Monthly Archives: August 2015

Tour: For September and October

Posted on August 31, 2015 by Don

Okay, before the promised El Niño rains start crashing down this winter — if they start crashing down — I’m giving the gumshoe-wearing public a chance to walk the Hammett walk to their hearts’ content. In September anyone with $20 in … Continue reading →

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Rediscovered: The Fugitive Library of Young Scott, and Haefele’s Proto-Panel

Posted on August 30, 2015 by Don

You know those stories you read, about how some guy has gone off to war in Afghanistan or someplace and comes back to find out that his soon-to-be-ex-wife has sold his dog? Or all the stories about soldiers who put … Continue reading →

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Frisco Beat: Noir at SFO

Posted on August 29, 2015 by Don

Man. Look at this ultra-Frisco display of noir: Left to right, the latest and greatest edition of the Hammett Tour book (trade paperback state), Nathaniel Rich’s survey of noir films shot or set in the Cool Grey City, and the … Continue reading →

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Hammett: And Walker Martin

Posted on August 28, 2015 by Don

Even rambling on at some length, I couldn’t cover every detail or drop every name in my PulpFest report — though I consider some of that action taken care of by links to other posts, which namecheck people I skip … Continue reading →

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Rediscovered: PulpFest 2015 — On the Whole, I’d Rather Not Be in Philadelphia

Posted on August 27, 2015 by Don

Got to the airport predawn on Thursday August 13, plenty of time to fly to Phoenix, catch the connecting flight to Columbus, Ohio, so I’d hit this year’s PulpFest by 4p.m., before they even cracked open the doors of the … Continue reading →

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Frisco Beat: “Cairo’s Hotel” Grabs a New Alias

Posted on August 21, 2015 by Don

In the latest and greatest edition of The Dashiell Hammett Tour book, I advance a new theory about why the various fictitious hotels in The Maltese Falcon picked up their names — one of several fresh litcrit wrinkles I toss in, … Continue reading →

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Rediscovered: John D. Haefele’s “Why HPL?”

Posted on August 20, 2015 by Don

On the occasion of HPL: Birthday 125, how about another origin story from yet another guy who traveled to PulpFest to honor H. P. Lovecraft? In this instance we showcase how John D. Haefele first encountered the Old Gent from Providence, … Continue reading →

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Rediscovered: “My Pal HPL”

Posted on August 20, 2015 by Don

Today is birthday 125 for good old H. P. Lovecraft — and that landmark anniversary was the excuse to jet off to PulpFest and participate in the panels on the Cthulhu Mythos (HPL’s major claim to fame) and Weird Tales … Continue reading →

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Rediscovered: More First World War

Posted on August 18, 2015 by Don

When I began fielding Michael Stoler’s query about the use of the expression “the First World War” in Hammett’s “This King Business” from 1928 last month, I had the impression that I had encountered the use of “First” — not just … Continue reading →

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Rediscovered: Talking Cthulhu Mythos and Weird Tales at PulpFest

Posted on August 17, 2015 by Don

Image at top: a detail from the PulpFest Facebook page of the panel for discussing the Cthulhu Mythos; left to right Nathan Madison, John D. Haefele, Don Herron, Rick Lai, and moderator Tom Krabacher. Image at bottom: detail, Haefele and … Continue reading →

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