Dick Tracy by Mike Curtis and Charles Ettinger for February 27, 2023

Marvel editor Archie Goodwin… not…

Nero Wolfe and Archie are supposed to be in New York, Tracy’s city is Chicago. As I recall the Archie & Nero Agency was always in tricky terms with the police. Grudgingly collaborating if need be but no loving feelings

He does have the Timothy Hutton look.

Somehow I always pictured Archie as more of a bruiser

To me recalls if vaguely Paolo Ferrari who played Archie in an Italian series next to Wolfe interpreted by Tino Buazzelli.

A real person, famous comics editor and writer…..

Archie Goodwin was one of greatest characters in detective fiction!

Tracy hadn’t changed a bit. He even wears that same tie! LOL!

Good morning™, everyone!

Tracy is typing up reports on the old manual typewriter. I also like the sharp thing with papers on it on the desk of the guy that give directions. I’m not sure what that is called, but I know they used to be common. “Detective Dick Tracy” on the door is more appropriate than “Major Crimes” that we saw yesterday, which was a bit of a retcon for that time period, as a couple of people pointed out yesterday.

For anyone not familiar with the Nero Wolfe books, Archie Goodwin was Wolfe’s assistant who did most of the investigating outside the Wolfe’s home office, since Wolfe rarely left home, especially not for work purposes.

“Although his job title is Wolfe’s secretary and chauffeur, Archie is effectively Wolfe’s partner in the detective business, and the stories often contrast his middle class streetwise persona with Wolfe’s aristocratic intelligence. In at least one of the novels, it is stated that Archie holds a private investigator’s license.” (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Archie_Goodwin_(character))

It is not a reference to the famous Archie Goodwin of DC and Marvel comics, who was born almost 3 years after the character of Archie Goodwin first appeared in a Nero Wolfe novel. The coinciding names resulted in an amusing story:

Ellery Queen’s Mystery Magazine "warned him he could not use Archie Goodwin as a pen name because it was a Rex Stout character in the Nero Wolfe books. According to Goodwin’s wife Anne T. Murphy, the magazine’s editors “then were so delighted when he wrote back to say that it was his real name that they used the anecdote as the introduction to the story, which ran in the July 1962 issue.” (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Archie_Goodwin_(comics))

The Archie character may well be modeled after Timothy Hutton who played him in the 2001 TV series that ran on A&E:

https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/716UsnntxYL.%5FAC%5FUL348%5FSR348,348%5F.jpg

There was a theory — which Rex Stout, a Baker Street Irregular, coyly never denied — that Nero Wolfe was the illegitimate son of Sherlock Holmes. Later, Stout caused a stir among his fellow Sherlockians with an essay purporting to prove Watson was actually a woman, and in fact a long-suffering Mrs. Holmes.

As a recommendation, with one of the best renderings of Wolfe and Archie, search for the Canadian 1982 radio series. It sticks very close to the original stories (unlike the Sidney Greenstreet radio series), and the voice acting is exceptionally good. You can find recordings in various places on the web. Each episode runs an hour, so it isn’t too rushed.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nero_Wolfe_(1982_radio_series)

Anyone know if Rex Stout used Mycroft Holmes (brother of Sherlock) as a model for Nero Wolfe?

Archie Goodwin was played by Timothy Hutton. Timothy is the son of Jim Hutton who played Ellery Queen, another famous detective .

“All in the Family” oops wrong Archie!

lovin’ this…one of my favorite series

Several actors have plated Goodwin but the most interesting to me was an unsold 1959 pilot for a TV series where Wolfe was played by actor Kurt Kasznar. The dapper Archie Goodwin was played by Captain Kirk himself, William Shatner. I believe the pilot is on YouTube.

Hey, where’s Dilbert?

Mike moved quickly on this one. I had the impression it would be maybe a month or more away!

“Hey, pal. I went down the corridor, like you said. I read the sign on the door and waited fifteen minutes. News for you. There’re no mens in that room!”

