Ross Thomas (author)

Ross Thomas (born February 19, 1926, in Oklahoma City – December 18, 1995, in Santa Monica, California) was an American writer of crime fiction. He is best known for his witty thrillers that expose the mechanisms of professional politics. He also wrote several novels under the pseudonym Oliver Bleeck about professional go-between Philip St. Ives.

Thomas served in the Philippines during World War II. He worked as a public relations specialist, reporter, union spokesman, and political strategist in the USA, Bonn (Germany), and Nigeria before becoming a writer.^[1]

His debut novel, The Cold War Swap, was written in only six weeks and won a 1967 Edgar Award^[2] for Best First Novel. Briarpatch earned the 1985 Edgar for Best Novel.^[1] In 2002 he was honored with the inaugural Gumshoe Lifetime Achievement Award, one of only two authors to earn the award after their death (the other was 87th Precinct author Evan Hunter in 2006).

He died of lung cancer two months before his 70th birthday.^[1]

Novels

• The Cold War Swap (1966)
• Cast a Yellow Shadow (1967)
• The Seersucker Whipsaw (1967)
• Singapore Wink (1969)
• The Fools in Town are on Our Side (1970)
• The Backup Men (1971)
• The Porkchoppers (1972)
• If You Can't Be Good (1973)
• The Money Harvest (1975)
• Yellow Dog Contract (1976)
• Chinaman's Chance (1978)
• The Eighth Dwarf (1979)
• The Mordida Man (1981)
• Missionary Stew (1983)
• Briarpatch (1984)
• Out On The Rim (1987)
• The Fourth Durango (1989)
• Twilight at Mac's Place (1990)
• Voodoo, Ltd (1992)
• Ah, Treachery! (1994)

As Oliver Bleeck

• The Brass Go-Between (1969)
• Protocol for a Kidnapping (1971)
• The Procane Chronicle (1971)
• The Highbinders (1973)
• No Questions Asked (1976)

The Procane Chronicle was the basis for the 1976 Charles Bronson movie St. Ives.

Non-Fiction

• Spies, Thumbsuckers, Etc. (1989)

Recurring characters

Aside from Philip St. Ives, the following characters appear in more than one novel:

• Cyril (called "Mac") McCorkle, pub owner in Bonn and Washington, DC, and his business partner/friend Michael Padillo, spy, are in The Cold War Swap, Cast a Yellow Shadow, The Backup Men, and Twilight at Mac's Place.
• Artie Wu and Quincy Durant, con men/adventurers, and their associate Otherguy Overby are in Chinaman's Chance, Out on the Rim, Voodoo, Ltd. Booth Stallings, expert on terrorism, and Georgia Blue, cashiered Secret Service agent, join them in the latter two.
• Howard Mott, a Washington Lawyer, has cameo roles or is mentioned in several novels.
• Ione Gamble, an actress, is a central character in "Voodoo, Ltd." and is mentioned in Ah, Treachery!.
• Draper Haere, political rainmaker, is a central character in Missionary Stew and is mentioned in Ah, Treachery.
• Minor Jackson and Nicolae Ploscaru, central characters in The Eighth Dwarf, are mentioned in Ah, Treachery.
• Chubb Dunjee is the main protagonist in The Mordida Man and is mentioned in Voodoo, Ltd.

References

1. ^ ^{a b c} Myrna Oliver (19 December 1995). "Ross Thomas; Award-Winning Mystery Writer". Los Angeles Times. http://articles.latimes.com/1995-12-19/news/mn-15682_1_ross-thomas. Retrieved 16 August 2011. 
2. ^ William Heffernan (preface) in Ross Thomas (2005(1978)). Chinaman's Chance. New York: Thomas Dunne Books. ISBN 0312334141. 

External links

• Ross Thomas at the Internet Movie Database

Persondata
Name	Thomas, Ross
Alternative names
Short description
Date of birth	February 19, 1926
Place of birth
Date of death	December 18, 1995
Place of death