Eric Clifford Ambler OBE (28 June 1909 – 22 October 1998) was an English
author
An author is the writer of a book, article, play, mostly written work. A broader definition of the word "author" states:
"''An author is "the person who originated or gave existence to anything" and whose authorship determines responsibility f ...
of thrillers, in particular
spy novel
Spy fiction is a genre of literature involving espionage as an important context or plot device. It emerged in the early twentieth century, inspired by rivalries and intrigues between the major powers, and the establishment of modern intelligen ...
s, who introduced a new realism to the
genre
Genre () is any form or type of communication in any mode (written, spoken, digital, artistic, etc.) with socially-agreed-upon conventions developed over time. In popular usage, it normally describes a category of literature, music, or other for ...
pseudonym
A pseudonym (; ) or alias () is a fictitious name that a person or group assumes for a particular purpose, which differs from their original or true name (orthonym). This also differs from a new name that entirely or legally replaces an individua ...
Eliot Reed for books cowritten with Charles Rodda.
London
London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...
, into a family of entertainers who ran a puppet show, with which he helped in his early years. Both parents also worked as music hall artists. He later studied engineering at the Northampton Polytechnic Institute in Islington (now
City, University of London
City, University of London, is a public research university in London, United Kingdom, and a member institution of the federal University of London. It was founded in 1894 as the Northampton Institute, and became a university when The City Univ ...
) and served a traineeship with an engineering company. However, his upbringing as an entertainer proved dominant and he soon moved to writing plays and other works. By the early 1930s, he was a copywriter at an
advertising agency
An advertising agency, often referred to as a creative agency or an ad agency, is a business dedicated to creating, planning, and handling advertising and sometimes other forms of promotion and marketing for its clients. An ad agency is generally ...
in London. After resigning, he moved to
Paris
Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), ma ...
, where he met and in 1939 married Louise Crombie, an American fashion correspondent.
Ambler was then politically a staunch
antifascist
Anti-fascism is a political movement in opposition to fascist ideologies, groups and individuals. Beginning in European countries in the 1920s, it was at its most significant shortly before and during World War II, where the Axis powers were ...
and, like many others, tended to regard the
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, ...
as the only real counterweight to fascist aggression, which was reflected in the fact that some of his early books included Soviet agents depicted positively and as sympathetic characters, the undoubted allies of the protagonist.
Like numerous like-minded people in different countries, Ambler was shocked and disillusioned by the German-Soviet Pact of 1939. His postwar anticommunist novel ''
Judgment on Deltchev
''Judgment on Deltchev'' is a 1951 novel by Eric Ambler. It was his first solo novel for eleven years (not counting a novel written with Charles Rodda under the pseudonym Eliot Reed), and Ambler was worried about producing a bad novel, but did no ...
'' (1951), based on the Stalinist purge trials in
Eastern Europe
Eastern Europe is a subregion of the European continent. As a largely ambiguous term, it has a wide range of geopolitical, geographical, ethnic, cultural, and socio-economic connotations. The vast majority of the region is covered by Russia, whic ...
, caused him to be reviled by many former Communist Party and other progressive associates.
When the
Second World War
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposi ...
broke out, Ambler entered the army as a private soldier. He was commissioned into the
Royal Artillery
The Royal Regiment of Artillery, commonly referred to as the Royal Artillery (RA) and colloquially known as "The Gunners", is one of two regiments that make up the artillery arm of the British Army. The Royal Regiment of Artillery comprises t ...
in 1941. He was soon reassigned to photographic units. He ended the war as a
lieutenant-colonel
Lieutenant colonel ( , ) is a rank of commissioned officers in the armies, most marine forces and some air forces of the world, above a major and below a colonel. Several police forces in the United States use the rank of lieutenant colo ...
and an assistant director of the
Army Film and Photographic Unit
The Army Film and Photographic Unit was a subdivision of the British armed forces set up on 24 October 1941, to record military events in which the British and Commonwealth armies was engaged. During the war, almost 23 percent of all AFPU soldier ...
.
