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William Shakespeare's birthdate is assumed from his baptism on April 25. His father John was the son of a farmer who became a successful tradesman; his mother Mary Arden was gentry. He studied Latin works at Stratford Grammar School, leaving at about age 15. About this time his father suffered an unknown financial setback, though the family home remained in his possession. An affair with Anne Hathaway, eight years his senior and a nearby farmer's daughter, led to pregnancy and a hasty marriage late in 1582. Susanna was born in May of 1583, twins Hamnet and Judith in January of 1585. By 1592 he was an established actor and playwright in London though his "career path" afterward (fugitive? butcher? soldier? actor?) is highly debated. When plague closed the London theatres for two years he apparently toured; he also wrote two long poems, "Venus and Adonis" and "The Rape of Lucrece". He may have spent this time at the estate of the Earl of Southampton. By December 1594 he was back in London as a member of the Lord Chamberlain's Men, the company he stayed with the rest of his life. In 1596 he seems to have purchased a coat of arms for his father; the same year Hamnet died at age 11. The following year he purchased the grand Stratford mansion New Place. A 1598 edition of "Love's Labors" was the first to bear his name, though he was already regarded as England's greatest playwright. He is believed to have written his "Sonnets" during the 1590s. In 1599 he became a partner in the new Globe Theatre, the company of which joined the royal household on the accession of James in 1603. That is the last year in which he appeared in a cast list. He seems to have retired to Stratford in 1612, where he continued to be active in real estate investment. The cause of his death is unknown.- Agatha was born as "Agatha Mary Clarissa Miller" in 1890 to Frederick Alvah Miller and Clara Boehmer. Agatha was of American and British descent, her father being American and her mother British. Her father was a relatively affluent stockbroker. Agatha received home education from early childhood to when she turned 12-years-old in 1902. Her parents taught her how to read, write, perform arithmetic, and play music. Her father died in 1901. Agatha was sent to a girl's school in Torquay, Devon, where she studied from 1902 to 1905. She continued her education in Paris, France from 1905 to 1910. She then returned to her surviving family in England.
As a young adult, Agatha aspired to be a writer and produced a number of unpublished short stories and novels. She submitted them to various publishers and literary magazines, but they were all rejected. Several of these unpublished works were later revised into more successful ones. While still in this point of her life, Agatha sought advise from professional writer Eden Phillpotts (1862-1960). Meanwhile she was searching for a suitable husband and in 1913 accepted a marriage proposal from military officer and pilot-in-training Archibald "Archie" Christie. They married in late 1914. Her married name became "Agatha Christie" and she used it for most of her literary works, including ones created decades following the end of her first marriage.
During World War I, Archie Christie was send to fight in the war and Agatha joined the Voluntary Aid Detachment, a British voluntary unit providing field nursing services. She performed unpaid work as a volunteer nurse from 1914 to 1916. Then she was promoted to "apothecaries' assistant" (dispenser), a position which earned her a small salary until the end of the war. She ended her service in September, 1918.
Agatha wrote "The Mysterious Affair at Styles", her debut novel ,in 1916, but was unable to find a publisher for it until 1920. The novel introduced her famous character Hercule Poirot and his supporting characters Inspector Japp and Arthur Hastings. The novel is set in World War I and is one of the few of her works which are connected to a specific time period.
Following the end of World War I and their retirement from military life, Agatha and Archie Christie moved to London and settled into civilian life. Their only child Rosalind Margaret Clarissa Christie (1919-2004) was born early in the marriage. Agatha's debut novel was first published in 1920 and turned out to be a hit. It was soon followed by the successful novels "The Secret Adversary" (1922) and "Murder on the Links" (1923) and various short stories. Agatha soon became a celebrated writer.
In 1926, Archie Christie announced to Agatha that he had a mistress and that he wanted a divorce. Agatha took it hard and mysteriously disappeared for a period of 10 days. After an extensive manhunt and much publicity, she was found living under a false name in Yorkshire. She had assumed the last name of Archie's mistress and claimed to have no memory of how she ended up there. The doctors who attended to her determined that she had amnesia. Despite various theories by multiple sources, these 10 days are the most mysterious chapter in Agatha's life.
Agatha and Archie divorced in 1928, though she kept the last name Christie. She gained sole custody of her daughter Rosalind. In 1930, Agatha married her second (and last) husband Max Mallowan, a professional archaeologist. They would remain married until her death in 1976.Christie often used places that she was familiar with as settings for her novels and short stories. Her various travels with Max introduced her to locations of the Middle East, and provided inspiration for a number of novels.
In 1934, Agatha and Max settled in Winterbrook, Oxfordshire, which served as their main residence until their respective deaths. During World War II, she served in the pharmacy at the University College Hospital, where she gained additional training about substances used for poisoning cases. She incorporated such knowledge for realistic details in her stories.
She became a Commander of the Order of the British Empire in 1956 and a Dame Commander of the same order in 1971. Her husband was knighted in 1968. They are among the relatively few couples where both members have been honored for their work. Agatha continued writing until 1974, though her health problems affected her writing style. Her memory was problematic for several years and she had trouble remembering the details of her own work, even while she was writing it. Recent researches on her medical condition suggest that she was suffering from Alzheimer's disease or other dementia. She died of natural causes in early 1976. - Barbara Cartland was born on 9 July 1901 in Edgbaston, Birmingham, England, UK. She was a writer, known for Duel of Hearts (1991), The Lady and the Highwayman (1988) and The Flame Is Love (1979). She was married to Hugh Rowley McCorquodale and Alexander George McCorquodale. She died on 21 May 2000 in Camfield Place, Hatfield, Hertfordshire, England, UK.
- Danielle Steel was born on 14 August 1947 in New York City, New York, USA. She is a writer, known for Changes (1991), Now and Forever (1983) and Safe Harbour (2007). She was previously married to Thomas J. Perkins, John Traina, William George Toth, Danny Zugelder and Claude-Eric Lazard.
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Harold Robbins summed up his career best in a 1971 ITV documentary: "I'm the world's best writer--there's nothing more to say". This phenomenally successful author--over 750,000,000 copies of his books were sold worldwide, and most were adapted successfully for the screen. At fifteen, he left home to begin a series of low-paying jobs, including working as a numbers runner. At twenty, after buying options on farmers' produce, Robbins was a millionaire, but a move into sugar futures wiped him out. He next took a job as a shipping clerk with Universal Pictures warehouse in New York and was soon promoted to executive director for budget and planning. On a bet with a studio executive, Robbins wrote his personal favorite novel, Never Love a Stranger (Knopf, 1948), and other early works which achieved minor critical success. He soon devolved into a writer of more popular novels involving celebrity, sex, and violence, to the scorn of critics. His writings after 1960 reflected his personal life: six marriages, wild Hollywood parties, drug abuse. A stroke in 1982 left him with aphasia, although he continued to write, publishing his last novel, Tycoon, in 1997.- Writer
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Georges Simenon was a Belgian novelist, writing in the French language. He published nearly 500 different novels, and a large number of short stories. He became internationally famous for creating the French police detective Jules Maigret, as the protagonist in a celebrated series of mystery novels. Between 1931 and 1972, Simenon published 75 novels and 28 short stories about Maigret and his supporting cast. The Maigret stories have often been adapted into films, television series, and radio shows.
In 1903, Simenon was born in Liège, Belgium. His parents were the accountant Désiré Simenon and his wife Henriette Brüll. His father worked as an accountant for an insurance company. They were members of the wider Simenon family, a line of peasants from Limburg whose history had been recorded since the 1580s. Simenon's maternal ancestry was primarily German and Dutch. His mother was reputedly a distant descendant of the famed robber Gabriel Brühl (died in 1743). Simenon would later use the family name "Brühl" as one of his pen names.
In 1905, the Simenon family moved to the Outremeuse neighborhood of Liège, where Simenon would spend most of his childhood. In 1911, they moved to a larger house in the same neighborhood. The family started taking in lodgers to supplement their income. The young Simenon regularly interacted with these lodgers, who were apprentices and students of various nationalities. These interactions gave him his first taste of cosmopolitanism.
In September 1914, Simenon started attending the Collège Saint-Louis, a Jesuit high school. He dropped out of high school in June 1918, deciding against taking his year-end exams. He supported himself through a series of odd-jobs. In January 1919, the adolescent Simenon was hired as a journalist by the newspaper "Gazette de Liège". His assignments consistent of "human interest" stories, which were thought to be of trivial importance. Simenon grew interested in the seamier side of life in Liège, and started to frequent bars and cheap hotels in search of information. He also grew interested in police investigations, and attended lectures on police technique by the famed criminologist Edmond Locard (1877-1966).
Simenon wrote his first novel in June 1919, but it was not published in book form until 1921. During the early 1920s, Simenon started hanging out with members of "La Caque", a group of Bohemian artists. He was introduced by them to Régine "Tigy" Renchon, who became his girlfriend. In 1922, Simenon's father died. Simenon took the decision to move with Tigy to Paris, where he got acquainted with ordinary working-class Parisians. The city's bistros, cheap hotels, bars and restaurants would later become settings for his novels.
In 1928, Simenon took an extended sea voyage for a journalistic assignment. He discovered that he liked water travel. In 1929, he had a boat house constructed for himself and his wife, called the "Ostrogoth". They used it to travel through the French canal system. Joining them in their travels was their housekeeper Henriette "Boule" Liberge, who became Simenon's mistress. Their romantic relationship lasted for decades, unlike Simenon's previous short-lived affairs.
In 1930, Simenon wrote the first Maigret story during a boat trip in the Netherlands. It was published the following year. In 1932, Simenon's journalistic assignments caused him to travel across Africa, eastern Europe, Turkey, and the Soviet Union. In 1933, Simenon interviewed the exiled politician Leon Trotsky in Istanbul. Simenon took a trip around the world from 1934 to 1935. For much of the 1930s, Simenon was a permanent foreign resident in France.
During World War II, Simenon lived in Vendée, France. He maintained decent relationships with the German occupation authorities, and negotiated film rights of his books with German studios. Following the end of the war, Simenon was accused of being a German collaborator, but with little apparent evidence. In 1950, the French authorities temporarily forbid him to publish new works as punishment for his supposed collaboration, but the sentence was not enforced.
In 1945, Simenon left France with his wife for an extended stay in Quebec, Canada. He wrote three novels in the local city of Sainte-Marguerite-du-Lac-Masson. For the following decade, Simenon and his family moved constantly across Canada and the United States. He learned to speak English with relative ease, and so did his mistress Boule. In 1949, Simenon divorced Tigy, but continued living in close proximity with her, in accordance with the divorce agreement. In 1950, Simenon married his second wife Denyse Ouimet (a French-Canadian) in Reno, Nevada. She was 17 years younger than Simenon himself. Denyse was his former secretary, and they had been romantically involved since 1945.
In 1952, Simenon briefly returned to Belgium, as he was made a member of the "Académie Royale de Belgique" (Royal Academy of Belgium). He had not actually lived in Belgium since 1922, but he remained a Belgian citizen and had become the country's most famous writer. Simenon permanently left the United States in 1955. He initially settled back in France, but then decided to move to Switzerland. In 1963, he had a new house constructed for himself in Épalinges, Vaud.
In 1964, Simenon and his wife Denyse separated permanently. His housekeeper Teresa had become his new long-term mistress. In 1978, Simenon was shocked when his daughter Marie-Jo committed suicide at the age of 25. In 1984, Simenon underwent surgery for a brain tumor. He recovered well, but his health further deteriorated during the last years of his life. In September 1989, he died in his sleep while staying in Lausanne,. He was 86-years-old at the time of his death, and had not published any major work for several years.
Simenon's works have remained popular into the 21st century. According to the 2019 version of the Index Translationum by UNESCO, Simenon was the 17th most translated writer on a global scale. In the Index, Simenon outranked the likes of of Astrid Lindgren (18th) and Pope John Paul II (19th). He ranked just below Fyodor Dostoevsky (16th) and Mark Twain (15th).- Writer
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Enid Blyton (11 August 1897 - 28 November 1968) was an English author. She was born in Dulwich, South London, England. She was one of the world's most famous children's writers. She is also one of the most prolific authors of all time. This means that she wrote a great number of books. Her most famous stories are the Famous Five stories, about a group of four children (Dick, Julian, Anne, and Georgina, who wanted to be called George) and their dog (Timmy) who have many adventures, and her Noddy books for small children.
Her parents wanted her to become a concert pianist (someone who plays the piano), but Enid wanted to be a teacher. Her parents agreed to let her train as a teacher. She began teaching in 1919 in Kent, not far from where she grew up in Beckenham.
As a child and teenager her main interest had been writing poems, stories and other items. She had sent many of them to magazines but had never had any published. As she worked as a teacher she began to have her articles, about children and education printed in a magazine called Teachers' World. Her first book, called Child Whispers came out in 1922. It was a book of her poems with illustrations.
She was married soon after. She left teaching and began to have more success with her books. She wrote in and was the editor of magazine for children called Sunny Stories. The stories she wrote for this magazine were so popular that the magazine was then called Enid Blyton's Sunny Stories. The magazine came out every two weeks. Many of Enid's most famous books were first printed in this magazine in parts.
Enid Blyton has been in The Guinness Book of Records as one of the world's biggest selling writers. She is also included because she wrote more books than almost any other writer (about 700). Her books were published in many different languages. She said that she found writing them easy. In the last few years of her life she had a disease which damaged her mind, called presenile dementia. Her books still sell in large numbers, and used to be owned by her family. A few years ago her family sold them, and now her works belong to a private company.
Enid Blyton did a lot of work for charity and had a club for children which helped them to give money to charity. She was married twice and had two daughters. She died of Alzheimer's disease in Hampstead, London.- Writer
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Sheldon was born in Chicago on February 17, 1917. He began writing as a youngster and at the age of ten he made his first sale of a poem for $10. During the Depression, he worked at a variety of jobs and while attending Northwestern University he contributed short plays to drama groups.
At seventeen, he decided to try his luck in Hollywood. The only job he could find was as a reader of prospective film material at Universal Pictures for $22 a week. At night he wrote his own screenplays and was able to sell one called "South of Panama," to the studio for $250 in 1941.
During World War II, he served as a pilot in the Army Air Corps. After the war he established a reputation as being a prolific writer in the New York theater community. At one point during this career he had three musicals on Broadway including a rewritten version of "The Merry Widow," "Jackpot" and "Dream with Music." Eventually he received a Tony award as part of the writing team for the Gwen Verdon hit "Redhead" which brought to the attention of Hollywood.
His first assignment after his return to Hollywood was The Bachelor and the Bobby-Soxer (1947) starring Cary Grant, Myrna Loy and Shirley Temple, which won him an Academy Award for best original screenplay of 1947.
In his 1982 interview he described his years under contract with MGM as, "I never stopped working. One day Dore Schary (who was then production head) looked at a list of MGM projects then under production and noted that I had written eight of them, more than three other writers put together. That afternoon, he made me a producer."
In the early 1960s when the movie industry was hurting because of television's popularity, Sheldon decided to make a switch. "I suppose I needed money," he remembered. "I met Patty Duke one day at lunch and stated producing "The Patty Duke Show," (that starred Duke playing two identical cousins). I did something nobody else in TV ever did at that time. For seven years, I wrote almost every single episode of the series."
His next series was "I Dream of Jeannie," which he also created as well as produced, lasted five seasons, 1965-1970. The show concerned an astronaut, Larry Hagman, who lands on a desert island and discovers a bottle containing a beautiful, 2,000-year-old genie, played by Barbara Eden, who accompanies him back to Florida and eventually marries her.
According to Sheldon it was "During the last year of "I Dream of Jeannie," I decided to try a novel. Each morning from 9 until noon, I had a secretary at the studio take all calls. I mean every single call. I wrote each morning or rather, dictated and then I faced the TV business." The result was "The Naked Face," which was scorned by book reviewers but sold 21,000 copies in hardcover. The novel scored even bigger in paperback, where it reportedly sold 3.1 million copies. Thereafter Sheldon name would continually be on the best-seller lists, often reigning on top for months at a time.
