| The Glass Key | |
|---|---|
1st edition |
|
| Author(s) | Dashiell Hammett |
| Genre(s) | Crime |
| Publisher | Alfred A. Knopf |
| Publication date | 1931 |
| Pages | 214 |
The Glass Key is a novel by Dashiell Hammett, said to be his favorite among his works. It was first published in 1931, and tells the story of gambler and racketeer Ned Beaumont, whose devotion to crooked political boss Paul Madvig leads him to investigate the murder of a local senator's son as a potential gang war brews. Hammett dedicated the novel to onetime lover Nell Martin.
There were two film adaptations (1935 and 1942) of the novel (plus one more in USSR/Estonia in 1985). The book was also a major influence on the Coen brothers film Miller's Crossing, a film about a gambler who is right hand man to a corrupt political boss and their involvement in a brewing gang war. A radio adaptation starring Orson Welles aired on March 10, 1939 as part of his Campbell Playhouse program.[1]
The Glass Key award (Swedish: Glasnyckeln) is named after the novel and is presented annually for the best crime novel by a Scandinavian author.