Character guide

Elmer Gantry

major

Also known as Reverend Gantry, Dr. Gantry, Brother Gantry, Elmer

Elmer Gantry sells plows by day, sings hymns by night, and keeps a burlesque sermon in his back pocket for the boys in Denver. He is a magnificent hand-shaker and a shameless liar, driven less by belief than by the ache to hold an audience and hear his own voice ring. His hunger for applause, women, and power is the engine that will carry him from barroom to pulpit.

Frank Shallard

major

Also known as Frank, Reverend Shallard, Francis Asbury

Frank is the rare minister who actually means it, and the rarer one who keeps asking whether the doctrines he preaches can survive scrutiny. Where Elmer performs faith, Frank interrogates it, and the contrast makes him both a conscience and a casualty of the world Lewis is dissecting. His sincerity is the measuring stick against which Elmer's showmanship looks most damning.

Sharon Falconer

major

Also known as Miss Falconer, Sister Falconer

Sharon runs her own tabernacle and her own show, mixing real spiritual force with the instincts of a seasoned impresario. She sees through Elmer's lies and keeps him anyway, because she wants the lie told well. Her blend of genuine power and self-delusion makes her the one figure who can match his ambition and expose its limits.

Jim Lefferts

supporting

Also known as James Blaine Lefferts, Jimmy, Mr. Lefferts

Jim drinks with Elmer, soothes him, and needles him, the one friend who can call him a hellcat to his face and still be forgiven. He is the skeptical eye in a book full of believers, the man who notices the gap between Elmer's sermons and Elmer's Saturdays. His running commentary gives the reader a co-conspirator inside the novel's moral fog.

Eddie Fislinger

supporting

Also known as Edward Fislinger, Brother Fislinger

Eddie wants to save souls and cannot stop himself from counting them, a small-town zealot whose sincerity curdles into self-righteousness. He clings to Elmer as a friend and example even as Elmer privately mocks everything Eddie holds sacred. His earnestness throws Elmer's cynicism into relief and shows how easily genuine faith becomes another form of vanity.

Lulu Bains

supporting

Also known as Lu, Lulu Bains Naylor

Lulu is young, watchful, and caught between the strictures of her father's church and the pull of a man who treats her as an experiment. What begins as a small-town flirtation becomes, for her, a matter of reputation and self-respect that Elmer never bothers to weigh. Her presence shadows his rise, a reminder that his appetites leave marks on people who cannot simply move on.

Cleo Benham

supporting

Also known as Cleo

Cleo is the sheltered small-town girl whose family money and church standing make her a prize Elmer can hardly believe he has won. When her parents are out at Eastern Star, her naked, unguarded need for him draws a passion he mistakes for love, and he proposes on the spot. Her devotion flatters his sense of power, yet even alone with her he is never quite natural — a small, telling crack in the reformed-preacher pose that the novel will widen.

Bess Shallard

supporting

Also known as Bess

Bess belongs to the circle of earnest, unglamorous believers whose quiet faith throws Elmer's showmanship into relief. As Frank's partner she embodies the domestic tenderness and moral seriousness that Elmer can only mimic, and her loyalty to a husband who keeps losing ground to men like Gantry sharpens the book's indictment of the church as a career. She matters because she shows what sincerity in this world actually looks like — and what it costs.

Philip McGarry

supporting

Also known as Dr. McGarry, Phil

Dr. McGarry moves through the novel's clerical circles as a layman who says what he thinks and has no patience for pious humbug. His friendship with Frank Shallard gives that struggling minister a rare refuge of unpretentious honesty, and his medical plainness stands in sharp contrast to the rhetorical flourishes of the pulpit. He matters as a measuring stick: against his blunt integrity, Elmer's charm and Frank's wavering both look smaller.

T. J. Rigg

supporting

Also known as Mr. Rigg, Rigg

Rigg belongs to the class of prosperous laymen whose donations and connections keep a fashionable church running and whose approval can make or break a pastor's ambitions. His support is the kind that comes with expectations, and Elmer's genius for flattering exactly such men is central to how he climbs. Rigg matters because he shows the machinery beneath the revival: money, influence, and the unspoken bargain between the pew and the pulpit.

Judson Roberts

minor

Also known as Jud, Old Jud

A rough, older man who becomes a convert at Elmer's revival.

Floyd Naylor

minor

Also known as Brother Floyd

A farmer and early follower of Elmer's ministry.

Dr. Howard Bancock Binch

minor

Also known as Dr. Binch, Binch

A pompous and self-important minister in Zenith.

Dr. Bruno Zechlin

minor

Also known as Professor Zechlin

A scholarly and liberal professor at the seminary.

Hettie Dowler

minor

Also known as Dowler

A gossipy and malicious woman who spreads rumors about Elmer.

Juanita Klauzel

minor

Also known as Juanita

A woman with whom Elmer has an affair during his early career.

William Dollinger Styles

minor

Also known as Mr. Styles, Deacon Styles

A prominent deacon in Elmer's church in Zenith.

Cecil Aylston

minor

Also known as Reverend Cecil Aylston

An Episcopal minister and friend to Frank Shallard.

Harry Zenz

minor

Also known as Hal

A slick and cynical traveling salesman friend of Elmer's.

Bishop Wesley R. Toomis

minor

Also known as Bishop Toomis, Toomis

A high-ranking bishop in the Methodist church.

Horace Carp

minor

Also known as Carp

A fellow student at the seminary, known for his affectations.

