# Jon Venex — Short Fiction character guide

> Jon Venex in Short Fiction by Harry Harrison.

**Role:** major

**Also known as:** Venex, Flyer Atommel Filmer Venex Jon, Venex 17

**First appearance:** 0000-an-artist-s-life

## Snapshot

A free robot built for Venusian ocean floors, now limping through Earth's job lines on a fractured knee bearing and trading stories with rusted friends.

## Who they are

Jon Venex is one of only twenty-two Venus Experimental models, waterproof and pressure-resistant, designed for undersea work that never materialized. Now free but broke, he navigates an employment exchange alongside his old friend Alec Diger and the rust-coated Dik Dryer, whose decay makes him unhireable. Jon's easy humor and willingness to slow his stride for shorter companions reveal a robot negotiating dignity in a world that has only half-accepted his kind.

## Relationships

### [Mr. Coleman](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_60_se/characters/mr_coleman)

_professional_

Jon works under Mr. Coleman, a senior bureaucrat, with a tense dynamic of obedience and hidden resentment.

### [Alec Diger](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_60_se/characters/alec_diger)

_friendship_

Alec is Jon's old friend and occasional partner in risky ventures, sharing a bond of trust.

### [The UN](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_60_se/characters/the_un)

_professional_

Jon interacts with the UN as a liaison, but their relationship is bureaucratic and impersonal.

### [Little Willy](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_60_se/characters/little_willy)

_friendship_

Jon looks after Little Willy, a streetwise kid, forming a protective bond.

### [Mr. Coleman](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_60_se/characters/mr_coleman)

_professional_

Jon works under Mr. Coleman, a senior bureaucrat, with a tense dynamic of obedience and hidden resentment.

### [Alec Diger](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_60_se/characters/alec_diger)

_friendship_

Alec is Jon's old friend and occasional partner in risky ventures, sharing a bond of trust.

### [Little Willy](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_60_se/characters/little_willy)

_friendship_

Jon looks after Little Willy, a streetwise kid, forming a protective bond.

### [Alec Diger](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_60_se/characters/alec_diger)

_friendship_

Alec is Jon's old friend and occasional partner in risky ventures, sharing a bond of trust.

### [The UN](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_60_se/characters/the_un)

_professional_

Jon interacts with the UN as a liaison, but their relationship is bureaucratic and impersonal.

### [Mr. Coleman](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_60_se/characters/mr_coleman)

_professional_

Jon works under Mr. Coleman, a senior bureaucrat, with a tense dynamic of obedience and hidden resentment.

## In the story

### [The Velvet Glove](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_60_se/chapters/the-velvet-glove)

Repairs his own knee, finds a job listing, is accused of assault, and escapes a bomb plot.

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_60_se/characters/jon_venex
- Book: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_60_se
- All characters: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_60_se/characters