Created by Peter M. Lenkov "Here. Hold my weiner." -- Parker displays some of his cutting-edge wit. Somebody somewhere must have made a checklist of every annoying, dumb-ass cliche and stereotype about American TV private eyes of the previous decade that was ever driven into the ground, and then put them all together in this … Continue reading Parker Kane
Tag: Ex-cop
Mick Cardby
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
Sharon Knowles
Created by Ed Lynskey Pseudonyms include Lyn Key (1956--) STRAIGHT FROM THE HORSE'S MOUTH DEPARTMENT: SHARON KNOWLES is early-mid 30s, single, brunette, and attractive. She lives in a brick bungalow located in Bay City, Virginia, a fictitious suburb just outside of Washington, DC. Her godfather, Captain MacSorley, runs the city's police department. Her boyfriend, Zelmo … Continue reading Sharon Knowles
Noland “Nole” Twice
Created by by Ash Clifton A former University of Florida football star,  an ex-cop and an ex-con (for a crime he didn't commit, and for which he was later exonerated —just like Rockford), NOLAND "NOLE" TWICE is now an amiable Central Florida private investigator. He views the  cheesy, sleazy Orlando-Tampa corridor as his hunting ground; … Continue reading Noland “Nole” Twice
Jimmy Devore
Created y W.R. Burnett (1899-1982) Published by retro press Stark House forty-five years after his death, Man With a Thousand Enemies (2025) is a feisty little read. No, it doesn't stand up to the author’s classics (The Asphalt Jungle, Little Caesar), but it is a quick, satisfying blast of hard-boiled pulp: terse, taut and generally … Continue reading Jimmy Devore
Richard “Dick” Grayson (Nine Lives: Who Killed Selina Kyle?)
Character created by Bob Kane with Bill Finger"Elseworlds" tale by Dean Motter and Michael Lark Holy gumshoe, Batman! Most people hearing the name "DICK GRAYSON" will immediately identify him as Robin, the Boy Wonder — Batman's trusted sidekick, he of the bright colors and the shorts. The first in an increasingly long list of Robins. But … Continue reading Richard “Dick” Grayson (Nine Lives: Who Killed Selina Kyle?)
James Gordon (Gotham Noir)
Character created by Bob Kane with Bill Finger "Elseworlds" tale by Ed Brubaker and Sean Phillips Somehow, no matter how many twists and turns the on-going DC Comics' Batman saga takes, it never seems to entirely shake its roots in the hard-boiled detective pulps of the thirties and forties. A case in point is the … Continue reading James Gordon (Gotham Noir)
Frank Rath
Created by Eric Rickstad When FRANK RATH turned in his detective badge, he figured the backwoods hamlet of Canaan, Vermont, was a good place to forget the past and raise Rachel, his teenage daughter, who's recently started college. Do a little private eye work, keep out of trouble, nurse his bad back, and try to … Continue reading Frank Rath
Derek Strange & Terry Quinn
Created by George P. Pelecanos (1957--) Let's just play the race card, and fucking get it over with... DEREK STRANGE is BLACK. He's a former cop, now in his fifties, who runs his own Washington, D.C. detective agency. He carries a buck knife and may get a little slick at times, but he's respected in … Continue reading Derek Strange & Terry Quinn
Gene Burk
Created by John Kaye (1941--) Don't look back -- something may be gaining on you. In John Kaye's well-received The Dead Circus (2002), Â a noirish ode to dark secrets and the buried past, it's 1986, and GENE BURK is an ex-cop turned Hollywood private eye, obsessed with rock'n' roll, and still reeling over the death … Continue reading Gene Burk