Sheldon's books including titles like "Rage of Angels," "The Other Side of Midnight," "Master of the Game" and "If Tomorrow Comes," provided him with his greatest fame. They featured cleverly plots with sensuality and a high degree of suspense, a device that kept fans from being able to putting his books down.
In a 1982 interview Sheldon told of how he created his novels; "I try to write my books so the reader can't put them down. I try to construct them so when the reader gets to the end of a chapter, he or she has to read just one more chapter. It's the technique of the old Saturday afternoon serial: leave the guy hanging on the edge of the cliff at the end of the chapter."
Explaining why so many women bought his books, he once commented that: "I like to write about women, who are talented and capable, but most important, retain their femininity. Women have tremendous power, their femininity, because men can't do without it."
Sheldon had few fans among highbrow critics, whose reviews of his books were generally reproachful of both Sheldon and his readers. Sheldon however remained undeterred, promoting the novels and himself with warm enthusiasm.
A big, cheerful man, he bragged about his work habits. Unlike other novelists who toil over typewriters or computers, Sheldon would dictate fifty pages a day to a secretary or a tape machine. He would correct the pages the following day and dictate another fifty pages continuing the routine until he had between 1,200 to 1,500 pages. "Then I would do a complete rewrite 12 to 15 times," he said. "Sometimes I would spend a whole year rewriting."
Sheldon prided himself on the authenticity of his novels. During a 1987 interview he remarked that: "If I write about a place, I have been there. If I write about a meal in Indonesia, I have eaten there in that restaurant. I don't think you can fool the reader."
For his novel "Windmills of the Gods," that dealt with the CIA, he interviewed former CIA chief Richard Helms, traveled to Argentina and Romania, and spent a week in Junction City, Kansas where the book's heroine had lived.
After a career that had earned him a Tony, an Oscar and an Emmy (for "I Dream of Jeannie"), Sheldon declared that his work as a novelist was his best work. "I love writing books," he once commented. "Movies are a collaborative medium, and everyone is second-guessing you. When you do a novel you're on your own. It's a freedom that doesn't exist in any other medium."
Several of his novels became television miniseries, often with the Sheldon serving as producer.
He was married for more than 30 years to Jorja Curtright Sheldon, a stage and film actress who later became a prominent interior decorator. After her death in 1985 he married Alexandra Sheldon, a former child actress and advertising executive, in 1989.
Sheldon died January 30, 2007 of complications from pneumonia at Eisenhower Medical Center in Rancho Mirage, California according with his wife, Alexandra, was by his side.
Along with his wife, Sheldon was survived by his daughter, author Mary Sheldon; his brother Richard and two grandchildren.- Writer
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Joanne Rowling was born in Yate, near Bristol, a few miles south of a town called Dursley ("Harry Potter"'s Muggle-family). Her father Peter Rowling was an engineer for Rolls Royce in Bristol at this time. Her mother, Anne, was half-French and half-Scottish. They met on a train as it left King's Cross Station in London. Her sister Diana is about 2 years younger than Joanne. In 1971, Peter Rowling moved his family to the nearby village of Winterbourne (still in the Bristol vicinity). During the family's residence in Winterbourne, Jo and Di Rowling were friends with neighborhood children, Ian and Vikki Potter. In 1974, the Rowling family moved yet again, this time to Tutshill, near the Welsh border-town of Chepstow in the Forest of Dean and across the Severn River from the greater Bristol area. Rowling admits to having been a bit of a daydreamer as a child and began writing stories at the age of six. After leaving Exeter University, where she read French and Classics, she started work as a teacher but daydreamed about becoming a writer. One day, stuck on a delayed train for four hours between Manchester and London, she dreamed up a boy called "Harry Potter". That was in 1990. It took her six years to write the book. In the meantime, she went to teach in Portugal, married a Portuguese television journalist, had her daughter, Jessica, divorced her husband and returned to Britain when Jessica was just three months old. She went to live in Edinburgh to be near her sister, Di. Her sudden penury made her realize that it was "back-against-the-wall time" and she decided to finish her "Harry Potter" book. She sent the manuscript to two agents and one publisher, looking up likely prospects in the library. One of these agents that she picked at random based on the fact that she liked his name, Christopher Little, was immediately captivated by the manuscript and signed her on as his client within three days. During the 1995-1996 time-frame, while hoping to get the manuscript for "Harry Potter & The Philosopher's Stone" published, Rowling worked as a French teacher in Edinburgh. Several publishers turned down the manuscript before Bloomsbury agreed to purchase it in 1996.- Gilbert Patten is known for The Crown Prince's Double (1915) and Temporary Marriage (1923).
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Acclaimed writer, Dr. Seuss was born Theodor Geisel in Springfield, Massachusetts, on Wednesday, March 2nd, 1904. After attending Dartmouth College and Oxford University, he began a career in advertising. His advertising cartoons, featuring Quick, Henry, the Flit!, appeared in several leading American magazines. Dr. Seuss's first children's book, titled "And To Think That I Saw It On Mulberry Street", hit the market in 1937, changing the face of children's literature forever. It was rejected 27 times before it was finally published by Vanguard Press in 1937.
Following World War 2, Geisel and his first wife Helen moved to La Jolla, California, where he wrote and published several children's books in the coming years, including If I Ran the Zoo and Horton Hears a Who! A major turning point in Geisel's career came when, in response to a 1954 Life magazine article that criticized children's reading levels, Houghton Mifflin and Random House asked him to write a children's primer using 220 vocabulary words. The resulting book, The Cat in the Hat, was published in 1957 and was described by one critic as a "tour de force." The success of The Cat in the Hat cemented Geisel's place in children's literature.
In the following years, Geisel wrote many more books, both in his new simplified-vocabulary style and using his older, more elaborate technique, and including such favorites as Green Eggs and Ham and How the Grinch Stole Christmas! (1966). In 1966, with the help of eminent & longtime cartoonist, Chuck Jones, The Grinch was immediately adapted into an animated film & Boris Karloff was the narrator, (& as the evil Grinch, that turned away from its bitterness, as the special begins) of the half-hour Christmas animation special.
Winner of the Pulitzer Prize in 1984 and three Academy Awards, Seuss overall was the author and illustrator of 44 children's books, some of which have been made into audio-cassettes, animated television specials, and videos for people of all ages. Even after his death in Autumn of 1991, Dr. Seuss continues to be the best-selling author of children's books in the world. Following the death of his first wife Helen Geisel in 1967, Geisel wed Audrey Geisel, who remained his wife until his death on Tuesday, September 24th, 1991, at the age of 87 years 6 months and 22 days. His full life-time was 31,982 days, equaling 4,568 weeks & 6 days.- Writer
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As a kid, Oda was inspired by vikings and aspired to become a manga artist. He later submitted a character named Pandaman for Yudetamago's classic wrestling manga "Kinnikuman", who was not only used in a chapter of the manga but would later return as a recurring cameo character in Oda's own works. At the age of 17, he submitted his work "Wanted!" in 1992. And won several awards, including 2nd place in the coveted Tezuka manga awards. At the age of 19, he worked as an assistant artist for Nobuhiro Watsuki on the manga "Rurouni Kenshin", before winning the Hop Step Award for new artists. During this time, he drew two pirate-themed one-shot stories, called "Romance Dawn". In 1997, One Piece appeared for the 1st time in Weekly Shonen Jump magazine issue #34 and promptly became one of the most popular manga in Japan (after the "Dragon Ball" series). His biggest influence is Akira Toriyama. Also known as the creator of "Dragon Ball" and "Dr. Slump". Him and Toriyama have also made a one-shot manga called "Cross Epoch", a crossover containing characters from both Dragon Ball and One Piece.- Writer
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Count Lev Nikolaevich Tolstoy was born on September 9, 1828, in his ancestral estate Yasnaya Polyana, South of Moscow, Russia. He was the fourth of five children in a wealthy family of Russian landed Gentry. His parents died when he was a child, and he was brought up by his elder brothers and relatives.
Leo Tolstoy studied languages and law at Kazan University for three years. He was dissatisfied with the school and left Kazan without a degree, returned to his estate and educated himself independently. In 1848 he moved to the capital, St. Petersburg, and there passed two tests for a law degree. He was abruptly called to return to his estate near Moscow, where he inherited 4000 acres of land and 350 serfs. There Tolstoy built a school for his serfs, and acted as a teacher. He briefly went to a Medical School in Moscow, but lost a fortune in gambling, and was pulled out by his brother. He took military training, became an Army officer, and moved to the Caucasus, where he lived a simple life for three years with Cossacs. There he wrote his first novel - "Childhood" (1852), it became a success. With writing "Boyhood" (1854) and "Youth" (1857) he concluded the autobiographical trilogy. In the Crimean War (1854-55) Tolstoy served as artillery commander in the Battle of Sevastopol, and was decorated for his courage. Between the battles he wrote three stories titled "Sevastopol Sketches", that won him wide attention, and a complement from the Czar Aleksandr II.
After the war, Tolstoy returned to St. Petersburg, where he enjoyed the friendship of Ivan Turgenev, Nikolai A. Nekrasov, Ivan Goncharov, and other writers. On his trips to Europe, he had discussions with Gertsen in London, and attended Darwin's lectures. In Brussels he had meetings with philosophers Prudhon and Lelewel. Tolstoy undertook a research of schools in Europe, and later he built and organized over 20 schools for poor people in Russia. At that time the secret police began surveillance, and searched his home. In 1862 he married Sofia Andreevna Bers, and fathered 13 children with his wife. Four of their babies died, and the couple raised the remaining nine children. His wife was also his literary secretary, and also contributed to his best works, "War and Peace" (1863-69) and "Anna Karenina" (1873-77). In his "Confession" (1879) Tolstoy revealed his own version of Christianity, blended with socialism, that won him many followers. Tolstoyan communities sprang up in America and Europe, and he assisted the Russian non-Orthodox Christians (Dukhobors) in migrating to USA and Canada. He split from aristocratic class and developed an ascetic lifestyle, becoming a vegetarian, and a farmer. He sponsored and organized free meals for the poor. He transfered his copyright on all of his writings after 1880 to public domain. In his later age Tolstoy was pursuing the path of a wandering ascetic. He corresponded with Mohandas K. Gandhi, who was directly influenced by Tolstoy's "The Kingdom of God is Within You" (1894), which was praised by many nonviolent movements.
In 1900 Tolstoy criticized the Tsar's government in a series of publications, calling for separation of Chuch and State. Tsar Nicholas II retaliated through the Church, by expulsion of Tolstoy from Orthodox Cristianity as a "heretic". He fell ill, and suffered from a severe depression; he was suicidal and even had to eliminate all hunting guns from his home, because of his suicidal mode. He was treated by the famous doctor Dahl, and was visited by composer Sergei Rachmaninoff and basso Feodor Chaliapin Sr., who performed for Tolstoy on many occasions. Later he went to convalesce in Yalta, in Crimea, where he spent time with Anton Chekhov and Maxim Gorky. Tolstoy was an obvious candidate for the Nobel Prize in Literature, but was initially omitted by the Nobel Committee for his views. The omission caused a strong response from a group of Swedish writers and artists. They sent an address to Tolstoy, but the writer answered by declining any future prize nomination.
In 1902 Tolstoy wrote a letter to the Tsar, calling for social justice, to prevent a civil war, and in 1904, during the Russo-Japanese War, Tolstoy wrote a condemnation of war. The Tsar replied by increasing police surveillance on Tolstoy. In November of 1910 he left his estate, probably taking the path of a wandering ascetic, which he had been pursuing for decades. He left home without explanations and took a train, in which he caught pneumonia, and died at a remote station of Astapovo. He was laid to rest in his estate of Yasnaya Polyana, which was made a Tolstoy National Museum.
His youngest daughter, named Alexandra Tolstoy, was the director of the Tolstoy Museum, and was arrested by the Communists five times. She emigrated from Russia to the United States, where she founded the Tolstoy Foundation. She helped many prominent Russian intellectuals, such as Vladimir Nabokov and Sergei Rachmaninoff among many others.- Corín Tellado was born on 25 April 1927 in Viavélez, Asturias, Spain. She was a writer, known for Tengo que abandonarte (1969), Notre mariage (1984) and Así aprendí a quererte (1969). She was married to Domingo Egusquizaga. She died on 11 April 2009 in Gijón, Asturias, Spain.
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Jackie Collins was born on 4 October 1937 in London, England, UK. She was an actress and writer, known for Danger Man (1960), The Saint (1962) and The Stud (1978). She was married to Oscar Lerman and Wallace Austin. She died on 19 September 2015 in Los Angeles, California, USA.- Alger was a writer of young adult novels, characterized by the "rags-to-riches" narrative, in which impoverished boys rise from their humble backgrounds to lives of middle-class security and comfort through good works. His writings had a formative effect on the United States during the Gilded Age, an era of rapid economic growth from the 1870s to about 1900.
Since 1947, the 'Horatio Alger Association of Distinguished Americans', based in Alexandria, Virginia, has bestowed an annual award on outstanding individuals in American society who have succeeded in the face of adversity, and scholarships to encourage young people to pursue their dreams with determination and perseverance.
He died with little money at his sister's home in Natick, Massachusetts, and his death was barely noticed. - Writer
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R.L. Stine was born on 8 October 1943 in Columbus, Ohio, USA. He is a writer and producer, known for Goosebumps (2015), Fear Street: Part One - 1994 (2021) and Fear Street: Part Three - 1666 (2021). He has been married to Jane Stine since 22 June 1969. They have one child.- Writer
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Dean R. Koontz was born on 9 July 1945 in Everett, Pennsylvania, USA. He is a writer and producer, known for Odd Thomas (2013), Phantoms (1998) and Watchers (1988). He has been married to Gerda Ann Cerra since 15 October 1966.- Writer
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Nora Roberts was born on 10 October 1950 in Washington, District of Columbia, USA. She is a writer and actress, known for Brazen (2022), Sanctuary (2001) and Carolina Moon (2007). She has been married to Bruce Wilder since 6 July 1985. She was previously married to Ronald Aufdem-Brinke.- Writer
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Born to noble parents (his father Sergei was a retired major, and his mother, Nadezhda, was the granddaughter of an ennobled Ethiopian general) on the 26th of May, 1799 in Moscow, Alexander Sergeevich Pushkin became involved with a liberal underground revolutionary group that saw him exiled to the Caucasus.
He spent most of his time there writing poetry and novels. In 1826 Pushkin was pardoned by the Tsar and allowed to return home after six years of exile. He married Natalia Goncharova, whose coquettish behavior led to her husband challenging an admirer of hers to a duel in January 1837. Though both were wounded, only Pushkin died two days later from his injuries.- Writer
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Stephen Edwin King was born on September 21, 1947, at the Maine General Hospital in Portland. His parents were Nellie Ruth (Pillsbury), who worked as a caregiver at a mental institute, and Donald Edwin King, a merchant seaman. His father was born under the surname "Pollock," but used the last name "King," under which Stephen was born. He has an older brother, David. The Kings were a typical family until one night, when Donald said he was stepping out for cigarettes and was never heard from again. Ruth took over raising the family with help from relatives. They traveled throughout many states over several years, finally moving back to Durham, Maine, in 1958.
Stephen began his actual writing career in January of 1959, when David and Stephen decided to publish their own local newspaper named "Dave's Rag". David bought a mimeograph machine, and they put together a paper they sold for five cents an issue. Stephen attended Lisbon High School, in Lisbon, in 1962. Collaborating with his best friend Chris Chesley in 1963, they published a collection of 18 short stories called "People, Places, and Things--Volume I". King's stories included "Hotel at the End of the Road", "I've Got to Get Away!", "The Dimension Warp", "The Thing at the Bottom of the Well", "The Stranger", "I'm Falling", "The Cursed Expedition", and "The Other Side of the Fog." A year later, King's amateur press, Triad and Gaslight Books, published a two-part book titled "The Star Invaders".
