created by louise fitzhugh

"Description is good for the soul and clears the brain like a laxative."
-- Ole Golly

flashlight Click on Harriet's flashlight next to the character's name to see Fitzhugh's drawing of the character

= Harriet's notebook entry about the character

Abbreviations used: SB=Suzuki Beane | HTS=Harriet the Spy | LS=The Long Secret | NFIGC=Nobody's Family Is Going to Change | Sp=Sport

flashlight Agatha K. Plumber : a wealthy woman who's a regular on Harriet's spy route. Never gets out of bed. Owner of the infamous dumbwaiter and of the Shark's Tooth Inn in Water Mill. (HTS; LS)
HOW DOES SHE PAY FOR ANYTHING JUST LYING THERE? I GUESS SHE JUST LIVES ON HER HUSBAND'S MONEY. DOES MY MOTHER MOOCH OFF MY FATHER?

Angela Whitehead : the dean of The Gregory School. (HTS)
MISS WHITEHEAD HAS BUCK TEETH, THIN HAIR, FEET LIKE SKIS, AND A VERY LONG HANGING STOMACH.

Aunt Carrie : Sport's mother's sister (Sp)

flashlight Beth Ellen Hansen : the prettiest girl in Harriet's class, despised by everyone. Harriet's best friend in the summer. Nickname: Mouse. (HTS; LS; Sp)
MAYBE BETH ELLEN DOESN'T HAVE ANY PARENTS. I ASKED HER HER MOTHER'S NAME AND SHE COULDN'T REMEMBER. SHE SAID SHE HAD ONLY SEEN HER ONCE AND DIDN'T REMEMBER IT VERY WELL. SHE WEARS STRANGE THINGS LIKE ORANGE SWEATERS AND A BIG BLACK CAR COMES FOR HER ONCE A WEEK AND SHE GOES SOMEPLACE ELSE.

Boy with the Purple Socks : one of Harriet's classmates. So boring no one ever bothered to learn his name. Real name: Peter Matthews (HTS)
TODAY A NEW BOY ARRIVED. HE IS SO DULL NO ONE CAN REMEMBER HIS NAME SO I HAVE NAMED HIM THE BOY WITH THE PURPLE SOCKS. IMAGINE. WHERE WOULD HE EVER FIND PURPLE SOCKS?

flashlight Bunny Maguire : an older man Beth Ellen has a crush on. Plays the piano at the Shark's Tooth Inn. (LS)

Carrie Andrews : one of Harriet's classmates (HTS)
CARRIE ANDREWS HAS AN UGLY PIMPLE RIGHT NEXT TO HER NOSE.

Cathy : a longtime member of the Children's Army, leader of the Anne Frank Brigade, who recruits Emma and her three classmates Saunders, Goldin and Ketchum (NFIGTC)

Charlotte Vane : Sport's money-hungry mother (Sp)

Chi-chi Ramon : Sport's classmate at his new public school. Works as a busboy at the Plaza. (Sp)

Cook : an employee in the Welsch household. Harriet frequently collides with her. (HTS)
THIS COOK CERTAINLY MAKES A LOT OF NOISE. MAYBE WE COULD GET A QUIETER COOK. I CAN'T EVEN HEAR MYSELF THINK.

flashlight Cynthia Martin : Henry Martin's mother. Wealthy socialite; calls Suzuki Beane a "a mah-vo-lous creature, a baby beatnik." (SB)

Dei Santi Family : owns a grocery store on Harriet's spy route. Consists of Mama, Papa, their oldest son, Bruno; obstinate 18-year-old son, Fabio; beautiful 17-year-old daughter, Maria Elena; bland 14-year- old daughter, Franca; and 7-year-old Dino. (HTS)
ONCE I THOUGHT I WANTED TO BE FRANCA AND LIVE IN THAT FAMILY. BUT SHE'S SO DULL IF I WAS HER I COULDN'T STAND MYSELF. I GUESS IT'S NOT MONEY THAT MAKES PEOPLE DULL.

flashlight Dipsey Bates : Ginny Sheridan's brother. Teaches tap dancing to his nephew, Willie. (NFIGTC)

Dr. Andrews : Carrie Andrews' father and apparently Harriet's family doctor. (HTS)
I WONDER WHY HE DOESN'T CURE THAT PIMPLE ON CARRIE'S NOSE?

