# Alvin Benson — The Benson Murder Case character guide

> Alvin Benson in The Benson Murder Case by S. S. Van Dine.

**Role:** major

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

**First appearance:** 0006-ii-at-the-scene-of-the-crime

## Snapshot

A wealthy, womanizing stockbroker whose charm and cruelty made him both a social fixture and a target, found shot in his own home.

## Who they are

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.

## Relationships

### [Philo Vance](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_benson_murder_case_se/characters/philo_vance)

_rivalry_

Alvin Benson and Philo Vance are intellectual adversaries, with Benson's murder being the central mystery that Vance is determined to unravel.

### [John Markham](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_benson_murder_case_se/characters/john_markham)

_rivalry_

Alvin Benson, a known blackmailer and social manipulator, is the victim whose death Markham investigates, creating an adversarial posthumous relationship.

### [Captain Philip Leacock](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_benson_murder_case_se/characters/captain_philip_leacock)

_rivalry_

Alvin Benson's criminal activities put him in direct conflict with Captain Leacock, who is tasked with investigating his murder.

### [Major Anthony Benson](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_benson_murder_case_se/characters/major_anthony_benson)

_family_

Alvin and Anthony Benson are brothers, though their relationship is strained by Alvin's scandalous lifestyle and Anthony's rigid military code.

### [Leander Pfyfe](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_benson_murder_case_se/characters/leander_pfyfe)

_psychological_

Alvin Benson blackmailed Leander Pfyfe, creating a relationship of victim and manipulator that ultimately leads to murder.

### [Ernest Heath](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_benson_murder_case_se/characters/ernest_heath)

_rivalry_

Alvin Benson's criminal record and abrasive personality put him at odds with Sergeant Heath, who is investigating his murder.

### [Muriel St. Clair](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_benson_murder_case_se/characters/muriel_st_clair)

_romantic_

Alvin Benson was romantically pursuing Muriel St. Clair, though she was repulsed by his advances and his blackmailing nature.

### [Anna Platz](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_benson_murder_case_se/characters/anna_platz)

_professional_

Anna Platz is Alvin Benson's housekeeper, who endures his abusive treatment and becomes a key witness after his death.

### [Philo Vance](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_benson_murder_case_se/characters/philo_vance)

_rivalry_

Alvin Benson and Philo Vance are intellectual adversaries, with Benson's murder being the central mystery that Vance is determined to unravel.

### [John Markham](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_benson_murder_case_se/characters/john_markham)

_rivalry_

Alvin Benson, a known blackmailer and social manipulator, is the victim whose death Markham investigates, creating an adversarial posthumous relationship.

### [Ernest Heath](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_benson_murder_case_se/characters/ernest_heath)

_rivalry_

Alvin Benson's criminal record and abrasive personality put him at odds with Sergeant Heath, who is investigating his murder.

### [Captain Philip Leacock](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_benson_murder_case_se/characters/captain_philip_leacock)

_rivalry_

Alvin Benson's criminal activities put him in direct conflict with Captain Leacock, who is tasked with investigating his murder.

## In the story

### [Characters of the Book](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_benson_murder_case_se/chapters/characters-of-the-book)

Well-known Wall Street broker and man-about-town, who was mysteriously murdered in his home.

### [The Benson Murder Case](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_benson_murder_case_se/chapters/the-benson-murder-case)

The murder victim, whose body is discovered in his home, setting the plot in motion.

### [VI: Vance Offers an Opinion](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_benson_murder_case_se/chapters/vi-vance-offers-an-opinion)

The murder victim; his death is the subject of the investigation discussed.

### [XXIII: Checking an Alibi](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_benson_murder_case_se/chapters/xxiii-checking-an-alibi)

The murder victim; his death is referenced as the reason for the investigation and the Major's potential motive.

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_benson_murder_case_se/characters/alvin_benson
- Book: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_benson_murder_case_se
- All characters: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_benson_murder_case_se/characters