MARK TWAIN (personality)

Mark Twain (born Samuel Langhorne Clemens) was an American writer, humorist, entrepreneur, publisher, and lecturer from the 1850s to 1910. Twain was raised in Hannibal, Missouri, which provided the setting for his characters Tom Sawyer and Huckleberry Finn. He later became a riverboat pilot on the Mississippi River before heading west to try his hand at mining befoe turning to journalism for the Virginia City Territorial Enterprise. His humorous story, "The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County", was published in 1865, and brought international attention. His wit and satire, in prose and in speech, earned praise from critics and peers, and he was a friend to presidents, artists, industrialists, and European royalty. Among his novels are The Adventures of Tom Sawyer, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn (often called "The Great American Novel") and Pudd'nhead Wilson. He passed away in 1910 at the age of 74.