Joe Leaphorn
Encyclopedia
Lieutenant Joe Leaphorn is a fictional character
created by American mystery
writer Tony Hillerman
, one of two officers of the Navajo Tribal Police
that feature in a number of novels. The other officer is Jim Chee
.
. As a result of this non-Indian education, Leaphorn is not as well-versed in Navajo tradition as the younger officer Chee. Leaphorn's approach to his cases is informed by some Navajo, or Dine
, tradition, but is also influenced by Anglo-European logic. Leaphorn is somewhat untutored in his own culture and is resistant to some Navajo
taboos. But at the same time, he realizes that many traditional Navajo still hold such beliefs and often act on them in a violent manner. Leaphorn is called the "Legendary Lieutenant" by many members of his staff, and some of the younger policemen (especially Chee) hold him in awe.
Leaphorn lives in the Navajo capital of Window Rock, Arizona
. In his career he worked in a number of locations, including a brief stint training at the FBI headquarters in Washington, D.C.
His longest assignment appears to have been in Tuba City, Arizona
.
Leaphorn is also featured in television dramatizations of some Hillerman novels, played on the American television network PBS by actor Wes Studi
, a member of the Cherokee Nation
.
In his autobiography Seldom Disappointed
(2002), Hillerman reveals that he named Leaphorn after the ancient Minoan
practice of bull-jumping, as he was reading a book on Minoan culture while writing his first novel.
The most notable feature of Leaphorn's method of police work is his large, color-coded map. It is an enlargement of an old auto club road map of the Four Corners area. On this map he marks different kinds of crimes with different-colored pins - red-headed pins stand for alcohol-related crimes, for example. This process then allows him to notice patterns that link various crimes together, and helps him solve them. Leaphorn eventually retires, and promptly begins working as a private investigator; he frequently gives Jim Chee advice (though never unsolicited). Leaphorn does not enjoy retirement. His contacts throughout the Southwest, and his renown, lead him into a number of cases, even after his active police career is over.
In earlier books, Lieutenant Leaphorn is married to the love of his life, Emma. However, she dies between Skinwalkers
and A Thief of Time
. Later, Leaphorn becomes attracted to an anthropologist named Louisa Bourbonette, who he meets while working on a case in Coyote Waits. In Listening Woman, his mother is Anna Gorman and his maternal grandfather is Klee-Thlumie.
The Lieutenant's nickname among Hillerman fans is "Lovely Leaphorn."
, Leaphorn was played by Fred Ward
.:)
Three of the Hillerman novels (Skinwalkers
, Coyote Waits
, and A Thief of Time
) were adapted for television as part of the PBS series Mystery!
, as part of its American Mystery! specials. In these adaptations, Leaphorn was played by actor Wes Studi
. Robert Redford
also serving as the executive producer
in all four film adaptations.
Fictional character
A character is the representation of a person in a narrative work of art . Derived from the ancient Greek word kharaktêr , the earliest use in English, in this sense, dates from the Restoration, although it became widely used after its appearance in Tom Jones in 1749. From this, the sense of...
created by American mystery
Mystery fiction
Mystery fiction is a loosely-defined term.1.It is often used as a synonym for detective fiction or crime fiction— in other words a novel or short story in which a detective investigates and solves a crime mystery. Sometimes mystery books are nonfiction...
writer Tony Hillerman
Tony Hillerman
Tony Hillerman was an award-winning American author of detective novels and non-fiction works best known for his Navajo Tribal Police mystery novels...
, one of two officers of the Navajo Tribal Police
Navajo Tribal Police
The Navajo Nation Police is the law enforcement agency on the Navajo Nation in the Southwestern United States. It is under the Navajo Division of Public Safety. It is headed by a Chief of Police, six Police Captains and eight Police Lieutenants...
that feature in a number of novels. The other officer is Jim Chee
Jim Chee
Jim Chee is one of two Navajo Tribal Police detectives in a series of mystery novels by Tony Hillerman. Unlike his superior Joe Leaphorn, the "Legendary Lieutenant", Chee wants to be a staunch believer in traditional Navajo culture; indeed, he is studying to be a traditional healer at the same...