After the war, he worked in the civilian film industry as a screenwriter, receiving an
Academy Award
The Academy Awards, better known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international film industry. The awards are regarded by many as the most prestigious, significant awards in the entertainment ind ...
nomination for his work on the film '' The Cruel Sea'' (1953), adapted from the novel by
Nicholas Monsarrat
Lieutenant Commander Nicholas John Turney Monsarrat FRSL RNVR (22 March 19108 August 1979) was a British novelist known for his sea stories, particularly '' The Cruel Sea'' (1951) and ''Three Corvettes'' (1942–45), but perhaps known best i ...
. He did not resume writing under his own name until 1951, when he entered the second of his two distinct periods in his writing.
Five of his six early works are regarded as classic
thrillers
Thriller is a genre of fiction, having numerous, often overlapping subgenres. Thrillers are characterized and defined by the moods they elicit, giving viewers heightened feelings of suspense, excitement, surprise, anticipation and anxiety. Suc ...
. He created the 1960 American detective TV series '' Checkmate''.
Ambler divorced Crombie in May 1958 and married the same year British-born Joan Harrison, a film producer, screenwriter and associate of Alfred and Alma Hitchcock. The couple moved to Switzerland in 1969 and back to Britain 16 years later. Harrison died in 1994 in London. Ambler died in 1998.
In 2008, his estate transferred all of Ambler's copyrights and other legal and commercial rights to Owatonna Media, which sold the copyrights on to Coolabi Plc in 2009 but retained a master licence in radio and audio rights. These rights are commercially licensed in the UK and abroad.
Writing career
Ambler's best known works are probably '' The Mask of Dimitrios'' (1939) (published in the US under the title ''A Coffin for Dimitrios''), which was made into a film in 1944, and '' The Light of Day'' (1962), filmed in 1964 as '' Topkapi''. He was also a successful screenwriter and lived in
Los Angeles
Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, largest city in the U.S. state, state of California and the List of United States cities by population, sec ...
in his later years. Other classic movies based on his work include '' Journey into Fear'' (1943), starring
Joseph Cotten
Joseph Cheshire Cotten Jr. (May 15, 1905 – February 6, 1994) was an American film, stage, radio and television actor. Cotten achieved prominence on Broadway, starring in the original stage productions of '' The Philadelphia Story'' and '' Sab ...
, and an original screenplay, '' The October Man'' (1947). He wrote the screenplay for '' A Night to Remember'' about the sinking of the ''Titanic'', along with many other screenplays, particularly those concerning stories and adventures at sea.
He published his autobiography in 1985, ''Here Lies Eric Ambler''.
In contrast to most other spy novels published before his, the
protagonists
A protagonist () is the main character of a story. The protagonist makes key decisions that affect the plot, primarily influencing the story and propelling it forward, and is often the character who faces the most significant obstacles. If a st ...
in Ambler's novels are rarely professional spies, policemen or counterintelligence operatives. They are usually amateurs who find themselves unwillingly in the company of hardened criminals, revolutionaries or spies. The protagonist usually begins out of his depth, a bumbling
antihero
An antihero (sometimes spelled as anti-hero) or antiheroine is a main character in a story who may lack conventional heroic qualities and attributes, such as idealism, courage, and morality. Although antiheroes may sometimes perform actions ...
surprised to find himself facing extreme danger, who nonetheless eventually manages to surprise himself as well as the professionals by a decisive action that outwits his far more experienced opponents.
That plot is used, for example, in '' Journey into Fear'', '' Epitaph for a Spy'', ''The Mask of Dimitrios'', ''The Night-Comers''/''State of Siege'', ''Passage of Arms'', ''The Light of Day'', '' Dirty Story'', ''The Levanter'', and '' Doctor Frigo''.
Another recurring plot element is statelessness and exile: characters who are exiled from their homelands or who face the danger of being exiled and not granted residence in any country.
Reception and influence
Many authors of international thrillers have acknowledged a debt to Ambler, including
Graham Greene
Henry Graham Greene (2 October 1904 – 3 April 1991) was an English writer and journalist regarded by many as one of the leading English novelists of the 20th century. Combining literary acclaim with widespread popularity, Greene acquir ...
John le Carré
David John Moore Cornwell (19 October 193112 December 2020), better known by his pen name John le Carré ( ), was a British and Irish author, best known for his espionage novels, many of which were successfully adapted for film or television. ...
