List of Cluedo characters
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The board game Cluedo (Clue in North America) and the associated 1985 film Clue contains six murder suspects, five of whom survive into the new 2002 edition of the game. The typically represent "types" or stock characters of European and American high society, as typified in the murder mysteries pioneered by Dame Agatha Christie. The characters have also become stock types in pop culture, and served as the basis for an Australian advertising campaign by photographer Richard de Chazal, with each character being photographed with one of the weapons and in one of the rooms from the game.
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[edit] Characters in the English versions of the game
[edit] Colonel Mustard
Colonel Mustard is the stock character of a Great White Hunter and colonial buffoon. He is a military man with a European heritage and a tendency for botching things, both dignified and dangerous. As with many of the male characters, the Colonel is rumored to have an affair with Miss Scarlet in some sources. Mustard is sometimes portrayed as a rival to Dr. Black. In one scenario, Mustard was paid a vast sum of money to write an autobiography of his adventures in the Punjab, from which he was mustered out . He has not gotten very far in the book, but has quite gone through most of the money. He travels to Dr. Black from halfway across the world to speak with him on a matter of grave importance, and tends to sleep with a revolver under his pillow. There is a rumor from the movie that he made a sum of money stealing radio parts during the war and selling them on the black market. In the book series, his years of fighting have made him extremely trigger happy, and he will not hesitate to brandish his revolver at any (almost always imagined) threat. In America, Col. Mustard is usually portrayed as an old buffoon, but in Europe, he has been depicted many times as very young and handsome with a more intelligent look.
Mustard frequently is given the first name of Michael. In Master Detective his first name is given as Algernon and in the original book series his name is Martin. He has also been called Ivor in the Cluedo Armchair Detective book, and Lewis in the computer game. He frequently wears typical African safari clothes and a monocle and has a bushy moustache. In Clue Junior, he is known as Mortimer Mustard.
He was played by Martin Mull in the 1985 film.
[edit] Miss Scarlett/Miss Scarlet
Miss Scarlett (Miss Scarlet in the North American version) is the stock femme fatale character. She is typically portrayed as young, cunning, and beautiful. When the game was made in 1949, she was a dumb blonde. A 1972 redesign of her features led to speculation that she was of Asian ethnicity. In 1996, Miss Scarlett became a sinister brunette with sexy looks. In a recent version, she is the beautiful (and somewhat ditzy) daughter of Mrs. Peacock; in at least one CD-ROM version, she is billed as the niece (and theoretical heir) of Mr. Boddy. The two editions that deal heavily on her characterization are very different. In Master Detective, she is a ruthless "mercenary" who will stop at nothing that would gain her a profit. Her looks are plain but her expression more sinister than others. 2003 she is described as a childish yet beautiful actress with a fondness for dating perverted, old rich men. Unfortunately for the recent depiction, her dumb personality and her lecherous interests leave an uncertain motive for her to kill Mr. Boddy/Dr. Black (though it is implied that it may have to do with her possible relationship to Mr. Boddy's uncle, Sir Hugh Black). Her looks in this manifestation are bland. In the VCR game, her character (again of Asian ethnicity) is a sexy, cunning spy with Col. Mustard as her worthless henchman.
As tradition goes, she is usually always named Vivianne Scarlett, but she has had many other first names including Evelynne in a Swiss edition, Diana in the computer game, Cynthia, Ming/Gloria in Germany, Ivana Belaid in the recent edition, and others. In the book series, the character is named Charlotte Scarlett. In various forms of Clue Junior, she is known as either Samantha Scarlet or Vivianne. In Clue Mystery, her name is Josephine.
By tradition, it is wise to play as Scarlett, because she always plays first in the game.
She was played by Lesley Ann Warren in the 1985 film.
Kurt Vonnegut writes, in Fates Worse Than Death, that his friend, Kedikai Lipton ( half Japanese, half Irish) , is Miss Scarlett pictured on the box of the Parker Bros game CLUE.
