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Not sure if he's been mentioned yet, but I highly recommend Chester Himes. He's one of the few black writers in the noir-crime genre, and a contemporary of Hammett and Chandler (considered their equal by many). Most notable are his books in the Harlem Detective series, such as A Rage in Harlem and The Real Cool Killers. It's the adventures of a couple detectives named "Coffin Ed Johnson" and "Gravedigger Jones." It's really hardboiled stuff, crazy violent, and of considerable literary quality to boot.
I think he wrote at least one book from prison where he was serving time for armed robbery.
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