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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: Mike Humbert
Hammett: Cheaper Crooms
No less and none other than Mike Humbert chips in a text message after reading yesterday’s Pulps in the Movies post about Hammett’s line “the cheaper the crook, the gaudier the patter.” “I thought you’d enjoy this,” Mike thumbs. “In … Continue reading
Rediscovered: Et Tu, Erle? — or, Another Lost Atlantis
When Tom Krabacher came to town the other day to hang on a feedbag filled with gooey duck, he brought along a copy of a book he helped assemble, Woodland, in Acadia Publishing’s sprawling Images of America series. I was … Continue reading
Posted in Lit, News
Tagged Book Collecting, Erle Stanley Gardner, literary homes, Mike Humbert, Paradise California fire, Robert Colby, Tom Krabacher, Woodland California
Tour: The Worst-Air-Quality-on-the-Planet Walk
I would have thought the Age of Legendary Tours was over, but how was I to know that one day Frisco would be blanketed in smoke from Mike Humbert’s smoldering house in Paradise? Per all the news sources, the air quality … Continue reading
Hammett: Trouble in Paradise
Shot above from a few years ago, Mike Humbert, Don, Bill Arney standing in front of the folded-up Murphy bed in Sam Spade’s apartment, 891 Post Street. Mike maintains a Hammett website and Bill is famed as the one-time occupant … Continue reading
Hammett: A Few Notes from a Former Thin Man
Naturally, my post the other day about the first meeting of me and no less than Bill Arney on a tour back in 1982 was noticed by Bill Arney, who says: “Oh, man. “That was my first hat, my first … Continue reading
Sinister Cinema: Cheese for Halloween
The tour group for Sunday the 13th was pretty interesting — of the ten people who showed up ready to walk, slightly more than half seemed to be from Australia, plus we got a guy from Spain, in the burg … Continue reading
Posted in Film, News, Tour
Tagged 891 Post, Bill Arney, Cheese Theatre, John Stanley, Laurel Arney, literary homes, Mike Humbert, The Last Man on Earth
Tour: Sunday July 1
The next walk anyone can show up for, no reservations, no questions asked, will be Sunday July 1. The usual routine. Four hours. $10 per person. Start at noon near the revolving “L” sculpture. The shot above may be of … Continue reading
891 Post: What’s Happening Now
If you’re local, you probably saw the news article on the guy who currently rents the Sam Spade apartment in 891 Post that appeared April 29 — those of you scattered across the globe can follow the link and read … Continue reading