NANCY DREW
Real Name
: Nancy DrewFirst Appearance:
(literary) "Secret of the Old Clock" by Carolyn Keene (1930), (modern)
The Hardy Boys/Nancy Drew
Series, Episode “Mystery of the Old Lighthouse” (1977)
History: Nancy Drew is native of the port town of River Heights, Ohio,
where she lives her father, Carson Drew. Her mother passed away when she was ten
years old, but in some accounts, she is said to be three years old when her
mother died. She was raised by her father’s housekeeper, Hannah Gruen, and
although she had an upper-class up-bringing, when she became 18-years-old, she
went to work for her father as an assistant in his law firm. However, office
work failed to keep her attention and through the Thirties and the Early
Forties, she became an amateur sleuth spending her time solving mysteries, some
of which she stumbled upon and some of which began as cases belonging to her
father. She was often joined and assisted in her detective work by her two
closest friends, Bess Marvin and George Fayne. Her boyfriend, Ned Nickerson, a
college student at nearby Emerson College, tried to stop her from getting into
detective work, but more often found himself unwillingly helping her in her
adventures.
In the course of her adventures, Nancy often traveled to other countries, such as Nairobi, Austria, Japan, Costa Rica and Romania where she met and encountered Frank and Joe Hardy, two other teen detectives. Nancy and Frank had a brief romantic relationship, but nothing became of it. Much of their adventures were later serialized in pulp fiction by writer Edward Stratemeyer. In looking for positive role models to share with young adults, Stratemeyer heard of Nancy through Carolyn Keene, one of her former teachers, and edited and published the books under Keene’s name. The books became quite successful, and were published over several years with multiple editions with Nancy’s share of the proceeds for the use of her name going to charity. Over the years, tales of her exploits and fictionalized adventures have inspired several young girls, including Daphne Blake. Her later activities are unrevealed.
Abilities: Nancy Drew is a particularly gifted and athletic girl with remarkable deductive skills and powers of persuasion. She is a student of psychology and had skills as a dancer, painter, seamstress, gourmet chef and motor boat pilot. As a capable athlete, she is a trained swimmer and horseback rider also capable of playing tennis, golf and bridge. She can also speak French and administer First Aid.
Comments:
Bonita Granville first portrayed Nancy Drew in several movies in the late
Thirties. She was replaced by Louise Curry in 1942 and then by Shirley Patterson
in 1943.
In the 1970s, Nancy returned to life; this
time wonderfully portrayed by Pamela Sue Martin (later of Dynasty fame), but
upset by the way she was being written out of the series, actress Janet Louise
Johnson-Julian was called upon to replace her.
A young actress named Tracy Ryan portrayed Nancy Drew in 1995 only to be replaced by Maggie Lawson in 2002.