Walter Lord was born in Baltimore, Maryland on October 8, 1917. He graduated from Princeton University in 1939, and worked in the London office of the Office of Strategic Services (what later became the CIA) during World War II. He is best known for his 1955 book "A Night to Remember" about the Titanic disaster. It was made into a film in 1958. He also wrote books on other historical events including Pearl Harbor, the Battle of Midway, and the Alamo. He passed away in his Manhattan home on May 19, 2002.