The First Hard-Boiled Private Eye Story
“Firsts” are the sort of game literary historians, scholars and bookgeeks love to play, giving them a chance to strut their stuff, loudly and proudly offering up the most blurry of distinctions and the most wishy-washy of definitions, turning hair-splittery into a fine art — and occasionally a contact sport.
So what was the first hard-boiled private eye story, then?
That seems to depend on how you define “first,” “hard-boiled” “private eye” and possibly “story.”
But I digress. Here are the usual suspects, gathered for your convenience.
Let the hair-splittery commence…
- “The False Burton Combs”
By Carroll John Daly
First appeared in the December 1922 issue of The Black Mask
Detective: Burton Combs (not his real name) - “The Road Home”
By Peter Collinson (Dashiell Hammett)
First appeared in the December 1922 issue of The Black Mask
Detective: Hagedorn
- “Three Gun Terry“
By Carroll John Daly
First appeared in the May 15, 1923 issue of The Black Mask
Detective: Three Gun Terry
- “Knights of the Open Palm“
By Carroll John Daly
First appeared in the June 1923 issue of The Black Mask
Detective: Race Williams
By the way, Race’s first appearance in book form, The Snarl of the Beast (1927), is generally acknowledged as the first hard-boiled private eye novel.
- “Arson Plus”
By Peter Collinson (Dashiell Hammett)
First appeared in the October 1923 issue of The Black Mask
Detective: The Continental Op
RELATED LINKS
- In the Beginning
Early Historical and Literary Influences on the Genre
Respectfully submitted by Kevin Burton Smith. Comments and suggestions welcome.
