1989 Performed by Rory Gallagher Words and Music by Rory Gallagher Irish blues rocker Gallagher released this bluesy, balls-to-the-wall ode to a personal hero on his 1988 album Defender. The AllMusic Guide said of the album: "There are a few corkers here like 'Continental Op,' a blazing riff that stands with Gallagher's best work and … Continue reading It’s Only Words: “The Continental Op” by Rory Gallagher (For Dashiell Hammett)
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Dashiell Hammett
Pseudonyms include Peter Collinson, Daghull Hammett, Samuel Dashiell, Mary Jane Hammett (1894-1961) "Hammett gave murder back to the kind of people that commit it for reasons." -- Raymond Chandler Dashiell Hammett was born in St. Mary's County, Maryland, on May 27th, 1894, and died January 10, 1961, in New York, New York. In between, he … Continue reading Dashiell Hammett
True Detective: From the Memoirs of a Private Detective
Dashiell Hammett's Real Life Cases This article originally appeared in the March 1923 issue of The Smart Set, and recounts some of Hammett's thoughts and experiences from his days with the 'Pinks. It's generally agreed that he's pulling our legs in some cases, but it's only been reprinted a few times and it's still pretty … Continue reading True Detective: From the Memoirs of a Private Detective
“The Simple Art of Murder”
The Gospel According to Raymond Chandler Fiction in any form has always intended to be realistic. Old-fashioned novels which now seem stilted and artificial to the point of burlesque did not appear that way to the people who first read them. Writers like Fielding and Smollett could seem realistic in the modern sense because they … Continue reading “The Simple Art of Murder”
There’s an old Polish proverb that says…
The Wit & Wisdom of Banacek Of course, none of the "Polish" proverbs that smug, urbane freelance insurance investigator Thomas Banacek was so fond of spouting in the popular 1972-74 NBC television series Banacek, starring George Peppard actually existed — they were whipped up by the writers. Possibly after a long lunch. In fact, even … Continue reading There’s an old Polish proverb that says…
Cough it up. Or else…
Relax, bub. This ain't gonna hurt. But you've had a free ride so far, so maybe it's time you chipped in. Don't worry -- we're not going to turn this into a pay-per-view site or anything like that (yet?). But web sites don't grow on trees, and advertising revenue barely covers the tab for the … Continue reading Cough it up. Or else…
When You’re Quoted, You’ll Take It and Like It!
Private Dicks Say the Darnedest Things... "We work in the dark, We do what we can, We give what we have, Our doubt is our passion, And our passion is our task" -- Henry James, "The Middle Years" (1893) “I was doing a cheap sneaky job for people I didn't like, but that's what you … Continue reading When You’re Quoted, You’ll Take It and Like It!
The Gospel According to Brother Ray
No serious attempt to unravel the private eye can ignore Raymond Chandler's essay "The Simple Art of Murder" which originally appeared in the December 1944 issue of The Atlantic Monthly, reprinted in the April 15, 1950 issue Saturday Review of Literature, and subsequently served as the non-fiction centrepiece (and title) of a 1950 collection of stories … Continue reading The Gospel According to Brother Ray
What the hell is a private eye, anyway?
Further thoughts on the subject This site is, officially, for "private eyes, and other tough guys and gals who make trouble their business -- not their hobby." It's not about cops, amateur sleuths, spies, plucky librarians, nosey old spinsters, pastry chefs or talking cats... Sorry. Charlie Chan is NOT a private eye. Jessica Fletcher isn't. … Continue reading What the hell is a private eye, anyway?
Everybody Loves Raymond
Chandler, that is. This month (July 2018), for no apparent reason beyond, perhaps, marking his 130 birthday today (July 23), two new books are being published. One, The Annotated Big Sleep (Vintage Crime/Black Lizard, $25.00), celebrates the past, placing the 1939 novel (which introduced us to Los Angles private eye Philip Marlowe) on a pedestal, and … Continue reading Everybody Loves Raymond