The Thin Man (film) he almost takes the life of someone who knows too much. Cast notes: The film was based on the novel of the same name by Dashiell Hammett, released in January 1934. Hammett's novel drew on his experiences as a union-busting Pinkerton detective in Butte, Montana. Hammett based Nick and Nora's banter upon his rocky on-again, off-again relationship with playwright Lillian Hellman. MGM paid Hammett $21,000 for the screen rights to the novel. The screenplay was written by Albert Hackett and Frances Goodrich, who had been married for three years. Director W.S. Van Dyke encouraged them to use Hammett's writing as
Shadow of the Thin Man welcomed, coming two years after the previous outing and hitting theaters just two weeks before the attack on Pearl Harbor. It would be three years before Loy would make another film ("The Thin Man Goes Home" in 1945) as she left Hollywood for New York, where she volunteered with the Red Cross. The film was fourth of six based on the characters of Nick and Nora: Shadow of the Thin Man Shadow of the Thin Man is the fourth of the six "The Thin Man" films. It was released in 1941 and was directed by W. S. Van Dyke. It