# Nero Wolfe weighs HOW MUCH? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [December 22, 2017, 3:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nero-wolfe-weighs-how-much/805045 "2017-12-22T15:04:36Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![wonky](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wonky/32/393_2.png) [@wonky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wonky)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2017, 3:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nero-wolfe-weighs-how-much/805045/1 "2017-12-22T15:04:36Z")
Last night, I finished reading my first Rex Stout Nero Wolfe novel, _Fer-de-Lance_. At the end of the book (I was reading a Kindle edition), they included some “notes” from Rex Stout on his characters: > [@](#): > > DESCRIPTION OF NERO WOLFE > Height 5 ft. 11 in. Weight 272 lbs. Age 56. The text was the same as this: [http://www.nerowolfe.org/pdf/tidbits/Stout\_description\_of\_NW\_AG\_offc.pdf](http://www.nerowolfe.org/pdf/tidbits/Stout_description_of_NW_AG_offc.pdf) Soooo, 272 pounds. That’s not what I was expecting based on the description of someone who was largely immobilized by his weight and who says things like (paraphrased) “I would get up but my vast size makes that really difficult.” I realize that people are bigger now than then, but 272 pounds? [This guy](https://height-weight-chart.com/510-280.html), according to the site, is 5’10" and 280 pounds. That’s… not what I envisioned. ---
**Author:** ![Mahaloth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mahaloth/32/1079_2.png) [@Mahaloth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mahaloth)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2017, 3:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nero-wolfe-weighs-how-much/805045/2 "2017-12-22T15:15:38Z")
Huh. I think he is portrayed heavier in film and drawings. I thought he was a lot bigger than that as well. ---
**Author:** ![What\_Exit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/what_exit/32/10652_2.png) [@What\_Exit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_Exit)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2017, 3:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nero-wolfe-weighs-how-much/805045/3 "2017-12-22T15:16:55Z")
People are fatter now? That’s my theory. We are more use to the obese. ---
**Author:** ![Miss\_Mapp](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/miss_mapp/32/369_2.png) [@Miss\_Mapp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miss_Mapp)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2017, 3:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nero-wolfe-weighs-how-much/805045/4 "2017-12-22T15:18:13Z")
I know what you mean. Archie Goodwin’s descriptions of his boss makes it sound like Nero Wolfe at ~300 lbs is sideshow-freak huge, unable to use regular-sized chairs, and not merely a somewhat overweight guy. Different times, different standards? ---
**Author:** ![Mahaloth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mahaloth/32/1079_2.png) [@Mahaloth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mahaloth)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2017, 3:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nero-wolfe-weighs-how-much/805045/5 "2017-12-22T15:18:27Z")
[Do a google image search and a lot of portrayals of him have been much heavier.](https://literary007.files.wordpress.com/2017/08/nero-wolfe-picture.jpg) ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2017, 3:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nero-wolfe-weighs-how-much/805045/6 "2017-12-22T15:20:26Z")
Depends on how many of those pounds are fat. ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2017, 3:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nero-wolfe-weighs-how-much/805045/7 "2017-12-22T15:22:01Z")
I thought he was described as weighing a quarter of ton? That would be 500 lbs. ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2017, 3:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nero-wolfe-weighs-how-much/805045/8 "2017-12-22T15:37:25Z")
> [@wonky](#): > > Soooo, 272 pounds. That’s not what I was expecting based on the description of someone who was largely immobilized by his weight and who says things like (paraphrased) “I would get up but my vast size makes that really difficult.” > > I realize that people are bigger now than then, but 272 pounds? [This guy](https://height-weight-chart.com/510-280.html), according to the site, is 5’10" and 280 pounds. That’s… not what I envisioned. Both Archie and Nero exaggerated Nero’s size and weight for effect. In one of the books they had to flee to Montenegro (his birthplace IIRC) and Nero was able to journey through the mountains on foot quite well save for swollen feet. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/the_other_waldo_pepper/32/12370_2.png) [@The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Other_Waldo_Pepper)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2017, 3:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nero-wolfe-weighs-how-much/805045/9 "2017-12-22T15:39:10Z")
> [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](#): > > I thought he was described as weighing a quarter of ton? That would be 500 lbs. One-seventh of a ton, IIRC. ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2017, 3:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nero-wolfe-weighs-how-much/805045/10 "2017-12-22T15:43:06Z")
> [@The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](#): > > One-seventh of a ton, IIRC. Ah, so that’d be 286 lbs. or so. Thanks. ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2017, 3:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nero-wolfe-weighs-how-much/805045/11 "2017-12-22T15:52:05Z")
> [@The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](#): > > One-seventh of a ton, IIRC. That is what I recall. ---
**Author:** ![Dendarii\_Dame](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/bbce88/32.png) [@Dendarii\_Dame](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dendarii_Dame)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2017, 3:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nero-wolfe-weighs-how-much/805045/12 "2017-12-22T15:59:09Z")
I’m reading a Nero Wolfe story now, and the book describes him as “one-seventh of a ton”. ---
