The deaf man
Encyclopedia
The Deaf Man is a character in the 87th Precinct
series of police procedurals by author Ed McBain (pseudonym of Evan Hunter
).
The Deaf Man is a criminal mastermind who appears in a number of the novels, usually plotting some spectacular crime while sending clues to the 87th Precinct, as if daring the detectives there to thwart him. In most of the stories, these clues are intended to mislead the police, directing them away from The Deaf Man's real goal.
The Deaf Man is not actually deaf, but this is just another layer of disguise and misdirection. He wears a hearing aid
, and uses odd pseudonym
s referring to deafness. Examples include "L. Sordo" ("el sordo" means "the deaf man" in Spanish), "Mort Orecchio" (roughly "dead ear" in Italian) and D. R. Taubmann ("der taube Mann" meaning "the deaf man" in German). When he calls the detectives of the 87th, he'll commonly start the conversation with some version of "You'll have to speak up. I'm a little hard of hearing," and his main "nemesis" at the 87th Precinct (at least the one he contacts the most) seems to be Det. Steve Carella (who always feels a sense of irony since he is married to a deaf-mute); each one has bullet wounds inflicted by the other, Carella from a shotgun in The Heckler and The Deaf Man from Carella's service revolver in Fuzz. The Deaf Man even had Carella mugged and his badge/police ID stolen in Let's Hear It For The Deaf Man!, which he has since used to impersonate Carella.
The Deaf Man was last seen in "Hark!" (2004). The ending of "Hark!" leaves the Deaf Man still free, and presumably able to plot more mischief for the 87th Precinct at some later time.
The Deaf Man appears in the following 87th Precinct novels:
In other 87th Precinct novels where The Deaf Man does not appear, characters on occasion make reference to him and his crimes.
In the movie version of Fuzz, he was played by Yul Brynner.
87th Precinct
The 87th Precinct is a series of police procedural novels and stories written by Ed McBain. McBain's 87th Precinct works have been adapted, sometimes loosely, into movies and television on several occasions.-Setting:...
series of police procedurals by author Ed McBain (pseudonym of Evan Hunter
Evan Hunter
Evan Hunter was an American author and screenwriter. Born Salvatore Albert Lombino, he legally adopted the name Evan Hunter in 1952...
).
The Deaf Man is a criminal mastermind who appears in a number of the novels, usually plotting some spectacular crime while sending clues to the 87th Precinct, as if daring the detectives there to thwart him. In most of the stories, these clues are intended to mislead the police, directing them away from The Deaf Man's real goal.
The Deaf Man is not actually deaf, but this is just another layer of disguise and misdirection. He wears a hearing aid
Hearing aid
A hearing aid is an electroacoustic device which typically fits in or behind the wearer's ear, and is designed to amplify and modulate sound for the wearer. Earlier devices, known as "ear trumpets" or "ear horns", were passive funnel-like amplification cones designed to gather sound energy and...
, and uses odd pseudonym
Pseudonym
A pseudonym is a name that a person assumes for a particular purpose and that differs from his or her original orthonym...
s referring to deafness. Examples include "L. Sordo" ("el sordo" means "the deaf man" in Spanish), "Mort Orecchio" (roughly "dead ear" in Italian) and D. R. Taubmann ("der taube Mann" meaning "the deaf man" in German). When he calls the detectives of the 87th, he'll commonly start the conversation with some version of "You'll have to speak up. I'm a little hard of hearing," and his main "nemesis" at the 87th Precinct (at least the one he contacts the most) seems to be Det. Steve Carella (who always feels a sense of irony since he is married to a deaf-mute); each one has bullet wounds inflicted by the other, Carella from a shotgun in The Heckler and The Deaf Man from Carella's service revolver in Fuzz. The Deaf Man even had Carella mugged and his badge/police ID stolen in Let's Hear It For The Deaf Man!, which he has since used to impersonate Carella.
The Deaf Man was last seen in "Hark!" (2004). The ending of "Hark!" leaves the Deaf Man still free, and presumably able to plot more mischief for the 87th Precinct at some later time.
The Deaf Man appears in the following 87th Precinct novels:
- The Heckler (1960)
- Fuzz (1968)
- Let's Hear it for the Deaf Man! (1972)
- Eight Black Horses (1985)
- Mischief (1993)
- Hark! (2004)
In other 87th Precinct novels where The Deaf Man does not appear, characters on occasion make reference to him and his crimes.
In the movie version of Fuzz, he was played by Yul Brynner.