E. Richard Johnson

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Emil Richard Johnson (born April 23, 1938 in Prentice , Wisconsin , † December 18, 1997 ) was an American writer.

Life

Johnson came from a large family; his ancestors were German immigrants. After finishing school in his hometown, he volunteered for the army . There he served in various posts at different locations and was promoted to sergeant .

In 1960 Johnson left the army but could no longer gain a foothold in civilian life. From that time on he no longer had a permanent residence and began to become a criminal. After two convictions (the first on probation), he shot and killed a security guard in a raid in Minnesota in 1962 . For this he was sentenced to forty years in prison, which he in 1964 in the state prison of Stillwater (Minnesota) was serving.

Johnson's success as a writer made him wealthy. In the seventies he started taking drugs and stopped writing. In 1979 he had multiple overdoses but survived and ended his addiction. He married and began writing again before receiving a pardon in 1989. The marriage failed, and Johnson started drinking. He was found dead in his home on December 18, 1997.

Writing activity

In prison, Johnson began to write out of boredom. As a recreational hunter and angler, he wrote articles on these subjects, as well as short stories and puzzles for children's magazines. With his debut novel Death on Silver Street ( Silver Street ) he was able to achieve his literary breakthrough. Audiences and critics were delighted, and the Mystery Writers of America (MWA) awarded this first work the Edgar in 1969 . He shared this award with Dorothy Uhnak , whose detective novel Mädchenmord mit Vorbescheinigung ( The Bait ) also won an award. The award was presented to him in prison.

Honors

Works (selection)

Tony Tonto cycle
  • Death on Silver Street ( Silver Street ). Ullstein, Frankfurt / M. 1969
  • Treason on Silver Street ( The inside man ). Ullstein, Frankfurt / M. 1970
  • Blind man's bluff . St. Martin's Press, New York 1987, ISBN 0-312-00999-2
  • The Hands of Eddy Loyd . St. Martin's Press, New York 1988, ISBN 0-312-01771-5
  • Dead flowers . International Polygonics Press, New York 1990, ISBN 1-558-82059-0
Other crime novels
  • The thirteenth contract ( Mongo's back in town ). Ullstein, Frankfurt / M. 1969
  • It's boiling in cage 5 ( Cage Five is going to break ). Ullstein, Frankfurt / M. 1971, ISBN 3-548-01375-9
  • White poison in the blood ( The God keepers ). Ullstein, Frankfurt / M. 1971, ISBN 3-548-113834
  • Submissive by force ( case load: maximum ). Ullstein, Frankfurt / M. 1972, ISBN 3-548-01483-6
  • The company thanks with balls ( The Judas ). Ullstein, Frankfurt / M. 1972, ISBN 3-548-01446-1
  • Secret order for a killer ( The Cardinalli Contract ). Karl-Müller-Verlag, Erlangen 1977

Film adaptations

literature

  • Armin Arnold u. a. (Ed.): Reclams Kriminalromanführer . Reclam, Stuttgart 1978, ISBN 3-15-010278-2 , p. 211
  • Paul G. Buchloh et al. a .: The detective novel. Studies of the history and form of English and American detective novel literature . Scientific Book Society, Darmstadt 1990, ISBN 3-534-05379-6
  • Vera Nünning (Ed.): The American and British detective novel. Genre, developments, model interpretations . WVT, Trier 2008, ISBN 978-3-86821-071-2

Web links

personal data
SURNAME Johnson, E. Richard
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Johnson, Emil Richard (full name)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION American writer
DATE OF BIRTH April 23, 1938
PLACE OF BIRTH Prentice , Wisconsin
DATE OF DEATH December 18, 1997