, was published in 2013.
Wease also edited the manuscript of the last Matt Helm novel, The Dominators, with Gordon Hamilton's permission, so perhaps there is hope it can be published someday.
Most of Donald Hamilton's short fiction and several of his novels were published in weekly and monthly magazines. This list identifies the magazines. Why bother, some might ask? The serialized novels were all published in hardcover and/or paperback, and reprinted several times. They aren't difficult to find. Hamilton's better known short stories have been collected in several anthologies. Isn't that good enough? Well, no. Hamilton passed away November 2006 and he was much more than the creator of Matt Helm. I'd like to remember him for all of his work. Four of his short stories have never been reprinted. Some of the magazines have spectacular color illustrations.
The entire Matt Helm series is back in print and also available as e-books. Audiobooks are also being released.
A pastiche by Keith Wease, Matt Helm: The War Years
A few of the movies based on Hamilton's novels are still available.
An e-book about the Matt Helm films, Booze, Bullets & Broads
You can view a gallery of his book covers, movie memorabilia, and a list of online references (no longer updated).
My thanks to Robert Skinner, who suggested I contact Ray Peters, and to Ray, for his help identifying missing stories, providing photocopies to read, and for giving me a treasure trove of Hamilton's books. Thanks also to Mike Leggett and David Keller for providing additional content.
Ray compiled US and UK publishing chronologies of Hamilton's fiction and shared photos of his visits with Don.
If you know where I can find copies of articles written by Donald Hamilton, if you know about any missing articles on writing, if you have book cover scans, movie-related images, or anything else interesting that should be added to this site, please email Mark Martinez, stcomix at mac dot com. Thanks.
| Story Title | Magazine Title | Issue Date | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Stranger's Return | Collier's | 1946-06-01 | Uncollected short story. Hamilton's first published fiction. This issue contains a photo and brief biographical sketch of Hamilton. |
| Magnolia | Collier's | 1946-11-23 | Uncollected short story. |
| The Black Cross | The American Magazine | 1947-09 | Novella collected in Murder Twice Told, 1950 (hardcover) and 1952 (paperback). |
| The Steel Mirror, 1 of 8 | The Saturday Evening Post | 1948-08-21 | Serial novel published as The Steel Mirror, 1948 (hardcover) and 1950 (paperback). Filmed as Five Steps to Danger with several posters, 1957. This issue contains a biographical sketch of Hamilton. |
| The Steel Mirror, 2 of 8 | The Saturday Evening Post | 1948-08-28 | - |
| The Steel Mirror, 3 of 8 | The Saturday Evening Post | 1948-09-04 | - |
| The Steel Mirror, 4 of 8 | The Saturday Evening Post | 1948-09-11 | - |
| The Steel Mirror, 5 of 8 | The Saturday Evening Post | 1948-09-18 | - |
| The Steel Mirror, 6 of 8 | The Saturday Evening Post | 1948-09-25 | - |
| The Steel Mirror, 7 of 8 | The Saturday Evening Post | 1948-10-02 | - |
| The Steel Mirror, 8 of 8 | The Saturday Evening Post | 1948-10-09 | - |
| Deadfall, 1 of 3 | Collier's | 1949-09-03 | Serial novella collected in Murder Twice Told. Adapted as a live teleplay, Dead Fall, by Victor Wolfson and broadcast 23 Jan 1951, during the third season of Suspense. |
| Deadfall, 2 of 3 | Collier's | 1949-09-10 | - |
| Deadfall, 3 of 3 | Collier's | 1949-09-17 | - |
| Deadfall | The Standard Book of the Week (Montreal) | 1950-10-14 | Novella collected in Murder Twice Told. Printed on newsprint and published as an insert in the Montreal Standard weekend edition. |
| The Black Cross | The Standard Book of the Week (Montreal) | 1950-10-28 | Novella collected in Murder Twice Told. Printed on newsprint and published as an insert in the Montreal Standard weekend edition. |
| The Black Cross | Newark Sunday News Novel | 1950-10-29 | Novella collected in Murder Twice Told. Printed on newsprint and published as an insert in the Newark Sunday News. |
| Mask for Danger, 1 of 5 | Collier's | 1951-06-16 | Serial novel published as Night Walker, 1954. Reprinted by Hard Case Crime. |
| Mask for Danger, 2 of 5 | Collier's | 1951-06-23 | - |
