Duncan Pride

Duncan Pride
Created by Andrew Frazer (pseudonym of Stephen Marlowe; 1928- )

An All-American quarterback at Long Island's Wynant College, DUNCAN PRIDE was all set to go pro, the first round draft pick of the L.A. Rams. And then, on the eve of his NFL debut, Marty Moon's West Coast mob suggested he shave a few points. He refused, and Duncan Pride got this legs broken in three places as a result -- hardly conducive to a professional football career.

So big, brawny Duncan becomes a Los Angeles private eye, appearing in a couple of pretty decent Avon PBOs, Find Eileen Hardin-Alive! (1959) and The Fall of Marty Moon (1960), written by Milton Lesser but appearing under the pen name of Andrew Frazer.

Find Eileen Hardin-Alive! is some kind of long lost gem, occasionally reminiscent of Klute, as Duncan travels back East to help out an old flame whose teenage stepdaughter has apparently turned up in New York working as a call girl. But of course, there's more to it -- his former girlfriend has married Duncan's old coach, and Duncan's efforts to bring her stepdaughter home soon has him confronting gangsters, pimps, junkies and his own past. And if that's not enough for you, the senond novel has Duncan going up against the man who ordered his legs broken.

Lesser, of course, was better known as Stephen Marlowe, a name he adopted (possibly as a tip of the hat to Chandler) for his P.I. books featuring D.C. based shamus Chet Drum. In fact, Lesser eventually made Stephen Marlowe his actual legal name.

NOVELS

Find Eileen Hardin-Alive! (1959) ...Buy this book
The Fall of Marty Moon (1960) ...Buy this book