Nero Wolfe

Nero Wolfe, dubbed "America's largest private detective" by William S. Barring Gould because of Wolfe's immense weight, was created by Rex Stout, who wrote over forty novels and novelettes featuring Wolfe. Having had an adventurous youth in the turmoil during and after World War I in his native Montenegro, Wolfe now works as a private detective who seldom leaves his house on West 35th Street in midtown Manhattan; he prefers a quiet life of tending orchids, drinking copious quantities of beer, and eating gourmet meals prepared by his Swiss chef, Fritz Brenner.

Archie Goodwin, Wolfe's assistant, does the legwork. He also chronicles Wolfe's cases, telling the tales in the first person. In much of detective fiction told by associates of the detectives, the associate often seems just along for the ride or, if he or she participates in detection, does so rather ineptly--think of Sherlock Holmes's Dr. Watson or Philo Vance's "Van" Dine, who is so inconsequential to the narrative that he was omitted from even the movies that were based on the Vance novels. Archie is a tough, witty, and perceptive detective whose legwork and conclusions materially aid Wolfe to solve the cases.

Over the years, numerous attempts have been made to adapt Nero Wolfe to broadcast media. Most of them met with limited success. My own opinion is that Nero Wolfe is just too big to fit into a half-hour format; the complex plots and the interplay between the characters, particularly between Wolfe and Archie, resist compression. I submit that the absence of any Nero Wolfe short stories supports this.

The stories here 1950-51 NBC series starring Sydney Greenstreet represent one of the best of these efforts. Greenstreet is excellent as Wolfe, and Stout heartily approved of his portrayal (Greenstreet also had the right physique for Wolfe). Archie is portrayed by several different actors during the run of the series. All the scripts were original stories written for radio. My own favorite is "The Brave Rabbit".

Other notable adaptions include the 2001-2002 CBC television series, A Nero Wolfe Mystery, which is superb, and the 1982 CBC radio series, Rex Stout's Nero Wolfe, which is also excellent.

For more information, visit The Wolfe Pack.

Series description provided by Frank Bell.