- Case
- When a Man Murders
- Year Published
- 1956
- Case Introduction
- May 1954. Three years after her multimillionare husband Sidney Karnow was reported MIA and presumed dead in Korea, Caroline remarried Paul Aubry. Six months later, Sidney has reappeared. Paul and Caroline seek Wolfe's help, only to find themselves facing a murder charge when Karnow is found dead in his hotel room.
- Notes
- Resolution
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Karnow had changed his will immediately before his disappearance, leaving everything to Caroline - thinking that it would be amusing for her to have to cope with his relatives. Jim Beebe had suppressed the revised will and let the earlier one stand, and wouldn't face the music.
Characters in the case:
First met Caroline a year after Sidney Karnow was reported MIA.
Character descriptionOwns Brandon and Hiawatha, an automobile agency, bought with the help of his wife Caroline.
Reserved notes for this case
Drew up Sidney Karnow's will. Formerly engaged to Ann Savage.
Character descriptionAttorney.
Reserved notes for this case
Anonymously notified the cops of Karnow's murder. Fritz prepared Squabs with Sausage and Sauerkraut and Fritz's Liver Pate during this case.
Character descriptionMaster chef in Wolfe's kitchen, has a small apartment in the basement. (In "Fer-De-Lance," his apartment is across from the plant room, not in the basement.) Swiss; native French speaker, served in WWI. Uninterested in murder, except whether a client is in the offing; gets anxious about household finance when Wolfe isn't working. Doesn't like to talk while cooking. Changes to his old slippers at 9 pm because of "things left on his feet by the war to remember it by". Implied he was a member of the Swiss Alpine Patrol during WWI.
Reserved notes for this case
Archie gave him an exclusive after Purley took Paul and Caroline away.
Character descriptionReporter at the Gazette. Dark skin, dark brown eyes. Neat little face, slick black hair. Neatest (card) shuffler Archie knows.
Reserved notes for this case
Knows full well that Archie entered Karnow's room, even though he can't prove it, and wants to know exactly what he did there.
Character descriptionInspector with NYPD, Homicide. Has tolerate / hate relationship with Wolfe. He respects Wolfe, but is greatly irritated by his eccentricities. Habitually chews (but rarely lights) cigars. Notably, Cramer lights a cigar in Wolfe's office during "Instead of Evidence" in which the murder weapon is an exploding cigar! First name is given as Fergus one time, but generally accepted as Lionel. Had a son in the Army Air Corps during WWII. Archie has called Mrs. Cramer on the phone more than once to reach the Inspector at home. Archie's favorite alias for him is "the man about the chair" or "any name with a double "d", e.g., Mr. Judd".
At no time is Inspector Cramer ever referred to in the books as "Lionel T." Cramer; his first name is given as "Fergus" in "Where There's a Will." There is a lone later reference to him as L.T.C. (The Silent Speaker), but never Lionel. Stout's biographer, John McAleer, asked Stout to explain the "Fergus"/"L.T.C" discrepancy; Stout replied: "No significance. Laziness. I didn't bother to check on whether he already had a first name. Of course, all discrepancies in the Nero Wolfe stories are Archie Goodwin's fault." (from "Royal Decree; Conversations with Rex Stout)
He is featured in a book by Stout called Red Threads, first published 1939, tracking down a killer with a young fashion designer. There is no reference to Nero Wolfe.
Reserved notes for this case
Wanted to chat with Archie during his visit to the Churchill Towers.
Character descriptionFirst Assistant Security Officer at the Churchill.
Reserved notes for this case
Ann has a witty exchange with Archie at Police Headquarters.
Character descriptionAttractive. Fast-paced wit. Married to Norman Horne.
Reserved notes for this caseDeclares Jim Beebe to be the killer of Sidney Karnow in the final scene in Wolfe's office.
Married Ann Savage after her engagement with Jim Beebe was broken.
Character descriptionFormer college football player (Yale). Spends his time harkening back to his glory days. Lives on his wife's money.
Reserved notes for this case
Hires Wolfe to convince husband Sidney to grant her a divorce.
Character descriptionWife of Sidney Karnow.
Reserved notes for this caseCaroline kisses Wolfe on both cheeks after he proves her husband innocent of murder.
Missing and presumed dead in Korea, but returned to New York a few years later to find that his wife Caroline had remarried.
Character descriptionEccentric millionaire.
Reserved notes for this case
*Not* one of the two ADAs who rate a corner office.
Character descriptionAssistant district attorney in New York City.
Reserved notes for this case
Inherited nearly 1/3 of a million dollars from Karnow, who was her sister's son; until then, she had been living on his money. She wasted her inheritance by living high.
Character descriptionSidney Karnow's aunt, mother of Ann and Richard. Fat.
Reserved notes for this case
Inherited nearly 1/3 of a million dollars from Karnow, at which time he quit his job as a broker; he's been unemployed ever since, unless you count chasing women.
Character descriptionSidney Karnow's cousin, son of Raymond and Margaret Savage.
Reserved notes for this case
Immediately after being notified of the murder, showed up at the brownstone seeking Paul and Caroline.
Character descriptionInitially an employee in N.Y. D.A.'s office. Later Cramer's man.
Detective (sergeant). Unfriendly.
Reserved notes for this case
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