From Blue Fairy Film Blog:
Jessica Fletcher
Jessica was played by Angela Lansbury on the CBS television show “Murder She Wrote” between 1984 and 1996, and was the ultimate detective. She wrote murder who-done-its by profession, but always seemed to stumble into murder investigations as well; whether while travelling extensively around the country, or at home in Cabot Cove, Maine. Widowed some years ago, Jessica has a cadre of friends, relatives, and acquaintances who keep her busy when she isn’t stopping murderers. Jessica is a great detective not only because she deduces clues based on happenstance and observation, but because she is a witty and interesting person with a penchant for the macabre.
Nancy Drew
Nancy Drew is one of the most famous girl detectives, and for good reason. Nancy first appeared in 1930 in a series of mystery novels written by various people under the pseudonym of Carolyn Keene. Since that initial series Nancy has been revamped various times for everything from seventies TV series to made-for-TV movies and modern book series. The version of the books I read as a little girl was the revised 1959 versions, bound in yellow with hand drawn covers. Nancy is a great detective, who often uncovers stolen objects or missing people with the help of her female friends Bess and George, her boyfriend Ned, or her father, Carson. She is headstrong, smart, and a major sleuth, making her an optimal role model for young girls.
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Dana Scully
The supernatural show “The X-Files” of course needed a skeptic to offset the obvious weirdness of aliens, shift-shapers, and in-bred murderous clans. Dana Scully saw everything as the partner of Mulder, and throughout she conducted herself with professionalism and skepticism. She solved some crimes and uncovered giant conspiracies as well. Scully remained the backbone of the show throughout its nine seasons, and subsequent movies, and showed that being an FBI agent is more than solving crimes, it’s opening your mind.
Link to the rest at Blue Fairy Film Blog