Minor Characters in The Hardy Boys
Encyclopedia
Many characters have appeared in the fictional series of books about The Hardy Boys
.
novel series by Franklin W. Dixon
.
Frank has dark brown hair and eyes and lives in the fictional town of Bayport with his parents, Fenton and Laura
; his younger brother, Joe; and his aunt, Gertrude.
Joe is not only Frank’s younger brother, but best friend and crime-fighting partner. Working together, the two have solved countless mysteries. Around Bayport, Frank and Joe have quite a reputation as amateur detectives. The Hardy boys are often helped by their friends, most notably best buddy Chet Morton
and Frank’s girlfriend Callie Shaw.
Compared to his brother Joe, Frank is the more logical, rational one. While Joe wants to jump straight into a situation, Frank is the one to hold him back and think through all the logical possibilities. More than once, Frank has surprised the villains by having the entire case figured out. Frank is also usually the one that must look for Joe when he gets lost or kidnapped.
Although Frank spends his mornings exercising—doing weight training and karate workouts—and Joe usually gets out of bed about an hour later and stays in shape by simply playing a little football or baseball, Joe seems to be at least as athletic as Frank, if not more.
In the Casefiles series, Joe jokingly refers to Frank as the brains of their operation and himself as the brawn. The Hardy boys make an excellent team, because their abilities mesh perfectly.
Frank and Joe both attend Bayport High, along with their friends Biff Hooper, Tony Prito, Phil Cohen, Iola Morton (excluding the Casefiles) and the aforementioned Chet and Callie.
Frank is said to be a bomb buff (see Countdown to Terror in which he defuses two bombs) and has disarmed an atomic bomb saving the town of Halifax.
After Frank and Joe solve their first case, Fenton—although he had not wanted his sons to get into the detective business because of the dangers involved—starts asking for their help on some of his cases.
Fenton and his boys working together plays a bigger part in this series then in any of the following Hardy Boys series.
In this series Frank is in the same grade as Joe (who is a year younger), because he lost a year due to sickness, but in all the other series he is a grade ahead of Joe and him losing a year is never mentioned.
In the Casefiles series, the Hardy boys collaborate with The Gray Man, who works for the Network
—a secret government intelligence agency—to fight the Assassins
, an international terrorist organization responsible for Iola's death.
Also the Casefiles were written between the late 80’s and 90’s unlike the original series (1927–79), home computers were available, and because of this Frank’s character is modernized and he becomes a PC computer buff; in one book he is even able to hack into the Bayport City computer system.
Frank is also well-versed in the making of bombs and is also able to disassemble them, which saves his and many other's lives many times.
.
One character arc seen throughout the series is the mutual attraction between Nancy and Frank. The couple shared a kiss twice in the series; the first in book 5, The Last Resort
, when the two are trapped after an avalanche and fear that they will die. The second is in Secrets of the Nile
, where they kiss on a balcony after the case is solved. However, the kiss is interrupted by Bess Marvin
. Another hint at their relationship is when Nancy's longtime love interest Ned Nickerson saves her. However, a disheveled Nancy calls out Frank's name instead, believing him to be her saviour, and severely disheartening Ned.
The two decide not to pursue relationships, believing that they belong with their current partners, Ned Nickerson and Callie Shaw. Both partners are jealous of the time and bond shared by the detectives, especially shown in Ned Nickerson. He greatly disapproves of Nancy's sleuthing in the series, as well as the time she spends solving them with the Hardys.
Another romance is hinted between Joe Hardy and Bess Marvin, although there is much less evidence of this attraction. Neither relationship was ever given a final closure.
Undercover Brothers
In this series Frank and Joe are both are undercover agents for American Teens Against Crime
(ATAC), an organization confounded by Mr. Hardy.
This is the first series that Frank’s girlfriend is not Callie Shaw, but this is not the biggest change in his character; the biggest difference is that Frank becomes nervous around teenage girls, even though they are attracted to him more in this series than any other.
and they purchase a yellow convertible
soon afterwards. The car appears in the series, for over fifty books, before it is blown up (with Iola Morton inside) in the first Casefiles, Dead on Target
. After Frank and Joe save Bayport Mall from being destroyed, they are given a black van by the Bayport Mall Association. In Casefiles #100 True Thriller the van is also blown up. They finally purchase a blue van which remains with them until the end of the series. Throughout The Hardy Boys Digests, the boys own a black van. In the Undercover Brothers
series, Frank and Joe own custom sport bike
s, decked out with the latest in accessories. They also own a speedboat named 'the Sleuth,' which is equipped with a Ham Radio
transmitter, as is described in The Secret Warning.
, basketball
, and soccer. Frank is also interested in martial arts
, the game of chess
and in The Clue of the Broken Blade
, fencing
.
on the corner of Elm Street. His brother, Frank Hardy is his crime-fighting partner. His father, Fenton Hardy, used to work for the New York City Police Department and is currently a private investigator. His mother Laura Hardy
is a stay-at-home mom and his aunt, Aunt Gertrude lives with them in Bayport as well. His aunt is secretly proud of the boys' investigating abilities, but always chides them when they pick up a new case. Joe's girlfriend is Iola Morton, the sister of Joe's best friend Chet Morton
, in the original series. Iola is murdered by a bomb in the first Casefiles novel, Dead On Target. After some time, Joe meets Vanessa Bender, and at the end of the series, the two are still going steady.
Some of Joe's other friends are Phil Cohen, a computer genius; Tony Prito, the manager of a famous teen hang-out place, Mr. Pizza; and Alan "Biff" Hooper, a well-built football player who has helped the Hardys on more than one case. The Hardys and their friends go to school at Bayport High.
Joe may not do quite as well in school as his brother, but he still gets good grades. Phys Ed and History are his best subjects.
The Hardy Boys have worked for, with, or against a number of organizations over the years. In the Casefiles they collaborate with The Gray Man, who works for the Network
- a secret government intelligence agency. Also, they fight the Assassins
, an international terrorist organization responsible for Iola Morton's death. In the Undercover Brothers books the boys are undercover agents for ATAC (American Teens Against Crime), an organization cofounded by Mr. Hardy.
As compared to his brother Frank, Joe is more impulsive, wanting to jump straight into a situation. He often goes by his gut feeling and is usually right.
in the popular Hardy Boys novels.
He is the father of Frank and Joe and is married to Laura Hardy. He is a retired NYPD Detective
Lieutenant
of the 71st Precinct, and currently a famous, top private investigator who runs his own Private Investigator
business. He lives with his family in Bayport with his sister, Aunt Gertrude. He is also the cofounder of a top secret organization
ATAC, American Teens Against Crime
, the agency that his sons, Frank and Joe work for. Although he is in his 40s, he is still one step ahead of his boys. He owns an old Crown Victoria. He took it with him when he retired from the police force. He also was the head of the Association of Private Investigator
s a few years back. He is also well-known for his accuracy with a pistol; at least one Bayport criminal alleges that he never misses his mark.
Casefiles book series after the death of his first girlfriend, Iola Morton in Casefiles #1 Dead on Target
.
Vanessa is around 17 years old and lives with her mother, Andrea Bender, on a small farm on the outskirts of Bayport.
Frank and Joe Hardy (the Hardy Boys of the title) first met her some time after Iola’s death when she first moved to Bayport from Manhattan
, they got to know her better when they were working on a case for her mother in Casefiles #69 Mayhem in Motion. After the case was successfully wrapped up she and Joe started dating and when the Casefiles series was canceled in 1998 with the publication of #127 Dead in the Water, they were still a steady couple.
