among Men, the fifth instalment of her detective series following an Ottawa police inspector named Michael Green. Fradkin previously won in 2005 for Fifth Son.

Brian O'Dea picked up an award in the best non-fiction category for High: Confessions of a Pot Smuggler, which details how a man from a prominent Newfoundland family became an international marijuana trafficker and how he eventually turned his life around.

The best first novel award went to Anne Emery for Sign of the Cross,the story ofa Catholic priest suspected of mutilating and killing a young woman.

Dennis Richard Murphy, a film and TV writer, producer and director, picked up the best short story honour for Fuzzy Wuzzy, published in last August's edition of Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine. Murphy is best known for his Manhunt TV series, which documents the chase for missing criminals and has been broadcast across Canada and abroad.

Carol Shields, Howard Engel, Kathy Reichs, Andrew Pyper and Stevie Cameron are among the past winners of Arthur Ellis Awards.