Ralph McInerny, a longtime professor of philosophy and medieval studies at the University of Notre Dame who also was a popular mystery writer best known for his Father Dowling series of novels, has died. He was 80.
McInerny died Jan. 29 at Our Lady of Peace Hospital in Mishawaka, Ind., after a long illness, according to the university.
A member of the Notre Dame faculty from 1955 until his retirement in 2009, McInerny gained international renown as a scholar, author and lecturer who specialized in the works of St. Thomas Aquinas, the 13th century theologian and philosopher.
He also was a prolific author who wrote about 100 novels.
Beginning with “Her Death of Cold” in 1977, he wrote more than two dozen mysteries featuring Father Dowling, which led to the 1989-91 “Father Dowling Mysteries” TV series starring Tom Bosley.
Among McInerny’s other series are the “Andrew Broom” mysteries, the “Sister Mary Teresa” mysteries (under the pseudonym Monica Quill) and the “University of Notre Dame” mysteries featuring Roger Knight, a Notre Dame professor, and his brother Philip, a semi-retired private investigator.
In 1993, McInerny received a Lifetime Achievement Award at the Bouchercon World Mystery Convention.
“Stained Glass,” his final Father Dowling mystery, was published in October 2009. “Sham Rock,” his final mystery featuring the Knight brothers, will be published in April.
