Created by David Hume Pseudonym of J. V. Turner Other pseudonyms include Nicholas Brady (1905-1945) An exasperated and disappointed Detective Inspector Cardby of Scotland Yard must have wondered "Where did I go wrong?" That's because his son MICK CARDBY decided he'd rather earn a living as a private investigator, rather than joining the police department … Continue reading Mick Cardby
Category: Film
Rafe Guttman (Bordello of Blood)
Created by Robert Zemeckis (1952--) and Bob Gale (1951--) Here's another one for you from the Hollywood Chainsaw Hookers category. You know, you find private eyes in the strangest places... RAFE GUTTMAN, the seedy, sarcastic, sardonic P.I. hero of the second Tales From The Crypt movie, Bordello Of Blood, is basically Dennis Miller, Private Eye. … Continue reading Rafe Guttman (Bordello of Blood)
Russ Ashton
Created by Myron A. Nunes Tom Neal (of Detour fame) starred as private eye RUSS ASHTON, head of The Ace Detective Agency, in two supposedly enjoyable quickie B-romps from 1947, The Case of the Baby-Sitter and The Hat-Box Mystery. And I do mean quickies. In The Hat-Box Mystery, one of Russ' ops, Susan Hart (Pamela … Continue reading Russ Ashton
Honey Donahue (Honey Don’t!)
Created by Ethan Coen & Tricia Cooke "Why do you assholes always have guns?" — Honey confronts an abusive, MAGA-loving boyfriend Actor Margaret Qualley and screenwriters Ethan Coen and Tricia Cooke reunite after Drive Away Dolls (2024), the second in what they're calling a "lesbian B-movie trilogy." Billed as a "dark comedy," the Cohen-directed Honey … Continue reading Honey Donahue (Honey Don’t!)
Joseph Rouletabille (aka Joseph Josephin)
Created by Gaston Leroux (1868-1927) JOSEPH ROULETABILLE was a crime-solving, baby-faced cub reporter for the Parisian paper L'époque who regularly outsmarted the police; solving seemingly impossible crimes. His 1907 debut, Le Mystère de la Chambre Jaune by Gaston (Phantom of the Opera) Leroux is considered one of the very first locked room mysteries; a classic … Continue reading Joseph Rouletabille (aka Joseph Josephin)
Charles Nieuwendyk (A Man on the Inside)
Created by Michael Schur Winging its way from The Land of HUH? is Netflix' 2024 mini-series A Man on the Inside, an unexpected delight for those tired of grimmer-and-bloodier-than-thou "noir" and phoned-in cosplay detective dramas. It stars Ted Danson (who's almost eighty) as CHARLES NIEUWENDYK, a quietly retired engineering professor and recent widower from Oakland, … Continue reading Charles Nieuwendyk (A Man on the Inside)
Andy & Sue MacVeigh
Created by Sue MacVeigh Pseudonym of Elizabeth Custer Nearing (1898-1960) "Last October Andy... solved the murder of Winthrop Mason in Slocum, New York, almost single-handed. Because I'm Andy's wife and was in on the kill I got a small slice of the credit." — Sue in Grand Central Murder What hath Nick and Nora … Continue reading Andy & Sue MacVeigh
Rocky Custer (Grand Central Murder)
Created by Peter Ruric Pseudonym of George Syms Other pseudonyms include Peter Ruric (1902-66) Based on characters created by Sue MacVeigh Pseudonym of Elizabeth Custer Nearing (1898-1960) So here's an oddity — Grand Central Murder is a P.I. film based on the 1939 not-so-hard-boiled, not-so-P.I. novel of the same name by Sue MacVeigh, adapted by one … Continue reading Rocky Custer (Grand Central Murder)
87th Precinct
Created by Ed McBain Pseudonym of of Evan Hunter Né Salvatore Lombino Other pseudonyms include Hunt Collins, Richard Marsten, Curt Cannon, Ezra Hannon, John Abbott, Dean Hudson, Ted Taine, S. A. Lombino, D. A. Addams (1926-2005) Long before Barney Miller, long before Hill Street Blues, Homicide, and NYPD Blue, long before Law and Order This … Continue reading 87th Precinct
Mitch Henessey (The Long Kiss Goodnight)
Created by Shane Black "This ain't no ham on rye, pal." — Mitch comes to the rescue Despite the Chandleresque title, the film The Long Kiss Goodnight owes at least as much to La Femme Nikita as it does to the trench coat and fedora shenanigans of the gumshoe genre. Heck, even the P.I. in … Continue reading Mitch Henessey (The Long Kiss Goodnight)