W.E.B. Griffin Biography
W.E.B. Griffin (William E. Butterworth III) is
the author of thirty-six epic novels in six series, all of which have been
listed on The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, Publishers Weekly
and other best-seller lists. More than forty million of his books are in print
in more than ten languages, including Hebrew, Chinese, Japanese, and Hungarian.
Mr. Griffin grew
up in the suburbs of New York City and Philadelphia. He enlisted in the United
States Army in 1946. After basic training, he received counterintelligence
training at Fort Holabird, Maryland. He was assigned to the Army of Occupation
in Germany, and ultimately to the staff of then-Major General I.D. White,
commander of the U.S. Constabulary.
In 1951, Mr.
Griffin was recalled to active duty for the Korean War, interrupting his
education at Phillips University, Marburg an der Lahn, Germany. In Korea he
earned the Combat Infantry Badge as a combat correspondent and later served as
acting X Corps (Group) information officer under Lieutenant General White.
On his release
from active duty in 1953, Mr. Griffin was appointed Chief of the Publications
Division of the U.S. Army Signal Aviation Test & Support Activity at Fort
Rucker, Alabama.
Mr. Griffin is a
member of the Special Operations Association, the Veterans of Foreign Wars, the
American Legion, the Army Aviation Association, and the Armor Association.
He was the 1991
recipient of the Brigadier General Robert L. Dening Memorial Distinguished
Service Award of the U.S. Marine Corps Combat Correspondents Association, and
the August 1999 recipient of the Veterans of Foreign Wars News Media Award,
presented at the 100th National Convention in Kansas City.
He has been
vested into the Order of St. George of the U.S. Armor Association, and the Order
of St. Andrew of the U.S. Army Aviation Association, and been awarded Honorary
Doctoral degrees by Norwich University, the nation's first and oldest private
military college, and by Troy State University (Ala.). He was the graduation
dinner speaker for the class of 1988 at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point.
He has been
awarded honorary membership in the Special Forces Association, the Marine Corps
Combat Correspondents Association, the Marine Raiders Association, and the U.S.
Army Otter & Caribou Association. In January 2003, he was made a life member of
the Police Chiefs Association of Southeastern Pennsylvania, Southern New Jersey,
and the State of Delaware.
He is the
co-founder, with historian Colonel Carlo D'Este, of the William E. Colby Seminar
on Intelligence, Military, and Diplomatic Affairs. (www.norwich.edu/symposium
and www.colbysymposium.org)
He is a Life
Member of the National Rifle Association. And he belongs to the Buenos Aires,
Argentina, and Pensacola, Florida, chapters of the Flat Earth Society.
Mr. Griffin's
novels, known for their historical accuracy, have been praised by The
Philadelphia Inquirer for their "fierce, stop-for-nothing scenes."
"Nothing honors
me more than a serviceman, veteran, or cop telling me he enjoys reading my
books," Mr. Griffin says.
Mr. Griffin
divides his time between the Gulf Coast and Buenos Aires.
From webgriffin.com
This biography was last updated on 12/28/2008.
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