Walter Herman Wager (September 4, 1924 – July 11, 2004) was an American crime and espionage-thriller novelist and former editor-in-chief of ''

Playbill ''Playbill'' is an American monthly magazine for theatergoers. Although there is a subscription issue available for home delivery, most copies of ''Playbill'' are printed for particular productions and distributed at the door as the show's pr ...

'' magazine. The movie '' Telefon'', starring

Charles Bronson Charles Bronson (born Charles Dennis Buchinsky; November 3, 1921 – August 30, 2003) was an American actor. Known for his "granite features and brawny physique," he gained international fame for his starring roles in action, Western, and war ...

, was inspired by his novel of the same name. His book '' 58 Minutes'' was adapted into ''

Die Hard 2 ''Die Hard 2'' (also known by its tagline ''Die Harder'')The film's onscreen title is ''Die Hard 2'', as also given at the initial home-video release'official website The film's original advertising used "Die Harder" as a tagline, and many rele ...

'', starring

Bruce Willis Walter Bruce Willis (born March 19, 1955) is a retired American actor. He achieved fame with a leading role on the comedy-drama series ''Moonlighting'' (1985–1989) and appeared in over a hundred films, gaining recognition as an action hero a ...

Education and career

Walter Wager was born in

The Bronx The Bronx () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Bronx County, in the state of New York. It is south of Westchester County; north and east of the New York City borough of Manhattan, across the Harlem River; and north of the New Y ...

, New York City, the son of a doctor and a nurse who had emigrated from the

Russian Empire The Russian Empire was an empire and the final period of the Russian monarchy from 1721 to 1917, ruling across large parts of Eurasia. It succeeded the Tsardom of Russia following the Treaty of Nystad, which ended the Great Northern War. ...

. A 1944 graduate of Columbia College, where he was a member of the

Philolexian Society The Philolexian Society of Columbia University is one of the oldest college literary and debate societies in the United States, and the oldest student group at Columbia. Founded in 1802, the Society aims to "improve its members in Oratory, Compo ...

, he went on to a

Harvard Law School Harvard Law School (Harvard Law or HLS) is the law school of Harvard University, a private research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1817, it is the oldest continuously operating law school in the United States. Each class ...

degree three years later. Passing the bar exams but choosing not to practice, he went on to receive a master's degree in

aviation law Aviation law is the branch of law that concerns flight, air travel, and associated legal and business concerns. Some of its area of concern overlaps that of admiralty law and, in many cases, aviation law is considered a matter of international ...

from

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

Northwestern University Northwestern University is a private research university in Evanston, Illinois. Founded in 1851, Northwestern is the oldest chartered university in Illinois and is ranked among the most prestigious academic institutions in the world. Charte ...

in 1949, while also serving as an editor of the '' Journal of Air Law and Commerce'', then based in that city. Afterward, he spent a year at the

Sorbonne Sorbonne may refer to: * Sorbonne (building), historic building in Paris, which housed the University of Paris and is now shared among multiple universities. *the University of Paris (c. 1150 – 1970) *one of its components or linked institution, ...

, in Paris, as a

Fulbright Fellow The Fulbright Program, including the Fulbright–Hays Program, is one of several United States Cultural Exchange Programs with the goal of improving intercultural relations, cultural diplomacy, and intercultural competence between the people of ...

. He spent a year in Israel as an aviation-law consultant for the Israeli Department of Civil Aviation, helping to negotiate a treaty on

air space The atmosphere of Earth is the layer of gases, known collectively as air, retained by Earth's gravity that surrounds the planet and forms its planetary atmosphere. The atmosphere of Earth protects life on Earth by creating pressure allowing for ...

and working out of

Lydda Airport Ben Gurion International Airport, ; ar, مطار بن غوريون الدولي , commonly known by the Hebrew-language acronym (), is the main international airport of Israel. Situated on the northern outskirts of the city of Lod, it is th ...

