Happy Birthday April 12

American author Tom Clancy was born on April 12, 1947, at Franklin Square Hospital in Baltimore, Maryland to Catherine Clancy and U.S. Postal Service worker, Thomas Clancy.  Originally an insurance agent, his literary career began in 1984 when he sold his first military thriller book, The Hunt for Red October. Due to the limited technology of the 1980s, the novel had to be saved on ten floppy disks.

Tom Clancy 1989 By Gary Wayne Gilbert 

Clancy became one of America's best selling novelists renowned for his technically detailed espionage and military-science storylines set during and after the Cold War. His best known works, including The Hunt for Red October (1984), Patriot Games (1987), Clear and Present Danger (1989), and The Sum of All Fears (1991), have been adapted into successful screenplays.

For more April 12 anniversaries, including the commencement of the American Civil War, the death of President Franklin D. Roosevelt, and the recording of Bill Haley's "Rock Around the Clock", check out OnThatDay.