The Thin Man characters

Appears from the start

A former private detective visiting New York for the Christmas holidays with his wife, Nora. Nick has left professional investigation behind to manage her financial interests, but his old police and underworld acquaintances still treat him as a detective and the Wynant family presses him to help with a murder.

Appears from the start

Nick's wealthy, quick-witted wife and enthusiastic partner. She is amused rather than intimidated by his criminal acquaintances and wants him to investigate the Wynant affair, partly from curiosity and partly because she enjoys seeing him exercise his old skill.

Appears from the start

The adult daughter of inventor Clyde Wynant. Troubled by her father's unexplained absence and the disorder of her family, she turns to Nick, whom she remembers from his earlier work for Clyde, for reassurance and help.

Appears from the start

An eccentric, wealthy inventor and a former client of Nick's. Recently divorced from Mimi, he is said to be traveling on secret business and communicates only through instructions and letters handled by others.

First appears in chapter 2

Clyde Wynant's secretary and former lover, found shot in her apartment. She handled his business while he was away and had connections to criminals, so her death makes the missing inventor the focus of police attention.

First appears in chapter 3

Clyde's former wife and the mother of Dorothy and Gilbert. Dramatic, evasive, and protective of her own position, she has remarried but remains deeply involved in the mystery surrounding Clyde and Julia Wolf.

First appears in chapter 3

Dorothy's younger brother, an intense and eccentric student of abnormal behavior. He observes his family's distress with unsettling curiosity and supplies Nick with theories that are more revealing about Gilbert than about the crimes.

First appears in chapter 3

Mimi's current husband and stepfather to Dorothy and Gilbert. Urbane and frequently absent, he has his own reasons for avoiding close examination by the police.

First appears in chapter 4

Clyde Wynant's lawyer and financial representative. He presents himself as the reliable intermediary between the missing inventor and the family, receiving messages and attempting to carry out Clyde's business instructions.

First appears in chapter 5

The police lieutenant leading the investigation into Julia Wolf's murder. He knows Nick by reputation, alternately seeking his help and suspecting that the retired detective knows more than he admits.

First appears in chapter 12

A small-time criminal and police informer with knowledge of Julia Wolf's associates. He tries to turn what he knows into money, making himself dangerous to the person responsible for her death.

First appears in chapter 9

A criminal associate of Julia Wolf who becomes a suspect after her death. Armed and distrustful of the police, he brings the investigation's underworld connections directly into Nick and Nora's hotel suite.