**Author:** ![Intergalactic\_Gladiator](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/intergalactic_gladiator/32/112_2.png) [@Intergalactic\_Gladiator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Intergalactic_Gladiator)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2017, 4:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nero-wolfe-weighs-how-much/805045/13 "2017-12-22T16:06:26Z")
Don’t forget that a person at 272 lbs. was a lot heavier back then than he would be now. ---
**Author:** ![Sattua](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sattua/32/11906_2.png) [@Sattua](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sattua)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2017, 4:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nero-wolfe-weighs-how-much/805045/14 "2017-12-22T16:10:28Z")
Dr. Banting, who popularized low-carb diets among the Victorians, was 5’5" and at his heaviest weighed about 240. He claimed it was difficult to walk and almost impossible to go down staircases at that size. Maybe things are diffierent in a world without innerspring mattresses and analgesics/anti-inflammatories? A lesser weight might set off a chain reaction of sore–\>can’t sleep–\>sorer much more easily. ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2017, 4:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nero-wolfe-weighs-how-much/805045/15 "2017-12-22T16:11:24Z")
In the book “In The Best Families”(the third in the “Zeck” trilogy), he dropped quite a bit of that weight and grew a beard working undercover as a cabbie. I don’t know what was more incredible-the weight loss or him driving as a profession. ---
**Author:** ![Leo\_Krupe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/ebca7d/32.png) [@Leo\_Krupe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leo_Krupe)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2017, 4:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nero-wolfe-weighs-how-much/805045/16 "2017-12-22T16:14:15Z")
First: Congratulations on reading Nero Wolfe! They’re great stories, and if you’ve never seen the Tim Hutton/Maury Chakin series, watch every episode! Maury Chakin, while playing a lot of other types of characters, _was_, in my opinion, Nero Wolfe. Now, to the weight question. He was described as weighing one-seventh of a ton, but remember, when the stories were written, even 200 lbs was quite heavy. I’m trying to get a quick sense of average weight from the 1940s to now, and here are some sources (I won’t vouch for validity, but the gist is obviously true): > **[The U. S. Government](https://www.thoughtco.com/us-government-4133021)** > > Learn about the form and functions of the US government with detailed articles, extensive study guides, homework helpers, and clear, unbiased analysis of politics and policy. > [@](#): > > Meanwhile, the average weight for men aged 20-74 years rose dramatically from 166.3 pounds in 1960 to 191 pounds in 2002, This says 1960, not the 40s, but I’m trying to make a point on the weight gain of the average male. This site [Men's Body Image and BMI: 100 Years in the US - Drug Rehab Options](https://www.rehabs.com/explore/mens-body-image-and-bmi/) has an interactive BMI widget that purports to show the average male body through the years. My point is that the standard of 200 lbs 70+ years ago was tremendously heavy, while today it’s almost average. So 286-300 lbs then is freakish, and today is almost not worth a second look. ---
**Author:** ![Leo\_Krupe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/ebca7d/32.png) [@Leo\_Krupe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leo_Krupe)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2017, 4:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nero-wolfe-weighs-how-much/805045/17 "2017-12-22T16:16:17Z")
> [@Intergalactic\_Gladiator](#): > > Don’t forget that a person at 272 lbs. was a lot heavier back then than he would be now. I don’t know, I think 272 lbs then is the same as 272 lbs now. Or, as George Carlin put it: “The Chancellor of the Exchequer has determined that the pound will not be devalued, but will remain at 16 ounces.” 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![aceplace57](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aceplace57/32/3500_2.png) [@aceplace57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aceplace57)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2017, 4:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nero-wolfe-weighs-how-much/805045/18 "2017-12-22T16:25:34Z")
Wolfe comments several times that his early life was violent. IIRC it’s mentioned that he was in some radical groups (probably anti-communist) and took risks. I think he fought in a civil war. Gaining weight and becoming less mobile was a way to keep himself out of dangerous situations and stay alive. Much of this is explained in the Zeck trilogy and The Black Mountain. Leaving home to directly fight Zeck is foreshadowed in the first two Zeck books. He was portrayed as one of the most dangerous adversaries Wolfe faced. Primary because he had so many resources. Wolfe gets pretty active during WWII too. The author used the character to support the war effort. ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2017, 4:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nero-wolfe-weighs-how-much/805045/19 "2017-12-22T16:28:13Z")
> [@aceplace57](#): > > Wolfe gets pretty active during WWII too. The author used the character to support the war effort. I thought Archie said that the US government wouldn’t let him write about that. ---
**Author:** ![aceplace57](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aceplace57/32/3500_2.png) [@aceplace57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aceplace57)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2017, 4:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nero-wolfe-weighs-how-much/805045/20 "2017-12-22T16:31:23Z")
Nero Wolfe of West 35th Street is a great analysis of Stout’s character. The same author wrote a similar analysis of Sherlock Holmes’ origins and cases. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nero-wolfe-weighs-how-much/805045.md?page=2)