Dashiell Hammett has 13 audiobooks on Listento.it, narrated by 31 narrators, with an average listener rating of 4.5★ across 52 ratings. The most-rated is The Maltese Falcon.
The Maltese Falcon
Summary
Hard-boiled detective Sam Spade is hired to locate a client's sister by tailing the sister's companion. Spade's partner Miles Archer takes on the assignment, and quickly both Archer and the man he was shadowing are murdered. As Spade pursues the mystery of his partner's death, he is drawn into a circle of colorful characters, and they are all after a legendary statuette of a falcon that had long ago been made for King Charles of Spain. Encrusted with jewels, it is worth a fortune. Missing for centuries, it resurfaced in 1921, when it was covered in black enamel to disguise its true value. The Maltese Falcon is the definitive masterpiece of the hard-boiled detective genre. Humphrey Bogart immortalized tough-guy Sam Spade in the classic 1941 film.
©1956, 1957 Dashiell Hammett (P)2003 The Audio Partners Publishing Corp.
Red Harvest
Summary
When the last honest citizen of Poisonville was murdered, the Continental Op stayed on to punish the guilty--even if that meant taking on an entire town. Red Harvest is more than a superb crime novel: it is a classic exploration of corruption and violence in the American grain. From the author of The Maltese Falcon.
©1929, 1956 Alfred A. Knopf, Inc, Dashiell Hammett. All rights reserved. (P)2011 AudioGO
The Adventures of Sam Spade: Lawless
Summary
No bigger fad swept across postwar radio than that of the hard-boiled private detective - and nobody had more fun with their wink-and-nudge take on the genre than the producers, writers, and cast of The Adventures of Sam Spade. Dashiell Hammett's legendary private eye had a sardonic sense of humor, which wavy-haired, rugged-voiced Howard Duff played to perfection. Produced and directed by William Spier, costarring Lurene Tuttle, and featuring one episode with Stephen Dunne in the title role, we bring you 16 capers with the greatest private detective of them all. Episodes include: The Adam Figg Caper 10-05-47; The Rushlight Diamond Caper 07-04-48; The Mad Scientist Caper 07-25-48; The Dry Martini Caper 08-01-48; The Critical Author Caper 08-15-48; The Lawless Caper 08-29-48; The Sugar Kane Caper 10-03-48; The Quarter-Eagle Caper 11-28-48; The Bouncing Betty Caper 12-12-48; The Stopped Watch Caper 04-10-49; The Apple of Eve Caper 06-19-49; The Queen Bee Caper 07-10-49; The Prodigal Daughter Caper 08-28-49; The Flopsy, Mopsy and Cottontail Caper 12-04-49; The Honest Thief Caper 05-28-50; The Chateau McLeod Caper 01-26-51.
©2015 RSPT LLC. All rights reserved. (P)2015 RSPT LLC. All rights reserved.
Black Mask Audio Magazine, Volume 1
Summary
Audie Award, Short Stories and Collections, 2010 In the1930s and '40s, Black Mask was the single most important magazine for the modern mystery field. Here, writers such as Dashiell Hammett, Raymond Chandler, and Earl Stanley Gardner reshaped the established view of mystery fiction, creating the "hard-boiled" private eye. Now this series resurrects from those pages the toughest of tough detectives in sonic dramatizations from the award-winning Hollywood Theater of the Ear. Stories included in this volume are "Lost and Found" by Hugh B. Cave, "Pigeon Blood" by Paul Cain, "Rough Justice" by Frederick Nebel, "Black" by Paul Cain, "The Missing Mr. Lee" by Hugh B. Cave, "Trouble Chaser" by Paul Cain, "Too Many Have Lived" by Dashiell Hammett, "Taking His Time" by Reuben J. Shay, and "Waiting for Rusty" by William Cole.
©2008 Keith Alan Deutsch (P)2008 Blackstone Audio, Inc.
