Raymond Thorton Chandler

1888 - 1959

American Raymond T. Chandler fought with the Gordon Highlanders of Canada as a Sgt. during the Great War. He suffered a severe concussion when he was the only member of his platoon who survived an artillery barrage.

He, with fellow Great War veterans Ernest Hemingway, James M. Caine and Dashiell Hammett, are considered to be the founders of the "Hard Boiled" school of mystery fiction. Chandler is the creator of Philip Marlowe, a lone, intense, intellectual detective in interwar Los Angeles and Hollywood. His protagonist's combination of toughness and high sense of honor won fans for the author all over the world. Marlowe was the irresistible subject of many feature films, often portrayed by the leading man of the period including Dick Powell, Bogart and Robert Mitchum.


Chandler in the 1930s
Apparently Mimicking Marlowe

If you are just starting with Marlowe read The Big Sleep and Lady in the Lake first. His literary masterpiece The Long Goodbye requires some experience with Marlowe for its full appreciation.

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