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Matthew Teran
Frank Green is a gangster who sells hijack liquor, alcohol that is illegally produced then stolen. He is sometimes referred to as “Knifehand,” due to his reputation for being skilled with a blade. For the majority of the story, Frank is presumed to be Daphne Monet’s boyfriend, as they are often seen together in clubs and bars. However, the end of the story reveals that Frank and Daphne are actually half siblings. Frank, who presents as Black, killed their abusive father to protect Daphne, who presents as White. This ultimately solidified Daphne’s trust in Frank as her protector. Easy spends a good portion of the novel in search of Frank, who he believes is the key to unraveling Daphne’s complicated past. Frank eventually breaks into Easy’s home, intending to murder him for prying into his affairs, but he is deterred by Mouse’s arrival. Mouse has known both Frank and Daphne for many years, and neither man trusts the other. In the end, Mouse kills Frank, and Frank and the police posthumously blame for murders he did not commit in order to protect Daphne.
Frank Green Quotes in Devil in a Blue Dress
The Devil in a Blue Dress quotes below are all either spoken by Frank Green or refer to Frank Green. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
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Chapter 18 Quotes
But I didn’t believe that there was justice for Negroes. I thought that there might be some justice for a black man if he had the money to grease it. Money isn’t a sure bet but it’s the closest to God that I’ve ever seen in this world.
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Chapter 21 Quotes
“Tell us what we wanna know, Frankie, or I’m’a shoot ya.”
Frank’s jaw set and his left eye half closed. I could see that Daphne meant enough to him that he was ready to die to keep her safe.
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Chapter 26 Quotes
Most beautiful women make me feel like I want to touch them, own them. But Daphne made me look inside myself. She’d whisper a sweet word and I was brought back to the first time I felt love and loss.
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Chapter 29 Quotes
“Now am I gonna lie to you, Ruby? Your brother’s dead.”
I had only been in an earthquake once but the feeling was the same: The ground under me seemed to shift. I looked at her to see the truth. But it wasn’t there. Her nose, cheeks, her skin color—they were white. Daphne was a white woman.
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“I’m different than you because I’m two people. I’m her and I’m me. I never went to that zoo, she did. She was there and that’s where she lost her father. I had a different father. He came to my house and fell in my bed about as many times as he fell in my mother’s. He did that until one night Frank killed him.”
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Frank Green Character Timeline in Devil in a Blue Dress
The timeline below shows where the character Frank Green appears in Devil in a Blue Dress. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
Chapter 8
...shares what he learned about Daphne from Coretta, including her relationship with a gangster named Frank Green and his address. Pleased, Albright gives Easy another $100, suggesting it will tide him...
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Chapter 12
...that he knows Easy is looking for Daphne Monet and mentions that she hangs around Frank Green—Daphne’s boyfriend, whose identity Coretta already shared with Easy. The timing and tone of Junior’s...
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...might lead to Coretta. Easy reveals that Coretta was beaten to death and suggests that Frank Green is responsible, but Daphne insists he only kills using his knife, not his fists....
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Chapter 15
...grows increasingly threatening, Easy holds his ground, showing remarkable composure. Albright instructs him to locate Frank Green, convinced he’s the “key” to finding Daphne, and promises their business will be done...
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Chapter 18
Easy resolves to make finding Frank Green his mission, convinced he holds the key to clearing his name and getting Albright...
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...against questioning him. Over the next couple days, he scours the bars and clubs where Frank often sells hijack liquor, strategically gathering information. Looking back on this time, Easy realizes these...
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Chapter 19
...community gathering and gossip, and Easy hopes he'll be able to glean some information about Frank Green. But before he can broach the subject with Ernest, two other patrons nearly come...
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...outside of his shop. At first, Easy is annoyed—he knows that Jackson is one of Frank’s associates, and he wants to question him alone. But when Zeppo asks Jackson if he’s...
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Chapter 20
Jackson leads Easy and Zeppo to a liquor store where Frank sells his whiskey, operated by Abe and Johnny, brothers-in-law who survived the Auschwitz concentration camp....
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...negotiates a deal for a case of Jim Beam, hopeful it will lead him to Frank. They arrange the exchange for the following day. But as they leave Johnny’s store, Jackson...
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Chapter 21
...recognized Daphne from the moment Albright showed him her photo because of her connection to Frank. He involved Easy because he was trying to help him make easy money—but he never...
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...isn’t fully latched, he’s suddenly knocked unconscious. When he awakens, he’s lying on his couch, Frank Green wielding a knife next to him. Frank has heard that Easy’s been looking for...
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Mouse holds a pistol to Frank’s head, demanding he drop his knife. When Frank complies, backing away from Easy, Easy asks...
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...vows not to act without permission. Reluctantly, Easy accepts Mouse’s help, assigning him to shadow Frank while Easy visits Daphne’s old haunts, hoping their combined efforts will uncover the truth.
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Chapter 22
...Mouse about the $30,000 allegedly in Daphne’s possession, instructing him only to worry about following Frank. Leaving Easy’s, they’re confronted by detectives Miller and Mason, who want to question Easy further....
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Chapter 23
...not understanding Richard’s motives. Once at Richard’s house, Richard insisted Junior deliver a message to Frank Green before receiving payment. Feeling cheated, Junior grew angry. When Richard turned toward his bedroom,...
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Chapter 25
...with him to stay. Frustrated, he reminds her of the danger she’s brought into his life—Frank Green, Albright, and the police are all after him because of her. He shows her...
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Chapter 26
Easy asks Daphne who Frank Green is to her if he isn’t her boyfriend, but she refuses to explain, claiming...
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Chapter 29
...the name Ruby, refuses to give up her money, explaining it’s all that she and Frank have. Mouse informs her that Frank is dead, likely killed by Joppy, though Joppy denies...
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...she is ashamed of her past. She says that her father sexually abused her until Frank killed him to end it. She asks Easy to give Frank a proper burial and...
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Chapter 30
...beginning to end, omitting certain details and fabricating others to protect Daphne. He suggests that Frank Green and Howard Green were distant cousins—though they were merely two unrelated men who shared...
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