The Dain Curse
Summary
The Continental Op is a short, squat, and utterly unsentimental tank of a private detective. Miss Gabrielle Dain Leggett is young, wealthy, and a devotee of morphine and religious cults. She has an unfortunate effect on the people around her: they have a habit of dying violently. Is Gabrielle the victim of a family curse? Or is the truth about her weirder and infinitely more dangerous? The Dain Curse is one of the Continental Op's most bizarre cases, and a tautly crafted masterpiece of suspense.
©1928, 1929 Alfred A. Knopf, Inc. All rights reserved. (P)2011 AudioGo
The Glass Key
Summary
Paul Madvig was a cheerfully corrupt ward-heeler who aspired to something better: the daughter of Senator Ralph Bancroft Henry, the heiress to a dynasty of political purebreds. Did he want her badly enough to commit murder? And if Madvig was innocent, which of his dozens of enemies was doing an awfully good job of framing him? Dashiell Hammett’s tour de force of detective fiction combines an airtight plot, authentically venal characters, and writing of telegraphic crispness. A one-time detective and a master of deft understatement, Dashiell Hammett - author of The Maltese Falcon - virtually invented the hard-boiled crime novel.
©1931 Alfred A. Knopf, Inc. Copyright © renewed 1958 by Dashiell Hammett. All rights reserved. (P)2011 AudioGo
Black Mask 3: The Maltese Falcon - and Other Crime Fiction from the Legendary Magazine
Summary
From its launch in 1920 until its demise in 1951, the magazine Black Mask published pulp crime fiction. The first hard-boiled detective stories appeared on its pages. Dashiell Hammett and Raymond Chandler, Erle Stanley Gardner and John D. MacDonald got their start in Black Mask. The urban crime stories that appeared in Black Mask helped to shape American culture. Modern computer games, films, and television are rooted in the fiction popularized by "the seminal and venerated mystery pulp magazine" (Booklist). Never before in audio, these vintage stories are the darkest of the dark, and the best of the best. Crime fiction fans old and new will delight in rediscovering these taut, character-rich, heart-stopping tales, now on audio for the first time. Includes: “The Maltese Falcon” by Dashiell Hammett; read by Jeff Gurner “Cry Silence” by Frederic Brown; read by Oliver Wyman “Waiting for Rusty” by William Cole; read by Pete Larkin
©2010 Otto Penzler. Introduction © 2010 Keith Alan Deutsch. (P)2011 2011 HighBridge Company
Return of the Thin Man
Summary
Dashiell Hammett was a crime writer who elevated the genre to true literature, and The Thin Man was Hammett’s last - and most successful - novel. Following the enormous success of The Thin Man movie in 1934, Hammett was commissioned to write stories for additional films. He wrote two full-length novellas for the films that became After the Thin Man and Another Thin Man. Hammett brought back his classic characters - retired private investigator Nick Charles and his former debutante wife Nora - in these two fully satisfying Thin Man stories, written with Hammett’s signature, barbed dialogue. Neither of these stories has been previously published (except for a partial in a small magazine 25 years ago). Now together in Return of the Thin Man, these hugely entertaining novellas are destined to remain essential listening for Hammett’s millions of fans and a new generation of mystery lovers the world over. The recording features Peter Ganim as Nick, Nicola Barber as Nora, and Scott Brick as the narrator. Additional character voices are provided by Emily Bauer, Dan Bittner, Cynthia Darlow, Richard Ferrone, Eliza Foss, Emma Galvin, Johnny Heller, Pete Larkin, Bill Lobley, Carol Monda, Rich Orlow, Paula Parker, Vinnie Penna, with Zane Birdwell, Nathan Rosborough, Iris McElroy, Barbara Vlahides, Fametta Sawyer, Tim Bader, Tyrrell Harrell, Kevin Fecu, and Alan Winter.
