Thomas Steinbeck

Thomas 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 eldest son of American novelist John Steinbeck.

Relatives:

John Steinbeck (father)
Gwyndolyn Steinbeck (mother)

Early life

Thomas ("Thom") Steinbeck was born in Manhattan, New York, to American novelist John Steinbeck and his second wife, singer-composer Gwyndolyn Steinbeck on August 2, 1944. His younger brother John Steinbeck IV, was born two years later. His parents' marriage dissolved four years after he was born, and subsequently "Thom" spent a great deal of time with his father. He credited his father for instilling in him not only a passion for the works of the world’s great writers, but also a recognition of how language and the poetic rhythm of words effected individuals and society in general. "Thom" had a good relationship with his famous father, stating that he would rate him, "an eight-and-a-half or a nine" on a ten-point scale.

The young Steinbeck was educated at a number of boarding schools on the east coast. He and his younger brother traveled widely with their father to Europe, Greece, North Africa. At one point, they spent a year traveling the world with a young teacher from Austin, Texas: playwright Terrence McNally, who later won four Tony Awards and an Emmy. "Thom" went on to study at the Chouinard Art Institute, and to study film at the UCLA School of Theater, Film and Television. However, the Vietnam War cut his studies short.

Military service

Steinbeck trained to serve with Armed Forces Radio and Television at Fort Knox, but arrived in Vietnam on the second day of the 1968 Tet Offensive and was immediately reassigned as a helicopter door gunner. Afterwards, he resumed work as a combat photographer (he once said that "we had a fantasy that somehow we could take the photograph that could stop the war") and returned to his original posting with AFVN as a television production specialist. After his service, he returned to Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia as a journalist and photographer.

Writing career

Upon his return to the U.S. from Asia, Thomas Steinbeck wrote and crewed on a number of documentaries, films and television projects. He wrote numerous original screenplays and documentaries, as well as adaptations of his father’s work. These included the screenplays based on In Dubious Battle, The Pearl, and Travels With Charley.

After a time, he turned to writing books. At the age of 58, Steinbeck's first book was published, Down to a Soundless Sea (2002), a series of short stories based upon the original settlers of Big Sur, California, in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Published by Random House, the book was translated into seven languages, an audio version, and a large print edition, and was even part of Oprah's Book Club. In 2010, Simon & Schuster published his first novel, In the Shadow of the Cypress. Follow-up novels included, The Silver Lotus, released in November 2011 by Counterpoint Press.

Steinbeck also contributed to the My California Project, a collection of short stories written by 27 California authors, in an attempt to save the floundering California Arts Council.

Personal life

Along with his writing and producing obligations, Thomas Steinbeck lectured on American literature, creative writing, and the communication arts. He served as a board member of the both the National Steinbeck Center in Salinas, California and The Center for Steinbeck Studies at San Jose State University. And once every year, he would personally present the John Steinbeck Award through his foundation, The John Steinbeck Family Foundation in affiliation with The Center for Steinbeck Studies.

During his lifetime, Steinbeck was an active proponent of authors' rights. In 2009, he worked closely with his friend, Arlo Guthrie, in a successful initiative to implement an extension to the settlement negotiations between Google and the Authors Guild.

At the time of his death, Steinbeck lived with his wife Gail in Santa Barbara, California. According to his family, Steinbeck died of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.