james.doherty@gsa.gov
Fri, 29 Oct 1999 16:09:07 -0500
I stand corrected on the date of "Arson Plus." Relying on my
memory, I thought it was published *between* "Three-Gun
Terry" and "Knights of the Open Palm." It appears that both
of Daly's sleuths, Mack and Williams, beat the Op out of the
gate, rather than just Mack.
However, my being wrong about the dates of the stories
doesn't make my main point any less valid. Hammett would, in
all likelihood, have created the Op whether or not Daly had
ever written a word. Chandler, Macdonald, Parker, and all the
other PI writers who came after Hammett, were following a
trail that Hammett, not Daly, blazed.
Moreover, given Daly's speed and prolificity, especially
compared to Hammett's, it still seems likely, or at least
possible, that Hammett might have been working on "Arson
Plus" at roughly the same time Daly was working in "Three-Gun
Terry," and Daly simply beat Hammett to the mailbox, only by
months rather than weeks.
JIM DOHERTY
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