©2012 After the Thin Man copyright © 1986 by Turner Entertainment Co. Another Thin Man and Sequel to the Thin Man copyright © 2012 by Turner Entertainment Co. Introduction and all other writing copyright © 2012 Richard Layman and Julie M. Rivett. (P)2012 (p) 2012 HighBridge Company
Dashiell Hammett: The Maltese Falcon & Other Adventures
Summary
The godfather of the hard-boiled detective novel, Dashiell Hammett is widely acknowledged as one of America's greatest mystery writers. This collection brings together the BBC radio adaptations of his works for the first time, including the iconic The Maltese Falcon, featuring his most famous character: Sam Spade. The Maltese Falcon San Francisco, 1928. When his partner is murdered on an assignment, private detective Sam Spade is drawn into a dangerous case involving a treacherous femme fatale and the priceless black statuette of a falcon.... Tom Wilkinson and Jane Lapotaire star in this thrilling dramatisation of Hammett's most famous novel. Secret Agent X-9 New York, 1934, and Secret Agent X-9 is about to embark on his most deadly mission yet. Falsely accused of murder, he struggles to stay one step ahead of the law in his relentless pursuit of his arch enemy, 'The Top'. Dramatised from a comic strip co-created by Dashiell Hammett, this tale of mystery, murder and mayhem stars Stuart Milligan, Connie Booth and William Hootkins. Nightmare Town Arriving in the desert boom town of Izzard, Arizona, sharp-edged tough guy Steve Threefall meets the beautiful, terrified Nova Vallance - and encounters danger, intrigue and a dark mystery.... Read by Stuart Milligan. The Man Who Killed Dan Odams An escaped killer fleeing cross-country stumbles upon an isolated farm in Montana, inhabited by a woman and her young son.... This mysterious and brooding noir western is read by Stuart Milligan. The Maltese Falcon Sam Spade - Tom Wilkinson Brigid O'Shaughnessy - Jane Lapotaire Mr Gutman - Peter Vaughan Joel Cairo - Nickolas Grace Effie - Mia Soteriou Miles Archer - William Hope Iva - Liza Ross Wilmer - Peter Acre Tom Polhaus - Norman Jones Lt Dundy - Harry Towb DA Bryan - Don Fellows Newspaperman - Robin Summers Taxi driver - Keith Edwards Man with key - Arnold Diamond Dramatised by Michael Bakewell Directed by Jane Morgan First broadcast BBC Radio 4, 29th December 1984 Secret Agent X-9 X-9 - Stuart Milligan Grace Powers - Connie Booth The Top - William Hootkins Evelyn Powers - Rachel Power Deacon/Alden Powers - Peter Marinker Matthew/Steward/Luke - Michael John Paliotti Captain Brady/Bartholomew - John Guerrasio Jude - Bruce McGregor Cop 1 - Clive Rowe Harper-Carp - Kerry Shale Waitress/Sister Agnes - Miranda Pleasance Other parts played by the cast Dramatised by Mark Brisenden from the comic strip created by Dashiell Hammett and Alex Raymond Produced by Chris Wallis First broadcast BBC Radio 5 Live, 1st - 22nd January 1994 Nightmare Town Read by Stuart Milligan Abridged by Neville Teller Produced by Elizabeth Allard First broadcast BBC Radio 4, 5th - 8th November 2001 The Man Who Killed Dan Odams Read by Stuart Milligan Abridged by Neville Teller Produced by Elizabeth Allard First broadcast BBC Radio 4, 9th November 2001
©2021 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd (P)2021 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd
Suspense: Fear & Trembling
Summary
From the very beginning of its two-decade run on radio, Suspense was tops in thriller entertainment! Its first year on the air brought together stories from such outstanding masters of the genre as John Dickson Carr, Dashiell Hammett, and Edgar Allan Poe! Tune in to 20 tense classics from Radio's Outstanding Theatre of Thrills - starring Peter Lorre, Mary Astor, Susan Hayward, Richard Dix, Lou Merrill, Agnes Moorehead, Frank Readick, Alice Frost, and more. Episodes Include: The Cave of Ali Baba 08-19-42; The Kettler Method 09-16-42; One Hundred in the Dark 09-30-42; The Devil in the Summer House 11-03-42; Will You Make a Bet with Death? 11-10-42; Menace in Wax 11-17-42; The Bride Vanishes 11-24-42; Two Sharp Knives 12-22-42; Nothing Up My Sleeve 01-05-43; The Pit and the Pendulum 01-12-43; The Devil's Saint 01-19-43; In Fear and Trembling 02-16-43; The Customers Like Murder 03-23-43; The Dead Sleep Lightly 03-30-43; Fire Burn and Cauldron Bubble 04-06-43; Fear Paints a Picture 04-13-43; The Moment of Darkness 04-20-43; The Diary of Saphronia Winters 04-27-43; Death Flies Blind 05-04-43; Mr. Makham, Antique Dealer 05-11-43.