King made his first actual published appearance in 1965 in the magazine Comics Review with his story "I Was a Teenage Grave Robber." The story ran about 6,000 words in length. In 1966 he graduated from high school and took a scholarship to attend the University of Maine. Looking back on his high school days, King recalled that "my high school career was totally undistinguished. I was not at the top of my class, nor at the bottom." Later that summer King began working on a novel called "Getting It On", about some kids who take over a classroom and try unsuccessfully to ward off the National Guard. During his first year at college, King completed his first full-length novel, "The Long Walk." He submitted the novel to Bennett Cerf/Random House only to have it rejected. King took the rejection badly and filed the book away.
He made his first small sale--$35--with the story "The Glass Floor". In June 1970 King graduated from the University of Maine with a Bachelor of Science degree in English and a certificate to teach high school. King's next idea came from the poem by Robert Browning, "Childe Roland to the Dark Tower Came." He found bright colored green paper in the library and began work on "The Dark Tower" saga, but his chronic shortage of money meant that he was unable to further pursue the novel, and it, too, was filed away. King took a job at a filling station pumping gas for the princely sum of $1.25 an hour. Soon he began to earn money for his writings by submitting his short stories to men's magazines such as Cavalier.
On January 2, 1971, he married Tabitha King (born Tabitha Jane Spruce). In the fall of 1971 King took a teaching job at Hampden Academy, earning $6,400 a year. The Kings then moved to Hermon, a town west of Bangor. Stephen then began work on a short story about a teenage girl named Carietta White. After completing a few pages, he decided it was not a worthy story and crumpled the pages up and tossed them into the trash. Fortunately, Tabitha took the pages out and read them. She encouraged her husband to continue the story, which he did. In January 1973 he submitted "Carrie" to Doubleday. In March Doubleday bought the book. On May 12 the publisher sold the paperback rights for the novel to New American Library for $400,000. His contract called for his getting half of that sum, and he quit his teaching job to pursue writing full time. The rest, as they say, is history.
Since then King has had numerous short stories and novels published and movies made from his work. He has been called the "Master of Horror". His books have been translated into 33 different languages, published in over 35 different countries. There are over 300 million copies of his novels in publication. He continues to live in Bangor, Maine, with his wife, and writes out of his home.
In June 1999 King was severely injured in an accident, he was walking alongside a highway and was hit by a van, that left him in critical condition with injuries to his lung, broken ribs, a broken leg and a severely fractured hip. After three weeks of operations, he was released from the Central Maine Medical Center in Lewiston.- Writer
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Paulo Coelho was born on 24 August 1947 in Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. He is a writer and actor, known for The Experimental Witch (2009), Amante Latino (1979) and Veronika Decides to Die (2009). He is married to Christina Oiticica.- Jeffrey Archer has topped the bestseller lists around the world, with sales of over 275 million copies in 100 countries and more than 50 languages, and more than 500,000 5* reviews.
His books have been #1 in 17 countries (US (New York Times), UK (Sunday Times) Germany (Der Spiegel), Australia, South Africa, Canada, New Zealand, India (The Times of India), Ireland, Finland, South Africa & Denmark & Others.
27 different titles have been #1 bestsellers.
He is only author ever to have been a #1 bestseller in fiction (twenty times), short stories (four times) and non-fiction (The Prison Diaries).
He has written 25 novels, 93 short stories, 3 plays, 3 children's books, 3 prison diaries, 3 plays and 2 screenplays.
His 26th novel, Next in Line, will be published worldwide on 29 October 2022. - Louis L'Amour was born on 22 March 1908 in Jamestown, North Dakota, USA. He was a writer, known for Hondo (1953), East of Sumatra (1953) and Apache Territory (1958). He was married to Kathy Adams. He died on 10 June 1988 in Los Angeles, California, USA.
- Jirô Akagawa was born on 29 February 1948 in Fukuoka City, Fukuoka, Japan. He is a writer, known for The High School Girl with a Machine Gun (1982), Poison (2012) and Sailor Suit and Machine Gun (1981).
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René Goscinny was a French comic book writer, of Polish-Jewish descent. His parents were Stanislaw Simkha Goscinny and Anna "Hanna" Beresniak-Goscinna. The family name Goscinny means "hospitable" in the Polish language. Stanislaw was a chemical engineer from Warsaw, and Anna was from a small village called Chodorków, in the vicinity of Zhytomyr. Warsaw is currently part of Poland, and Zhytomyr part of Ukraine.
Both of Goscinny's parents were born in the Russian Empire, but migrated to the French Third Republic prior to the end of World War I. They met each other in Paris, and were married there in 1919. René was born in Paris in 1926, as the second son of the couple. He received French citizenship at birth.
In 1928, the Goscinny family migrated to Buenos Aires, Argentina, as Stanislaw had found employment there. René was primarily raised in Buenos Aires, where he attended French-speaking schools. He reportedly a shy boy, but often acted as the "class clown" to seek attention. He enjoyed reading illustrated stories, and practiced drawing as a hobby.
In 1943, Stanislaw Goscinny suffered from cerebral hemorrhage and died. René was forced to quit school and find a job. He first worked as an assistant accountant, then as an illustrator in an advertising agency. In 1945, René migrated from Argentina to New York City, United States, to join his older brother who lived there. In 1946, René returned to France for his mandatory military service. He served in the 141st Alpine Infantry Battalion, and was discharged with the rank of a senior corporal.
In the late 1940s, Goscinny returned to New York City to seek employment there. He worked in various small studios, but managed to befriend a number of comics writers and artists who worked in the City at that time. Among them were Joseph Gillain (pen-name Jije, 1914-1980), Maurice De Bevere (pen-name Morris, 1923-2001), Will Elder (1921-2008), Jack Davis (1924-2016), and Harvey Kurtzman (1924-1993).
In 1951, artist and publisher Georges Troisfontaines hired Goscinny to head the Paris office of the "World Press" agency. In his new position, Goscinny met and befriended a French-artist of Italian descent, Albert Uderzo (1927-). The two collaborated in a number of early comics works, most notably the comedy-adventure series "Jehan Pistolet ". It featured a good-natured French privateer leading a crew of misfits into adventure.
During the 1950s, Goscinny collaborated with various writers and artists in producing new series of comics and children's books. He created characters like "Le Petit Nicolas" (a mischievous schoolboy) and "Oumpah-pah" (a heroic Native American caught up in 18th-century warfare), and took over the writing or older series like "Lucky Luke". However, few of his creations were particularly popular.
In 1959, Goscinny and Uderzo co-created the new series "Asterix" and its main characters. Featuring heroic Gauls fighting in the historic Gallic Wars (58-50 BC), the series mixed historical fiction with fantasy elements and satire. It soon became one of the most popular European comics, and Goscinny continued writing the series until his death.
In the 1960s, Goscinny became one of the most prolific writers of French comics. In 1962, he had a second major hit when collaborating with Jean Tabary (1930-2011) for the series "Iznogoud". The series features a villain-protagonist, the evil vizier Iznogoud who serves in the royal court of the Abbasid Caliphate (750-1258) in Baghdad, and spends most of his life trying to depose and replace the incompetent Caliph.
In 1967, Goscinny married Gilberte Pollaro-Millo. In 1968, they had their only daughter, Anne Goscinny. She would grow up to become a professional writer, following her father's footsteps.
In 1977, Goscinny was going through a routine stress test at the office of his doctor, when he suffered a cardiac arrest. He died instantly. He was only 51-years-old. His main legacy remains with his most popular series: "Asterix", "Iznogoud", "Lucky Luke", and "Le Petit Nicolas", which have all received several adaptations.- Writer
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Erle Stanley Gardner, the prolific pulp fiction writer best known for creating the fictional lawyer Perry Mason; Della Street, Mason's secretary; private detective Paul Drake, Mason's favorite investigator; and Hamilton Burger, the district attorney with the worst won-lost record in the history of fictional jurisprudence, was born in in Malden, Massachusetts, in 1889, the son of a mining engineer. The family soon moved to Portland, Oregon, and later to the Klondike during the Gold Rush. Eventually, the Gardners settled in Oroville, California, a small mining town.
Young Erle graduated from Palo Alto High School in 1909, but his college education was cut short when he was expelled from Valparaiso University in Indiana early in his freshman year for fighting. The young Erle led a wild life, as befits a child of the Klondike and mining towns. He was to remain an ardent sportsman and traveler throughout his life. He also spoke fluent Chinese.
The wild young Mr. Gardner supported himself as a boxer and as a promoter of illegal wrestling matches. Eventually, fate was to intervene. While working as a typist in a California law office, he became intrigued by the subject and decided to make it his profession. In the first half of the 20th century, lawyers did not attend law school but gained their education via practical experience, i.e., working in a law office. Law school was for those who intended to teach the law or become judges. Without formal instruction, Garnder passed the bar examination and was admitted to the California Bar in 1911, opening his first law office in Merced, California, when he was 21 years old.
Initially, business was bad, but his Chinese fluency enabled him to make a living defending Chinese clients, who dubbed him "T'ai chong tze" ("The Big Lawyer"). Gardner moved south to Ventura, where he went into practice with another attorney in 1918. Gardner soon quit practicing law for three years, instead working as a salesman for the Consolidated Sales Co. He married Natalie Frances Talbert in 1921, the year he returned to Ventura and the practice of the law. He was a practicing attorney for the next 12 years.
In the early 1920s, Gardner began writing for the pulp fiction magazines under the pseudonym Charles M. Green, the first of many pen names he would use during his career. Gardner wrote strictly for the money, but he had a flair for it, and his mystery short stories were popular and proved highly salable. He soon became a quite successful writer. According to the Encyclopedia Britannica, Gardner "wrote nearly 100 detective and mystery novels that sold more than 1,000,000 copies each, making him easily the best-selling American writer of his time."
Gardner established himself as a major contributor to the Black Mask, the most famous of all the pulp magazines. He wrote stories about Gentleman Rogue Lester Leith, Sidney Zoom (The Master of Disguise and the King of Chinatown). After the Great Depression set in, Gardner began writing western stories for a penny a word. A 1931 trip to China gave birth to Major Copely Brane, International Adventurer. That same year, he began using a Dictaphone to dictate his stories. Gardner had averaged 66,000 typed words a week (10% longer than F. Scott Fitzgerald's The Great Gatsby (1949)). After dictating a story, Gardener's secretary would transcribe the recordings.
Perry Mason debuted in 1933 with two stories, The Case of the Velvet Claws and The Case of the Sulky Girl, and proved instantly popular. The first Perry Mason film, The Case of the Howling Dog (1934) was made the next year by Warner Bros.-First National, with Warren William as Perry Mason, ably supported by future Oscar-winner Mary Astor and character actor Allen Jenkins. Williams returned the following year in The Case of the Curious Bride (1935) and The Case of the Lucky Legs (1935), the former helmed by Michael Curtiz, one of Warner's top directors who won his first Oscar nomination for directing Alex Hakobian that same year. Curtiz eventually won his Oscar for directing Casablanca (1942).
The following year, at RKO, granite-chinned heart-throb Richard Dix played Gardner's detective Bill Fenwick in the B-movie Special Investigator (1936). Meanwhile, back at Warner Bros., William Warren reprised the role of Perry Mason in The Case of the Velvet Claws (1936) before handing the role over to former silent-film superstar Ricardo Cortez. Cortez had played Sam Spade in the original The Maltese Falcon (1931), and at whom the immortal line, "Who's the dame in my kimono?" was directed. In The Case of the Black Cat (1936), the series was foisted off on the B-unit. Donald Woods, who had made his film debut eight years earlier in the silent picture Motorboat Mamas (1928), took over the role for the final entry in the Warner Bros. series, The Case of the Stuttering Bishop (1937). Despite Ann Dvorak being cast as Della Street, it proved the last appearance of Perry Mason on-screen for 20 years, with the exception of his veiled appearance under another name in Granny Get Your Gun (1940), which was based on the Perry Mason novel "The Case of the Dangerous Dowager."
After 1940, a Gardner work would never again appear on the big screen, though Perry Mason was to achieve immortality on TVs as they became ubiquitous in American homes. Perry Mason, which had some success as a radio show on CBS, moved to television in a one-hour format on 1957 and was a smash hit. The series ran until actor Raymond Burr, the definitive small-screen attorney, tired of the role in 1966. The TV series was revived in 1989 as made-for-TV movies, starting with "The Case of Too Many Murders" (1989), written by Thomas Chastain.
Due to his prodigious output, Garnder had to resort to pseudonyms so that his works wouldn't flood the market and depress their value. His most famous pen name was that of A.A. Fair. Gardner had a staff of secretaries to transcribe his dictation. He married one of his long-serving secretaries in 1968, after the death of his wife Natalie, from whom he had been estranged from since 1935.
Out of necessity, Gardner developed formulaic characters and plots, though each book was worked out extensively in his own longhand, including the final courtroom confrontation, before he sat down to dictate it. Graduating from Black Mask in the late 1930s, most of the Perry Mason novels were serialized by the Saturday Evening Post before they were published in book form. Gardner's connection with that magazine lasted 20 years.
As a lawyer, Gardner became the bane of the legal establishment when he helped co-founding The Case Review Committee (colloquially known as the Court of Last Resort), a professional association of concerned lawyers who sought to investigate and reopen cases wherein a person might have been wrongly convicted serious crime. Beside Gardner, other founders included LeMoyne Snyder, a physician and lawyer who wrote well-regarded text books concerning homicide investigations; Dr. Leonorde Keeler, a pioneer and authority in the use of the polygraph in criminal proceedings; former American Academy of Scientific Investigators President Alex Gregory (another polygraph expert who replaced Dr. Keeler after his death), renowned handwriting expert Clark Sellers, and former Walla Walla Penitentiary warden Tom Smith. The Mystery Writers of America bestowed its prestigious Fact Crime Edgar Award on Gardner in 1952, for his non-fiction book The Court of Last Resort (1957), which detailed one of the Court's first investigations.
The most prominent case the Court was involved with was the murder conviction of Dr. Samuel Sheppard, who staunchly proclaimed his innocence of the murder of his wife. (The Sheppard case provided the basis for the fictional The Fugitive (1963) TV show.) During the initial phases of the Sheppard appeal, Gardner polygraphed members of the Sheppard family. He had hoped if the results were favorable, he would then administer the lie detector test to Sam Sheppard himself. However, when Sheppard family members were tested, the polygraph results indicated guilty knowledge. Consequently Gardner declined to test Sam Sheppard, and the Court of Last Resort withdrew from the case, even though Gardner believed in Sheppard's innocence. Sheppard was later freed by a Supreme Court decision that held that Sheppard had not gotten a fair trial due to pre-trial publicity that tainted the juror pool. The Supreme Court case was won by F. Lee Bailey, who also won acquittal for Sheppard during the subsequent retrial. Polygraph tests have never been allowed into evidence in a U.S. court due to their unreliability. Gardner ended his active membership in the Court of Last Resort in 1960. The Court - which conducted preliminary investigations of at least 8,000 cases -- eventually disbanded.
Gardner died on March 11, 1970, at his home, Rancho del Paisano, in Temecula, California. His last Perry Mason mystery, "The Case of the Postponed Murder" was published in 1973.- Writer
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Edgar Wallace was born on 1 April 1875 in Greenwich, London, England, UK. He was a writer and director, known for King Kong (2005), King Kong (1933) and King Kong (1976). He was married to Ethel Violet King and Ivy Maude Caldecott. He died on 10 February 1932 in Hollywood, California, USA.- Writer
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Louis Cha was born on 10 March 1924 in Haining, Zhejiang Province, China. He was a writer and director, known for Wong lao hu qiang qin (1960), Sakra (2023) and The Romance of the Condor Heroes (2014). He was married to Lin Leyi, Zhu Mei and Du Zhifen. He died on 30 October 2018 in Hong Kong, China(undisclosed).- Janet Dailey was born on 21 May 1944 in Storm Lake, Iowa, USA. She was a writer, known for Foxfire Light (1983), When a Spider Bites (1993) and Hour Magazine (1980). She was married to Bill Dailey. She died on 14 December 2013 in Branson, Missouri, USA.
