15 Things You Didn't Know About Tom Clancy
The prolific author has died at the age of 66. This is his legacy.
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Prolific author and video game influencer Tom Clancy has died today, at the age of 66. You may recognize his name from the Rainbow Six, Ghost Recon, and Splinter Cell games, or you might know his work through movie adaptations like Patriot Games, Clear and Present Danger, or The Hunt for Red October. Or maybe, you know, you read one of his 30 books.
To mark his untimely passing, dig deeper into the man's biography with 15 Things You Didn't Know About Tom Clancy.
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Despite writing about the military in practically all of his books, Clancy never served. He tried to enlist, but his poor eyesight kept him out.
When Clancy sold his first novel, he was working as an insurance salesman.
President Reagan was a huge fan of Clancy, especially The Hunt for Red October.
Seventeen of his novels reached No. 1 on the New York Times best-seller list.
Four of his novels were adapted into movies.
In his 1994 novel Debt of Honor, a terrorist crashes a plane into the Capitol building. After the attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon on September 11th, 2001, much was made of this, though there's no way of proving that his novel served as inspiration.
Five of his novels were adapted into video games.
In 1996, he co-founded Red Storm Entertainment, the video game developer behind, among other things, the Rainbow Six and Ghost Recon series.
He ranked No. 10 on the Forbes "Celebrity 100" in 2002.
Purportedly, Clancy's estimated networth is $300 million.
Born in Baltimore, Clancy became a co-owner of the Baltimore Orioles in 1993.
He tried to buy the Minnesota Vikings in 1998, but a divorce settlement stymied the deal.
He joined the NRA in 1978, and was a member until his death.
In 1989, he was offered an unpaid position as a consultant to the National Space Council.
He has a novel entitled Command Authority forthcoming this December. This will bring his total number of published books to 30.
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