©2018 RSPT LLC All rights reserved. Unauthorized d istribution prohibited. For home use only. (P)2018 RSPT LLC All rights reserved. Unauthorized d istribution prohibited. For home use only.
The Maltese Falcon
Summary
It's San Francisco, 1928, and Sam Spade is a wisecracking, womanising private investigator. Missing husbands and unfaithful wives are his usual stock-in-trade, but when the beautifully distressed Miss Wonderley calls, he gets involved in a dangerous caper most people would run a mile from.
Miss Wonderley asks Sam's partner, Miles Archer, to shadow Floyd Thursby, whom she maintains has kidnapped her sister. But then Archer is shot dead, and Miss Wonderley's story turns out to be a lie - just like her name, which is actually Brigid O'Shaughnessy.
Miss O'Shaughnessy keeps on lying. But one thing's for sure: she does know about the Maltese Falcon, an ancient statuette which has attracted more than one interested party.
With a bunch of heavies at his elbow and the police on his tail, Sam needs to think fast if he's to outlive the person who killed his partner....
Tom Wilkinson, Jane Lapotaire, Peter Vaughan and Nickolas Grace star in this stylish dramatisation of Dashiell Hammett's classic detective story.
©2009 BBC Audiobooks Ltd (P)2009 BBC Audiobooks Ltd
The Hunter and Other Stories
Summary
Dashiell Hammett is best known as both pioneer and master of American hard-boiled detective fiction, but these dozen and a half stories both affirm that reputation and present him in a different light. Along with the full-length screen treatments On the Make (which became the movie Mr. Dynamite, 1935) and The Kiss-Off (the basis for City Streets, starring Sylvia Sydney and Gary Cooper, 1931), this collection includes never before and rarely published stories that explore failed romance, courage in the face of uncertainty, hypocrisy, and crass opportunism. Collected and edited by Hammett's granddaughter, Julie Rivett, and noted Hammett scholar and biographer Richard Layman, The Hunter and Other Stories is a trove of priceless literary gems from an American master storyteller. Donna Postel reads the introduction, commentaries, and afterword; Ray Chase reads the sections "Crime" and "Screen Stories" and the appendix; Brian Holsopple reads the section "Men" and Stephen Bowlby reads the section "Men and Women."
©2013 Original material by The Dashiell Hammett Literary Property Trust (P)2013 HighBridge Company
The Maltese Falcon
Summary
The definitive masterpiece of the hard-boiled detective genre, The Maltese Falcon first appeared in the pages of Black Mask magazine in 1929 and was almost immediately acknowledged as not only a great crime novel but an enduring masterpiece of American fiction. Tough, cynical PI Sam Spade - a man who, as his creator explained, is "able to take care of himself in any situation, able to get the best of anybody he comes in contact with" - is hired by the story's irresistible femme fatale, Brigid O'Shaughnessy, to locate the client's sister by tailing her companion. Spade's partner, Miles Archer, takes on the assignment, and quickly both he and the man he was shadowing are murdered. As Spade pursues the mystery of his partner's death, he is drawn into a circle of colorful characters - all of them after a legendary statuette of a falcon fashioned long ago for King Charles of Spain. Made of gold and encrusted with jewels, the falcon is worth a fortune. Missing for centuries, it resurfaced in Paris in 1911, covered in black enamel to disguise its value, and then disappeared again until it was traced to Constantinople - and now, it would seem, to Spade's own backyard.
©2018 Dashiell Hammett (P)2018 Blackstone Publishing