John Dortmunder

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John Archibald Dortmunder is a fictional character created by Donald E. Westlake. Dortmunder first appeared in the novel The Hot Rock, published in 1970. Westlake originally intended The Hot Rock to feature his character Parker and to publish it under his Richard Stark pseudonym. However, the plot involves a precious gem that is stolen, lost, stolen again, lost, etc., which seemed too comic a situation for a hard-boiled creation like Parker. Westlake therefore rewrote the novel with a more bumbling and likable cast of characters.

Dortmunder is similar to Parker in several ways. First, he is a career criminal and a "planner," creating schemes for robberies and assigning responsibilities to his team. Second, he is also tall and has a disreputable face. Third, he shares a home with a long-term girlfriend, in this case named May, a supermarket cashier; they live in Manhattan on East 19th Street. Unlike Parker, however, Dortmunder is a nonviolent character who devises schemes that are usually outlandish and over-the-top.

Very little is known of Dortmunder's childhood. It is mentioned in more than one book that he was raised in an orphange in Dead Indian, Illinois, run by the Bleeding Heart Sisters of Eternal Misery.

All-purpose crook Andy Kelp is Dortmunder's best friend, though Dortmunder would be the first to deny this. Cheerful and optimistic where Dortmunder is dour and, well, the exact opposite of optimistic, Andy is boundlessly enthusiastic and full of (sometimes questionable) ideas. Because Andy has brought Dortmunder many eventually-unsuccessful jobs, Dortmunder has been known to call Andy a jinx.

Other members of Dortmunder's usual string include the carrot-topped driver Stan Murch; Murch's cab-driver mother, usually referred to as "Murch's Mom," though her first name is eventually revealed as Gladys; and Tiny Bulcher, 'man mountain' and thuggery specialist. The group usually meets in the back room of the O.J. Bar and Grill on Amsterdam Avenue.

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[edit] Literary comparisons

Westlake's John Dortmunder can be compared and contrasted with Bernie Rhodenbarr, the creation of long-time peer and associate Lawrence Block. Rhodenbarr is a 'gentleman burglar', by day the owner of an antiquarian bookshop and by night the thief of high-priced items such as stamp and coin collections. Dortmunder, on the other hand, is an equal-opportunity thief, more proletarian in nature and more egalitarian in choice of loot.

The most significant difference between the two popular criminal protagonists is motivation: Rhodenbarr steals for pleasure and Dortmunder for sustenance. Rhodenbarr often comments to the reader that while he could make ends meet on the proceeds of his bookshop alone, he would continue to break and enter for the thrill of it. Dortmunder, according to his loyal companion May, needs to know that he's stone-flat broke to get up in the morning at all.

Another interesting comparison can be drawn with the character of Rincewind in the Discworld novels of Terry Pratchett, with whom John shares the trait of extreme pessimism brought on by a seemingly endless supply of bad luck. Dortmunder does not share Rincewind's obsession with the potato.

[edit] Novels

  • The Hot Rock (1970)
  • Bank Shot (1972)
  • Jimmy the Kid (1974)
  • Nobody's Perfect (1977)
  • Why Me? (1983)
  • Good Behavior (1985)
  • Drowned Hopes (1990)
  • Don't Ask (1993)
  • What's the Worst That Could Happen? (1996)
  • Bad News (2001)
  • The Road to Ruin (2004)
  • Watch Your Back! (2005)
  • What's So Funny? (2007, forthcoming)

[edit] Shorter Works

  • Thieves' Dozen (2004), a collection of ten Dortmunder short stories and one related story
  • "Walking Around Money" (2005), a novella in the anthology Transgressions, edited by Ed McBain.

[edit] Films

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