Talk:The Long Goodbye (novel)

Different versions?

In my 1959 Penguin edition, Sylvia Lennox is found dead not in a pool house but in a guest house in the grounds of the estate. Her husband Terry Lennox has spent time in England but there is no suggestion that he is not a US citizen. Though obviously of Hispanic origin, the nationality of his wartime buddy Menendez is not stated and the implication is that he too is a US citizen. His other wartime buddy, Randy Starr, is not a cop but a police commissioner in Las Vegas. The Mexican town in which Terry Lennox is allegedly murdered is not Otatitlán but Otatoclan. As the ranch in Sepulveda Canyon from which Marlowe rescues Roger Wade has a lawn and is covered in evergreen oaks, it doesn’t sound like desert.

The Lawless One (talk) 14:01, 19 November 2009 (UTC)

Development of the character of Marlowe

It might be worth noting that the 42-year old bachelor Marlowe meets and spends an enjoyable night with a married woman, Linda Loring, who declares that once divorced she wants to marry him. The relationship is developed further in the next two books, Playback and Poodle Springs.

The Lawless One (talk) 14:01, 19 November 2009 (UTC)

Fair use rationale for Image:RaymondChandler TheLongGoodbye.jpg

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BetacommandBot (talk) 17:31, 5 December 2007 (UTC)

ISBN

I moved the ISBN to external links -- doesn't seem standard after the title and adds clutter. But I wonder if it should be put in the info box. The first edition (shown) was pre-ISBN, but is that relevant? —Preceding unsigned comment added by BruceSwanson (talk • contribs) 21:07, 9 February 2010 (UTC)

Plot summary doesn't make sense

First it says that Roger Wade kills himself (apparently while Marlowe was there), and then it says that Eileen Wade killed him. Which is it? Please fix this mess. Softlavender (talk) 14:25, 16 April 2012 (UTC)

OK, I tried to figure this out on GoogleBooks, and fixed the article. Softlavender (talk) 05:06, 28 April 2012 (UTC)

Dates?

Where is the original author getting the dates for the novel as specifically 1949-1950? Are these dates actually mentioned in the novel? Would the original author return to the article with footnotes with specific chapters of The Long Goodbye mentioned to clear this up? L. Thomas W. (talk) 15:28, 6 May 2013 (UTC)

That's a good question. I checked in the book and it says the second time Marlow meets Lennox was "the week after Thanksgiving" but I didn't find anything that specified the exact time between the first and second time and nothing that specified the year. Although 1949-50 seems about right given it's right after WWII, still I agree if there isn't something more concrete the article shouldn't be so specific. I haven't had a chance to read the opening carefully yet though and I'm going to hold of making any changes for now but wanted to say I agree, it looks a bit too specific. MadScientistX11 (talk) 01:22, 12 October 2013 (UTC)

Well, consider this detail: after learning of Terry Lennox's wedding, Marlowe turns on the tv to watch some professional wrestling. AFAICR, this is the only time Chandler ever mentions this now-ubiquitous medium in any of his books. Now the first television stations in Los Angeles received their licenses in 1947 (KTTV) & 1948 (KTSL, predecessor to KCBS-TV), & since Marlowe is portrayed as not being wealthy, he likely obtained his tv a few years afterwards when the price had come down a bit.

Otherwise, no years given in the book, although the mention of "that year", & an allusion to an event "six months later" suggests Marlowe is telling the story at least a few years after everything happens. The book was published in 1953, setting a solid terminus ante quem. The first date offered is "the week after Thanksgiving" when Marlowe finds Lennox destitute & coming off a drunk. Lennox marries Sylvia Potter around Christmas of that year, then drops in at Marlowe's office the following March. They go out for drinks on a regular basis at 5:00pm until sometime in May, & shows up at Marlowe's front door a month later. There is a reference to Lennox/Marsden possibly having been killed in action in 1942, 10 years before the events of the novel which would set the majority of the action in 1952, but 10 is a round figure, so one could argue for a date as early as 1950. Afterwards there are allusions to contemporary events such as the Cold War & investigating "Reds" (which I assume is a reference to Joseph McCarthy's witch hunts which transpired from 1950 on).

