In the 1944 production, she was played by barbara stanwyck. But they had been digging into their files, after the morning story, and they had it about the first mrs. Following that, double indemnity appeared as a one of three long short tales in the collection three of a kind. Double indemnity is a highly influential 1943 crime novel, written by american journalistturnednovelist james m. Walter knows that accident insurance pays double indemnity on railroad mishaps, so he and phyllis plot frantically to get nirdlinger onand offa train without arousing the suspicions of the police, the insurance company, nirdlinger \s dishy daughter, her mysterious boyfriend, or nirdlinger himself. After rereading james cains novella, upon which billy wilders seminal noir double indemnity is based, id like to point out the substantial differences from the novella, which made the movie better, richer, more complex than its source. Walter knows that accident insurance pays double indemnity on railroad mishaps, so he and phyllis plot frantically to get nirdlinger onand offa train without. Learn double indemnity cain with free interactive flashcards. It was first published in serial form in liberty magazine in 1936 and then was one of three long short tales in the collection three of a kind. Cains double indemnity and the film adaptation by billy wilder and raymond chandler for the may noir book of the month club. Phyllis dietrichson is not the ultimate femme fatale. Cain, virtuoso of the roman noir, gives us a tautly narrated and excruciatingly suspenseful story in double indemnity, an xray view of guilt, of duplicity, and of the kind of obsessive, loveless love that devastates everything it touches. Stanwyck was nominated for the academy award for best actress for her performance in the film version.
Phyllis proposes to kill her husband to receive the proceeds of an accident insurance policy and walter devises a scheme to receive twice the amount based on a double indemnity clause. Cain is considered to be one of the founders of the hardboiled genre of detective fiction, which developed during the prohibition era in the united states 19201933. Double indemnity book hennepin county library bibliocommons. This book assesses the entire case, from grisly slaying and shabby coverup to sharp police work and aftermath. Study guide for double indemnity novel double indemnity novel study guide contains a biography of james m. The double indemnity novel community note includes chapterbychapter summary and analysis, character list, theme list, historical context, author biography and quizzes written by community members like you. The book was first published in serial form for liberty magazine in 1936. A true crime masterpiece, and acclaimed 1940s movie double indemnity is the classic story of a bad woman, motivated by the greed that corrupts a weak man motivated by lustwalter huff is an insurance investigator like the others until the day he meets the beautiful and dangerous phyllis nirdlinger and falls under her spell. The main characters of double indemnity, walter huff and phyllis.
How much does huff figure they could get for a railroad. The novel later served as the basis for the film of the same name in 1944, adapted for the screen by the novelist raymond chandler and directed by billy wilder. Double indemnity cain flashcards and study sets quizlet. Walter huff is an insurance salesman for general fidelity of california, and he uses his knowledge of the insurance industry to try to game it. According to the encyclopedia of pulp fiction writers, double indemnity. Aug 27, 2011 following up on his run away commercial success with the postman always rings twice, double indemnity was written as a serial for liberty magazine. Nirdlinger s death, and nirdlinger s death, and now me being shot. Cain, virtuoso of the roman noir, gives us a tautly narrated and excruciatingly suspenseful story in double indemnity, an xray view of guilt, of duplicity, and of the kind of obsessive, loveless love that devastates everything it touches walter huff was an insurance salesman with an unfailing instinct for clients who might be in trouble, and his instinct led him to phyllis nirdlinger. Download for offline reading, highlight, bookmark or take notes while you read double indemnity. I vaguely recall watching the movie of the same name.
Walter huff was an insurance salesman with an unfailing instinct for clients who might be in. Dietrichson as a living human being, but only as an imaginary construct who obstructs his way to wealth and his object of desire. You hear the words double indemnity and you think fred macmurray, barbara stanwyck, and edward g. Walter huff was an insurance salesman with an unfailing instinct for clients who might be in trouble, and his instinct led. About three oclock the orderly came in with the afternoon papers. Pdf double indemnity download full pdf book download. Walter huff was an insurance salesman with an unfailing instinct for clients who might be in trouble, and his instinct led him to phyllis nirdlinger. Download double indemnity ebook in epub, mobi and pdf.
Nirdlinger s automobile coverage runs out in a week or two, and i promised to give him. I was initially worried going into double indemnity as found a few scenarios sounded almost identical to what i read the postman always rings twice where the wife of a rich business man teams up with her lover to plot her husbands murder. When smalltime insurance salesman walter huff meets seductive phyllis nirdlinger, the wife of one of his wealthy clients, it takes him only minutes to determine. Barton keyes is the dogged, determined investigator for general fidelity of california who puts it all together in double indemnity, james m. That was the guy i just talked to, a man by the name of jackson that went up to frisco on a business trip and is coming back tomorrow. Tautly narrated and excruciatingly suspenseful, double indemnity gives us an xray view of guilt, of duplicity, and of the kind of obsessive, loveless love that devastates everything it touches. Walter is aware of that accident insurance coverage pays double indemnity on railroad mishaps, so he and phyllis plot frantically to get nirdlinger onand offa practice with out arousing the suspicions of the police, the insurance coverage company, nirdlinger s dishy daughter, her mysterious boyfriend, or nirdlinger himself.
