He joined the 1963 American Mount Everest Expedition as an official historian. On May 1, 1963 Jim Whittaker was the first American to reach the summit with Nawang Gombu, a nephew of Tenzing Norgay. Because of health problems Ullman had to stay in Kathmandu. His book Americans on Everest: The Official Account of the Ascent was published in 1964. A timeless outdoor adventure story, winner of a Newbery Honor, that will appeal to fans of Hatchet and Jon Krakauer's Into the Wild and Into Thin Air. His works include Banner in the Sky (which was filmed in Switzerland as Third Man on the Mountain), and The White Tower.

The musical score for Third Man on the Mountain was composed by William Alwyn and features the original song "Climb the Mountain" by Franklyn Marks. [16] Reception [ edit ] He was the ghost writer for Tenzing Norgay's autobiography Man of Everest (originally published as Tiger of the Snows). High Conquest was the first of nine books for J.B. Lippincott coming out in 1941 followed by The White Tower, River of The Sun, Windom's Way, and Banner in the Sky which was a 1955 Newbery Hon James Ramsey Ullman (1907–1971) was an American writer and mountaineer. He was born in New York. He was not a high end climber, but his writing made him an honorary member of that circle. Some of his writing is noted for being "nationalistic," e.g., The White Tower. It is an adventure. It is about a world which was not relevant to women. But it's about a 16 yo boy who, through the course of the book, becomes a man. And it's cleanly, crisply written, easy enough to read that I stayed up way past my bedtime and finished it.The 1950s was a golden era for children’s adventure tales and Ullman exemplifies the best of the tradition, writing suspenseful scenes along with solid character development. The book is full of climbing action and it is wonderfully vivid and tense, carrying the reader along with Rudi through his painful and dangerous exploits. As someone who hates heights, climbing is my idea of torture and I mean it as a compliment to Ullman’s skill that certain scenes made me queasy. What an idiotic pastime – but what good material for an adventure tale.

It is the ravishing ending of the book, however, in which Ullman really reveals his excellence as an author, and which raises this work from the ranks of the good into the select company of the great. (I have no intention of giving anything away, so you can continue reading with confidence.) The ending of this book came as a delightful surprise to me as it is not at all typical. Ullman eschewed the normal, somewhat worn-out ending books of this sort almost always have, instead giving us something much deeper and more meaningful. After reading the end of the book I was completely convinced that this was truly a great work of children’s literature. Janet Munro made the film as the second in a five-picture deal with Disney, the first being Darby O'Gill and the Little People. [11] Shooting [ edit ] I was surprised that it was aimed at elementary school kids. The subject matter and language seemed more advanced than that. There was certainly an intensity to the writing, and I felt I was there climbing along with them. But Rudi is a mountaineer in his heart, and escapes the kitchen to climb whenever he can. He may never have known his father, the great Josef Matt who died on an expedition to summit the Citadel (aka the Matterhorn), the last great unconquered peak in Switzerland, but he inherited his spirit.Set in 1865 in the fictional town of Kurtal (aka Zermatt), we meet our hero, sixteen-year-old Rudi Matt, as a disgruntled dishwasher at the town’s best hotel. Slight and cherubic, Rudi is nothing like the bulk of the town’s hearty men, who make their livings as guides for mountain-climbing tourists. He is, his mother and uncle have decided, to be a hotelier and to train in Zurich after getting experience at home. They want him far away from the dangerous mountains that have taken too many men from their town, his own father included. Just like with music, there are many good books that are popular for a few years after they come out. Some of these books stay popular. Books like Charlotte's Web, A Wrinkle in Time, and presumably Harry Potter stay popular favorites for generations after they are written. Other excellent books slowly fade away. Banner in the Sky is one of these excellent books that has faded away a bit over time. It was a Newbury Honor Book in 1954 when it was originally published. However, over my last sixteen years of teaching I have only known one or two kids who have read it. I think that's a shame, because you'll have a hard time finding a book with more realistic adventure and excitement than this one.

Scheuer, Philip K. (November 11, 1959). "'Third Man' Scenery Worth Price". Los Angeles Times. Part I, p. 27. He also wrote the short story "Top Man", a story about mountaineers climbing K3, a mountain in India. The story appears in several anthologies. It was originally published in the Saturday Evening Post in 1940. Issue #35. The film was based on the 1954 novel Banner in the Sky by James Ramsey Ullman, who had written The White Tower. The novel was based on the real life first ascent of the Matterhorn in 1865. [3] Captain John Winter was based on Edward Whymper but the young character of Rudi was entirely fictional. The New York Times called it "a superb mountain climbing story for younger readers". [4] Development [ edit ]

He was the ghost writer for Tenzing Norgay's autobiography Man of Everest (originally published as Tiger of the Snows). High Conquest was the first of nine books for J.B. Lippincott coming out in 1941 followed by The White Tower, River of The Sun, Windom's Way, and Banner in the Sky which was a 1955 Newbery Honor book. All of these titles became major motion pictures.