Note: no one-shot characters or places are listed in this encyclopedia; to qualify, the element must appear or be mentioned in at least two Cat Who... books or have a lasting impact on the Cat Who... world. The size of a subject's entry is not a reliable gauge of its relative importance in the Cat Who... world.
Spoilers are encased in **(You got it!)** parentheses and must be highlighted to be read. (Highlight carefully; the first words of the encoded text will tell you what book the information will spoil, so you'll know whether or not you feel safe in proceeding.) If you don't wish to read any spoilers at all, go back to the original encyclopedia.
"À bientôt" - Polly and Qwilleran's personal parting words. It literally translates from French as "until very soon"; its "actual", more precise meaning is a combination of "See you soon" and "Until we meet again", with much more warmth and feeling than either composite phrase.
Alstock, Virginia - Polly's chief assistant in her job at the library.
Amanda's Studio of Design - Interior decorator's and furniture store owned by the cranky Amanda Goodwinter. Fran Brodie also works there as a sort of junior partner.
Appelhardt, Elizabeth - Young heiress whom Qwilleran rescues and befriends in The Cat Who Came to Breakfast. Elizabeth eventually moves to the mainland and Mooseville to break away from her possessive mother to start a new life. Elizabeth looks up to Qwill as a father figure; she has great faith in "new age"-type beliefs. She eventually opens up a shop called Elizabeth's Magic" in Mooseville and becomes involved with Derek Cuttlebrink.
apple barn, the - Qwill's place of residence starting in Knew a Cardinal. It lies in the dead orchard in the back of the Klingenschoen Mansion's property; it weighs in at four stories (with three balconies). A man once hanged himself there when it was still a barn, and history unfortunately repeats itself... **(Knew a Cardinal: Dennis Hough, Iris Cobb's son, to be precise; he was despondent over his wife leaving him.)**
Bamba, Nick - Amiable young engineer, friend to Qwilleran, and husband to Lori. Nick's dream is to quit his hateful job at the local prison, which he tries to fulfill through starting up a bed-and-breakfast (the Domino Inn) on Breakfast Island, then **(Came to Breakfast: after being forced to give up on the inn after the Breakfast Island resort is battered by a huge storm and nearly obliterated)** through working at the Cold Turkey Farm.
Barter, G. Allen - Partner in the Hasselrich, Bennett, and Barter lawfirm who often pops in to inform Qwilleran about and assist him with Klingenschoen Fund matters. He takes over the role of Qwilleran's personal attorney after Osmond Hasselrich's passing. (His everyday-use name is "Bart".)
Bates, Harold - Qwilleran's young managing editor and boss at the Fluxion in the city episodes. Bates is more concerned about generating advertising revenue than delivering hard news, and he hands Qwilleran a long string of assignments (the art beat, interior decorating, restaurant reviews) most unbefitting his resumé. He is rarely referred to as "Harold" in the books; the Fluxion staffers call him "Percy" behind his back.
"Be Nice to People" - Mantra stenciled on Fluxion staffers' phones and sledgehammered into Fluxion staffers' heads. (This rule must be awfully tough for Qwilleran to follow, considering that most of the people he meets on the job are criminals, murderers, etc.)
Berry, Inga - Potter and elderly instructor at the Penniman School for the Arts Down Below who helps out Qwilleran in The Cat Who Saw Red. Inga is retired by The Cat Who Lived High, but she still does pottery in the form of rolled-out "floppy discs".
Bixby County - County supposedly part of a "tri-county area" with Moose County and Lockmaster County, but its existence and introduction into the Cat Who... world seem unnecessary afterthoughts, so feel free to ignore it.
Black Bear Cafe, The - A cafe in Brrr renowned for its huge hamburgers, called bearburgers. The Black Bear Cafe is part of the Hotel Booze.
Black Creek - A small town near Mooseville.
Blue Dragon, The - Mary Duckworth's antique shop on Zwinger Street, so named for the giant blue porcelain dragon out by the door.
Blythe, Gregory - The long-winded, egocentric mayor of Pickax. Nobody likes him, but he somehow always winds up being reelected (perhaps because his mother is a Goodwinter (note: being repeatedly elected is a great feat for Blythe, considering that he has forced to resign from his former job as high school principal after he had affairs with a few teenage students).
Bootsie - The Siamese that Polly got in Talked to Ghosts and unfortunate proof that the breed's trademark intelligence can sometimes skip a cat or two. Bootsie's distinguishing characteristics are 1) a bottomless pit of a stomach and 2) a decided dislike of Qwilleran. Bootsie's name is changed to Brutus in Tailed a Thief, and his attitude is vastly changed for the better.
Breakfast Island - The small, secluded Moose County island where XYZ Enterprises stages a hokey tourist trap resort with a pirate theme in Came to Breakfast. Also called Pear Island (by the tourists), Providence Island (by the poor natives), and Grand Island (by the wealthy transplants). **(Came to Breakfast: The XYZ tourist attractions are destroyed by a gigantic storm that hits the island.)**
Breze, George - Underhanded crackpot perennial also-ran for the position of Pickax mayor. Think of Herb Hackpole with the ability to keep up a pleasant (though deceptive) facade for a couple minutes and you've got Breze.
Brodie, Andrew - Police chief of Pickax, Brodie is well-known for his talents with the bagpipes (which he plays at funerals in full Scottish regalia). Brodie has extreme confidence in Koko's psychic abilities (he knows the similarly-minded Lieutenant Hames from Down Below).
Brodie, Fran - Strawberry-haired interior designer employed at Amanda's Studio of Design. Daughter of the police chief, Fran flirts with Qwill a little bit early on.
Brrr - A little town so named because of its status as the coldest spot in Moose County.
Bruno - Genial barkeep at the Press Club. Bruno's hobbies are collecting swizzle sticks and creating presidential portraits out of collages of liquor labels. He has quit by the time Qwilleran returns to the city in The Cat Who Lived High.
Brutus - See Bootsie.
Bunker, Joe - See Goode, Wetherby.
Bunsen, Odd - Perhaps the following quote from Turned On and Off describes Fluxion photog Odd Bunsen best: "He was the most daring of the photographers, had the loudest voice, and smoked the longest and most objectionable cigars. At the Press Club he was the hungriest and thirstiest. He was raising the largest family, and his wallet was always the flattest." I might note that Odd works often with Qwilleran in the Fluxion episodes, mostly at Qwill's request (Odd's always a good distraction to the property owners when Qwill wants to snoop around the premises), sometimes by assignment (such as when Percy delegates them to produce the Gracious Abodes interior decorating magazine in Ate Danish Modern). Like almost everyone else, by the time Qwilleran returns to the big city in The Cat Who Lived High, Odd has moved on to another job elsewhere.
Bushland, Bushy - Accomplished professional (thanks, Selina) photographer (and amateur boater and UFOlogist) over in Lockmaster. Bushy's real first name is John; he gets his nickname "Bushy" from his premature hair loss.
Bushland, Vicki - Ex-wife of Bushy Bushland.
Cannery Mall, The - A shopping center in Mooseville - the only mall in Moose County, I believe.
Captain's Mess, The - Old junk/antique shop in Mooseville run by Captain Phlogg.
Captain Phlogg - See Phlogg, Captain.
Carmichael, Danielle - Young wife of Willard. Think Fran Drescher. There ya go. **(Tailed a Thief: Fran...er...I mean, Danielle is eventually sent up the river for assisting her con-artist accomplice and lover Carter Lee (they're not cousins) in a real-estate scam (trying to get the citizens of Moose County to buy into a "historic preservation" plan for Gingerbread Alley) and for assisting in the deaths of her husband (whom she married then offed to inherit his estate) and Lynette Duncan (whom Carter Lee had married then offed to inherit her estate - Lynette, last of the Duncans-by-blood, had inherited the family fortune). Oh, yeah, Danielle is also a klepto-petty thief, too.)**
Carmichael, Willard - Young banker who moves to Pickax from Down Below late in the series. Willard doesn't last long. **(Tailed a Thief: He's offed by his new wife, Danielle, and her accomplice, Carter Lee, in order for them to inherit Willard's money; they hire a hit man to do Willard in.)**
Catawba white grape juice - Koko's beverage of choice.
Catta - Siamese kitten who lives with Polly Duncan; Bootsie/Brutus's companion.
Cavendish, Jenny and Ruth - Cat-loving elderly sisters in Indian Village. They're nigh always together - which is why they're listed in one entry.
Chipmunk - Small town near West Middle Hummock. Chipmunk is considered a bad address in Moose County, home to a lot of riffraff.
City of Brotherly Crime - The bestseller Qwilleran wrote at the apex of his career. (Personally, I think that City of Brotherly Crime is the cheesiest title I've ever heard for a true crime book.)
Clayton - Celia's grandson, with whom she has a close relationship. Clayton is an intelligent, serious young man with a good sense of humor; he often helps Qwilleran and Celia out on their "secret missions" during Qwill's investigations.
