Created by M.V. Heberden Pseudonyms include Charles L. Leonard (1906-65) "There are very few moments when the truth is a good idea." — Rick Vanner Female author Mary Violet Heberden, hiding behind her initials, was one of the few women mentioned in mystery critic James Sandoe's oft-reprinted and anthologized personal checklist of favorite Hard-boiled Dicks. … Continue reading Rick Vanner
Tag: World War II Veteran
Burns Bannion
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
Steve Drake
Created by Richard Ellington (1914-80) "Broadway is my beat and murder is my business!" -- cover blurb from Shakedown Over the course of five novels and a few short stories, former actor and G.I. and current Broadway wisenheimer STEVE DRAKE finds that private investigation may not be the nicest work in the world, but "it's … Continue reading Steve Drake
Max Dexter
Created by Chris Laing MAX DEXTER is a former Mountie and WWII vet who came back from overseas with a bum leg, now working as a private eye, going down the mean streets of post-war Hamilton, Ontario in Canada, a hard town now--a hard town then. They don't call it "The Hammer" for nothing. Max … Continue reading Max Dexter
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
Aloysius Archer
Created by David Baldacci It's 1949, and rough-and-tumble WWII vet ALOYSIUS ARCHER is a hard-luck drifter and a total shit magnet, freshly sprung from Carderock Prison, when he hits the road in One Good Deed (2019), a sly, noirish change of pace from the #1 New York Times bestselling author Baldacci. His parole conditions are pretty … Continue reading Aloysius Archer
Harry Kilmer (The Yakuza)
Created by Paul & Leonard Schrader and Robert Towne "A man never forgets. A man pays his debts." -- from the poster. Imagine Chandler writing a samurai flick... In this forgotten classic from the mid-seventies, Robert Mitchum is HARRY KILMER, an aging former G.I., and sometime P.I. (his past is suitably murky), set loose in … Continue reading Harry Kilmer (The Yakuza)
Byrd (Hawaiian Dick)
Created by B. Clay Moore & Steven Griffin "Thank God the Tiki Bar's still open Thank God the Tiki lights still shine Thank God the Tiki Bar's still open Come on in and open up your mind..." --John Hiatt If Raymond Chandler had worn a few more Hawaiian shirts and learned how to chill, maybe … Continue reading Byrd (Hawaiian Dick)
Jim Sader
Created by Dolores Hitchens Pseudonym of Julia Clara Catherine Maria Dolores Robins Other pseudonyms include D.B. Olsen, Dolan Birkeley, Noel Burke (1907-73) "The carhop came and thanked him for the tip and took the tray away. As she walked into the light her legs shone like silk below the fluffy skirt, and Sader yawned, and … Continue reading Jim Sader
John Steel
Created by ?? Initially, JOHN STEEL was a "Special Agent" working for British Intelligence during World War II. Prior to the war, he'd been a sergeant in the London Police, but when duty called, he did not hesitate. He tried to enlist in 1939, only to be denied. That didn't stop him, though--he promptly … Continue reading John Steel