Tel Aviv Tel Aviv-Yafo ( he, תֵּל־אָבִיב-יָפוֹ, translit=Tēl-ʾĀvīv-Yāfō ; ar, تَلّ أَبِيب – يَافَا, translit=Tall ʾAbīb-Yāfā, links=no), often referred to as just Tel Aviv, is the most populous city in the G ...

. In 1952, he returned to New York City, where he worked for the

United Nations The United Nations (UN) is an intergovernmental organization whose stated purposes are to maintain international peace and international security, security, develop friendly relations among nations, achieve international cooperation, and be ...

, editing documents. Shortly afterward, Wager segued into writing and producing radio and television documentaries for

CBS CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS, the abbreviation of its former legal name Columbia Broadcasting System, is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainm ...

and

NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an Television in the United States, American English-language Commercial broadcasting, commercial television network, broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Enterta ...

, and the

United States Information Agency The United States Information Agency (USIA), which operated from 1953 to 1999, was a United States agency devoted to "public diplomacy". In 1999, prior to the reorganization of intelligence agencies by President George W. Bush, President Bill C ...

, while also beginning a side career as a freelance writer for magazines including ''

'' and ''Show''. Under the

pseudonym A pseudonym (; ) or alias () is a fictitious name that a person or group assumes for a particular purpose, which differs from their original or true name (orthonym). This also differs from a new name that entirely or legally replaces an individua ...

John Tiger, he wrote the paperback original ''Death Hits the Jackpot'' (Avon #605) for

Avon Books Avon Publications is one of the leading publishers of romance fiction. At Avon's initial stages, it was an American paperback book and comic book publisher. The shift in content occurred in the early 1970s with multiple Avon romance titles reach ...

, the fifth publisher he contacted; published in 1954, it paid him $3,000. He recalled in 2000, "I had a friend at a paperback publishing house. I like mystery stories so I thought I could sell this kind of prose." For several years he worked as a freelance writer. Two years later, he published a second Avon paperback, ''Operation Intrigue'', under the name Walter Herman. From 1963 to 1996, Wager was editor-in-chief of ''Playbill'' magazine, and from 1966 to 1978 as editor of ''ASCAP Today'', the magazine of the music-licensing organization the

American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers The American Society of Composers, Authors, and Publishers (ASCAP) () is an American not-for-profit performance-rights organization (PRO) that collectively licenses the public performance rights of its members' musical works to venues, broadca ...

; he later became ASCAP's

public-relations Public relations (PR) is the practice of managing and disseminating information from an individual or an organization (such as a business, government agency, or a nonprofit organization) to the public in order to influence their perception. ...

director. He held a similar position at the

University of Bridgeport The University of Bridgeport (UB) is a private university in Bridgeport, Connecticut. The university is accredited by the New England Commission of Higher Education. In 2021, the university was purchased by Goodwin University; it retain its own n ...

Connecticut Connecticut () is the southernmost state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the south. Its cap ...

in the early 1990s, until his retirement in 1993. He also did public relations for organizations including the

Juilliard School The Juilliard School ( ) is a private performing arts conservatory in New York City. Established in 1905, the school trains about 850 undergraduate and graduate students in dance, drama, and music. It is widely regarded as one of the most el ...

, the

Mann Music Center The Mann Center for the Performing Arts (formerly known as the Robin Hood Dell West and Mann Music Center) is a nonprofit performing arts center located in the Centennial District of Philadelphia's West Fairmount Park, built in 1976 as the summe ...

, and the

Eugene O'Neill Theatre Center The Eugene O'Neill Theater Center in Waterford, Connecticut, is a 501(c)(3) non-profit theater company founded in 1964 by George C. White. It is commonly referred to as The O'Neill. The center has received two Tony Awards, the 1979 Special Awa ...