Cobb, C.C. - Iris's second husband. Cobb was an activist for the revitalization of the neighborhood of Junktown, which was being allowed to slide downhill by the city so it could be eventually designated as a slum and leveled and paved over for a commercial and industrial zone. He gets his wish, if only posthumously. **(On and Off: C.C. is murdered by Ben Nicholas when C.C. tries to blackmail him about his illegal drug-dealing operation.)**
Cobb, Iris - Qwilleran first meets up with Iris Cobb in The Cat Who Turned On and Off, where she runs an antique shop called The Junkery with her husband. Qwilleran eventually moves into a vacant apartment above her shop to do a series on the neighborhood. During the events of Turned On and Off, her husband dies, leaving Qwilleran to investigate its circumstances. In The Cat Who Played Post Office, after Qwilleran inherits all his dough and moves to Pickax, Iris writes to him, asking to be his housekeeper (she has sold The Junkery to Rosie Riker, who has left her husband). She married Herb Hackpole in Knew Shakespeare, but the marriage went sour very, very quickly. **(Knew Shakespeare: Good ol' Herb confesses on their wedding night that he sabotaged Senior Goodwinter's car to make it have a fatal accident and torched the Picayune in order for Gritty Goodwinter, Senior's wife, to get the insurance money. Iris flees, and Herb roasts himself to death when he sets the Klingenschoen Mansion ablaze in an attempt to kill both her and Qwilleran.)** After that, she serves as curator for the Goodwinter Farmhouse Museum. Iris is famed for her belief in the paranormal and her love of the color pink, her delicious recipes are widely renowned, and her legendary cookbook becomes the subject of many a theft and controversy after her death. **(Iris was suffocated by Vince Boswell, a distant relative of Larry Lanspeak and Susan Exbridge who'd come up in search of a family treasure - a payoff to a hired-hand ancestor of his in the employ of Ephraim Goodwinter who helped cover up the mysterious circumstances of Ephraim's "death" - that he believed was buried somewhere in the barn near the Goodwinter farmhouse. He murdered Iris so he could search uninterrupted and undetected.)**
Compton, Lisa - Lyle Compton's wife. She works at the Senior Care Facility.
Compton, Lyle - Moose County's superintendent of schools. Lyle has an extensive interest in and knowledge of Scottish history.
Cuttlebrink, Derek - The gangliest person in Moose County (and the most hilarious extra in the Theatre Club), Derek has a reputation as an inoffensive and good-natured underachiever who always lands restaurant jobs and seemingly has no permanent plans for his future at all. Qwill takes a liking to him, however. He has myriad girlfriends throughout the series, but he hooks up with Elizabeth Appelhardt later on in a seemingly steady relationship. Derek lives down in Wildcat.
Dimsdale - Small shantytown between Pickax and North Middle Hummock. Dimsdale was founded as a mining town; it went bust when the mines did, and Dimsdale - now populated by the miners' descendants - never recovered.
Dimsdale Diner - Affectionately (and appropriately) nicknamed the "Dismal Diner" by Qwill, the Dimsdale (off Ittibittiwassee Road) is home to the worst coffee in the county - and its other dishes ain't so great, either. The diner is also home to the local feed cap-wearing farmers' coffee klatch.
Dingleberry, Adam - Old founder of Dingleberry's funeral home. Adam is no longer with us; curiously for this series, he passed away not of foul play but of plain ol' natural causes.
Dingleberry's Funeral Home - Pickax's local funeral home, natch.
Dolmathakia, Onoosh - Onoosh first comes onto the scene in The Cat Who Said Cheese, as a mysterious foreign guest at the New Pickax Hotel who's all the talk of Moose County. **(Said Cheese: It turns out she's fleeing a murderous abusive spouse; he sets off a bomb in the New Pickax Hotel which levels the hotel and kills an employee. Onoosh's husband is stung to death by the bees his reluctant, somewhat mentally-damaged accomplice, Aubrey Scotten, keeps, either accidentally or intentionally - it's not made clear which.)** After events play out and her safety is assured, she settles down in Pickax to open up a restaurant featuring Mediterranean cuisine. (Onoosh's specific nationality is never mentioned - judging by her name and the dishes she prepares, though, I'd say that she's most probably Turkish).
Doone, Kevin - Qwilleran's young gardener and groundskeeper.
Duckworth, Mary - Qwill's cold-headed love interest in The Cat Who Turned On and Off, Mary runs an antique shop called The Blue Dragon in the Down Below neighborhood of Junktown. Mary is actually the black sheep of the Duxbury family; she takes an assumed name to prevent her family from being disgraced by having a daughter who plays storekeeper at such an undesirable part of town. Eventually, she is chosen to spearhead a preservation program to revitalize Junktown, which allows her to "come out of the closet", so to speak, now that her choice of address can be explained away as part of a chic civic endeavor. When she reappears in The Cat Who Lived High, she has retaken the name of Duxbury and traded in her silk kimonos for a more "preppie" look. She has also become romantically involved with Robert Maus, and, as Qwilleran resentfully observes, "those two stuffed shirts are perfect for each other".
Duncan, Lynette - Polly's sister-in-law (and the last "Duncan by blood") who comes to stay with her after Polly's heart attack. The arrangement doesn't last long, however - she eventually marries Carter Lee James, and, after that, well... **(Tailed a Thief: Carter Lee James poisons her to gain the Duncan family fortune.)**
Duncan, Polly - Head librarian at the Pickax Library and Qwilleran's steady love interest from The Cat Who Knew Shakespeare on (Qwill is attracted to her "soft, gentle, and low" voice). Polly's father was a Shakespearean scholar; Polly is named after Hippolyta in A Midsummer Night's Dream (she has siblings named Marc Antony, Brutus, Ophelia, and Mona(after Othello's Desdemona - thanks to Selina for the hint, I'd forgotten Mona)). Polly comes from the East; she married a native of Pickax when she was in college, and they came back to Pickax to manage his family's bookstore. Unfortunately, her husband dies soon afterwards (either on their wedding night, as said in one of the later volumes, or a little while after they moved to Pickax, as intimated in Knew Shakespeare); he was a firefighter, and he was killed by a falling timber. Polly enjoys birdwatching and Shakespeare, and she has a predisposition towards somber colors until her heart attack, whereupon she lightens up both in fashion color palette and attitude. She retains, however, her famous jealousy.
Duxbury, Mary - See Duckworth, Mary.
Duxburys, the - A powerful banking family Down Below.
Elizabeth's Magic - Esoteric gift shop in Mooseville run by Elizabeth Appelhardt.
Exbridge & Cobb - The high-priced antique shop founded by Susan Exbridge and Iris Cobb. Iris was unable to fulfill her part of the business, however - **(Talked to Ghosts: she was murdered, see her entry)** - so the shop is now run solely by Susan.
Exbridge, Don - Balding six-foot-five entrepreneur who's the "X" in XYZ Enterprises. Don often states that his head "can sprout ideas or hair, but not both at the same time"; he's become prematurely bald, but remains the guiding spirit and most prominent partner of his firm. Don's ventures never seem to work out in the end, though, so his short temper is constantly being tested. Don used to be married to Susan but has now remarried.
Exbridge, Susan - Flamboyant divorcee (no description or mention of Susan in the books, no matter how short or passing, ever omits the word "divorcee") widely considered to be a tad opportunistic. She has a maddening tendency to escape all her troubles unscathed and no wiser than before.
Fishport - Stinky backwater Moose County fishing village.
Fishy Fritters - A - *gasp* - prepackaged cat food/treat reviled by Koko and Yum Yum (at least when Qwilleran tries to feed it to them). The horror, the horror...
Fitch, Cyrus - One of the old robber barons back in Ye Olden Days of Moose County. Patriarch of the fourth-generation Fitch family and collector of esoteric items from around the globe, showcased in his mansion.
Fitch, David - Son of Nigel and Margaret, twin brother of Harley. **(Sniffed Glue: David is murdered by his brother, Harley; see why under Harley's entry.)**
Fitch, Harley - Son of Nigel and Margaret, twin brother of David. **(Sniffed Glue: and assumes his brother's identity. To elucidate, a brief history of the Fitch family - the Fitch boys were under the thumb of their domineering mother, who addicted them to the trappings of luxury and fed them their fixes as long as they conducted their lives as she saw fit. Harley earned her ire when he accidentally ran over and killed someone, landing himself a manslaughter conviction and one year in prison; Margaret punished him by arranging a marriage between David and Jill, the girl whom Harley loved. In retribution, Harley married the trashiest tramp he could find (a gal named Belle Fitch) when he got out of prison to embarrass his mother. Harley, however, never lost his feelings for Jill, nor did Jill for Harley, and the two conspire to do away with their ill-chosen spouses; they murder David and Belle in Harley's house and make up the scene of the crime to look like a botched robbery, and Harley plans to pose as David until enough time has passed where the two can hop a plane to South America without raising suspicions. His charade does not fool his own parents, however; recognizing what has happened, his mother has a stroke from the shock and dies, and Nigel, left with the agonizing choice of letting the murder of one of his sons go unpunished or turning in his other son for the crime and losing both of his offspring, commits suicide.)**
Fitch, Margaret - Autocratic wife of Nigel and mother of David and Harley. **(Sniffed Glue: Dead of a stroke; see Harley's spoilers for the story.)**
Fitch, Nigel - A well-respected banker in Pickax who once handled the businees end of the Klingenschoen Foundation's affairs. Nigel, as well as all of his progeny, has departed from Moose County. **(Sniffed Glue: Dead by his own hand; see Harley's spoilers for the story.)**
Flux, The - See The Daily Fluxion.
FOO, The - A greasy spoon near Mooseville named for the giant neon sign outside (the D dropped off years ago and was never replaced).
Forfar, Beverly - The first director of the Pickax Art Center. Unctuous committee-woman type; she's moved away by Robbed a Bank.
"400 miles north of everywhere" - The vague stock phrase LJB uses to define the location of Moose County. Current conventional wisdom places MC's whereabouts in upper Michigan, yet this cannot be confirmed.
Foxy Fred - Moose County's friendly auctioneer. Foxy Fred runs...
Foxy Fred's Bid-a-Bit Auctions - Foxy Fred's auction company, natch.
Freya - Yum Yum's original name. Freya was the Norse goddess of love.
Frobnitz, Ronald - A hokey fake name that Qwilleran uses whenever he needs a quick alias. Also used as a substitute for John Doe, Joe Six-Pack, etc.
Fugtrees, the - Old Moose County family who made their money in lumber.
Fugtree Farm, the - Family homestead of the Fugtree family renowned for its grand farmhouse. Transformed into the Split Rail Farm later on.
