Nick Carter (literary character)
Encyclopedia
Nick Carter is a fictional character who began as a pulp fiction
private detective and has appeared in a variety of formats over more than a century.
entitled The Old Detective's Pupil; or, The Mysterious Crime of Madison Square on 18 September 1886. This novel was written by John R. Coryell from a story by Ormond G. Smith, the son of one of the founders of Street & Smith
.
In 1915, Nick Carter Weekly became Detective Story Magazine
. In the 1930s, due to the success of The Shadow
and Doc Savage
, Street & Smith revised Nick Carter as a hero pulp
that ran from 1933 to 1936. Novels featuring Carter continued to appear through the 1950s, by which time there was also a popular radio show, Nick Carter, Master Detective
, which aired on the Mutual Broadcasting System
network from 1943 to 1955
Following the success of the James Bond
series in the 1960s, the character was updated for a long-running series of novels featuring the adventures of secret agent
Nick Carter, aka the Killmaster. The first book, Run Spy Run, appeared in 1964 and more than 260 Nick Carter-Killmaster
adventures were published up until 1990. (Two additional books have been erroneously listed as Killmaster novels by some sources: Meteor Eject!, a memoir by an RAF
pilot named Nick Carter published in 2000, and a 2005 release entitled Brotherhood which is an autobiography written by singer Nick Carter of the Backstreet Boys
.) The 100th Killmaster novel (appropriately entitled Nick Carter 100) contained an essay on the 1890s version and included a short story featuring the character. It marked one of the few times the Killmaster series acknowledged its historical roots.
None of the Nick Carter series of books carried author credits, although it is known that several of the earliest volumes were written by Michael Avallone
, while Valerie Moolman and NYT bestselling author Gayle Lynds
wrote others, making this the first series of its kind to be (significantly) written by women. Bill Crider is another author identified with Nick Carter.
The Nick Carter name was treated as a pseudonym, and many of the volumes were written in first person
.
engaged Victorin-Hippolyte Jasset
to make a serial film based on the Nick Carter novels which were then being published in France by the German publisher Eichler. Nick Carter, le roi des détectives
, with Pierre Bressol in the title-role, was released in six episodes in late 1908, and enjoyed considerable success. Further adaptations followed with Nouveaux aventures de Nick Carter in 1909, and the character was revived for a confrontation with a master-criminal in Zigomar contre Nick Carter in 1912.
The actor Walter Pidgeon
portrayed the detective Nick Carter in a trilogy of films released by the Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
company. Though MGM purchased the rights to a large number of Nick Carter stories, the films used original screenplays.
American
actor Eddie Constantine
played the title roles in the French
-made spy films Nick Carter va tout casser (1964) and Nick Carter et le trèfle rouge (1965). In one curiously circular and self-referential scene, Constantine as Carter enters a house where he finds a large collection of Nick Carter pulp magazines and other Nick Carter memorabilia. Both films are unconnected to the Killmaster book series.
In 1972, the actor Robert Conrad
made a television pilot set in the Victorian era
The Adventures of Nick Carter that was shown as a made for television movie.
The Czechoslovakian movie Dinner for Adele
(1977) is a parody inspired by Nick Carter's pulp magazine adventures. It features "America's most famous detective" visiting Prague at the beginning of the 20th Century and solving a case involving a dangerous carnivorous plant (the Adele of the title). The Slovakian actor Michal Dočolomanský
played Nick Carter.
in the title role, began April 11, 1943, on Mutual, continuing in many different timeslots for well over a decade. Jock MacGregor was the producer-director of scripts by Alfred Bester
, Milton J. Kramer, David Kogan and others. Background music was supplied by organists Hank Sylvern, Lew White and George Wright.
Patsy Bowen, Nick's assistant, was portrayed by Helen Choate until mid-1946 and then Charlotte Manson stepped into the role. Nick and Patsy's friend was reporter Scubby Wilson (John Kane). Nick's contact at the police department was Sgt. Mathison (Ed Latimer). The supporting cast included Raymond Edward Johnson
, Bill Johnstone and Bryna Raeburn. Michael Fitzmaurice
was the program's announcer. The series ended on September 25, 1955.
Chick Carter, Boy Detective was a serial adventure that aired weekday afternoons on Mutual. Chick Carter, the adopted son of Nick Carter, was played by Bill Lipton (1943–44) and Leon Janney (1944–45). The series aired from July 5, 1943 to July 6, 1945.
