The historic novels, true adventures of Clive Cussler

Dear Editor,

There is a collection of Clive Cussler books taking up two shelves at the Trenton Public Library. They are classified as historic novels.

Clive Eric Cussler was born in 1931 in Aurora, Ill., and was raised in Alambra, Calif. His father, Erie Cussler, was born in Germany and his mother Amy, was of English descent.

He married Barbara Knight in 1955. She died in 2003. They had three children, Teri, Dirk and Darna.

Collecting classic cars is an important hobby for him. His daughter, Teri, runs the Cussler Car Museum in Arvada, Colo.

After attending Pasadena College for two years, he enlisted in the U.S. Air Force and became a flight engineer for the Military Air Transport Service.

He worked for two successful advertising agencies after his discharge from the Air Force. His skill in the production of radio and television commercials resulted in winning an award at the Cannes Lions International Advertising Festival.

In 1965, his wife took a job with the local police department. After feeding the children dinner, he put them to bed and started writing. He created Dirk Pitt, an adventurer, marine engineer and government agent.

Clive Cussler has co-authored books with his son, Dirk, and a number of other writers.

Frequently, the plots of these stories take on an unusual historical perspective, such as “what if Abe Lincoln wasn’t assassinated, but was kidnapped?

Cussler’s almost always begin with a chapter taking place in the past. The main characters discover a mystery or secret that connects with the first chapter.

By 2018, Cussler will have been involved in writing 70 books. Four of them are non-fiction and two of them are children’s books: “Sea Hunters: True Adventures with Famous Shipwrecks,” “Clive Cussler and Dirk Pitt Revealed,” “Sea Hunters II Diving the World’s Seas for Famous Shipwrecks” and “Built for Adventure: The Classic Automobiles of Clive Cussler and Dirk Pitt” are examples of the author’s non-fiction publications.

In 1980, Clive Cussler’s novel “Raise the Titanic” was made into a movie starring Jason Robard as Dirk Pitt.

Paramount Pictures on April 5, 2005, released “Sahara,” starring Matthew McConaghy as Dirk Pitt.

On the back cover of “Poseidon’s Arrow” is a photo of a 1930 Packard Speedster runabout with Cliff Cussler and Dirk Cussler.

Helen Ruth Arnold,

Trenton, Neb.