Ronald de Levington Kirkbride (February 1, 1912 – March 23, 1973) was a Canadian writer of escapist romances,

Westerns The Western is a genre of fiction typically set in the American frontier (commonly referred to as the "Old West" or the "Wild West") between the California Gold Rush of 1849 and the closing of the frontier in 1890, and commonly associated wit ...

, and mystery novels. He was probably best known for his novel ''A Girl Named Tamiko'', first published in 1959; it sold one million copies worldwide and a screenplay based on that novel become a 1962 film of the same name, directed by

John Sturges John Eliot Sturges (; January 3, 1910 – August 18, 1992) was an American film director. His films include '' Bad Day at Black Rock'' (1955), '' Gunfight at the O.K. Corral'' (1957), ''The Magnificent Seven'' (1960), '' The Great Escape'' (19 ...

. Kirkbride wrote over two dozen other novels, including ''Winds Blow Gently'' (1945), ''The Private Life of Guy de Maupassant'' (1947), ''Still the Heart Sings'' (1948), ''David Jordan'' (1972, ), and ''Some Darling Sin'' (1973, ). His spy novel ''

The Short Night ''The Short Night'' was a film planned by British director Alfred Hitchcock. The project was originally announced in the late 1960s at the time of ''Topaz'' and Hitchcock scouted locations in Finland. A romantic suspense thriller with espionag ...

'' was optioned by

Alfred Hitchcock Sir Alfred Joseph Hitchcock (13 August 1899 – 29 April 1980) was an English film director. He is widely regarded as one of the most influential figures in the history of cinema. In a career spanning six decades, he directed over 50 featu ...

to be adapted for a film that was to follow ''

Family Plot ''Family Plot'' is a 1976 American black comedy thriller film directed by Alfred Hitchcock in his final directing role. It was based on Victor Canning's 1972 novel '' The Rainbird Pattern'', which Ernest Lehman adapted for the screen. The f ...

'', but Hitchcock decided during

pre-production Pre-production is the process of planning some of the elements involved in a film, television show, play, video game, or other performance, as distinct from production and post-production. Pre-production ends when the planning ends and the co ...

that his poor health would prevent him from making the film.; Hilton Green tells the story about the circumstances that led to Hitchcock's retirement beginning at approximately 44 minutes and 12 seconds into the documentary.

References

External links

* Canadian romantic fiction writers Canadian mystery writers Western (genre) writers Writers from Victoria, British Columbia 1912 births 1973 deaths 20th-century Canadian novelists 20th-century Canadian screenwriters Screenwriters from British Columbia Novelists from British Columbia {{Canada-screenwriter-stub