Lawrence Treat (1903-1998) was a mystery novelist known for writing police procedurals. In 1981, he authored Crime and Puzzlement, first in a series combining short mysteries with illustrations showing the clues and a series of yes and no questions about events. Treat used the exact same format for "A Muppet Mystery: The Strange Case of Pigs in Space" in the second issue of Muppet Magazine.
Treat wrote his first novel Run Far, Run Fast in 1937 under his given name, Lawrence Goldstone. He switched to Treat when beginning a series of alphabetically-titled novels, beginning with B as in Banshee (with Sue Grafton later using the same motif). 1945's V is for Victim has been cited as an early example of the American police procedural. Treat was a founding member of the Mystery Writers of America and his work was adapted for TV on Suspense (based on the radio show), Alfred Hitchcock Presents (both 1950s and 1980s versions), and Orson Welles' Great Mysteries. His fifth and final Crime and Puzzlement volume was published in 1993.