[edit] Professor Plum
Professor Plum is the stock character of Absent-minded professor. Often depicted as either a young or middle aged fellow with a bow tie and glasses, he is widely seen by many characters as the most intellectual and knowledgable, particularly about poisons. The movie suggests that he is a psychiatrist. Most of the canon states that he is an archaeologist, who has a past he would rather clam up about, including a possible question about his writings. The VCR game gives him the occupation of a college chemistry teacher dealing mostly with poison who is Dr. Black's son-in-law. In some editions he is an older man with a moustache (something of an Albert Einstein look-alike), this is prominient in the early British edition and some out-dated American editions. other times however he is depicted as a very young man who is closer to Miss Scarlet's age. His personality ranges from confused and bumfuzzled to serious and in deep-thought.
He has been given many names including Albert, Peter, Paul in the book series, Jonathan in the computer game and Edgar in Master Detective. He is Peter Plum in Clue Junior.
Christopher Lloyd played Plum in the 1985 film. His performance would seem to indicate, through his facial expressions and lewd leering, that Plum is something of a pervert.
[edit] Mr. Green/Reverend Green
Mr. Green or Reverend Green has two very different manifestations. As Reverend Green, he is the stock type of snake oil salesman, a hypocritical evangelist. By all accounts, he is not really a graduated reverend. He donned the ways of the cloth, but uses them to fleece the flock as a traveling evangelist. He appears to have stopped travelling at last, being named as a Reverend in Hampshire, where the game of Clue takes place most of the time. It is here where he has made contact with the extraordinarily wealthy Dr. Black, and this is quite a lucrative prospect for him.
Until 2002, he was known simply as Mr. Green in North American versions of the game. His new stock character became that of mobster or corrupt business tycoon, complete with a cigar, greasy suit, and sweaty sort of paunch. Mr. Green represents the very essence of greed (possibly because green is the color of American bank notes), fitting nicely with his new stock persona. Allusions to the mafia have remained until the 2002 version.
The English Reverend Green is different from the above owing to different stereotypes in English culture. On the one hand, snake oil salesmen and travelling evangelists are less common in England, while the English, being a less religious nation than Americans, are less cautious about mocking organised religion. Accordingly, in England the Rev. Green is an Anglican vicar (parish priest). In the original board game he has a bland face and red ears and looks rather 'soft', but as they say 'still waters run deep' he may have a dark secret that he is willing to go to desperate lengths to protect. On the Cluedo game show he has been portrayed as everything from a bumbling do-gooder who becomes wild when his favourite cause is threatened to a crafty old cleric who may well know some of the church's dirtiest secrets.
Rev. Green has had the many names of Jonathan (John), Colin in the computer game, Horatio, Gerald in the book series and Thallo in Master Detective. The Clue Junior parallels to Green are Georgie and Johnny and at one point, Reverand Green becomes a girl called Greta Green.
He was played by Michael McKean in the 1985 film. He was portrayed as a hapless homosexual man in the film, though the last of the three given endings reveals him as an undercover FBI agent, with his homosexuality being part of his ruse.
[edit] Mrs. White
Mrs. White is usually the stock portrayal of frazzled servant, but has also had a couple divergent characterizations. The movie portrays Mrs. White as a serial husband-killer, a black widow type. More frequently, Mrs. White is regarded as the housekeeper at Black Manor, appearing in a traditional maid's costume. The only difference between the games is that sometimes she is young, as in the Franklin Mint edition or the 1985 release. More commonly, she is an elderly lady. She is often seen to have been Dr. Black's illicit lover, and to have known all his secrets. This characterization is given a tongue-in-cheek humor by having Smithers cast as Mrs. White in the Simpsons version of the game, with Mr. Burns as the deceased host. In the book series, she is somewhat lazy, occasionally outright refusing to fulfill her assigned duties; fortunately for her, Mr. Boddy's astoundingly non-confrontational nature allows her to get away with it. Most sources agree that Mrs. White is rather bitter towards her employer, in addition to being colorblind. Supposedly, she shares this latter flaw with Sgt. Gray.
White bears the first name Blanche in nearly all versions except for the computer game where her name is Anna, the Armchair Detective game where her name is Beryl and the Clue book series where her name is Wilhelmina and Wilma. She is known as Wendy White in Clue Junior.
She was played by Madeline Kahn in the 1985 film, where she was portrayed as a black widow.
