Murder on the Orient Express: Characters
by Marissa Nagel
1. Ratchett
1.1. Unkind eyes
1.2. Seems to dislike Poirot
1.3. Rich man with many enemies
1.4. Killed a bit after 1:15 AM - Poirot heard it
1.4.1. As determined by Constantine, a bit after 1:00 AM
1.5. Last seen alive at 12:40 AM when he talked to the conductor
1.6. Stabbed in 15 places - not suicide
1.7. Blunt force wounds given randomly and sloppily
1.8. Told Poirot his life was in danger
1.9. American
1.10. Has received threatening letters from unknown source
1.10.1. Written by multiple people
1.10.1.1. Printed, not written
2. Hector MacQueen
2.1. Ratchett's secretary
2.2. Doesn't seem too surprised about Ratchett's death
2.3. Expected murder before Poirot told him so
2.4. American
2.5. Believes Ratchett left America to escape somebody -- an enemy wanting to kill him?
2.6. Suspects Ratchett isn't Ratchett's real name
2.7. Disliked Ratchett
2.8. Got defensive when Poirot asked if he was on good terms with Ratchett
2.9. Smokes cigarettes
2.10. Was talking to Colonel in his own compartment when the murder happened
2.11. Nervous during luggage search
3. Mrs. Hubbard
3.1. Talks about her daughter a lot
3.2. Elderly American woman
3.3. On staff of an American college
3.4. "Dead scared" of Ratchett
3.5. Has a distaste for Ratchett, but being merely scared of someone wouldn't be a good motive to kill them.
3.6. Pink flannel and purple silk dressing gowns - no red kimono
3.7. Bloody knife found in her bag
3.8. Button from a Wagon Lit conductor uniform is found by the window in her compartment
3.9. Hinted at an impending murder
4. Greta Ohlsson
4.1. Doesn't speak English very well
4.2. Sister's children are waiting for her
4.3. Swedish
4.4. Pale purple dressing gown
4.5. Works as a matron in a missionary school, is a trained nurse
4.6. 49 years old
4.7. Agitated when a luggage search was conducted
4.8. Nurse to Daisy Armstrong
5. Dr. Constantine
5.1. Small
5.2. Dark
5.3. Greek
5.4. Factual
6. Pierre Michel
6.1. Explains how he found Ratchett on page 53
6.2. Wagon Lit Conductor
7. Poirot
7.1. Factual
7.2. Objective thinker
7.3. Experienced
8. Cyrus Hardman
8.1. Goes under the cover of being a typewriter salesman, but is actually a detective in New York
8.2. American
8.3. Says the murderer is a small, dark man with a womanish voice
8.3.1. Description applies to no one on the train
8.4. Got his sleep during the day and stayed awake during the night on watch; says that he saw nobody leaving or coming onto the train
8.5. Employed by Ratchett to protect him from his enemies
8.6. Smokes cigarettes
9. Antonio Foscarelli
9.1. Italian-American
9.2. Agent for car company Ford
9.3. Seems to be very nice
9.4. Talks a lot about his job and how great America is
9.5. Likes to talk a lot
9.6. Smokes cigarettes
9.7. Chauffeur for the Armstrongs
10. M. Bouc
10.1. Head of Wagon Lit security
10.2. Friend of Poirot
10.3. Polite
10.4. Believes the Italian is the murderer
11. Colonel Arbuthnot
11.1. Fancies Mary
11.2. English Indian
11.3. Retired military
11.4. Does not believe that Mary could have committed the crime
11.4.1. Denies it with feeling
11.5. Says that he was in MacQueen's compartment at 1:15 AM
11.5.1. Stopped talking at 1:45 AM
11.6. Does not like Americans
11.7. Smokes a pipe
11.8. Says he favors trial by jury over private justice
11.9. Cold personality
12. Mary Debenham
12.1. Governess
12.2. Travelling from Iraq to England
12.3. English
12.4. Cold personality
12.5. Very defensive when luggage search is conducted
12.6. Would not tell Poirot the meaning of the suspicious words she'd spoken with the Colonel
12.6.1. Said she was talking about a secret task
12.7. Lost her temper on the day the train was delayed going to Stamboul, which is out of character for her
12.7.1. Says her friend was waiting for her in London and the delay messed up their plans
12.8. She is not, however, worried about the delay with the snow
12.9. Her journey from Iraq to London was the first time she met the Colonel
12.10. Overheard saying "Not now, when it's all over." to Colonel Arbuthnot, but refused to tell Poirot what those words meant
13. Princess Dragomiroff
13.1. Unusually ugly
13.2. Rich
13.3. Aristocratic
13.4. Large personality
13.5. Has rheumatoid arthritis
14. Hildegarde Schmidt
14.1. German lady's maid of the princess
14.2. Says that a small, dark man in a Wagon Lit conductor's suit with a womanish voice ran into her on her way back from the princess's compartment
14.2.1. Fits the description Hardman gave of Ratchett's enemy
14.3. Keeps her suitcase unlocked
14.4. As Poirot suspected, the Wagon Lit uniform with the missing button is in her suitcase
14.4.1. There is a key in the pocket of the uniform
14.4.1.1. Explains why Mrs. Hubbard's door was locked when Greta tried it, unlocked when Mrs. Hubbard heard the intruder, and locked bn when Michel answered Hubbard's bell
14.5. Recognized her lady's handkerchief when Poirot asked about it and covered for her
15. Countess Andrenyi
15.1. Twenty-something
15.2. Very pretty
15.3. Asleep when murder occurred - took a sleeping draught
15.4. Diplomat
15.5. Has a grease spot on her passport
15.5.1. The grease spot covers a possible H that would connect her with handkerchief in Ratchett's compartment
15.6. She is Helena Goldenberg, daughter of Linda Arden, aunt of Daisy Amrstrong
15.7. Acted foreign but was completely American
16. Count Andrenyi
16.1. Handsome
16.2. Well built
16.3. Thirty-something
16.4. Asleep when murder happened
16.5. Smokes cigarettes
16.6. Control freak
16.7. Diplomat
17. Woman In Red Kimono
17.1. Seen walking away after Poirot heard a thud on his door
17.2. In Ratchett's room before he died, according to Mrs. Hubbard
17.3. Based on what Mrs. Hubbard said, she is a prostitute
18. Conductor (chef de train)
18.1. Conductor of entire train
18.2. Believes a woman killed Ratchett
19. Everybody knows that beyond Ratchett's nice facade was an evil person
20. Masterrman
20.1. Ratchett's valet
20.2. Shares a room with the Italian
20.3. Had a toothache on the night of the murder, so he stayed up all night
20.3.1. Confirmed that Antonio never left the room