Vanessa is quite tall (nearly as tall as Joe, who is 6-feet) and slender, with long, ash-blonde hair and gray-blue eyes.
He has gone by the name Edward Gray, but more often Arthur E. Gray. Though, it is unknown if either of these are his true names.
Very little is known of his history before he met the Hardys and even less is known of his personal life.
The Hardys first met him at the funeral of Joe's girlfriend, Iola Morton, who was killed in a terrorist car-bomb planted by The Assassins. Following the events of Iola's death, Frank and Joe had vowed to track down her killers, and the Gray Man was a man in-the know, having battled Iola's killers before.
At first, he and the Hardys didn't see eye to eye at all and were near-constantly feuding, due to the their conflicting views. He considered the Hardys to be just amateurs (and still somewhat does), while they didn't agree with his and the Network's often cold-hearted and violent methods (and still don't always). Gradually, however, they gained a respect (albeit a slightly grudging one) for each other, and even became good friends over time, though (as said before) he still considers them amateurs and, in turn, they don't always trust him.
The Gray Man is hard to predict because he rarely shows his emotions. As such, he can come across as rather cold and uncaring. However, he can certainly be unselfish and caring when he wants to be, as well as brave when necessary. He has shown that even he has his softer, compassionate side, willing to help people who got into danger because of their connection to the Network, and, more than once, offering to trade himself as a hostage to free someone else (such as when he offered to exchange himself for the captured stewardess on a hijacked plane in Casefile #1, Dead on Target
, and for Vanessa Bender in Casefiles #100, True Thriller); he will also give people (often, the Hardys) respect when they deserve it.
The Gray Man has proved in various books that he is very good at hand-to-hand combat, easily flooring both of the Hardy Boys (both of whom are accomplished fighters) various times.
He can blend in with virtually any crowd, and is as a short, balding man with little gray hair, gray eyes, and even a gray tint to his skin. He has been known to wear glasses, and has smoked cigarettes.
, wrestling
and football
. His nickname comes from a distant relative who was a boxer named Biff. He owns a bloodhound
named Sherlock and a Great Dane named Tivioli, and a motorboat
named Envoy. He can play the harmonica
.
In one of the casefiles he is part of "The circle of twelve" which is a group of vandalism. He is in the group because of his girlfriend. Because of the circle of Twelve he nearly gets himself killed.
.
She is known to have dark hair, green eyes and a medium frame. Her best friend is Callie Shaw, the girlfriend of Frank Hardy. She is the sister of Hardy Boys close friend Chet Morton
. She lives on a farm near Bayport with her parents and her brother.
In The Hardy Boys Casefiles first book, Dead on Target
, she is killed by a car bomb
meant for Frank and Joe. It must be pointed out, however, that Iola appears in the Original Continuity books which ran during and long after the Casefiles series had ended. In many other Hardy boys books she is mentioned alive.
Iola is featured in The Hardy Boys Undercover Brothers
, but she and Joe aren't dating. In the graphic novels also released under the Undercover Brothers
banner, however, they are.
book series by Franklin W. Dixon
.
Son of Italian
immigrants and a close friend of Frank and Joe Hardy, Tony works for his father's construction company and in the Casefiles is also the manager
of Bayport's local Pizza
Parlor, Mr. Pizza. He is the owner of the motor boat Napoli, which is destroyed in #36 and replaced with the Napoli II, and drives one of the Prito co. pickup truck
s.
He attends Bayport High and is a standout second baseman
on the school’s baseball
team and a talented pass receiver on the football
team.
Tony is a handsome 19 year old with curly black hair, brown eyes and olive skin. Though not big, he is wiry, with lighting quick reflexes. In Casefiles #41 Highway Robbery it is said that he is five inches shorter and twenty pounds lighter than the Hardy boys, who are 6-1 and 6 feet, so Tony is around 5-7 or 5–8 feet.
. She is mentioned as a blonde with brown eyes and has a tendency to start giggling like mad for no reason.
Original series
Other than being described as ‘‘Frank's favorite date’’ and ‘‘one of the prettiest girls attending Bayport high school’’, the virginal Callie does not have much, if any of a role in first 58 books, however, from book 59 (Night Of The Werewolf
) till book 190 (Motocross Madness
), Callie is made to be more of a modern woman (depending on the decade in which the stories were written) and is not presented to be a "frail" woman as in the stories from the 1920's to the 1970's, but she is still retains her personality and characteristics of the earlier books.
In the original books Callie lives with her older cousin Pollie Shaw, the proprietor of a beauty parlor in Bayport, while her parents live in the country, sending her an allowance to pay for her expenses. However in 1959, she lives with her parents, only a few blocks away from the Hardys’ home, where she lives for the remainder of the series, and spin-off series.
Casefiles
Callie's role is greatly increased in the Casefiles series, following the death of Iola in book #1, no longer is she merely Frank's date, but a competitive, brave, young woman, who is always ready to assist the Hardys on their cases, whether they want her to or not. Working on their cases, Callie saves the Hardy brothers, more than once, notably in book #8 See No Evil
and #80 Dead of Night. The Hardy Boys spend much of the latter novel mourning her, incorrectly thinking she has been slain. In some of the early Casefiles, she and Frank's younger brother, Joe occasionally seem to be at odds, by the end of the series however, they get along quite well.
Undercover Brothers
In the current Hardy Boys series Callie's role has again been reduced; so far 20 books into the series she has only appeared once and is no longer described as Frank's girlfriend, but just as a ‘‘close friend of the Hardys’’.
TV portraits
In the 1970s TV show, The Hardy Boys/Nancy Drew Mysteries
, Callie was played by Lisa Eilbacher
. In the show Callie works part time for the Hardy boys dad, Fenton Hardy (Ed Gilbert).
book series by Franklin W. Dixon
.
A close friend of Frank Hardy, Phil is very artistic and a genius when it comes to electronics,in the series he often helps out the Hardys when they need a video to be digitally restored or a computer system hacked into. Phil is also skilled at painting
and is a great tennis
player. In The Mysterious Caravan
, book #54 in the original series, it is said that he holds the county tennis championship. Helping the Hardys, Phil has faced quite a bit of danger throughout the series, but no matter what happens, always has a good sense of humour.
Phil is tall, slender, and agile with wavy brown hair, glasses and dark eyes.
Also notable is that Phil is Jewish and along with fellow Hardy Boys character Tony Prito, was one of the first fictional non-WASP
characters, to be portrayed as a normal, fully assimilated
teenager.
Police. Taking Shore Road out of the fictional Downtown Bayport leads to his home. In at least one book, his first name is "Clint". Strangely, he is often present in the various cases the Hardys are involved in. His acceptance of the Hardys varies from book to book; in some he welcomes their assistance, while in others he resents it, claiming his Department is capable of handling the investigations without amateur help.
, and still lives there with his family, in a small house. Unlike the rest of the houses in the area, though, the Conrad house is very poorly kept. He goes to the same school as Frank and Joe Hardy (the Hardy Boys of the title) Bayport High with his sister Belinda Conrad. He does not like the Hardy brothers at all and has a history of vandalism
.
