 The
MWA-SoCal meeting in October featured Dashiell Hammett's daughter, Jo, and
granddaughter, Julie Rivett, in conversation with author-Wall Street
Journal mystery reviewer Tom Nolan. The engaging conversation among the
three Edgar-nominees was insightful and, in numerous instances, remarkable
for its candor. From left: Julie Rivett, Jo Hammett, Tom Nolan. |
 Jo
and Julie with chapter president Bob, who presided at the session that
also featured an eye-popping display of original Dash Hammett artifacts,
including love letters, pages from the only known surviving Hammett galley
proof (from The Dain Curse), a promotional flyer for The Thin Man, and the
last-known photo taken of Dash, at Martha's Vineyard in 1960. |
 Dash's
kin with Tom Sawyer, whose decision to become a writer of mysteries was
influenced by his multiple readings of The Maltese Falcon. |