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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.”
Tag Archives: Mark Murphy
891 Post: Minwax Gel Cherrywood
As a little Xmas present — and to commemorate the one-year anniversary of the death of Bill Arney on September 28, 2021 — let’s take a look into the Sam Spade apartment in 891 Post Street. The date was September … Continue reading
Posted in Dash, Frisco, Lit
Tagged 891 Post, Bill Arney, Joe Hagen, Mark Murphy, Minwax Gel Cherrywood, Murphy bed
Frisco Beat: Naming The Names at Milkbean
Mark Murphy, one of my operatives always on the ground, constantly reporting on the Tenderloin Beat, tells me that Milkbean — a sandwich and coffee joint which opened recently in the space in the Sam Spade Building once occupied by … Continue reading
Hammett: And Chandler, and Nigel, Bill and Don
Slightly over twenty people did the “just show up and walk the walk” routine for the tour yesterday. I always think of twenty as being the average number of tourists gumshoeing the mean streets on the walk over the years, though … Continue reading
Posted in Dash, Film, Lit, Tour
Tagged 891 Post, BBC, Bill Arney, Delicatessen, Dominque Pinon, Dwight Frye, Fatty Arbuckle, Jo Hammett, Mark Murphy, Murphy bed, Nigel Williams, Raymond Chandler
Frisco Beat: Reeling in the History
Did a couple of groups by appointment yesterday, got lucky with the brutal winter rains holding off. . . . On one of them the mysterious CitySleuth came along and tossed in some tidbits of film/Frisco history — one was … Continue reading
Posted in Dash, Film, Frisco, Tour
Tagged 891 Post, Bill Arney, CitySleuth, Heisenberg, Jimmy Stewart, Kim Novak, Lon Chaney Sr., Mark Murphy, ReelSF, Ruby Skye, Tenderloin Museum, The Big Knockover, The Penalty, Vertigo
891 Post: The Scorched Face
And today Mark Murphy pops in a photo showing off exactly how close the fire came to his windows — top floor, at right — leaving scorch marks on the south face of 891 Post. I think you’ll be able … Continue reading
Hammett: And Prohibition
Per my normal Xmas rituals, I’ll be heading up to the dinner table in the hideout of Floyd “Tattoo the Wicked Cross” Salas, but here’s a tidbit to hold down a place under the tree: some casual speculation on Hammett … Continue reading
Posted in Dash, Frisco
Tagged 891 Post, Bill Arney, Blaine Act, Floyd Salas, Izzy Einstein, John's Grill, Mark Murphy, New Orleans, Prohibition, Red Harvest, The Maltese Arms, Vince Emery, Volstead Act
891 Post: The Mystery of the Boarded-Up Window
Sure, I guess I could take a picture of the boarded-up window in Sam Spade’s apartment, but it is just so sad and kind of pathetic that I don’t want to add the image to the social media — someone … Continue reading
