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About DonHerron.com
In 1977 Don Herron began leading The Dashiell Hammett Tour, now the longest-running literary tour in the nation. On this site you’ll find information on current walks — dates, where to meet, arranging tours by appointment — plus a hard-boiled blog with news, reviews of books and film, and a dash of noir.
The latest and greatest edition to self-guide you up and down the mean streets.
Willeford: The Book
Includes the first “Mr. Hunt” story, “Knives in the Dark.”
Monthly Archives: July 2012
Hammett: And Lovecraft
Whoa. Friday the 13th. Time to get a little eldritch and unspeakable for Biography Month. . . . And unspeaking of H. P. Lovecraft, I admit I’m just as interested in the Could Have Beens of a writer’s life as the Plain … Continue reading
Posted in Dash, Lit, REH
Tagged "Conan the Argonaut", Black Mask, Cap Shaw, Farnsworth Wright, Including Murder, Lovecraft, Pulps, Raymond Chandler, The Cimmerian, Weird Tales
Rediscovered: More Life of Floyd
Got a note from Matthew Asprey that he’s got another publishing deal gone down — the magazine Contrappasso. Haven’t seen it yet, but a star feature for Up and Down These Mean Streets types would be a new autobiographical piece … Continue reading
Posted in Lit, News
Tagged Contrappasso, Eddie Little, Edward Bunker, Floyd Salas, Jack Kerouac, James Crumley, Jim Tully, Matthew Asprey, Raymond Chandler, William S. Burroughs
Hammett: Thoughts on “House Burglary”
Wrapped in its art deco cover, the lost interview with Hammett from 1929 that Terry Zobeck located — “House Burglary Poor Trade” — is the author at a peak. Still writing for Black Mask. Not yet Hollywood. Charming, and willing to answer … Continue reading
Posted in Dash, Lit, Tour
Tagged "Death and Company", "House Burglary Poor Trade", "The SImple Art of Murder", "The Thin Man", Alfred Packer, Black Mask, Brooklyn Eagle, Eve Sanderson, Hammett Tour Book, Helen Herbert Foster, Jerome Weidman, Jo Hammett, John Jacobs, Raymond Chandler, Red Harvest, Richard Layman, Terry Zobeck, The Bookman, The Maltese Falcon Society
Rediscovered: Tully Dies, The Ring Records
Just finished the new bio of Jim Tully last night — review and miscellaneous thoughts to follow. And even as I was punching my way toward the final bell, Brian Leno — resident Up and Down These Mean Streets expert on … Continue reading
Hammett: The Lost Interview
For Biography Month, what could Terry Zobeck dig up, with which to startle and amaze? How about a forgotten interview with Hammett, filled with a wealth of biographical detail? Here’s Terry: Hammett didn’t do many major interviews, other than … Continue reading
Posted in Dash, Lit, News
Tagged "From the Memoirs of a Private Detective", "House Burglary Poor Trade", Black Mask, Brooklyn Daily Eagle, Daily Express, Dashiell Hammett: A Casebook, Eve Sanderson, Helen Herbert Foster, James Cooper, John D. Squires, Richard Layman, Secret Agent X-9, Smart Set, Terry Zobeck, The Bookman, William F. Nolan
Rediscovered: Red Tully and More Hobo Jungle Sapping History
How about Biography Month here in Up and Down These Mean Streets? I’ve got some bios I’ve been intending to mention piled up on a shelf behind me, and I’m a third of the way through the recent bio of Jim … Continue reading
Posted in Dash, Lit
Tagged Clint Eastwood, Frank Frazetta, Jack Black, Jim Tully, Mark Dawidziak, Paul J. Bauer, PulpFest, Sapping Day, Tecumseh, The Gauntlet