The Big Red Fox

Ashley Thomson is a full librarian at Laurentian University and co-editor or co-author of nine books, most recently Margaret Atwood: A Reference Guide, 1988-2005.

If Norman Ryan was Canada’s most notorious criminal, it was largely
thanks to the editorial staff of The Toronto Star, who thought Ryan’s
story was just what they needed to sell papers. And what a story it was.
Born in 1895, Ryan fell into crime early, landing behind bars at the
Kingston Pen in 1922. The following year, when he led a spectacular
breakout (described in the Star by Ernest Hemmingway), Ryan became
serious news. He continued to make headlines when he crossed the
American border and held up more banks.

Captured by American authorities, Ryan landed back in the Pen “for
life.” Within days, he seemed to repent of his crimes. Among those
taken in was the prison chaplain, Father Wilfrid T. Kingsley, who
started lobbying for Ryan’s early release. The Star joined the growing
chorus in support of his release. Prime Minster R.B. Bennett met with
Ryan and authorized his parole just before the 1935 election. Back in
society, Ryan immediately fell into his old ways; within a year, he was
dead from gunshot wounds incurred during an attempt to rob a Sarnia
bank.

McSherry has literally poured his own life into writing this book. He
started his research in 1977 and for over the next 20 years conducted
interviews with dozens of people who knew Ryan. In addition, he read all
the contemporary publications, government reports, and archival
documents extant. More than the story of a minor crook, his hugely
accessible book addresses two serious issues in Canadian history: the
purpose of prison (Ryan’s fate set the cause of a more liberalized
parole system back several years) and the role of the popular press in
the era before television.