Created by Milton K. Ozaki Other pseudonyms include Robert O. Saber & Mark Shane (1913-89) "The car was hot and so was the blonde who drove it. A smart shamus like Rusty Forbes should have known better than to hole up with her in a tourist cabin. By the time that the little picnic was … Continue reading Rusty Forbes
The Latest Posts
Alo Nudger
Created by John Lutz "People shouldn't do this kind of thing to each other." — Alo philosophizes in The Right to Sing the Blues Introducing the weenie as shamus. St. Louis ex-cop turned private eye ALO NUDGER is perhaps the most Chaplinesque of fictional gumshoes. Where other P.I.s are hardcases living on cigarettes, booze, broads … Continue reading Alo Nudger
Harry McLean
Created by M.E. Proctor HARRY McLEAN is a middle-aged private eye, an easy-going ex-cop and Army vet toiling for the Houston-based DG Investigative, a small, Houston-based detective agency owned and operated by Diana Galindo. So far, he's only appeared in short stories, but then again, maybe that's the way he likes it. The way the … Continue reading Harry McLean
Tim Chadwick
Created by Joseph S. Walker "Heston says you used to be a cop." — the opening line in every story Yep. TIM CHADWICK used to be a cop. A detective in Major Crimes. But he drank. And now he's no longer a cop. When asked by a concerned waitress at his why he's no longer … Continue reading Tim Chadwick
BJ (Yokohama BJ Blues)
Created by Shōichi Maruyama & Yûsaku Matsuda In Yokohama BJ Blues, a 1981 Neo-noir set in, well, Yokohama, Japan, shaggy-haired struggling blues singer and part-time private eye BJ is working a missing persons case, hunting for a lost boy, to make ends meet when his best friend, a cop, is murdered. And if that isn't … Continue reading BJ (Yokohama BJ Blues)
My Scrapbook: “We’d Like You to Follow a Star”
My Scrapbook"We'd Like You to Follow a Star" I dunno. There's just something about this gag Christmas card that made me smile — a perfect little blend of seasonal greetings and the Shamus Game. The cartoon is by Stan Eales, and it's printed on recycled paper, and it's available on the Nobleworks.com web site, where … Continue reading My Scrapbook: “We’d Like You to Follow a Star”
Lanie Lawton (The Christmas Thief)
Created by Joany Kane In this 2021 seasonal rom-com/mystery, LANA "LANIE" LAWTON is a lawyer-turned-rookie PI trying to make a name for herself by solving a rash of burglaries that have been plaguing her predictably picturesque hometown. Stepping in to help are Nick, a hunky (naturally!) local police detective already working the case and Teddy, … Continue reading Lanie Lawton (The Christmas Thief)
Biff Basham (Help! My Gumshoe’s an Idiot!)
Created by Michael Webb Clueless young New Orleans private eye BIFF BASHAM stumbles into a dumpster fire of a case in Help! My Gumshoe’s an Idiot!, a low-budget 2018 comedy that attempts to do to the Shamus Game what Airplane! did to air travel. Nope. Not even close, although it does have its moments. With … Continue reading Biff Basham (Help! My Gumshoe’s an Idiot!)
Asher Bockhorn
Created by Barney Cohen (1944--) and Jim Baen (1943-2006) One of the earliest sci-fi eyes is ASHER BOCKHORN, a tough, cynical, jasper-smoking world-weary op for the MexAmerica and Pacific Security Company who has a rather nifty hobby: he collects old (ie: 20th century) detective and science fiction paperbacks. Bockhorn appeared in just two novels, The … Continue reading Asher Bockhorn
Hank Howard (Pizza Detective)
Created by Robert Venditti and David Lapham "Just because pizza is round doesn't mean you can cut corners." HANK HOWARD isn't a man you meet every day. No matter how you slice it. Sure, he's a private eye, a hard-boiled and slightly rumpled doofus right out of central casting, complete with the obligatory fedora and … Continue reading Hank Howard (Pizza Detective)