Thriller Fiction Novelist Tom Clancy Dead at Age 66

copyright 2012 David Burnett

The Penguin Group has announced the passing of New York Times best-selling novelist Tom Clancy in Baltimore on Tuesday.  The author was 66. A cause of death was not stated. Clancy was perhaps best known for his blockbuster thriller, The Hunt for Red October, which became a hit movie starring Alec Baldwin and Sean Connery.

Several of his other novels also went on to be played out on the big screen, including Patriot Games, The Sum of All Fears, and Clear and Present Danger.

In the statement released by the publishing company, Penguin executive David Shanks was quoted as saying "He was a consummate author, creating the modern-day thriller, and was one of the most visionary storytellers of our times. I will miss him dearly and he will be missed by tens of millions of readers worldwide."

Command Authority, Clancy's 17th novel, is due out on December 3rd.

An icon of the literary world is gone but his words will live on.  What is your favorite Tom Clancy novel/film? Comment below.