Created by Lee Goldberg
Down, down, down.
CHARLIE WILLIS is a Beverly Hills cop who lands a plum security gig for a major Hollywood studio, after being shot in the stomach by one of their most beloved stars, in this wicked spoof by Lee Goldberg, a TV scriptwriter and producer (Spenser: For Hire, Monk, Diagnosis Murder, etc.) who apparently loves chomping on the hand that sometimes feeds him.
Officially, Charlie’s job for Pinnacle Pictures is listed as “special security,” but in reality he’s an old-fashioned fixer, charged with protecting the studio and its stars, and quelching secrets before they aren’t secrets anymore.
And you know it ain’t easy.
Charlie’s debut, My Gun Has Bullets (1995), was some kind of hoot, but its 1997 sequel, Beyond the Beyond, bites down even harder, spoofing a 1960s sci-fi show, Beyond the Beyond, and its cult-like fan base full of maladjusted looney toons.
UNDER OATH
- “Mr. Goldberg has an observant eye and a wicked pen!”
— Washington Times on Beyond the Beyond - “Inspired silliness…”
— Publishers Weekly on Beyond the Beyond - “Goldberg uses just about everything he can think of to send up the studio system, fandom, Star Trek, Trekkies, agents, actors… you name it, he’ll make you laugh about it.”
— Analog on Beyond the Beyond
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Lee Goldberg is a New York Times bestselling author and TV writer and producer. The Edgar and Shamus nominee’s writing and/or producing credits include Diagnosis Murder, Nero Wolfe, Spenser: For Hire, The Cosby Mysteries and Monk, and his other off-kilter gumshoes include Harvey Mapes, a twenty-something security guard, and Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department homicide detective Eve Ronin. He’s also co-written the Fox and Hare series with Janet Evanovich, and is the founder of Brash Books, which has brought back more more great lost books from the Shamus Game than you could toss a fedora at. His non-fiction works include His non-fiction books include Successful Television Writing and Unsold Television Pilots.
UNDER OATH
- “It will make you cackle like a sitcom laugh track…”
–Entertainment Weekly
NOVELS
- My Gun Has Bullets (1995) | Buy this book | Kindle it!
- Beyond the Beyond (1997; aka “Dead Space”) | Buy this book | Kindle it!
Report respectfully submitted by Kevin Burton Smith.
I loved reading both of Charlie Willis’s misadventure mysteries. I hope that a third is soon in the works maybe with a guest appearance by Harvey Mapes as Charlie’s new sidekick.
Hi, Kevin–I’m a subscriber to your mailing list and enjoy learning about new PI’s I’ve never heard of (of which there are many). The last couple of days all your posts have been labelled “protected” and demand a password to read them. Do you have a subscription tier or something? I’m confused.
Sorry, that was a mistake—I didn’t really those pages were going semi-public. Those pages were pending approval, and I thought they would be private. They’re now open to all.