Zane Grey

Zane Grey (born Pearl Zane Grey; January 31, 1872 – October 23, 1939) was an American writer who achieved worldwide fame for his adventure novels about life in the American Wild West.

Born in Zanesville, Ohio, Gray was a semi-professional baseball player in his youth. He studied dentistry at the University of Pennsylvania, where he graduated in 1896. After working as a dentist in New York City for several years, he decided to devote himself to writing.

He published his first novel, Betty Zane, in 1904, inspired by stories about his great-grandmother. He achieved real success with Riders of the Purple Sage in 1912, which became the best-selling novel in the United States up to that time, selling 750,000 copies.​

During his career, Gray wrote a total of 54 adventure novels, many of which were adapted into films and comic books. His works are characterized by simple plots and vivid descriptions of the American West, laying the foundation for the Western genre in literature. ​

Zane Gray died on October 23, 1939, in Altadena, California. His legacy lives on through numerous novels and adaptations that have shaped the perception of the Wild West in popular culture.