She was known to have a peppery temper and on more than one occasion to go "on the warpath". She owns an old Volkswagen Beetle
. In the Undercover Brothers
series she goes by Trudy, and sometimes Frank and Joe call her Aunt T.
Mrs. Conrad is the mother of Brian and Belinda Conrad. Joe describes her as a ‘‘fire-breathing dragon’’. Her eyes and face are red and swollen from either drinking or crying. She smokes Cigars and has a bad temper. She and her husband are miserable people and it’s surprising they're still together.
Adam works at Bayport Airport is the Hardys’ airplane maintenance man. He is an old friend of Aunt Trudy and has even dated her once. He knows about ATAC
– he has to, since Frank and Joe sometimes have to fly planes to obscure locations while on their missions. He is bald, but wears a Red Sox baseball cap
.
In book 3 Adam Frankllin jumped off a bridge
In Casefiles #5 Edge of Destruction he ran for Mayor of New York City
, but had to pull out of the campaign because of heart problems.
Peterson lives with his wife in New York, and is powerfully built black man, with graying black hair.
The Hardys acquired their pet parrot in Undercover Brothers #1 Extreme Danger, from "Wings" Maletta. Belinda Conrad named him Playback because he repeats many things that are said. He has since taken a liking to Aunt Trudy and they have a love/hate relationship.
Q.T. or just Q is the director of ATAC
and is usually the person who narrates the ATAC mission CDs. According to book #3 Boardwalk Bust he never smiles, but then according to some other books he has a famous cheerless smile. Q has only ever appeared in mission CDs, never in person.
at a party hosted by Chet Morton, but was not involved again after that. Also notable is that in The Great Airport Mystery
, he is referred to as Jerry Madden.
.
The Hardy Boys
The Hardy Boys, Frank and Joe Hardy, are fictional teenage brothers and amateur detectives who appear in various mystery series for children and teens....
.
Frank Hardy
Frank Hardy is the older of the two Hardy brothers in The Hardy BoysThe Hardy Boys
The Hardy Boys, Frank and Joe Hardy, are fictional teenage brothers and amateur detectives who appear in various mystery series for children and teens....
novel series by Franklin W. Dixon
Franklin W. Dixon
Franklin W. Dixon is the pen name used by a variety of different authors who wrote The Hardy Boys novels for the Stratemeyer Syndicate...
.
Frank has dark brown hair and eyes and lives in the fictional town of Bayport with his parents, Fenton and Laura
Laura Hardy (Hardy Boys)
Laura Hardy is the pretty and petite stay-at-home mother of Frank and Joe in the Hardy Boys novels . She is married to Fenton Hardy the private investigator and they all live in Bayport, New York with Fenton's sister, Aunt Gertrude...
; his younger brother, Joe; and his aunt, Gertrude.
Joe is not only Frank’s younger brother, but best friend and crime-fighting partner. Working together, the two have solved countless mysteries. Around Bayport, Frank and Joe have quite a reputation as amateur detectives. The Hardy boys are often helped by their friends, most notably best buddy Chet Morton
Chet Morton
Chet Morton is a fictional character in the The Hardy Boys book series by Franklin W. Dixon.-Fictional history:Chet grew up with Frank and Joe Hardy and has been one of their best friends since second grade. He usually says he doesn't want to have anything to do with the Hardy boys' mysteries,...
and Frank’s girlfriend Callie Shaw.
Compared to his brother Joe, Frank is the more logical, rational one. While Joe wants to jump straight into a situation, Frank is the one to hold him back and think through all the logical possibilities. More than once, Frank has surprised the villains by having the entire case figured out. Frank is also usually the one that must look for Joe when he gets lost or kidnapped.
Although Frank spends his mornings exercising—doing weight training and karate workouts—and Joe usually gets out of bed about an hour later and stays in shape by simply playing a little football or baseball, Joe seems to be at least as athletic as Frank, if not more.
In the Casefiles series, Joe jokingly refers to Frank as the brains of their operation and himself as the brawn. The Hardy boys make an excellent team, because their abilities mesh perfectly.
Frank and Joe both attend Bayport High, along with their friends Biff Hooper, Tony Prito, Phil Cohen, Iola Morton (excluding the Casefiles) and the aforementioned Chet and Callie.
Frank is said to be a bomb buff (see Countdown to Terror in which he defuses two bombs) and has disarmed an atomic bomb saving the town of Halifax.
Original series
At the beginning of the original Hardy Boys series, Frank is only 16 years old (18 prior to the revisions between 1959 and 1974) and both he and Joe want to follow in their famous father, Fenton Hardy’s footsteps as detectives. When one of their school friends’ fathers is wrongly accused of stealing, the Hardy boys take it upon themselves to clear his name and solve the mystery.After Frank and Joe solve their first case, Fenton—although he had not wanted his sons to get into the detective business because of the dangers involved—starts asking for their help on some of his cases.
Fenton and his boys working together plays a bigger part in this series then in any of the following Hardy Boys series.
In this series Frank is in the same grade as Joe (who is a year younger), because he lost a year due to sickness, but in all the other series he is a grade ahead of Joe and him losing a year is never mentioned.
Casefiles
In the Casefiles the differences between Frank and Joe are more pronounced as Joe’s personality is somewhat changed because of the death of his girlfriend, Iola Morton. Frank (although the death of Iola does affect him somewhat) stays more or less the same.In the Casefiles series, the Hardy boys collaborate with The Gray Man, who works for the Network
The Network (The Hardy Boys)
The Network is an organization in The Hardy Boys Casefiles book series. The Network is a top-secret government agency in the same branch as the CIA and FBI, but even to most people in those organizations, The Network is unknown...
—a secret government intelligence agency—to fight the Assassins
The Assassins (The Hardy Boys)
The Assassins is a terrorist group in The Hardy Boys Casefiles series of books.Calling themselves simply 'the Assassins', these terrorists-for-hire are the primary adversaries of the Hardy Boys and The Network in the Casefiles series....
, an international terrorist organization responsible for Iola's death.
Also the Casefiles were written between the late 80’s and 90’s unlike the original series (1927–79), home computers were available, and because of this Frank’s character is modernized and he becomes a PC computer buff; in one book he is even able to hack into the Bayport City computer system.
Frank is also well-versed in the making of bombs and is also able to disassemble them, which saves his and many other's lives many times.
Super Mysteries
This was a series of 36 paperback novels in which the Hardy Boys teamed up with female teen slueth Nancy DrewNancy Drew
Nancy Drew is a fictional young amateur detective in various mystery series for all ages. She was created by Edward Stratemeyer, founder of the Stratemeyer Syndicate book packaging firm. The character first appeared in 1930. The books have been ghostwritten by a number of authors and are published...
.
One character arc seen throughout the series is the mutual attraction between Nancy and Frank. The couple shared a kiss twice in the series; the first in book 5, The Last Resort
The Last Resort (Nancy Drew/Hardy Boys)
The Last Resort is a Hardy Boys and Nancy Drew Supermystery novel.The Hardy Boys and Nancy Drew are called in to join a team of juvenile detectives that are guarding Mount Mirage, a ski lodge that houses billionaires, playboys, etc. A talented music artist is pronounced dead in his suite, and the...
, when the two are trapped after an avalanche and fear that they will die. The second is in Secrets of the Nile
Secrets of the Nile
Secrets of the Nile is a Nancy Drew and Hardy Boys super mystery novellaThe Hardys, Nancy Drew, and her acquaintance, Bess Marvin, are posing as newlyweds in Egypt. The Hardys are on the trail of a banker who is being targeted by a band of radicals, while Nancy and Bess are trying to protect the...
