William F. Nolan (1) (1928–2021)

One of the better collections of hard-boiled detective stories in general, and one of the very best examinations of the Black Mask phenomenon in particular. In this case, less is more: rather than trying to cram dozens of stories into one volume, William F. Nolan wisely focused on eight major authors, prefacing each story with a biographical essay. There's also a lengthy but fascinating introduction that details the magazine's publication history (1920-1951) and explains the cultural and social conditions that gave birth to the popularity of the hard-boiled crime subgenre.

It all began with Carroll John Daly--and, while the vast majority of Daly's work is unreadable (you can take it from someone who's tackled three of his novels), "Three Gun Terry" is one of his more tolerable stories. Private eye Terry Mack resides in New York City but sounds suspiciously like a cowboy from the Western pulps ("Of course, there wasn't nothing so terrible strange about that") and likes to brag about his shooting ability. Ludicrous in both premise and execution, the story is nonetheless a good example of the violent, action-oriented material that made Black Mask a hit with readers in the first place. Daly was enormously popular in his day, and influenced later authors as diverse as Raymond Chandler (Terry Mack's tendency toward white knight syndrome, and the mutual antipathy between him and the police, were reflected in the exploits of Chandler's own PI character Philip Marlowe) and Mickey Spillane (who acknowledged his debt to Daly in the form of a fan letter).

Close on Carroll John Daly's heels was Dashiell Hammett, who had actually worked as a private investigator, and whose writing was everything Daly's wasn't. "Three Gun Terry" rambles on for nearly thirty pages; in "Bodies Piled Up," Hammett's Continental Op closes an equally action-packed case in just under eleven pages, and the story is of infinitely higher literary quality. Other stories include "Sal the Dude" by Hammett's buddy Raoul Whitfield, Paul Cain's "Gundown" (also known as "Murder Done in Blue" or simply "Murder in Blue"; whatever the title, it's one of Cain's best), and Raymond Chandler's very Hammett-esque debut "Blackmailers Don't Shoot."

Nolan was a fan, but he was also perceptive--making him the ideal figure to select and present this material. He was honest enough to admit that many of Black Mask's star writers were men of limited literary ability, yet sympathetic enough to choose a Whitfield story like "Sal the Dude." Whitfield wasn't very good in general, but he did excel at tales of aviation--and, in the high-flying conclusion of "Sal," it's a pleasant surprise when Whitfield's clunky prose becomes suddenly assured and almost graceful. Nolan allows the reader to see Whitfield shine, however briefly, and that's a nice touch. For the newcomer, The Black Mask Boys is a great introduction to the subject matter.… (meer)