Dale "The Whale" Biederbeck
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Dale "The Whale" Biederbeck is a recurring villain from the TV show Monk, appearing in 2 episodes so far. In season 1, he is played by Adam Arkin and in season 2 by Tim Curry, both in fat suits. Biederbeck is arrogant, brilliant, rich, and ruthless. He claims to own half the city, and have controlling interest in the other half. He gets his nickname from his morbid obesity (attributed to the death of his mother); he is unable to leave his bed and controls his vast empire from his bedroom.
In "Mr. Monk Meets Dale the Whale", a judge makes a 911 call, saying that Dale is killing her. The problem is that this isn't possible, since Dale is too fat to walk, let alone get out of his room and kill someone. Monk solves the case and catches Dale's personal doctor, who promptly turns state's evidence on Dale.
During this episode we find out that Monk has severe hatred and bitterness towards Dale because he sued Trudy and Monk over an article she published about him; she called him "The Genghis Khan of world finance". Even though he knew he couldn't win the case, Biederbeck kept pumping money into the trial, forcing Monk and Trudy to shell out costs. Eventually, they had to sell their house, in which Biederbeck now claims to store his pornography. As Trudy died before the trial ended, Monk blames Dale for stealing the last years of her life.
The next time we see Biederbeck is in the Season 2 Finale "Mr. Monk Goes to Jail". He is adjusting to life in prison easily. He has a personal servant, luxurious furniture, a TV, just about everything one would not normally find in a prison—everything except a window. He hires Monk to solve the murder of an inmate who was brutally poisoned less than an hour before his execution. The man had owed Biederbeck $1,200, so Biederbeck became a suspect. Monk agrees that Dale isn't the culprit, since $1,200 is petty change to him ("I wouldn't bend over to pick up $1,200, even if I could"). Dale mentions that he wouldn't normally be concerned over something like this, except that until the case is solved and Biederbeck is proven innocent, they will not put in the window.
In return, Dale offers Monk information concerning who killed Trudy. Even though Sharona tells him not to, Monk takes the case on the off-chance that Biederbeck is telling the truth. After the case is solved, Dale reveals that Trudy was indeed the intended victim of the car bomb. He also said that Monk should look for a Warrick Tennyson in Manhattan. This gives Monk his first real lead on Trudy's death. Eventually, Monk finds Tennyson in the Season 3 Premiere, so Biederbeck was telling the truth after all.
| MONK | |
| Current Main Characters | Adrian Monk | Natalie Teeger | Captain Leland Stottlemeyer | Lieutenant Randy Disher |
| Secondary Characters | Charles Kroger | Trudy Monk | Ambrose Monk | Dale "The Whale" Biederbeck | Julie Teeger |
| Former Characters | Sharona Fleming | Benjy Fleming |
| Related Articles | Episode List | Monk soundtrack | Mr. Monk Goes to the Firehouse | Mr. Monk Goes to Hawaii | Mr. Monk and the Blue Flu |
| Official Website | Official site |