, where they kiss on a balcony after the case is solved. However, the kiss is interrupted by Bess Marvin
Bess Marvin
Elizabeth "Bess" Marvin is a character in the Nancy Drew Mystery Stories series. She is one of Nancy Drew's best friends, along with George Fayne, who is Bess' cousin. Bess and George are introduced to readers in the 1931 novel,The Secret at Shadow Ranch. Bess was originally described as having...
. Another hint at their relationship is when Nancy's longtime love interest Ned Nickerson saves her. However, a disheveled Nancy calls out Frank's name instead, believing him to be her saviour, and severely disheartening Ned.
The two decide not to pursue relationships, believing that they belong with their current partners, Ned Nickerson and Callie Shaw. Both partners are jealous of the time and bond shared by the detectives, especially shown in Ned Nickerson. He greatly disapproves of Nancy's sleuthing in the series, as well as the time she spends solving them with the Hardys.
Another romance is hinted between Joe Hardy and Bess Marvin, although there is much less evidence of this attraction. Neither relationship was ever given a final closure.
Undercover BrothersUndercover BrothersThe Hardy Boys: Undercover Brothers is a detective fiction series of books published by Aladdin Paperbacks , which replaced The Hardy Boys Digest paperbacks in early 2005. All the books in the series have been written under the pen name of Franklin W...
In this series Frank and Joe are both are undercover agents for American Teens Against CrimeAmerican Teens Against Crime
American Teens Against Crime, is a fictional organization in the The Hardy Boys Undercover Brothers book series.ATAC is a top secret government agency co-founded by Fenton Hardy. He created it when he realized that there are some places where an adult spy would stand out too much...
(ATAC), an organization confounded by Mr. Hardy.
This is the first series that Frank’s girlfriend is not Callie Shaw, but this is not the biggest change in his character; the biggest difference is that Frank becomes nervous around teenage girls, even though they are attracted to him more in this series than any other.
Vehicles owned by Frank and Joe
Frank and Joe owned a large number of cars or automobiles. In the originals they have motorcycles, but Joe totals his in The Shore Road MysteryThe Shore Road Mystery
The Shore Road Mystery is Volume 6 in the original The Hardy Boys Mystery Stories published by Grosset & Dunlap. The plot centers around attempts by the Hardy Boys to catch a ring of car thieves stealing cars from the Shore Road....
and they purchase a yellow convertible
Convertible
A convertible is a type of automobile in which the roof can retract and fold away having windows which wind-down inside the doors, converting it from an enclosed to an open-air vehicle...
soon afterwards. The car appears in the series, for over fifty books, before it is blown up (with Iola Morton inside) in the first Casefiles, Dead on Target
Dead On Target
Dead on Target is the first book in The Hardy Boys Casefiles series. It was first published in the year 1987.-Plot summary:Joe Hardy's girlfriend, Iola Morton, is caught in a car bomb and dies. Joe is unable to believe it. The brothers begin their investigation...
. After Frank and Joe save Bayport Mall from being destroyed, they are given a black van by the Bayport Mall Association. In Casefiles #100 True Thriller the van is also blown up. They finally purchase a blue van which remains with them until the end of the series. Throughout The Hardy Boys Digests, the boys own a black van. In the Undercover Brothers
Undercover Brothers
The Hardy Boys: Undercover Brothers is a detective fiction series of books published by Aladdin Paperbacks , which replaced The Hardy Boys Digest paperbacks in early 2005. All the books in the series have been written under the pen name of Franklin W...
series, Frank and Joe own custom sport bike
Sport bike
A sport bike, also written as sportbike, is a motorcycle optimized for speed, acceleration, braking, and cornering on paved roads, typically at the expense of comfort and fuel economy in comparison to less specialized motorcycles...
s, decked out with the latest in accessories. They also own a speedboat named 'the Sleuth,' which is equipped with a Ham Radio
Amateur radio
Amateur radio is the use of designated radio frequency spectrum for purposes of private recreation, non-commercial exchange of messages, wireless experimentation, self-training, and emergency communication...
transmitter, as is described in The Secret Warning.
Sports played by Frank and Joe
Frank plays many school sports along with his brother. Frank is the captain and quarterback of the Bayport High football team., but by the time of the later Digests, he gives up his place on the team so he can concentrate on his studies. He also does the endurance running for the Bayport High track team and is on the swim team. He also plays baseballBaseball
Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each. The aim is to score runs by hitting a thrown ball with a bat and touching a series of four bases arranged at the corners of a ninety-foot diamond...
, basketball
Basketball
Basketball is a team sport in which two teams of five players try to score points by throwing or "shooting" a ball through the top of a basketball hoop while following a set of rules...
, and soccer. Frank is also interested in martial arts
Martial arts
Martial arts are extensive systems of codified practices and traditions of combat, practiced for a variety of reasons, including self-defense, competition, physical health and fitness, as well as mental and spiritual development....
, the game of chess
Chess
Chess is a two-player board game played on a chessboard, a square-checkered board with 64 squares arranged in an eight-by-eight grid. It is one of the world's most popular games, played by millions of people worldwide at home, in clubs, online, by correspondence, and in tournaments.Each player...
and in The Clue of the Broken Blade
The Clue of the Broken Blade
The Clue of the Broken Blade is Volume 21 in the original The Hardy Boys Mystery Stories published by Grosset & Dunlap.This book was written for the Stratemeyer Syndicate by John Button in 1942. Between 1959 and 1973 the first 38 volumes of this series were systematically revised as part of a...
, fencing
Fencing
Fencing, which is also known as modern fencing to distinguish it from historical fencing, is a family of combat sports using bladed weapons.Fencing is one of four sports which have been featured at every one of the modern Olympic Games...
.
Joe Hardy
Joe Hardy is 17 years old, with light blond hair, blue eyes, and a muscular frame. He resides in Bayport, along with his family. Their house is a three-story old VictorianVictorian architecture
The term Victorian architecture refers collectively to several architectural styles employed predominantly during the middle and late 19th century. The period that it indicates may slightly overlap the actual reign, 20 June 1837 – 22 January 1901, of Queen Victoria. This represents the British and...
on the corner of Elm Street. His brother, Frank Hardy is his crime-fighting partner. His father, Fenton Hardy, used to work for the New York City Police Department and is currently a private investigator. His mother Laura Hardy
Laura Hardy (Hardy Boys)
Laura Hardy is the pretty and petite stay-at-home mother of Frank and Joe in the Hardy Boys novels . She is married to Fenton Hardy the private investigator and they all live in Bayport, New York with Fenton's sister, Aunt Gertrude...
is a stay-at-home mom and his aunt, Aunt Gertrude lives with them in Bayport as well. His aunt is secretly proud of the boys' investigating abilities, but always chides them when they pick up a new case. Joe's girlfriend is Iola Morton, the sister of Joe's best friend Chet Morton
Chet Morton
Chet Morton is a fictional character in the The Hardy Boys book series by Franklin W. Dixon.-Fictional history:Chet grew up with Frank and Joe Hardy and has been one of their best friends since second grade. He usually says he doesn't want to have anything to do with the Hardy boys' mysteries,...