Dr. Wagner : psychiatrist who treats Harriet (HTS)
FUNNIEST NOSE I HAVE EVER SEEN. RUNS RIGHT DOWN THE MIDDLE OF HIS FACE LIKE A SNAKE. HE REMINDS ME SOMEWHAT OF PINKY WHITEHEAD BUT HE'S NOT NEARLY AS REPULSIVE. HE HAS RED HAIR AND FUNNY TEETH. THEY ARE SORT OF YELLOW AND LONG. THIS OFFICE SMELLS OF CIGARS AND CHALK. I BET HE PLAYS WITH THOSE TOYS AFTER EVERYONE LEAVES.

Egbert : Charlotte Vane's chauffeur (Sp)

flashlight Emma Sheridan : the 11-year-old protagonist in Nobody's Family Is Going to Change. Wants to be a lawyer, in spite of her father's insistance that it's not a realistic career choice for a young woman. Gets involved in a children's rights activist group called the Children's Army. (NFIGTC)

flashlight George Waldenstein : Ole Golly's suitor. Calls Ole Golly Catherine. (HTS)
THERE IS MORE TO THIS THING OF LOVE THAN MEETS THE EYE. I AM GOING TO HAVE TO THINK ABOUT THIS A GREAT DEAL BUT I DON'T THINK IT WILL GET ME ANYWHERE.

flashlight Ginny Sheridan : Emma and Willie Sheridan's mother (NFIGTC)

Goldin : Emma Sheridan's classmate who joins the Children's Army at the same time as Emma. Has a brother who likes to wear dresses. (NFIGTC)

flashlight Harriet M. Welsch : aspiring writer and erstwhile spy. Known for her searing honesty. (HTS;LS; Sp)
I AM GOING TO FINISH UP THESE MEMOIRS AND SELL THEM TO THE BOOK OF THE MONTH SELECTION THEN MY MOTHER WILL GET THE BOOK IN THE MAIL AS A SURPRISE. THEN I WILL BE SO RICH AND FAMOUS THAT PEOPLE WILL BOW IN THE SPTREETS AND SAY THERE GOES HARRIET M. WELSCH -- SHE IS VERY FAMOUS YOU KNOW. RACHEL HENNESSEY WILL PLOTZ.

Harrison Carter : 16-year-old leader of the Children's Army (NFIGTC)

flashlight Harrison Withers : a regular on Harriet's spy route. Shares a two-room flat with 25 cats. (HTS)
I WOULDN'T MIND LIVING LIKE HARRISON WITHERS BECAUSE HE LOOKS HAPPY EXCEPT I WOULDN'T WANT ALL THOSE CATS. I MIGHT EVEN LIKE A DOG. THERE IS ALSO ALL THAT YOGURT. THINK OF EATING THAT ALL THE TIME. THERE IS NOTHING LIKE A GOOD TOMATO SANDWICH NOW AND THEN.

Harry : Beth Ellen's chauffeur (LS)

Harry : Sport's friend

flashlight Harry Welsch : Harriet's father. Works in television at a high pressure job. Favorite expletive is "Finks, finks, double-barreled, rats, rats, rat finks!" Called Rodger Welsch in The Long Secret. (HTS; LS)
MR. HARRY WELSCH ALMOST LOST HIS JOB LAST WEEK FOR BEING LATE. HE IS ALWAYS SLOW IN THE MORNING.

flashlight Helen : cook and maid for Henry Martin's family. Surprises Suzuki with a hug. (SB)

Helen : sister of Sport's friend, Harry. Attends Hunter College (Sp)

flashlight Henry Martin : Suzuki Beane's wealthy classmate and best friend. (SB)

flashlight Hugh Beane : Suzuki's father. A beat poet. (SB)

Jack Peters : Laura Peters' father. (HTS)

James Wilton : Simon Vane's lawyer (Sp)

flashlight Janie Gibbs : Harriet's best friend, along with Sport. Budding scientist, plans to blow up the world some day. (HTS; LS; Sp)
JANIE GETS STRANGER EVERY YEAR. I THINK SHE MIGHT BLOW UP THE WORLD.

flashlight James Lucien Androcles Palmer the Third : poet; protege of Henry Martin's socialite mother; parody of poet James Merrill, a friend of Fitzhugh. (SB)

flashlight Jason Martin : Henry's father; talks through clenched teeth (SB)

flashlight Jessie Mae Jenkins : self-righteous girl who befriends Harriet and Beth Ellen in Water Mill. Plans to be a preacher when she grows up. (LS)

Kate : Sport's father's love interest (Sp)

Ketchum : Emma Sheridan's classmate who joins the Children's Army at the same time as Emma. (NFIGTC)

Laura Peters : one of Harriet's classmates. So shy she smiles all the time. (HTS)
IF LAURA PETERS DOESN'T STOP SMILING AT ME IN THAT WISHY-WASHY WAY OF HERS I'M GOING TO GIVE HER A GOOD KICK.

