Created by Donald P. Bellisario H.H. FLYNN is one of a handful of P.I.s on this site who don't really exist. He was the hero of a script by TV writer Donald P. Bellisario for a pilot for a TV series that was never made. In Bellisario's original script, Flynn was a high-priced Los Angeles … Continue reading H.H. Flynn
Tag: Ex-CIA
Teddy Fay
Created by Stuart Woods & Parnell Hall Former CIA operative, "master of disguise” and all-round shit magnet TEDDY FAY isn’t really a private eye—his official occupation is “movie producer”--but he's known as the kinda guy who can get things fixed, and isn’t exactly known for abiding by legal niceties in the pursuit of his own version of … Continue reading Teddy Fay
Michael Westen (Burn Notice)
Created by Matt Nix When the tough get burned, the burned get going... When spies get fired, they don't get a pink slip or a form letter from human resources. They get a "burn notice" and became untouchable. In the USA Network series Burn Notice (2007-13), Jeffrey Donovan played MICHAEL WESTEN, a handsome, young, yogurt-loving former … Continue reading Michael Westen (Burn Notice)
John Denson
Created by Richard Hoyt "I'm a gentleman and a scholar; would you care for some screw-top?" -- Denson greets a client in Decoys Consider him Gonzo-lite. Or maybe a New Age Northwest reincarnation of Shell Scott. Or just a hippy-dippy eye who has certainly inhaled. But there's no denying that Pacific Northwest private eye JOHN … Continue reading John Denson
Jack Morgan, Peter Knight, Dan Carter, Chris Schneider, Craig Gisto, Santosh Wagh, Joey Montague, Matteo Ricci, et al (Private)
Created by James Patterson, Maxine Paetro, Mark Sullivan, Mark Pearson, Michael White, Ashwin Sanghi, Rees Jones, Jassy Mackenzie, Adam Hamdy, et al I've heard so many bad and even cruel things from writers and readers whom I generally respect about James Patterson's writing--tempered by equally effusive but vague praise by diehard fans--that I really had … Continue reading Jack Morgan, Peter Knight, Dan Carter, Chris Schneider, Craig Gisto, Santosh Wagh, Joey Montague, Matteo Ricci, et al (Private)
Ford Morgan & Roy Shepherd
Created by Michael Collins In 1995's The Cadillac Cowboy, Michael Collins gave us not one, but two intriguing detective characters to add to our list. While neither LANGFORD "FORD" MORGAN or ROY ROGERS SHEPHERD are actually private eyes per se, they're both far too good at what they do to be dismissed as mere amateurs. And … Continue reading Ford Morgan & Roy Shepherd
Devil Barnett
Created by Teddy Hayes DEVIL BARNETT isn't really a P.I., at least initially, but he sure as hell acts like one. When we first meet him, in 1998's Blood Red Blues, he's an ex-CIA wet-ops agent (ie: assassin) who inherited his dad's Harlem bar. According to the overblown press release I received, he's "a modern … Continue reading Devil Barnett
Rick Harper
Created by David Mazroff(1907-82) San Francisco-based RICK HARPER is a "big, tough, hard" private eye whom the police seem to respect, and even turn to, when they just can't seem to crack a case. He appeared a few times in the crime digests of the early seventies. He's six feet tall, thirty years of age, … Continue reading Rick Harper
Jefferson Keyes (Cool Million)
Created by Larry Cohen “I’m not a detective. I simply look for solutions to rather large problems.” JEFFERSON KEYES (played by James Farentino) was an enterprising former CIA agent who set himself up in business as a private eye (although he prefers "troubleshooter"), willing to take any case or solve any problem--for a flat fee … Continue reading Jefferson Keyes (Cool Million)
Vera Kelly
Created by Rosalie Knecht Her debut in 2018's genre-and-gender flipping Who is Vera Kelly?, a wonky mish-mash that hits the sweet spot somewhere between The Spy Who Came in from the Cold and Bridget Jones' Diary, knocked a lot of critics and readers back on their heels. The titular heroine was, of course, VERA KELLY, a sassy young … Continue reading Vera Kelly