A Curious Man: The Strange & Brilliant Life Of Robert “Believe It or Not!” Ripley, by Neal Thompson

[Note: This book was provided free of charge by Blogging For Books/Three Rivers Press in exchange for an honest review.]

Believe it or not, this book is the first ever biography written about one of the more compelling and eccentric people of the first half of the 20th century, Robert Ripley, best known for his cartoons and his museums of odd curios and strange but true facts. Given the wealth and cultural influence of Ripley, his present popularity in books and museums (which I have visited in Niagara Falls, and seen in a few other places as well), and the important role he played in the careers of such diverse figures as Charles Schultz (cartoonist of Peanuts) and Ozzie & Harriet Nelson, to name just a few people, it is unthinkable that no one should have written a biography about his strange life. It is a life worth remembering, and not only because he seems to have hung out in the same circles as one of my more colorful great-grandfathers, with his interest in sports (especially boxing).

At its heart, this story, which begins somewhat in media res in a particularly dramatic and decisive part of Ripley’s travels, one which tipped him towards being extremely critical of socialism and Communism (which is one of the more praiseworthy aspects of his complicated character), is a tale of both success and intense loneliness. Robert Ripley was born in Santa Cruz, California, to a pair of vagabonds who drifted west and married when his mother was several months pregnant with Robert, and barely over the age of 18 (needless to say, his father was considerably older). Both Robert’s father and mother (and Robert himself) died before the age of 60, with heart problems running rampant in the family. Robert’s childhood was rather grim; he had problems enunciating words because of some tooth problems, was known as being an outsider and somewhat effeminate, and his mother tried to economize by re-using old dresses in his clothing, which only made him even more a subject or ridicule. Unsurprisingly, he wanted to get out of his hick town as early as possible.

The book then details Ripley’s nomadic early adulthood spent moving from one city to another in search of better opportunities, his self-education as a cartoonist, his ups and downs, a disastrous marriage to a dancer from Ziegfield Follies, his accidental discovery of a love of international travel and a career collecting and illustrating witty facts, writing sardonic and sometimes sympathetic travel essays, and becoming an early precursor to such figures as Phil Donahue and Oprah Winfrey on radio and (later) television. This book chronicles the complexities of Ripley’s character, including his lack of religiosity, his alcoholism, his intense loneliness and unwillingness to commit to any woman, his strange mix of driven ambition and generous loyalty, his family drama, and his belief that he was above the rules that everyone else was subject to. The book is written in an elegant and dryly humorous style, the research is excellent, and the chapters are filled with humorous and insightful “Believe It” trivia that serve the place of footnotes as well as to capture the flavor of Ripley’s own work.

Ultimately, this book is a great one that fills a major gap in biographies and also provides the curious reader with a lot of thought-provoking material about the specific nature of Ripley’s success and whether it could be repeated today. Ripley certainly took advantage of the various media that were available to him, but he was in many ways a genuine and somewhat sad man who was unable to overcome his genetic inheritance or his weaknesses of character (including a refusal to allow himself to be close enough to anyone to be hurt after some very early and very serious heartbreaks). This particular biography is the picture of a man who made millions, who made beautiful and lasting art, and who had a major influence on culture and language in the United States, and yet who died alone even with a squabbling harem of catty girlfriends. Surely, there ought to be more to life than to live fast, die young, and leave a bucktoothed corpse and an estate racked by squabbling people looking to divide your wealth. Although some of the facts that the talented Mr. Ripley came up with may indeed seem unbelievable, the lonely and ultimately tragic course of his life is indeed all too easy to believe. Let the reader honor the man and his work, and learn from his life.