I conducted the following interview with my detective, Spencer Manning, based on questions posed by readers. Some questions led to follow-up questions, and I had to cull out some questions that would have given away plot occurrences. I’ll follow up with interviews of other characters in the future.
QUESTION:
You are a big Cubs fan. Who is your favorite Cub?
SPENCER:
(He laughs) “I’d have trouble coming up with one. How about three?”
All right, give me three, but then see if you can narrow it down to one.
“Hmmm. Okay. The three are Ernie Banks, Ron Santo, and Billy Williams. There were better players, but you just won’t find three who loved the game more. It was such fun to watch them. What a shame that they never got to play in a World Series.”
Can you pick one of those three?
“If you’re forcing me to, I guess it would be Ernie. ‘Let’s play two’ will go down in history. But that’s a really tough choice.”
QUESTION:
Do you think the Cubs will win the World Series in your lifetime?
SPENCER:
(He laughs again) “Well, the odds would say yes, but after what they did last year (1984), I think they are capable of defeating the odds. I don’t know if you follow baseball, but the Cubs were up two games to none against San Diego in the national league pennant playoffs and lost. It was the first time a national league team had come back from a two to nothing deficit.”
Do you think the goat was involved?
(He laughs again) “I’ve never believed in curses, but I’m beginning to think maybe there’s something to it.”
QUESTION:
How do you stay awake during the day? You don’t seem to get much sleep at night when you have a case.
SPENCER:
“I never have needed much sleep. I had night duty in the army, and I guess I just haven’t gotten back on a regular schedule. When I’m involved in something I find it hard to stop thinking about it.”
So are you a morning person or a night person?
“I think I’m both. I’m up by six and usually don’t get to be until midnight.”
QUESTION:
If you weren’t a detective, what other profession would you like to do?
SPENCER:
“That’s a good question. I haven’t thought much about it. With a cop for a dad, I grew up wanting to be a cop. But I knew the rules and regulations would not be easy for me to live with, so this was a good option.”
So, you’re willing to break the rules?
“I guess I have at times, but usually I just bend them. I’m willing to do most anything to right a wrong.”
Back to the question. If you weren’t a detective?
“I always thought it would be fun to be an astronomer. Mom and Dad got me a telescope when I was five. We spent a lot of nights looking at the sky. Those are some of my best memories. Being able to work at one of the big telescopes would be awesome. I actually did look into it.”
What stopped you?
“Physics, and calculus, and other courses I couldn’t even pronounce. Those people are really smart!”
QUESTION:
Where were you and what were you doing when JFK was shot?
SPENCER:
“That’s an easy one. I was at home sick from school. I was watching TV when they broke in with the news. At first, I was mad because the show was interrupted, but it was obviously very sad. When I told Mom she thought I was making it up.
QUESTION:
Do you ever think about Kelly Green? Do you ever hear from her? Do you think you’ll ever see her again?
SPENCER:
“I do think about her once in a while. We had fun. I don’t know if I’ll see her, but I wouldn’t mind. No, I never heard from her again. Her father was evidently pretty upset about the danger in Chicago. Don’t know as how I blame him.”
QUESTION:
What was your most challenging case, and what was your favorite case?
SPENCER:
“I’ll start with the second part. That would be the Riverview case where we broke up the racket with the kids. But I would call it rewarding rather than favorite. I hate seeing kids being mistreated. But that case had its sadness too, what with what happened with Steele. The most challenging was the one with the frame shop. That was very involved… having to figure out what was going on in two locations. But I had some good help.”
It must have been a challenge just driving back and forth!
(He laughs) “Yes, I got to where I could do it in my sleep.”
QUESTION:
You seem to have a soft spot for kids. Do you want some of your own?
SPENCER:
“I love kids, and I hate seeing them taken advantage of or mistreated. Hence my favorite case that you asked me about. I had a great childhood with two parents who loved me. But losing them was obviously devastating. And given my medical problem I don’t think I’d want to take a chance on that happening to kids of my own.”
QUESTION:
Your relationship with Rosie is… complicated. Do you think you’ll ever marry her?
SPENCER:
(He laughs again) “Yes, I guess complicated is a good word. We’ve had our ups and downs, but we do love each other. Marriage goes back to my last answer. Hard to have a relationship with that hanging over your head. It just wouldn’t be fair.”
QUESTION:
You’ve ended some of your cases by helping people, such as Maxine and Sarah. How does that make you feel? What prompts you to be so generous?
SPENCER:
“I obviously would like to have my parents back, but they left me well taken care of. So, in that way I’m very lucky. I can help people who don’t have the money to pay for it. And with Maxine and Sarah, I’ve just been in the right place at the right time. Aunt Rose needed someone, and I had someone who needed her. Especially with Maxine, I really enjoyed being able to help make such a great change in her life. She deserved a break. I like to share my good fortune.
QUESTION:
You’re an excellent shot, but you don’t like to carry a gun. I would think in your profession you would always carry a gun. Why don’t you?
SPENCER:
“I don’t know that I have a good answer to that. I’m against taking a life, but I will if it comes to self defense or saving someone else. I’ve had discussions with Stosh and Rosie about it. They’ve pointed out that if I don’t want to take a life I should be in some other business. But it’s also very rewarding to solve cases and help people who have been harmed. The best answer might be that it’s just not that comfortable carrying a concealed weapon.”
QUESTION:
What do you like to read? Who is your favorite author?
SPENCER:
“I’ve read a lot of mysteries. Dad read me mysteries before I knew how to read. So I grew up with Sam Spade and Philip Marlowe and Nero Wolfe. By the time I was six, I’d heard everything Dashiell Hammett and Raymond Chandler and Rex Stout wrote. And not long after, I read them all myself. I loved that hard-boiled detective fiction. But Mom wasn’t happy that I was only hearing detective stories, so she introduced me to Dickens and Steinbeck. I have read many other fiction writers, but those two are my favorite.”
What are your favorite books?
“It’s hard to pick out a favorite. All of theirs are good reads. But I’ve read The Big Sleep and The Maltese Falcon more times than any of the others. They are friends I keep going back to.”
How about Steinbeck and Dickens?
“Again, hard to pick one, but Of Mice and Men stands out. And when I was a kid I really liked Great Expectations. I identified with Pip.”
QUESTION:
Your relationship with Stosh is certainly special. How did that develop?
SPENCER:
“Special is a good word for him!” (He laughs) It didn’t really develop. He was just always there. As far as I knew he was always a member of the family. He and Dad obviously met through the department. I guess they just really hit it off and became best of friends. Now he and Aunt Rose are all I have left. I don’t know what I’d do without him.”
QUESTION:
That’s all I have, Spencer. Do you have anything you’d like to add?
SPENCER:
“Just that I’m very lucky in many ways and happy doing what I do. I’ve met some wonderful people.”
Thanks for your time.
“Thank you.”