Pulp magazine
Pulp magazines , also collectively known as pulp fiction, refers to inexpensive fiction magazines published from 1896 through the 1950s. The typical pulp magazine was seven inches wide by ten inches high, half an inch thick, and 128 pages long...
private detective and has appeared in a variety of formats over more than a century.
Literary history
Nick Carter first appeared in a dime novelDime novel
Dime novel, though it has a specific meaning, has also become a catch-all term for several different forms of late 19th-century and early 20th-century U.S...
entitled The Old Detective's Pupil; or, The Mysterious Crime of Madison Square on 18 September 1886. This novel was written by John R. Coryell from a story by Ormond G. Smith, the son of one of the founders of Street & Smith
Street & Smith
Street & Smith or Street & Smith Publications, Inc. was a New York City publisher specializing in inexpensive paperbacks and magazines referred to as pulp fiction and dime novels. They also published comic books and sporting yearbooks...
.
In 1915, Nick Carter Weekly became Detective Story Magazine
Detective Story Magazine
Detective Story Magazine was an American magazine published by Street & Smith from October 15, 1915 to Summer, 1949 . The first pulp magazine devoted to detective fiction, it consisted of short stories and serials....
. In the 1930s, due to the success of The Shadow
The Shadow
The Shadow is a collection of serialized dramas, originally in pulp magazines, then on 1930s radio and then in a wide variety of media, that follow the exploits of the title character, a crime-fighting vigilante in the pulps, which carried over to the airwaves as a "wealthy, young man about town"...
and Doc Savage
Doc Savage
Doc Savage is a fictional character originally published in American pulp magazines during the 1930s and 1940s. He was created by publisher Henry W. Ralston and editor John L...
, Street & Smith revised Nick Carter as a hero pulp
Pulp magazine
Pulp magazines , also collectively known as pulp fiction, refers to inexpensive fiction magazines published from 1896 through the 1950s. The typical pulp magazine was seven inches wide by ten inches high, half an inch thick, and 128 pages long...
that ran from 1933 to 1936. Novels featuring Carter continued to appear through the 1950s, by which time there was also a popular radio show, Nick Carter, Master Detective
Nick Carter, Master Detective
Nick Carter, Master Detective was a Mutual radio crime drama based on tales of the famed detective from Street & Smith's dime novels and pulp magazines. Nick Carter first came to radio as The Return of Nick Carter, a reference to the character's pulp origins, but the title was soon changed to Nick...
, which aired on the Mutual Broadcasting System
Mutual Broadcasting System
The Mutual Broadcasting System was an American radio network, in operation from 1934 to 1999. In the golden age of U.S. radio drama, MBS was best known as the original network home of The Lone Ranger and The Adventures of Superman and as the long-time radio residence of The Shadow...
network from 1943 to 1955
Following the success of the James Bond
James Bond
James Bond, code name 007, is a fictional character created in 1953 by writer Ian Fleming, who featured him in twelve novels and two short story collections. There have been a six other authors who wrote authorised Bond novels or novelizations after Fleming's death in 1964: Kingsley Amis,...
series in the 1960s, the character was updated for a long-running series of novels featuring the adventures of secret agent
Secret Agent
Secret Agent is a British film directed by Alfred Hitchcock, loosely based on two stories in Ashenden: Or the British Agent by W. Somerset Maugham. The film starred John Gielgud, Peter Lorre, Madeleine Carroll, and Robert Young...
Nick Carter, aka the Killmaster. The first book, Run Spy Run, appeared in 1964 and more than 260 Nick Carter-Killmaster
Nick Carter-Killmaster
Nick Carter-Killmaster is a series of spy adventures published from 1964 until the late 1990s, first by Award Books, then by Ace Books, and finally by Jove Books. At least 261 novels were published....
adventures were published up until 1990. (Two additional books have been erroneously listed as Killmaster novels by some sources: Meteor Eject!, a memoir by an RAF
Royal Air Force
The Royal Air Force is the aerial warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Formed on 1 April 1918, it is the oldest independent air force in the world...
pilot named Nick Carter published in 2000, and a 2005 release entitled Brotherhood which is an autobiography written by singer Nick Carter of the Backstreet Boys
Backstreet Boys
The Backstreet Boys are an American vocal group, formed in Orlando, Florida in 1993. The band originally consisted of A. J. McLean, Howie Dorough, Brian Littrell, Nick Carter and Kevin Richardson. They rose to fame with their debut international album, Backstreet Boys...
