Ritterhouse was married and often fought with his wife. When he did so, as well as drink and sleep on the sofa, his drawings would become nightmarish. Benny Russell compared these drawings to something Harlan Ellison would think up. (DS9 novelization: Far Beyond the Stars) In 1953, Ritterhouse illustrated a drawing of a United States Air Force space station, that Russell decided to write a story about. Ritterhouse later became fascinated with Russell's Cardassian race, especially their neck ridges. (DS9 episode: "Far Beyond the Stars")