The "Mayor of Hog
Alley", the senior cadet in Matt
Dodson's barracks in the James
Randolph. He had a long assignment to the James Randolph because of
accumulated demerits, and eventually resigned and returned to Earth.
Arkwright (no first name)
Commander of the Interplanetary
Patrol academy. He accepted a reduction in rank so that he could take the
post. He lost his sight during the rescue of a private yacht.
Pierre (Pete) Armand
Interplanetary
Patrol candidate. Born on Ganymede,
he spoke English with an accent and had some difficulty adjusting to the
higher Earth gravity. After completing his training in the James
Randolph, he was assigned to the PRS Charles' Wain, shipping to Ganymede.
Ship that carried the first expedition to Venus in
1971. Her crew died of a virulent fungal infection shortly after landing. The
Little
People gave Matt
Dodson the ship's log, then led them to the ship herself, which they had
preserved intact. The cadets refitted her with the Venerians'
help and flew her back to the Aes
Triplex.
Interplanetary
Patrol candidate and son of the chairman of the board of Reactors,
Ltd. He resigned from the Patrol at the same time that Matt
Dodson passed his training, and joined his father's business. Matt and his
fellow cadets encountered him on Venus,
where he had been taken prisoner by natives after trying to coerce them into
granting mineral rights in a taboo area. The cadets rescued him, but also
placed him under arrest. He was called "Stinky" by other cadets.
Captain Jenks of the Space Patrol
Contemporary juvenile serial; unclear whether it was printed or video.
he is included in every muster as one of the Four
Heroes of the Interplanetary Patrol. A monument is raised to him at the
Interplanetary Patrol training academy.
A native of Des
Moines, Iowa, who became an Interplanetary
Patrol cadet. After completing his training he was assigned to the Aes
Triplex with two friends and appointed assistant astrogator and
hydroponics worker. He and the other two cadets were sent to Venus to
investigate a distress call from a civilian craft. There they straightened out
a political crisis caused by a former classmate and discovered the Astarte,
the first Earth ship to Venus which had been lost on its first voyage there.
Semiformal discussion sessions instituted by Commodore
Arkwright aboard the to shake loose the cadets' preconceptions and to
prevent unthinking acceptance of conservative values.
The most famous martyrs of the Interplanetary
Patrol: Ezra
Dahlquist , Wheeler, Rivera,
and John Martin. Their names are called in every muster, with specified
individuals responding, "I answer for him." [The reasons why Wheeler and
Martin are among the heroes are not given.]
[mentioned in passing] Interplanetary
Patrol member who died on the first expedition to Pluto. He had been
commissioned as an officer after only a year as a cadet.
Corridor Five of "A" deck aboard the James
Randolph, in which Matt
Dodson was assigned a berth. It was known for the carefree conduct of its
inhabitants. Among other things, they organized the Hog Alley Band from the
musically-inclined cadets assigned to the corridor. The Hog Alley People's
Forum was a group of the older cadets, who informally took charge of the new
cadets.
[mentioned in passing, in a footnote to the story] Pioneer
in astrogation theory, his most important work was written in 1925; all
subsequent work in astrogation is a refinement of his basic principles.
Institute for System Studies
Institute located on Venus;
cadets might study there.
(Space Cadet)
Interplanetary Patrol
The recruits sworn in at the same time as Matt
Dodson represented many countries and off-planet colonies, as indicated by
their names: Adams, Akbar, Alvarado, Anderson, Angelico, Armand (Ganymede),
Delacroix, DeWitt, Diaz, Dobbs, Eddy, Eisenhower, Ericsson, Jensen (Venus),
Romolus, Sforza, Stanley, Suliman, Zahm.
Interplanetary
Patrol cadet who made friends with Matt
Dodson on their first day. He arranged to be assigned to the Aes
Triplex to stay with his friends, and was named watch officer when the
senior crew transferred to a disabled ship to repair and return it. When he
and the other cadets were sent to Venus to
answer a distress call, they discovered the Astarte
and helped restore and return it to the Triplex after his landing craft was
damaged.
Bodie Jarman
Tex
Jarman's uncle, the black sheep of the family, about whom Tex had a wealth
of tall tales.
