Little Boxes of Bewilderment: Suspense Comedies

by Jack Ritchie, Francis M. Nevins

Genres: Short Stories, Humor

304 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1989

About the author

Jack Ritchie was born in a room behind his father’s tailor shop in Milwaukee, Wisconsin on February 26th, 1922. After leaving high school, Ritchie was a student at the Milwaukee State Teachers College. When America joined the Second World War, he enlisted in the U.S army. He was stationed in the Central Pacific for two years, serving for much of that period on the island of Kwajalein. It was here that he first discovered crime and mystery fiction. To pass the time, he read a large amount of mystery books and it was through this that he grew to love the genre.

At the end of the war, Ritchie returned to his hometown of Milwaukee. After trying unsuccessfully to go back to college under the G.I. Bill, Ritchie worked for a time in his father’s shop. Not wishing to follow in his father’s footsteps, Ritchie decided to try writing stories for a living. When Ritchie met the literary agent Larry Sternig (through his mother, Irma Reitci, who also wrote short stories) he gave him a copy of a story he had written. Sternig recognised his writing ability from the very beginning and sold Ritchie’s first story, "Always the Season", to the New York Daily News in 1953. Larry Sternig went on to be his lifelong agent.

Ritchie married a fellow writer, Rita Krohne, in 1954. Rita, under her married name, wrote a series of historical adventure novels for children. Among these was the award-winning "Night Coach to Paris". Jack and Rita Ritchie made their living from the combined income of their freelance writing, though in an interview in 1962, Jack Ritchie mentioned that they never collaborated on any of their stories. Ritchie and his wife lived in various Milwaukee locales throughout the 1950's. Their first home together was a secluded log cabin on Washington Island, where during the winter they battled against the elements. With the birth of their first child in 1957, the Ritchies relocated to a larger house on the island. In 1964, they moved back to the mainland, living in a farmhouse just west of Jefferson and raising a family of four children.

In his spare time, Ritchie was an avid reader of non-fiction books and had a particular interest in history. He was also a fan of word puzzles and did the crossword in the Milwaukee Journal religiously.

While his wife took part-time work to supplement the family income, Jack Ritchie continued to be a prolific writer of short stories. Ritchie’s work appeared in an amazing variety of periodicals and newspapers. He contributed a number of "hard-boiled" stories to Manhunt magazine throughout the 1950's with other stories appearing in such diverse publications as The Philadelphia Inquirer, Smashing Detective Stories and Good Housekeeping. Some readers may wonder why Ritchie's stories appeared in such a wide variety of periodicals. The major reason for this was that his agent, Larry Sternig, would promptly send out manuscripts whenever a new publication appeared on the scene. As Jack Ritchie's son Steven has noted, this is what made Sternig a great literary agent. However, it was to Alfred Hitchock's Mystery Magazine that Ritchie sold more stories to than any other periodical. Between 1959 and 1982, Ritchie sold an incredible 123 stories to Alfred Hitchcock’s Mystery Magazine. One of these tales, "The Green Heart", was adapted into the movie "A New Leaf" starring Walter Matthau. Other stories from AHMM were used in the popular television series Alfred Hitchcock Presents.

As has been noted by author Donald E. Westlake, Ritchie never really gained the recognition he deserved. This was because he wrote in the short story field, as opposed to the more fashionable novels (Tiger Island was published posthumously in 1987). But to his many fans he is seen as one of the greatest short story writers of all time. Those that have discovered his stories invariably want to read more of them. His finest works continue to be reprinted to this day and it is through this legacy that he will be remembered

Reviews

[Steve · Rating 4 out of 5]

There are thirty-one short stories by Jack Ritchie in Little Boxes of Bewilderment. If you are familiar with Ritchie's work, that should be enough to make you want to read this. All the stories here are humorous mysteries, with the emphasis on "humorous." There are genuine mysteries here as well; for example, try to figure out the solution to "By Child Undone."

Ritchie doesn't always have the good guy win. More often, it is the clever person who does well. However, some times the clever person is the good guy, as in one of my favorite stories in the book, "The Best Driver in the County." But no matter how a particular story ends, all of them are entertaining.

My other favorite story here is "For All the Rude People." I certainly do not approve of indiscriminate murder, but if victims are chosen appropriately...well, I still don't approve...I guess.

There is a very good introduction by Francis M. Nevins, Jr., as well as what appears to be a thorough bibliography of Ritchie's work.

I just want to add that I got my copy of this years ago from some on-line seller and was pleased when it arrived to see that the seller was Ritchie's son.

[Jeremy Hornik · Rating 4 out of 5]

Readers of a certain age will appreciate this dry and tidy little book of husbands who want to kill their rich wives, polished and professional hitmen, prisoners happy in jail, and so forth. All of these short short stories are cut neat and straight, simple as old New Yorker cartoons and satisfying as little crossword puzzles.

Note: this contains the story, “The Green Heart,” which was the basis for the Elaine May movie, “A New Leaf,” starring herself and Walter Matthau. Is that how I found this book? Maybe.

[Matthew · Rating 5 out of 5]

A must read for fans of mystery short stories. Jack Ritchie is a prolific author in this genre, and no one tells a story better than he does. Not a word is wasted, and his narrative is fully formed, drawing you into the characters quickly, in fact, each one reads like a novel. stripped of unnecessary words, and you'll quickly be swept into the story. Finally, someone has assembled this prolific, but hard to find, writers stories in one place. You'll be hooked.

[Arthur · Rating 5 out of 5]

Oh, well done, Mr. Ritchie.
A plethora of murder and deeds most foul--all with a twist of varying degrees. Reminded me of The Twilight Zone from the 60s. A man who can tantalize using acts of violence with remarkably little violence. He can engage you with his writing, not by painting with gore.

[Jeff Hobbs]

Read so far:

Fair play --
The women behind the gun --
The enormous $10 --
Lily-white town --
*Shatter proof --
Politics is simply murder --2
9 from 12 leaves 3 --
The crime machine --2
Play a game of cyanide --
For all the rude people--2
Remains to be seen --
Traveler's check--2
A taste for murder--3
Ripper moon --
The green heart --2
*Anyone for murder? --
Swing high --
Going down? --
Memory test --
*Package deal --
*Queasy does it not --
*Plan 19 --
Twenty-two cents a day --
*Speaking of murder --
The fifty-cent victims --
The best driver in the country--2
By child undone --2
Piggy bank killer --
The killing philosopher --3
Under a cold sun --
Living by degrees --
***
The absence of Emily --3
Beauty is as beauty does
Big Tony
Body check --
Cardula and the locked rooms --
Delayed mail --
The Deveraux monster --
Dropout --
The $5,000 getaway --
Kid Cardula --
The magnum
The multi-flavored crime
A new leaf --
Next in line
The operator
The seed caper
Sound alibi --
Try it my way
The way to do it --3
When the sheriff walked --
Who's got the lady? --

[Jim · Rating 4 out of 5]

Didn't enjoy it as much as his Henry Turnbuckle stories, but pretty good.

[Jack Heath]

Synopsis: thirty-one short stories with an emphasis on mystery and humour.