Fugtree, Kristi - Young goat farmer and love interest of Mitch Ogilvie. Kristi has her whole herd wiped out - **(Talked to Ghosts: her loser of an escaped-con ex-husband poisons them all in retribution for her not giving him a place to hide while he's on the lam)** - but she soon starts anew and opens up the Split Rail Farm.
Fulgrove, Mrs. - Qwilleran's housekeeper. She complains about having to clean up cat hair a lot.
Gingerbread Alley - A line-up of old houses in Pickax heavily decorated with "gingerbread" trim. Gingerbread Alley's formal name is Pleasant Street; the fight to get the houses there registered as historic landmarks is detailed in The Cat Who Tailed a Thief. Polly and Lynette Duncan live in one of Gingerbread Alley's homes for a while, FYI.
Gippel, Scott - Member of the city council and proprietor of the local car dealership and repair place. Another character mentioned far more often than he actually appears.
Gippel's Garage - Pickax's local car-repair center, owned by Scott Gippel. (Gippel also owns a used car lot, name unknown.)
Goode, Wetherby - Gregarious weatherman for WPKX, Moose County's local radio station. Wetherby has an abiding affinity for Sousa marches. His real name is Joe Bunker.
Goodwinters, the - The first family of Moose County for five generations. The Goodwinters made their fortune in mining and founded Pickax; they virtually own the county, but their numbers have been dwindling in recent years. Goodwinters are distinguished by their blond hair, high cheekbones, and thin faces. (There is sort of a curse on Junior Goodwinter's branch of the family (supposedly brought about by Ephraim's evil deeds); four of his forebears have died violent deaths (Ephraim supposedly by lynching, but we learn the truth about this in Talked to Ghosts), Samson by being thrown from his horse; Titus by being knifed in a fight; and Senior in a car accident). Let's hope that Junior survives; the series wouldn't be the same without him!)
Goodwinter, Alexander - Young lawyer, senior partner in the Goodwinter & Goodwinter law firm. Alexander is smooth and suave (at least, that's what the book says - to me, he comes off as rather staid), Alexander has little legal sense - all the brains belong to his junior partner and sister, Penelope. Alexander is written out of the country episodes early on... **(Played Post Office: Alexander once fathered a child (well, a fetus, at least) with a trampy maid named Daisy that worked at the Klingenschoen mansion; Alexander offers to pay for an abortion, but Daisy wishes to keep the baby. Sister Penelope, who has watched out for her brother ever since their childhoods, rather than have her brother's reputation besmirched, pays a local thug named Birch Trevelyan to convince Daisy to have the abortion; Birch, unskilled in the ways of persuasive debate, decides that the best way to convince Daisy not to have the baby is to kill her and dump her in a mine shaft. Birch then uses the deed to blackmail Penelope, threatening to tell the police that Daisy was murdered at her order if she doesn't keep him in expensive motorbikes and boats. When Qwilleran starts poking around the events of Daisy's mysterious demise, Birch and Alexander eventually arrange the deaths of two more people - Daisy's mother and best friend - and almost kill Qwilleran himself (by clipping him with a van during one of Qwill's bike rides) to keep the murder secret - and even plot to kill Penelope when she threatens to go to the police upon learning of their recent actions and when Alex latches on to a bimbo lawyer in Washington whom he thinks can replace Penelope's role of doing all his work for him. Penelope, however, gets the last "laugh", if one can call it a laugh - she writes a long, confessional letter to Qwill explaining everything and commits suicide in such a way to make it look like a murder-made-to-look-a-suicide (got that?). Birch is arrested; Alexander flees, then kills himself by crashing his private plane. )**
Goodwinter, Amanda - Concrete disproof of author Cleveland Amory's assertion that there exist no female curmudgeons, the cranky, crotchety, opinionated Amanda runs, of all businesses, an interior design studio. Amanda also has a brief relationship with Arch Riker.
Goodwinter Boulevard - The most privileged circular boulevard in Pickax. After the mansions empty out, the Klingenschoen Foundation transforms the whole boulevard, mansions and all, into Moose County Community College.
Goodwinter, Ephraim - Great patriarch of the Goodwinter family (well, perhaps not the patriarch - the Goodwinters are a five-generation family in Moose County, and Ephraim only goes back four). Ephraim is a notorious villain of Moose County history; his greed and negligence was responsible for an accident that killed thirty nine (or thirty-two, depending on which book you're reading) miners in 1902. Though he tried to cover himself by founding the library in Pickax and the Pickax Picayune, nothing could ultimately save him from the public's hatred and wrath. The circumstances of his death remain the subject of stormy controversy in Moose County (though we uncover the truth in The Cat Who Talked to Ghosts - **(Talked to Ghosts: Ephraim actually faked his own death and moved to Yerp, Switzerland to escape the growing public discontent and danger for him in Moose County)**).
Goodwinter farmhouse, the - The old Goodwinter homestead, once owned by Senior Goodwinter but sold by his wife after his death. It is eventually turned into the Goodwinter Farmhouse Museum (dedicated to Moose County history), with Iris Cobb and, later, Mitch Ogilvie as curator.
Goodwinter, Gritty - Wife of Senior and mother of Junior, though she doesn't - or didn't - care much for either of them. Gritty's real name is Gertrude; she's not a major character in the series at all. **(Knew Shakespeare: Gritty pays Herb Hackpole to rig Senior's car to spin out of control and crash so that Gritty can score the bucks waiting from the sale of Senior's beloved Picayune newspaper. She plans on running away with (clueless) big-city financier Harry Noyton, but the two run into a five-point buck with their car at high speeds and die a rather gruesome death.)**
Goodwinter, Halifax - Pickax's friendly family M.D. early in the country episodes. He has an ailing, invalid wife; when she dies, Halifax kills himself. Father to Melinda Goodwinter.
Goodwinter, Jody - Junior Goodwinter's petite wife. Jody's always struck me as being a bit juvenile.
Goodwinter, Junior - Boyish (in looks and, sometimes, temperment) editor of the Moose County Something. Junior's grown a beard in an effort to look older. His wife states he looks more like one of Santa's elves. Son of Senior Goodwinter.
Goodwinter, Melinda - Young, aggressive doctor (daughter of Halifax Goodwinter) with whom Qwilleran becomes romantically involved in The Cat Who Played Post Office (he originally meets her in The Cat Who Played Brahms, where she treats a bad case of poison ivy he's gotten). Melinda moves to Boston afterwards, but returns in The Cat Who Wasn't There... **(Wasn't There: Melinda, desperate both for money and to carry on the family name, tries to hook Qwilleran into a couple-years'-long marriage - long enough for Melinda to produce an heir and get back on her feet financially. No dice - Qwilleran is steadfast in his commitment to Polly. Logical-minded, Melinda then endeavors to get Polly out of the picture - first by sending her black-sheep brother Emory (thought dead, actually just out of prison and such a disgrace to the family that he's better off dead in their eyes) to kill her (which doesn't work - Polly either evades him or is with a friend during each of his numerous attempts) - then by poisoning Polly's vitamin C capsules. The latter trick backfires, though, when Melinda's best friend Irma Hasselrich takes the poisoned capsules instead; Melinda goes half-mad from grief and guilt. In a last-ditch attempt to score some Klingenschoen dough, she and Emory kidnap Yum Yum; however, Qwilleran, assisted by Nick Bamba, tracks Emory down in his hideout, rescues Yum Yum, and gets Emory hauled off to prison. Melinda then kills herself by crashing her sportscar into the monument at the end of Goodwinter Drive.)**
Goodwinter, Penelope - Junior partner of the Goodwinter & Goodwinter law firm with her brother. Penelope is the brains of the operation; it is she who handles Qwilleran's legal affairs after he inherits the Klingenschoen fortune. Penelope idolizes Qwilleran; she is quite proper, but does have a drinking problem. Penelope, like her brother, is written out of the series soon after her initial appearance (see Alexander's spoilers for details).
Goodwinter, Samson - Elder son of Ephraim; killed when a flock of blackbirds spooked his horse.
Goodwinter, Senior - The man behind the Pickax Picayune - he wrote for it, edited it, and published it (cranked out on a printing press) himself. The Picayune is Senior's great love (rarely is the man seen without his printer's apron on), and he supports its operation until his death **(Knew Shakespeare: he's killed by his wife for the prospective proceeds from liquidating his estate, the Picayune)**. Father of Junior Goodwinter.
Goodwinter, Titus - Younger son of Ephraim that took over the Picayune after his father's death. He was killed in a fight.
Great Dune, the - A huge sand dune near Mooseville.
Groat & Boddle No. 5 - Qwilleran's preferred brand of tobacco, back in the days when he used to smoke a pipe.
Haggis, Thornton - Aging, sorta-genial Scottish fellow who...well, to tell you the truth, I don't exactly know what it is that he does. He seems to dabble in various areas of the arts & crafts field - making sculptures, handmade wooden boxes, etc. Not a very distinctive fellow.
Halliburton, June - The arrogant director of music for Moose County schools. Qwilleran and Halliburton don't get along very well. **(Came to Breakfast: June is murdered in a blaze in her cabin on Breakfast Island set by her (secret) husband, the rich island socialite Jack Appelhardt, who finds himself with one more wife than is allowed by law and decides to...*hem*...fire June.)**
Hames, Lieutenant - A detective/cop from Down Below who has great faith in Koko's psychic abilities. Often seen with Lieutenant Wojcik.
Handley, Jill - Feature editor for the Something. Hardly ever seen in person.
Handy Helpers - K-Funded youth volunteer organization that does various odd good deeds around Pickax.
hanging tree, the - An old, gnarled tree on Ittibittiwassee Road. Legend states that Ephraim Goodwinter was lynched there.