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Robert Ludlum was born on 25 May 1927 in New York City, New York, USA. He was a writer and actor, known for The Bourne Supremacy (2004), The Bourne Identity (2002) and The Bourne Legacy (2012). He was married to Karen Dunn and Mary Patricia Ryducha. He died on 12 March 2001 in Naples, Florida, USA.- Writer
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Akira Toriyama is a Japanese manga writer, manga artist, and character designer for video games. He has been a working artist since 1978. In manga, he is better known for creating the science fiction comedy series "Dr. Slump" (1980-1984) and the martial-arts-themed series "Dragon Ball" (1984-1995). "Dragon Ball" has been adapted into four animated series: "Dragon Ball" (1986-1989), "Dragon Ball Z" (1989-1996), "Dragon Ball GT" (1996-1997), and "Dragon Ball Super" (2015-2018). Toriyama has provided character designs for several of the adaptations. As a video game designer, Toriyama is primarily known for co-creating the long-running series "Dragon Quest" (1986-). He has continued to work in most of the series' games. Toriyama's works are credited with boosting the popularity of Japanese animation in the Western world. In 2019, Toriyama was named as a Chevalier (knight) of the "Ordre des Arts et des Lettres" ("Order of the Arts and the Letters") by France. It is a French order of merit, awarded to writers and artists.
During the 20th century, Nagoya became a center for automotive, Several manufacturing companies of the industry have their headquarters in Nagoya. By 1961, Toriyama started drawing pictures of animals and vehicles as a hobby. He was reportedly inspired by the animated film "One Hundred and One Dalmatians"(1961), as he was impressed by the film's art style.
During his elementary school years, Toriyama has access to the manga collection owned by the older brother of a friend. He was fascinated by the science fiction series "Astro Boy" (1952-1968), which featured the adventures of a sentient android with superpowers. During his middle school years, Toriyama was increasingly fascinated with live-action film and television. He was a fan of the tokusatsu series (science fantasy series, using special effects) "Ultraman" (1966-1967). The series focused on the adventures of a gigantic superhero, who regularly defended the Earth from aliens and monsters. He also enjoyed kaiju films (films about giant monsters). His favorite film series was "Gamera" (1965-2006), which featured the adventures of a fire-breathing turtle.
Toriyama attended a high school which focused on teaching creative design to its students. Against the wishes of his parents, he decided to not pursue a college education. Shortly after graduating high school, Toriyama used his art skills to get hired at an advertising agency in Nagoya. He spend several years in designing posters, but was increasingly fed up with his job. He was repeatedly reprimanded for dressing casually at work. He quit his job at age 23, and started considering a professional career as a manga artist.
Trying to get an entry into the manga industry, Toriyama created a manga story which parodied the recent film "Star Wars" (1977). He submitted the story to a contest organized by the magazine "Weekly Shonen Jump", hoping to win the magazine's "Newcomer Award". The story was rejected because it was a derivative work, and the contest was for original works. But magazine editor Kazuhiko Torishima (1952-) liked Toriyama's art style. He encouraged him to send more original material to the magazine.
Toriyama's first published work was the story "Wonder Island" (1978). It featured a kamikaze pilot who had been stranded on an island for 35 years, and was trying to find a way to escape. The story came last in a popularity contest, disappointing Toriyama. The sequel "Wonder Island 2" (1979) focused on the police searching for a missing criminal. It parodied elements from the film "Dirty Harry" (1971). This story was also considered a flop. Most of Toriyama's early stories failed to impress his readers. He had more success with "Tomato the Cutesy Gumshoe" (1979), a story about a rookie detective. It was his first work featuring a female lead, and was well-liked by the readers.
Toriyama decided to use a female lead in next major effort. The result was the best-selling series "Dr. Slump". (1980-1984) It focused on Arale Norimaki, a sentient robot in the form of a little girl. She had superhuman strength, but her naivety and inexperience landed her in trouble. The series also featured a cast of eccentric supporting characters. Among them was the shape-shifting superhero Suppaman, a parody version of Superman who was depicted as a pompous buffoon. The series became one of the most popular manga of its era, and received an animated adaption (which lasted from 1981 to 1986). Toriyama wanted to end the series after its first six months, but his publisher insisted that the story should be continued. In 1981, Toriyama won a "Shogakukan Manga Award" for his work on "Dr. Slump".
Despite his success with a long-term series in the early 1980s, Toriyama continued to regularly submit one-shot stories for publication. He was frustrated when several of these stories met with lukewarm response by his readers. At about this point in his career, he created his own artist's studio, under the name "Bird Studio". The name was a pun on his own last name, as "tori" means "bird". He started employing assistants to work on the background details of his stories.
Kazuhiko Torishima (Toriyama's editor) noted that Toriyama enjoyed viewing kung fu films, but had never used martial arts elements in his stories. He suggested that Toriyama should try creating a kung-fu manga. Toriyama responded by creating the two-part story "Dragon Boy" (1983). It depicted a young martial artist who escorts a princess on a return journey to her home country. The story was warmly received, and Toriyama would later incorporate aspects of this story in "Dragon Ball".
In 1984, Toriyama finally concluded the "Dr. Slump". He had to promise his editor and publisher that he would soon start work on a replacement series. This new series was "Dragon Ball", which lasted for 11 years. Toriyama produced 519 chapters of the manga, which were collected into 42 volumes. The story focused on the life of martial artist Son Goku from childhood to adulthood, and gradually introduced the character's wife and descendants. The series gained in popularity due to its large cast of colorful characters, and its exciting use of combat scenes. Toriyama reportedly used Jackie Chan's films as the main inspiration for the fighting scenes.
Despite a busy working schedule due to long-term commitment to "Dragon Ball", Toriyama continued submitting one-shot stories for publication. In 1986, he was recruited as a character designer for the role-playing video game "Dragon Quest". He later admitted that he had never even heard of role-playing games before being offered the job, and he was not certain what the demands of the job were. He was created as the co-creator of the game, and the initial game launched a long-running franchise. Based on this success, Toriyama was later hired as a character designer on the role-playing game "Chrono Trigger" (1995) and on the fighting games "Tobal No. 1" (1996) and "Tobal 2" (1997).
Until the late 1980s, Toriyama had never worked in animation. His first substantial effort in the field was the animated film "Kosuke & Rikimaru: The Dragon of Konpei Island" (1988). He wrote the initial concept for the film, he co-wrote its screenplay, and designed all of its characters.
In 1995, Toriyama decided to conclude the "Dragon Ball" manga with a low-key ending. Son Goku left the planet Earth to serve as the mentor to a reincarnated former foe, leaving room for a new generation of heroes. Toriyama wanted to imply that the story would continue, though he had no actual intention to write a sequel at that point. When the animated series "Dragon Ball GT" (1996-1997) was conceived as a sequel, Toriyama was hired as a character designer. For the following few years, Toriyama primarily produced short-lived manga series. Among them were "Cowa!"(1997-1998), "Kajika" (1998), and "Sand Land" (2000). In 2002, Toriyama made a promotional visit to the United States, as a number of his works were about to be reprinted in the American magazine "Shonen Jump".
In 2005, Toriyama served as the main designer of an electric car for CQ Motors. It was not a commercial success, with only 9 vehicles being produced. In 2006, Toriyama and Eiichiro Oda created the crossover story "Cross Epoch". It featured characters from "Dragon Ball" co-existing with fantasy characters from the series "One Piece" (1997-). Also in 2006, Toriyama served as a character designer for the video game "Blue Dragon". The story featured a small group of heroes trying to stop the villain Nene's efforts to massacre villagers.
In 2009, Toriyama was credited as both a creative consultant and an executive producer for the live-action film "Dragonball Evolution". He reportedly cautioned the film's producers that the film's script was "bland" and uninteresting, but his suggestions to alter the script were ignored. The film was a commercial flop. Also in 2009, Toriyama created a promotional manga for the environmental organization "Rural Society Project". In 2011, Toriyama helped raise awareness for the victims of the Tohoku earthquake and the subsequent tsunami.
From 2012 to 2013, Toriyama was part of the film crew for the animated feature film "Dragon Ball Z: Battle of Gods" (2013). It was the first theatrical animated film based on "Dragon Ball" since 1996. In the film, the god Beerus threatens to destroy the planet Earth. He only backs down when one of the heroes achieves godhood. Also in 2013, a touring exhibition displayed Toriyama's manga manuscripts from "Dragon Ball".
Toriyama served as the main screenwriter for the animated film "Dragon Ball Z: Resurrection F" (2015). The film featured the resurrection of the long-dead villain Frieza, who tries to improve his skills before seeking revenge. Toriyama continued to work on the film's sequels until 2022. He also provided the scripts for the sequel manga "Dragon Ball Super" (2015-), though the artwork was provided by the younger artist Toyotarou (1978-). There were 18 volumes of the manga published between 2016 and 2022.
By 2022, Toriyama was 67-years-old. He has been married to the retired manga artist Yoshimi Kato since 1982, and they have two adult children. He works from his home studio in Kiyosu, and reportedly lives a reclusive life. He rarely appears in public or offers interviews. He has never retired, and seems to have no intention to do so.
Akira Toriyama died at the age of 68 on march 1, 2024.- Writer
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James Patterson was born on 22 March 1947 in Newburgh, New York, USA. He is a writer and producer, known for Alex Cross (2012), Kiss the Girls (1997) and Along Came a Spider (2001). He has been married to Susan Patterson since 24 July 1997. They have one child.- Writer
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Frédéric Dard was born on 29 June 1921 in Bourgoin-Jallieu, Isère, France. He was a writer and director, known for Paris Pick-Up (1962), Rendezvous (1960) and Merry Christmas (2024). He was married to Françoise de Caro and Odette Damaisin. He died on 6 June 2000 in Bonnefontaine, Fribourg, Switzerland.- Writer
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Stan Berenstain was born on 29 September 1923 in West Philadelphia, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA. He was a writer and producer, known for The Berenstain Bears (1985), The Berenstain Bears' Camping Adventure (1993) and The Berenstain Bears Get in a Fight (1995). He was married to Jan Berenstain. He died on 26 November 2005 in Solebury, Pennsylvania, USA.- Writer
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Jan Berenstain was born on 26 July 1923 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA. She was a writer and producer, known for The Berenstain Bears (1985), The Berenstain Bears' Camping Adventure (1993) and The Berenstain Bears Get in a Fight (1995). She was married to Stan Berenstain. She died on 24 February 2012 in Doylestown, Pennsylvania, USA.- Writer
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Dahl was born in Wales in 1916. He served as a fighter pilot in the Royal Air Force during World War II. He made a forced landing in the Libyan Desert and was severely injured. As a result, he spent five months in a Royal Navy hospital in Alexandria. Dahl is noted for how he relates suspenseful and sometimes horrific events in a simple tone.- Writer
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A graduate of Mississippi State University and Ole Miss Law School, John Grisham obtained his law degree in 1981 and practiced law for about 10 years, specializing in criminal defense and personal injury litigation. He was elected to the Mississippi House of Representatives in 1983 and served until 1990. He gave up his law practice to write full-time. He began writing in 1984, and three years later finished his first novel, "A Time To Kill", published by Wynwood Press in June 1988. He is the best-selling author of "A Time to Kill", "The Firm", "The Pelican Brief" and "The Client". He lives with his wife and their two children on a farm in Oxford, Mississippi.- Writer
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Born Pearl Zane Gray on January 31, 1872, in Zanesville, Ohio--a town founded by his mother's family--famed western novelist Zane Grey was an athlete and outdoorsman from an early age, with his main interests being fishing and baseball. He attended the University of Pennsylvania on a baseball scholarship, graduating with a degree in dentistry in 1896. He played minor-league baseball for a short period for a team in West Virginia. He started a dentistry practice in New York city, where he met the woman who would become his wife, Lina Roth, who got him to focus more on his writing. He would, however, periodically take fishing trips to the upper Delaware River in Lackawaxen in Pike County, Pennsylvania. In 1902 he became a published author by selling a story about fishing. Three years later he and Lisa married and moved to a farm in Lackawaxen
Grey began to take an interest in the West after accompanying a friend to Arizona on a trapping expedition to capture mountain lions. He published his first western novel, "Spirit of the Border", in 1906, and it quickly became a best-seller. In 1912 he published what is probably his best-known western novel, "Riders of the Purple Sage", which was also a big seller. Aiming to get his books made into films, he formed his own motion-picture production company, which he later sold to Paramount Pictures executive Jesse Lasky. Paramount would produce a large number of westerns based on Grey's novels.
Unlike many successful authors, Grey didn't content himself with simply churning out more novels. He traveled all over the world and involved himself in a variety of endeavors, from working a mining claim on Oregon's Rogue River to fishing for sharks in New Zealand, and writing books--both fiction and non-fiction--about his adventures. He had a special affinity for New Zealand and wrote many best-selling books about his fishing experiences there, which helped to make the country a mecca for deep-sea sport fishermen. Grey himself held many world records for catching big-game fish.
He died in 1939 and is buried at the Union Cemetery in Lackawaxen, Pennsylvania. The city is also the location of the Zane Grey Museum, which is administered by the National Park Service.- U.S. novelist, short-story writer, and screenwriter Irving Wallace excelled at writing popular fiction based on current events. He began writing for various magazines at age 15. He wrote screenplays for a variety of studios from 1950 to 1959, when he turned solely to writing books. His first major bestseller was "The Chapman Report" (1960), a fictional account of a sexual research team's investigations of a wealthy Los Angeles suburb. Among other fictional works by Wallace are "The Prize" (1962) and "The Word" (1972). His meticulously researched fiction often has the flavor of spicy journalism. Wallace's books are structured around a strong narrative line and are laced with sex, facts and, most importantly, a moral that gives cohesion to conflicting elements. The universal appeal of Wallace's books has made most of them best-sellers. With their recurring dramatic confrontations, his novels lend themselves well to screenplay adaptation, and most of them have been filmed. Wallace has also compiled several nonfiction works with his family, including "The People's Almanac" (1975) and "The Book of Lists" (1977), both of which have spawned sequels.
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English writer, scholar and philologist, Tolkien's father was a bank manager in South Africa. Shortly before his father died (1896) his mother took him and his younger brother to his father's native village of Sarehole, near Birmingham, England. The landscapes and Nordic mythology of the Midlands may have been the source for Tolkien's fertile imagination to write about 'the Shire' and 'hobbits' in his later book the Hobbit (1937). After his mother's death in 1904 he was looked after by Father Francis Xavier Morgan a RC priest of the Congregation of the Oratory. Tolkien was educated at King Edward VI school in Birmingham. He studied linguistics at Exeter College, Oxford, and took his B.A. in 1915. In 1916 he fought in World War I with the Lancashire Fusiliers. It is believed that his experiences during the Battle of the Somne may have been fueled the darker side of his subsequent novels. Upon his return he worked as an assistant on the Oxford English Dictionary (1918-20) and took his M.A. in 1919. In 1920 he became a teacher in English at the University of Leeds. He then went on to Merton College in Oxford, where he became Rawlinson and Bosworth Professor of Anglo-Saxon (1925-45) and Merton professor of English Language and Literature (1945-59). His first scholarly publication was an edition of Sir Gawain and the Green Knight (1925). He also wrote books on Chaucer (1934) and Beowulf (1937). In 1939 Tolkien gave the Andrew Lang Lecture at the University of St. Andrews in Scotland titled: "On Fairy-Stories". Tolkien will however be remembered most for his books the Hobbit (1937) and the Lord of the Rings (1954-55). The Hobbit began as a bedtime story for his children". He wrote Lord of the Rings over a period of about 14 years.
