Thomas Steinbeck death, Steinbeck lived with his wife Gail in Santa Barbara, California. According to his family, he died of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. He was 72. Fiction Contributor Thomas Steinbeck Thomas Myles Steinbeck (August 2, 1944 – August 11, 2016) was an American novelist, screenwriter, photographer, and journalist. He published numerous works of fiction, including short stories and novels. He was the elder son of American novelist John Steinbeck. Thomas ("Thom") Steinbeck was born in Manhattan, New York City, to American novelist John Steinbeck and his second wife, singer-composer Gwyndolyn Conger on August 2, 1944. His younger brother John Steinbeck IV,
John Peterson (author) John Peterson (author) John Lawrence Peterson (February 10, 1924 – November 2002) was an American author of children's books. He is best known as the creator of "The Littles", which began as a series of books in 1967, later adapted into an animated cartoon series by DiC Entertainment. Peterson was also the author of "The Secret Hide-Out", a popular Scholastic Books title in the 1960s and 1970s. Peterson was born in Bradford, Pennsylvania on February 10, 1924, and attended Pratt Institute before volunteering and serving as a paratrooper of the 11th Airborne Division in World War II. After the war,