.
Profile
Leaphorn, the older of the two policemen, is a realist who was educated in boarding schools operated by the Bureau of Indian AffairsBureau of Indian Affairs
The Bureau of Indian Affairs is an agency of the federal government of the United States within the US Department of the Interior. It is responsible for the administration and management of of land held in trust by the United States for Native Americans in the United States, Native American...
. As a result of this non-Indian education, Leaphorn is not as well-versed in Navajo tradition as the younger officer Chee. Leaphorn's approach to his cases is informed by some Navajo, or Dine
Navajo Nation
The Navajo Nation is a semi-autonomous Native American-governed territory covering , occupying all of northeastern Arizona, the southeastern portion of Utah, and northwestern New Mexico...
, tradition, but is also influenced by Anglo-European logic. Leaphorn is somewhat untutored in his own culture and is resistant to some Navajo
Navajo Nation
The Navajo Nation is a semi-autonomous Native American-governed territory covering , occupying all of northeastern Arizona, the southeastern portion of Utah, and northwestern New Mexico...
taboos. But at the same time, he realizes that many traditional Navajo still hold such beliefs and often act on them in a violent manner. Leaphorn is called the "Legendary Lieutenant" by many members of his staff, and some of the younger policemen (especially Chee) hold him in awe.
Leaphorn lives in the Navajo capital of Window Rock, Arizona
Window Rock, Arizona
Window Rock is the seat of government and capital of the Navajo Nation, the largest territory of a sovereign Native American nation in North America. Window Rock contains the Navajo Nation Council, the Navajo Nation Zoological and Botanical Park, as well as the Navajo Nation World War II Memorial...
. In his career he worked in a number of locations, including a brief stint training at the FBI headquarters in Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
His longest assignment appears to have been in Tuba City, Arizona
Tuba City, Arizona
Tuba City is a census-designated place in Coconino County, Arizona, United States. The population was 8,225 at the 2000 census. It is the Dine' Nation's largest community, slightly larger than Shiprock, New Mexico. The Hopi town of Moenkopi lies directly to its southeast.The name of the town...
.
Leaphorn is also featured in television dramatizations of some Hillerman novels, played on the American television network PBS by actor Wes Studi
Wes Studi
Wesley "Wes" Studi is a Cherokee actor, who has earned notability for his portrayal of Native Americans in film. He has appeared in well-received Academy Award-winning films, such as Kevin Costner's Dances with Wolves, Michael Mann's The Last of the Mohicans, the award-winning Geronimo: An...
, a member of the Cherokee Nation
Cherokee Nation
The Cherokee Nation is the largest of three Cherokee federally recognized tribes in the United States. It was established in the 20th century, and includes people descended from members of the old Cherokee Nation who relocated voluntarily from the Southeast to Indian Territory and Cherokees who...
.
In his autobiography Seldom Disappointed
Seldom Disappointed
Seldom Disappointed: A Memoir is the 2001 autobiography of author Tony Hillerman. The title reflects the attitude that he learned as a child living on a farm in Oklahoma; if one learns not to have unrealistic expectations, one will often be pleasantly surprised and seldom disappointed....
(2002), Hillerman reveals that he named Leaphorn after the ancient Minoan
Minoan civilization
The Minoan civilization was a Bronze Age civilization that arose on the island of Crete and flourished from approximately the 27th century BC to the 15th century BC. It was rediscovered at the beginning of the 20th century through the work of the British archaeologist Arthur Evans...
practice of bull-jumping, as he was reading a book on Minoan culture while writing his first novel.
The most notable feature of Leaphorn's method of police work is his large, color-coded map. It is an enlargement of an old auto club road map of the Four Corners area. On this map he marks different kinds of crimes with different-colored pins - red-headed pins stand for alcohol-related crimes, for example. This process then allows him to notice patterns that link various crimes together, and helps him solve them. Leaphorn eventually retires, and promptly begins working as a private investigator; he frequently gives Jim Chee advice (though never unsolicited). Leaphorn does not enjoy retirement. His contacts throughout the Southwest, and his renown, lead him into a number of cases, even after his active police career is over.