Tolkien also discussed parts of his novels with fellow Oxfordian and fantasy writer CS Lewis during their 'meetings'. He was trying to create a fantasy world so that he could explain how he had invented certain languages, and in doing so created 'Middle-earth'. However among his peers at Oxford his works were not well received as they were not considered 'scholarly'. It was after LOTR was published in paperback in the United States in 1965 that he developed his legendary cult following and also imitators. Tolkien was W. P. Ker lecturer at Glasgow University in 1953. In 1954 both the University of Liege and University College, Dublin, awarded him honorary doctorates. He received the CBE in 1972. He served as vice-president of the Philological Society and was a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature. He was made an honorary fellow of Exeter College. Despite the immense popularity of his books today Tolkien did not greatly benefit from their sales. His son Christopher Tolkien was able to publish some of his works posthumously after his manuscripts were found.- Writer
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Masashi Kishimoto was born on 8 November 1974 in Nagi, Japan. He is a writer and producer, known for Naruto: Shippuden (2007), Naruto and The Last: Naruto the Movie (2014).- Karl May was born on 25 February 1842 in Hohenstein-Ernstthal, Kingdom of Saxony [now Saxony, Germany]. He was a writer, known for Auf den Trümmern des Paradieses (1920), Caravan of Death (1920) and Durch die Wüste (1936). He was married to Klara Plöhn and Emma Pollmer. He died on 30 March 1912 in Radebeul, Kingdom of Saxony [now Saxony], Germany.
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Mickey Spillane, the king of the pulp novelists in the post-WW II period, sold an estimated 200 million copies globally. He was born Frank Morrison Spillane in Brooklyn, New York. Young Frank's mother was a Protestant who bestowed on him his middle name "Morrison", but his Irish Catholic father, barkeep John Joseph Spillane, allegedly had his son baptized with the middle name "Michael", a traditional name for Irishmen (so common, in fact, that the nickname derived from it, "Mick", served as a derogatory term for Irishmen in both the US and England). "Women liked the name Mickey", Spillane said, explaining why he chose the moniker that eventually became one of the world's best-selling novelists. In 1980 seven of the top 15 all-time bestselling fiction books published in the U.S. had been written by Spillane.
Despite the fact that his books were international bestsellers, as a writer Spillane was almost universally reviled by literary critics. He and his novels were attacked not only for their alleged illiteracy but were denounced by the U.S. Senate's Kefauver Commission as promoting juvenile delinquency. Explaining the extraordinary appeal of his novels, Spillane simply said, "People like them." He countered his critics by saying they were jealous of his success. "I'm a writer, not an author," was Spillane's mantra all through his literary life. "The difference is a writer makes money." As late as 1999 Spillane told an audience at London's National Film Theatre, "Authors write, writers get paid." When he was asked about his literary influences, Spillane replied, "Dollars".
Spillane was brought up in the grimy industrial town of Elizabeth, NJ, in what he described as a "very tough" neighborhood. His mother provided him with balance inside the confines of the home, where he became a voracious reader, devouring all of the works of Alexandre Dumas and Herman Melville by the time he was 11 years old. While still a high school student, he "went professional" at the age of 14, writing for the Elizabeth Daily Journal. In 1935 he began submitting his work to magazines before aiming lower and learning his craft by writing for comic books, including such popular titles as "Batman", "Captain Marvel", "Captain America" and "Superman". "[It was] a great training ground for writers," Spillane explained. "You couldn't beat it."
After high school Spillane went to Kansas State College on a football scholarship before dropping out. He joined the Army Air Corps the day after Pearl Harbor, but never left the US, spending the war years flying fighter planes and teaching air cadets how to fly. Still a civil pilot after the war, Spillane claimed he had put in 11,000 hours in the air by 1999. In 1945 he married Mary Ann Pearce, the first of his three wives. The couple had two sons and two daughters.
After leaving the military, he briefly worked in the Barnum and Bailey Circus as a trampoline artist and adept knife-thrower. Subsequently he worked for the FBI as an undercover operative to crack a narcotics ring (the subject of the novel "Kiss Me, Deadly", not the atomic bomb plot of the movie). He claimed in interviews that he had been shot twice and had been knifed once. Eventually he went back to writing.
Influenced by Carroll John Daly, the pulp writer who created the seminal private eye Race Williams, Spillane made the P.I. genre his own. His work was in the vein of the "hard-boiled" Black Mask school of pulp fiction of the 1930s. As a pulp writer, Spillane's mantra was "violence will outsell sex every time." By combining them he created a formula for success that begat a book publishing phenomenon.
Spillane's innovation was to inject gory violence into P.I. stories for a generation of 16 million men who had just been through the most violent war in history. After the war, the popularity of slick magazines was eroding due to the booming market in paperbacks, pulp fiction that sold for 25 cents a copy. These new mass-market novels featured lurid covers that would attract a customer at what became the ubiquitous steel-wire racks filled with paperbacks that sprouted up at bus stations, lunch counters, shops and newsstands all over the world.
Spillane's style was perfect for the new post-war fiction market. He attributed his success to Roscoe Fawcett of Fawcett Gold Medal Books, who envisioned a market for original novels instead of the reprints of classic works that dominated the paperback market during World War II. Gold Medal started to market novels written directly for paperback, and by injecting gore into the PI genre, both Fawcett and Spillane won a gold medal for their staggering sales.
Second wife Sherri Malinou was a model who Spillane noticed when she was featured on the cover of one of his books.
Raymond Chandler said of Spillane, "Pulp writing at its worst was never as bad as this stuff." Spillane's books always featured a great hook in the opening pages, as he believed that "the first page sells the book". His narratives are first-person spoken monologues, directly addressed to the reader. Hammer is less a detective in the guise of Dashiell Hammett's Continental Op or Raymond Chandler's Philip Marlowe than he is a vigilante, always ready to partake in a bit of the old ultra-violence.
Spillane published his first Mike Hammer pulp, the infamous "I, the Jury', in 1947. Written in nine days, the book introduces Hammer as a tough-talking, hard-drinking bruiser.
Other Hammer books with the same formula of murderous mugs and even more dangerous, double-crossing malevolent dames followed: "Vengeance in Mine" (1950), "My Gun is Quick" (1950), "The Big Kill" (1951), and "Kiss Me, Deadly" (1952). Hammer was not only a two-fisted he-man, but each of those mailed fists typically clutched a large-caliber automatic. No dainty .32 Colts--the pistol of choice for the sophisticated detectives of the '20s and '30s--for Mike Hammer. His hirsute ham-fist sported a .45 ACP, the service pistol of the GI generation.
Mike Hammer was a true bellwether of the times, for rather than just go after criminals or garden-variety gangsters like self-respecting operatives of the '30s, he went after "Reds" and "Commies", the nation's bogeymen, and women who were stealing atomic secrets, adulterating Hollywood films with Red propaganda. In the potboiler "One Lonely Night" (1951), hammer wields a "Chicago typewriter" - a submachine gun - to tap out one-way tickets to heaven for 40 Commie heavies and fellow-travelers.
Though he eschewed politics in real life, he regarded himself as a patriot and was admired by prominent right-wingers for his anti-Communist stand. Novelist-philosopher Ayn Rand extolled Spillane, while movie cowboy John Wayne gave him a Jaguar XK140 roadster in 1956, a car he still had a half-century later (and in top working order). While Cold War critics often tried to make a link between Spillane and notorious Red-baiter Sen. Joseph McCarthy, when asked in 1999 if he approved of what McCarthy had done, Spillane replied, "McCarthy was a nit-head. He didn't know what was going on. He was a slob."
Spillane stopped writing for nearly a decade after converting to the Jehoavah's Witnesses in 1952. At this point he didn't need to write, as the royalties from the millions of copies of his books earned him a substantial income. In 1961 he returned to writing with "The Deep", arguably the best of the Mike Hammer novels. With the "Day of the Guns" in 1964 Spillane created a new series featuring secret agent Tiger Mann, a globetrotting spy who was America's answer to James Bond. Like Hammer, Mann was anti-Communist in the extreme and wiped out Reds with relish during the Cold War years of the 1960s. However, during Spillane's absence during the 50s, Ian Fleming (whom Spillane dismissed as "a gourmet") and other writers had stolen his thunder: the Tiger Mann series and Spillane's other non-series novels did not enjoy the vast sales of the '50s. The second part of Spillane's formula - sex - had lost its steam in the 1960s, after the collapse of censorship led to a proliferation of raw pornography and the availability of much more graphic, though serious, novels for the more thoughtful reader.
The Hammer novels did well in the visual media: there were two television series and multiple movies. The only distinguished film made from Spillane's works was Robert Aldrich's late noir Kiss Me Deadly (1955), now a cult classic. Spillane hated the film, which transmogrified the narcotics dealer plot of the novel into the theft of an atomic bomb (a true Cold War plot), which he found ludicrous.
Spillane took another hiatus from writing novels between 1973 and 1989, although he did write at two well-reviewed children's books, "The Day the Sea Rolled Back" (1979) and "The Ship That Never Was" (1982). He wrote the novels from the point of view of a child, he said, which explained their success. Though no longer a best-selling author, Spillane retained his fame during the 1970s due to his appearances in Miller Lite beer TV commercials. Although not a teetotaler, Spillane did not drink much, preferring an occasional beer over hard liquor, and he never smoked. He revived the Hammer franchise with "The Killing Man" in 1989, but Spillane, now in his 70s, was not a big seller. His last novel, "Black Alley" (1996), was published in 1996.
In retirement Spillane reportedly suffered a stroke. He lived, until his death, in Myrtle Beach, SC, with third wife Jane Rodgers Johnson, whom he married in 1983. He was an active Jehovah's Witness into his 80s, going from house to house to spread his faith and distribute copies of the "The Watchtower." He died on July 17, 2006, in Myrtle Beach from cancer. He was 88 years old.- C.S. Lewis was born in 1898 and brought up in a very strict, religious household. While he was quite young, his mother died of cancer but the "stiff upper lip" in favour at the time meant he wasn't allowed to grieve. He became an Oxford don and led a sheltered life. He seriously questioned his religious beliefs and finally left the church. The death of his mother is reflected in "The Magician's Nephew". When an American fan Joy Gresham, came to visit him, they found they enjoyed each others company and she stayed. She was dying of cancer and he was afraid to express his emotions until she convinced him that it was OK to "allow" himself to love her even though it would shortly lead to heartbreak when she died. This was a great writer who dared to examine his emotions and beliefs and record them for the rest of us. Most famous for his childrens book (The Narnian Chronicles) he also wrote a very interesting Science Fiction Trilogy and some of the most intriguing Christian literature. He finally resolved his crisis of faith after tearing apart and fully examining the Christian (and other) religion and re-embraced Christianity.
- Kyôtarô Nishimura was born on 6 September 1930 in Ebara, Tokyo, Japan. He was a writer, known for Tuesday Suspense Theater (1981), Koibito wa sunaipâ: Gekijô-ban (2004) and Golden Partners (1979). He was married to Mizue Yajima. He died on 3 March 2022 in Yugawara, Kanagawa, Japan.
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He was born in Isesaki City (Gunma prefecture) and debuted in manga in 1970 in the "Deluxe Shounen Sunday" after being finalist in a contest promoted by monthly magazine "Com" in september of 1967 (he was only 16 years old). In the 80s many of his comics become best-sellers and they are converted in animation or live-action TV series and films. After "Miyuki" (serialized in "Shounen Big Comic" in 1980), he did "Nain" ("Nine"), which was his first animation film adaptation; "Tacchi" ("Touch", serialized in the "Weekly Shounen Sunday" in 1981), made into three animation films between 1986 and 1987; and "Hyatari Ryoko" (made into an animation film 1988).- Writer
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Takahashi was born on October 10, 1957 in Niigata, Japan. She displayed no special talent or interest for manga (Japanese comics) while attending Niigata Chuo High School, but while attending Japan Women's University, she enrolled in Gekiga Sonjuku, a manga school founded by Kazuo Koike (artist and writer of the mangas Lone Wolf and Cub, Crying Freeman and Lady Snowblood). His influence in her work is considerable. He stressed the importance of interesting characters in one's manga series. Takahashi took his lessons to heart: her characters often break the stereotypes inhabiting manga at the time. Takahashi takes care to portray her women to be as tough and as intelligent as her men. Almost none of them can be called an out-and-out villain. They often have different motivations and goals which puts them at odds with each other, and from this arises the dramatic tension of her stories, and quite often, the comedy as well.
In 1976 she started publishing short manga. At this point, she needed to make an important decision, continue as a manga artist or make rounds interviewing for a regular job as a Japanese salary person. If she failed in manga, she would have difficulty getting work because companies would often prefer young, fresh graduates. Despite her parents' advice to take the more cautious path, she decided to press on.
Her first manga series was Urusei Yatsura in 1978, published in Weekly Shonen Sunday. It concerns an alien invasion of earth that can only be stopped if the horniest boy in the world manages to catch an alien girl. It eventually became a cultural phenomenon, lasting nine years and spawning a long-running television series, Urusei yatsura (1981). Urusei yatsura (1981)was partly directed by Mamoru Oshii (_"Kôkaku kidôtai" (1995)_, aka Ghost in the Shell). Oshii first rose in prominence thanks to his work in Urusei Yatsura.
Her second manga hit was Maison Ikkoku (1980 to 1987 in Big Comic Spirits). Here, her experiences as a young adult making the rounds of job interviews, plus living in a small apartment while working for a living, became inspiration for her manga. Maison Ikkoku doesn't have any aliens, demons or martial-arts experts, instead it is a simple love triangle between a college student, Godai, his beautiful apartment manager, the young and recently widowed Mrs. Kyoko Otanashi and the rich, handsome tennis coach Shun Mitaka.
Mitaka could have been a typical love rival, rich, handsome but self-centered. Instead, Takahashi actually makes him sympathetic; his love for Kyoko is as sincere as Godai, and he is also a nice guy. In fact it becomes one of the themes of Maison Ikkoku: if all things are equal, if both suitors have good characters and both sincerely loves the woman, then should Kyoko pick the richer suitor? The manga series charts Godai's maturation from callow youth ruled by hormones to a successful, responsible adult.
The complex webs of relationships in Urusei and Maison are her secret recipe for generating endless configurations of conflict and humor. They keep readers waiting eagerly for the next installment at the same time gently remind them that that's how life is like with regards to romance, a tangled free-for-all that, despite its seemingly frightful messiness, Takahashi magically keeps clear and coherent for her readers.
Maison Ikkoku also became the successful anime, Maison Ikkoku (1986). In 1987, Not only did she end her two successful manga, Urusei and Maison, she also did short manga (Mermaid Saga and One-Pound Gospel), and started her third long-run manga series, Ranma 1/2.
In 1987, the manga field was full of martial arts stories, so Takahashi was interested in trying her version of a martial arts manga, however, with a few innovations of her own. Ranma is a martial artist betrothed to a tomboy martial artist, Miss Akane Tendo, and when they marry they will inherit the dojo and the tradition of "Anything Goes" Martial Arts. The big twist is, when Ranma gets wet, he turns into a busty, red-headed girl. Takahashi pokes fun at (and gives homage to) martial arts, boy-girl relationships and other bizarre permutations that can arise from a web formed by a boy/girl, a tomboy girl as well as a menagerie of quirky supporting characters.
Like Urusei and Maison, Ranma became an anime series,Ranma ½ (1989), which lasted from 1989 to 1992. She ended the manga in 1996, and then started her fourth major manga series, Inuyasha.
Inuyasha is set in medieval Japan. A modern schoolgirl, Kagome, is magically transported to the past, and she must help the half-demon Inuyasha collect shards of the powerful Shikon jewel. In this series, the tone is darker and less comedic than her other works. Characters and bystanders often die here and the major characters themselves are frequently in danger. Takahashi also introduces her first purely evil villain, the demon Naraku. Naraku is a kind of Iago to Inuyasha's Othello, letting others do the dirty work for him. Inuyasha became an anime in 2000 (Inuyasha (2000)), lasting until 2004. It has already spawned several films, with the last one released in December, 2004.
In terms of material rewards, Takahashi consistently makes the list of top ten Japanese tax payers from the manga community, an indication of the royalties she receives for her work, both old and new. Her fan base has spilled out of Japan, where she is virtually ubiquitous. She now has devoted followers from Europe, the United States and many fellow Asian nations. Her old work, from Urusei Yatsura up to her short manga up to the anime versions, have been reprinted and translated, finding their way to newer generations of readers and viewers.
