Story highlights
- First on-screen "Jack Ryan" Alec Baldwin: Clancy was "a real gentleman"
- His 1984 novel "The Hunt for Red October" propelled him to fame, fortune and status
- Clancy's publisher says the author died in Baltimore on Tuesday
- "Command Authority," his last book, is due to be published in December
Spy thriller writer Tom Clancy, whose best-selling books "The Hunt for Red October" and "Patriot Games" became blockbuster films, has died, his publisher said Wednesday. He was 66.
Clancy's publisher, the Penguin Group, said the author died in Baltimore on Tuesday. The written statement did not indicate the cause of death.
Clancy's 1984 novel "The Hunt for Red October" propelled him to fame, fortune and status as a favorite storyteller of the American military. Sean Connery and Alec Baldwin brought the Cold War drama to life in the big screen in 1990.
"Spending time with Tom prior to shooting was the best part of that whole experience for me," Baldwin said Wednesday. "Tom was smart, a great story teller and a real gentleman."
Harrison Ford took the big screen role of CIA analyst Jack Ryan in "Patriot Games and "Clear and Present Danger." Ben Affleck was cast as Ryan for "The Sum of All Fears."
1 of 9
2 of 9
3 of 9
4 of 9
5 of 9
6 of 9
7 of 9
8 of 9
9 of 9
1 of 150
2 of 150
3 of 150
4 of 150
5 of 150
6 of 150
7 of 150
8 of 150
9 of 150
10 of 150
11 of 150
12 of 150
13 of 150
14 of 150
15 of 150
16 of 150
17 of 150
18 of 150
19 of 150
20 of 150
21 of 150
22 of 150
23 of 150
24 of 150
25 of 150
26 of 150
27 of 150
28 of 150
29 of 150
30 of 150
31 of 150
32 of 150
33 of 150
34 of 150
35 of 150
36 of 150
37 of 150
38 of 150
39 of 150
40 of 150
41 of 150
42 of 150
43 of 150
44 of 150
45 of 150
46 of 150
47 of 150
48 of 150
49 of 150
50 of 150
51 of 150
52 of 150
53 of 150
54 of 150
55 of 150
56 of 150
57 of 150
58 of 150
59 of 150
60 of 150
61 of 150
62 of 150
63 of 150
64 of 150
65 of 150
66 of 150
67 of 150
68 of 150
69 of 150
70 of 150
71 of 150
72 of 150
73 of 150
74 of 150
75 of 150
76 of 150
77 of 150
78 of 150
79 of 150
80 of 150
81 of 150
82 of 150
83 of 150
84 of 150
85 of 150
86 of 150
87 of 150
88 of 150
89 of 150
90 of 150
91 of 150
92 of 150
93 of 150
94 of 150
95 of 150
96 of 150
97 of 150
98 of 150
99 of 150
100 of 150
101 of 150
102 of 150
103 of 150
104 of 150
105 of 150
106 of 150
107 of 150
108 of 150
109 of 150
110 of 150
111 of 150
112 of 150
113 of 150
114 of 150
115 of 150
116 of 150
117 of 150
118 of 150
119 of 150
120 of 150
121 of 150
122 of 150
123 of 150
124 of 150
125 of 150
126 of 150
127 of 150
128 of 150
129 of 150
130 of 150
131 of 150
132 of 150
133 of 150
134 of 150
135 of 150
136 of 150
137 of 150
138 of 150
139 of 150
140 of 150
141 of 150
142 of 150
143 of 150
144 of 150
145 of 150
146 of 150
147 of 150
148 of 150
149 of 150
150 of 150
"I'm deeply saddened by Tom's passing," said Penguin executive David Shanks, who worked with Clancy on each of his novels, quoted in the company's statement. "He was a consummate author, creating the modern-day thriller, and was one of the most visionary storytellers of our time. I will miss him dearly and he will be missed by tens of millions of readers worldwide."
"Command Authority," his last book, is due to be published by G.P. Putnam's Sons in December, the company said. Putnam is an imprint of the Penguin Group.
"It was an honor to know Tom Clancy and to work on his fantastic books," said Ivan Held, president and publisher of G.P. Putnam's Sons. "He was ahead of the news curve and sometimes frighteningly prescient. To publish a Tom Clancy book was a thrill every time. He will be missed by everyone at Putnam and Berkley, and by his fans all over the world."
A Baltimore-born former insurance agent, Clancy was known for writing meticulous thrillers focusing on political intrigue and military tactics and technology.
Seventeen of his 28 books appeared on the New York Times best-sellers list, according to his website. Many of them reached the No. 1 spot.
His writings also provided the inspiration for the "Rainbow Six," "Ghost Recon" and "Splinter Cell," video game series.
His writing gained him a loyal following within the armed forces in the United States and abroad, giving him inside access that frequently informed the plots of his books. But in a 2003 CNN interview, Clancy said he was always careful not to reveal classified information or sensitive details of how the elite troops he often wrote about operated.
"I'll never decide for commercial reasons to put something in that endangers our national security. You just can't do that," he said in a 2003 CNN interview. "There was one thing, I discussed with a friend of mine in the Royal Navy. I told him a story I knew, and he said, 'Well, Tom, you may never repeat that, as long as you live.' And I haven't."