. Wager was a member of the board of directors of the

Mystery Writers of America Mystery Writers of America (MWA) is an organization of mystery and crime writers, based in New York City. The organization was founded in 1945 by Clayton Rawson, Anthony Boucher, Lawrence Treat, and Brett Halliday. It presents the Edgar Award ...

, and its secretary beginning in 2001.

Personal life

Wager married Sylvia Leonard (d. 1989), a fellow American student he met at the

, in 1951 in Paris. The two had a daughter, Lisa, before the marriage ended in divorce. He married second wife Winifred McIvor Wage in 1975. A resident of

Manhattan Manhattan (), known regionally as the City, is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the five boroughs of New York City. The borough is also coextensive with New York County, one of the original counties of the U.S. state ...

Upper West Side The Upper West Side (UWS) is a neighborhood in the borough of Manhattan in New York City. It is bounded by Central Park on the east, the Hudson River on the west, West 59th Street to the south, and West 110th Street to the north. The Upper West ...

, he died of complications of

brain cancer A brain tumor occurs when abnormal cells form within the brain. There are two main types of tumors: malignant tumors and benign (non-cancerous) tumors. These can be further classified as primary tumors, which start within the brain, and secondar ...

in 2004, at the assisted-living facility Amsterdam House in Manhattan.

Books

Wager was best known as an author of crime and espionage thrillers. His novel ''Viper Three'' (

Macmillan MacMillan, Macmillan, McMillen or McMillan may refer to: People * McMillan (surname) * Clan MacMillan, a Highland Scottish clan * Harold Macmillan, British statesman and politician * James MacMillan, Scottish composer * William Duncan MacMillan ...

, 1971) was released as ''

Twilight's Last Gleaming ''Twilight's Last Gleaming'' is a 1977 thriller film directed by Robert Aldrich and starring Burt Lancaster and Richard Widmark. The film was a West German/American co-production, shot mainly at the Bavaria Studios. Loosely based on a 1971 nov ...

'', with

Burt Lancaster Burton Stephen Lancaster (November 2, 1913 – October 20, 1994) was an American actor and producer. Initially known for playing tough guys with a tender heart, he went on to achieve success with more complex and challenging roles over a 45-yea ...

and

Richard Widmark Richard Weedt Widmark (December 26, 1914March 24, 2008) was an American film, stage, and television actor and producer. He was nominated for an Academy Award for his role as the villainous Tommy Udo in his debut film, '' Kiss of Death'' (1947) ...

, in 1977. That same year, his spy novel ''Telefon'' (Macmillan, 1975) was adapted as the same-name movie starring

and

Lee Remick Lee Ann Remick (December 14, 1935 – July 2, 1991) was an American actress and singer. She was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actress for the film '' Days of Wine and Roses'' (1962), and for the 1966 Tony Award for Best Actress in ...

. Wager's airport-based thriller '' 58 Minutes'' (1987) became the basis for the 1990

action film Action film is a film genre in which the protagonist is thrust into a series of events that typically involve violence and physical feats. The genre tends to feature a mostly resourceful hero struggling against incredible odds, which include life ...

'', starring

. Additionally, Wager wrote a number of original novels in the 1960s under the

"John Tiger" that were based on the TV series ''

I Spy I spy is a guessing game where one player (the ''spy'' or ''it'') chooses an object within sight and announces to the other players that "I spy with my little eye something beginning with...", naming the first letter of the object. Other players a ...

'' and '' Mission: Impossible''. He also wrote the farce ''My Side, by King Kong as Told to Walter Wager'', published by Macmillan in 1976. His series ''Blue Leader'', ''Blue Moon'', and ''Blue Murder'' featured tough

Beverly Hills Beverly Hills is a city located in Los Angeles County, California. A notable and historic suburb of Greater Los Angeles, it is in a wealthy area immediately southwest of the Hollywood Hills, approximately northwest of downtown Los Angeles. Bev ...

private detective Alison Gordon. As one of several writers using the pseudonym Lee Davis Willoughby, Wager also wrote the historical novels ''The Wildcatters'' and ''The Caribbeans''.