In earlier books, Lieutenant Leaphorn is married to the love of his life, Emma. However, she dies between Skinwalkers
Skinwalkers (novel)
Skinwalkers a mystery novel, is the seventh book by author Tony Hillerman.-Plot summary:When an unknown assailant tries to kill Officer Jim Chee by firing a shotgun into his trailer, and three other people are found murdered in different locations around the Navajo reservation, Chee and Lieutenant...
and A Thief of Time
A Thief of Time
A Thief of Time is the eighth novel by author Tony Hillerman.The plot involves the Anasazi, a missing archeologist, a stolen backhoe, and people who are termed "pot hunters".Characters include Joe Leaphorn and Jim Chee....
. Later, Leaphorn becomes attracted to an anthropologist named Louisa Bourbonette, who he meets while working on a case in Coyote Waits. In Listening Woman, his mother is Anna Gorman and his maternal grandfather is Klee-Thlumie.
The Lieutenant's nickname among Hillerman fans is "Lovely Leaphorn."
Appearances in other media
In the 1991 theatrical film adaptation of The Dark WindThe Dark Wind
The Dark Wind is the second Tony Hillerman novel to feature Officer Jim Chee. Recent college graduate Jim Chee has just taken a job with the Navajo Tribal Police in Arizona, where he helps keep the peace with his superior Captain Largo on land earmarked for joint use by the Navajo and the Hopi...
, Leaphorn was played by Fred Ward
Fred Ward
Freddie Joe "Fred" Ward is an American actor. He began his career in 1979 alongside Clint Eastwood in Escape from Alcatraz. He is best known for his starring roles in the motion pictures Remo Williams, Tremors, Henry & June, Short Cuts, The Right Stuff and Exit Speed...
.:)
Three of the Hillerman novels (Skinwalkers
Skinwalkers (novel)
Skinwalkers a mystery novel, is the seventh book by author Tony Hillerman.-Plot summary:When an unknown assailant tries to kill Officer Jim Chee by firing a shotgun into his trailer, and three other people are found murdered in different locations around the Navajo reservation, Chee and Lieutenant...
, Coyote Waits
Coyote Waits
Coyote Waits is a novel by Tony Hillerman. It was adapted as a TV film, which aired in 2003.-Coyote Waits :The plot involves rock formation vandalism, a dead policeman, an elderly Navajo accused of his murder, a bottle of expensive scotch, and a book on Navajo witchcraft beliefs.This book...
, and A Thief of Time
A Thief of Time
A Thief of Time is the eighth novel by author Tony Hillerman.The plot involves the Anasazi, a missing archeologist, a stolen backhoe, and people who are termed "pot hunters".Characters include Joe Leaphorn and Jim Chee....
) were adapted for television as part of the PBS series Mystery!
Mystery!
Mystery! is an episodic television series that debuted in 1980 in the USA. It airs on PBS and is produced by WGBH...
, as part of its American Mystery! specials. In these adaptations, Leaphorn was played by actor Wes Studi
Wes Studi
Wesley "Wes" Studi is a Cherokee actor, who has earned notability for his portrayal of Native Americans in film. He has appeared in well-received Academy Award-winning films, such as Kevin Costner's Dances with Wolves, Michael Mann's The Last of the Mohicans, the award-winning Geronimo: An...
. Robert Redford
Robert Redford
Charles Robert Redford, Jr. , better known as Robert Redford, is an American actor, film director, producer, businessman, environmentalist, philanthropist, and founder of the Sundance Film Festival. He has received two Oscars: one in 1981 for directing Ordinary People, and one for Lifetime...
also serving as the executive producer
Executive producer
An executive producer is a producer who is not involved in any technical aspects of the film making or music process, but who is still responsible for the overall production...
in all four film adaptations.