Lisa Quackenbush : senior editor of Harriet's school newspaper. Tallish, spits when she talks, finds Harriet funny, even when she's being serious. (HTS)
MISS QUACKENBUSH IS EITHER INSANE OR SHE HAS A VERY NERVOUS LAUGH.

flashlight Little Joe Curry : an employe at the Dei Santi family's grocery store. Eats most of their profits. (HTS)
WHEN I LOOK AT HIM I COULD EAT A THOUSAND TOMATO SANWICHES.

Mabel Gibbs : Janie's mother (HTS)

flashlight Magnolia Jenkins : 4-year-old sister of Norman and Jessie Mae (LS)

flashlight Mama Jenkins : Large, effusive mother to Jessie Mae, Norman and Magnola. The polar opposite of Beth Ellen's mother. Hopes to make her fortune from creating toe medicine out of watermelons. (LS)

flashlight Marcia Beane : Suzuki's mother. "A swingin' chick." Makes sculptures out of tin cans. (SB)

flashlight Marion Hawthorne : Harriet's bossy classmate (HTS)
IF MARION HAWTHORNE DOESN'T WATCH OUT SHE'S GOING TO GROW UP INTO A LADY HITLER.

Martha : the Sheridan family's maid (FIGTC)

Matthew Rocque : Sport's father, the starvingartist. An absent-minded writer who can barely make ends meet, he's cared for by his 11-year-old son. He sells a book near the end of Harriet the Spy and finally gets his act together in Sport. (HTS; Sp)
ARE RICH PEOPLE EVER GOING TO GROW UP TO BE WRITERS OR ARE ALL WRITERS LIKE MR. ROCQUE WITH NO MONEY?

Milly Andrews : Carrie Andrews' mother. (HTS)

flashlight Miss Berry : Harriet's dance teacher. Forces Harriet to be an onion in the dance routine. (HTS)

flashlight Miss Caroline Perfect : Henry Martin's dance teacher. "Really way out. Like out of this century." (SB)

Miss Elson : Harriet's teacher (HTS)
I THINK MISS ELSON IS ONE OF THOSE PEOPLE YOU DON'T BOTHER TO THINK ABOUT TWICE.

flashlight Miss Shoemaker : Suzuki's teacher. "A slow chick if I ever met one. Like she should have married Pat Boone." (SB)

Mr. Collins : Sport's landlord (Sp)

flashlight Mrs. Golly : Ole Golly's mother. Ole Golly says of her: "Behold, Harriet, a woman who never had any interest in anyone else, nor in any book, nor in any school, nor in any way of life, but who has lived her whole life in this room, eating and sleeping and waiting to die." (HTS)
I THINK THAT LOOKING AT MRS. GOLLY MUST MAKE OLE GOLLY SAD. MY MOTHER ISN'T AS SMART AS OLE GOLLY BUT SHE'S NOT AS DUMB AS MRS. GOLLY. I WOULDN'T WANT TO HAVE A DUMB MOTHER. IT MUST MAKE YOU FEEL VERY UNPOPULAR.

Mrs. Hansen : Beth Ellen's grandmother. The only truly reliable and caring adult in Beth Ellen's life. (LS)

Mrs. O'Neil : Seymour's mother (Sp)

flashlight Mrs. Welsch : Harriet's mother. First name not known. Enjoys parties and bridge. Good at math. (HTS; LS)
MY MOTHER HAS BROWN EYES AND BROWN HAIR. HER HANDS WIGGLE AROUND A LOT. SHE FROWNS WHEN SHE LOOKS AT THINGS CLOSE. I DIDN'T KNOW SHE LIKED MATH. IF I HAD KNOWN SHE LIKED MATH I WOULD HAVE FELT VERY FUNNY.

