Born: February 27, 1902, Salinas, CA

Children: Thomas Steinbeck, John Steinbeck IV

John Steinbeck dropped out of college and worked as a manual laborer before ... Following Stanford, Steinbeck tried to make a go of it as a freelance writer.

Key events and dates in a John Steinbeck timeline, compiled by PhDs and Masters from ... Marriage to Carol Henning.

December 20, 1968, New York City, NY

John Steinbeck died in New York City on December 20, 1968, of heart disease and congestive heart failure. He was 66, and had been a lifelong smoker. An autopsy showed nearly complete occlusion of the main coronary arteries.