Dr. Robert "Mongo" Fredrickson, a.k.a. Mongo the Magnificent, is a

fictional Fiction is any creative work, chiefly any narrative work, portraying character (arts), individuals, events, or setting (narrative), places that are imagination, imaginary or in ways that are imaginary. Fictional portrayals are thus inconsistent ...

private eye ''Private Eye'' is a British fortnightly satirical and current affairs (news format), current affairs news magazine, founded in 1961. It is published in London and has been edited by Ian Hislop since 1986. The publication is widely recognised ...

and

criminologist Criminology (from Latin , 'accusation', and Ancient Greek , ''-logia'', from λόγος ''logos'', 'word, reason') is the interdisciplinary study of crime and deviant behaviour. Criminology is a multidisciplinary field in both the behaviou ...

who has

dwarfism Dwarfism is a condition of people and animals marked by unusually small size or short stature. In humans, it is sometimes defined as an adult height of less than , regardless of sex; the average adult height among people with dwarfism is . '' ...

, appearing in several books by George C. Chesbro. His rather unusual nickname is actually his stage name, from his days as an

acrobat Acrobatics () is the performance of human feats of balance, agility, and motor coordination. Acrobatic skills are used in performing arts, sporting events, and martial arts. Extensive use of acrobatic skills are most often performed in acro d ...

in a

circus A circus is a company of performers who put on diverse entertainment shows that may include clowns, acrobats, trained animals, trapeze acts, musicians, dancers, hoopers, tightrope walkers, jugglers, magicians, ventriloquists, and unicy ...

(a career that is over by the time the book series begins). The novels are usually classified as mysteries, but frequently contain strong elements of

speculative fiction Speculative fiction is an umbrella term, umbrella genre of fiction that encompasses all the subgenres that depart from Realism (arts), realism, or strictly imitating everyday reality, instead presenting fantastical, supernatural, futuristic, or ...

such as

extra-sensory perception Extrasensory perception (ESP), also known as a sixth sense, or cryptaesthesia, is a claimed paranormal ability pertaining to reception of information not gained through the recognized physical senses, but sensed with the mind. The term was ado ...

and

cryptozoology Cryptozoology is a pseudoscience and subculture that searches for and studies unknown, legendary, or extinct animals whose present existence is disputed or unsubstantiated, particularly those popular in folklore, such as Bigfoot, the Loch Ness ...

Cultural impact

Marvel Comics Marvel Comics is a New York City–based comic book publishing, publisher, a property of the Walt Disney Company since December 31, 2009, and a subsidiary of Disney Publishing Worldwide since March 2023. Marvel was founded in 1939 by Martin G ...

has a supporting character Chesbro, a genius who is afflicted with dwarfism. He is the majordomo to the villain the

Black Tarantula Black Tarantula is the name of two fictional characters appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The Carlos LaMuerto version of Black Tarantula first appears in ''The Amazing Spider-Man'' #419 (January 1997), and makes his f ...

Tom DeFalco Tom DeFalco (born June 26, 1950) is an American comic book writer and editor well known for his association with Marvel Comics, with long runs on ''Amazing Spider-Man'', ''Thor (comic book), Thor'', ''Fantastic Four (comic book), Fantastic Four'' ...

, who created and authored Chesbro's first appearance in The Amazing Spider-Man #419, has confirmed that this is a tribute to the Mongo character.

List of Novels

* ''Shadow of a Broken Man'' (1977) () * ''City of Whispering Stone'' (1978) () * ''An Affair of Sorcerers'' (1979) () * ''The Beasts of Valhalla'' (1985) () * ''Two Songs This Archangel Sings'' (1987) () * ''The Cold Smell of Sacred Stone'' (1988) () * ''Second Horseman Out of Eden'' (1989) () * ''The Language of Cannibals'' (1990) () * ''In the House of Secret Enemies'' (1990) () * ''The Fear in Yesterday's Rings'' (1991) () * ''Dark Chant in a Crimson Key'' (1992) () * ''An Incident at Bloodtide'' (1993) () * ''Bleeding in the Eye of a Brainstorm'' (1995) () * ''Dream of a Falling Eagle'' (1996) () * ''Lord of Ice and Loneliness'' (2003) () French translation, not published in the US.

Potential adaptation

In 2005, Greenlight Pictures announced that they would be producing a motion picture, ''An Affair of Sorcerers'', based on the book of the same name in the Mongo series, and that actor

Peter Dinklage Peter Hayden Dinklage (; born June 11, 1969) is an American actor. Portraying Tyrion Lannister on the HBO television series ''Game of Thrones'' (2011–2019), Dinklage won the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama S ...

would be playing the central role of Mongo. Author George Chesbro wrote a screenplay for the project, but, unfortunately, the studio eventually vanished and the movie never happened. In February 2014, If.com.au published an interview with writer Jason Monjo. He revealed that he has written the script for a pilot for an HBO series based on Chesbro's '' The Beasts of Valhalla,'' again starring actor Peter Dinklage. The pilot was to be produced by Ben Stiller's

Red Hour Productions Red Hour Productions is an American film production company operated by actor Ben Stiller and formerly with producer Stuart Cornfeld. In the past, Red Hour has had first-look deals with New Line Cinema and 20th Century Fox. History Film The name ...

. As of 2021, the adaptation has not been produced.

References

External links

The George C. Chesbro website

* ttp://if.com.au/2014/02/21/article/Monjo-pens-HBO-pilot-Farscape-movie/QNYSTLVCCT.html If.com.au: Monjo pens HBO pilot, ''Farscape'' movie {{DEFAULTSORT:Mongo The Magnificent Fictional American detectives Fictional private investigators Fictional circus performers Fictional acrobats Fictional characters with dwarfism