![]() For some unearthly reason, I have not yet read it. The fourth novel, The Glass Key (1931), is considered by some to be Hammett’s masterpiece. ![]() ![]() It’s a shame he only wrote four films, but more about that anon. The dialogue in the brilliant third adaptation of the novel (starring Bogart, Astor, Lorre and Greenstreet) is lifted verbatim from the book, and it crackles. The Maltese Falcon (1930), among other things, explains why Hammett had the potential to be a successful screenwriter. Next I tackled The Dain Curse (also 1929), Hammett’s most underrated puzzler, with a dazzling reveal at the end. I would love to figure out how to dramatize it for the stage. I think its setting, Poisonville, could be the model for every dark noir town in literature and film, as well as Twin Peaks and other settings that ooze moral decay. However, it made sense to simply read the novels in order and so I began with Red Harvest (1929), which I have re-read twice and find something new to savor with each revisit. ![]() I bought myself a copy of his Five Collected Novels years ago in order to read The Maltese Falcon. ![]() I rarely venture into hard-boiled territory, but I have always had a deep fondness for Dashiell Hammett. REPORTER: Say, is he working on a case?. ![]()
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