OTHER NAMED CHARACTERS

Agnes (one of Kathie and Madge’s lovebirds)—Named for Agnes Moorehead. (See Madge Rapf.)

Jules Bezzerides, the numismatist—A combination of Jules Dassin and A. I. Bezzerides, the director and writer of Thieves’ Highway, a noir classic.

Victor Bianco—A combination of Victor Mature and Nick Bianco, the character Mature plays in the noir classic Kiss of Death.

Tommy Biddle—A combination of Tommy Udo and Ray Biddle, the names of the two most famous noir characters played by Richard Widmark.

Phyllis and Walter Dietrichson—Named for Phyllis Dietrichson (played by Barbara Stanwyck), the femme fatale, and Walter Neff (Fred MacMurray) her target, in Double Indemnity.

Johnny Dollar—The insurance investigator of the long-running radio series Yours Truly, Johnny Dollar, who dealt frequently with noiresque dilemmas. The title role was originated by Dick Powell and played at one time or another by Charkes Russell, Edmond O’Brien, John Lund, Bob Bailey Bob Readick, and Mandel Kramer.

Mike Figlia—The bad guy, played by Lee J. Cobb, in Thieves’ Highway.

Nick Garcos—The central character, played by Richard Conte, in Thieves’ Highway.

Virginia Hill—Not a Noir(ish) invention. Girlfriend of Bugsy Siegel (and, perhaps, other Hollywood luminaries) at whose mansion Siegel was staying when he was killed. She left abruptly for Paris about ten days before the shooting.

Martha Ivers—The title character, played by Barbara Stanwyck, of the semi-noir The Strange Love of Martha Ivers.

Jacques (the clerk at the Hotel Niagara)—Named for Jacques Tourneur, director of the noir classic Out of the Past.

Jane (one of Kathie and Madge’s lovebirds)—Named for Jane Greer. (See Kathie Moffat.)

Fred Keyes and Bart Neff—Combinations of Barton Keyes (played by Edward G. Robinson), the chief insurance investigator; Walter Neff, Keyes’s friend and coworker; and Fred MacMurray, who plays Neff in Double Indemnity.

Peter Lang—A combination of Fritz Lang and Peter Lorre, director of and supporting player in various noir films. (See also Fritz Lorre.)

Mark McPherson—The detective, played by Dana Andrews, in the noir classic Laura.

Kathie Moffat—The femme fatale, played by Jane Greer, of Out of the Past.

Rip Murdock and Johnny Drake—The best friends of the noir classic Dead Reckoning.

Jane Palmer—The leading lady/femme fatale, played by Lizabeth Scott, of Too Late for Tears (also known as Killer Bait).

Madge Rapf—Both the femme fatale and the antithesis of the femme fatale, played by Agnes Moorehead, in Dark Passage.

Richard G. Robinson—A combination of Richard Widmark and Edward G. Robinson, both stars of various noirs of the era.

Benjamin “Bugsy” Siegel—Not a Noir(ish) invention but a real person who was a prominent Vegas/West Coast mob figure. He was shot at nine times (either two or five shots hit him, depending on which report you believe) and died in the home of his absent girlfriend, Virginia Hill, on June 20, 1947. The murder has never been solved.

Dixon Steele—The character played by Humphrey Bogart in In a Lonely Place, considered by many a noir film.

Whit Sterling—The villain, played by Kirk Douglas, of Out of the Past.

Judy Taylor—The “girl” reporter, played by Marjorie Weaver, who helps Michael Shayne clear an innocent woman in Just Off Broadway.

Stoker Thompson—Robert Ryan’s over-the-hill boxer in Robert Wise’s The Set-Up, a film that looks like noir but lacks key elements of the genre.

Sophie Tucker—Not a Noir(ish) invention but a well-known singer of the era, known as the Last of the Red Hot Mamas.

Nicholas Udo—A combination of Nicholas Ray and Tommy Udo, the director of various noir films and the villain of the noir classic Kiss of Death.

Edward Widmark—A combination of Edward G. Robinson and Richard Widmark, both stars of various noirs of the era.

Samuel Wilder—The real name of Billy Wilder, the well-known director/co-screenwriter of Double Indemnity.

Ruth Wonderly—The femme fatale of the original 1931 film version of The Maltese Falcon.