The Greencoat Detective

Captain Pat McGowen, the Greencoat Detective This 1892 Beadle and Adams publication features the second chapter of "Captain Pat McGowen, the Greencoat Detective" by Albert W. Aiken, author of pulp detective serials. The narrative opens at Broadway's Bijou Opera House during the premiere of an English burlesque troupe's production titled "The Female Bluebeard," starring Miss Diana Duclois, a thirty-year-old English actress whose youthful appearance has impressed New York audiences. During her opening performance, a tall bearded stranger interrupts the show, claiming Diana is his wife "Catherine." His disruption triggers a theater brawl when he attempts to reach the stage, with young society men attacking him with canes while gallery patrons support him. A mysterious tall gentleman in a dark-green business suit—apparently the titular detective—arrives to assist the stranger just as the conflict escalates.