.) The 100th Killmaster novel (appropriately entitled Nick Carter 100) contained an essay on the 1890s version and included a short story featuring the character. It marked one of the few times the Killmaster series acknowledged its historical roots.
None of the Nick Carter series of books carried author credits, although it is known that several of the earliest volumes were written by Michael Avallone
Michael Avallone
Michael Avallone was a prolific American author of mystery and secret agent fiction, as well as many novels based upon various television series and films...
, while Valerie Moolman and NYT bestselling author Gayle Lynds
Gayle Lynds
Gayle Lynds is an American author. A member of the U.S. Association for Intelligence Officers, she is known for being a bestselling novelist in the male-dominated genre of spy fiction or spy thrillers...
wrote others, making this the first series of its kind to be (significantly) written by women. Bill Crider is another author identified with Nick Carter.
The Nick Carter name was treated as a pseudonym, and many of the volumes were written in first person
First-person narrative
First-person point of view is a narrative mode where a story is narrated by one character at a time, speaking for and about themselves. First-person narrative may be singular, plural or multiple as well as being an authoritative, reliable or deceptive "voice" and represents point of view in the...
.
Authors
- John R. Coryell (1848–1924)
- Frederick Van Rensselaer DeyFrederick Van Rensselaer DeyFrederick Van Rensselaer Dey was an American dime novelist and pulp fiction writer.-Biography:He was born on February 10, 1861 in Watkins Glen, New York to David Peter Dey and Emma Brewster Sayre. He attended the Havana Academy, and later graduated from the Columbia Law School. He practiced law...
(1861–1922), who took his own life. - Thomas C. Harbaugh (1849–1924), who died penniless in the Miami County Home in Ohio.
- Eugene T. SawyerEugene T. SawyerEugene Taylor Sawyer was a newspaper editor and author of dime novels, particularly for the Nick Carter series. In an interview given in 1902, he confessed to having written over 75 examples of that genre, most anonymously...
(1847–1924) - Richard Edward Wormser (1908-1977), who claimed to have written 17 Carter magazine stories published in 1932-33.
Films
In 1908 the French film company ÉclairEclair (camera)
Éclair was a film production, film laboratory and movie camera manufacturing company established in Épinay-sur-Seine, France by Charles Jourjon in 1907....
engaged Victorin-Hippolyte Jasset
Victorin-Hippolyte Jasset
Victorin-Hippolyte Jasset was an early film pioneer in France, active between the years 1905 and 1913. He worked on many genres of film, but was particularly associated with the development of detective or crime serials, such as the Nick Carter and Zigomar series.-Career:Victorin Jasset was born...
to make a serial film based on the Nick Carter novels which were then being published in France by the German publisher Eichler. Nick Carter, le roi des détectives
Nick Carter, le roi des détectives
Nick Carter, le roi des détectives is a French silent serial film based on the popular American novels featuring the master-detective Nick Carter. It was directed by Victorin-Hippolyte Jasset for the Éclair company...
, with Pierre Bressol in the title-role, was released in six episodes in late 1908, and enjoyed considerable success. Further adaptations followed with Nouveaux aventures de Nick Carter in 1909, and the character was revived for a confrontation with a master-criminal in Zigomar contre Nick Carter in 1912.
The actor Walter Pidgeon
Walter Pidgeon
Walter Davis Pidgeon was a Canadian actor, who starred in many motion pictures, including Mrs...
portrayed the detective Nick Carter in a trilogy of films released by the Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Inc. is an American media company, involved primarily in the production and distribution of films and television programs. MGM was founded in 1924 when the entertainment entrepreneur Marcus Loew gained control of Metro Pictures, Goldwyn Pictures Corporation and Louis B. Mayer...
company. Though MGM purchased the rights to a large number of Nick Carter stories, the films used original screenplays.
- Nick Carter, Master Detective (1939)
- Sky Murder (1940)
- Phantom Raiders (1940)
- Chick Carter, DetectiveChick Carter, DetectiveChick Carter, Detective is a 1946 Columbia film serial. Columbia could not afford the rights to produce a Nick Carter serial so they made Chick Carter, Detective about his son instead. This was based on the radio series Chick Carter, Boy Detective...
