Nick and Nora Charles - Films

Films

The film adaptation of The Thin Man was a resounding success, and although Hammett never wrote another novel with Nick and Nora Charles, five movie sequels were produced.

Although the film followed the plot of the novel quite closely, the Nick Charles character, described in the book as overweight and out of shape, was portrayed by the slim William Powell. Nora was portrayed by Myrna Loy. The title of both the book and the film referred to the suspected murderer and fugitive in the mystery, but producers referred to "The Thin Man" in the titles of each of the sequel films for branding purposes. As a consequence "The Thin Man" was eventually elided by the public into an alias for the character of Nick Charles. Indeed, so strongly were Powell and Loy identified with the characters of the Charleses in the public mind that many mistakenly assumed the actors were a couple in real life as well.

The on-screen chemistry between Powell and Loy, who often improvised on the set, was key to the wild success of the series and quickly became a defining feature of the characters. The films revolutionized the screen portrayal of marriage - previously earnest, virtuous, and staid - invigorating it with youth, irreverence, and sex appeal. Taking their cue from Hammett's humorous dialogue and comedy of manners elements, the movies moved even further from the traditional hard-boiled approach. In another departure from Hammett, the dog Asta - an integral character both the book and movies - was a male wire fox terrier, rather than the novel's female schnauzer.

Over time a child, Nick, Jr., was also introduced, and elements of the Charleses' back story fleshed out. Nick was revealed to be the son of a medical doctor from the fictional small town of Sycamore Springs in upstate New York. The novel's references to his being the child of an immigrant from Greece were ignored, and Nick was now the black sheep of a respectable WASP professional family who turned his back on the family profession of medicine because of his passion for detective work. Detail was also added to Nora's background. She is shown to be the sole child of a deceased mining magnate from San Francisco modeled on the "kings" of the Comstock Lode. Now diversified into lumber, railroads, etc., Nora's fortune is apparently vast indeed and is managed for the couple by her father's former partner who lives in an estate on Long Island's North Shore "Gold Coast." Nora is also shown to have a network of blue-blood relatives and friends in San Francisco society, while Nick is a beloved celebrity among the criminal classes and those who associate with them (such as police, athletes, nightclub owners, etc.)

Hugely popular with audiences, the films employed the common murder mystery trope—familiar from English detective stories such as Agatha Christie's Murder on the Orient Express—of assembling all of the characters for the climatic revelation of the culprit. The first film appeared the year after the repeal of Prohibition, and the series is also notable for the extensive and casual use of alcohol by the main characters.