Bibliography

* ''Death Hits the Jackpot'' (1954; as John Tiger) * ''The Pentagon's Favorite Magicians'' (1954; as John Tiger. Not published until 2014 by request of United States Department of Defense) * ''Operation Intrigue'' (1956; as Walter Herman) * ''I Spy'' (1965; as John Tiger) * ''I Spy #2: Masterstroke'' (1966; as John Tiger) * ''I Spy #3: Superkill'' (1967; as John Tiger) * ''I Spy #4: Wipeout'' (1967; as John Tiger) * ''I Spy #5: Countertrap'' (1967; as John Tiger) * ''I Spy #6: Doomdate'' (1967; as John Tiger) * ''Mission: Impossible'' (1967; as John Tiger) * ''The Playwrights Speak'' (interviews with

Tennessee Williams Thomas Lanier Williams III (March 26, 1911 – February 25, 1983), known by his pen name Tennessee Williams, was an American playwright and screenwriter. Along with contemporaries Eugene O'Neill and Arthur Miller, he is considered among the thre ...

Harold Pinter Harold Pinter (; 10 October 1930 – 24 December 2008) was a British playwright, screenwriter, director and actor. A Nobel Prize winner, Pinter was one of the most influential modern British dramatists with a writing career that spanne ...

Arnold Wesker Sir Arnold Wesker (24 May 1932 – 12 April 2016) was an English dramatist. He was the author of 50 plays, four volumes of short stories, two volumes of essays, much journalism and a book on the subject, a children's book, some poetry, and oth ...

Arthur Miller Arthur Asher Miller (October 17, 1915 – February 10, 2005) was an American playwright, essayist and screenwriter in the 20th-century American theater. Among his most popular plays are '' All My Sons'' (1947), ''Death of a Salesman'' ( ...

John Osborne John James Osborne (12 December 1929 – 24 December 1994) was an English playwright, screenwriter and actor, known for his prose that criticized established social and political norms. The success of his 1956 play ''Look Back in Anger'' tra ...

; 1967) * ''I Spy #7: Death-Twist'' (1968; as John Tiger) * ''Mission: Impossible #4: Code Name Little Ivan'' (1969; as John Tiger) * ''Sledgehammer'' (1970) * ''Warhead'' (1971) * ''Viper Three'' (1972), adapted for film as ''

'' (1977) * ''Swap'' (1973) * ''Telefon'' (1975), adapted for film as '' Telefon'' (1977) * ''Time of Reckoning'' (1977) * ''Blue Leader'' (1979) * ''Blue Moon'' (1981) * ''The Wildcatters (The Making of America, Book 21)'' (Dell Publishing; as Lee Davis Willoughby; 1981) * ''Blue Murder'' (1982) * ''Designated Hitter'' (1982) * ''The Caribbeans'' (Dell Publishing; as Lee Davis Willoughby; 1983) * ''Otto's Boy'' (1985) * ''Raw Deal'',

novelization A novelization (or novelisation) is a derivative novel that adapts the story of a work created for another medium, such as a film, TV series, stage play, comic book or video game. Film novelizations were particularly popular before the advent of ...

of the Arnold Schwarzenegger film (1986) * '' 58 Minutes'' (1987), adapted for film as ''

'' (1990) * ''The Spirit Team'' (1996) * ''Tunnel'' (2001) * ''Kelly's People'' (2002)

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Wager, Walter 1924 births 2004 deaths 20th-century American novelists 21st-century American novelists American male novelists American people of Russian-Jewish descent University of Paris alumni Northwestern University alumni Columbia College (New York) alumni Harvard Law School alumni People from the Bronx 20th-century American male writers 21st-century American male writers Novelists from New York (state) People from the Upper West Side Die Hard American expatriates in France Fulbright alumni