Friday, November 18, 2011

A Bit of Business

In the theater world, a "bit of business" is an action adopted by an actor to help define his character or to attract attention to himself so that he can steal the scene. Sometimes, a bit of business might be called schtick. Can you identify which detectives are associated with these bits of business, habits or traits?

1. This sleuth occasionally screws a monocle to his eye, especially when perusing incunabula.

2. A member of the Monocot family is a particular passion of this man.

3. In the most recent, 11th, entry in a long-running series, the author reveals that his detective has a phobia about (of all things) theaters.

4. This Detective Sergeant is legendary for a quick temper and abysmal fashion sense.

5. Sometimes people think this Scotland Yard detective is talking to himself, when he's actually conversing with his companion. An honest mistake when you consider that the detective's companion is a dead man.

6. Despite his poor eating and exercise habits, this investigative journalist is apparently irresistible to women. Women in their 20s who prefer women, married women his own age, women in their 50s who have lived contentedly celibate lives for years; all these and more can't seem to resist this man.

7. This detective finds that long walks (not on the beach) help his thinking, especially if he's accompanied by his dog, Henri.

8. On the other hand, this fan favorite is not much for walking. He firmly believes in sitting, and that sitting goes better with a glass or three of Chateau Thames Embankment.

9. A drinker after my own heart, this PI imbibes gin martinis and objects to the vodka martini on principle. Among other quirks, the PI keeps two cellphones: one for incoming calls and the other for outgoing calls.

Speaking of drinking, there are many British detectives who like a pint and a dram. Can you identify each of these?

10. This sidekick does a lot of informal detection while hanging out in the Jack and Hammer, quaffing a pint of Theakston's Old Peculier.  (Yes, that's the way it's spelled.)

11. When he's on the wagon or working off a hangover, this detective grabs a can of Irn-Bru.

12. Once he was elevated to being the senior detective partner, this detective also graduated from drinking lemon or orange squash to a pint of bitter.

13. Not even an enforced stay at a convalescent home can keep the fat man from his pint.

14. After a long day investigating crime, this detective likes nothing more than to sit by his fire drinking single-malt Scotch and listening to jazz.

15. This irascible detective is known for his love of real ale, his vintage Jaguar and cryptic crosswords.

Head to the Comments and give us your answers.  Pose some quiz questions of your own, too, if you want.

28 comments:

  1. Oohh Sister what a way to spend a Friday! Forget about work and get those gray cells going. These clues are wonderful.

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  2. I agree----- it will be better than working a crossword puzzle.

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  3. A Friday puzzle! Thanks, Sister. You gave us good clues.

    Lord Peter Wimsey better be the answer to #1 because I don't know anyone else who wears a monocle and collects precious old manuscripts.

    #16. Cave76 reminds me of another sleuth who learned to like crossword puzzles even though his first experience with them made him dazed and confused, which is at odds with his famous intuition. Unlike #15 this sleuth is known for his mellow manner. Nikki

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  4. Holy smokes, I knew the first question and then had to pass until I got to the 6th one. I couldn't see what Mikael Blomkvist had going for him in the Stieg Larsson books, but I'm not a wman so what do I know? Good tgif, Sister Mary. Thanks! Kev

    I'll try to think of a question to add.

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  5. I knew the first one and the only one left I know is #15. #15 is Inspector Morse. In the early books his car is a Lancia. Do you know his first name? It's not inspector. It's Endeavor.

    #17. A former cop who likes the buzz she gets whiles searching a suspect's house. She sometimes cuts her own hair with a fingernail scissors.

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  6. Right, right and right! Nikki, you're right that #1 is Lord Peter Wimsey; Kev, you're right that #6 is Mikael Blomkvist; Anonymous, you're right that #15 is Inspector Morse.

    I don't know the answers to Anonymous's question or Nikki's. Hmm, will have to give these more thought. . .

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  7. 13. That fat man. Andy Dalziel?

    17. The self hair cutting detective is Kinsey Millhone.

    Another:

    18. This man disappointes his father when he became a policeman. Everywhere he turns, left or right, he findss corruption. His cases find him in Cuba and the Arctic.
    Sandy

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  8. No. 11 has to be John Rebus. I've never drunk an Irn-Bru so don't know how it tastes when he washes down aspirin with it.

    Everyone is offring their own question so heres mine. 19. This man is an ex-soldier who became a mercenary. Since he lives in the 17th century, he uses a sword instead of a gun. He's in 5 or 6 books.

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  9. I had to look up Monocot (a zucchini? Hercule Poirot). it's a flower and the largest Monocot group is orchids. Nero Wolfe. He and Dalziel should get together for a beer.

    #20. She's the first female private detective in her country. Her crime solving depends on her wisdom about people in addition to physical clues.
    (Trish)

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  10. Great bits of business! Number 10 is Melrose Plant, friend of Scotland Yard's Richard Jury. I'm not so sure about Number 18 but maybe Martin Cruz Smith's Arkady Renko because he finds corruption at home in the Soviet Union (left) and right (the USA) and his investigations have been conducted in the Bering Sea and in Cuba.

