Roderick Thorp

Novelist, short-story writer, teacher -- and private detective. He wrote two novels that would be turned into theatrical films, "The Detective" (1966), which became _The Detective (1968)_ (qv); and "Nothing Lasts Forever" (1979), which became _Die Hard (1988)_ (qv). His 1986 novel "Rainbow Drive" was later produced as a made-for-TV movie. He taught literature and lectured on creative writing at schools and colleges in New Jersey and California, and wrote pieces for newspapers and magazines. Earlier, as a young college graduate, he had worked at a detective agency owned by his father.::Bill Takacs <kinephile@aol.com>