,
Julian Symons
Julian Gustave Symons (originally Gustave Julian Symons) (pronounced ''SIMM-ons''; 30 May 1912 – 19 November 1994) was a British crime writer and poet. He also wrote social and military history, biography and studies of literature. He was bor ...
,
Alan Furst
Alan Furst (; born 1941) is a Jewish-American author of historical spy novels. Furst has been called "an heir to the tradition of Eric Ambler and Graham Greene," whom he cites along with Joseph Roth and Arthur Koestler as important influences. M ...
, and
Frederick Forsyth
Frederick McCarthy Forsyth (born 25 August 1938) is an English novelist and journalist. He is best known for thrillers such as ''The Day of the Jackal'', ''The Odessa File'', '' The Fourth Protocol'', '' The Dogs of War'', ''The Devil's Alter ...
.
Works
Novels
* ''
The Dark Frontier
''The Dark Frontier'' (1936) is Eric Ambler's first novel, about whose genesis he writes: "... Became press agent for film star, but soon after joined big London advertising agency as copywriter and 'ideas man'. During next few years wrote i ...
Judgment on Deltchev
''Judgment on Deltchev'' is a 1951 novel by Eric Ambler. It was his first solo novel for eleven years (not counting a novel written with Charles Rodda under the pseudonym Eliot Reed), and Ambler was worried about producing a bad novel, but did no ...
'' (1951)
* ''
The Schirmer Inheritance
''The Schirmer Inheritance'' is a 1953 novel by Eric Ambler
Eric Clifford Ambler OBE (28 June 1909 – 22 October 1998) was an English author of thrillers, in particular spy novels, who introduced a new realism to the genre. Also working ...
'' (1953)
* ''
The Night-Comers
''The Night-Comers'' is a 1956 novel by Eric Ambler. In the United States it was published as ''State of Siege''.
The cover artist when the book was reprinted by Pan Books was S. R. Boldero.
Plot
Steve Fraser is an engineer working on a dam o ...
'' (1956), also published as ''State of Siege''
* '' Passage of Arms'' (1959);
Gold Dagger
The Gold Dagger is an award given annually by the Crime Writers' Association of the United Kingdom since 1960 for the best crime novel of the year.
From 1955 to 1959, the organization named their top honor as the Crossed Red Herring Award. From ...
Gold Dagger
The Gold Dagger is an award given annually by the Crime Writers' Association of the United Kingdom since 1960 for the best crime novel of the year.
From 1955 to 1959, the organization named their top honor as the Crossed Red Herring Award. From ...
* ''The Ability to Kill: and Other Pieces'' (1963). Published with a chapter on John Bodkin Adams removed because of libel concerns.
* ''To Catch A Spy'' (1964). An anthology of stories.
* ''Here Lies Eric Ambler: An Autobiography'' (1985). Edgar Award for Best Critical/Biographical Work, 1987.
* ''Waiting for Orders'' (1991). Contains eight stories mostly written in 1939–40 while Ambler awaited his call to military duty:
*# "The Intrusions of Dr. Czissar". Six ingenious detective stories featuring Dr Jan Czissar, a refugee Czech detective formerly of the Prague police.
*# "The Army of the Shadows". A suspense story about an English surgeon travelling in the Swiss Alps who becomes entangled in the intrigues of pre-war anti-Nazis.
*# "The Blood Bargain". A suspense story about a Latin American dictator who cleverly gains his release from insurgents but then finds exile extremely dangerous.
* ''The Story so Far: Memories and Other Fictions'' (1993). Nine autobiographical stories covering different periods of Ambler's life.
* ''Skytip'' (1950)
* ''Tender to Danger'' (1951), also published as ''Tender to Moonlight''
* ''The Maras Affair'' (1953)
* ''Charter to Danger'' (1954)
* ''Passport to Panic'' (1958)
The Way Ahead
''The Way Ahead'' (also known as ''Immortal Battalion'') (1944) is a British Second World War drama film directed by Carol Reed. The screenplay was written by Eric Ambler and Peter Ustinov. The film stars David Niven, Stanley Holloway and Willi ...
