RARA-AVIS: Wolfe Sub-Genre? Holmes a P.I.? HB Cop Procedural?

Rick Robinson (rkr@pacbell.net)
Tue, 13 Jan 1998 11:07:05 -0800 I know this is a hard-boiled list, don't get excited when you read the
questions below. But inquiring minds want to know and this is the place
for opinions that count. Also: no flaming, I'm fighting the flu,
medicated to the gills and may not be thinking clearly :-) though I do
seem to be able to float at will, which is cool.

Question # 1
What sub-genre do Rex Stout's Nero Wolfe novels/stories fit into? Is
there any way they could be considered "hard-boiled"?

Questions # 2
Is Sherlock Holmes a P.I.? Why/why not?

Question # 3
Is there / could there be such a thing as a hard-boiled police
procedural?

No doubt it will be the "purist line" from subscribers of this list, but
who knows? When you answer, it would be nice if you explained your
reasoning instead of just saying "yes" or "no".

Enough for today, now where did I put that box of Kleenex?

Rick
#
# To unsubscribe, say "unsubscribe rara-avis" to majordomo@icomm.ca.
# The web pages for the list are at http://www.vex.net/~buff/rara-avis/.