[edit] Mrs. Peacock
Mrs. Peacock is the stock character of grande dame. She represents an elder woman, who maintains her dignity in almost all cases and almost all versions. She is the owner of Arlington Grange in Cluedo. According to post-2002 Clue games, she is the mother (or sometimes stepmother) of Miss Scarlet, who drags Scarlet along for the ride (this is debatable), which leaves questions as to Scarlet's motive to kill Boddy/Black. True to her characterization, Mrs. Peacock is often portrayed as obsessed with breeding, "good society", gossip, manners, and wealth. Clue Master Detective reveals that she is an ornithologist, president of the 'Peacock salvation society,' of which she is founder and sole member, having single-handedly saved the logger-headed shrike. In the VCR game, she is given a more sinister persona as a kleptomaniac who kills off her husbands as a hobby.
She has been given names of Henrietta in Master Detective, Samantha in the computer game, Elizabeth pre-2002, Patricia post-2002, and Penelope. She is known as either Polly or Lizzie in Clue Junior.
Interestingly, while all of the other characters need to move at least eight spaces to enter a room from their starting positions, Mrs. Peacock needs to move only seven.
She was played as a corrupt Senator's wife by Eileen Brennan in the 1985 film.
[edit] Mr. Boddy/Dr. Black
Boddy/Black is the owner of Boddy/Black Manor who takes the stock character of a generic colourless victim. In Clue, he is the unseen host who is murdered, in which inspires the premise to mind to discover who murdered him, with what implement, and where the crime scene took place in his mansion. In the film, he was supposedly disguised as the butler (with the real butler posing as him). His personality is not known but most likely not well liked as he gets killed often. In the book series, he is portrayed as a well-meaning but sometimes rather stupid young man whose capacity for forgiveness is almost staggering, considering one of his guests kills him at the end of each novel and yet he accepts their claim that it was "just an accident" at the start of the next novel. Mr. Boddy is usually depicted as a man in his 20's or 30's, while Dr. Black is depicted more middle aged in one edition. In America and Canada he is known as Mr. Boddy while other places refer to him as Dr. Black.
The 2002 North American edition of Clue attempts to reconcile these differences by stating that while his true name is Dr. John Boddy, he is often called Dr. Black by his neighbors after his well-known deceased uncle, Sir Hugh Black. In the book series, his name is Reginald, in America his name is commonly John, and in Britain, he is mostly named David.
Mr. Boddy was played by Lee Ving in the 1985 film.
[edit] Characters appearing in Cluedo Master Detective and UK Super Cluedo Challenge
[edit] Miss Peach
An American Southern Belle type who claims to be Boddy's long-lost stepniece. When pressed, she decided on short notice to take a vacation in the country. Any country. Her favorite flower is deadly nightshade. Nearly every variation and update of Clue has included Miss Peach, leading some to consider her the seventh "canon" guest. Her character traits and looks are similar to the earlier Miss Scarlets. She also has been considered as Miss Scarlet's rival as the youngest suspect. Clue Mysteries confirms this. Her first name is presumedly Georgia (pun likely intended). She starred in Clue FX as an innocent investigator of the murder of Mr. Meadow-Brooke, which means Mr. Green-Blue. In the British version, Miss Peach is the local schoolteacher, and is usually engaged to either Dr. Black or Mr. Slate-Grey. Her name in Britain is supposedly Emily. She was mentioned in the recent 'Clue Mysteries' book series as Georgia Peach, a friend of Miss Scarlet.
[edit] Monsieur Brunette
An art and arms dealer, Monsieur Brunette is the English stereotype of a French artiste. In laters editions, he would be replaced by Prince Azure, M. Brunette nearly made a killing in Paris, producing the missing arms of the Venus D'Milo. His business is in ruins now because Boddy has questioned some of the works of Alphonse Brunette sold him. He is a man of many talents, many accents, and many passports. This is the only board game he appeared in, but he did feature in the VCR Mystery games. In Master Detective, he is depicted as a young man with a stereotypical French buret along with thick dark brown hair and moustache. This is similar to his depiction in the VCR games except that he is older and sports an eyepatch. In Europe, Brunette is depicted as clean shaven handsome beau. Gone are the stereotypical French accessories.
[edit] Madame Rose
Madame Rose represents the stock character of fortune teller and medium. The Clue VCR game suggested that she was Mr. Boddy's sister, but the board game states she is his secretary. It is possible that she might, in fact, be both. She resigned from his office and moved to Hungary to set up a shop as a seer, when, in a trance, she saw Mr. Boddy's death. She left her shop a few days later and took a very slow boat back to England, and when she got to Tudor Close, she discovered she was too late. Or was she . . . ? Usually, she is portrayed as an obese, middle-aged Hungarian, this is the same for the VCR games. However in Europe, she is much more refined as she is younger and skinnier, dumping the haggard look.
