Connections between Patricia Highsmith's "The Talented Mr. Ripley" and Robert Ripley of "Believe It Or Not"
I'm currently reading Neal Thompson's biography of Robert Ripley, "A Curious Man". Some random googling led me to this. Thompson's book doesn't mention any connection and it may just be coincidence, but since Ripley was very rich and famous and died a few years before "The Talented Mr. Ripley" was published it got me to wondering..
Posted Jan 21, 2016, 6:10 AM UTC
22
I haven't read the book but it's exactly the sort of thing an author would do. Characters (and book titles) are usually named for a reason. Sometimes it's obvious, like Scarlett in Gone With the Wind.
Whenever I think I see a link like that I hold it in mind just in case there are other clues that it's what the author intended. Obviously I don't know, but to me it sounds like you're on the right track.