Double indemnity and the postman always rings twice. Double indemnity, james mallahan cain double indemnity is a 1943 crime novel, written by american journalistturnednovelist james m. Cleverly, cain does not allow the reader to know much of nirdlinger being mentioned only. Cains classic 1936 tale of lust and murder and insurance.
Cain, literature essays, quiz questions, major themes, characters, and a full summary and analysis. Im really getting to like these late 1930s early 1940s crime novels, and double indemnity by james m. It was strange reading this book as it times it seemed like i. It is quite short especially if you ignore the padding in the foreword which serves no real purpose. What are the three essential elements to a successful murder, according to huff. To tell you the truth, i have seen the movieoncea long time ago and. Furthermore, the two of them had a daughter named lorraine, who shares the same first two letters in her name with the lola in double indemnity, daughter of mr. Together, they plot to kill her husband and divide. In a city where insurance salesmen are close to the bottom of the social pecking order, walter huff rates as average.
Still, he is savvy enough to get through the door and get the prospect talking, except that when he makes a call to a certain mr. Phyllis nirdlinger, the dreadful black widow of todays book, double indemnity. This summary of double indemnity includes a complete plot overview spoilers included. Cain this study guide consists of approximately 51 pages of chapter summaries, quotes, character analysis, themes, and more everything you need to sharpen your knowledge of double indemnity. This onepage guide includes a plot summary and brief analysis of double indemnity by james m. Choose from 62 different sets of double indemnity cain flashcards on quizlet. Following up on his run away commercial success with the postman always rings twice, double indemnity was written as a serial for liberty magazine. Huff falls in love with the woman phyllis nirdlinger, and, after doing so, is seduced by her to commit a murder of her husband. Together they plot to kill her husband and split the insurance. Double indemnity is the second book i read of james m.
Double indemnity is the basic story of an evil lady motivated by greed who corrupts a weak man motivated by lust. The classic 1944 movie double indemnity based on this book is one of my alltime favorites. Being an insurance agent, huff likely lives boring days in the office, so to him, this murder is an unexpected adventure. Moreover ruths husband was killed for the money of his life insurance, which contained a double indemnity clause.
Double indemnity toledo lucas county public library. The double indemnity novel community note includes. It was originally published as part of a set with two other stories, called three of a kind, in liberty magazine. He decides to stop at the home of mr nirdlinger to try to convince him to renew his. What ends up destroying the evil people in the story is not crusading law enforcement, but their own natures. Double indemnity novel project gutenberg selfpublishing. Aug 11, 2006 after rereading james cains novella, upon which billy wilders seminal noir double indemnity is based, id like to point out the substantial differences from the novella, which made the movie better, richer, more complex than its source. He meets phyllis nirdlinger by chance one day, while hes out visiting clients and potential clients. Nirdlinger is open to purchasing the policy but does not want to keep it a secret from his wife and stepdaughter, lola. Buy a cheap copy of double indemnity book by james m. Double indemnity, published in 1934, is cains second novel and is set in the young, booming city of hollywood. The story follows the ambitions of walter huff, insurance salesman, who cooks up a scheme with phyllis nirdlinger to bump off phyllis husband in a manner that pays off the double indemnity clause of a life insurance policy. Mar 24, 2005 double indemnity is the classic tale of an evil woman motivated by greed who corrupts a weak man motivated by lust.
Resonant of the footloose jazz age, it made persistent headlines, led to a sensational trial, spawned a 1920s broadway play, and two classic film noirs of the 1940s. While researching postman, cain had talked to some insurance investigators, and. When smalltime insurance salesman walter huff meets seductive phyllis nirdlinger. Walter huff, an insurance agent, falls for the married phyllis nirdlinger, who consults him about accident insurance for her unsuspecting. Were considering expanding this synopsis into a fulllength study guide to deepen your comprehension of the book and why its important. Digital rights management drm the publisher has supplied this book in encrypted form, which means that you need to install free software in order to unlock and read it. Walter huff is an insurance investigator like any other until the day he meets the beautiful and dangerous phyllis nirdlinger and falls under her spell. Double indemnity reading questions powered by oncourse. He says theres no question about it, he had the feeling even when he offered to get nirdlinger s briefcase for him that he was trying to get rid of him, but he didnt quite have the heart to say no to a cripple.
Walter huff met phyllis nirdlinger when he went to the nirdlinger home to see oil. First published in 1935, this novel reaffirmed james m. Double indemnity is a 1943 crime novel, written by american journalistturnednovelist james m. Still, as far as the book goes, hes a relatively minot character. Phyllis dietrichson phyllis nirdlinger, in the book is a fictional character in the book and two film adaptations of james m. Double indemnity is the classic tale of an evil woman motivated by greed who corrupts a weak man motivated by lust. He meets phyllis nirdlinger by chance one day, while hes out. Download double indemnity crime masterworks pdf ebook. Why do insurance companies pay double indemnity on railroad accidents. It was strange reading this book as it times it seemed like i was watching an old black and white movie. Walter huff is an insurance coverage investigator like some other till the day he meets the gorgeous and harmful phyllis nirdlinger and falls beneath her spell.
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