Dashiell
Hammett
was born in St. Mary's County,
Maryland, on 27th May, 1894. He left school at 13 and was employed
in a variety of different jobs before joining the United
States Army during the First World War.
However, he contracted tuberculosis
and spent some time in army hospitals.
After the war Hammett worked for eights years as a detective
with the Pinkerton Agency. These
experiences provided material for detective stories that he later
published in the Black
Mask Magazine.
His first novel, Red Harvest,
appeared in 1929. This was followed by The
Dain Curse (1929) and The
Maltese Falcon (1930), a novel that introduced the
fictional detective, Sam Spade. This was followed by The
Glass Key (1931) and The
Thin Man (1932).
In 1930 Hammett met Lillian Hellman and
over the next few years the couple became involved in the campaign
against the growth of fascism in Europe.
They joined with other literary figures such as Clifford
Odets, Arthur
Miller, John
Dos Passos and Ernest
Hemingway in supporting the Republicans
during the Spanish Civil War. During the
Second World War Hammett served in the United
States Army and
edited one of its newspapers.
As
a result of his well-known political views, in 1951 Hammett was called
to appear before the House
of Un-American Activities Committee. Hammett agreed
to talk about his own involvement with radical groups, but was unwilling
to give names of his comrades.
He was found guilty of contempt of Congress and as well as being
blacklisted, was sent to prison for six months.
Dashiell Hammett died in New
York City on 10th January, 1961.
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