Behind the Literature III - The Hardboiled Streets of San Francisco

I think a lot about my father, Bill Crider, who passed away a little over a year ago, and with Father’s Day approaching, his memory is even stronger than usual.  He is the person from whom I inherited my love of reading and writing.  He wrote his dissertation on the hardboiled detective novel.  I have read and watched my fair share of Dashiell Hammett and Raymond Chandler books and movies, so upon moving to San Francisco, I felt that Don Herron’s 4-hour Dashiell Hammett walking tour was a must see.  I highly recommend it for those interested and living in or visiting San Francisco.  Don is a great guy with a wealth of knowledge about Dashiell Hammett, the Continental Op, Sam Spade, and more.  When I told him I wrote a cat detective series set in San Francisco, he kindly gave me a shoutout on his blog.    

Although my Li’l Tom and the Pussyfoot Detective Bureau mysteries are far from hardboiled and noir, Li’l Tom, cat detective, is a big fan of the genres, himself.  He revels in the fact that his offices are in the same building where scenes from the 1940s noir film, Dark Passage, starring Humphrey Bogart, were set.  

Considering my father’s background, I was delighted to take him to several of the famous Hammett spots when he visited San Francisco.  We traveled San Francisco-style by cable car and saw the building where Dashiell Hammett lived when he wrote The Maltese Falcon. 

We also saw the spot where Miles Archer was done in.

And the site of the Spade and Archer Detective Agency.

Finally, a tour through the hardboiled streets of San Francisco would not be complete without a stop at John’s Grill where Sam Spade dines in The Maltese Falcon.  

I’m fascinated by the literary history in the towns where I have lived and visited (see my prior posts, Behind the Literature and Behind the Literature II).  I’m grateful that I was able to share some of that history with my father.  What historical gems can you find where you live?

Angela Crider Neary is an attorney by day and writer by night. She is an avid mystery reader and especially enjoys reading novels set in interesting locales. She was inspired to write her first mystery novella, Li'l Tom and the Pussyfoot Detective Bureau: The Case of the Parrots Desaparecidos, by one of her favorite areas in San Francisco, Telegraph Hill.  Her second book, Li'l Tom and the Case of the New Year Dragon is now available.  To learn more, visit her on Facebook and Amazon.