| Mask for Danger, 3 of 5 | Collier's | 1951-06-30 | - |
| Mask for Danger, 4 of 5 | Collier's | 1951-07-07 | - |
| Mask for Danger, 5 of 5 | Collier's | 1951-07-14 | - |
| Throwback | Manhunt | 1953-08 | Short story collected in The Best of Manhunt 3. |
| Throwback | Giant Manhunt #2 (Variant 2) | 1953 | Rebound copies of May/June/July/August 1953 issues of Manhunt. |
| Smoky Valley, 1 of 4 | Collier's | 1953-12-11 | Serial novel published as Smoky Valley, 1954. Filmed as The Violent Men with several posters, 1955. |
| Smoky Valley, 2 of 4 | Collier's | 1953-12-25 | - |
| Smoky Valley, 3 of 4 | Collier's | 1954-01-08 | - |
| Smoky Valley, 4 of 4 | Collier's | 1954-01-22 | - |
| Throwback | Manhunt (UK) | 1954-03 | - |
| Throwback | Manhunt Detective Story Magazine (Australia) | 1954-05 | - |
| Too Soon Dead | Bluebook | 1955-05 | Uncollected novella. |
| Mad River, 1 of 3 | Collier's | 1956-01-06 | Serial novel published as Mad River, 1957. |
| Mad River, 2 of 3 | Collier's | 1956-01-20 | - |
| Mad River, 3 of 3 | Collier's | 1956-02-03 | - |
| Ambush at Blanco Canyon, 1 of 4 | The Saturday Evening Post | 1957-02-02 | Serial novel published as The Big Country, filmed as The Big Country with several posters, a soundtrack, and a comic, 1958. This issue contains a photo and brief biographical sketch of Hamilton. |
| Ambush at Blanco Canyon, 2 of 4 | The Saturday Evening Post | 1957-02-09 | - |
| Ambush at Blanco Canyon, 3 of 4 | The Saturday Evening Post | 1957-02-16 | - |
| Ambush at Blanco Canyon, 4 of 4 | The Saturday Evening Post | 1957-02-23 | - |
| The Mile Gun | Sports Afield | 1958-09 | Short story collected in On Guns and Hunting, 1970. |
| The Last Gunman | The Saturday Evening Post | 1959-05-02 | Short story collected in Spurs West, S. Omar Barker (ed.), 1960, The Gunfighters, Bill Pronzini and Martin H. Greenberg (ed.), 1987, and other anthologies. |
| The Guns of William Longley | - | 1967 | Short story published in Iron Men and Silver Stars, Donald Hamilton (ed.), 1967. Won the 1967 Western Writers of America Spur Award for best short material. Reprinted in many anthologies over the years. Bill Longley was an outlaw with a ruthless reputation. An unabridged audio adaptation performed by Joe Barrett was published by Dove Audio, 1999. |
| The Mona Intercept | Mag-A-Book | 1982-07 | The complete novel, The Mona Intercept, 1980, in a magazine. |
Hamilton also wrote many magazine articles, including a few about his work and writing. Some are listed at the UCLA archive of his papers. The contents of the archive are available in a PDF file. Most of his articles are about hunting and boating. Here are a few.
| Article Title | Magazine or Book Title | Issue Date | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| The world was full of quail | Outdoor Life | 1954-05 | pp50-51,119-120, collected in On Guns and Hunting |
| Inside on the rail | Outdoor Life | 1955-01 | pp34-35,92-95, collected in On Guns and Hunting |
| What's the big mystery? | Outdoor Life | 1955-06 | pp54-55,109-111, collected in On Guns and Hunting |
| The great tradition | The Roundup | 1956-04 | pp3-4, essay collected in Iron Men and Silver Stars. The Roundup is a newsletter published by the Western Writers of America. |
| Watch my smoke | Outdoor Life | 1956-07 | pp58-59,111-113,122, collected in On Guns and Hunting |
| You've got to fake it, 1 of 2 | The Roundup | 1959-09 | pp3-4, contains a photo of Hamilton |
| You've got to fake it, 2 of 2 | The Roundup | 1959-10 | pp6-7, contains a photo of Hamilton |
| Arctic hunt | The American Swedish Monthly | 1961-03 | pp12-18, collected in On Guns and Hunting |
| Just want a deer? | Outdoor Life | 1961-06 | pp66-67,126-130,132-133, collected in On Guns and Hunting |
| The great Swedish älg | The American Swedish Monthly | 1961-09 | pp12-15, collected in On Guns and Hunting |
| An Argosy Crime Report: Who murdered Henry Marshall? | Argosy | 1962-11 | pp23-25,91-96 |
| Pronghorns in the pasture | Outdoor Life | 1966-02 | pp54-55,131-133, collected in On Guns and Hunting, this issue contains a brief biographical sketch with a photo and cartoons of Hamilton |
| Caliber catastrophe | Gun World | 1967-06 | pp34-37,52, collected in On Guns and Hunting |
| Block that kick! | Gun Digest 22nd Edition | 1968 | pp71-76, John T. Ander (ed.), collected in On Guns and Hunting |