, in the original series. Iola is murdered by a bomb in the first Casefiles novel, Dead On Target. After some time, Joe meets Vanessa Bender, and at the end of the series, the two are still going steady.
Some of Joe's other friends are Phil Cohen, a computer genius; Tony Prito, the manager of a famous teen hang-out place, Mr. Pizza; and Alan "Biff" Hooper, a well-built football player who has helped the Hardys on more than one case. The Hardys and their friends go to school at Bayport High.
Joe may not do quite as well in school as his brother, but he still gets good grades. Phys Ed and History are his best subjects.
The Hardy Boys have worked for, with, or against a number of organizations over the years. In the Casefiles they collaborate with The Gray Man, who works for the Network
The Network (The Hardy Boys)
The Network is an organization in The Hardy Boys Casefiles book series. The Network is a top-secret government agency in the same branch as the CIA and FBI, but even to most people in those organizations, The Network is unknown...
- a secret government intelligence agency. Also, they fight the Assassins
The Assassins (The Hardy Boys)
The Assassins is a terrorist group in The Hardy Boys Casefiles series of books.Calling themselves simply 'the Assassins', these terrorists-for-hire are the primary adversaries of the Hardy Boys and The Network in the Casefiles series....
, an international terrorist organization responsible for Iola Morton's death. In the Undercover Brothers books the boys are undercover agents for ATAC (American Teens Against Crime), an organization cofounded by Mr. Hardy.
As compared to his brother Frank, Joe is more impulsive, wanting to jump straight into a situation. He often goes by his gut feeling and is usually right.
Fenton Hardy
Fenton Hardy is a private investigatorPrivate investigator
A private investigator , private detective or inquiry agent, is a person who can be hired by individuals or groups to undertake investigatory law services. Private detectives/investigators often work for attorneys in civil cases. Many work for insurance companies to investigate suspicious claims...
in the popular Hardy Boys novels.
He is the father of Frank and Joe and is married to Laura Hardy. He is a retired NYPD Detective
Detective
A detective is an investigator, either a member of a police agency or a private person. The latter may be known as private investigators or "private eyes"...
Lieutenant
Lieutenant
A lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer in many nations' armed forces. Typically, the rank of lieutenant in naval usage, while still a junior officer rank, is senior to the army rank...
of the 71st Precinct, and currently a famous, top private investigator who runs his own Private Investigator
Private investigator
A private investigator , private detective or inquiry agent, is a person who can be hired by individuals or groups to undertake investigatory law services. Private detectives/investigators often work for attorneys in civil cases. Many work for insurance companies to investigate suspicious claims...
business. He lives with his family in Bayport with his sister, Aunt Gertrude. He is also the cofounder of a top secret organization
Organization
An organization is a social group which distributes tasks for a collective goal. The word itself is derived from the Greek word organon, itself derived from the better-known word ergon - as we know `organ` - and it means a compartment for a particular job.There are a variety of legal types of...
ATAC, American Teens Against Crime
American Teens Against Crime
American Teens Against Crime, is a fictional organization in the The Hardy Boys Undercover Brothers book series.ATAC is a top secret government agency co-founded by Fenton Hardy. He created it when he realized that there are some places where an adult spy would stand out too much...
, the agency that his sons, Frank and Joe work for. Although he is in his 40s, he is still one step ahead of his boys. He owns an old Crown Victoria. He took it with him when he retired from the police force. He also was the head of the Association of Private Investigator
Private investigator
A private investigator , private detective or inquiry agent, is a person who can be hired by individuals or groups to undertake investigatory law services. Private detectives/investigators often work for attorneys in civil cases. Many work for insurance companies to investigate suspicious claims...
s a few years back. He is also well-known for his accuracy with a pistol; at least one Bayport criminal alleges that he never misses his mark.
Chet Morton
Chet Morton appears in most of The Hardy Boys books. He often tags along on the boy's little adventures. He is portrayed as a stout fellow and is often described as "plump" or "chubby." In his first appearance he is said to "reach his hand into his cellophane bag and pull out a handful of potato chips" which he then stuffed into his mouth.Vanessa Bender
Vanessa Bender is Joe Hardy’s girlfriend in most of The Hardy BoysThe Hardy Boys
The Hardy Boys, Frank and Joe Hardy, are fictional teenage brothers and amateur detectives who appear in various mystery series for children and teens....
Casefiles book series after the death of his first girlfriend, Iola Morton in Casefiles #1 Dead on Target
Dead On Target
Dead on Target is the first book in The Hardy Boys Casefiles series. It was first published in the year 1987.-Plot summary:Joe Hardy's girlfriend, Iola Morton, is caught in a car bomb and dies. Joe is unable to believe it. The brothers begin their investigation...
.
Vanessa is around 17 years old and lives with her mother, Andrea Bender, on a small farm on the outskirts of Bayport.
Frank and Joe Hardy (the Hardy Boys of the title) first met her some time after Iola’s death when she first moved to Bayport from Manhattan
Manhattan
Manhattan is the oldest and the most densely populated of the five boroughs of New York City. Located primarily on the island of Manhattan at the mouth of the Hudson River, the boundaries of the borough are identical to those of New York County, an original county of the state of New York...
, they got to know her better when they were working on a case for her mother in Casefiles #69 Mayhem in Motion. After the case was successfully wrapped up she and Joe started dating and when the Casefiles series was canceled in 1998 with the publication of #127 Dead in the Water, they were still a steady couple.
Vanessa is quite tall (nearly as tall as Joe, who is 6-feet) and slender, with long, ash-blonde hair and gray-blue eyes.
Belinda Conrad
Belinda is the sister of Brian Conrad and a classmate of Joe Hardy's. She is smart, funny, beautiful, and has long blond hair. According to the books where she appears it is stated that she has had a monster crush on Joe's brother, Frank.The Gray Man
The Gray Man is a high-up member of top-secret crime fighting organization the Network and Frank and Joe Hardy's contact in the agency.He has gone by the name Edward Gray, but more often Arthur E. Gray. Though, it is unknown if either of these are his true names.
Very little is known of his history before he met the Hardys and even less is known of his personal life.
The Hardys first met him at the funeral of Joe's girlfriend, Iola Morton, who was killed in a terrorist car-bomb planted by The Assassins. Following the events of Iola's death, Frank and Joe had vowed to track down her killers, and the Gray Man was a man in-the know, having battled Iola's killers before.
At first, he and the Hardys didn't see eye to eye at all and were near-constantly feuding, due to the their conflicting views. He considered the Hardys to be just amateurs (and still somewhat does), while they didn't agree with his and the Network's often cold-hearted and violent methods (and still don't always). Gradually, however, they gained a respect (albeit a slightly grudging one) for each other, and even became good friends over time, though (as said before) he still considers them amateurs and, in turn, they don't always trust him.
The Gray Man is hard to predict because he rarely shows his emotions. As such, he can come across as rather cold and uncaring. However, he can certainly be unselfish and caring when he wants to be, as well as brave when necessary. He has shown that even he has his softer, compassionate side, willing to help people who got into danger because of their connection to the Network, and, more than once, offering to trade himself as a hostage to free someone else (such as when he offered to exchange himself for the captured stewardess on a hijacked plane in Casefile #1, Dead on Target
Dead On Target
Dead on Target is the first book in The Hardy Boys Casefiles series. It was first published in the year 1987.-Plot summary:Joe Hardy's girlfriend, Iola Morton, is caught in a car bomb and dies. Joe is unable to believe it. The brothers begin their investigation...