Hanstable Riker, Mildred - Art and home economics teacher for thirty years at the local high school, she starts out in The Cat Who Played Brahms married to Stanley Hanstable (not Roger, whose last name is MacGillivray and who's Mildred's son-in-law (thanks to Chris and Eileen for straightening me out on this) and, after the end of that marriage, ends up wedding Arch Riker. Mildred is a great ally of Qwill due to the nature and tenure of her former job - she knows virtually everyone in Moose County, she can decipher any handwriting, and she's a first-class cook of both human and feline cuisine.
Hanstable, Stanley - Former turkey farmer and ex-husband of Mildred. Stanley is, shall we say, away now. Or was. Apparently, he's kicked the bucket. He's gone, in any case. **(Played Brahms: Stanley was the ringleader of a smuggling scheme that smuggled whiskey into the state prison and inmates out of it...though the latter group really never reached their destination, since Stanley's men tossed them in the lake midway through the voyage. Stanley also murdered the ex-chief of police (and his wife's lover), Buck Dunfield, when Buck found out about the smuggling racket - and also engineers Francesca Klingenschoen's demise when he fears that she might have discovered his dirty little secret (he tricks her mentally-challenged houseboy Tom into doing the deed, telling him that he might inherit the money to fulfill his dream of buying a Las Vegas nightclub if she dies).)**
Harold - See Bates, Harold.
Hasselrich, Bennett, and Barter - The most respected law firm in Moose County. It handles all Kilngenschoen Fund affairs.
Hasselrich, Irma - Forty-ish head volunteer at the Senior Care Facility. Daughter of Osmond Hasselrich (gotta love the first names in this family), Irma once fatally shot a man to defend herself from date rape. Her father, being a lawyer, got her off with a sentence of just community service, to which Irma decided to dedicate her life. **(Wasn't There: Irma died when she took some poisoned vitamin C capsules (the poison was meant for Polly). See Melinda Goodwinter's entry for further details.)**
Hasselrich, Osmond - Senior partner of Hasselrich, Bennett, and Barter, and chief counsel for the Klingenschoen Foundation. Qwilleran always gets his legal advice from him - or used to, for, alas, poor Osmond has passed away now, of natural causes at 89.
Hilltop Cemetery - Main cemetery of Pickax.
Horseradish - Small town near Lockmaster. Supposedly once the horseradish captial of the world.
Hotel Booze, the - Hotel in Brrr run by Gary Pratt, famous for its giant Bearburgers (they're not made from bears; they're so named simply because they're very big). The Hotel booze charges a nickel per paper napkin.
Hotel Stilton, the - A ritzy hotel Down Below.
Hot Spot, The - A gaudy, noisy, raucous restaurant in Mooseville.
Hough, Dennis - Iris Cobb's young son. When we first see him in Turned On and Off, he has just graduated from college; later, he comes to Moose County to start his own construction firm (Huff and Puff Construction, I believe), and it is he who converts Qwilleran's apple barn into a spacious home. He comes to Moose County without his wife and son, however, and a family dispute causes his sudden exit from the series **(Knew a Cardinal: he hangs himself from the rafters of Qwill's barn when his wife serves him with a notice of divorce for purported infidelities with Susan Exbridge (with whom he had been spending an inordinate amount of time))**.
Huggins, Cecil - Owner of Huggins Hardware in Mooseville, where he's worked since the age of 12.
Huggins Hardware - Hardware store in Mooseville.
Hummocks, The - A series of rolling hills in Moose County, home to the cities of West Middle Hummock and North Middle Hummock.
I
Inchpot, Lois - Proprietress, cook, waitress, cashier, and just about everything else of Lois' Luncheonette in Pickax.
Indian Village - A ritzy community of condominiums near North Middle Hummock. Indian Village suffers from typically flimsy XYZ construction, but it is nonetheless *the* place for youngish Moose County up-and-comers (like Francesca Brodie and Susan Exbridge) to lodge.
Ittibittiwassee River - The Ittibittiwassee River flows through the Hummocks, beneath Indian Village. Not to be confused with Ittibittiwassee Road.
Ittibittiwassee Road - A long, winding road from Pickax that runs past several abandoned mines and the Hanging Tree (and over the old plank bridge). Ittibittiwassee Road was built by the county at the request of Don Exbridge and XYZ Enterprises (it runs past their Indian Village condo complex); the locals call it "Ittibittigraft" as a result. Ittibittiwassee Road has not been kind to Qwilleran; he's had both a bike and car accident there.
Junkery, The - Iris and C.C. Cobb's antique store in Junktown; Rosie Riker eventually buys it up from Iris when the latter moves to Moose County and the former ditches her husband.
Junktown - A dilapidated neighborhood in The Cat Who Turned On and Off, Junktown starts down the road to recovery with a series of news articles written by Qwilleran. Junktown is named for the numerous antique shops that line its main drag, Zwinger Street (antique hunters are called "junkers" in the (now-outdated) antiquing vernacular).
Katie - Along with Mac, resident cat at the Pickax Public Library. Katie's name was chosen by random draw from patrons' suggestions. (Bibliophiles really coulda thought of a more original name than "Katie" for a cat.)
Kendall, Lodge - Crime reporter for the Fluxion in the city episodes. Lodge transfers to work on a "western magazine" after Qwilleran's retirement.
Kennebeck - Fairly large city in Moose County that's northeast of Pickax, sandwiched between the county seat and Sawdust City. Kennebeck is home to the famous Tipsy's Restaurant.
Kipper & Fine - A men's clothing store Qwilleran patronizes Down Below.
Klingenschoen Foundation, The - The philatrophic organization to whom Qwilleran entrusts the dispersement of his many, many millions in the form of low-interest loans, scholarships, and so on to the citizens of Moose County. Oswald Hasselrich, Qwilleran's attorney, is one of the chairmen.
Klingenschoen, Francesca - The flamboyant eighty-nine year-old grande dame of Moose County who looks on Qwilleran as a godson (she was good friends with his mother); Qwill comes to visit his "Aunt Fanny" in The Cat Who Played Brahms. Ms. Klingenschoen is filthy rich, her wealth amassed not through mere inheritance - her father squandered the family's old money - but through a detour into burlesque dancing in New Jersey and some smart investing and development after that. On a (false) rumor that Ms. Klingenschoen would write anyone named after her into her will, Moose County, as Melinda Goodwinter says, "more Francescas than Florence, Italy". Francesca kept everybody in line through learning all their dirty little secrets, written down in a little black (well, green, actually) book (which Qwilleran burns upon her death). **(Played Brahms: Fanny's penchant for accumulating secrets proves her downfall; smuggler Stanley Hanstable engineers her death out of fear that she's learned of his illegal activities.)** And, of course, we all know that it is she who wills our mustachioed hero the vast fortune that changes the course of his life and the series forever.
Klingenschoen Mansion, the - A huge fieldstone mansion in Pickax once owned by Francesca Klingenschoen. It burns down soon after Qwilleran acquires it **(Knew Shakespeare: Herb Hackpole's responsible for it, see his entry's spoilers for details)**, whereupon it's rebuilt into the Pickax Community Theatre.
Klingenschoens, the - Reviled family who made their fortune in saloons in Pickax's settlement days. Their millions were squandered somewhere down the line, but Francesca earns them back and then some.
Koko - Oh, do we really need to explain who Koko is? The eponymous "cat" of every title in the series, Koko originally belonged to a reclusive art critic named George Bonifield Mountclemens III. "Koko" is just an everyday nickname - his real name is Kao K'o Kung, his namesake being a famed thirteenth century Chinese painter and poet (his name means "worthy of respect", if we can trust Hilary VanBrook). The "gimmick" of the Cat Who... books hinges on Koko's supposed psychic powers; his activities in every novel give clues to the mystery (his favored forms of communication are "tail language", knocking appropriately-titled books off the bookshelves, and performing little skits with Yum Yum). Koko will NOT accept canned cat food; he must have his food freshly prepared. He is an extremely intelligent animal, and his senses extend beyond the usual five.
Kowbel, Amberina - Amberina, with her two siblings, ran an antique store named The Three Weird Sisters in Turned On and Off; she is, as Qwilleran notes, "the least weird of the Three Weird Sisters". It is she who asks Qwilleran to bail out the doomed Casablanca apartment building in The Cat Who Lived High.
Lambreth, Zoe - Breathy artist who plays a key role in The Cat Who Could Read Backwards. She moves to California soon after Qwill moves to Moose County (though the two events are unrelated).
Lanspeak, Carol - Co-owner and -manager of Lanspeak's, Pickax's department store; president of the Theatre Club.
Lanspeak, Chad - Son of Carol and Larry who shows up in The Cat Who Sniffed Glue; renowned mostly for being a ne'er-do-well. **(Sniffed Glue: Chad dies in a drunk driving accident. No foul play involved; just his and his gang's own stupidity.)**
Lanspeak, Diane - Daughter of Carol and Larry, she eventually takes over Dr. Halifax's practice after he passes away.
Lanspeak, Larry - Co-owner and -manager of his namesake Pickax department store; president of the Pickax school board and the Historical Society; very active in the Theatre Club. He and his wife have three children - Diane, Chad, and one other whose name is never mentioned.
Lanspeak's - Pickax's all-purpose department store.
Linguini's - Italian restaurant in Mooseville.
Little Stone Church, the - One of two churches in Pickax. The Little Stone is used more as a daily-purpose chruch than the Old Stone Church.
Lockmaster - The rich rival of Pickax, located sixty miles southwest of Mooseville. Lockmaster is famed for its equestrian facilities, steeplechase, and the Palomino Paddock restaurant (Lockmaster is not situated in Moose County but in neighboring Lockmaster County, to the south.)
Lockmaster Ledger, The - rival to The Moose County Something. (Continuity check: the Ledger is called the Lockmaster Logger in The Cat Who Knew a Cardinal.)
