Cyclopropanation of active methylene compounds is a very useful reaction in organic synthesis. 1 and 2 In general, it is carried out using either ethylene dichloride or ethylene dibromide 3 as the alkylating agent in the presence of a strong base like sodium hydride or 50% aqueous sodium hydroxide in the presence of a phase transfer catalyst (PTC), and the yields are moderate to good. During the course of our investigations on the monomethylation of ...