Vincent Peter Ruehl (29 March 1947 – 11 April 2011), known as Peter Ruehl, was an American-born Australian newspaper

columnist A columnist is a person who writes for publication in a series, creating an article that usually offers commentary and opinions. Column (newspaper), Columns appear in newspapers, magazines and other publications, including blogs. They take the fo ...

, best known for the humorous column he wrote thrice weekly for '' The Australian Financial Review'', in which he offered an American view on life in Australia. During his career, he also contributed to ''

The Australian ''The Australian'', with its Saturday edition, ''The Weekend Australian'', is a broadsheet newspaper published by News Corp Australia since 14 July 1964.Bruns, Axel. "3.1. The active audience: Transforming journalism from gatekeeping to gatew ...

'' and the ''

Herald Sun The ''Herald Sun'' is a conservative daily tabloid newspaper based in Melbourne, Australia, published by The Herald and Weekly Times, a subsidiary of News Corp Australia, itself a subsidiary of the Murdoch owned News Corp. The ''Herald S ...

''.

Biography

Ruehl was born in New York City, the son of an FBI agent. He was educated at Gonzaga College High School in Washington, D.C., and later moved to

Annapolis Annapolis ( ) is the capital city of the U.S. state of Maryland and the county seat of, and only incorporated city in, Anne Arundel County. Situated on the Chesapeake Bay at the mouth of the Severn River, south of Baltimore and about east o ...

. He studied at the

University of Maryland The University of Maryland, College Park (University of Maryland, UMD, or simply Maryland) is a public land-grant research university in College Park, Maryland. Founded in 1856, UMD is the flagship institution of the University System of M ...

and worked as a court reporter for ''

The Baltimore Sun ''The Baltimore Sun'' is the largest general-circulation daily newspaper based in the U.S. state of Maryland and provides coverage of local and regional news, events, issues, people, and industries. Founded in 1837, it is currently owned by Tr ...

''. In 1983, the paper asked him to provide coverage of the

1983 America's Cup The 1983 America's Cup was a 12-metre class yacht race which pitted the defending New York Yacht Club's ''Liberty'' against the Royal Perth Yacht Club's challenger, ''Australia II''. The September 1983 match race was won by ''Australia II'' ...

Newport, Rhode Island Newport is an American seaside city on Aquidneck Island in Newport County, Rhode Island. It is located in Narragansett Bay, approximately southeast of Providence, Rhode Island, Providence, south of Fall River, Massachusetts, south of Boston, ...

, during which time he met his future wife, fellow journalist Jennifer Hewett, who had been assigned to the same event by ''

The Sydney Morning Herald ''The Sydney Morning Herald'' (''SMH'') is a daily compact newspaper published in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, and owned by Nine. Founded in 1831 as the ''Sydney Herald'', the ''Herald'' is the oldest continuously published newspaper ...

''. They married and then moved to Australia in 1987. His first piece of journalism in Australia was his coverage of the

1987 America's Cup The 1987 America's Cup was the twenty-sixth challenge for the America's Cup. The American challenger '' Stars & Stripes 87'', sailed by Dennis Conner, beat the Australian defender '' Kookaburra III'', sailed by Iain Murray, in a four-race swee ...

for the ''Australian Financial Review'', a paper for which he continued to write for most of his career. It was his satirical column in this paper that brought recognition, leading Roger Johnstone (chief executive of the Financial Review Group) to praise him as a "one of a kind in Australian journalism". After his death, a collection of his columns between November 1993 and April 2011 was published as a book in ''Men are Stupid, Woman are Crazy.''

Family and personal life

At the time of his death, Ruehl lived in the eastern Sydney suburb of Clovelly with Hewett and their children, Mercedes, John and Tom. According to colleague Colleen Ryan, Ruehl had a few close select friends and "could be quite introverted", preferring to spend time with his family or writing. His sister is

Academy Award The Academy Awards, better known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international film industry. The awards are regarded by many as the most prestigious, significant awards in the entertainment ind ...

-winning actress

Mercedes Ruehl Mercedes J. Ruehl (; born February 28, 1948) is an American screen, stage, and television actress. She is the recipient of several accolades, including an Academy Award, a Golden Globe Award, a Tony Award, a Drama Desk Award, two Obie Awards, an ...

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Ruehl, Peter 1947 births 2011 deaths Australian columnists American emigrants to Australia Gonzaga College High School alumni The Baltimore Sun people Journalists from New York City