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James Crumley

ジェームズ・クラムリー

Jēmusu Kuramrī

Aliases: James Arthur Crumley

Profile

Gender
Male
Born
1939-10-12 （Three Rivers, Texas）
Died
2008-09-17 （Missoula, Montana） age 68
Nationality
American
Languages
English
Religion
Unknown
Residence History
South Texas → Philippines → Missoula, Montana

Career

Occupations
Author, Crime fiction writer, Professor, Screenwriter
Active Years
1969-2005
Affiliations
University of Montana, University of Arkansas, Colorado State University, Reed College, Carnegie-Mellon University, University of Texas at El Paso
Influenced By
Raymond Chandler, Ross Macdonald, Richard Hugo
Influenced
Michael Connelly, George Pelecanos, Dennis Lehane, Craig McDonald, Neal Stephenson
Nominations
Los Angeles Times Book Prize Mystery/Thriller finalist (2005, A Right Madness)

Education

Georgia Institute of Technology
Unknown
Period: 約1年
Country: United States
Attended on Navy ROTC scholarship for about a year then left
Texas A&M University–Kingsville
History
Degree: B.A.
Period: フットボール奨学金
Year of Graduation: 1964
Country: United States
Formerly Texas College of Arts and Industries
University of Iowa
Iowa Writers' Workshop
Degree: M.F.A.
Year of Graduation: 1966
Country: United States
Master's in creative writing

Awards

Dashiell Hammett Award
1994
Work: The Mexican Tree Duck
Organization: North American Branch of the International Association of Crime Writers
Result: winner
Falcon Award
1985
Work: The Wrong Case
Category: ハードボイルド小説
Organization: Maltese Falcon Society of Japan
Result: winner

Awards & Nominations

Works

Major Works

The Last Good Kiss

1978 Hardboiled detective crime

Influential crime novel featuring PI C.W. Sughrue.

AlcoholismPrivate investigatorViolence

The Mexican Tree Duck

1993 Hardboiled detective crime

Sughrue series novel, Dashiell Hammett Award winner.

DetectiveCrimeChaos

One to Count Cadence

1969 War novel

Debut novel set in Philippines and Vietnam.

Vietnam WarViolence

Bibliography

  • One to Count Cadence
  • The Wrong Case
  • The Last Good Kiss
  • Dancing Bear
  • Pigeon Shoot
  • Whores
  • Muddy Fork and Other Things
  • The Mexican Tree Duck
  • Bordersnakes
  • The Putt at the End of the World
  • The Final Country
  • The Right Madness

Style & Themes

Literary Style
HardboiledViolentRough poetryPost-Vietnam chaos
Recurring Motifs
Private eyesAlcoholismGunfire and betrayalAmerican landscapes

Health

  • Kidney disease
    晩年
    Complications led to death
  • Pulmonary disease
    長年
    Long-term health issues
  • Alcoholism
    生涯
    Daily whiskey consumption
  • Cocaine use
    週6日
    Contributed to health decline

Legacy

One of modern crime writing's best practitioners with a cult following. Influenced a generation including Michael Connelly. Never achieved mainstream success but critically acclaimed.

Archives

  • Wittliff Collections, Texas State University (James Crumley Papers)

In Popular Culture

  • Ray Bradbury named a detective 'Crumley' in tribute in his mystery novels.

Quotes

  • When I finally caught up with Abraham Trahearne, he was drinking beer with an alcoholic bulldog named Fireball Roberts in a ramshackle joint just outside Sonoma, California, drinking the heart right out of a fine spring afternoon.
    Source: The Last Good Kiss (1978)
  • Son, never trust a man who doesn't drink because he's probably a self-righteous sort...
    Source: The Wrong Case (1975)
  • This may not be my final country... my ashes will go back to Montana when I die.
    Source: The Final Country (2001)

Trivia

  • Dedicated bar stool in Missoula's Depot bar
  • Signed Writers and Editors War Tax Protest against Vietnam War
  • Worked as script doctor in Hollywood with many unproduced scripts
  • Earned more in France and Japan than US at times