Lois' [sic] Luncheonette - Pickax's most popular lunch counter, run by Lois Inchpot and her son, Lenny.
Lost Lake Hills - A community of nouveau riche on the outskirts of the Down Below city in which Qwilleran lives early on.
MacDiarmid, Kip - Publisher of the Lockmaster Ledger. He pops up for a little bit in Knew a Cardinal and Moved a Mountain.
MacDiarmid, Moira - Kip's wife. That's it, really.
MacGillivray, Roger - A high school teacher turned reporter for the Something. Roger perhaps logs the most page time with Qwilleran (ironic, since Roger is quite duplicitous with Qwilleran in Played Brahms, when he was still working for the tourist bureau).
MacGillivray, Sharon - Roger's wife, and owner/operator of a small gift shop in Mooseville called Night's Candles (named after a line from Romeo and Juliet).
MacGregor, Mr. - Famed for being Polly's landlord when she lived in a farm cottage on the outskirts of Pickax. Otherwise, his chief occupation is chasing bunnies out of his garden (no, not really).
Mackintosh Qwilleran, Anne - Our hero's beloved mother; she died when Qwill was in college. She resembles actress Greer Garson and met Qwilleran's "Aunt Fanny", Francesca Klingenschoen, in their teen years as wartime relief workers. **(Robbed a Bank: After attending college as an English major, she moved from her hometown of Des Moines to the big city of Chicago and found work in a library (much to her parents' consternation, who wanted her to take a job in her father's insurance office and marry the son of her mother's best friend). She meets Qwilleran's future father, Dana, at a performance of a traveling theatrical troupe of which he is part; Anne sees him on stage, falls for him, and ventures backstage to meet him. He returns her affections and moves to Chicago to marry her - which results in Anne getting cut off by her parents. Very soon after the union, she becomes pregnant with and gives birth to our little Merlin James - but, unfortunately, Dana's life spirals ever-downward, as he can find no other work than shop clerking and has trouble keeping even those jobs due to his newly-taken drinking problem. Eventually, in dire financial straits, Dana tries to rob a bank to provide for his family but is shot and killed in the process, and Anne is left to fend for herself and her baby.)** Mackintosh the Elder is named after Lady Anne Mackintosh, a figure in Scottish history who raised troops for Prince Charlie during Scotland's eighteenth-century rebellion against English rule. (Thanks to Diana for pointing out this oversight in the encyclopedia.)
Mackintosh, Charles Rennie - Famed (and real-life) Scottish architect and art nouveau-modernist designer whose works Qwilleran and his mother admired. (His two-dimensional art somewhat resembles Frank Lloyd Wright's designs.) Qwilleran's moustache and eyes purportedly resemble Charles Rennie's. (There's no relation - not close, at least - between architect Mackintosh and our Anne Mackintosh.)
MacWhannell, Whannell (or "Big Mac") - Accountant and amateur Scottish historian. Qwill meets him on the Bonnie Scots Tour in The Cat Who Wasn't There.
McBee, Culvert - Rollo's grade-school son.
McBee, Dawn - Rollo's wife. She ain't got much else goin' for 'er (and being Rollo's wife ain't much in itself).
McBee, Rollo - Farmer & part-time firefighter who lives somewhere near Qwill's barn. Along with Thornton Haggis, about as generic as the Standard Issue Moose County Males get.
Main Street - A generic name, but still important - Main Street is home to Pickax's small downtown area. All the shops along Main Street, by the way, are made out of stone.
Maus Haus - An former artist's colony on River Road turned chic boarding house by lawyer and gourmet Robert Maus. Renowned for Robert's sumptuous meals. Prospective tenants must hold a food-related job to get in (a little stipulation stemming from a clause in the previous owner of Maus Haus's will stating that the building must "serve the arts").
Maus, Robert (a.k.a. Mausolini, Roberto) - A lawyer whose true heart and calling lie in gourmet cooking. He runs a boarding house called Maus House in The Cat Who Saw Red; all the tenants hold food-related careers, and Robert prepares all the meals. Maus eventually sells his House, though, and when he shows up in The Cat Who Lived High, he has abandoned his law practice, changed his name to Roberto Mausolini, and opened a high-priced North Italian restaurant called Roberto's (all the waitstaff are law students). Whether Robert or Roberto, Maus...has a tendency...to talk...in ellipsis-laden, pause-heavy speech...like this.
Merlin - Qwilleran's real first name. (Qwill's real full name is Merlin James Mackintosh Qwilleran.)
Miriam - Qwilleran's ex-wife, a once-successful as exec who plunged into near-insanity at the same time Qwilleran started drinking (which stemmed from which is not known, though circumstancial evidence points to the latter instigating the former. In The Cat Who Saw Red, Qwilleran notes that Miriam left him to follow her career, though this reflection may have arisen from his own resentment; it's never mentioned again). Miriam is now housed in an asylum (I believe) in Connecticut, from which her rich parents (Qwill's in-laws) pester her ex-husband with demands for money. (Note: Braun was born in Connecticut; could there be a possible connection?) Qwilleran and Miriam have been divorced for nine years at the start of the series.
Mona - Polly's sister who lives in Cincinnati; her full first name is Desdemona, namesaked from the character in Hamlet. (Thanks to Abby for the mention.)
Moose County - The county where the action of the country episodes takes place. Moose County is forever described as being "400 miles north of everywhere"; Pickax is its county seat.
Moose County Community College - Pickax's local institution of higher education, made from renovated mansions on Goodwinter Boulevard.
Moose County Something, The - Moose County's current newspaper, founded and owned by Qwilleran and run by Arch Riker as publisher and Junior Goodwinter as editor. The title was a fluke - in the first issue of the paper, the readers were asked to vote for the official name of the paper, with "The Moose County Something" printed as an interim, jokey title. More readers voted for "Something" than the given choices, though, and the name stuck.
Mooseville - A resort town 30 miles northwest of Pickax, bounded by a giant wall of sand know as the Great Dune. (Mooseville is also home to the state prison and its *lovely* flower gardens.)
Morning Rampage, The - The journalistically irresponsible competitor of the Daily Fluxion Down Below. The Rampage is owned by the Pennimans, Down Below's corrupt city fathers, so the content of the Rampage is somewhat edited to further their interests.
Mountclemens, George Bonifield III (*no* abbreviations, thank you) - The discriminating art critic who plays a pivotal role in the proceedings of The Cat Who Could Read Backwards; Qwilleran rents out a downstairs apartment from him, and he is Koko's original "owner". Mountclemens's often-scathing reviews earn him a notorious, long-lasting reputation Down Below. **(Could Read Backwards (extremely simplified version of events): Mountclemens used his position as critic to praise and plug paintings he designed under the assumed name of "Scrano" and enlisted the Lanbreth Gallery and its owner, Earl Lambreth, to sell the paintings in exchange for favorable publicity in his column. (Mountclemens, though a gifted artist himself, was incapable of painting his creations himself due to the loss of a hand; he thus hired a technically strong but creatively-challenged artist-accomplice, Oscar Narx, to do the physical work of painting the tableaux for him.) Lambreth, however, eventually got fed up with the womanizer Mountclemens moving in on his comely artist wife and threatened to turn Mountclemens over to the IRS for his unreported income from the paintings if he didn't back off. Mountclemens, never one to be ordered around, decided to murder Lambreth instead. Having gained a tidy enough sum from the "Scrano" scam, Mountclemens decides to cut and run. Well, not run - just cut - and to do so, Mountclemens decides that he needs to cover his tracks by offing Oscar Narx. He calls Narx to his home for a late-night meeting for just this purpose, planning to hide in the darkness and get the jump on the taller, stronger Narx out back - but Narx, quite frankly already suspicious of Mountclemens and fed up his passive, no-credit role in the scheme, senses Mountclemens's presence beforehand and kills him instead. And how does he sense Mountclemens's presence? He catches a whiff of the lime-peel scent that always hangs about Mountclemens due to the man's choice of bath oil. Vanitas vanitatorum.)**
Muggy Swamp - Famed enclave of the rich Down Below (despite its unappealing name).
"My mother was a Mackintosh" - The stock phrase by Qwilleran proclaims his pride in his Scottish heritage. He first utters it in The Cat Who Ate Danish Modern.
New Pickax Hotel, The - The "New" Pickax Hotel was built in 1935 and hasn't undergone much renovation or maintenance since then; it's renowned county-wide for its dingy, depressing accommodations. It's the only place of lodging available in Pickax, though - at least until it's leveled late in the series. **(Said Cheese: A bomb intended for Onoosh Dolmathakia from her possessive, abusive ex-husband Vic Greer does the trick.)**
Night's Candles - The small gift shop operated by Sharon MacGillivray (we haven't heard much of it lately; does Sharon still have it?). Its rather unusual name is taken from a line in Romeo and Juliet.
North Middle Hummock - Small (ghost) town in Moose County; home to the Goodwinter farmhouse and Indian Village.
North Pole Cafe, the - Messy-but-good restaurant in Mooseville that serves Polish dishes (North Pole Cafe! Get it? Get it? Philistine.).
Noyton, Harry - Gregarious businessman who loans Qwilleran his posh apartment rent-free in The Cat Who Ate Danish Modern. He returns in The Cat Who Knew Shakespeare. Noyton never lets anything like common sense and practicality stand in his way when it comes to his hobbies or business ventures, yet the man is rolling in dough. **(Knew Shakespeare: Noyton dies - *dies*! - in a car accident involving him, Gritty Goodwinter, high speeds, lack of seatbelts, and a eight-point buck (not five-point - thanks to Lynn for this one). Qwilleran had brought Noyton up to Moose County to try to charm Gritty Goodwinter into selling Senior Goodwinter's assets to him instead of the third-rate XYZ developing firm. He succeeds - unfortunately... (Man, I liked Harry Noyton, too...))**
O
Ogilvie, Mitch - Curator of the Goodwinter Farmhouse and, later, co-owner of the Split Rail Farm.
