Richard Ben Sapir
Richard Ben Sapir was a prominent American author known for his significant contributions to the "Destroyer" series, which he co-created with Warren B. Murphy in the early 1970s. The series features former New York City police officer Remo Williams and is characterized by its unique blend of martial arts action, humor, and intricate plot twists. Sapir was responsible for writing the first half of each installment, setting up characters and scenarios, while Murphy completed the narratives with action sequences. Over their collaboration, they produced over sixty-five novels, contributing to a total of more than eighty books in the series, which have sold over thirty million copies worldwide.
In addition to the "Destroyer" novels, Sapir authored eight standalone works, primarily in the science fiction genre, with titles like "Bressio" and "Quest," the latter being a thriller that gained notable popularity. His writing is celebrated for its quirky style and engaging storytelling, contrasting with the negative reception of the 1985 film adaptation of the series. Sapir's work continues to resonate with readers, and the "Destroyer" series has expanded beyond his death in 1987, with additional volumes written by other authors. Sapir was married to Patricia Kathleen Chute.
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Subject Terms
Richard Ben Sapir
Fiction Writer
- Born: July 27, 1936
- Birthplace: New York, New York
- Died: January 27, 1987
- Place of death: Boston, Massachusetts
Biography
Beginning in the early 1970’s, while he was working as a newspaper reporter in New Jersey, Sapir and his colleague Warren B. Murphy began writing the Destroyer series of books featuring former New York City police officer Remo Williams. His writing partner, Murphy, credited Sapir for coming up with the intricate plot twists for the novels, and Sapir contributed to more than sixty-five installments of the Destroyer series before his unexpected and untimely death in 1987, writing a handful of them on his own after Williams retired from the series in the early 1980’s. The team had a specific method for dividing authorial duties: Sapir would wrote the first half of each book, setting up characters and situations, while Murphy would finish the novel with the action writing. All told, the series originated by Sapir and Murphy includes more than eighty novels that have sold more than thirty million copies in total.
The books chart the protagonist’s progression to a master of the fictional martial art of sinanju, acquiring near-superhero level crime-fighting skills in the process. The series inspired the critically panned 1985 movie Remo Williams: The Adventure Begins with Fred Ward in the title role and Joel Grey donning ethnic makeup to play the sinanju master who teaches Williams. In contrast to their distaste for the overdone film version, critics praise the Destroyer novels for their oddball sensibility and wry humor, and the series has remained popular with more than sixty additional volumes written by other authors in the decades since Sapir’s death. One novel of particular crossover appeal was 1972’s Mafia Fix, in which a Remo Williams tale is intertwined with no less than mystery author Agatha Christie’s Hercule Poirot and suspense writer Ian Fleming’s James Bond and Mr. Moto.
In addition to the pulp Destroyer novels, Sapir wrote eight standalone novels, mostly in the science-fiction genre. Bressio, published in 1975, details the life of an Italian private eye with mafia connections. His most popular solo work, however, was a thriller Quest, published shortly before his death. The titular quest involves uncovering the history of a precious object that has been stolen from its hiding place in the Tower of London.
Sapir’s solo work The Body was made into a film starring Antonio Banderas. Two solo works, Terminal Transmission and The Last Dragon, were published posthumously in 1993 by Signet Books. Sapir was married to Patricia Kathleen Chute.