JAMES HADLEY CHASE- A Tribute by a Die Hard Fan
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Characters and Locales |
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 Vic
Malloy, Universal Services and Orchid City Vic Malloy and company were introduced in the novel, You Are Lonely When You are Dead (1949) , followed by Figure It Out For Yourself (1950) and Lay Her Among The Lilies (1950). His Universal Services were based in the fictional Orchid City, adjoining the Los Angeles - San Francisco Highway. His secretary, Paula Bensinger, featured in all three novels. Malloy's character was depicted as sexually uptight, honest, if somewhat flippant. A map of the imaginary Orchid City, drawn by Chase himself, was also published in the novel, Figure It Out For Yourself |
 Agent Corridon
Corridon was first introduced in Mallory (1950), followed by Why Pick On Me? (1951). Against a backdrop of WW-II, the aftermath of which, had many British secret service agents returning to civilian life, Corridon was depicted as morally upright, but financially unsound...a modern, post-WW-II Robin Hood. However, the character was fascinating in many respects, and Chase fans can only regret that he did not appear in more of Chase's subsequent novels. |
Micklem first appeared in Mission to Venice (1954), as an American millionaire, settled in London. Accompanied by his secretary, Marian Rigby, a pompous butler, Cherry and driver, Henry. The group appeared again in Mission to Siena (1955). The hangover of WW - II was evident in both novels. |
Frank Terrell, Tom Lepski and
Co. in Paradise City
Frank Terrell, Captain of Paradise City Police, first appeared in The Soft Centre (1964). His team consisted of Sgt. Joe Biegler, Lt. Fred Hess (Homicide), Detectives Tom Lepski and Carl Jacobi and Desk Sergeant Charlie Tanner (whose job consisted of supplying endless cartons of coffee to the men in the detectives' room). Paradise City was a fictional location on the Florida coast of the US, (apparently near Miami), developed by Chase, described as a millionaires' playground. The inhabitants were rich and had nothing particular to do, except lounge about in the beaches or gamble in the casinos. However, Paradise City also had a seedy side - its waterfront, teeming with shabby and shady characters - a hotbed of poverty, crime, conspiracies and criminal activities. Adjoining Paradise City was Luceville, a collection of shabby run-down bungalows, inhabited by the working class of Paradise City. Paradise City and its police force were perhaps the most enduring and endearing of Chase's fictional locales and characters, having appeared several plots over a period of twenty years, till his last novel, Hit Them Where It Hurts (1984). Some of the novels included, Well Now My Pretty, There's a Hippy on the Highway, Believed Violent, Want to Stay Alive??, You're Dead Without Money, You Must Be Kidding, Hand Me a Fig Leaf, Have A Nice Night, and Not My Thing .
The characters of Paradise City evolved over the years, and Lepski and Jacobi even got promoted. Lepski's character was also developed, and was evidently a favorite of Chase. An element of comedy was also introduced by Chase, against the backdrop of sexual violence and murder, depicted in the main plot. Lepski's arguments with his wife, Carol (a cousin of Terrell's wife), as well as his antics, gave humorous relief in many gory novels. Lepski was also the main protagonist in novels like You Must Be Kidding and Try This One For Size
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The Spanish Bay Hotel, and its owner, Jean Dulac, (a tall handsome, impeccable Frenchman), also featured in many Paradise City-based novels, including Have A Nice Night, in which the attempted robbery at the Hotel was the main theme. |
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Steve Harmas and Maddux |
Herman Radnitz and Lu Silk
 The sinister Radnitz first featured in This is For Real (1965), as a billionaire, having a gory past, and stakes in shady international deals involving high finance. Actually Radnitz was Henrich Kunzli, who, during WW II, had contracts with the Nazi and Japanese governments, for the manufacture of soap, fertilizers and gun powder, from the teeth and bones of millions of murdered POWs in concentration camps. In This is For Real, Radnitz hires Mark Girland (see below), ex-CIA agent, to retrieve the papers incriminating him with the Nazis. However, the maverick Girland hands over the papers to the CIA, based at Paris. It is not sure why Radnitz could not be nabbed, even after his real identity was revealed, and he was to appear in several subsequent novels of Chase, in his most sinister and blood-thirsty roles, especially in Believed Violent (1968), You Are Dead Without Money etc. Believed Violent also saw the emergence of Lu Silk, a one-eyed professional assassin in Radnitz' payroll. Silk finally met his end in Consider Yourself Dead (1978). |
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Girland was first introduced by Chase in This is For Real (1965), as an impoverished, ex-CIA agent, living in Paris, in an one-roomed apartment in the Rue de Suisses. He was reported to be darkly handsome, astute, a womanizer and not above swindling people for large sums of money, including his own ex-boss, John Dorey of the CIA, stationed at Paris. Girland subsequently appeared in You Have Yourself a Deal (1966), Have This One On Me (1967) and The Whiff of Money (1969). Girland's characterization improved steadily with each successive novel, as did his financial stature. This, he achieved, by first swindling Radnitz (see above) and then Dorey. In his last novel, The Whiff of Money, Girland was his usual delightful self, and the novel had a rather happy, romantic ending. In fact, Girland normally managed to seduce two women per novel, and his shenanigans quite endeared him to Chase fans. A pity that he did not appear in more of Chase's novels. A trilogy, Meet Mark Girland, was subsequently published in 1977, containing This is For Real, You Have Yourself a Deal and Have This One On Me |
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