Highly Dangerous
''Highly Dangerous'' is a 1950 British spy film starring Margaret Lockwood. The screenplay was written by Eric Ambler.
It was released in the US by Lippert Pictures as ''Time Running Out''.
Plot
Frances Gray is as a British entomologist trying t ...
'' (1950)
* ''
The Clouded Yellow
''The Clouded Yellow'' is a 1950 British mystery film directed by Ralph Thomas and produced by Betty E. Box for Carillon Films. A dismissed secret service agent falls in love with a disturbed young woman who is wrongly accused of murder and t ...
Encore
An encore is an additional performance given by performers after the planned show has ended, usually in response to extended applause from the audience.Lalange Cochrane, in ''Oxford Companion to Music'', Alison Latham, ed., Oxford University Pre ...
'' (1951, based on short stories by
W. Somerset Maugham
William Somerset Maugham ( ; 25 January 1874 – 16 December 1965) was an English writer, known for his plays, novels and short stories. Born in Paris, where he spent his first ten years, Maugham was schooled in England and went to a German un ...
)
* '' The Promoter'' also known as ''The Card'' (1952, based on the novel ''
The Card
''The Card'' is a comic novel written by Arnold Bennett in 1911 (entitled ''Denry the Audacious'' in the American edition). It was later made into a 1952 movie, starring Alec Guinness and Petula Clark.
Like much of Bennett's best work, it i ...
'' by
Arnold Bennett
Enoch Arnold Bennett (27 May 1867 – 27 March 1931) was an English author, best known as a novelist. He wrote prolifically: between the 1890s and the 1930s he completed 34 novels, seven volumes of short stories, 13 plays (some in collaboratio ...
Nicholas Monsarrat
Lieutenant Commander Nicholas John Turney Monsarrat FRSL RNVR (22 March 19108 August 1979) was a British novelist known for his sea stories, particularly '' The Cruel Sea'' (1951) and ''Three Corvettes'' (1942–45), but perhaps known best i ...
)
* '' Shoot First'' also known as ''Rough Shoot'' (1953, based on a novel by
Geoffrey Household
Geoffrey Edward West Household (30 November 1900 – 4 October 1988) was a prolific British novelist who specialized in thrillers. He is best known for his novel '' Rogue Male'' ( 1939).
Personal life
He was born in Bristol; his father Hora ...
Lawrence Earl
Lawrence Earl (April 29, 1915 – April 5, 2005), born Lawrence Earl Wiezel, was a Canadian photojournalist and author of several books.A Night to Remember'' (1958, based on the non-fiction book '' A Night to Remember'' by
Walter Lord
John Walter Lord Jr. (October 8, 1917 – May 19, 2002) was an American author, lawyer, copywriter and popular historian best known for his 1955 account of the sinking of the RMS ''Titanic'', '' A Night to Remember''.
Biography Early life
Lor ...
Hammond Innes
Ralph Hammond Innes (15 July 1913 – 10 June 1998) was a British novelist who wrote over 30 novels, as well as works for children and travel books.
Biography
Innes was born in Horsham, Sussex, and educated at Feltonfleet School, Cobham, Surrey ...
)
* ''
Mutiny on the Bounty
The mutiny on the Royal Navy vessel occurred in the South Pacific Ocean on 28 April 1789. Disaffected crewmen, led by acting-Lieutenant Fletcher Christian, seized control of the ship from their captain, Lieutenant William Bligh, and set h ...
Background to Danger
''Background to Danger'' is a 1943 World War II spy film starring George Raft and featuring Brenda Marshall, Sydney Greenstreet, and Peter Lorre.
Based on the 1937 novel '' Uncommon Danger'' by Eric Ambler and set in politically neutral Turke ...
Climax!
''Climax!'' (later known as ''Climax Mystery Theater'') is an American television anthology series that aired on CBS from 1954 to 1958. The series was hosted by William Lundigan and later co-hosted by Mary Costa. It was one of the few CBS progra ...
: Epitaph for a Spy'' (1954, TV series episode based on the novel '' Epitaph for a Spy'')
*''
Climax!