Not, how imagined Archie to look. So used to the Lee Horsey, Tim Hutton’s portraying him. But looking at the thumbnails at IMDB, even Lionel Stadler (Max, Hart to Hart.) has portrayed Nero Wolfe’s favorite legman.

By “reminiscing,” does this mean the story that begins today occurred in the past?

D.T rap-tappin’ on an “old” style typewriter……works for me about now……..

MOVIE QUOTE—

“C’mon,nephew,let’s powder our noses”

Alan Ladd about to beat up Mario Lopez in the washroom

HELL ON FRISCO BAY—1956

1-COPPER: Third door on the right. ARCHIE: Uh…your right or mine? And you’re pointing LEFT. I’m confused. Could you just call him and tell him to sing or something? I’ll find him.

2-DT: I’M IN HERE. I’M IN HERE. I’M IN HERE. I’M IN HERE. I’M IN HERE.

3-ARCHIE: Thanks for the assist. I need your help, Tracy. I’m in town for a few days and as a ladies man, I need to know where the WHAM BAM THANK YOU MA’AM bars are. I read on the bathroom wall at the train station that you’d know.

DT: Yeah, I wrote those “FOR A GOOD TIME, CONTACT DICK TRACY” messages in a lot of restrooms because I wanted to help promote the good clean fun that Tracyville offers to people new to town. You wouldn’t believe the number of women AND MEN who misconstrued that message! I’m glad that you at least, got it right. Lemme check my City Directory…hmmm. Nothing for WHAM BAM THANK YOU MA’AM bars…

LIZ – Off Panel: I THINK I CAN HELP!

The legman takes all the lumps and the guy sitting on his orchid rear end takes all the credit.

That was what galled me about the 1980’s-90’s PErrY MASON movies—-William Katt got beat up 3 or 4 times per two hours and ran his legs off chasing accomplices down.But who gets the credit.Chairbound Mason.

Looks more like James Stewart to me.

And coming home from fishing,Pat Patton discovers a beautiful amnesiac in a bridal gown…..

“Ohhhhhh, WOWWWWWWW-zers, all you Highly Hyper Hipsters and Super-Swell Swingers out there in Terrific Tracy Town! Looks like our Daring, Dynamic Detective is taking a stroll down the Righteous Road to Reminiscing today — and I, your Dashingly Delightful Deejay, JPuzzle The Whiz, will commence with some Amazingly Awesome Appropriate ‘mood music’ to play on the Big, Bold BMBG turntable!”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tz_RzE52Dnw

Dean makes a valid point.

https://twitter.com/RealDeanCain/status/1630058653272391680?cn=ZmxleGlibGVfcmVjcw%3D%3D&refsrc=email

There’s some wisecracks going around about Madonna’s face lift.Maybe she wanted to be an ACTUAL Dick Tracy villain.

There is a series of fantasy detective books, Garrett P. I. that has a number of pastiche elements from the Nero Wolfe stories.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Garrett_P.I.

And so Tracy recalls how once upon a time, one day, a chap calling himself Archie Goodwin dropped in at the police HQ.

Nice work by Shelley, not least the Period Piece details like the spindle, the manual typewriter, and the narrow lapels on suit jackets (though Archie’s broad-brimmed hat seems anomalous; a narrow-brimmed porkpie might be more period-appropriate, I think). I’m not sure who if any of the actors who have portrayed Archie Goodwin Shelley’s version resembles, but it looks good to me, though he could be perhaps a bit beefier….

Nero Wolfe was my late father’s absolute favorite! I thank you for this storyline and hope he’s reading this wherever he is.

P.S. Totally Useless Trivia: William Shatner played Goodwin opposite Kurt Kasznar’s Wolfe in an unsold TV pilot in 1959.

Nero and Archie appeared in a relatively brief comic strip back in the 1950s, drawn by Mike Roy. His Archie resembled a blend of Darren McGavin and Kurt Russell.