Autograph Letter Signed by Hammett, Dashiell

("DSH") in pencil on plain ruled paper, January 15, 1945, Fort Richardson, Alaska. 4to, 2 pages (recto only). Fine, fresh example. In September 1942 Hammett, at forty-eight, enlisted in the Army Signal Corps. He was stationed in the Aleutians, where he edited a paper and wrote the text of a pamphlet, The Battle of the Aleutians (1944). He was discharged in September 1945, nine months after the date of this letter. To Prudence Whitfield: (ex-wife of author Raoul Whitfield who was rumored to be Hammett’s lover for a time) "Pru darling- .There have been times when I took the war more seriously, but right now its more serious aspects aren't in the forefront of what I like to call my mind. Much love is in the fore-front, however.my thought for today is that uncertainty is a son of a bitch." Hammett met fellow Black Mask author Raoul Whitfield in the late 1920’s. When he moved to New York in 1930 they resumed their friendship and became drinking buddies (see William F. Nolan's "Hammett: A Life At The Edge" pages 106-107). This letter was written after Hammett's rise to literary fame, and at the height of his celebrity. Hammett (1894-1961), American writer; creator of "hard-boiled" school of detective fiction in novels "Red Harvest" (1929), "The Dain Curse" (1929), "The Maltese Falcon" (1930), "The Glass Key" (1931), "The Thin Man" (1932), etc.. Signed by Author(s). F. Soft cover.