So it would be correct to write "No specific year is given for when the events take place, but internal evidence fits the years 1949/1950." Or as late as 1951/1952. I doubt Chandler had a specific year in mind when he wrote the novel. -- llywrch (talk) 18:56, 25 April 2018 (UTC)

Just wanted to say I agree with that change. If you know Chandler's work, he never gave a lot of thought to plot details so I think your last point that he didn't have a specific year in mind is right on. I think he essentially wrote all his novels taking place more or less at the time he was writing them, except for The Lady in the Lake where he incorporated the start of WWII as a theme in the novel. --MadScientistX11 (talk) 15:10, 26 April 2018 (UTC)

I started to edit the article to make that change then noticed that right after it says that Marlow again met Lennox in 1950. I think what the original editor (not me just to be clear) was doing was extrapolating from his guess that the novel started in 1949 because I do recall that in the novel Marlowe was specific about the span of times he met Lennox. That it was a year later after that first incident when he saw him again. But I want to re-read the beginning just to make sure before I make changes and don't have time for that now. If anyone else wants to edit it please do so, I would strongly recommend though that you check the novel just to make sure there are no specific dates. If no one else edits it I'll try to remember to get back to this sometime over the week end. --MadScientistX11 (talk) 15:23, 26 April 2018 (UTC)

I checked my copy of the novel (sorry, I should have read your comments more closely, now I see you already did that). Anyway, I agree and I changed it accordingly. --MadScientistX11 (talk) 21:12, 26 April 2018 (UTC)

Wade - Lennox connection?

Maybe i missed some words, but on a couple of re-readings i think the summary does not give a hint about how the Wades or their male servant Candy know anything about the Lennox crime. It would be nice if someone were to add a few words of explanation in the article. Thanks in advance. Bo99 (talk) 21:17, 1 April 2014 (UTC)

This Talk page isn't very busy, Bo99, so if you have the book and feel it important to add that detail, feel free to be bold and go ahead and do so, remembering that plot summaries should be very concise. If you don't have the book and haven't read it (I haven't either -- I've seen the movie but I'm aware it was quite different from the book), I'm afraid I can't help you and as I said, few people are currently watching this Talk page so you may not get the response you want. Softlavender (talk) 00:42, 2 April 2014 (UTC)

Thx for that. No, i have never read or possessed the book or seen the movie. Maybe some day some rare reader of this Talk page will see this discussion. It's interesting that the movie did not explain the Wade - Lennox connection (or maybe did not have it at all). Bo99 (talk) 01:49, 2 April 2014 (UTC)

To be honest Bo99 I don't remember much of the film at all, or frankly even exactly who Wade and Lennox were LOL. I had this page on my Watch list for some reason, probably because I read the Plot summary here after viewing the film and found this Plot summary wanting (a bit like you). So anyway, you might want to take a look at this page: Talk:The Long Goodbye (film), as someone has posted a long analysis of the subtext of the film (which may apply to the book as well, I'm not precisely sure). You might also check the Plot summary on that film article. Also, you can try the message board of the film at IMDB. As I recall, there were a few interesting discussions about the plot there (unless they've expired); plus you could ask your question there -- also, a lot of people there have read the book.

Thanks again. I might check those resources out.

to any other visitors: Please try to fix the noted issue. Bo99 (talk) 19:25, 2 April 2014 (UTC)

I've read the book several times and I have it here at home. First of all keep in mind that Chandler was never very rigorous about his plots, there is the famous "who killed the chaufer?" question that came up when turning Big Sleep into a film and they asked Chandler and he wasn't sure either. But as to this question Eileen Wade was the murderer so obviously she knew everything. As I read the summary it doesn't imply that the male servant Candy had any detailed knowledge of the crime. Keep in mind that the crime was major news and the Wades and Lennoxes were friends and traveled in the same circles so everyone is obviously talking about the crime and knew the basics that were in the paper. All the summary says is that Candy tried to implicate Marlowe of killing Wade not Lennox, which is what I remember. And Roger knew some details that others didn't because he was intimate with Sylvia Lennox and slept with her the night of the murder. There is always a danger on these summaries, you can keep on expanding them trying to resolve every possible inconsistency or explain the details of every point, I think it's OK as is now but if what I've said here doesn't make sense or if you want to say more about why you think more detail is needed to explain what Roger or Candy knew please leave a comment. I wasn't monitoring this page but I'm going to going forward. --MadScientistX11 (talk) 15:41, 28 August 2014 (UTC)

Eileen Wade had been married to Terry Lennox during WW II when she was living in London, but he had been mistakenly reported killed in action in Norway when he had in fact been taken prisoner. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 95.149.55.51 (talk) 16:48, 28 August 2018 (UTC)

Plot summary length tag

The Long Goodbye has a particularly convoluted plot that can leave readers wondering whether they've grasped it. For me (having just read the novel), the length of the summary was quite helpful and appropriate. While the MoS does suggest 400-700 words, it does allow for longer summaries for "very complex and lengthy novels." I realize this is a judgement call. But I nominate we remove the tag. Barte (talk) 21:11, 25 January 2024 (UTC)

Tag removed. Barte (talk) 19:35, 26 February 2024 (UTC)