, and for Vanessa Bender in Casefiles #100, True Thriller); he will also give people (often, the Hardys) respect when they deserve it.
The Gray Man has proved in various books that he is very good at hand-to-hand combat, easily flooring both of the Hardy Boys (both of whom are accomplished fighters) various times.
He can blend in with virtually any crowd, and is as a short, balding man with little gray hair, gray eyes, and even a gray tint to his skin. He has been known to wear glasses, and has smoked cigarettes.
Biff Hooper
Allen 'Biff' Hooper is a six-foot, blond haired, muscular friend of the Hardy boys. He excels at boxingBoxing
Boxing, also called pugilism, is a combat sport in which two people fight each other using their fists. Boxing is supervised by a referee over a series of between one to three minute intervals called rounds...
, wrestling
Wrestling
Wrestling is a form of grappling type techniques such as clinch fighting, throws and takedowns, joint locks, pins and other grappling holds. A wrestling bout is a physical competition, between two competitors or sparring partners, who attempt to gain and maintain a superior position...
and football
American football
American football is a sport played between two teams of eleven with the objective of scoring points by advancing the ball into the opposing team's end zone. Known in the United States simply as football, it may also be referred to informally as gridiron football. The ball can be advanced by...
. His nickname comes from a distant relative who was a boxer named Biff. He owns a bloodhound
Bloodhound
The Bloodhound is a large breed of dog which, while originally bred to hunt deer and wild boar, was later bred specifically to track human beings. It is a scenthound, tracking by smell, as opposed to a sighthound, which tracks using vision. It is famed for its ability to discern human odors even...
named Sherlock and a Great Dane named Tivioli, and a motorboat
Motorboat
A motorboat is a boat which is powered by an engine. Some motorboats are fitted with inboard engines, others have an outboard motor installed on the rear, containing the internal combustion engine, the gearbox and the propeller in one portable unit.An inboard/outboard contains a hybrid of a...
named Envoy. He can play the harmonica
Harmonica
The harmonica, also called harp, French harp, blues harp, and mouth organ, is a free reed wind instrument used primarily in blues and American folk music, jazz, country, and rock and roll. It is played by blowing air into it or drawing air out by placing lips over individual holes or multiple holes...
.
In one of the casefiles he is part of "The circle of twelve" which is a group of vandalism. He is in the group because of his girlfriend. Because of the circle of Twelve he nearly gets himself killed.
Iola Morton
Iola Morton is a the girlfriend of Joe Hardy in the famous series of novels The Hardy BoysThe Hardy Boys
The Hardy Boys, Frank and Joe Hardy, are fictional teenage brothers and amateur detectives who appear in various mystery series for children and teens....
.
She is known to have dark hair, green eyes and a medium frame. Her best friend is Callie Shaw, the girlfriend of Frank Hardy. She is the sister of Hardy Boys close friend Chet Morton
Chet Morton
Chet Morton is a fictional character in the The Hardy Boys book series by Franklin W. Dixon.-Fictional history:Chet grew up with Frank and Joe Hardy and has been one of their best friends since second grade. He usually says he doesn't want to have anything to do with the Hardy boys' mysteries,...
. She lives on a farm near Bayport with her parents and her brother.
In The Hardy Boys Casefiles first book, Dead on Target
Dead On Target
Dead on Target is the first book in The Hardy Boys Casefiles series. It was first published in the year 1987.-Plot summary:Joe Hardy's girlfriend, Iola Morton, is caught in a car bomb and dies. Joe is unable to believe it. The brothers begin their investigation...
, she is killed by a car bomb
Car bomb
A car bomb, or truck bomb also known as a Vehicle Borne Improvised Explosive Device , is an improvised explosive device placed in a car or other vehicle and then detonated. It is commonly used as a weapon of assassination, terrorism, or guerrilla warfare, to kill the occupants of the vehicle,...
meant for Frank and Joe. It must be pointed out, however, that Iola appears in the Original Continuity books which ran during and long after the Casefiles series had ended. In many other Hardy boys books she is mentioned alive.
Iola is featured in The Hardy Boys Undercover Brothers
Undercover Brothers
The Hardy Boys: Undercover Brothers is a detective fiction series of books published by Aladdin Paperbacks , which replaced The Hardy Boys Digest paperbacks in early 2005. All the books in the series have been written under the pen name of Franklin W...
, but she and Joe aren't dating. In the graphic novels also released under the Undercover Brothers
Undercover Brothers
The Hardy Boys: Undercover Brothers is a detective fiction series of books published by Aladdin Paperbacks , which replaced The Hardy Boys Digest paperbacks in early 2005. All the books in the series have been written under the pen name of Franklin W...
banner, however, they are.
Secret Files
In the Hardy Boys Secret Files series, set before the events of any of the other books (except the The Hardy Boys Are: The Clues Brothers books), Iola and Chet have a little sister named Mimi. Mimi Morton is the newest member of the Morton family since the Hardy Boys franchise began in 1927, with Mimi first appearing in Trouble At The Arcade (2010).Tony Prito
Tony Prito appears in the popular The Hardy BoysThe Hardy Boys
The Hardy Boys, Frank and Joe Hardy, are fictional teenage brothers and amateur detectives who appear in various mystery series for children and teens....
book series by Franklin W. Dixon
Franklin W. Dixon
Franklin W. Dixon is the pen name used by a variety of different authors who wrote The Hardy Boys novels for the Stratemeyer Syndicate...
.
Son of Italian
Italian people
The Italian people are an ethnic group that share a common Italian culture, ancestry and speak the Italian language as a mother tongue. Within Italy, Italians are defined by citizenship, regardless of ancestry or country of residence , and are distinguished from people...
immigrants and a close friend of Frank and Joe Hardy, Tony works for his father's construction company and in the Casefiles is also the manager
Management
Management in all business and organizational activities is the act of getting people together to accomplish desired goals and objectives using available resources efficiently and effectively...
of Bayport's local Pizza
Pizza
Pizza is an oven-baked, flat, disc-shaped bread typically topped with a tomato sauce, cheese and various toppings.Originating in Italy, from the Neapolitan cuisine, the dish has become popular in many parts of the world. An establishment that makes and sells pizzas is called a "pizzeria"...
Parlor, Mr. Pizza. He is the owner of the motor boat Napoli, which is destroyed in #36 and replaced with the Napoli II, and drives one of the Prito co. pickup truck
Pickup truck
A pickup truck is a light motor vehicle with an open-top rear cargo area .-Definition:...
s.
He attends Bayport High and is a standout second baseman
Second baseman
Second base, or 2B, is the second of four stations on a baseball diamond which must be touched in succession by a base runner in order to score a run for that player's team. A second baseman is the baseball player guarding second base...
on the school’s baseball
Baseball
Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each. The aim is to score runs by hitting a thrown ball with a bat and touching a series of four bases arranged at the corners of a ninety-foot diamond...
team and a talented pass receiver on the football
American football
American football is a sport played between two teams of eleven with the objective of scoring points by advancing the ball into the opposing team's end zone. Known in the United States simply as football, it may also be referred to informally as gridiron football. The ball can be advanced by...
team.
Tony is a handsome 19 year old with curly black hair, brown eyes and olive skin. Though not big, he is wiry, with lighting quick reflexes. In Casefiles #41 Highway Robbery it is said that he is five inches shorter and twenty pounds lighter than the Hardy boys, who are 6-1 and 6 feet, so Tony is around 5-7 or 5–8 feet.
