The Modern Novel

Biography

James Salter was born James Arnold Horowitz in Passaic, New Jersey in 1925. His father was a builder. When he was two, the family moved to New York, where his father worked in real estate. After school he went to West Point and trained as a pilot. He flew transport planes for the Air Force to and from Hawaii. At this time, he adopted the pen name James Salter and started work on his first novel. In 1948, he went to Georgetown University, where he earned a Master’s in international affairs. He then became a fighter pilot during the Korean War, which became the basis for his first novel. When he received $60,000 for the film rights, he reluctantly resigned from the Air Force to become a full-time novelist. However, he was active in the National Guard and, during the Russian blockade of Berlin, he served in France, where he met the writer, Irwin Shaw, who was a big influence on him. He started writing screen plays, including the screenplay for Downhill Racer, starring Robert Redford. He later returned to novel writing, producing his best-known works. He had become virtually forgotten, till he produced his first novel for over thirty years with All That Is in 2013. He died in 2015.

Other links

His Facebook page
James Salter
James Salter
James Salter
James Salter – The Greatest Writer You’ve Never Read
James Salter: the forgotten hero of American literature
A Few Well-Chosen Words (profile)
Interview
Interview
Interview
Interview