Trivia Answer: In "The Maltese Falcon," How Much Money Does Sam Spade Actually Make?

Trivia Question: In "The Maltese Falcon," How Much Money Does Sam Spade Actually Make?

$760. Here's the summary:

1) On hiring the detectives, Ruth Wonderly gives them $200 (in two $100 bills). This is split between Spade and his partner, Archer (who is found dead later, with one of the $100 bills in his possession).

2) Later, after Archer's death... Spade confronts Wonderly in her hotel and learns her real name to be Brigid O'Shaughnessy. On leaving, he demands all the money she has ($500). O'Shaughnessy hands him $400, claiming she needs something to live on. After learning she has things to sell (like her furs), Spade takes the full $500 but gives her back two bills.

3) In his office, Joel Cairo offers Spade $5,000 to locate the Maltese Falcon. As a gesture and a downpayment, he gives Spade $200.

4) I know what you're thinking. Wait - what about the $1,000 he got from Gutman at the end of the movie? While it's true that Spade kept a $1,000 bill "for his time and trouble," he promptly turned this over to the police, when he gave them O'Shaughnessy. So while he did receive money, he didn't end up keeping it.

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It all depends on what Spade gave to O'Shaughnessy at the hotel: two bills could mean $10, $20 or $40. My guess is that they were $20 bills, so the total number I have that Spade makes in the movie is $760.

Anyone recognize the denomination of the bills in the hotel scene?

Original blog post here:
http://avoision.com/2011/12/10/trivia-answer-in-%E2%80%9Cthe-maltese-falcon%E...

Category:

Film & Animation

Tags:

• maltese falcon
• money
• movie trivia
• humphrey bogart
• peter lorre
• mary astor
• sam spade