Character guide

John Markham

major

Also known as Markham, Mr. Markham

Markham is the city's chief prosecutor, a man of methodical rigor who projects the District Attorney's office into every corner of the Benson investigation. His instinct is to build a case against the obvious suspect, and he bristles when Vance's aesthetic dabbling threatens to dismantle his reasoning. Yet he keeps Vance close, half out of friendship and half because he suspects the amateur sees what the law cannot.

Philo Vance

major

Also known as Mr. Philo Vance, Mr. Vance, Vance, Van

Vance is a wealthy, cultured amateur who becomes an unofficial consultant in Markham's investigations, armed with a languid drawl and a habit of quoting the obscure. He disdains the obvious suspect and the legal mind's rigidity, preferring to read character and motive the way he reads a painting. His charm and eccentricity let him extract confessions from frightened witnesses, making him the case's true engine.

Ernest Heath

supporting

Also known as Heath, Sergeant Heath, Sergeant Ernest Heath, Sergeant

Heath is the NYPD's boots-on-the-ground man, reporting to Markham and executing the legwork that turns suspicion into evidence. He is skeptical of Vance's airy methods but respects results, and his instinct for pressure — like squeezing a hall-boy for the truth about Leacock — keeps the investigation moving. His plain-spoken pragmatism grounds the case in the grit of real police work.

Alvin Benson

major

Also known as Benson, Mr. Benson, Alvin, Al, good old Al, Mr. Alvin Benson

Benson is the murder victim, a man whose fortune and appetites — for money and for other men's women — made him widely disliked. His treatment of his secretary and his financial dealings with clients like Miss St. Clair supply the case with motives and resentments. Though dead before the story begins, his character is reconstructed through the testimony of those he wronged, making him the gravitational center of the mystery.

Major Anthony Benson

supporting

Also known as Major Benson, Anthony Benson, Major, the unspeakable Benson, The Major

Major Benson is the surviving brother, a soldier whose strained history with Alvin colors how the family is viewed by investigators. He provides Markham with information about Alvin's personal affairs and social circle, helping to map the victim's world. His military bearing and the friction between the brothers keep him hovering at the edge of suspicion even as he cooperates with the inquiry.

Captain Philip Leacock

supporting

Also known as Leacock, Captain Leacock, this Captain Leacock, a Captain Philip Leacock

Leacock is an army officer whose engagement to Miss St. Clair puts him in direct conflict with Benson's attentions to her. His height, his possession of the murder weapon, and his evasive protectiveness of the woman he loves make him the obvious target of Markham's theory. His willingness to shield her at his own expense turns him into the case's most poignant figure, and the question of his innocence drives the early investigation.

Leander Pfyfe

supporting

Also known as Mr. Pfyfe, Pfyfe, Leander, the knightly Mr. Pfyfe

Pfyfe and Benson were inseparable in the old Haymarket days, living together before Pfyfe married a woman who now makes him toe the mark. He dabbled in speculation through Benson and Benson and, by his own airy admission, was not very lucky — a vagueness that hangs over his lunchtime chatter like cigar smoke. His long intimacy with the victim makes him a natural early figure for the police to circle, and his evasions about money give the investigation its first faint scent of motive.

Muriel St. Clair

supporting

Also known as Miss St. Clair, St. Clair, Muriel, the delightful Miss St. Clair

Muriel St. Clair is an independent artist who had been losing money through Benson's firm and suspected he was engineering her losses on purpose. Her resentment of his attitude that final evening drove her to abandon his car at Times Square and walk home alone, dropping her belongings in her haste. Captain Leacock's chivalrous silence on her behalf makes her the emotional hinge of the early case — a woman the District Attorney reads as a suspect and Vance reads as a wronged client.

Colonel Bigsby Ostrander

minor

Also known as Colonel Ostrander, Bigsby Ostrander, the Colonel, The Colonel

A military acquaintance of the Bensons, present at the crime scene.

Anna Platz

minor

Also known as Mrs. Anna Platz, Mrs. Platz, Platz, this Mrs. Platz

Housekeeper for Alvin Benson, who discovers the body.

Miss Hoffman

minor

Also known as Hoffman

A stenographer or secretary connected to the Benson household.

Phelps

minor

A minor character involved in the case.

Captain Carl Hagedorn

minor

Also known as Captain Hagedorn, Hagedorn

A sea captain and acquaintance of the Bensons.

Paula Banning

minor

Also known as Mrs. Paula Banning, Mrs. Banning

A woman connected to Pfyfe and the Benson circle.

Dinwiddie

minor

Also known as Assistant District Attorney Dinwiddie

An assistant district attorney working on the case.

Currie

minor

Vance's valet or servant.

Snitkin

minor

Also known as Mr. Snitkin

A minor character, possibly a police officer.

William M. Moran

minor

Also known as Inspector William M. Moran, Inspector Moran, Moran

A police inspector involved in the case.

Tracy

minor

Also known as Mr. Tracy

A witness or minor figure in the investigation.

Andy

minor

A minor character, possibly a servant or associate.

Dr. Doremus

minor

A doctor who examines the body or provides medical opinion.

Mr. Moriarty

minor

Also known as Moriarty

A minor character, possibly a lawyer or associate.

Francis Swacker

minor

Also known as Swacker

A reporter covering the murder case.

George Stitt

minor

Also known as George G. Stitt, Stitt, George, Mr. Stitt

A minor character, possibly a business associate.

Inspector O'Brien

minor

Also known as Chief Inspector O'Brien, Chief

A police inspector involved in the investigation.

Springer

minor

A minor character, possibly a police officer.

Ben Hanlon

minor

Also known as Ben, Mr. Ben Hanlon

A minor character, possibly a journalist or associate.

Burke

minor

A minor character, possibly a police officer.

Emery

minor

A minor character, possibly a servant or witness.

Sullivan

minor

Also known as Chief Assistant District Attorney Sullivan, Assistant District Attorney Sullivan

An assistant district attorney involved in the case.

Mr. Mason

minor

Also known as Mason

A minor character, possibly a lawyer.

Vollard

minor

A minor character, possibly an art dealer or associate.

Haig

minor

A minor character, possibly a historical reference or name-drop.

Higginbotham

minor

A minor character, possibly a lawyer or associate.

Miss Hawthorn

minor

Also known as a Miss Hawthorn, the née-Hawthorn

A minor character, possibly a relative or acquaintance.