James Jack Ronald (1905-1972) was a prolific writer of pulp fiction, mystery stories and dramatic novels. Born and raised in Glasgow, Ronald left school early and moved to Chicago aged 17, later returning to the UK to pursue a writing career. His early works were serializations and short stories syndicated in newspapers and magazines around the world. Ronald wrote under a number of pseudonyms, including Michael Crombie, Kirk Wales, Peter Gale, Mark Ellison and Kenneth Streeter among others. Several books were the adapted into films, including Murder in the Family (1938), The Witness Vanishes (1939), and The Suspect (1944).