Mr. Pengilly

minor

Also known as Andrew Pengilly, Father Pengilly

An old, kind minister who mentors Elmer early on.

Mrs. Evans Riddle

minor

Also known as Mrs. Riddle

A wealthy parishioner in Elmer's first church.

Lily Anderson

minor

Also known as Lily

A young woman Elmer courts before his marriage.

Mrs. Gantry

minor

Elmer's mother, a pious and domineering woman.

Mannie Silverhorn

minor

Also known as Emmanuel Silverhorn, Mr. Silverhorn

A slick, dishonest revival promoter who works with Elmer.

Adelbert Shoop

minor

A fellow student at the seminary.

Dr. Willoughby Quarles

minor

Also known as President Quarles

The president of the small college Elmer attends.

Dr. Otto Hickenlooper

minor

Also known as Dr. Hickenlooper

A prominent minister in Zenith.

Art Nichols

minor

Also known as Nichols

A friend of Elmer's from his college days.

Dr. Mahlon Potts

minor

Also known as Dr. Potts

A fellow minister and rival of Elmer's.

Wallace Umstead

minor

A friend of Frank Shallard's.

Bill Kingdom

minor

Also known as Bill

A friend of Elmer's from his youth.

J. E. North

minor

Also known as Mr. North

A businessman and parishioner in Zenith.

Deacon Bains

minor

Also known as Mr. Bains, Pa Bains

Lulu Bains's father, a deacon in the church.

Dean Trosper

minor

Also known as Trosper, Jacob Trosper

The dean of the seminary Elmer attends.

Oscar Hochlauf

minor

Also known as Mr. Oscar Hochlauf

A parishioner in Elmer's church.

Ad Locust

minor

Also known as Mr. Ad Locust

A friend of Elmer's from his early days.

Hank McVittle

minor

Also known as Hank

A friend of Elmer's from his youth.

Don Pickens

minor

Also known as Don

A friend of Elmer's from his college days.

Lem Staples

minor

Also known as Doc Staples

A local doctor in the town where Elmer first preaches.

Oscar Dowler

minor

Also known as Mr. Oscar Dowler

Hettie Dowler's husband.

J. F. Whittlesey

minor

Also known as Whittlesey

An old friend of the Gantry family.

Mrs. Toomis

minor

Bishop Toomis's wife.

Dr. Ingle

minor

Also known as Rev. Dr. Ingle

A prominent minister in the region.

Sister Coey

minor

Also known as Miss Coey

A devout woman in Elmer's congregation.

Nathaniel Benham

minor

Also known as Nat, Mr. Benham

Cleo Benham's father.

Dr. G. Prosper Edwards

minor

Also known as Dr. Edwards

A minister in Zenith.

Dr. Dodd

minor

Also known as Loren Larimer Dodd

A minister who debates Frank Shallard.

Miss Bundle

minor

A spinster in Elmer's first parish.

Mr. Hudkins

minor

Also known as Reverend Mr. Hudkins

A minister in a nearby town.

Father Matthew Smeesby

minor

Also known as Father Smeesby

A Catholic priest who befriends Frank Shallard.

Deacon Eversley

minor

Also known as Eversley

A deacon in Elmer's church.

Dr. Wilkie Bannister

minor

Also known as Dr. Bannister

A minister in Zenith.

Sister Bains

minor

Lulu Bains's mother.

Miss Baldwin

minor

A woman in Elmer's congregation.

Widow Clark

minor

Also known as Jane Clark

A widow in Elmer's first parish.

Emmanuel Navitsky

minor

Also known as Emmanuel

A Jewish friend of Frank Shallard's.

Barney Bains

minor

Also known as Barney

Lulu Bains's brother.

Brother Karkis

minor

A fellow minister and associate of Elmer's.

Nellie Benton

minor

Also known as Nell

A young woman Elmer dates in college.

Clyde Tippey

minor

Also known as Reverend Clyde Tippey

A fellow minister and associate of Elmer's.

Pete Reese

minor

Also known as Mr. Peter Reese

A friend of Elmer's from his youth.

Brother Buttle

minor

A fellow minister.

Amy Dove

minor

Also known as Amy

A young woman in Elmer's congregation.

Ernest Apfelmus

minor

Also known as Mr. Apfelmus

A fellow student at the seminary.

Willis Fortune Tate

minor

Also known as Dr. Tate

A doctor and friend of Frank Shallard.

Ishuah Rogers

minor

Also known as Old Ishuah

An old farmer and early convert.

Henry Wink

minor

Also known as Mr. Wink

A parishioner in Elmer's church.

Mrs. Besom

minor

An elderly woman in Elmer's first parish.

Dr. Jessup

minor

Also known as Hosea Jessup

A minister who hosts a revival meeting.

Dr. Zahn

minor

A doctor in the town of Elmer's first church.

Charley Watley

minor

Also known as Chuck

A friend of Elmer's from his youth.

Katie Jonas

minor

Also known as Little Katie Jonas

A young girl in Elmer's first parish.

Brother Fritscher

minor

A fellow minister.

Nick Spoletti

minor

Also known as Nick

A friend of Elmer's from his youth.

Henry Semp

minor

Also known as Henry

A friend of Elmer's from his youth.

Cousin Adeline Baldwin

minor

Also known as Cousin Adeline

A cousin of Elmer's.

Brother Dinger

minor

A fellow minister.

Ben T. Evers

minor

Also known as Ben

A friend of Elmer's from his youth.

Brother Tusker

minor

A fellow minister.

Chester Brown

minor

A friend of Elmer's from his youth.