Oh Jay - The orange-and-dirty-white stray adopted by Pender Wilmot. Oh Jay is the unofficial mascot of Moose County Community College.
Olde Tyme Soda Fountain - Newe-fanggled (or at least newly-founded) "soda fountain" decorated in ice-cream colors situated in Pickax's Stables Row.
old plank bridge, the - A dangerous, rattly bridge on Ittibittiwassee Road.
Old Stone Church, The - The favored place of worship for Pickax citizens; used mostly for services like weddings and funerals.
Old Stone Mill, the - Prestigious restaurant in Pickax next to (surprise) a mill and waterwheel. The food at the Mill varies widely, but the Siamese have their meals catered from there for a while.
Onoosh's - Café in Pickax serving Mediterranean cuisine run by Onoosh Dolmathakia.
Other Village Voice, The - Newsletter of the Indian Village housing development. (What, they've so much going on there they need a whole newsletter to themselves?)
Otto's Tasty Eats - A restaurant in Mooseville that serves heaping portions of mediocre food.
Park Circle - Street in smack-dab in the middle of Pickax where the Old Stone Church, the Little Stone Church, the Klingenschoen Mansion/Theatre, the courthouse, and the Pickax Public Library are located.
Parrott, Pete - Pickax paperhanger.
pasties - Moose County's favored cuisine. I'll let local historians Homer and Rhoda Tibbitt, as per their dialogue in The Cat Who Said Cheese, take over from here -
Pennimans, the - As said in The Cat Who Lived High, "Penniman is spelled P-O-W-E-R" Down Below. This influential family owns the Morning Rampage and has its hands into nearly every activity in City Hall. **(Lived High: They're also responsible for bombing/setting ablaze the Casablanca apartment building Qwilleran tries to save; they want to raze it to make way for their new Gateway Alcazar office building and hire a dirty-tricks specialist by the name of Fleudd to get the job done by any means necessary.)**
Penniman School for the Arts - The local art college Down Below. Figures in big in Could Read Backwards and Saw Red.
Percy - See Bates, Harold.
Phlogg, Captain - Old, besotted, drunken (and actually quite rich) captain that runs The Captain's Mess. Phlogg goes to Davy Jones's locker in The Cat Who Went Underground **(Went Underground: Phlogg, the old sot, eventually drinks himself to death. (He's at first considered a possible victim of serial killer Joanna Trupp - he was once a carpenter, Joanna's targeted class of victim - but that turns out not to be the case. Thanks to Belle Book for clearing this up.))**.
Picayune, The - See Pickax Picayune, The.
Pickax City (most often called just Pickax) - Founded by the Goodwinter clan in the mid-1800's, Pickax is the county seat of Moose County with a population of 3,000. Most of the action in the country episodes takes place in Pickax. Most of Pickax (save for the courthouse) burned down in a great fire in 1869, an event which Qwilleran dramatizes in a one-man show he performs in Went into the Closet. The town has only one traffic light; most of the buildings downtown in composed of stone; whistling is forbidden by city ordinance. The street layout in Pickax makes no sense; it's bounded on the north by East St., on the west by North St., and on the east by West St., and there are South North and West South Streets lurking about. (As Scottie says, "Dunna look for logic up here, laddie".)
Pickax Community Theatre - Pickax's local theatre, built on the foundation of the Klingenschoen Mansion after its destruction.
Pickax Picayune, The - The Moose County newspaper early on in the country episodes, unchanged since its inception in 1854 (Senior Goodwinter sets the type by hand). The building is eventually destroyed in a fire **(Knew Shakespeare: Herb Hackpole's responsible, see his entry for details)**, but the Picayune issues are preserved on microfische.
Pickax Public Library - The library in Pickax, of course. It was founded by Ephraim Goodwinter; Polly is head librarian there.
plank bridge, the - See old plank bridge, the.
Pleasant Street - See Gingerbread Alley.
Plensdorf, Sarah - Soft-spoken, baseball-loving office manager of the Moos County Something. Sarah is fairly comfortable financially; the Plensdorfs used to be big lumber barons back in Moose County's heyday.
Pratt, Gary - Bear-like cook and proprietor of the Black Bear Cafe in Brrr.
Prelligate, Dr. - President of Moose County Community College and off-and-on, not-so-serious rival for Polly's affections.
Press Club, The - Gathering place, eatery, bar, and hangout for reporters Down Below and Qwilleran and his cronies in the city episodes. The Press Club is housed in an old jail, giving it a very dank atmosphere. Nevertheless (or more because of the fact), Qwilleran loves the place, and an invitation to the Press Club for an uninitiate of the Fourth Estate is considered very pretigious indeed. In The Cat Who Played Brahms, however, the Press Club is given a lightened, brightened, sterile department store-type makeover by the women's feature writers, and it loses its distinctive ambience.
Providence Village - The backwater shantytown of the poor descendants of shipwreck survivors on Breakfast Island. Also called Piratetown (by the tourists) and the Dark Village (by the wealthy transplants).
Pug - Junior Goodwinter's sister, who lives on a ranch in Montana. I don't know if Pug's last name is "Goodwinter", or if she has taken a married name.
Purple Point - A narrow peninsula and harbor on the northern shore of Moose County, host to many summer homes of the local rich.
Q
Qwilleran, James Mackintosh - Our hero (or didn't you notice? ^_^). He was a very bright child, won lots of spelling bees, but was also very...um..."inquisitive" - he always rooted around in his classmates' lunch boxes, earning him the nickname of "Snoopy". He met Arch Riker in elementary school, they both made a lot of smart remarks about their teachers, and they stayed together all throughout their education. Then we come to Qwill's college years, where his life begins to sound like a country western-song - he gets engaged to a girl named Joy Wheatley, but she runs away to "find herself"; his mother dies. He goes into the service, but comes out with a trick knee that end the baseball career he had looked forward to since high school. He then goes into journalism, works his way to the top of the ranks, becoming a famed war correspondant, overseas reporter, and crime reporter. (He even writes a bestseller, City of Brotherly Crime.) He also marries an advertising executive named Miriam somewhere along the way (who greatly resembles Joy Wheatley). Then his life turns downhill again; he becomes addicted to alcohol and unable to keep a job, eventually becoming little better than a vagrant. Miriam and Qwilleran divorce, she goes insane and is committed to an asylum, and he gets steeped deeper and deeper in booze until, one frightful night, he falls in front of a subway train in a drunken stupor and is narrowly resuced by onllokers. After that, Qwilleran resolves to sober up, and, nine years after his divorce, he lands a job at The Daily Fluxion under his old friend Arch (an editor at the paper). He does not, however, start in immediately on his old beat; instead, he is assigned to cover subjects like modern art, interior decorating, antiques, and restaurant criticism. Along the way, of course, he picks up Koko and Yum Yum, both orphaned by murders he eventually solves. The managing editor plans to promote him to investigative reporter in The Cat Who Played Brahms, but Qwilleran goes away anyway on a vacation to Mose County, home of his Aunt Fanny (not actually a relative; Francesca Klingenschoen was a good friend of Qwilleran's mother). Fanny leaves him her entire passel o' bucks at the end of the book - with the condition that he remain in Moose County for a five-year period (which expires at the start of The Cat Who Moved a Mountain). Torn between his profession and unlimited wealth, Qwilleran takes the latter (a wise decision; Percy would've bumped him back to the restaurant beat the minute the first investigatee sued). He is not, however, greedy; he gives most of his income to the Klingenschoen Foundation, an organization he created to better Moose County through charitable contributions, investments, architectural preservation and restoration, and low-interest loans. During his stay, he founds the Moose County Something (in which appears his general-interest column, "Straight from the Qwill Pen") and meets who appears will be his lifelong companion, librarian Polly Duncan. At the end of five years, he decides to stay in Pickax, having found his home there. Qwilleran's hobbies are classical music, reading (especially Shakespeare), and, of course, taking care of his celebrated Siamese. He is six-foot-two, his birthday is May 24th, he is (by my calculations) fifty-seven years old, he takes a size 12 shoe, his blood type is O, his nickname is "Qwill", and his real first name is Merlin. His most distinguishing feature is, of course, his moustache.
Qwilleran Method, the - Qwilleran's tried-and-true approach to interviews that always manages to put his subjects at ease. It is composed, as Qwill notes in The Cat Who Could Read Backwards, of "two parts sympathy, two parts professional curiosity, and one part low blood pressure".
Riker, Arch - Arch Riker is Qwilleran's best friend from childhood and throughout the series. Though they lose contact during Qwilleran's "dark years" (see Qwill's bio), they meet again when Qwill takes a job at the Daily Fluxion, with Arch as the features editor over Qwilleran during his tenure there. After Qwill moves to Moose County (and after Arch is divorced in The Cat Who Played Post Office), Arch soon follows along. After a relationship with Amanda Goodwinter (well, it's not exactly a relationship - mostly they just seem to be occupying the same space at the same time quite often), Arch marries Mildred Hanstable and settles down to his job as publisher of the Moose County Something.
Riker, Mildred - See Hanstable Riker, Mildred.
Riker, Rosie - Arch's antique-collector first wife, with whom he has numerous children and is married for twenty-four years. Rosie eventually gains a small inheritance, goes back to college, gets a young boyfriend (or so Arch Riker intimates), and leaves Arch to buy The Junkery in Played Post Office.
River Road - Road on which Maus Haus is situated.