However, Takahashi continually keeps busy, meeting her deadlines, creating new manga. She admits she has little time to spend her money, devoting most of her time in her studio drawing and plotting the next installments of her manga, for the sake of her legions of fans worldwide.- Writer
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Gosho Aoyama was born as Yoshimasa Aoyama in Hokuei on June 21, 1963. He was gifted at drawing, even as a child. In first grade, his painting of "Yukiai War" won a competition & was displayed at the Tottori Daimaru Department Store. He graduated from high school at Ikuei High School. After finishing high school, he studied at Nihon University College of Art in Tokyo. In 1986, Gosho joined a comic contest for freshmen and won, which was a stepping-stone for his future career as a manga artist & author. The following year, his first & earliest comic was "Chotto Mattete" (Wait a Minute), first published in the Shonen Sunday magazine. In 1992, He won the Shogakukan manga contest for his "Yaiba" series. In 1994, Gosho's Case Closed (a.k.a. Detective Conan) made its manga debut, which became a popular & long-running anime TV series.- Writer
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Dan Brown was born on 22 June 1964 in Exeter, New Hampshire, USA. He is a writer and producer, known for Inferno (2016), The Da Vinci Code (2006) and Angels & Demons (2009). He was previously married to Blythe Newlon.- Writer
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Ann M. Martin was born on 12 August 1955 in Princeton, New Jersey, USA. She is a writer and producer, known for The Baby-Sitters Club (2020), The Baby-Sitters Club (1990) and The Baby-Sitters Club (1995).- Ryôtarô Shiba was born on 7 August 1923 in Osaka, Japan. He was a writer, known for Hitokiri (1969), Shinobi no shu (1970) and Miyamoto Musashi (1968). He died on 12 February 1996.
- Born April 5, 1920 in Luton, England, Arthur Hailey decided to become a full-time author in 1956 following the success of his original television drama Flight Into Danger (1956). For the next few years, he wrote teleplays for such legendary dramatic series as Playhouse 90 (1956), Kraft Theatre (1947), The United States Steel Hour (1953), "Goodyear-Philco Playhouse" (1955)_ and Studio One (1948). Soon after, Hailey became a novelist. "Flight Into Danger" was adapted as a novel, "Runway Zero-Eight" (1958). In 1959, "The Final Diagnosis" became his second bestseller and, in 1961, "In High Places" became his third.
It took Hailey four years to write his next novel: "Hotel" (1965), which remained on the national bestseller lists for a full year. "Airport" (1968) did even better. It was on the national lists for over a year, staying in the number one spot on The New York Times bestseller lists for an incredible 30 weeks. "Wheels" (1971), "The Moneychangers" (1975) and "Overload" (1979) also claimed the number one position on the national bestseller lists, further establishing Hailey as one of today's most popular novelists.
In 1979, Arthur Hailey announced his retirement. At this time, he discovered he was very ill and underwent a quadruple bypass heart operation. The surgery was a tremendous success, leaving Mr. Hailey feeling invigorated and bursting with creative energy. His wife, Sheila, suggested he put his energy to use and write another book. "Strong Medicine" was the wonderful result. - Writer
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Gérard de Villiers was born on 8 December 1929 in Paris, France. He was a writer and producer, known for S.A.S. San Salvador (1982), Eye of the Widow (1991) and Malko. He was married to Olga Vecchione, Marie-Christine Harispuru, Christine Loncle and Annick,. He died on 31 October 2013 in Paris, France.- Writer
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Beatrix Potter was an English writer, illustrator, mycologist and conservationist. She is famous for writing children's books with animal characters such as The Tale of Peter Rabbit.
Potter was born in Kensington, London. Her family was quite rich. She was educated by governesses. She did not have many friends, but she had many pets, including Benjamin and Peter, two rabbits. She spent her holidays in Scotland and the Lake District. There, she began to learn to love nature, plants, and animals, which she carefully painted.
When she was around 30, Potter published The Tale of Peter Rabbit. It was very popular. She also became engaged to her publisher Norman Warne. Her parents became angry and separated with her because of this. They did not want her to marry someone who was socially lower than her. However, Warne died before he and Potter could marry.
Potter began writing and illustrating children's books full time. She did not have to ask her parents for money anymore because she had money from her books. In time, she bought Hill Top Farm and more land. In her forties, she married William Heelis, a local solicitor. She also began raising sheep and became a farmer, though she continued writing. She published 23 books.
Potter did not have any children. She died of heart disease and pneumonia in Near Sawrey, Lancashire on 22 December 1943. Almost all of her money was left to the National Trust. Her books continue to sell well around the world, in many different languages. Her widower died in August 1945.- Writer
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Michael Crichton was born in Chicago, Illinois, but grew up in Roslyn, New York. His father was a journalist and encouraged him to write and to type. Michael gave up studying English at Harvard University, having become disillusioned with the teaching standards--the final straw came when he submitted an essay by George Orwell that was given a "B-." After giving up English and spending a year in Europe, Michael returned to Boston, Massachusetts, and attended Havard Medical School to train as a doctor. Several times, he was persuaded not to quit the course but did so after qualifying in 1969.
During his medical-student days, he wrote novels secretly mainly under the pseudonym of John Lange in reference to his almost 6ft 9 height. (Lange in German means long) One novel, "A Case of Need," written under the pseudonym Jeffery Hudson, (Sir Jeffrey Hudson was a famous 17th century dwarf) contained references to people at Harvard Medical School, but he couldn't hide his identity when the novel won an award that had to be collected in person. After giving up medicine, Michael moved to Hollywood, California, in the early 1970s and began directing movies based on his books, his first big break being Westworld (1973).- Writer
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Richard Scarry was born on 5 June 1919 in Boston, Massachusetts, USA. He was a writer, known for The Busy World of Richard Scarry (1993), 3 Richard Scarry Animal Nursery Tales (1985) and Richard Scarry's Old MacDonald's Farm and Other Animal Tales (1986). He was married to Patricia Murphy. He died on 30 April 1994 in Gstaad, Switzerland.- Writer
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Probably one of the greatest adventure novelists of our time. When his novel "Raise the Titanic" was bought for $840,000 by Viking Publishing in 1976, it put him on the map after 11 years of hard work. Before his success with RTT, he previously had written "Pacific Vortex", which wasn't published until after his successes, "The Mediterranean Caper" and "Iceberg". Originally in advertising, first as an award-winning copy writer, and then as creative director for two of the nation's largest agencies. He started his writing career when his wife, Barbara, got a night job for the local police station as a clerk. At night after putting his kids to bed, he had hardly anything to do and no one to talk to. So out of solitude he decided to write a book. After a few nights of thinking of an idea on what to write about he thought it would be fun to produce a little paperback series. The thought of a best-seller never crossed his mind. Thanks to his marketing experience, he began researching and analyzing all the series heroes, beginning with Edgar Allan Poe's Inspector Dumas. Next came Conan Doyle and Sherlock Holmes and all the other fiction detectives and spies. Like the likes of Bulldog Drummond, Sam Spade, Phillip Marlowe, Mike Hammer, Matt Helm, James Bond. Whatever he could find, he studied them all. With his experience in creative advertising under his belt, he started to wonder what he could conceive that was totally different. He didn't want to compete with already-famous authors. He was determined not to write about a detective, secret agent or undercover investigator or deal in murder mysteries. He then decided his hero's adventure would be based on and under water. And thus, the basic concept for Dirk Pitt the marine engineer with the National Underwater and Marine Agency (NUMA) was born. He found it interesting that almost no authors were writing pure, old-fashioned adventure. It seemed to him, a lost genre. After taking a refresher course in English, he launched his first book that introduced Pitt and most all of his characters who appeared in the upcoming novels to follow afterwards. The first book was named "Pacific Vortex". Dr. Cussler, leaned heavily on Alistair McLean on his first two books and was quite flattered when critics told him they were quite similar. But by his third book, he began to drift into his own style with a myriad of sub-plots. And because of that, "Iceberg", to this day, has and always will be a sentimental favorite of his because it never ended where it began. After completing "Pacific Vortex", he was about to launch a second book when he was offered a position at a large advertising agency. It would have been a wonderful opportunity with a well-paid salary, but his wife challenged him. She knew that if he wanted to write sea stories, why didn't he take a job as a clerk at the local dive shop who at the time was hiring. He wasted little time and in 1968 he started working for the Aquatic Center Dive ship in Newport Beach as a behind-the-counter-salesman. Never being a certified diver, it took him just a few weeks. Once he was certified, Dr. Cussler started bringing in his typewriter in the morning and wrote at a card table behind the counter when business was slow which was usually in the afternoons. A little over a year later, Dr. Cussler finished his second novel, "Mediterranean Caper". That's when he decided to leave the shop and return to advertising. With constant rejection letters on his first novel, Pacific Vortex, Dr. Cussler had decided that it would be a smart decision to find himself a literary agent. With a little cunning and ingenuity, he soon met Peter Lampack, who was with the William Morris Agency in Manhattan. With Peter liking his second novel, "Mediterranean Caper", Dr. Cussler now had a contract. With the contract promptly signed and mailed, he started working on his third novel, "Iceberg". Now that he had an agent and with renewed inspiration, Dr. Cussler left the advertising agency, and decided to write full time. Fed up with Southern California and wanting to change his family's lifestyle, he sold his boat, house and car. He bought a new family sedan and a tent trailer. After a wonderful summer, he and his family relocated to Estes Park, Colorado. Once settled in, he started to work on his third novel, Iceberg. After a year he finished Iceberg and with his agent having no success finding an editor to take "Mediterranean Caper" and now, "Iceberg" and with his savings about depleted, Dr. Cussler went back to advertising. Once he got himself a job with a very small agency and started to prove to them his value, Dr. Cussler moved his family to the suburb of Arvada just outside of Denver. It wouldn't be long before he was given the pink slip again. Taking a once broken down and small firm and making it into multi-million company, Dr. Cussler vowed to never work in the advertising agency again. It turned out to be a blessing in disguise. Because that's when he started to work on "Raise The Titanic!" in one corner of his unfinished basement. By then his agent, Peter Lampack, had found a small publisher to take Mediterranean Caper. Printing fifty-thousand copies and selling thirty-two thousand, Pyramid Publishing paid him five thousand dollars and sold the novel for seventy-five cents a piece. Less then a year later, Dr. Cussler sold his novel, Iceberg to Dodd Mead Publishing for five-thousand dollars. The novel sold thirty-two thousand copies with an initial intent of only printing five thousand. Once he finished Raise The Titanic, Dr. Cussler sent it off to his agent. Once approved, it was relayed to Dodd Mead. It was rejected within ten days. His agent decided to sent the renounced manuscript to Putnam but they wanted a massive rewrite which Dr. Cussler refused to do. And what Dr. Cussler would later say, "Out of the blue, Viking Press bought it, asked for very few changes and paid me seventy-five hundred dollars." And that's when "strange forces" went to work. A London editor from Macmillan Publishing was visiting a friend at Viking and heard about the Dr. Cussler manuscript. Since the Titanic was a British ship, he asked for a copy of the manuscript to read on his plane back to England. He ended up wanting to buy it. But his agent had already sold "Iceberg" to Sphere Publishing, a small publishing house in London, for four hundred dollars. Since Sphere had the first option, they put in a bid for the manuscript that was promptly topped by Macmillan. Once the dust settled from the bidding war, Sphere owned the book, paying twenty-two thousand dollars, a high price for England in those days. Getting the feeling that things were suddenly falling into place, Dr. Cussler called his agent and got his rights back for Mediterranean Caper. At the same time, Dodd Mead Publishing notified his agent that Playboy Publications had offered four thousand dollars for the paperback right to Iceberg. Still with that "gut" feeling, Dr. Cussler told his agent that he would buy back Mediterranean Caper from Dodd Mead Publishing for five thousand dollars. The deal was done two weeks later. With the buzz and interest about Raise The Titanic over in Britain, it didn't take long for American paperback publishers to take notice. It soon went to auction with Viking Press winning the rights for $840,000. Once the auction was over and finding out that "Raise The Titanic" was the third Dirk Pitt novel, Viking Press bought them both for forty thousand dollar a piece. "Raise The Titanic" was Cussler's first novel to have several plots going on at the same time and to have them all converge at the end. Since then, Dr. Cussler has sold over 100 million copies of his Dirk Pitt Adventures. He continues to write Dirk Pitt adventures while living a life that nearly parallels that of his action hero. Like Pitt, Dr. Cussler enjoys discovering and collecting things of historical significance. With NUMA (National Underwater & Marine Agency, a non profit group begun by Cussler) he has had an amazing record of finding over 60 shipwrecks, one of which was the long-lost Confederate submarine Hunley. And recently discovered the rescue ship Carpathia who picked up the Titanic survivors. Dr. Cussler also has a renowned and extensive classic car collection, which features over 80 examples of custom coachwork. Along with being Chairman of NUMA, he is also a fellow of the Explorers Club (which honored him with the Lowell Thomas Award for outstanding underwater exploration), the Royal Geographical Society and the American Society of Oceanographers. Married to Barbara Knight for 40 years, with three children and two grandchildren, he divides his time between the mountains of Colorado and the deserts of Arizona. He is represented by the Bartholomeaux Agency.- Alistair MacLean was born on 28 April 1922 in Daviot, Scotland, UK. He was a writer, known for The Guns of Navarone (1961), Where Eagles Dare (1968) and Puppet on a Chain (1970). He was married to Mary Marcelle Georgius and Gisela Heinrichsen. He died on 2 February 1987 in Munich, Germany.
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Follett's parents belonged to the Plymouth Brethren, a Protestant sect similar to the Baptists. He was forbidden to watch television, radio or cinema. He showed a strong penchant for literature in his early youth, when he read the works of H.G. at the age of seven. Wells and Ian Flamming discovered for themselves. When he was ten years old, in 1959, his family moved to London, where he finished school. He then studied philosophy at the University of London. This subject was due to his critical curiosity about world religions, in which he hoped to find an explanation that he could understand. Meanwhile, his girlfriend Mary became pregnant, and the couple married at the end of his first semester in 1968.
In 1970 he completed his studies in London with a bachelor's degree (B.A.). He then began his professional life as a reporter and columnist for rock music for the "South Wales Echo"; and his interest in authorship was piqued. At the same time, he completed a three-month journalism course. From 1973 to 1974 he worked as a journalist for the London Evening News. His daughter Marie-Claire was born in the same year. At this time he also began his career as an author with his first short stories and novels. In 1974 he became editor-in-chief and deputy director of the publishing house "Everest Books" in London. At the same time he began to publish his first works, such as "The Big Needle" (1947) and the crime novel "The Modigliani Scandal" (1976). He used pseudonyms such as Simon Myles or Zachary Stone.
In 1978, his spy novel "The Needle" was published, which became a bestseller and brought him international popularity. The book sold around twelve million copies and was awarded the Mystery Writers of America's Edgar Award and made into a film starring Donald Sutherland. The proceeds enabled Follett to work exclusively as a writer from then on. Follett then moved into a villa in the south of France, where his next successful novel, "Triple" (Triple, 1980), was written. In 1983 Follett moved to Surrey with his family. There he stood out as a supporter of the Labor Party. Here he met Barbara Broer, a member of the British House of Commons, whom he married after his divorce in 1985. The couple settled in Hertfordshire and in Chelsea, London.
In addition to writing, he played bass guitar in the band Damn Right I've Got the Blues. There were more thrillers and in the following years Follett also took on social tasks in various clubs and associations. In 1990 his novel "The Pillars of the Earth" was published, which describes the construction of a cathedral in medieval England and which was made into a four-part television series by Sergio Mimica-Gezzan in 2010. Follett had discovered the genre of historical novels. Through intensive research, he tried to write them as historically correct and detailed as possible. This created detailed past worlds that illuminated all facets of an era and thus opened up well-founded historical impressions. The author himself became one of the most widely read writers of our time.
