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-pat
Lomax (Die Kinder)
Created by Paula Milne (1947--) Sorry, folks. Die Kinder is not yet another Bruce Willis movie — it's German for "the children." Instead, it's perhaps the most noir-ish thing PBS' MYSTERY! ever aired, a fondly-remembered (by the few who saw it) six-part BBC/PBS co-production that aired in 1990. Although the political thriller received zip attention … Continue reading Lomax (Die Kinder)
Jimmy Burns
Created by Charles Portis (1933-2020) "Christmas again in Yucatán. Another year gone and I still scratching around this limestone peninsula." Best known for his classic (and bestselling) Western, 1968's True Grit, genre-hopping author Charles Portis never quite got around to writing a private eye novel. But 1991's character-driven, tongue-in-cheek Gringos comes awfully close. JIMMY BURNS … Continue reading Jimmy Burns
Joe Dust
Created by Peter Graaf Pseudonym of Samuel Youd Other pseudonyms John Christopher, Hilary Ford, Peter Nichols, Stanley Winchester, William Godfrey, William Vine, and Anthony Rye (1922-2012) Tagged on the back cover as the "private eye with a public past," straight outta Brooklyn JOE DUST has somehow landed in London, England, where he's manning a one-man … Continue reading Joe Dust
Nick Bali (Killer Heat)
Created by Jo NesbøScreenplay by  Matt Charman and Roberto Bentivegna "Sometimes you use a carrot. Sometimes you use a stick. Sometimes you just lie your ass off." Sorry, but the 2024 Amazon Original Killer Heat is about as generic as its title. Even more disappointing? Its lead is Joseph Gordon-Levitt, an actor whose Shamus Game … Continue reading Nick Bali (Killer Heat)
Lou Crasher
Created by Jonathan Brown Cop (questioning Crasher at a homicide scene) in Drums, Guns 'n' Money: "I don't need to tell you the  kind of shit you'll be in if you  play P.I. on this." Crasher: "No, you don't need to tell me." Don't go calling " adroitly percussive" drummer and private eye LOU CRASHER … Continue reading Lou Crasher
Walter Brackett
Created by Derek Marlowe (1938-1996) WALTER BRACKETT is a British eye, a lonely ex-pat middle-aged widower not getting any younger, down on his luck and a long, long way from home in Derek Marlowe's 1974 standalone classic, Somebody's Sister. Melancholy? You’re soaking in it. If Chandler seems too upbeat for you, and Hammett just a … Continue reading Walter Brackett
Alack Sinner
Created by Carlos Sampayo and José Munoz Cue the warbling sax... In a stylish, impressionistic and highly influential comic strip, Argentinian-born New York gumshoe and former New York cop ALACK SINNER, cold, cynical, and with a face scarred by who-knows-what, is a brooding, obsessed man who hangs out at Joe’s Bar, a local watering hole. … Continue reading Alack Sinner
Mike Callahan (World for Ransom)
Created by Lindsay Hardy and Hugo Butler In World for Ransom, a rough-and-tough little B-noir from 1954, MIKE CALLAHAN is an Irish war vet working as a P.I. in Singapore who goes to work for an ex-lover who thinks her husband's up to something shady. Sure enough, good ol' Mike (played by twitchy, dapper noir … Continue reading Mike Callahan (World for Ransom)
Xavier Lombard
Created by Eric Leclere "The Lost Son was not written for the book establishment to sanction, censure or kill. Books are for reading, and we feel the public should be given a chance to do just that." —the author explains why he was giving away his book. Speaking of British crime flicks (well, I was … Continue reading Xavier Lombard