Richard Edward Connell Jr. (October 17, 1893 – November 22, 1949) was an American author and journalist.

Connell was one of the most popular American short story writers of his time.

He had equal success as a journalist and screenwriter, and was nominated for an Academy Award in 1942 (Best Original Story) for the movie Meet John Doe (1941), directed by Frank Capra and based on his 1922 short story "A Reputation".

He began his writing career for The Poughkeepsie Journal, and attended Georgetown College for a year before going to Harvard University.

He subsequently worked on the city staff of The New York American and as a copy writer for J. Walter Thompson.