Callie Shaw
Callie is the girlfriend of the elder Hardy boy, Frank Hardy, she first appeared in 1927 in the very first volume of the series, and she appeared or was mentioned in almost all of the following 57 volumes (as well as most of subsequent 'Digest' series), but never had an important role until 1987 and the death of best friend, Iola Morton in The Hardy Boys Casefiles #1 Dead on TargetDead On Target
Dead on Target is the first book in The Hardy Boys Casefiles series. It was first published in the year 1987.-Plot summary:Joe Hardy's girlfriend, Iola Morton, is caught in a car bomb and dies. Joe is unable to believe it. The brothers begin their investigation...
. She is mentioned as a blonde with brown eyes and has a tendency to start giggling like mad for no reason.
Original series
Other than being described as ‘‘Frank's favorite date’’ and ‘‘one of the prettiest girls attending Bayport high school’’, the virginal Callie does not have much, if any of a role in first 58 books, however, from book 59 (Night Of The Werewolf
Night of the Werewolf
Night of the Werewolf is the title of a Hardy Boys Digest novel, written by Franklin W. Dixon. Within the Hardy Boys series, it is sometimes numbered as 59, continuing the sequence from the original novels published by Grosset & Dunlap...
) till book 190 (Motocross Madness
Motocross Madness
Motocross Madness is a motocross racing computer game that was developed by Rainbow Studios and published by Microsoft Games. It was released on August 14, 1998. A sequel, Motocross Madness 2, was released in 2000...
), Callie is made to be more of a modern woman (depending on the decade in which the stories were written) and is not presented to be a "frail" woman as in the stories from the 1920's to the 1970's, but she is still retains her personality and characteristics of the earlier books.
In the original books Callie lives with her older cousin Pollie Shaw, the proprietor of a beauty parlor in Bayport, while her parents live in the country, sending her an allowance to pay for her expenses. However in 1959, she lives with her parents, only a few blocks away from the Hardys’ home, where she lives for the remainder of the series, and spin-off series.
Casefiles
Callie's role is greatly increased in the Casefiles series, following the death of Iola in book #1, no longer is she merely Frank's date, but a competitive, brave, young woman, who is always ready to assist the Hardys on their cases, whether they want her to or not. Working on their cases, Callie saves the Hardy brothers, more than once, notably in book #8 See No Evil
See No Evil (Hardy Boys novel)
See No Evil, the 8th installment of the Hardy Boys Casefiles paperback series, was published in 1987. The plot involves Frank's girlfriend Callie Shaw attempting to join the boys in their crime fighting escapades, and centers around a top-secret codebook and a network of fraud, corruption and murder....
and #80 Dead of Night. The Hardy Boys spend much of the latter novel mourning her, incorrectly thinking she has been slain. In some of the early Casefiles, she and Frank's younger brother, Joe occasionally seem to be at odds, by the end of the series however, they get along quite well.
Undercover Brothers
Undercover Brothers
The Hardy Boys: Undercover Brothers is a detective fiction series of books published by Aladdin Paperbacks , which replaced The Hardy Boys Digest paperbacks in early 2005. All the books in the series have been written under the pen name of Franklin W...
In the current Hardy Boys series Callie's role has again been reduced; so far 20 books into the series she has only appeared once and is no longer described as Frank's girlfriend, but just as a ‘‘close friend of the Hardys’’.
TV portraits
In the 1970s TV show, The Hardy Boys/Nancy Drew Mysteries
The Hardy Boys/Nancy Drew Mysteries
The Hardy Boys/Nancy Drew Mysteries is a television series which aired for three seasons on ABC...
, Callie was played by Lisa Eilbacher
Lisa Eilbacher
Lisa Eilbacher is an American television and motion picture actress.-Personal life:Eilbacher was born in Dhahran, Saudi Arabia, the daughter of an American oil company executive. She was raised in France...
. In the show Callie works part time for the Hardy boys dad, Fenton Hardy (Ed Gilbert).
Phil Cohen
Philip Cohen appears in The Hardy BoysThe Hardy Boys
The Hardy Boys, Frank and Joe Hardy, are fictional teenage brothers and amateur detectives who appear in various mystery series for children and teens....
book series by Franklin W. Dixon
Franklin W. Dixon
Franklin W. Dixon is the pen name used by a variety of different authors who wrote The Hardy Boys novels for the Stratemeyer Syndicate...
.
A close friend of Frank Hardy, Phil is very artistic and a genius when it comes to electronics,in the series he often helps out the Hardys when they need a video to be digitally restored or a computer system hacked into. Phil is also skilled at painting
Painting
Painting is the practice of applying paint, pigment, color or other medium to a surface . The application of the medium is commonly applied to the base with a brush but other objects can be used. In art, the term painting describes both the act and the result of the action. However, painting is...
and is a great tennis
Tennis
Tennis is a sport usually played between two players or between two teams of two players each . Each player uses a racket that is strung to strike a hollow rubber ball covered with felt over a net into the opponent's court. Tennis is an Olympic sport and is played at all levels of society at all...
player. In The Mysterious Caravan
The Mysterious Caravan
The Mysterious Caravan is Volume 54 in the original The Hardy Boys Mystery Stories published by Grosset & Dunlap.This book was written for the Stratemeyer Syndicate by Andrew E...
, book #54 in the original series, it is said that he holds the county tennis championship. Helping the Hardys, Phil has faced quite a bit of danger throughout the series, but no matter what happens, always has a good sense of humour.
Phil is tall, slender, and agile with wavy brown hair, glasses and dark eyes.
Also notable is that Phil is Jewish and along with fellow Hardy Boys character Tony Prito, was one of the first fictional non-WASP
White Anglo-Saxon Protestant
White Anglo-Saxon Protestant or WASP is an informal term, often derogatory or disparaging, for a closed group of high-status Americans mostly of British Protestant ancestry. The group supposedly wields disproportionate financial and social power. When it appears in writing, it is usually used to...
characters, to be portrayed as a normal, fully assimilated
Cultural assimilation
Cultural assimilation is a socio-political response to demographic multi-ethnicity that supports or promotes the assimilation of ethnic minorities into the dominant culture. The term assimilation is often used with regard to immigrants and various ethnic groups who have settled in a new land. New...
teenager.
Chief Ezra Collig
Police Chief Ezra Collig is the Chief of the BayportBayport, New York (The Hardy Boys)
Bayport is the city used as the setting in the famous Hardy Boys novels. In the books it is located on Barmet Bay, a horseshoe-shaped inlet three miles from the Atlantic Ocean...
Police. Taking Shore Road out of the fictional Downtown Bayport leads to his home. In at least one book, his first name is "Clint". Strangely, he is often present in the various cases the Hardys are involved in. His acceptance of the Hardys varies from book to book; in some he welcomes their assistance, while in others he resents it, claiming his Department is capable of handling the investigations without amateur help.
Brian Conrad
Brian Conrad is 17 years old, 6 feet 2 inches tall, weighs 210 lbs and has short blond hair and blue eyes. He grew up in fictional BayportBayport, New York (The Hardy Boys)
Bayport is the city used as the setting in the famous Hardy Boys novels. In the books it is located on Barmet Bay, a horseshoe-shaped inlet three miles from the Atlantic Ocean...
