[1] It is about the death of Kenneth Caulfield, who later became the character Allie in The Catcher in the Rye.
[4] In November 2013, the manuscript of "The Ocean Full of Bowling Balls" was leaked to the general public, and made available online on the website what.cd.
[5] According to Jack Sublette in his 1984 annotated bibliography of J. D. Salinger, Collier's fiction editor Knox Burger stated in 1948 that "Ocean Full of Bowling Balls" "contains the greatest letter home from camp ever composed by man or boy.
"[6] The letter referred to is sent from Holden Caulfield (later the protagonist of The Catcher in the Rye) to his younger brother in this story, Kenneth.
"The Ocean Full of Bowling Balls", along with the short stories "Birthday Boy" and "Paula", was printed in a small edition titled Three Stories, reportedly in 1999, a copy of which was sold on eBay and then posted on internet file sharing sites in late November 2013.