The Beatnik who wasn’t beat, but was shot

In the medium sized town of Richmond, north of San Francisco, is a flourishing beatnik community. It’s not a big time city but they have gained some notoriety for their poets and artists. Richmond has the typical big city intrigues of politics and the art business. It also has drugs, wild music, orgies, political scandals, anarchists, wild philosophers and even some bikers that are all part of the scene.
Throw into the mix characters with criminal backgrounds, frustrated writers, fake artists and fake beatniks and you have a recipe for the oldest crime known to man.
Get out your bongos, berets, some Jazz, red wine, spaghetti, and garlic bread. Brush up on your beatnik lingo and you will set the mood for this titillating tale of coooool cat intrigue.

This is so funny, I just had to include this link: Biker vs. writer

Characters

Patty Filmore
The most stunning and sexy beat poet in Richmond … well, she did get one poem in the culture section of the West County Times. For a poor poet though, she always seems pretty well dressed. In fact, she is a fashion plate, dressed in the most avant garde clothes in town. Everyone knows that she is crazy about Bill.
Costume suggestions here

John Barron
The suave and successful artists of Richmond, John is a real hustler and a go getter. He is always in the middle of the action, and he does an amazing amount of quite good work. The opening at the gallery was for his newest collages. There was a huge crowd, but the show was suddenly interrupted by a murder.
Costume suggestions here

Alicia Rogers
The cute and perfect little beatnik. She floats around in her own world, talking to the flowers and people watching. It is obvious to everyone, especially Beatrice, that Alicia has a crazy crush on Bill. She practically throws herself at him. It must have been quite a shock for her when she found his dead body in the utility room.  
Costume suggestions here

Oscar
The gruff but generous owner of the Coffee House. Oscar keeps to himself, but he has always supported the beatniks and opens his Coffee House to them for poetry readings and rap sessions. The only person that gets him riled is Beatrice. It is obvious that he worships her. But she is… was, in love with Bill.
Costume suggestions here

Beatrice Faust
Beatrice and Bill Klesch live together, not far from the Coffee House. She stuck with him while he struggled to succeed as a poet, only to loose him just as he was about to achieve that success. Beatrice has written some poetry too. In fact she is one of the hardest working artists of all the beats in Richmond.
Costume suggestions here

Frankie
An insecure small time drug dealer, Frankie is always broke, always high, and always seems to be in trouble with either the law or thugs. The people he has connections to are many, and often surprising. And if there is anything illegal going on around Richmond, Frankie is probably involved in some way.
Costume suggestions here

Dottie Williams
She came into town a year ago and opened a new art gallery. She seems to be doing quite well, although she doesn’t seem to sell very many pieces. Dottie comes across as the quiet, practical type, not drawing attention to herself. What she did though, the night Bill Klesch was killed, will be the talk of the town for years to come.
Costume suggestions here

Dunphy
He is a square, but very successful reporter. In fact, Ted always seems to be where the action is and gets the inside scoop at city hall. It is obvious that he is crazy about Alicia, but she is too crazy about Bill to notice him. Ted was covering the exciting gallery opening and the craziness when Bill was found dead.
Costume suggestions here