The Killers

by Ernest Hemingway · first published 1927

"The Killers" is a short story by Ernest Hemingway, first published in Scribner's Magazine in 1927 and later republished in Men Without Women, Snows of Kilimanjaro, and The Nick Adams Stories. Set in 1920s Summit, Illinois, the story follows recurring Hemingway character Nick Adams as he has a run-in with a pair of hitmen, who are seeking to kill a boxer, in a local restaurant. Historians have some documents showing that the working title of the piece was "The Matadors". Hemingway received $200 (equivalent to $3,707 in 2025) for the story, and told F. Scott Fitzgerald he submitted it solely "to see what the alibi would be" should it be rejected.

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