Robinson O'Dell, Celia - A giddy grandmother with whom Qwill teams up to crack the scammers of Went into the Closet. Celia eventually moves to Moose County, where she sort of takes over the Iris Cobb role (cook for Qwilleran, grandmotherly type, etc.) She and Qwill carry on a sort of "secret agent" game when he sends her on snooping missions during investigations, him sending her secret messages from "Q" with instructions to "memorize and flush" and such (Celia loves spy novels). Celia married Pat O'Dell in the interim between I<>Saw Stars and Robbed a Bank.
Roop, Charlotte - A straight-laced spinster who inhabits Maus Haus in The Cat Who Saw Red; in The Cat Who Lived High, she manages Robert Maus's restaurant. Charlotte's favorite pastime is crossword puzzles.
Sawdust City - The original county seat of Moose County, founded by the Trevelyans, a family of Welsh immigrants. Sawdust City threatened to secede from Moose County when the seat of government was shifted to Pickax for its central location, but the only change to come of that threat was an independent school system for Sawdust. Today, Sawdust City has a larger population than Pickax, but remains a largely unprogressive industrial town not nearly as hospitable and habitable as its rival.
schrank, the - Actually, the Pennsyvania German schrank, a piece of furniture which Iris Cobb saves from the junkyard in The Cat Who Played Post Office (Qwilleran was having the Klingenschoen mansion redecorated and the decorators were hauling all the old furniture out). Qwill gives it to Iris as a weddding gift in Knew Shakespeare, and Iris wills it back to him after her death.
Scottie - Tailor and proprietor of Scottie's Men's Shop. Scottie is (what else?) a true-blood Scot and can sell a lot to Qwilleran by burring his "r"'s. (I'm too tired to make a Star Trek joke at this point; feel free to fill in for me.)
Scottie's Men's Shop - The local men's clothing store in Pickax.
Shipwreck Tavern, The - A ritzy tourist restaurant and pub in Mooseville. Natives go there to disappear.
Short and Tall Tales - Qwill's planned anthology of legends and historical anecdotes about Moose County.
Sip 'n' Nibble - Wine and cheese emporium on Pickax's Stables Row owned and operated by Jerry Sip and Jack Nibble.
Skumble, Paul - Portrait artist from Lockmaster. He's done portraits of Polly and Qwill's mother (creating a remarkable resemblance of the woman based on only Qwilleran's memories, nothing else, in the latter case), among others.
Sloan's - Drugstore in Pickax.
Smith, Eddington - The quiet, unassuming rare-bookseller who runs "Edd's Editions" in Pickax. Edd's always ready for any occasion with an appropriate quote from one of the great literary masters. He also carries a gun everywhere he goes. (I like Edd, wish we saw more of him.)
Smith's Folly - Small town in Moose County founded by Eddington Smith's pirate ancestors.
Snoopy - Qwilleran's childhood nickname. (He was always snooping in other kids' lunchboxes.)
Somers, Dwight - Young public relations man for various enterprises 400 miles north of everywhere.
Something, The - See The Moose County Something.
Sorrel, Max - Fastidious owner of The Golden Pork Chop and rival for Rosemary Whiting's attentions in The Cat Who Played Brahms.
Split Rail Farm, the - Kristi Fugtree's goat-milk dairy.
Spoonery, The - A relatively new restaurant run by Lori Bamba specializing in gourmet soups. The fare is a tad too exotic for the Moose County palette, though, and Lois' Luncheonette has the lunch crowd in Pickax pretty much sewn up, so business at the Spoonery is typically lackluster.
Squunk water - Qwilleran's beverage of choice in Moose County; it comes from a spring near the town of Squunk Corners. Renowned for its healthful properties; so named for the Squunkberry vines once planted near the spring that supposedly lent the water its medicinal properties. (The spring was contaminated with some contraband moonshine during Prohibition; it's questionable whether Qwill is actually staying on the wagon by drinking it.)
Stables Row - A Klingenschoen-Funded line-up of restaurants and food markets behind Main Street in Pickax.
Sugbury, Walter - Young man who works at the Something as editor Arch Riker's secretary. Enjoys biking and origami.
Thumbprint Thelma - Waitress at the Hotel Booze named for the way she serves the establishment's famous giant Bearburgers (she had to use her thumb to keep the burger together).
Tibbitt, Homer - Nonagenarian former high school principal who is Moose County's chief historian. Homer is married to Rhoda Finney and likes to take a swig from his whiskey flask from time to time to fuel his research.
Tibbitt, Rhoda - See Finney Tibbitt, Rhoda.
Tipsy - How many cats do you know that have a steakhouse named after them? Well, meet Tipsy. Tipsy was an all-white cat, save for a patch of black on her head that drooped one of her eyes like a hat worn askew; she also had a deformed foot that made her walk crooked-like. She was brought in by the new owner in the 1930's; her sweet disposition and funny, drunken gait made the restaurant and revived the town of Kennebeck overnight. If we can believe the short story "Tipsy and the Board of Health" from The Cat Who Had 13 Tales (not a part of the Cat Who... series), she and her owner retired after Tipsy had a litter of kittens in the tavern; the board of health objected, due to board of health concerns. A controversy erupts in Knew a Cardinal over Tipsy's markings; her famed portrait that graces her namesake restaurant shows her with black "boots", though some Moose County old-timers remember her as having white legs; it turns out that the painting was retouched (and falsified) in the '40's at the request of another owner to give the painting "more oomph".
Tipsy's - A famed restaurant in the town of Kennebeck named for a well-liked cat that "worked" there in the '30's. The only items Tipsy's serves are steak, carrots, fries, coleslaw, and bread pudding, but it serves them well indeed, and there's a line for tables every night.
Toddwhistle, Mrs. - Mrs. Toddwhistle is rarely referred to as anything other than "Wally's mother". She's an overbearing talker and a seamstress.
Toddwhistle's Studio of Taxidermy - Wally Toddwhistle's place of business.
Toddwhistle, Wally - A young and talented taxidermist. Wally got expelled from Pickax High just short of graduation because of a silly prank (he placed a stuffed skunk on the prinicpal's chair), but he's been doing pretty well for himself with his taxidermy business nonetheless.
Toledo Tombs, the - A very fine (and very expensive) restaurant Down Below.
Toodle's Market - Pickax's local supermarket, where citizens can stock up both on groceries and gossip.
"Touch not the cat bott a glove" - Motto of the Mackintosh clan, inscribed on Qwilleran's Mackintosh crest that he bought from Mary Duckworth in Turned On and Off. (It means "don't touch the cat without wearing a glove" - i.e., don't delve into dangerous situations without taking proper precautions first.)
Toulouse - The black-and-white that Arch and Mildred Riker eventually adopt.
Trevelyan Road - The road that connects Qwill's apple barn to the rest of Pickax. A.K.A. the Trevelyan Trail.
Trawnto - Small lakeside Moose County resort town. The original settlers - Canadians who had sailed across the lake and national border - had wanted to name the town "Toronto", but the locals misunderstood their accents and took the town's name to be "Trawnto".
Turp & Chisel Club, The - A club for artists Down Below.
Villa Verandah, the - A posh yet poorly-built apartment complex Down Below that looks like a bent waffle. Harry Noyton lets Qwilleran move in his apartment for a spell while he's off to Europe in The Cat Who Ate Danish Modern.
William Allen - William Allen first was the mascot of the Pickax Picayune. After the Picayne building is destroyed, this white cat is missing for eleven months before Junior Goodwinter finds him again (in front of the unemployment office, appropriately). He now holds the position of General Manager at the Moose County Something.
Wheatley, Joy - The pixieish, capricious artist to whom Qwilleran was engaged as a young man. She skipped out on him, though, without explanation; it turns out that she got cold feet and was afraid of being tied down, so she ran off to California and became a successful potter. (Qwilleran never forgot her, though; it turns out that his ex-wife, Miriam, looked a lot like Joy.) Joy dies in The Cat Who Saw Red **(Saw Red: her husband murders her so that he can take credit for the incredible new potter's glaze she invented and thus claim the fame he's always yearned for)**; Qwilleran supposedly gets a "psychic message" from her spirit in The Cat Who Went Underground (though that whole book was crazy, so I really don't know what to say about that).
Whiting, Rosemary - One of Qwilleran's myriad love interests, Rosemary is a black-haired grandmother who retains her youthful appearance through health food. Rosemary is a Canadian; she owns (or owned - she was in a position to sell when she left the series) a health food store named Helthy-Welthy (ugh). Rosemary has a level, calm temperament and enjoys birdwatching (you could call her a prototype Polly). Koko, however, is not fond of her.
Wildcat - A small town south of Pickax named after a railroad accident that happened there in 1908 (it was previously named South Fork; "wildcat" is a railroad term for a train run amok). Wildcat was founded by the Cuttlebrinks.
Wilmot, Pender - An attorney in Pickax. Pender's presence is a bit of a mystery - he doesn't seem to have a specific relationship or rapport with anyone else in the county, or even much of a reason to be in the story, and his appearances thus have the flavor of guest star appearances.
Wilmot, Timmie - Pender Wilmot's bespectacled little brat.
Winston - The resident brown longhair at Edd's Editions. Winston is named after Winston Churchill, I believe.
Wojcik, Lieutenant - A skeptical, no-nonsense cop/detective from Down Below often seen in the city installments. Lieutenant Hames is his partner.
WPKX - Moose County's perpetually incompetent radio station, notorious for its skimpy, uninformative news bulletins.
Wright, Alacoque - Young architect with whom Qwilleran has a fling in The Cat Who Ate Danish Modern. At the time, she works as a clerk at an interior decorating studio. She breaks off the relationship just before the start of Turned On and Off, but she returns to Moose County in The Cat Who Knew Shakespeare for to supervise an architectural project in Pickax (and she and Qwilleran have good rapport as friends).
Wrigley - Celia Robinson's adopted black-and-white. Wrigley played a vital part in bringing down the fraud ring of Went into the Closet.
