Author. Best known for penning the pair of novels “Mrs. Bridge” (1959) and “Mr. Bridge” (1969), for which were made into a motion picture adaptation that starred Paul Newman and Joanne Woodward. The son of a physician, he chose to follow his dreams of becoming a writer despite of his father’s idea that he pursue work in the medical field. He enrolled at Dartmouth College but yielded his studies to enlist with the United States Navy (for whom he served as a pilot and instructor). Upon returning home, he attained a degree in English Literature from the University of Kansas in 1947 and studied further at Stanford and Columbia Universities. He traveled throughout Europe during the 1950s and produced his first work “The Anatomy Lesson and Other Stories” (1957). He drew wide acclaim in 1959 with his initial novel “Mrs. Bridge”, a story which depicted a family living in Kansas City during the World War II era as the wife deals with raising the children while the husband sets his priorities on his work. A decade later, he penned its sequel. The plots merged for the movie adaptation in 1990. His novel “Son of the Morning Star: Custer and the Little Bighorn” (1985) was made into a Emmy Award nominated TV-movie in 1991. (bio by: C.S.)