James Ramsey Ullman facts for kids
James Ramsey Ullman (born August 21, 1907, died June 20, 1971) was an American writer. He loved mountaineering and wrote many books about it. Even though he wasn't a top climber himself, his amazing stories made him famous in the climbing world. He was born in New York City.
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His Exciting Books
James Ramsey Ullman wrote many books, mostly about mountains and exploring. His stories often made readers feel like they were right there on the adventure.
Famous Mountain Stories
One of his most famous books is Banner in the Sky. This story is based on the real-life first climb of the Matterhorn mountain. It was even made into a movie called Third Man on the Mountain, filmed in Switzerland.
Another popular book was The White Tower. This book also became a movie, starring actors like Glenn Ford and Lloyd Bridges.
Ullman's first book for the J.B. Lippincott company was High Conquest, published in 1941. After that came The White Tower, River of The Sun, Windom's Way, and Banner in the Sky. Banner in the Sky was even recognized as a Newbery Honor book in 1955. Many of these books were later turned into movies.
Other Adventures and Stories
Beyond his own books, Ullman helped write the life stories of famous climbers. He was the ghostwriter for Tenzing Norgay's autobiography, Man of Everest, published in 1955. Tenzing Norgay was one of the first two people to reach the top of Mount Everest. Ullman also helped write the biography Straight Up for climber John Harlin.
He also wrote a short story called "Top Man". This story is about mountaineers climbing a mountain in India called K3. It was first published in the Saturday Evening Post in 1940 and can be found in many story collections.
Ullman also wrote about other adventures. In "Where the Bong Tree Grows," he shared his experiences traveling through some very remote islands in the South Pacific for a year. He even wrote a novel about the poet Arthur Rimbaud, called The Day on Fire (1958).
Mount Everest Expedition
In 1963, James Ramsey Ullman joined the American Mount Everest Expedition as the official historian. This meant he would write the story of their amazing journey.
On May 1, 1963, Norman Dyhrenfurth (the leader of the expedition) and Jim Whittaker became the first Americans to reach the summit of Mount Everest. Four other climbers, including Nawang Gombu (who was a nephew of Tenzing Norgay), also reached the top.
Sadly, Ullman had some health problems and had to stay in Kathmandu, Nepal, during the climb. Even so, he wrote the official book about the expedition, called Americans on Everest: The Official Account of the Ascent, which came out in 1964.
Later Life
James Ramsey Ullman passed away in Boston on July 5, 1971, from cancer. His writings and other important papers are kept at Princeton University.
