Fish was born in Cleveland, Ohio, and studied engineering at Case School of Applied Science, where he graduated in 1933.
In 1953 he travelled to Rio de Janeiro, as an engineering consultant to a Brazilian vinyl plastics factory[2] In 1960, Fish submitted his first short story to Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine.
His 1963 novel Mute Witness, written under the pseudonym Robert L. Pike, was filmed in 1968 as Bullitt, starring Steve McQueen.
The same happened with his 1967 novel Always Kill A Stranger, which was filmed in 1972 as Missão: Matar, starring Tarcisio Meira, Yvonne Buchingham.
He also wrote the novel Pursuit (adapted into a two-part TV miniseries Twist of Fate), and the Holmes parody The Memoirs of Schlock Homes.