With the epoch-making trilogy of his "Saga of the Century," he underlined his reputation for research and historical observation. The historical novel "Fall of the Titans", published in 2010, marked the beginning of this. It's about the fate of three families in the 20th century. The aim was to capture the world historical whole and to draw a kind of global literature. "Winter of the World" followed in 2012 and the "Saga of the Century" entitled "Children of Freedom" was completed in 2014.- Writer
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Grew up in Småland outside Vimmerby in the south of Sweden. Her first book came out in 1944, and she made a breakthrough the following year with the stories about Pippi Longstocking. Countless stories about Pippi and other characters of Astrid's imagination and excellent story telling ability were translated to at least 55 languages and told to millions of children all over the world. Many of the stories were adapted for TV and even the big screen. She moved to Stockholm early, and she died peacefully in her home after a brief illness on January 28, 2002 at the age of 94.- Writer
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Debbie Macomber was born on 22 October 1948 in Yakima, Washington, USA. She is a writer and producer, known for Cedar Cove (2013), Trading Christmas (2010) and The Christmas Basket. She has been married to Wayne Macomber since 7 September 1968. They have four children.- Writer
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E L James is an incurable romantic and a self-confessed fan girl. After twenty-five years of working in television, she decided to pursue a childhood dream and write stories that readers could take to their hearts. The result was the controversial and sensuous romance Fifty Shades of Grey and its two sequels, Fifty Shades Darker and Fifty Shades Freed. In 2015, she published the #1 bestseller Grey, the story of Fifty Shades of Grey from the perspective of Christian Grey, and in 2017, the chart-topping Darker, the second part of the Fifty Shades story from Christian's point of view. Her books have been published in fifty languages and have sold more than 165 million copies worldwide.
E L James has been recognized as one of Time magazine's "Most Influential People in the World" and Publishers Weekly's "Person of the Year." Fifty Shades of Grey stayed on The New York Times Best Seller List for 133 consecutive weeks. Fifty Shades Freed won the Goodreads Choice Award (2012), and Fifty Shades of Grey was selected as one of the 100 Great Reads, as voted by readers, in PBS's The Great American Read (2018). Darker was long-listed for the 2019 International Dublin Literary Award.
She was a producer on each of the three Fifty Shades movies, which made more than a billion dollars at the box office. The third installment, Fifty Shades Freed, won the People's Choice Award for Drama in 2018. E L James is blessed with two wonderful sons and lives with her husband, the novelist and screenwriter Niall Leonard, and their West Highland terriers in the leafy suburbs of West London.- Writer
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A Famous Japanese manga artist. He is best known for his manga series Bleach, which has sold over 120 million copies as of 2018.
Kubo was born on June 26, 1977 in Hiroshima Prefecture, where his father worked as a town council member. In elementary school, he had already decided to become a manga artist, due to reading the manga Saint Seiya.
His first one-shot was "Ultra Unholy Hearted Machine", written for the Weekly Shonen Jump in 1996. Then He wrote his first manga Zombiepowder, which was also published in Weekly Shonen Jump in 1999. It ran a short 27 chapters before being canceled in 2000. According to the author's commentary, Kubo was in a state of severe emotional trauma when he wrote it.
His next series, Bleach, about a high school student who becomes a shinigami and fights creatures known as Hollows, began running in the same magazine in 2001. Kubo initially expected the series' serialization to continue no longer than five years. The original story concept was submitted to Weekly Shonen Jump shortly after the cancellation of Zombiepowder, but was rejected. Akira Toriyama, creator of Dragon Ball, saw the story and wrote a letter of encouragement to Kubo.
Bleach Manga ran for 15 years of serialization and reached over 686 chapters from 2001 to 2016. Additionally, an anime adaptation of the series was broadcast in TV Tokyo for 8 years from 2004 to 2012, spanning over 366 episodes. The manga was named a winner of the Shogakukan Manga Award for its category in 2004.
Kubo and Makoto Matsubara have co-authored two novelizations of the Bleach series, which were published by Shueisha under their Jump Books label.
The first Bleach movie was released in Japan on December 16, 2006, followed by a second movie on December 22, 2007, a third on December 13, 2008, and a fourth on December 4, 2010.
Kubo also appeared in the episode 112 of the Japanese radio program of Bleach B-Station. In that program, Kubo was interviewed by Masakazu Morita, voice actor of Ichigo Kurosaki, the main character of Bleach, and answered several questions from fans.
On July 26, 2008, Kubo went to the United States for the first time and made an appearance at the San Diego Comic-Con International.
Kubo provided character designs for Madhouse's anime adaptations of Ango Sakaguchi's Sakura no Mori no Mankai no Shita, Ryunosuke Akutagawa's The Spider's Thread, and Hell Screen by Ryunosuke Akutagawa, which are parts of the Aoi Bungaku series.- Eiji Yoshikawa was born on 11 August 1892 in Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan. He was a writer, known for Samurai I: Musashi Miyamoto (1954), Samurai III: Duel at Ganryu Island (1956) and Oatsurae Jirôkichi kôshi (1931). He was married to Fumiko Ikedo and Yasu Akazawa. He died on 7 September 1962 in Tokyo, Japan.
- Catherine Cookson was born on 27 June 1906 in Tyne Dock, South Shields, England, UK. She was a writer, known for Jacqueline (1956), Colour Blind (1998) and Rooney (1958). She was married to Tom Cookson. She died on 11 June 1998 in London, England, UK.
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Stephenie born in Connecticut in 1973. Her family was settled in Phoenix by the time she was four. The unusual spelling of her name came from her father, Stephen ( + ie).
Stephenie went to high school in Scottsdale, Arizona. She was awarded a National Merit Scholarship, and she used it to pay her way to Brigham Young University, in Provo, Utah. She majored in English.
Stephenie met her husband, Pancho, when she was four, but they only saw each other weekly through church activities. When they finally got around to exchanging words, sixteen years after their first meeting, it only took nine months from the first "hello" to the wedding.
They have been married for ten and a half years now, and have three boys. Gabe is eight, Seth is five, and Eli is three.
Twilight is her very first novel. New Moon is the second book in the series, Eclipse the third. The fourth book Breaking Dawn was released in August 2008.- Born in Kokomo, Indiana on February 15, 1928, illustrator/cartoonist Norman Bridwell has written over 120 books on children's favorite "Clifford the Big Red Dog". He continues to write an average of 2 books a year. After being told his illustrations of Clifford were too ordinary, a critic suggested he write a story to go along with them to help to sell the illustrations. He wrote a story and submitted it to a publishing company. Three weeks later, the publisher called and said they wanted to publish his work. Over 40 years later, Clifford "the Big Red Dog" continues to "grow" with more books, television shows and movies! Over 44 million copies of his books are published in many different languages for children all over the world.
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David Baldacci was born on 5 August 1960 in Richmond, Virginia, USA. He is a writer and producer, known for Absolute Power (1997), King & Maxwell (2013) and The Finisher. He has been married to Michelle Collin since 5 May 1990. They have two children.- Writer
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Nicholas Sparks was born on December 31, 1965 in Omaha, Nebraska. He graduated from the University of Notre Dame in 1988 and is one of the more critically-acclaimed authors of the past 5 years. He is the author of 5 best-selling books, including "The Notebook" and "The Rescue". Eleven of his books, Message in a Bottle (1999), A Walk to Remember (2002), The Notebook (2004), Nights in Rodanthe (2008), The Last Song [2010] , Dear John [2010] , The Lucky One [2012], Safe Haven [2013] , The Best of Me [2014] , The Longest Ride (2015) and The Choice (2016)
have been adapted into blockbuster movies. Sparks lives in North Carolina with his wife, 3 sons, and twin daughters.- Hirohiko Araki was born on 7 June 1960 in Sendai, Miyagi, Japan. He is a writer, known for Kishibe Rohan wa Ugokanai (2020), Thus Spoke Kishibe Rohan (2019) and JJBA Mangabridged: Phantom Blood 1 of 2 (2017).
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Evan Hunter was born on 15 October 1926 in New York City, New York, USA. He was a writer, known for The Birds (1963), High and Low (1963) and The Chisholms (1979). He was married to Dragica Dimitrijevic, Mary Vann Hughes (Finley) and Anita R Melnick. He died on 6 July 2005 in Weston, Connecticut, USA.- Writer
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Andrew Neiderman was born on 26 October 1940 in Brooklyn, New York, USA. He is a writer and producer, known for The Devil's Advocate (1997), Aura and Rain (2006). He is married to Diane Wilson. They have two children.- Roger Hargreaves was born on 9 May 1935 in Cleckheaton, Yorkshire, England, UK. He was a writer, known for Mr. Men (1974), Mr. Men and Mr. Men and Little Miss (1995). He died on 11 September 1988 in Tunbridge Wells, Kent, England, UK.
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Anne Rice began life in New Orleans as Howard Allen O'Brien, named after her father, as the second of four daughters of Howard and Katherine Allen O'Brien. She decided to call herself "Anne" when she enrolled in first grade at the Redemptorist Catholic School. Her mother (who had long suffered from alcoholism) died when Anne was nearly fifteen. Her father remarried and soon relocated the family to Richardson (suburb of Dallas), Texas. She graduated in 1959 and entered Texas Woman's University where she completed two years of school in one. In 1960, Anne moved to San Francisco, where she took a furnished apartment in the Haight-Ashbury district. In 1961, Anne married Stan Rice (whom she had met in High School and who had proposed by telegram from Texas) and, in 1962, they were both living in Haight-Ashbury. They graduated from San Francisco State in 1964, she in political science, he in creative writing. Their daughter, Michele, was born on September 21, 1966. In 1969, they moved to Berkeley. There, she wrote a short story, "Interview With the Vampire". In 1970, Michele was diagnosed with leukemia. In 1972, Anne received her M.A. in creative writing; Michele died August 5. The next year, Anne turned "Interview" into a novel, and, over a year later, Knopf offered her a $12,000 advance for it. Christopher Rice was born on March 11, 1978. In 1980, they moved to San Francisco's Castro District. "The Vampire Lestat" brought a $100,000 advance from Knopf. In 1988, they moved to New Orleans and bought a mansion in the Garden District. Stan (who had chaired the creative writing program at S.F. State) turned to painting. "The Witching Hour" brought a $5 million advance. In 1994, "Interview" was very successfully released as a movie (amid much controversy -- some over content, mostly over casting) and Anne entered into a $17 million contract for three more Vampire Chronicles.- Writer
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Robin Cook was born on 4 May 1940 in Brooklyn, New York, USA. He is a writer and actor, known for Coma (1978), Invasion (1997) and Sphinx (1981).- Wilbur Smith was born on 9 January 1933 in Broken Hill, Northern Rhodesia (now Kabwe, Zambia). He was a writer, known for Dark of the Sun (1968), Shout at the Devil (1976) and The Last Lion (1972). He was married to Mokhiniso Rakhimova, Danielle Thomas, Jewell Slabbert and Anne Rennie. He died on 13 November 2021 in Cape Town, South Africa.
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Erskine Caldwell was born on 17 December 1903 in Coweta County, Georgia, USA. He was a writer and actor, known for God's Little Acre (1958), Claudelle Inglish (1961) and Tobacco Road (1941). He was married to Virginia Moffett, June Johnson, Margaret Bourke-White and Helen Lannigan. He died on 11 April 1987 in Paradise Valley, Arizona, USA.- Judith Krantz was born on 9 January 1928 in New York City, New York, USA. She was a writer, known for Till We Meet Again (1989), Mistral's Daughter (1984) and I'll Take Manhattan (1987). She was married to Steve Krantz. She died on 22 June 2019 in Bel Air, Los Angeles, California, USA.
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Victoria Holt is known for Snow White and the Huntsman (2012), Captain America: The First Avenger (2011) and Guardians of the Galaxy (2014).- Writer
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Lewis Carroll was the pen name of Charles L. Dodgson, author of the children's classics "Alice's Adventures in Wonderland" and "Through the Looking-Glass."
Born on January 27, 1832 in Daresbury, Cheshire, England, Charles Dodgson wrote and created games as a child. At age 20 he received a studentship at Christ Church and was appointed a lecturer in mathematics. Dodgson was shy but enjoyed creating stories for children. His books including "Alice's Adventures in Wonderland" were published under the pen name Lewis Carroll. Dodgson died in 1898.
Early Life, Charles Lutwidge Dodgson, best known by his pseudonym, Lewis Carroll, was born in the village of Daresbury, England, on January 27, 1832. The eldest boy in a family of 11 children, Carroll was rather adept at entertaining himself and his siblings. His father, a clergyman, raised them in the rectory. As a boy, Carroll excelled in mathematics and won many academic prizes. At age 20, he was awarded a studentship (called a scholarship in other colleges) to Christ College. Apart from serving as a lecturer in mathematics, he was an avid photographer and wrote essays, political pamphlets and poetry. "The Hunting of the Snark" displays his wonderful ability in the genre of literary nonsense.
Alice and Literary Success, Carroll suffered from a bad stammer, but he found himself vocally fluent when speaking with children. The relationships he had with young people in his adult years are of great interest, as they undoubtedly inspired his best-known writings and have been a point of disturbed speculation over the years. Carroll loved to entertain children, and it was Alice, the daughter of Henry George Liddell, who can be credited with his pinnacle inspiration. Alice Liddell remembers spending many hours with Carroll, sitting on his couch while he told fantastic tales of dream worlds. During an afternoon picnic with Alice and her two sisters, Carroll told the first iteration of what would later become Alice's Adventures in Wonderland. When Alice arrived home, she exclaimed that he must write the story down for her.
He fulfilled the small girl's request, and through a series of coincidences, the story fell into the hands of the novelist Henry Kingsley, who urged Carroll to publish it. The book Alice's Adventures in Wonderland was released in 1865. It gained steady popularity, and as a result, Carroll wrote the sequel, Through the Looking-Glass and What Alice Found There (1871). By the time of his death, Alice had become the most popular children's book in England, and by 1932 it was one of the most popular in the world.
Photography and Legacy, besides writing, Carroll created a number of fine photographs. His notable portraits include those of the actress Ellen Terry and the poet Alfred Tennyson. He also photographed children in every possible costume and situation, eventually making nude studies of them. Despite conjecture, little real evidence of child abuse can be brought against him. Shortly before his 66th birthday, Lewis Carroll caught a severe case of influenza, which led to pneumonia. He died on January 14, 1898, leaving an enigma behind him.- Denise Robins was born on 1 February 1897 in London, England, UK. She was a writer, known for The Road to Singapore (1931), Viewpoint (1959) and This Is Your Life (1955). She was married to O'Neill Pearson and Arthur Robins. She died on 1 May 1985 in Horsham, West Sussex, England, UK.
- Although little is known of his personal life, Cao Xueqin (or Ts'ao Hsueh-ch'in) is considered to be China's greatest novelist, and Hong Lou Meng ("A Dream of Red Mansions" sometimes "The Story of the Stone") is regarded as the greatest novel in the Chinese language. As with the family portrayed in the novel, Cao's own family fell from eminence and wealth, and was forced to flee from south to north China, to live out its days in poverty. While making a living selling his paintings, Cao spent about ten years writing his novel at his modest home in a village near what is now Beijing. The novel was not published until 1791, nearly three decades after his death, and some scholars believe the last 40 of its 120 chapters were completed by someone else, although this is in dispute. What is not questioned however, is the book's status as a masterpiece.
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Born into a wealthy and influential English family, Ian Fleming spent his early years attending top British schools such as Eton and Sandhurst military academy. He took to writing while schooling in Kitzbuhel, Austria, and upon failing the entrance requirements for Foreign Service joined the news agency Reuters as a journalist -- winning the respect of his peers for his coverage of a "show trial" in Russia of several Royal Engineers on espionage charges. Fleming briefly worked in the financial sector for the family bank, but just prior to the Second World War, was recruited into British Naval Intelligence where he excelled, shortly achieving the rank of Commander. When the war ended, Fleming retired to Jamaica where he built a house called "Goldeneye," took up writing full-time and created the character that would make him famous -- British Secret Service agent James Bond, in a novel called "Casino Royale." Fleming spent the rest of his life writing and traveling the world, but as his Bond character reached new heights of popularity on movie screens, Fleming was in ailing health. He died of a heart attack (his second) in England in August 1964 at the age of 56.- Composer
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Herman Hesse is known for Land Without Shadows (2010).- Rex Stout was an American writer from Indiana, primarily remembered for his detective fiction works. His best known characters were the Montenegrin armchair detective Nero Wolfe and his witty live-in assistant Archie Goodwin. Nero was depicted as a middle-aged war veteran, who rarely left his luxurious New York City brownstone house. So he relied on Archie for investigative work, and for personal assessments on some of the characters involved in their cases. The book series featuring the two characters lasted from 1934 to 1975. In 1985, Stout's final novella collection was published posthumously. Stout served as president of the Authors Guild for several years, and briefly served as the president of the Mystery Writers of America (MWA). He won the MWA's prestigious Grand Master Award in 1959.