Oscar Jensen
Interplanetary
Patrol candidate from Venus. He
became a good friend of Matt
Dodson, passed his training at the same time, and was assigned to the Aes
Triplex with him. He was named chief communications officer after the
senior officers were transferred to a derelict ship for repairs. He landed on
Venus with Matt and Tex
Jarman to investigate a distress call, took command when the senior
officer was injured, and negotiated aid from the natives. After the mission
was completed, he was assigned as temporary liaison to the equatorial region
because of his rapport with the natives.
Johnson (no first name)
[mentioned in passing] Crew member of the Astarte.
He died of a virulent fungus infection shortly after landing on Venus.
The first interplanetary rocketship. It traveled to Mars and
back but crashed on the return landing, leaving no survivors. A replication of
the crash site was displayed at Hayworth
Hall. Matt
Dodson decided the ship was named after Admiral "Bull" Kilroy of the Second
Global War.
Lathrop (no first name)
Member of Matt
Dodson's extravehicular activity training class, who questioned Hanako's
instructions.
Little People
Human name for bipedal, amphibious natives of Venus. They
were completely matriarchal-males were never seen, and male humans did best to
pretend to be female when dealing with them-and lived in caverns under Venus'
many lakes. They were gentle in character and brilliant scientists, but
stubborn and ready to defend themselves.
Anthem of the Interplanetary
Patrol. [In "The Long Watch", the anthem is "Landing Orbit". Possibly it
was changed in honor of John Ezra Dahlquist's sacrifice.]
The planet from which the Asteroid Belt was formed. Planetologists
concluded that the planet had been inhabited, and speculated that the
inhabitants had blown themselves up.
One of the Four
Heroes of the Interplanetary
Patrol, whose name is always called (the answer given by a designated
patrol member) at every muster. (The reason he is included was not given.)
Ship to which Tex
Jarman was assigned after completing training on the James
Randolph. He persuaded the Commandant to change his assignment so he could
be with Matt
Dodson and Oscar
Jensen.
Interplanetary
Patrol ship that was engaged in charting a section of the Asteroid
Belt. When radio contact was lost, the Aes
Triplex was one of four ships assigned to search for her. They found that
the hull had been breached by a tiny asteroid, and all crew members died in
the decompression.
Interplanetary
Patrol hero, a deceased Commander whose name was called at every Patrol
muster. Sent to his native city to negotiate with belligerents, he ordered an
immediate attack should he be taken hostage, and was killed when his orders
were carried out.
Permanently inhabited orbiting station, used by military personnel as well
as civilians.
Terra Station First Baptist Church
Church that sponsored dances and other social events for off-duty military
personnel. Matt
Dodson and his friends were invited there.
Professor Thorwald (no first name)
Scientist who aided in the investigation of the Pathfinder's
disabling. He concurred that fossils and artifacts aboard her indicated that
the Asteroid
Belt was a remnant of an inhabited planet that blew itself up.
Lt. Thurlow (no first name)
Bomb officer aboard the Aes
Triplex, also assigned to oversee the cadets' training. He was named
executive officer and astrogator after half the crew transferred to the Pathfinder.
While commanding the mission to Venus to
investigate a distress call, he suffered a concussion in the landing and
remained comatose until the cadets lifted the Astarte into orbit.
It was part of a world government, but many of its citizens believed that
the U.S. dominated that government.
(also
in other stories)
Van Zook (no first name)
Interplanetary
Patrol candidate assigned to Matt
Dodson's mess table. He was reprimanded for asking another candidate where
he was from; the Patrol encouraged its members to identify with the Patrol,
not with their original homes.
Vargas (no first name)
Cadet who took part in Matt
Dodson's first extravehicular activity drill. He was sent back to the ship
in disgrace for breaking free of the ship's surface, pulling other cadets with
him.
Smaller than humans, the natives of Venus were described by humans as
resembling frogs or seals; they were bipedal, amphibious, and nonmammalian.
Their society was completely matriarchal; outsiders never saw males. They were
ruled by a strict set of customs and taboos, and were scientifically advanced.
They were not given to violence but were able to defend themselves against
aggression.
Lieutenant aboard the James
Randolph who reprimanded Tex
Jarman for questioning a senior cadet's orders.
Wheeler (no first name)
Interplanetary
Patrol hero, one of the Four
Heroes whose names were called in every muster. The reason for his
legendary status was not given in this or any other story.
The Heinlein
Society was founded by Virginia Heinlein on behalf of her husband, science
fiction author Robert Anson Heinlein, to "pay forward" the legacy of Robert A. Heinlein to future generations of "Heinlein's Children."