WRITER

Donald E. Westlake

1933 - 2008

Photo of Donald E. Westlake

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Donald Edwin Westlake (July 12, 1933 – December 31, 2008) was an American writer with more than one hundred novels and non-fiction books to his credit. He specialized in crime fiction, especially comic capers, with an occasional foray into science fiction and other genres. Westlake created two professional criminal characters who each starred in a long-running series: the relentless, hardboiled Parker (published under the pen name Richard Stark), and John Dortmunder, who featured in a more humorous series. He was a three-time Edgar Award winner and, alongside Joe Gores and William L. Read more on Wikipedia

Since 2007, the English Wikipedia page of Donald E. Westlake has received more than 738,637 page views. His biography is available in 21 different languages on Wikipedia (up from 20 in 2019). Donald E. Westlake is the 2,514th most popular writer (down from 1,791st in 2019), the 3,186th most popular biography from United States (down from 2,324th in 2019) and the 273rd most popular American Writer.

Memorability Metrics

  • 740k

    Page Views (PV)

  • 54.44

    Historical Popularity Index (HPI)

  • 21

    Languages Editions (L)

  • 4.49

    Effective Languages (L*)

  • 2.58

    Coefficient of Variation (CV)

Notable Works

The Curious Facts Preceding My Execution
American Detective and mystery stories
1968
Bank shot
1972
The Fugitive Pigeon
1965
The busy body
1966
Lemons never lie
Criminals, Fiction
1971
High Adventure
1985

Among WRITERS

Among writers, Donald E. Westlake ranks 2,514 out of 7,302. Before him are Theodore Prodromos, Xu Zhimo, Ron Kovic, Okakura Kakuzō, Ewald Christian von Kleist, and Edward Plunkett, 18th Baron of Dunsany. After him are Bella Rosenfeld, Halid Ziya Uşaklıgil, Ilse Aichinger, Hermann Sudermann, Suman Pokhrel, and T. H. White.

Most Popular Writers in Wikipedia

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Contemporaries

Among people born in 1933, Donald E. Westlake ranks 167. Before him are Asha Bhosle, Michel Sabbah, Debra Paget, Jörn Donner, Françoise Fabian, and Guido Crepax. After him are Will Sampson, Mohammad-Javad Bahonar, Egil Danielsen, Michel Camdessus, Aleksandr Privalov, and Frits Bolkestein. Among people deceased in 2008, Donald E. Westlake ranks 112. Before him are Dora Ratjen, Suzanne Pleshette, Géza Kalocsay, Joseph Weizenbaum, Maila Nurmi, and Jean-Daniel Cadinot. After him are Rubens de Falco, Tsutomu Miyazaki, Andrew Bertie, Bronisław Geremek, David Ausubel, and Fred Sinowatz.

Others Born in 1933

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Others Deceased in 2008

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In United States

Among people born in United States, Donald E. Westlake ranks 3,186 out of 20,380. Before him are Tatum O'Neal (1963), Alex North (1910), Chris Sarandon (1942), Anthony Fauci (1940), Josh Duhamel (1972), and Thomas Curtis (1873). After him are Zoe Saldana (1978), Frederick William Franz (1893), Diane Ladd (1935), Richard S. Hamilton (1943), Will Sampson (1933), and Norman Finkelstein (1953).

Others born in United States

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Among WRITERS In United States

Among writers born in United States, Donald E. Westlake ranks 273. Before him are Winston Groom (1943), Annie Proulx (1935), Richard Wright (1908), Michael Bishop (1945), Alice B. Toklas (1877), and Ron Kovic (1946). After him are Margaret Fuller (1810), John Edward Williams (1922), Oliver Wendell Holmes Sr. (1809), Katherine Jackson (1930), Alexandra Ripley (1934), and Lois McMaster Bujold (1949).

American born Writers

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