In 1886, Stout was born to a Quaker family in Noblesville, Indiana. The city was one of the suburbs of Indianapolis. It underwent growth in the late 1880s, following the discovery of natural gas resources within the city's areas. Stout's parents were the teacher John Wallace Stout and his wife Lucetta Elizabeth Todhunter. Stout's sister was the horticulturist Ruth Stout (1884-1980), who wrote several books about gardening techniques.
Though born in Indiana, Stout was primarily raised in Kansas. His family had moved there during his childhood. Stout was encouraged to read by his father, and he reportedly had considerable reading skills before entering grade school. He managed to read the entire Biblical canon at an early age. In 1899, Stout won a state spelling bee championship.
Stout received his secondary education at the Topeka High School (1871-), a public high school located in Topeka, Kansas. The school had a large population of students for much of its early history, and attendance had repeatedly outgrown the capacity of the school facilities. Stout received his college education at the University of Kansas, a public research university located in Lawrence, Kansas.
In 1906, Stout joined the United States Navy. He served for some time as as a yeoman on the presidential yacht of then-president Theodore Roosevelt (term 1901-1909). Stout left the Navy in 1908. He was then drifting from job to job for the next few years. In 1910, Stout published one of his poems in the literary magazine "The Smart Set". He published a few more poems in this magazine, before starting work on prose fiction.
Between 1912 and 1918, Stout published about 40 short stories and novellas in various magazines. He was among the early writers of the pulp magazine "The All-Story Magazine" (1905-1920), which merged with its sister publication "Argosy" in 1920. His stories belonged to various genres, including adventure fiction, detective fiction, fantasy, romance, and science fiction. Two of these early works were murder mystery novellas, indicating his early interest in the genre.
Stout's literary career was not particularly lucrative in the 1910s, so he had to find other ways to earn money. In c. 1916, Stout invented a new school banking system. His system allowed schools to keep track of the money that school children saved in accounts at their school. About 400 schools adopted his system within a few years, and he was paid royalties for its use. Stout earned a small fortune, which allowed him to travel extensively. He gave up writing professionally for a while, though he intended to return to writing once he was wealthy enough to write whatever he pleased.
In 1926, Stout became one of the co-founders of the publishing house Vanguard Press (1926-1988). He served as the company's president from 1926 to 1928. Vanguard's early works focused on radical political publications. It later had a considerable catalog of fiction, poetry, non-fiction, and children's literature, though it never became a major publisher. In 1929, Stout lost much of his savings at the start of the Great Depression. By that time, he had already resumed his literary career.
In the second phase of his literary career, Stout wrote the psychological story "How Like a God" (1929) and the political thriller novel "The President Vanishes" (1934). The novel depicted a President of the United States who staged his own disappearance in order to counter a planned military coup by an alliance of fascists and business oligarchs. It generated considerable publicity, and received its own film adaptation.
Stout introduced his popular characters Nero Wolfe and Archie Goodwin in the hit novel "Fer-de-Lance" (1934). The novel also introduced several of their recurring supporting characters. Stout started to increasingly focus on detective fiction, and had abandoned his work on all other genres by 1938. In 1937, he introduced the female detective Theodolinda "Dol" Bonner as a story protagonist. She would later join the recurring cast of the Nero Wolfe series. Stout also introduced the detective protagonists Tecumseh Fox and Alphabet Hicks, but soon lost interest in them.
Between 1940 and 1966, Stout published one new Nero Wolfe novel per year. He rarely published any other works in this period, as the Nero Wolfe series was by far his most lucrative work. His literary output declined considerably in quantity between 1968 and 1975. He published only four new novels in this period. His final Nero Wolfe novel was "A Family Affair" (1975), where Nero learns about the shady activities of one of his closest associates.
Stout died in October 1975, at the age of 88. His work has remained popular and influential among writers. In 2000, he was nominated by Bouchercon XXXI (an annual convention of creators and devotees of mystery and detective fiction) for its writer of the century award. He lost the award to Agatha Christie, but was listed as a runner-up, alongside Raymond Chandler, Dashiell Hammett, and Dorothy L. Sayers. In 2014, Stout was inducted posthumously to the New York State Writers Hall of Fame. - Writer
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Anne Golon was born on 17 December 1921 in Toulon, Var, France. She was a writer and director, known for Angélique (1964), La femme en rouge (1947) and Anjelik Osmanli saraylarinda (1967). She was married to Serge Golon. She died on 14 July 2017 in Versailles, Yvelines, France.- Frank Slaughter was born on 25 February 1908 in Washington, District of Columbia, USA. He was a writer, known for Doctors' Wives (1971), Sangaree (1953) and Climax! (1954). He was married to Jane Mundy. He died on 17 May 2001 in Jacksonville, Florida, USA.
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His father had been a major in the Union army during the Civil War. Edgar Rice Burroughs attended the Brown School then, due to a diphtheria epidemic, Miss Coolie's Maplehurst School for Girls, then the Harvard School, Phillips Andover and the Michigan Military Academy. He was a mediocre student and flunked his examination for West Point. He worked a variety of jobs all over the country: a cowboy in Idaho, a gold miner in Oregon, a railroad policeman in Utah, a department manager for Sears Roebuck in Chicago. He published "A Princess of Mars" under the title "Under the Moons of Mars" in six parts between February and July of 1912. The same "All-Story Magazine" put out his immediately successful "Tarzan of the Apes" in October of that year. Two years later the hardback book appeared, and on January 27, 1918, the movie opened on Broadway starring Elmo Lincoln as Tarzan. It was one of the first movies to gross over $1,000,000. Burroughs was able to move his family to the San Fernando Valley in 1919, converting a huge estate into Tarzana Ranch. He was in Pearl Harbor December 7, 1941 and remained in Hawaii as a war correspondent. Afterward he returned home with a heart condition. On March 19, 1950, alone in his home after reading the Sunday comics in bed, he died. By then he had written 91 novels, 26 of which were about Tarzan. The man whose books have sold hundreds of millions of copies in over thirty languages once said "I write to escape ... to escape poverty".- John Creasey was the seventh of nine children born to Joseph Creasey, a coachmaker, and Ruth Creasey. They were very poor, and John suffered a bout of polio, resulting in his not learning to walk until he was six. He was ten when a schoolmaster suggested he had a gift for writing. John left school at the age of fourteen, trying to become a professional writer, while his family mocked him for his dreams and his employers generally fired him for neglecting his work. For 14 years Creasey was unable to sell a story, in the process collecting 743 rejection slips. His first sale was the tenth novel he completed: "Seven Times Seven" (1932). He wanted to support himself as a writer, but he did the math: a mystery writer may publish two books a year without overcrowding the marketplace, and he needed to sell more than that, so he began to use pseudonyms. Among the ones he used were Gordon Ashe; Margaret Cooke; M.E. Cooke; Henry St. John Cooper; Norman Deane; Elise Fecamps; Robert Caine Frazier; Patrick Gill; Michael Halliday; Charles Hogarth (with Ian Bowen); Brian Hope; Colin Hughes; Kyle Hunt; Abel Mann; Peter Manton; J.J. Marric; James Marsden; Richard Martin; Anthony Morton; Ken Ranger; William K. Reilly; Tex Riley; and Jeremy York.
An incredibly prolific writer who turned out work at an astonishing rate, he earned riches and fame. He purchased a 42-room manor in England and a Rolls-Royce. He dabbled in politics and contributed to refugee work and famine relief. He was married to Margaret Elizabeth Cooke for four years, to Evelyn Fudge for 29 years, to Jeanne Williams briefly, and to Diana Hamilton Farrell a month before his death. He had three children. He founded the Crime Writers' Association of Great Britain and was also an officer of the Mystery Writers of America. In 1946 he was made a Member of the Order of the British Empire (OBE). - Writer
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James A. Michener was born on 3 February 1907 in New York City, New York, USA. He was a writer and actor, known for Adventures in Paradise (1959), South Pacific (1958) and Return to Paradise (1953). He was married to Mari Michener, Vange Nord and Patti Koon. He died on 16 October 1997 in Austin, Texas, USA.- Cinematographer
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Yasuo Uchida is known for Futekinaru dasshutsu (1961), Mayaku gai no satsujin (1956) and Kieta shiritsu tantei (1958).- Seiichi Morimura was born on 2 January 1933 in Saitama, Japan. He was a writer and actor, known for Chokoso hoteru satsujin jiken (1976), Kadokawa Mystery & Horror Tales Vol. 1 (2003) and Kadokawa Mystery & Horror Tales Vol. 3 (2003). He died on 24 July 2023 in Tokyo, Japan.
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In 2002 Mary Higgins Clark published her memoir "Kitchen Privileges". The book describes her upbringing, first marriage and how she became such a famous author. Meanwhile 36 movies have been made that are based on Mary Higgins Clark's thrillers. For a while Mary Higgins Clark and her daughter published their own magazine.- Penny Jordan was born on 24 November 1946 in Preston, Lancashire, England, UK. She was married to Steve Halsall. She died on 31 December 2011 in Cheshire, England, UK.
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Patricia Cornwell was born on 9 June 1956 in Miami, Florida, USA. She is a writer and producer, known for Kay Scarpetta, The Front (2010) and Untitled Kay Scarpetta Project. She has been married to Staci Gruber since 24 February 2005. She was previously married to Charles L. Cornwell.- Writer
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Tom Clancy became one of the best-selling writers of the late 20th and early 21st Centuries, starting with the publication of his 1984 thriller, The Hunt for Red October (1990). Born in Baltimore to a U.S. Post Office employee and his wife on April 12, 1947, Clancy graduated from Loyola Blakefield, a Catholic private high school, in 1965 and then attended Loyola College. After graduating with his bachelor's degree in English literature, Clancy went into the insurance business as poor eyesight kept him out of the military. Despite being unable to serve during the Vietnam War, military and Cold War politics remained close to his heart.
While running his own insurance agency in Maryland, he wrote "The Hunt for Red October", which was published by the Naval Institute Press in 1984. Clancy received the princely sum of $5,000 from this most unusual venue for a work of fiction, but the book struck a nerve in the depths of the latter stages of the Cold War. The hardcover from the Naval Institute sold 45,000 copies, an amazing amount for a first novel from a publishing house peddling its first book of fiction, but the paperback (boosted by a strong recommendation from President Ronald Reagan) sold two million copies.
The book was very detailed and extremely savvy when it came to the machinations of the military and Cold War politicians. In fact, Clancy's editor at the Naval Institute Press had him eliminate details, which trimmed the novel by 100 pages. In all, he wrote 28 books, mostly fiction but also, military themed non-fiction books. Clancy placed 17 books on the New York Times Best Seller List, many of which hit #1. His oeuvre accounted for sales of 100 million copies, making him one of the all-time most popular writers in history.
Clancy became a media industry onto himself. He was successful lending his name and ideas to video games, and his video game company Red Storm Entertainment was bought out for $45 million in 2000. Clancy-branded video games racked up sales of 76 million units. Movies adapted from Clancy's works racked up $786.5 million at the box office.
Tom Clancy died of heart failure on October 1, 2013. He was 66 years old.- Writer
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Tezuka Osamu was born on November 3, 1928 in Toyonaka, Japan as the first child of Fumiko & Yutaka Tezuka. At 5, he & his family moved to the village of Kohama in Hyogo prefecture (present day city of Takarazuka). When he was 7, he entered Ikeda Elementary School in Osaka. Due to his diminutive stature, he was bullied a lot in school. His mother was a good story teller & would tell stories to him. His father was a big comic & animated movies fan. Therefore, he would do a private showing of movies he bought at his house. This influence would later inspire him to write story length comics that was as exciting as watching a movie. He drew his first comic when he was in 3rd grade titled Bin Bin Namachan, a story of a bald-headed boy that was modeled after himself. During those days, he read comics such as Norakuro & Nakamura Manga Library. He even drew a story about martians called Kaseijin Kuru! He also invented his famous character Hyotantsugi in a work he titled Fuku-chan to Uotsuri. . Another one of his works called Shina no Yoru caused quite a sensation.
His other love in life was insects. He would roam around the fields to study them & he would draw his own encyclopedia. One day, he found an insect named Osamushi, which resembled his name. Therefore, he adopted Osamushi as his pen name. He started to draw using pen & ink as well as write comics when he was 15. He self-published 13 books that year. In 1945, he entered Osaka University's medical division. The following year, he made his professional debut w/ the comic Maachan no nikki-cho in an Osaka children's newspaper. Later that year, he met Nanama Sakai at the Kansai manga club meeting & was asked to draw a feature length cartoon. W/ Sakai as story writer, he published Shin Takarajima the following year, selling 400,000 copies. He then went on to win 1st place at the YMCA for his piano performance. He was also a member of the university's acting club during & dabbled in school plays. What separated him from artists before him was that his comic had a 3-dimensional feel to his pictures & more lively motion to his characters.
In 1950, he began writing Jungle Taitei, which was published in the magazine Manga Shonen. After graduating from Osaka University the following year, he wrote the pilot episode for Tetsuwan Atom titled Atom Taishi, which was featured in the magazine Shounen. In 1952, he passed the exam to become a practicing physician. Atom Taishi ended in March & is renamed Tetsuwan Atom w/ syndication continuing until March 1968. He was in a dilemma as to which profession he would choose as his career: to be a manga artist or a doctor. He consulted his mother about his career choice & she advised him to choose whichever he loved the most. Encouraged by this, he chose manga.
In 1953, he moved to the now legendary Tokiwaso apartment where many young comic talents from all over Japan lived to start their career. Most of them were not only younger, but considered him as their guru, becoming a mentor. In 1959, he married Etsuko Okada. That same year, Tetsuwan Atom airs on Fuji TV featuring live actors. In 1961, he started his own animation production company called Tezuka Osamu Production Animation Department & beginning work on the pilot of animated version of Tetsuwan Atom. On January 1, 1963 Tetsuwan Atom starts airing on Fuji TV & is broadcasted by NBC as Astro Boy in the U.S. the following year. He followed up w/ the animated version of his comic Big X & W 3. In 1965, he created his 1st color anime Jungle Taitei, later airing in the Americas as Kimba the White Lion. His works from late the 60s such as Magma Taishi & 70s such as Mitsume ga tooru & Black Jack aren't as well known outside Japan, but he continued to draw at a prolific pace during those years. In 1972, due to internal strife, Mushi pro disintegrates. He later created another production company named after himself called Tezuka pro. During the 80s his work load slowly declined & he was more of a cultural icon, becoming a guest on many social events & TV interviews. He was also busy running his production company.
In 1988, he felt pain in his abdomen & underwent surgery. Not knowing this was due to stomach cancer as his his physician chose not to reveal his terminal illness, he was heard saying, "This doctor doesn't understand my question" as he asked about his condition. He passed away on February 9, 1989. Magazine headlines read Manga Taitei iku. Now, he's remembered as the greatest manga artist of all time, single-handedly jump starting both genre of modern day manga & anime with many manga artists were influenced by Tezuka's works. He was also 1 of the most prolific artist in the field w/ over 700 stories spanning over 170,000 pages to his credit . His impact on the entire social culture of Japan's also seen as immeasurable as he influenced so many different areas of art & society through his comics. Never in history has a comic artist influenced the society of a single country the way he did. He'll be remembered as the founding father of modern day manga.- Writer
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Carter Brown was born on 1 August 1923 in London, England, UK. He was a writer, known for Any Given Sunday (1999), Touchez pas aux blondes (1960) and The Pornographer (2001). He was married to Denise Sinclair Mackellar. He died on 5 May 1985 in Sydney, Australia.