King Bennett
The wise-mouthed, hard-hitting detective. He was in his mid-thirties and stayed the same age throughout the series. Not much was ever exposed of King's past. It was known that he worked for a detective agency before he went solo. King displayed a "live for the moment" type of attitude which worked out well because Las Vegas was definitely a "live for the moment" type of town. King Bennett proudly reigned as its lord of the lounge. After having just said that, it is interesting to note that King (or Dean Davis) didn't regularly drink and never smoked. King said it best in "Click", Said the Camera, "Every man has his vice. For some it's alcohol while for others it's gambling. Mine happens to be dames. They cost me enough. Why would I need another addiction draining my wallet?"

He would most likely be viewed today as a politically incorrect, sexist pig, but that was mainly because his personality was a definite reflection of a guy living in Rat Pack era Las Vegas. At the heart of the character was an honest man who was looking to help his clients and see justice prevail. That was kind of hard to do in a city as wild as Las Vegas. Dean based the character on his own ideals and morals with a dash of his literary influences.

The physical attributes for King Bennett were loosely based on fantasy artist Frank Frazetta. Dean met Frank while the artist was completing an assignment for Crime Scene, the pulp magazine where Dean started his career. Dean once explained in an interview what he was looking for when creating King Bennett. "I needed a guy who could look dashing and smooth yet at the same time be capable of bashing in someone's face if the need came up. Frank's features had the basis of what I envisioned for King and I just made up the rest." Dean also made up the name King Bennett. He thought it sounded "Vegasy".

Fantasy artist Frank Frazetta was the physical model for the King Bennett character.

Stanky Field
Real name, Jack O'Hara. Now follow me on this one, it might get a bit confusing. Jack O'Hara was a stand-up comedian without much of a career in New York City. Even though Jack was born and bred an Irish Catholic he changed his stage name to Stanky Field and geared his act towards stories about growing up Jewish in New York. He told everyone his name was Stanley Feldman, but that he chose Stanky Field to make it more show business sounding. He suddenly became extremely popular after he was booked up in the Catskills. Eventually, Stanky (Jack) found that he could make more money in Las Vegas. His first appearance was in Neon Nights and he stayed with the series until the end.

Miss Mockerbee
Edith Mockerbee was King's secretary in Los Angeles. She was middle-aged and overly efficient. As far as her looks, King himself said it best, "She had a face that could stop a clock, but a rack on her that you could use to climb up and fix it. While working in the office, her body kept me excited while her face kept me focused on the task at hand. I liked it that way." Miss Mockerbee left the series when King moved to Las Vegas at the end of Dead Man's Party. She made one last appearance a year and a half later in Screen Kiss. Edith was now running her own Girl Friday type secretarial service and helped King with some leads in the case.

Joy
King's secretary in Vegas was a twentysomething blonde-haired beauty with the perfect name of Joy. King often mentioned that she had the looks of a Norse goddess by way of Malibu. Joy was always good for a humorous deadpan zinger and was a great addition to the ongoing cast. She made her first appearance in Neon Nights and stayed for the whole series.

Captain Ted Fleming
King needed someone on the Las Vegas Police Department that he could trust and Ted Fleming was his man. Captain Fleming was very easy going and fit into the Las Vegas scene very well. He managed to maintain law and order while still keeping his sanity. His first appearance was in "Bang!", Said the Gun and he returned for the rest of the series in Neon Nights.

Places in King's world:

Jingo's Coffee Shop
If anybody is familiar with the "Googie" style of architecture that was a pillar of the Populuxe era then you have a good idea what the fictitious chain of Jingo's coffee shops looked like inside and out. For the rest of you, think of a 1950's diner utilizing the futuristic look of chrome, plastic, and formica. In the King Bennett series there was a Jingo's in Los Angeles and one in Las Vegas.

The Los Angeles location was next door to a bowling alley. Large plate glass windows separated the two establishments on the inside. King would occasionally go there to unwind and in his words, "watch the girls bend over to pick up their balls and jiggle with joy when they got a strike". His regular drink at Jingo's wasn't coffee...it was a frosty mug of birch beer.

Chook's
Chook's was the quintessential smoky jazz club where all the hepcats met. It was located off Fremont Street in Las Vegas and featured a Polynesian tiki theme. Chook's catered to a clientele consisting of the locals and celebrities who lived and worked in Las Vegas. It was not known as a tourist spot. King usually found all the inside dope on a suspect or a case within the walls of Chook's.