[edit] Sergeant Grey
Sergeant Grey is less a stock character than most. He appears at first to be a police hero come to save the day, but is later shown to be either a corrupt blackmailer or even an escapee from an insane asylum. Seeing things as either black or white, his approach to solving crime is unimaginative and straightforward. His expression Master Detective is serious and no-nonsense unlike the VCR games where he is displayed as mentally unhinged and frazzled. In Europe, he is a much older plump man similar to the old versions of Mr./Rev. Green complete with the scarce of hair. Unlike other two Sgt. Greys, he is displayed with a more wealthy look, losing the police outfit. This perhaps suggests that he is either not here on business or he is at the mansion in a disguise of a regular rich guest. In Passport to Murder, he is no longer a sergeant but has become either an Earl or a Count. He is replaced by Lord Grey in Clue FX, as well as Mr. Slate-Grey in many Cluedo versions.
[edit] Captain Brown
Featured only once, in the Super Cluedo Challenge. Presumably a drunk who thinks he's a ladies man. His name is supposedly Robert.
[edit] Mr. Slate-Grey
Also featured only in Super Cluedo Challenge, Graham Slate-Grey has the distinction of being the only character in Britain with only a "mister" in front of his name.
[edit] Mrs. Boddy
The mother of Mr. Boddy and sister of Dr. Black. In the film, her character was replaced by Mrs. Ho, the cook. In UK Super Cluedo Challenge, She is mentioned but not seen. She was befriended by Mrs. Peacock. She appears to be an old woman in a formal dress and she wears diamond earrings with white hair and glasses.
[edit] Clue FX
Recently Hasbro released a new game of Clue called Clue FX. It's an electronic taking version with audio voices and clues. The victim in this version is no longer Mr. Boddy or Dr. Black but is Mr. Meadow-brook. Along with it came some new characters.
[edit] Lady Lavender
An herbalist who possibly poisoned her husband, Lord Lavender, Lady Lavender is an honorable lady who tends to be a slight bit of a trouble-maker at times. Her Oriental heritage is reminiscent of the earlier Miss Scarlets (Circa. 1972-1992). In Clue FX, she was an innocent investigator of the death of Mr. Meadow-Brooke.
Interestingly, in the Clue Junior book series, there is a stock character named Mrs. Lavender.
[edit] Mrs. Meadow-Brooke
Wife of the deceased Mr. Meadow-Brooke whose murder investigation was headed by Miss Peach with the aid of Lady Lavender, Prince Azure, and Lord Grey. She is situated on a turquiose base, correlating with her Namesake (Meadow/Green, Brook(e) /Blue)She is the local gossip according to Clue cannon, and she and Mr. Meadow-Brooke were strongly implied to have severe marital problems.
[edit] Prince Azure
An art and arms dealer, possible partner to M. Brunette, Azure has both an elusive royal lineage and a knack for cashing in on it. This indicated a master fraud and manipulator. He is known to have a rivalry with Colonel Mustard, and an intense dislike for Mr. Boddy, but he is not a suspect in anybody's deaths thusfar. He is the first black character in official Clue canon.
[edit] Rusty Naylor
Crusty and old, Rusty is the gardener at Tudor Mansion. He makes his first appearance in Clue FX as a suspect in the murder of Mr. Meadow-Brook(e). He returned in Clue Mysteries and the Clue DVD Game. Not much is known about this character, save minor details hidden throughout the games. It is strongly implied that Rusty, whose last name is given as Nayler, is soon to retire on a pension set aside for him, which may explain why he is not present in the original version of Clue. Either this, or both Nayler and Ashe are on vacation during the murder.
[edit] Lord Grey
Grey is a hard color for Clue to decide how to use, as MD gave us Sgt. Grey and FX gave us Lord Grey as an investigator who looked more like a director or a journalist. We later learned that he designs water gardens.
[edit] Film and DVD
[edit] Yvette
A young and rather revealingly-dressed French maid, she appears in the 1985 movie. She speaks English only passably and with an accent. This character was only in the film, i.e. not in any of the games. Although she is murdered late into the movie, she is still considered a prime suspect. She was played by Colleen Camp.