Nadine : Agatha K. Plumber's maid, who discovers Harriet in the dumbwaiter. (HTS)

flashlight Norman Jenkins : 12-year-old twin brother of Jessie Mae Jenkins (LS)

flashlight Ole Golly : Harriet's no-nonsense nurse. Has both wisdom and common sense. Fond of quoting great authors. One of the few agreeable adult characters created by Fitzhugh. (HTS)
OLE GOLLY SAYS THERE ARE AS MANY WAYS TO LIVE AS THERE ARE PEOPLE ON THE EARTH AND I SHOULDN'T GO ROUND WITH BLINDERS BUT SHOULD SEE EVERY WAY I CAN. THEN I'LL KNOW WHAT WAY I WANT TO LIVE AND NOT JUST LIVE LIKE MY FAMILY.

Peter Matthews : the Boy with the Purple Socks (HTS)

flashlight Pinky Whitehead : one of Harriet's classmates. Pale, thin and weak. (HTS)
PINKY WHITEHEAD HAS NOT CHANGED. PINKY WHITEHEADWILL NEVER CHANGE. MY MOTHER SAYS PINKY WHITEHEAD'S WHOLE PROBLEM IS HIS MOTHER. I BETTER ASK HER WHAT THAT MEANS OR I'LL NEVER FIND OUT. DOES SHE HATE HIM? IF I HAD HIM I'D HATE HIM.

flashlight The Preacher : wise old gentleman who lives in a secluded cabin in the woods. Harriet suspects him of being the mysterious note writer during her summer at Water Mill. (LS)

flashlight Rachel Hennessey : Harriet's classmate who always follows the lead of bossy Marion Hawthorne (HTS)
I DON'T KNOW EXACTLY IF I LIKE RACHEL OR IF I JUST LIKE GOING TO HER HOUSE BECAUSE HER MOTHER MAKES HOMEMADE CAKE. IF I HAD A CLUB I'M NOT SURE I'D HAVE RACHEL IN IT.

flashlight The Robinsons : a wealthy couple on Harriet's spy route who sit around all day, blankly staring at their possessions. (HTS)
BOY, OLE GOLLY TOLD ME ONCE THAT SOME PEOPLE THINK THAT THEY'RE PERFECT BUT SHE OUTTA SEE THESE TWO. IF THEY HAD A BABY IT WOULD LAUGH IN ITS HEAD ALL THE TIME AT THEM SO IT'S A GOOD THING THEY DON'T. ALSO IT MIGHT NOT BE PERFECT. THEN THEY MIGHT KILL IT.

flashlight Rodger Welsch : Harriet's father. Works in television. Called Harry Welsh in Harriet the Spy. In The Long Secret Harriet learns that he had been Beth Ellen's mother's tennis partner when they were teenagers. (HTS; LS)

Saunders : Emma Sheridan's classmate who joins the Children's Army at the same time as Emma. (NFIGTC)

Seymour O'Neil : Sport's friend who lives above the candy shop his mother owns. Always says he's going to punch someone in the mouth. (Sp)

flashlight Simon Rocque : a.k.a. Sport. Harriet's best friend, one of only three boys in her class at the Gregory School. Takes care of his father, an unsuccessful writer. Wants to be either a ball player or C.P.A. when he grows up. Inherits a fortune in Sport. (HTS; Sp)
SOMETIMES SPORT LOOKS AS THOUGH HE'S BEEN UP ALL NIGHT. HE HAS FUNNY LITTLE DRY THINGS AROUND HIS EYES. I WORRY ABOUT HIM.

Simon Vane : Sport's multimillionaire grandfather who leaves all his money to his favorite grandson and namesake. (Sp)

flashlight Suzuki Beane : hip, wisecracking daughter of Greenwich village beatniks who begins to question her parents' values when she befriends Henry Martin, a rich kid from the upper east side. (SB)

flashlight Wallace Baines : Beth Ellen's mother's fifth husband. (TLS)

flashlight William Sheridan : Willie and Emma's rigid father. District attorney. Disapproves of his son's tap dancing and of his daughter's career aspirations. (NFIGTC)

flashlight Willie Sheridan : Emma Sheridan's little brother. Loves to tap dance, much to the dismay of his social climbing father. (NFIGTC)

flashlight Zeeney Hansen Baines : Beth Ellen's irresponsible, socialite mother. It's hinted that she dated Harriet's father before he married Harriet's mother. (LS)

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