About Clive Cussler

Clive Cussler, the Grand Master of Adventure, grew up in Alhambra, California.
He later attended Pasadena City College for two years, but then enlisted in the Air Force during the Korean War where he served as an aircraft mechanic and flight engineer in the Military Air Transport Service. Upon his discharge, he became a copywriter and later creative director for two leading ad agencies. At that time, he wrote and produced radio and television commercials that won numerous international awards one at the prestigious Cannes Film Festival.

Clive Cussler began writing in 1965 and published his first novel featuring Dirk Pitt® in 1973. His first non-fiction work, The Sea Hunters, was released in 1996. Because of this work the Board of Governors of the Maritime College, State University of New York considered The Sea Hunters in lieu of a Ph.D. thesis and awarded Cussler a Doctor of Letters degree in May of 1997. It was the first time since the College was founded in 1874 that such a degree was bestowed.

Clive is the founder of the National Underwater & Marine Agency, (NUMA) a non-profit organisation that dedicates itself to American maritime and naval history.You can visit the non profit organization online by (clicking here).Cussler and his crew of marine experts and NUMA volunteers have discovered over 60 historically significant underwater wreck sites. After verifying their finds, NUMA turns the rights to the artifacts over to non-profits, universities, or government entities all over the world. Some of these finds include the C.S.S. Hunley, best known as the first submarine to sink a ship in battle and the U-20, the U-boat that sank the Lusitania. In addition to being Chairman of NUMA, Cussler is a fellow in both the Explorers Club of New York and the Royal Geographic Society in London.

A noted collector of classic automobiles, Clive owns over 100 of the finest examples of custom coachwork and 50’s convertibles to be found anywhere. They are garaged near Golden, Colorado. You can visit the museum online by (clicking here). Today, Cussler divides his time between the mountains of Colorado and the deserts of Arizona.

Over the years many of Clive’s fans have posed many a question to him on various topics. You can review a list of the frequently asked questions (Faqs) by (clicking here)