Harvey characters

Appears from the start

A courteous, unhurried man whose closest companion is Harvey, an invisible white rabbit more than six feet tall. Elwood introduces Harvey to everyone he meets and treats the friendship as entirely ordinary. His fondness for conversation and drinks with strangers embarrasses his socially ambitious sister, but his generosity makes him notably contented and well liked.

Appears from the start

Elwood's widowed sister, who shares the Dowd house with him and her daughter. She loves her brother but believes his public references to Harvey have ruined the family's social standing. Hoping to give Myrtle Mae a conventional future, she decides to have Elwood committed to a sanitarium.

Appears from the start

Veta's unmarried daughter and Elwood's niece. She wants friends, romance, and a place in local society, and shares her mother's conviction that Elwood's talk of Harvey frightens away visitors and prospective suitors.

Appears from the start

A rabbit-like pooka whom Elwood describes as his constant companion. Harvey is invisible to most people, stands well over six feet tall, and appears to possess abilities that ordinary explanations cannot comfortably account for.

Appears from the start

The senior psychiatrist who runs Chumley's Rest. Proud of his institution and his professional judgment, he initially accepts the hurried conclusion that Elwood is delusional and that Veta has been admitted by mistake.

Appears from the start

A young psychiatrist at Chumley's Rest. After hearing Veta's agitated account of an enormous rabbit, he diagnoses her instead of Elwood and releases Elwood, setting the institution's staff on a frantic effort to reverse the error.

Appears from the start

A nurse at Chumley's Rest who assists Sanderson and is personally drawn to him despite their professional friction. She participates in admitting Veta and gradually responds to Elwood's unfailing consideration.

Appears from the start

An attendant at Chumley's Rest who relies on physical force when handling patients. His rough treatment of Veta creates both outrage and an unexpected spark of interest from Myrtle Mae.

First appears in chapter 2

The Dowd family's lawyer and an old acquaintance of Veta and Elwood. Veta calls on him when the sanitarium commits her in Elwood's place, and he helps press Chumley to find Elwood and correct the error.

First appears in chapter 3

A taxi driver who brings Elwood and Veta to the sanitarium near the end of their ordeal. His practical observation about the personality changes caused by Chumley's treatment forces Veta to decide what sort of brother she actually wants.