Yu - What millionaire George Bernard Tait claimed was the-cat-eventually-known-as-Yum Yum's name when she lived in his household. Since his wife was the cat's original owner, though, and since he showed very little affection for her after his wife's death, it's quite doubtful that "Yu" was ever Yum Yum's real name. In any case, "Yu" is Chinese for jade, the object of Tait's all-consuming obsession.
Yum Yum - Originally named Freya (or Yu, depending on who you talked to), Yum Yum first appears in The Cat Who Ate Danish Modern, where she lives with Signe Tait, wife of jade collector G. Verning Tait. After events run their course at the Tait estate, she is thrown out of mansion and home and adopted by Qwilleran, who names her after a character in the Gilbert & Sullivan play The Mikado, at the offhand suggestion of Dr. Highspight, a psy*cat*atrist. Yum Yum is slighter than Koko, with lighter brown features, blue-violet eyes, a wedge-shaped head, mottled gray-white whiskers, and a kink in the tip of her tail. She is not psychic (indeed, her mental powers overall seem limited at best), but she has a definite knack for thievery, earning her the nickname "Yum Yum the Paw". (Qwilleran calls her his "little sweetheart" in private; her favorite cutesy trick is "shamelessly" reaching up and touching Qwilleran's moustache with her paw.)
Zwinger Street - The main drag of Junktown, later changed to "Zwinger Boulevard" after the neighborhood's revitalization. Also called "Eat Street" due to its abundance of ethnic restuarants which must have popped up after Qwilleran's restaurant-reviewing stint - remember the horror that was the Petrified Bagel?).
B
Bamba, Lori - Wife of Nick Bamba. When she first appears, Lori holds the position of Postmistress in Mooseville; she soon quits, however, after she becomes pregnant and takes an at-home job as Qwilleran's personal secretary. Best-known in the series for her long, golden braids (which Koko and Yum Yum like to play with) and, more importantly, for being a knowledgeable authority on cats.
C
Canard Street - The street on which the Press Club is located.
D
Daily Fluxion, The - One of the two major newspapers Down Below. It was the first to give Qwilleran a prominent journalistic position after his bout with alcoholism; he wrestles with ill-fitting assignments (interior decorating, modern art, antiquing, and the gourmet beat, none of which he knows anything about at the time) in various feature departments during his tenure there. The Fluxion is much more responsible than its competitor, the Morning Rampage, but it's still more than willing to abandon its journalistic ethos and cash in on every cockamanie trend and craze - which Qwill is usually assigned to cover - to garner readers and ad revenues. Sometimes abbreviated to the Flux.
E
Edd's Editions - The small, dusty used bookshop run by Eddington Smith.
F
Finney Tibbitt, Rhoda - Sweet, hard-of-hearing wife of Homer Tibbitt.
G
Gage, Euphonia - Junior's wise, flamboyant grandmother with a penchant for purple and yoga and a verve for living. **(Went into the Closet: Well, not anymore; Euphonia was killed when she moved down to Florida into a trailer park operated by two con artists who swindled their tenants out of their cash, then murdered them. Euphonia also had an illegitimate daughter whom she gave up for adoption (but later employed as a maid); the daughter's husband eventually began blackmailing Euphonia to keep the matter secret.)**
H
Hackpole, Herb - Hackpole runs a used car lot in the early country episodes; he was once the school bully and worked for some time in Newark before moving back to Moose County. This rough character still causes (or caused) trouble; Qwilleran once brought him to court on account of his vicious dogs. Hackpole eventually marries Iris Cobb, but the marriage doesn't work out. **(Knew Shakespeare: Herb was hired by Gritty Goodwinter to doctor Senior's sportscar so it'd crash when it hit a certain loose plank in a bridge on Senior's way home - and also to torch the Picayune building so that Gritty could get the insurance money. He brags to Iris about it on their wedding night, Iris flees in sickness and horror, Hackpole burns down the Klingenschoen Mansion in an attempt to kill Iris and Qwilleran, but gets caught in the blaze and is roasted himself.)**
Inchpot, Lenny - College-age son of Lois Inchpot. Lenny is a tad amoral and smart-alecky, but he's not really a bad kid.
J
Jet Stream - Weatherman Wetherby Goode's cat.
K
Kao K'o Kung - See Koko.
L
Lambreth Gallery - A gallery that handles Down Below's best artists. Renamed the Bessinger-Todd Gallery by the time of Lived High due to a change in management.
M
Mac - Along with Katie, resident cat at the Pickax Public Library. Mac's name was chosen by random draw from patrons' suggestions. (As with Katie, bibliophiles really coulda thought of a more original name than "Mac" for a cat.)
N
Nasty Pasty, The - Restaurant in the Cannery Mall in Mooseville that serves tourist-fied pasties.
O'Dell, Pat - Qwilleran's elderly janitor and handyman; he performs the maintenance on the man's barn. Mr. O'Dell used to be the janitor at Pickax High before Hilary VanBrook canned him. Pat marries Celia Robinson in the interim between Saw Stars and Robbed a Bank.
P
Palomino Paddock, The - Prestigious (and pricey) five-star restaurant in Lockmaster with an equestrian theme. *The* place to take guests whom one wishes to impress.
"'If you write about them,' Homer said, 'tell the greenhorns from Down Below that they rhyme with nasty, not hasty. You probably know that Cornish miners came here from Britain in the mid-nineteenth century. Their wives made big meat-and-potato turnovers for their lunch, and they carried them down the mine shaft in their pockets. They're very filling. Takes two hands to eat one.'
Rhoda said, 'There's disagreement about the recipe, but the secret of the authentic pasty dough is lard and suet, and the authentic filling is diced or cubed beef or pork. Ground meat is a no-no! The filling is mixed with diced potatoes and rutabagas, chopped onion, salt and pepper, and a big lump of butter. You put the filling on a circle of dough and fold it over. Some cooks omit the rutabagas.'" (As an addendum, turnips are acceptable, too.)
Qwilleran, Dana - Qwilleran's father, who died shortly after his son's birth. Dana was once a (by all accounts exceptionally talented) actor, part of a traveling troupe. **(Robbed a Bank: The then-college-age Anne Mackintosh, Qwill's future mother, attended one of the troupe's performances in Chicago, fell for Dana, and ventured backstage to meet him. Dana returned her affections and decided to stay behind in Chicago and marry Anne. Their new existence together, however, is far from idyllic; Anne quickly gets pregnant, and Dana can't find much work other than shop help - and he gets fired from those later on, as he takes to drinking to cope with his new-found dire circumstances. To try to provide for his wife and child, he robs a bank in desperation, but is shot and killed in his escape.)**
R
Rice, Hixie - Qwilleran first meets Hixie at Maus Haus flighty, scatterbrained - yet often clever - girl with a job as a restaurant menu writer and a predisposition for chasing after married men. Eventually, she slims down, wises up, and comes to Pickax to be the publicity manager for the Moose County Something. (Alas, Hixie's luck in love never gets much better.)
S
Sandpit Road - Prominent road going out of Mooseville leading to Pickax, cutting through the former's Great Dune. So named because it was used for as a transport route for sand-hauling trucks during Mooseville's big sand-brokering days way-back when.
T
Teahandle, Burris, Hansblow, Maus, & Castle - The most prestigious law firm Down Below. Robert Maus is a junior partner there, until his boarding house's involvement in the events of The Cat Who Saw Red presumably cause his termination.
U
Unger, Fran - The flamboyantly-dresses women's editor at the Daily Fluxion who has designs on Qwill during his tenure there. She marries before Played Brahms and is no longer with the paper by the time of Lived High.
V
VanBrook, Hilary - Principal of Pickax High School for four years prior to Knew a Cardinal. VanBrook was a dictatorial, hated figure, but the educational reforms he brought to the school system - improved art and music programs and the teaching of Shakespeare - maintain his legacy. VanBrook's real name is William Smurple. **(Knew a Cardinal: VanBrook chose to assume an alias not merely out of aesthetics; he's a counterfeiter (though this doesn't really figure in much in his role in the book). He also doesn't have the extensive formal education he claims he does. (He seems to be doing pretty well without one, though. Stick it to the U.S. higher education system, Hilary!) He was murdered by his would-be heir, jockey Robbie Stucker, and his horse-trader "friend", Steve O-Hare (Robbie was his stableboy); Hilary had promised Robbie a large sum of money if he got a formal education and studied Japanese, but Robbie quit school to pursue his horsey interests, and Steve hoped to kill Hilary before he had time to change his will. Too late.)**
W
West Middle Hummock - A town in the Hummocks, home to many of Moose County's well-to-do.
X
XYZ Enterprises - A development firm in Moose County, headed by Don Exbridge (idea man), Caspar Young (contractor), and Dr. Zoller (financier). Hardly any of XYZ's ventures are built to last.
Y
Young, Caspar - Caspar Young is important only as the contractor of XYZ Enterprises. We never see him personally in the series.
Z
Zoller, Dr. - Pickax dentist who's the "Z" of XYZ Enterprises. Not much is really known about Dr. Zoller, much less his first name - he doesn't really come off as any palpable character in the series and is mentioned far more times than he actually appears.
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The Cat Who... series (The Cat Who Could Read Backwards and its sequels) and all its characters, places, and what-have-yous therein are the copyrighted property of Lilian Jackson Braun. Ronald Frobnitz and Family is an unofficial Cat Who... fan site and is not endorsed by or affiliated with Lilian Jackson Braun, G. P. Putnam's Sons, or anyone else involved with the production and publication of the Cat Who... series. Fighting evil by moonlight; writing news by daylight; with his Siamese to help fight! He is the one named Mr. Q! He is the one named Mr. Q! He is the one - Mr. Q! (sting on the soundtrack) *ahem* Sorry, I'm feeling a bit loopy after all those Goodwinters.