Thomas Harris

Thomas Harris is a famous American writer, the author of a series of world-renowned detective thriller novels about Dr. Hannibal Lecter. At an early age, he showed a love of books, and Ernest Hemingway was one of his favorite authors.

The boy’s parents, William and Polly, moved to the town of Rich, located near the Coldwater River (Coahoma County, Mississippi). His father owned a farm there that grew cotton, soybeans, and wheat. The boy grew up as an introvert: “As a child, my friends were mostly turkeys,” he recalled. At Clarksdale High School, his mother taught biology. Thomas was very attached to her until her death in 2011, calling her every night from wherever he happened to be. He discussed specific scenes from his novels with her.

After graduating from school, Thomas Harris entered a private Baptist research university in Waco, Texas, founded in 1845. At the same time, he worked as a reporter for the Waco Tribune-Herald, writing notes about police activities. He also published short stories in True and Argosy. On assignment from the editorial office, he traveled to Mexico, where he met prison surgeon Alfredo Trevino, who became one of the prototypes for Hannibal Lecter. In June 1961, he married fellow student Harriet Anne Hayley, and they had a daughter, Elizabeth Ann.

After receiving a bachelor’s degree in English in 1964, Harris traveled through Europe. In 1968, he divorced his wife and moved to New York, where he was hired by the news agency Associated Press. He worked as a reporter and editor on major crimes, covering robberies, murders, and riots. He learned police procedures in murder investigations and became intrigued by criminal psychology and forensic pathology, which added depth to his works, enriched the characters, and created tension in the narratives.

In 1972, tragedy struck at the Munich Olympics, where members of the Black September terrorist organization took Israeli athletes hostage and then killed them. This event became the impetus for developing, together with colleagues Sam Mollett and Dick Riley, the idea for a thriller about an attempted mass murder during the Super Bowl in New Orleans. The writer’s first novel, Black Sunday, was published in 1975 and had moderate success. Its film