Tuesday, June 28, 2016

Thriller Writer Donald Hamilton Discusses Matt Helm Films Based On His Novels In 1991 Lettter


The Spy Command website offers a piece on a letter the late thriller writer Donald Hamilton (seen in the above photo) sent to a fan that deals with his view of the Dean Martin films that were based on his Matt Helms novels.

Over on The Spy Command's Facebook page, reader Bill Groves shared a 1991 letter he received from Matt Helm creator Donald Hamilton.
In the letter, Hamilton commented about the four 1960s Matt Helm movies starring Dean Martin.
The films took Hamilton's very serious novels and made them into comedies that incorporated bits from Dino's variety show. The hero supposedly drank heavily (like Dean on his show) and was frequently surrounded by beautiful women. The Ambushers (1967) even had a joke referencing Martin's birthplace of Stubenville, Ohio.

As it turns out, Hamilton wasn't upset about the changes. 
You can read the rest of the piece via the below link:
You can also read my Crime Beat column on Donald Hamilton and Matt Helm via the below link:

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