Mr. AVERY FLATMINOR
Avery Flatminor is the guest character to the pilot episode, Good Measures or The Lost Gold Mine of Avery Flatminor. He is this story’s catalyst—his arrival triggers the central conflict, and his death sets the mystery in motion. A monotone speaking role, Avery Flatminor is a newcomer to Good Measures, immediately set apart by his gray, unremarkable clothing and dogged, expressionless manner. Dim‑witted but relentlessly persistent, he speaks plainly, thinks slowly, and refuses to be distracted once a goal has lodged itself in his mind.
A gold prospector by trade, Avery recently won a deed to land in a poker game—the entire town of Good Measures, as it turns out. Soon after his arrival, he learns that a long‑forgotten gold mine lies hidden somewhere beneath the town. The only property he does not own is The Sonata Saloon, which sits squarely at the town’s center. Avery’s singular obsession is getting his deed properly registered at the bank so he can collect back rent from the townsfolk and finance the excavation he is convinced will make him rich.
Avery’s path crosses with Cornelius Sharp, freshly escaped from the Eutopia County prison, and thanks to Sharp’s black clothing and stiff white collar, Avery mistakes him for a minister. Sharp, quick to adapt, introduces himself as Rev. C. Sharp Major, taking immediate advantage of Avery’s confusion. Once news of Avery’s claim and his demands for back rent spread through Good Measures, his presence becomes deeply unpopular—and his fate swiftly sealed.
Before the end of Act I, Avery Flatminor is murdered. The question of who committed the deed hangs over the town, for Avery’s final words were heard only by Hurdy Gurdy, whose slurred reputation makes him an uncertain witness.
Earnest, unyielding, and tragically out of his depth, Avery Flatminor arrives in Good Measures seeking fortune—and leaves behind a mystery that sets the rest of the story in motion.
Annie and Avery are often doubled, allowing one actor to play Avery in Act I and Annie in Act II. Avery “digs down” to take gold from the land, while Annie rides across the county answering calls by telegram to protect the land. Annie’s a dramatic release after Avery’s removal.