[edit] The Butler
The butler is rarely used in Clue, but when he is, he is usually a character that is most connected with the watching audience. In 1985, the butler was the lead character in Clue: The Movie, and was played by Tim Curry. He appeared as a handsome Englishman named Wadsworth, who was always ever so neat and tidy with his butling. There might be more to him however then it seems. Because he was the one who organized the whole gathering, he appoints himself as the de facto of the group. Also in 1985, the butler appeared in the VCR games. This time named Didit, he provided interaction with the audience to describe the rules and gameplay. The butler has also maded unnamed appearances in the computer games. In the recent editions, the butler has made a promonient appearance as Mr. Ashe. He usually plays the role that is generally engaged with the audience. The Butler also appears for a humorous moment or two in the movie clip sequences. He was called Hogarth in the special Cluedo Super Sleuth and was not a suspect. Instead he was there to either help or thwart players.
[edit] The Inspector
The Inspector works for Scotland Yard, and is mentioned in a couple of Clue games. He is named Inspector Brown in Clue (2003), Cluedo SFX, Clue Mysteries, and is a narrator on the Clued DVD Game. In Cluedo Super Sleuth, he is Inspector Gray and either helps or thwarts the players.
[edit] Mrs. Ho
The chef at Hill House. Initially, she was meant to be Mr. Boddy's mother, but, because the creators could find no way to place that into the story she was simply cast as Mrs. Ho, or more commonly, "the Cook." Her character was very minor as she was only in two promonient scenes. Her infamous "knife pointing" scene and her bashing the gong. She can also been seen waddling back in forth in the kitchen during the dinner. Despite her early death, there is much more to her than there appears to be. She was played by Kellye Nakahara in the film.
[edit] See also
[edit] References
[edit] Books
Except as noted, the original hardcover books were published by Turtleback, and had various authors. Later paperback reissues are credited "Book created by A.E. Parker", and are published by Scholastic Press. Dates below are for the first publication. ISBNs are for the paperback reissue.
- Who Killed Mr. Boddy?, by Eric Weiner (1992) ISBN 0-590-46110-9
- The Secret Secret Passage, by Eric Weiner (1992) ISBN 0-590-45631-8
- The Case of the Invisible Cat, by Eric Weiner (1992) ISBN 0-590-45632-6
- Mystery at the Masked Ball, by Eric Weiner (1993) ISBN 0-590-45633-4
- Midnight Phone Calls, by Eric Weiner (1994) ISBN 0-590-47804-4
- Booby Trapped, by A. E. Parker and Eric Weiner (1994) ISBN 0-590-47805-2
- The Picture Perfect Crime, by Jahnna N. Malcolm (1994) ISBN 0-590-48735-3
- The Clue in the Shadows, by A. E. Parker (1995) ISBN 0-590-48934-8
- Mystery in the Moonlight, by Marie Jacks (1995) ISBN 0-590-48935-6
- The Case of the Screaming Skeleton, by Marie Jacks (1995) ISBN 0-590-48936-4
- Death by Candlelight, by Marie Jacks (1995) ISBN 0-590-62374-5
- The Haunted Gargoyle, by Marie Jacks (1996) ISBN 0-590-62375-3
- The Revenge of the Mummy, by Marie Jacks (1996) ISBN 0-590-62376-1
- The Dangerous Diamond, by Marie Jacks (1996) ISBN 0-590-62377-X
- The Vanishing Vampire, by Marie Jacks (1996) ISBN 0-590-13742-5
- Danger After Dark, by Dona Smith (1997) ISBN 0-590-13743-3
- The Clue in the Crystal Ball, by Dona Smith (1997) ISBN 0-590-13744-1
- Footprints in the Fog, by Dona Smith (1997) ISBN 0-590-13745-X
[edit] Other media
- Jonathan Lynn (Director). (1985). Clue [Film]. USA: Paramount.
- Landis, John; Jonathan Lynn (1985). Clue (script). AwesomeFilm.com. Retrieved on 2006-07-25.
[edit] External links
- Clue official web site
- Suspect bios (official site)
- Clue the Musical cast
- Extensive Clue Collection and Fan Discussion Forums TheArtofMurder.com