, and still lives there with his family, in a small house. Unlike the rest of the houses in the area, though, the Conrad house is very poorly kept. He goes to the same school as Frank and Joe Hardy (the Hardy Boys of the title) Bayport High with his sister Belinda Conrad. He does not like the Hardy brothers at all and has a history of vandalism
Vandalism
Vandalism is the behaviour attributed originally to the Vandals, by the Romans, in respect of culture: ruthless destruction or spoiling of anything beautiful or venerable...
.
Aunt Gertrude
Gertrude "Trudy" Hardy is the aunt of Frank and Joe Hardy (the Hardy Boys of the title).She was known to have a peppery temper and on more than one occasion to go "on the warpath". She owns an old Volkswagen Beetle
Volkswagen Beetle
The Volkswagen Type 1, widely known as the Volkswagen Beetle or Volkswagen Bug, is an economy car produced by the German auto maker Volkswagen from 1938 until 2003...
. In the Undercover Brothers
Undercover Brothers
The Hardy Boys: Undercover Brothers is a detective fiction series of books published by Aladdin Paperbacks , which replaced The Hardy Boys Digest paperbacks in early 2005. All the books in the series have been written under the pen name of Franklin W...
series she goes by Trudy, and sometimes Frank and Joe call her Aunt T.
Mrs. Conrad
- First Appearance: The Hardy BoysThe Hardy BoysThe Hardy Boys, Frank and Joe Hardy, are fictional teenage brothers and amateur detectives who appear in various mystery series for children and teens....
Undercover BrothersUndercover BrothersThe Hardy Boys: Undercover Brothers is a detective fiction series of books published by Aladdin Paperbacks , which replaced The Hardy Boys Digest paperbacks in early 2005. All the books in the series have been written under the pen name of Franklin W...
#5 Rocky Road (2005)
Mrs. Conrad is the mother of Brian and Belinda Conrad. Joe describes her as a ‘‘fire-breathing dragon’’. Her eyes and face are red and swollen from either drinking or crying. She smokes Cigars and has a bad temper. She and her husband are miserable people and it’s surprising they're still together.
Adam Franklin
- First Appearance: The Hardy BoysThe Hardy BoysThe Hardy Boys, Frank and Joe Hardy, are fictional teenage brothers and amateur detectives who appear in various mystery series for children and teens....
Undercover BrothersUndercover BrothersThe Hardy Boys: Undercover Brothers is a detective fiction series of books published by Aladdin Paperbacks , which replaced The Hardy Boys Digest paperbacks in early 2005. All the books in the series have been written under the pen name of Franklin W...
#3 Boardwalk Bust (2005)
Adam works at Bayport Airport is the Hardys’ airplane maintenance man. He is an old friend of Aunt Trudy and has even dated her once. He knows about ATAC
American Teens Against Crime
American Teens Against Crime, is a fictional organization in the The Hardy Boys Undercover Brothers book series.ATAC is a top secret government agency co-founded by Fenton Hardy. He created it when he realized that there are some places where an adult spy would stand out too much...
– he has to, since Frank and Joe sometimes have to fly planes to obscure locations while on their missions. He is bald, but wears a Red Sox baseball cap
Baseball cap
A baseball cap is a type of soft cap with a rounded stiff brim. The front of the cap typically contains designs or logos of sports teams ,...
.
In book 3 Adam Frankllin jumped off a bridge
Samuel Peterson
- First partner, Sam Peterson is the chiefChief of policeA Chief of Police is the title typically given to the top official in the chain of command of a police department, particularly in North America. Alternate titles for this position include Commissioner, Superintendent, and Chief constable...
of police in New York City in the Casefiles series. When he and Fenton worked together they cracked some of the toughest cases in the department's history.
In Casefiles #5 Edge of Destruction he ran for Mayor of New York City
Mayor of New York City
The Mayor of the City of New York is head of the executive branch of New York City's government. The mayor's office administers all city services, public property, police and fire protection, most public agencies, and enforces all city and state laws within New York City.The budget overseen by the...
, but had to pull out of the campaign because of heart problems.
Peterson lives with his wife in New York, and is powerfully built black man, with graying black hair.
Playback
- First Appearance: The Hardy BoysThe Hardy BoysThe Hardy Boys, Frank and Joe Hardy, are fictional teenage brothers and amateur detectives who appear in various mystery series for children and teens....
Undercover BrothersUndercover BrothersThe Hardy Boys: Undercover Brothers is a detective fiction series of books published by Aladdin Paperbacks , which replaced The Hardy Boys Digest paperbacks in early 2005. All the books in the series have been written under the pen name of Franklin W...
#1 Extreme Danger (2005)
The Hardys acquired their pet parrot in Undercover Brothers #1 Extreme Danger, from "Wings" Maletta. Belinda Conrad named him Playback because he repeats many things that are said. He has since taken a liking to Aunt Trudy and they have a love/hate relationship.
Q. T.
- First Appearance: The Hardy BoysThe Hardy BoysThe Hardy Boys, Frank and Joe Hardy, are fictional teenage brothers and amateur detectives who appear in various mystery series for children and teens....
Undercover BrothersUndercover BrothersThe Hardy Boys: Undercover Brothers is a detective fiction series of books published by Aladdin Paperbacks , which replaced The Hardy Boys Digest paperbacks in early 2005. All the books in the series have been written under the pen name of Franklin W...
#3 Boardwalk Bust (2005)
Q.T. or just Q is the director of ATAC
American Teens Against Crime
American Teens Against Crime, is a fictional organization in the The Hardy Boys Undercover Brothers book series.ATAC is a top secret government agency co-founded by Fenton Hardy. He created it when he realized that there are some places where an adult spy would stand out too much...
and is usually the person who narrates the ATAC mission CDs. According to book #3 Boardwalk Bust he never smiles, but then according to some other books he has a famous cheerless smile. Q has only ever appeared in mission CDs, never in person.
Jerry Gilroy
Jerry Gilroy was a close friend of the Hardy Boys. He appeared occasionally in the first 20 books and then again in The Short-Wave MysteryThe Short-Wave Mystery
The Short-Wave Mystery is Volume 24 in the original The Hardy Boys Mystery Stories published by Grosset & Dunlap.This book was written for the Stratemeyer Syndicate by Leslie McFarlane in 1945. Between 1959 and 1973 the first 38 volumes of this series were systematically revised as part of a...
at a party hosted by Chet Morton, but was not involved again after that. Also notable is that in The Great Airport Mystery
The Great Airport Mystery
The Great Airport Mystery is Volume 9 in the original The Hardy Boys Mystery Stories published by Grosset & Dunlap.This book was written for the Stratemeyer Syndicate by Leslie McFarlane in 1930. Between 1959 and 1973 the first 38 volumes of this series were systematically revised as part of a...
, he is referred to as Jerry Madden.
Jack Wayne
Jack Wayne is a veteran pilot who often flies assignments for Fenton Hardy and his boys. His plane is named Skyhappy Sal; however, it crashed and burned while the Hardy boys were investigating The Disappearing FloorThe Disappearing Floor
The Disappearing Floor is Volume 19 in the original The Hardy Boys Mystery Stories published by Grosset & Dunlap.This book was written for the Stratemeyer Syndicate by John Button in 1940. Between 1959 and 1973 the first 38 volumes of this series were systematically revised as part of a project...
.