Quotes by Dashiell Hammett

“Who shot him? I asked.The grey man scratched the back of his neck and said: Somebody with a gun.”

“ Lost Stories ”

“[Yet he went on to make more than 50 feature films. After winning an Academy Award in 1976 for his role as Washington Post executive editor Bed Bradlee in] All the Presidents Men, ... Julia.”

“The truth is you dont like the theater except the times when youre in a room by yourself putting the play on paper.”

Brigid OShaughnessy: “I havent lived a good life. Ive been bad, worse than you could know.” Sam Spade “You know, thats good, because if you actually were as innocent as you pretend to be, wed never get anywhere

He looked rather pleasantly, like a blonde satan.

If you have a story that seems worth telling, and you think you can tell it worthily, then the thing for you to do is to tell it, regardless of whether it has to do with sex, sailors or mounted policemen.

I found I was repeating myself. It is the beginning of the end when you discover you have style.

Joel Cairo: You always have a very smooth explanation ready.Sam Spade: What do you want me to do, learn to stutter?

Yes, Spade growled. And when youre slapped youll take it and like it. He released Cairos wrist and with a thick open hand struck the side of his face three times savagely.

Ive been as bad an influence on American literature as anyone I can think of.

She stared at him dully and said: “I don’t like crooks, and even if I did, I wouldn’t like crooks that are stool-pigeons, and if I liked crooks that are stool-pigeons, I still wouldn’t like you.” She turned to the outer door.

You know Quinn? Macaulay asked me.Ten minutes ago I was putting him to bed.Macaulay grinned. I hope you keep his acquaintance like that - socialMeaning what?Macaulays grin became rueful. He used to be my broker, and his advice led me right up to the poorhouse steps.Thats sweet, I said. hes my broker now and Im following his advice. Macaulay and the girl laughed. I pretended I was laughing and returned to my table.

Dont be so damned patronizing. Your performance so far has been a little less than dazzling.I didnt mean no harm, I said and kissed her. That a new dress?Ah! Changing the subject, you coward.

The people who lie the most are nearly always the clumsiest at it, and theyre easier to fool with lies than most people, too. Youd think theyd be on the look-out for lies, but they seem to be the very ones that will believe almost anything at all.

I just tell you what happens. I dont explain it.

The cheaper the crook, the gaudier the patter.

He was the perfect soldier: he went where you sent him, and stayed where you put him, and had no idea of his own to keep him from doing exactly what you told him.

When a mans partner is killed hes supposed to do something about it. It doesnt make any difference what you thought of him. He was your partner and youre supposed to do something about it. Then it happens we were in the detective business. Well, when one of your organization gets killed its bad business to let the killer get away with it. Its bad all around-bad for that one organization, bad for every detective everywhere. Sam Spade

To get what he wanted, a man had to give other people what they wanted.