Samuel Langhorne Clemens, better known as Mark Twain (1835 - 1910), was an American novelist and humorist. Born in Missouri, he suffered ill health as a child and lost his father at the age of 12. A year later, to help keep his family fed, Samuel left school to become a printer's apprentice. He eventually went to work at his brother's newspaper and discovered that he enjoyed, and had a gift for, writing. At 21, Samuel embarked on a career as a steamboat pilot, but the Civil War forced him to head west and, after an unsuccessful attempt as a prospecting career, he went to work as a newspaper reporter and soon carved out a reputation as one of the most entertaining storytellers—in print and in person--around. In the course of his life, Samuel wrote 28 books and innumerable letters, essays, and short stories and is today considered one of America's greatest literary icons.