John Mortimer among mystery series authors who died in 2009

When a writer dies, the fictional world he has created dies with him. Although several notable mystery series writers passed away in 2009, none will leave a greater void than John Mortimer and his seemingly larger-than-life creation, Horace Rumpole.

John Mortimer died at his home in Oxfordshire, England on January 16, 2009 after a long illness. He was 85. A novelist, playwright and barrister, Mortimer is best known for the his series of books featuring London barrister Horace Rumpole.

Mortimer's Rumpole series increased in popularity in 1978 when Britain's ITV network produced a television series based on the books.  "Rumpole of the Bailey," starring Leo McKern, was subsequently released in the United States by the Public Broadcasting System.

In Mortimer's January 17, 2009 New York Times obituary, Helen T. Verongos had this to say about "the cunning defender of the British criminal classes," Horace Rumpole:

To read Rumpole, or to watch the episodes of the popular television series “Rumpole of the Bailey,” is to enter not only Rumpole’s stuffy flat or crowded legal chambers but also to feel the itch of his yellowing court wig and the flapping of his disheveled, cigar-ash-dusted courtroom gown.

Rumpole spends his days quoting Keats and his nights quaffing claret at Pommeroy’s wine bar, putting off the time that he must return to his wife, Hilda, more commonly known as She Who Must Be Obeyed.

Using his wit and low-comedy distractions, Rumpole sees that justice is done, more often than not by outsmarting the “old sweethearts” and “old darlings” of the bench and revealing the inner good — or at least the integrity and inconsistency — of the accused, including clans like the Timsons, whose crimes have kept generations of police officers busy."

Although one can still reread the books or watch recordings of the television programs, the adventures of Horace Rumpole, Hilda and the Timsons all came to an end with the passing of John Mortimer. So it is with the other mystery series writers who died during the past year and their fictional creations.

In "The View from the End" the Rap Sheet's Kingston Pierce lists individuals associated with crime fiction who died during 2009. Among the additional mystery series writers to whom Pierce says a final farewell are the following:

• Lyn Hamilton (Archeological Mystery series).
• H. Paul Jeffers (Harry MacNeil mystery series, Morgan series, Sergeant John Bogdanovic Mystery sereis, Arlene Flynn Mystery series) 
• Stuart M. Kaminsky (Toby Peters series,  Inspector Rostnikov series,  Abe Lieberman series,  Rockford Files series,  Lew Fonesca series)
• Sister Carol Anne O’Marie (Sister Mary Helen series)
• Barbara Parker (Gail Connor and Anthony Quintana series)
• William G. Tapply (Brady Coyne series,  Brady Coyne/J.W. Jackson series,  Stoney Calhoun series)
• Donald E. Westlake  (Dortmunder series)