Raymond Thornton Chandler was an American-British novelist and screenwriter. In 1932, at the age of forty-four, Chandler became a detective fiction writer after losing his job as an oil company executive during the Great Depression. His first short story, "Blackmailers Don't Shoot", was published in 1933 in Black Mask, a popular pulp magazine. His first novel, The Big Sleep, was published in 1939. In addition to his short stories, Chandler published seven novels during his lifetime. All but Playback have been made into motion pictures, some more than once. In the year before his death, he was elected president of the Mystery Writers of America.
Philip Marlowe is a fictional character created by Raymond Chandler who was characteristic of the hardboiled crime fiction genre. The genre originated in the 1920s, notably in Black Mask magazine, in which Dashiell Hammett's The Continental Op and Sam Spade first appeared. Marlowe first appeared under that name in The Big Sleep, published in 1939. Chandler's early short stories, published in pulp magazines such as Black Mask and Dime Detective, featured similar characters with names like "Carmady" and "John Dalmas", starting in 1933.
Randall and Hopkirk (Deceased) is a British private detective television series, starring Mike Pratt and Kenneth Cope respectively as the private detectives Jeff Randall and Marty Hopkirk. The series was created by Dennis Spooner and produced by Monty Berman, and was first broadcast in 1969 and 1970. In the United States, it was given the title My Partner the Ghost.
The Big Sleep is a 1978 neo-noir film, the second film version of Raymond Chandler's 1939 novel of the same name. The picture was directed by Michael Winner and stars Robert Mitchum in his second film portrayal of the detective Philip Marlowe. The cast includes Sarah Miles, Candy Clark, Joan Collins and Oliver Reed, and features James Stewart as General Sternwood.
Alan Lake was an English actor, best known as the third and final husband of screen star Diana Dors.
Marlowe is a 1969 American neo-noir film starring James Garner as Raymond Chandler's private detective Philip Marlowe. Directed by Paul Bogart, the film was written by Stirling Silliphant based on Chandler's 1949 novel The Little Sister.
Night Train to Paris is a 1964 British-American spy film directed by Robert Douglas and starring Leslie Nielsen, Aliza Gur and Dorinda Stevens.
Lindsay Craig Shonteff was a Canadian born film director, film producer and screenwriter who achieved fame for low-budget films produced in the United Kingdom.
Death Drums Along the River is a 1963 British-German international co-production directed by Lawrence Huntingdon ad starring Richard Todd and Marianne Koch.
Blood Orange is a 1953 British crime film directed by Terence Fisher and starring Tom Conway and Mila Parély. The screenplay was by Jan Read. A private eye investigating a jewel robbery at a London fashion house finds himself involved in a murder mystery.
He Who Rides a Tiger is a 1965 British crime drama directed by Charles Crichton, and starring Tom Bell and Judi Dench. It was written by Trevor Peacock.
The File of the Golden Goose is a 1969 British neo noir thriller film directed by Sam Wanamaker and starring Yul Brynner, Charles Gray and Edward Woodward. Its plot involves an American detective being sent to Britain to track down a major international criminal.
The World Ten Times Over is a 1963 British drama film written and directed by Wolf Rilla, and starring Sylvia Syms, June Ritchie, Edward Judd and William Hartnell. Donald Sutherland makes a brief appearance, in one of his earliest roles. The British Film Institute has described it as the first British film to deal with an implicitly lesbian relationship.
Linda Virginia Marlowe is an Australian-born British film, theatre, and television actress. She is noted for her association with Steven Berkoff, performing in many of his theatrical works, creating a one-woman show based on his female characters called Berkoff's Women, and being referred to as his "muse" by a number of critics.
Doctor Morelle is a 1949 British second feature ('B') mystery film directed by Godfrey Grayson and starring Valentine Dyall, Peter Drury and Hugh Griffith. Made by Hammer Films, it was written by Ambrose Grayson and Roy Plumley, based on the popular long-running BBC radio series by Ernest Dudley and starring Cecil Parker. Dudley also wrote many novels and short stories featuring the character of Morelle.
Three is a 1969 British drama film written and directed by James Salter. The film stars Charlotte Rampling, Robie Porter, Sam Waterston, Pascale Roberts, Edina Ronay and Gillian Hills. The film was released on 23 December 1969, by United Artists.
The Window Cleaner is a 1968 British sex comedy short film directed by Malcolm Leigh and starring Donald Sumpter, Edina Ronay, and Ann Lancaster.
Who? is a 1974 British science fiction film directed by Jack Gold and starring Elliott Gould, Trevor Howard and Joseph Bova. It was written by John Gould based on the 1958 novel of the same name by Algis Budrys.
Five To One is a 1963 British second feature ('B') crime film directed by Gordon Flemyng and starring Lee Montague, Ingrid Hafner and John Thaw. It was made at Merton Park Studios as part of the long-running series of Edgar Wallace adaptations. The screenplay was by Roger Marshall, based on the 1928 Wallace story The Thief in the Night.
Big Zapper, also known as The Sex Life of a Female Private Eye, is a 1973 British action film directed by Lindsay Shonteff and starring Linda Marlowe, Gary Hope and Sean Hewitt. It was followed by a sequel The Swordsman (1974).
