The Sci-Fi Hall of Lame is for the irritating and condescending in sci-fi things. They track mud into the house of geekdom, so we must hose them down.

Fortunato

Interrogation is a nasty business. No one knows this better than Fortunato, the magic pimp from the shared-world anthology Wild Cards book series, edited by George R. R. Martin.

Fortunato was created by Lewis Shiner, and first appeared in the first Wild Cards book in 1987.

He gained his powers from tantric sex. That certainly beats a radioactive spider bite.

Fortunato discovers he has the ability to speak to the dead. Unfortunately, to do so, he has to have sex with them.

After they die.

Let's analyze how this might go over in the crime fighting community.

Batman and Fortunato are perched on an inner city roof, peering down at their targets, two thugs who know the word on the street.

The Dark Knight and the Magic Pimp attack the crooks.

Batman talks all menacing-like to one. Fortunato murders the other one.

Then he unbuckles his pants.

Batman: Holy narco-sodomy! What are you doing?!

Fortunato: Dude, if you know a better way to get information, I'd love to hear about it.