Ross Macdonald
Ross Macdonald
=====================================
Full Name and Common Aliases
Ross Macdonald was born Kenneth Millard Beck with the alias "MacDonald" used for his writing career.
Birth and Death Dates
Born: December 13, 1915
Died: July 11, 1983
Nationality and Profession(s)
American novelist, screenwriter, and essayist.
Early Life and Background
Ross Macdonald was born in Norwalk, Ohio to Malcolm and Sarah Beck. His father abandoned the family when Ross was young, which had a profound impact on his writing career. The experience would later influence the themes of abandonment and redemption that ran throughout his novels. In 1926, he moved to Oakland with his mother where they lived until he entered the University of California, Berkeley.
Major Accomplishments
Macdonald's breakthrough came in 1949 when _The Galton Case_ was published. He achieved significant success with this novel and followed it up with _The Little Sister_ in 1953. His novels are considered some of the greatest works of the detective fiction genre, praised for their complex characters and moral depth.
Notable Works or Actions
Some notable works include:
_The Chill_ (1964)
_The Zebra-Striped Hearse_ (1962)
* _The Blue Hammer_ (1976)
Macdonald also wrote essays and non-fiction, with his most noted collection being _Sleeping Bag_ published in 1987.
Impact and Legacy
Ross Macdonald's legacy lies in the way he pushed the boundaries of detective fiction. His novels not only presented moral complexities but were also reflective of the social issues of the time. The impact can be seen in authors such as Dennis Lehane and George Pelecanos, who have cited him as an influence.
Why They Are Widely Quoted or Remembered
Macdonald's unique voice and perspective made his writing stand out from other detective fiction novels of the time. His quotes often touch on themes of redemption, moral complexity, and the human condition. This is why he continues to be widely quoted today as a reminder of the power of storytelling in reflecting our world.
As seen in works such as _The Galton Case_ and _The Zebra-Striped Hearse_, Macdonald's writing has an enduring quality that invites reflection on the human experience.
Quotes by Ross Macdonald
The smile that folded the puffed eyelids and creased the sagging cheeks was fixed and forced. I’d seen such smiles in mortuaries on the false face of death. It reminded me that I was going to grow old and die.
If you can’t pass on a little loving-kindness in this world, you might as well be a gopher in a hole.
I wondered if we were doing him a favor. The Galton household had hot and cold running money piped in from an inexhaustible reservoir. But money was never free. Like any other commodity, it had to be paid for.
He made a production out of answering her, marching around to her side of the car, carrying his belly in front of him like a gift.
If California is a state of mind, Hollywood is where you take its temperature. There is a peculiar sense in which this city existing mainly on film and tape is our national capital, alas, and not just the capital of California. It’s the place where our children learn how and what to dream and where everything happens just before, or just after, it happens to us.
It’s interesting to come back to your childhood home. And creepy, too, like becoming very young and very old, both at the same time. The spirit that haunts the house.’ That was how she looked, I thought, in her archaic long skirt – very young and very old, the granddaughter and the grandmother in one person, slightly schizo. She.
We passed a small-boat harbor, gleaming white on blue, and a long pier draped with fishermen. Everything was as pretty as a postcard. The trouble with you, I said to myself: you’re always turning over the postcards and reading the messages on the underside. Written in invisible ink, in blood, in tears, with a black border around them, with postage due, unsigned, or signed with a thumbprint.
The problem was to love people, try to serve them, without wanting anything from them. I was a long way from solving that one.