Created by Earl Norman Pseudonym of Norman Thomson) (1915-2000) Is he turning Japanese? I really think so... BURNS BANNION is an American GI who went native, remaining in occupied Tokyo to study Karate and chase after large-breasted Asian women after World War II. He became a private op entirely by accident in the series debut, … Continue reading Burns Bannion
Tag: Ex-military
Ronan Carver
Created by Thomas Fincham Hoo-boy. Another misfit shit magnet with a specific skill set meandering across the sometimes violent highways and byways of this troubled land, not necessarily looking for trouble, and yet somehow always finding it. RONAN CARVER is a former Navy SEAL who fell in love with a beautiful woman, and then successfully … Continue reading Ronan Carver
John Locke
Created by Jack Barnao Pseudonym of Ted Wood (1931-2019) Former SAS counter-terrorism expert (he served in Belfast, Ulster, Rome and London, and was involved in the storming of the Iranian embassy), JOHN LOCKE grew bored with army life and returned home to Toronto to set himself up in business. His business cards read "John Locke, … Continue reading John Locke
Rocky Steele
Created by John B. West (1905-60) Perhaps not surprisingly, ALOYSIUS ALGERNON STEELE prefers to be called "ROCKY." Can you really blame him? After all, neither Aloysius nor Algernon is the kinda monicker any self-respecting hard-boiled P.I. wants to go by. And as a Lucky-smoking, cognac-swigging ex-boxer and former commando (he saw action in the Pacific … Continue reading Rocky Steele
Greg and Jill McKenzie
Created by Chester D. Campbell Church-going sixty-something GREG McKENZIE was simply a retired Air Force OSI investigator who, with the aid of his long-suffering wife, JILL, showed a penchant for solving crimes for two books. But in the third book of the series, Deadly Illusions (2005), the detecting duo turned pro, opening up McKenzie Investigations in a … Continue reading Greg and Jill McKenzie
Kilroy
Created by Stephen Mertz Other pseudonyms include Stephen Brett, Jim Case, and house pseudonyms Jack Buchanan, Cliff Garnett, Don Pendleton and Dick Stivers (1947--) "I like Denver well enough, all things considered." -- Kilroy. Not susceptible to Rocky Mountain Highs (Cold in the Ground) "KILROY IS HERE!" is the obvious tagline for this equally obvious but solidly entertaining throwback of … Continue reading Kilroy
Major Martin Myers
Created by Bevis Winter Pseudonyms include Al Bocca, Peter Cagney, Sammy Coburn, Bennet Hill & Gordon Shayne; and the house pseudonym Hyman Zore (1918-1985) In a small town in England, ex-Corporal Philip Denton, just back from World War II, discovers the body of his wife in the basement of their farmhouse, and is promptly arrested by … Continue reading Major Martin Myers
Sam Callaghan (Serangoon Road)
Created by Paul Barron and Peter Andrikidis Serangoon Road was a 2013 ten-episode private eye drama from Australia, set in 1960s Singapore, and starring Don Hany and Joan Chen. The mini-series, filmed on location in Singapore, was a big deal international co-production between ABC TV and HBO Asia, with American and Australian money also involved, … Continue reading Sam Callaghan (Serangoon Road)
Dan Roman
Created by Edward Mathis (1927-1988) "Mathis was the real thing--a fine writer with a slant and style all his own. He brought us a dusty tapped-out Texas I'd never encountered before. If he reminded me of anybody it was the proletariat novelists of the Forties and Fifties such as Harvey Swados and Clancy Sigal." -- … Continue reading Dan Roman
T.J. O’Sullivan
Created by Larry Darter A former Detective Constable and ex-member of the Defense Force in her native New Zealand, T.J. O’SULLIVAN is a "sassy Kiwi" female eye, "tough as old boots," who does double duty, starring in her own Honolulu-set thrillers, and appearing occasionally in the author's other P.I. series, alongside LA gumshoe Ben Malone. In fact, … Continue reading T.J. O’Sullivan