Ralphie Glick is the first person to vanish after Kurt Barlow arrives in Salem’s Lot.
Ralphie and his older brother Danny disappear while walking home through the woods. Ralphie is taken by Richard Straker, Barlow’s human associate, and offered as a sacrifice to help establish Barlow in the town. Ralphie’s body is never recovered, which makes his disappearance the first unmistakable sign that something unnatural is happening.
Danny Glick’s fate is the source of a common mix-up. Danny dies after being attacked by Barlow, then returns as a vampire and begins spreading the infection to other residents. Because Danny becomes the first visible vampire victim, some readers remember him as the first person affected. However, Ralphie is the first to disappear.
This opening incident marks the beginning of Salem’s Lot’s supernatural collapse. As more residents vanish, die, or return as vampires, Ben Mears, Mark Petrie, Matt Burke, and Father Callahan gradually uncover Barlow’s plan to transform the entire town.