"Who's the scariest guy in America? Probably Jack Ketchum."
Jack Ketchum is the pseudonym of author Dallas Mayr (November 10, 1946 - January 24, 2018), who also wrote under the name Jerzy Livingston. Worked primarily in the horror genre, Ketchum is a four-time Bram Stoker Award winner. Some of his popular novels are:
- The Girl Next Door
- The Lost
- Off Season
- Offspring
- The Woman (co-written with Lucky McKee)
Several of his works have inspired movies. His short story 'The Box' inspired a segment of the anthology horror film XX.
He passed away at age 71 from cancer.
Novels by Jack Ketchum with their own pages:
- The Dead River series
- The Girl Next Door
- The Lost
This author's works (that don't have their own pages) include examples of:
- Author Appeal: Ketchum had several cats during his life and they often appear in his work. He also wrote a book of poetry that prominently features cats.
- Bowdlerise: The initial publication for Ketchum's Off Season was edited to remove much of the gore as well as to give it a happier ending. A revised version was later made available.
- Breakout Villain: The Woman originally appeared as one member of a cannibal clan in the novel Offspring and died at the end of it. Pollyanna McIntosh's performance in the film adaptation was so impressive the ending was changed as a way to allow the character to appear in future installments. The Woman later become the central character of her own novel and McIntosh would go on to reprise the character for two more films.
- Creator Cameo: Ketchum had cameos in many of the films based on his work.
- Early-Installment Weirdness: Ketchum’s early work for men’s magazines is quite different than the horror fiction he is most known for.
- Earn Your Happy Ending: If a character does have one they will likely go through hell to get it.
- For the Evulz: The villains in The Lost and Joyride kill for no other reason than wanting to kill someone.
- I'm a Humanitarian: Cannibalism is a frequent theme, most notably in his 'Off Season' trilogy.
- Limited Special Collector's Ultimate Edition: Some of his books were initially published as this or were otherwise hard to find.
- Pen Name: Ketchum itself is a pen name for Dallas Mayr. Another pseudonym he used was Jerzy Livingston.
- Plot-Triggering Death: Red opens with the senseless murder of an old man’s dog. The rest of the novel is about the old man seeking justice for it.
- Ripped from the Headlines: A number of his stories are based off real crimes. Most notably with The Girl Next Door but The Lost, Right to Life and Joyride also count.
- Sequel First: Only the latter two books of the 'Off Season' trilogy were made into films. The first has yet to be adapted due to rights issues.
- The Sociopath: Much of the villains in Ketchum's work tend to be these over supernatural monsters.
- Spree Killer: The main antagonists in The Lost and Joyride are these. Both are psychopathic young men based on real-life murderers, although only Joyride was inspired by an actual spree murder.
- Take That, Critics!: 'Group of Thirty' is a humorous short story in which an Author Avatar of Ketchum is kidnapped by a group of critics upset over the violence in his work.
- The Unreveal: The short story 'The Box' never reveals the secret behind the titular object.