| Who can afford to write for money? | Writer | 1968-06 | pp19-20,54 |
| Test patterns are necessary! | Guns | 1968-08 | pp34-35,58-60, collected in On Guns and Hunting |
| How to put the fetch in Fido | True's Hunting Yearbook No. 20 | 1969 | pp86-91, collected in On Guns and Hunting as First-year retriever man |
| The .410: Giant of a pipsqueak | True | 1971-02 | pp82-85 |
| Shadrach, a gun-shy retriever | True | 1971-10 | pp106-111 |
| Stop picking on our little guns! | Guns & Ammo | 1972-02 | pp42-5,65 |
| The ravagers and the rabbits | Gun World | 1972-06 | pp24-27,88, reprinted from On Guns and Hunting where it was titled Cottontail carnival, there may have been an earlier version of this article in Gun World |
| Excuse me, I love guns | Popular Guns | Winter 1976 | pp24-25,82-85 reprinted from On Guns and Hunting |
| The man who killed himself six times | I, Witness | 1978 | pp71-85, Brian Garfield (ed.), rewrite of an article that appeared in Argosy, 1962 |
| Fastnet I | Trailer Boats | 1980-01 | pp8,70 |
| Guns afloat? A long short passage |
Yachting | 1982-02 | pp139-141,146-148, two articles in the same issue |
| Fever-free racing | Yachting | 1982-03 | pp164-166,168 |
| Old black dog | Sports Afield | 1982-04 | pp98,170,172-173 |
| Murdersville | Trailer Boats | 1983-08 | pp6,35,49 |
| What do you write with? | Trailer Boats | 1984-05 | pp8,9,84,85 |
| Firearms for the mystery reader | Trailer Boats | 1984-07 | pp6,9,64 |
| First person singular | Writer | 1984-10 | pp16-18 |
| Fact and fiction | Trailer Boats | 1985-06 | pp8,97 |
| Going to the dogs | Trailer Boats | 1985-08 | pp6,84,86 |
| Shut up and write | Colloquium on Crime | 1986 | pp99-110, Robin Winks (ed.) |
| My last boating career | Trailer Boats | 1986-02 | pp8,84-85, last column after about 12 years and 140 columns |
| Test fire your shotgun! | Wildfowl | 1986-04/05 | pp72-74, sort of a sequel to Test patterns are necessary! |
| The casual retriever | Wildfowl | 1986-12/1987-01 | pp75-77 |
| The yesterday hunt | Colorado Outdoors | 1987-01/02 | pp6-7 |
| Whose ethics? | Wildfowl | 1987-04/05 | pp56-58 |
| Matt Helm's knives & mine | Knives '96, 16th Annual Edition | 1995 | pp6-9, Ken Warner (ed.) |
Hamilton has been the subject of interviews and articles about his work. Here are a few.
| Article Title | Magazine or Book Title | Issue Date | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Donald Hamilton | Conversations | 1967 | pp131-132, Ray Newquist (ed.) |
| The sordid truth: Donald Hamilton | The New Republic | 1975-07-26 | pp21-24, Robin W. Winks |
| Western motifs in the thrillers of Donald Hamilton | Western American Literature | 1976 | Vol. 10, No. 4, Winter 1976, pp283-292, Fred Erisman, Texas Christian University |
| The degeneration of Donald Hamilton | The Mystery Fancier | 1977-11 | Vol. 1, No. 6, pp11-12, George Kelley |
| The Matt Helm series | The Mystery Fancier | 1978-03 | Vol. 2, No. 2, pp3-11, R. Jeff Banks and Guy M. Townsend |
| Matt Helm | The Great Detectives | 1978 | pp120-126, Otto Penzler (ed.) |
| Great mystery series: Matt Helm | Mystery | 1982-07 | Vol. 4, No. 2, pp46-52, Andy East |
| Business before everything: The hard-boiled world of Matt Helm | The Mystery Fancier | 1988 | Vol. 10, No. 1, Winter 1988, pp39-53, Robert E. Skinner |
| Interview: Donald Hamilton | Mystery Scene | 1987 | Number 12, p10 |
| Donald Hamilton: The writing crew | Murder off the rack: Critical studies of ten paperback masters | 1989 | pp99-111, by Loren D. Estleman, Jon L. Breen and Martin Harry Greenberg (ed.) |
| The man behind Matt Helm: An interview with Donald Hamilton | Mystery Scene | 1992-07/08 | pp24-28, Michael Pettengel |
| Donald Hamilton: A paperback original | Firsts | 1997-11 | pp42-47, Robert Skinner, includes Knowing Donald Hamilton by Raymond J. Peters. Collected in The Big Book of Noir, 1998. |
| Writer at work: Donald Hamilton | Thrillers | 2002 | John Fraser |
| Donald Hamilton | Thriller Writers | 2002 | John Fraser |
| The death of Matt Helm? | Booklist | 2002-05-01 | pp1456-1458, Frank Sennett |
| James Bond and Matt Helm: The Moral Universe of Literature’s Most Famous Spy and His Chief American Rival | The Mid-Atlantic Almanack | 2009-03 | pp103-117, Joseph Allegretti |