"The House in Turk Street" is an early short story by

Dashiell Hammett Samuel Dashiell Hammett (; May 27, 1894 – January 10, 1961) was an American writer of hard-boiled detective novels and short stories. He was also a screenwriter and political activist. Among the enduring characters he created are Sam Spade ('' ...

, featuring the

Continental Op The Continental Op is a fictional character created by Dashiell Hammett. He is a private investigator employed as an operative of the Continental Detective Agency's San Francisco office. The stories are all told in the first person and his name i ...

. It was first published in ''Black Mask'' in April 1924. This story indicates Hammett was turning towards themes of increasing violence in his stories, and its savagery has been commented upon, particularly the massacre which occurs at the end. The story was loosely adapted into the film '' No Good Deed'', directed by

Bob Rafelson Robert Jay Rafelson (February 21, 1933 – July 23, 2022) was an American film director, writer, and producer. He is regarded as one of the key figures in the founding of the New Hollywood movement of the 1970s. Among his best-known films as a ...

Plot

On a routine canvass of Turk Street in San Francisco, the Continental Op is invited into the home of the Quarres, an elderly couple. The Op is given a cup of tea and a cigar, but his interview of the Quarres is suddenly interrupted by a man with a gun, who believes he is the target of the Op's search. The Op is bound and gagged, but overhears the aftermath of a plot to steal $100,000 in bonds, as the conspirators try to decide what to do with him.

References

External links

Detective fiction 1924 short stories Works originally published in Black Mask (magazine) Crime short stories {{1920s-mystery-story-stub