John Steinbeck Salinas, Monterey and parts of the San Joaquin Valley were the setting for many of his stories. The area is now sometimes referred to as "Steinbeck Country". Most of his early work dealt with subjects familiar to him from his formative years. An exception was his first novel, "", which concerns the pirate Henry Morgan, whose adventures had captured Steinbeck's imagination as a child. In his subsequent novels, Steinbeck found a more authentic voice by drawing upon direct memories of his life in California. His childhood friend, Max Wagner, a brother of Jack Wagner and who later became a film
Janet Steinbeck Janet Steinbeck Janet May Steinbeck (born 27 February 1951), also known by her married name Janet Murray, was an Australian competitive swimmer of the 1960s who raced internationally in the Olympics and Commonwealth Games, winning two silver medals as a member of Australian relay teams. Steinbeck was primarily a freestyle swimmer. As a 15-year-old at the 1966 British Empire and Commonwealth Games in Kingston, Jamaica, Steinbeck won a silver medal in the women's 4×110-yard freestyle relay. Swimming the first leg of the four-swimmer relay, she combined with teammates Janice Murphy, Lynette Bell and Marion Smith for a time of 4:11.1,