, a 1946 Columbia serialSerial (film)Serials, more specifically known as Movie serials, Film serials or Chapter plays, were short subjects originally shown in theaters in conjunction with a feature film. They were related to pulp magazine serialized fiction...
. Columbia could not afford the rights to produce a Nick Carter serial, so they instead made Chick Carter, Detective about his son.
American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
actor Eddie Constantine
Eddie Constantine
Eddie Constantine was an American-born French actor and singer who spent his career working in Europe....
played the title roles in the French
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
-made spy films Nick Carter va tout casser (1964) and Nick Carter et le trèfle rouge (1965). In one curiously circular and self-referential scene, Constantine as Carter enters a house where he finds a large collection of Nick Carter pulp magazines and other Nick Carter memorabilia. Both films are unconnected to the Killmaster book series.
In 1972, the actor Robert Conrad
Robert Conrad
Robert Conrad is an American actor. He is best known for his role in the 1965 CBS television series The Wild Wild West, in which he played the sophisticated Secret Service agent James T. West, and his portrayal of World War II ace Pappy Boyington in the television series Baa Baa Black Sheep...
made a television pilot set in the Victorian era
Victorian era
The Victorian era of British history was the period of Queen Victoria's reign from 20 June 1837 until her death on 22 January 1901. It was a long period of peace, prosperity, refined sensibilities and national self-confidence...
The Adventures of Nick Carter that was shown as a made for television movie.
The Czechoslovakian movie Dinner for Adele
Dinner for Adele
Dinner for Adele is a 1977 Czechoslovak comedy detective film directed by Oldřich Lipský. Alternative titles were Adele Hasn't Had Her Dinner Yet, Nick Carter in Prague and Adele Hasn't Had Her Supper Yet.-Plot:...
(1977) is a parody inspired by Nick Carter's pulp magazine adventures. It features "America's most famous detective" visiting Prague at the beginning of the 20th Century and solving a case involving a dangerous carnivorous plant (the Adele of the title). The Slovakian actor Michal Dočolomanský
Michal Dočolomanský
Michal Dočolomanský was a Slovak actor. He performed in more than forty films between 1962 and 2007.-Selected filmography:- External links :...
played Nick Carter.
Radio
Nick Carter first came to radio as The Return of Nick Carter. Then Nick Carter, Master Detective, with Lon ClarkLon Clark
Lon Clark was a New York actor of stage and radio.As a youth in Minnesota, Clark studied at the MacPhail Center for Music in Minneapolis. He began as a musician and actor in traveling tent shows, followed by a season with the Cincinnati Summer Opera...
in the title role, began April 11, 1943, on Mutual, continuing in many different timeslots for well over a decade. Jock MacGregor was the producer-director of scripts by Alfred Bester
Alfred Bester
Alfred Bester was an American science fiction author, TV and radio scriptwriter, magazine editor and scripter for comic strips and comic books...
, Milton J. Kramer, David Kogan and others. Background music was supplied by organists Hank Sylvern, Lew White and George Wright.
Patsy Bowen, Nick's assistant, was portrayed by Helen Choate until mid-1946 and then Charlotte Manson stepped into the role. Nick and Patsy's friend was reporter Scubby Wilson (John Kane). Nick's contact at the police department was Sgt. Mathison (Ed Latimer). The supporting cast included Raymond Edward Johnson
Raymond Edward Johnson
Raymond Edward Johnson was an American radio and stage actor best remembered for his work on Inner Sanctum Mysteries....
, Bill Johnstone and Bryna Raeburn. Michael Fitzmaurice
Michael Fitzmaurice
Michael Fitzmaurice was a radio actor, best known for his portrayal of Superman.Born in Chicago, the baritone-voiced Fitzmaurice was heard often on radio dramas during the 1940s as both announcer and actor. From 1944 to 1947, he was the host of Mutual's Quiz of Two Cities...
was the program's announcer. The series ended on September 25, 1955.
Chick Carter, Boy Detective was a serial adventure that aired weekday afternoons on Mutual. Chick Carter, the adopted son of Nick Carter, was played by Bill Lipton (1943–44) and Leon Janney (1944–45). The series aired from July 5, 1943 to July 6, 1945.