''Climax!'' (later known as ''Climax Mystery Theater'') is an American television anthology series that aired on CBS from 1954 to 1958. The series was hosted by William Lundigan and later co-hosted by Mary Costa. It was one of the few CBS progra ...
: Journey into Fear'' (1956, TV series episode based on the novel '' Journey into Fear'')
*''The Schirmer Inheritance'' (1957, TV miniseries based on the novel ''
The Schirmer Inheritance
''The Schirmer Inheritance'' is a 1953 novel by Eric Ambler
Eric Clifford Ambler OBE (28 June 1909 – 22 October 1998) was an English author of thrillers, in particular spy novels, who introduced a new realism to the genre. Also working ...
'')
*'' Moment of Fear: A Touch of Guilt'' (1960, TV series episode based on the novel ''
Judgment on Deltchev
''Judgment on Deltchev'' is a 1951 novel by Eric Ambler. It was his first solo novel for eleven years (not counting a novel written with Charles Rodda under the pseudonym Eliot Reed), and Ambler was worried about producing a bad novel, but did no ...
'')
*''Epitaph for a Spy'' (1963, TV miniseries based on the novel '' Epitaph for a Spy'')
*'' Topkapi'' (1964, based on the novel '' The Light of Day'')
*''Journey into Fear: Seller's Market'' (1966, unaired TV pilot)
*'' Journey into Fear'' (1975, based on the novel '' Journey into Fear'')
*''Ricatto internazionale'' (Italy, 1980, TV miniseries based on the novel '' The Intercom Conspiracy'')
*''Eine Art von Zorn'' (West Germany, 1984, based on the novel '' A Kind of Anger'')
*''A Quiet Conspiracy'' (1989, TV miniseries based on the novel '' The Intercom Conspiracy'')
*''The Care of Time'' (1990, based on the novel '' The Care of Time'')
References
Literature
* Ronald J. Ambrosetti: ''Eric Ambler''. New York: Twayne Publ. u.a. 1994. (= Twayne's English authors series; 507) .
* Peter Lewis: ''Eric Ambler''. New York: Continuum 1990.
* Snyder, Robert Lance. "Eric Ambler's Revisionist Thrillers: ''Epitaph for a Spy'', ''A Coffin for Dimitrios'', and ''The'' Intercom ''Conspiracy''." ''Papers on Language & Literature'' 45 (Summer 2009): 227–60.
* Snyder, Robert Lance. "'The Jungles of International Bureaucracy': Criminality and Detection in Eric Ambler's ''The Siege of the Villa Lipp''." ''Connotations: A Journal for Critical Debate'' 20.2–3 (2010/2011): 272–88.
* Snyder, Robert Lance. ''The Art of Indirection in British Espionage Fiction: A Critical Study of Six Novelists''. Jefferson, NC: McFarland, 2011.
* Snyder, Robert Lance. "Ethnography, Doubling, and Equivocal Narration in Eric Ambler's ''The Levanter''." ''The CEA Critic'' 77.1 (2015): 58–70.
* Snyder, Robert Lance. "Transforming the Thriller: Narrative Deferral and 'Second-Wave Terrorism' in Eric Ambler's ''The Care of Time''." ''South Atlantic Review'' 82.2 (2017): 136–53.
* Snyder, Robert Lance. ''Eric Ambler's Novels: Critiquing Modernity''. Lanham, MD: Lexington Books, 2020.
* ''Eric Ambler'', edited by the Filmkritiker-Kooperative. München: Verlag Filmkritik 1982. (= Filmkritik; Jg. 26, 1982, H. 12 = Gesamtfolge; 312).
* Gerd Haffmans (ed.): ''Über Eric Ambler. Zeugnisse von Alfred Hitchcock bis Helmut Heissenbüttel''. Zürich: Diogenes 1989. (= Diogenes-TB; 20607) .
* Stefan Howald: ''Eric Ambler. Eine Biographie''. Zürich: Diogenes 2002.
* Bernhard Valentinitsch,Historisch-politische Hintergründe in Eric Amblers Politthriller 'The Levanter'.In:JIPSS(= Journal for Intelligence, Propaganda and Security Studies).1/2013.Graz 2013,p. 7–23.