Tom Clancy, prolific thriller author, dies
Prolific writer Tom Clancy has died at the age of 66, according to the author鈥檚 .
The author is best known for his thrillers such as 鈥�The Hunt for Red October,鈥� which was his first novel, 鈥�Clear and Present Danger,鈥� and 鈥淭he Sum of All Fears,鈥� among others. Many of his books featured his protagonist Jack Ryan, who works for the CIA and eventually becomes a politician.
Clancy was born in Baltimore, Md. and attended Loyola College. He worked in insurance before publishing 鈥淥ctober鈥� in 1984. In addition to his books centering on Jack Ryan and his character John Clark, another member of the CIA, Clancy created various series including the Net Force books and the Op-Center series.
He is also behind such nonfiction works as 鈥淪ubmarine鈥� and 鈥淪pecial Forces.鈥� According to the author's , 17 of his books became New York times bestsellers.
"I鈥檓 deeply saddened by Tom鈥檚 passing," Penguin Group USA executive David Shank said in a . "He was a consummate author, creating the modern-day thriller, and was one of the most visionary storytellers of our time. I will miss him dearly and he will be missed by tens of millions of readers worldwide."
The author's books were so detailed that the federal government became concerned that Clancy had somehow accessed top-secret information. (He had actually just done a lot of research.) "If you were a naval officer, I would have you court-martialed because of all the classified information in your book," then-Secretary of the Navy John F. Lehman Jr. told him after "October" was released, according to the .
Novels of Clancy鈥檚 that were turned into films included 鈥淭he Hunt for Red October,鈥� which starred Alec Baldwin and Sean Connery, and 鈥淧atriot Games,鈥� which also starred Ford as well as Sean Bean. [Editor's note: This article originally mistakenly identified Harrison Ford as the star of "The Hunt for Red October".]
He released the novel 鈥淭hreat Vector鈥� this past December and a new novel, titled 鈥淐ommand Authority,鈥� is due to come out this coming December.听
The author was also part of a group of investors that owned the Baltimore Orioles.听