    I need to think about another clue to add. Kelly

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  11. More yesses. Number 13 is Dalziel, 11 is Rebus 2 is Nero Wolfe and 10 is Melrose Plant. Now I KNOW a lot of you know #8. Think about it.

    I love these new quiz questions even though I don't know the answers.

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  12. I love these new questions, too. I think I know Nikki's #16, Scotland Yard's Henry Tibbett, created by Patricia Moyes. In MURDER FANTASTICAL Tibbett meets the retired Bishop of Bugolaland, a cryptic crossword fanatic whose conversation consists mainly of clues.

    Question 21: Despite his red hair, this sleuth is lazy rather than hot tempered. He constantly faces the possible closure of his police station or being promoted out of the job he loves.

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  13. 8. Rumpole of the Old Bailey! That took head scratching.

    Ok,my question.

    22.Born in the 19th Century, he is fluent in several languages in addition to his native language, has the luck of his heritage and wears a corset. His squeamish reaction to his first corpse shows he was not a hardened investigator. Kev

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  14. The answer to question #21 is Hamish Macbeth. I agree with The Arkady Renko answer.

    Question #23 Who has a dog named Dog, and a friend named Bear?

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  15. #8 is rumpole of bailey.
    #13 could this be Charlie resnick??
    #5 I think - Ian Rutledge in charles todd's (from de) series.
    # 20 precious ramotswe from botswana

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  16. Yes, Kev and Nurse M, #8 is Rumpole. Yes, #5 is Rutledge. #13 isn't Resnick. Sandy correctly got #13 as Andy Dalziel.

    Kev, is #22 John Banville's Quirke?

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  17. Sister Mary, #22 is by all means not Quirke.Wrong continent.

    Did Nurse M mean Charlie Resnick for #14? John Rain likes jazz, women, single malt scotch and sitting in front of the fire but he's working the other side of the track as an assassin for hire in Japan. Kev

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  18. Kev, is #22 Boris Akunin's Erast Fandorin set in Czarist Russia?

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  19. #7 is Chief Inspector Gamache. He likes the company of Henri on a walk. Love Louise Penny's books.

    Della, you're right, #16 is another Henry, Henry Tibbett. Nikki

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  20. Kev, #14 isn't John Rain---at least that's not who I was thinking of.

    Nikki, you're right that #7 is Chief Inspector Armand Gamache.

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  21. 3. is Peter Lovesy's Diamond.

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  22. just had a brain storm, is 4. Barbara Havers in the Elizabeth George novels?

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  23. Yes,#4 is Havers, and #3 is Peter Lovesey's Diamond. Let's revisit to see where we are:

    1. Lord Peter Wimsey
    2. Nero Wolfe
    3. Peter Diamond
    4. Barbara Havers
    5. Ian Rutledge
    6. Mikael Blomkvist
    7. Armand Gamache
    8. Horace Rumpole
    9. ?
    10. Melrose Plant
    11. John Rebus
    12. ?
    13. Andy Dalziel
    14. ?
    15. Endeavor Morse

    Others' questions:
    16. Henry Tibbett
    17. Kinsey Millhone
    18. ?
    19.?
    20. Precious Ramotswe?
    21. Hamish Macbeth
    22. Erast Fandorin?
    23. ?

    I'll give this another day and then give the answers for any of my questions that might still be unanswered.

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  24. Is the 17th-century mercenary in #19 Captain Alatriste? Arturo Pérez-Reverte writes that series.

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  25. Да, Georgette, #22 is Fandorin.

    For #23, I know the answer is Walt Longmire.

    Sister Mary , we have Arkady Renko for #18 and Captain Alatriste for #19 pending.

    Kev

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  26. Thank, Kev. I'll post an update late today.

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  27. I just remembered #9. Tess Monaghan. #18 is Arkady Renko. You'e correct. Sandy

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  28. OK, here we go with the final tally:

    1. Lord Peter Wimsey
    2. Nero Wolfe
    3. Peter Diamond
    4. Barbara Havers
    5. Ian Rutledge
    6. Mikael Blomkvist
    7. Armand Gamache
    8. Horace Rumpole
    9. Tess Monahan
    10. Melrose Plant
    11. John Rebus
    12. Inspector Robbie Lewis (a little bit of a cheat, since he's a creature of TV, not books)
    13. Andy Dalziel
    14. Alan Banks (by Peter Robinson)
    15. Endeavor Morse

    Others' questions:
    16. Henry Tibbett
    17. Kinsey Millhone
    18. Arkady Renko
    19. Captain Alatriste?
    20. Precious Ramotswe?
    21. Hamish Macbeth
    22. Erast Fandorin?
    23. ?

    Great job, everybody. Thanks for making this fun.

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