The Dark Tunnel: Difference between revisions
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{{short description|1944 crime novel}} |
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Written in 1944 by [[Ross Macdonald]], spy thriller. |
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{{use mdy dates|date=September 2024}} |
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{{Infobox book |
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| name = The Dark Tunnel |
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| image = TheDarkTunnel.jpg |
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| alt = |
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| caption = First-edition [[book cover]] |
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| author = [[Ross Macdonald|Kenneth Millar]] |
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| country = United States |
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| genre = {{hlist|[[Crime fiction|Crime]]|[[mystery fiction|mystery]]|[[spy fiction|spy]]}} |
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| publisher = [[Dodd, Mead & Co.]] |
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| pub_date = 1944 |
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| media_type = Print |
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}} |
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'''''The Dark Tunnel''''' is the first novel by "one of the giants of twentieth century [[crime fiction]]", [[Ross Macdonald|Kenneth Millar]]. The [[first edition]] was published by [[Dodd, Mead & Co.]] in 1944 New York, a fine-condition copy of which was priced at {{US$|8500}} {{as of|2020|01|lc=yes}}.<ref name="ABAA" /> Millar's biography describes ''The Dark Tunnel'' as "a hybrid of old-fashioned puzzle-mystery, [[John Buchan|Buchanesque]] spy adventure, and Chandleresque exposé of [[sexual perversion]].<ref name="1999 Nolan" /> Because of the latter, a 1950 paperback reprint was subtitled "The story of a homosexual spy".<ref name="2016 Gunn" /> |
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University professor Robert Branch makes light of his best friend's suspicions that there's a Nazi spy in their sleepy, midwestern university town. He's more interested in the fact that his ex-girlfriend from Germany is about to take a post at the university. But then his ex turns out to be rather mysteriously engaged to the son of the German professor and he watches his friend fall to his death out his own office window Robert's the only one who thinks it isn't suicide. And when he attempts to expose the killers, no one believes him. And he finds himself running for his life, marked as their next target. |
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As an author, Millar was influenced by [[John Buchan]] and [[Raymond Chandler]], with ''The Dark Tunnel'' bearing a strong resemblance to ''[[The Thirty-Nine Steps]]'', and echoing Chandler's hallmarks of "rough-and-ready humor, its extravagant similes, and its more lurid events and descriptions".<ref name="1999 Nolan" /> |
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Millar wrote The Dark Tunnel in one month at Ann Arbor in 1943, while completing his course requirements for his doctorate. |
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Millar's protagonist is Professor Robert Branch, a dichotomous character heavily influenced by the Professor Millar himself. Branch has studied [[T. S. Eliot]], [[W. C. Handy]], [[Norse mythology]], and [[William Shakespeare]]; Branch is skilled in [[lock picking]], athletic, and possesses a [[Doctor of Philosophy]].<ref name="1999 Nolan" /> |
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This book was reprinted by Lion in 1955 under the title, I Die Slowly. |
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==References== |
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{{reflist |refs= |
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<ref name="1999 Nolan">{{cite book |last1=Nolan |first1=Tom |year=1999 |title=Ross Macdonald: A Biography |language=en |location=[[New York City]] |publisher=[[Charles Scribner's Sons|Scribner]] |pages=66– |isbn=0-684-81217-7 |url=https://archive.org/details/rossmacdonaldbio0000nola/page/66 |url-access=registration}}</ref> |
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<ref name="2016 Gunn">{{cite book |last1=Drewey Wayne |first1=Gunn |year=2016 |title=Gay American Novels, 1870-1970 |language=en |publisher=[[McFarland & Company]] |page=44}}{{verify source|date=March 2024}}</ref> |
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<ref name="ABAA">{{cite web |url=https://www.abaa.org/book/466562519 |title=The Dark Tunnel (First Edition) |publisher=[[Antiquarian Booksellers' Association of America]] |language=en |access-date=2023-01-19 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200111182323/https://www.abaa.org/book/466562519 |archive-date=2020-01-11}}</ref><!-- exhausted --> |
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}} |
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{{Ross Macdonald}} |
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Dark Tunnel}} |
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[[Category:American mystery novels]] |
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[[Category:American spy novels]] |
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[[Category:Dodd, Mead & Co. books]] |
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[[Category:novels by Ross Macdonald]] |
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Latest revision as of 18:41, 2 September 2024
 First-edition book cover | |
| Author | Kenneth Millar |
|---|---|
| Genre | |
| Publisher | Dodd, Mead & Co. |
Publication date | 1944 |
| Publication place | United States |
| Media type | |
The Dark Tunnel is the first novel by "one of the giants of twentieth century crime fiction", Kenneth Millar. The first edition was published by Dodd, Mead & Co. in 1944 New York, a fine-condition copy of which was priced at US$8,500 as of January 2020[update].[1] Millar's biography describes The Dark Tunnel as "a hybrid of old-fashioned puzzle-mystery, Buchanesque spy adventure, and Chandleresque exposé of sexual perversion.[2] Because of the latter, a 1950 paperback reprint was subtitled "The story of a homosexual spy".[3]
As an author, Millar was influenced by John Buchan and Raymond Chandler, with The Dark Tunnel bearing a strong resemblance to The Thirty-Nine Steps, and echoing Chandler's hallmarks of "rough-and-ready humor, its extravagant similes, and its more lurid events and descriptions".[2]
Millar's protagonist is Professor Robert Branch, a dichotomous character heavily influenced by the Professor Millar himself. Branch has studied T. S. Eliot, W. C. Handy, Norse mythology, and William Shakespeare; Branch is skilled in lock picking, athletic, and possesses a Doctor of Philosophy.[2]
References
[edit]- ^ "The Dark Tunnel (First Edition)". Antiquarian Booksellers' Association of America. Archived from the original on January 11, 2020. Retrieved January 19, 2023.
- ^ a b c Nolan, Tom (1999). Ross Macdonald: A Biography. New York City: Scribner. pp. 66–. ISBN 0-684-81217-7.
- ^ Drewey Wayne, Gunn (2016). Gay American Novels, 1870-1970. McFarland & Company. p. 44.[verification needed]
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