Big Sleep

Raymond Chandler: The Big Sleep

January 2015

Raymond Chandler (1888-1959), an early student of the hard-boiled detective school, is arguably its most accomplished graduate. More complex than his contemporaries, Chandler's prose is emphatically accomplished -- acerbic and, at the same time, lyrically detailed, stunning in its creation of ambiance. His mysteries, set in the seamy underbelly of sunny California, provide a dark parallel to the glamour of the 1940s and 50s, a gritty world inhabited by brutal men and slickly dangerous dames. Crime is omnipresent, and Chandler's reluctantly romantic protagonists must cling to their decency to keep from drowning in the corruptive morass. Start with: The Big Sleep.

BOOKS

• The Big Sleep ( 1939).
• Farewell, My Lovely ( 1940).
• The High Window ( 1942).
• The Lady in the Lake (, 1943).
• Five Murderers ( 1944).
• Five Sinister Characters ( 1945).
• The Finger Man and Other Stories (, 1947).
• The Little Sister ( 1949).
• The Simple Art of Murder ( 1950).
• The Long Good-Bye ( 1953).
• Playback ( 1958).
• Raymond Chandler Speaking, edited by Dorothy Gardiner and Kathrine Sorley Walker ( 1962).
• Killer in the Rain (1964).
• Chandler Before Marlowe, edited by Matthew J. Bruccoli ( 1973).
• The Blue Dahlia: A Screenplay, edited by Bruccoli ( 1976.
• The Notebooks of Raymond Chandler & English Summer, edited by Frank MacShane (, 1976).
• Raymond Chandler's Unknown Thriller: The Screenplay of Playback (1985).
• Poodle Springs, by Chandler and Robert B. Parker (1989).

PRODUCED SCRIPTS

• Double Indemnity, motion picture, script by Chandler and Billy Wilder, Paramount, 1944.
• And Now Tomorrow, motion picture, script by Chandler, Frank Partos, and Frank Patton, Paramount, 1944.
• The Unseen, motion picture, script by Chandler and Hager Wilde, Paramount, 1945.
• The Blue Dahlia, motion picture, Paramount, 1946.
• The Lady in the Lake, motion picture, script by Chandler (uncredited) and Steve Fisher, M-G-M, 1947.
• Strangers on a Train, motion picture, script by Chandler and Czenzi Ormonde, Warner Bros., 1951.

Biographies:

• Frank MacShane, The Life of Raymond Chandler (New York: Dutton, 1976).
• Tom Hiney, Raymond Chandler: A Biography (New York: Atlantic Monthly Press, 1997)
• Tom Williams, A Mysterious Something in the Light; the Life of Raymond Chandler (2013)
• "The life of Raymond Chandler has long been obscured by secrets and half-truths as deceptive as anything in his novel The Long Goodbye. Now, drawing on new interviews, previously unpublished letters, and archives on both sides of the Atlantic, Tom Williams casts a new light on this most mysterious of writers" -- publisher's description.

Read­alikes

1. Estleman, Loren D.

Reason: Loren Estleman and Raymond Chandler both use hardboiled protagonists to do the detecting in their mystery stories: Estleman's Amos Walker is often lauded as a modern day successor to Philip Marlowe, and stylistically, Estleman is recognized as a throwback to the era of Chandler's heyday. ­­  Bethany Latham

2. Grafton, Sue

Reason: Hardboiled detective novels by Sue Grafton may also be of interest, as Chandler is Grafton's classic precursor. Grafton updates Chandler with her loner female investigator, but the two authors have similar tone and atmosphere, as well as the California settings. ­­ Katherine Johnson

3. Harvey, Michael T.

Reason: If you like hardboiled mysteries with a witty undertone, you may like both Michael T. Harvey and Raymond Chandler. Both feature loner detectives who solve crime that brings them into contact with the darkest elements of society. ­­ Rebecca Sigmon

4. Thomas, Ross,

Reason: Though Thomas writes international thrillers as well as mysteries, he shares Chandler's elegant prose style, gripping and intricate plots, keen cynical wit, and vividly evocative characterization of roguish heroes and seedy villains that defy easy distinctions between good and evil. ­­ Derek Keyser

5. Connelly, Michael,

Reason: Michael Connelly may be of interest, as Chandler is Connelly's classic precursor. The two authors have similar tone and atmosphere, as well as the California settings, but their heroes tie them together. Their stoic integrity amidst the squalid seediness of their cities imbues them with pathos and quiet nobility. ­­

Katherine Johnson

6. Hammett, Dashiell, 1894­-1961

Reason: If Dashiell Hammett is the father of "hard­boiled" detection, Raymond Chandler is a son to make him proud ­­ both feature private eyes who seek common criminals in a grittily realistic, 1930s­50s setting. ­­ Bethany Latham

7. Himes, Chester B., 1909-­1984

Reason: Like Chester B. Grimes, Raymond Chandler writes gritty, atmospheric, and tautly written hard­boiled mysteries featuring fast ­paced and twist ­filled plots, violent crimes, and eccentric and shady characters. ­­ Derek Keyser

8. Cain, James M. (James Mallahan), 1892­-1977.Reason: James M. Cain and Raymond Chandler both craft dark tales, film noir­ ready, that feature caustically witty protagonists and dangerous dames against a backdrop of 1940s and 50s California. ­­  Bethany Latham

9. Murakami, Haruki,

Reason: Haruki Murakami's novels employ a straight forward, often terse style that resembles Raymond Chandler's. Moreover, Murakami's characters embark on quests that resemble the assignments Chandler's hardboiled detectives accept, though Murakami employs a magical realist approach to plotting that contrasts with Chandler's realism. Readers of each may enjoy exploring the other. ­­ Katherine Johnson