His novel, "Eaters of the Dead," was made into The 13th Warrior (1999), directed by John McTiernan. [1996]

He has related the story of his first visit to a movie studio, Universal, which was about to produce The Andromeda Strain (1971). A young novice director named Steven Spielberg was assigned the task of giving him a tour of the studio. It was almost 20 years later that he was contacted by Spielberg for a potential project that was dropped in favor of another of his stories, Jurassic Park (1993).

When writing a script or book, he always eats the same thing for lunch to aid his concentration. When writing Jurassic Park (1993), for example, he ate egg salad sandwiches with lots of pepper.

Michael was exorcised in 1986.

ER (1994) began its life in the early 1970s as E.W.: Emergency Ward, which was what they were called at the time, and was a full-length film script. He was unable to get it produced. Steven Spielberg contacted him about it in 1989, expressing interest in turning it into a movie. It was dropped when Spielberg heard about Jurassic Park (1993). During the film's production, someone else at Amblin Entertainment read it and suggested that it was better suited for a television series.

Raised in Roslyn, New York.

Director Nicolas Roeg originally wanted him to play the alien in The Man Who Fell to Earth (1976). The role eventually went to androgynous rock star David Bowie instead.

Has written two stories about futuristic theme parks that go haywire: Westworld (1973) and Jurassic Park (1993). Both films feature actors who worked with John Sturges. Yul Brynner appeared in The Magnificent Seven (1960), and referenced his earlier role as the robotic gunslinger. Richard Attenborough appeared in The Great Escape (1963).

Biography in John Wakeman, editor, "World Film Directors, Volume Two, 1945-1985," pp. 248-250. New York: The H.W. Wilson Company, 1988.

Mystery Writer's of America Edgar award for "A Case of Need." [1968]

Was tied up and robbed at gunpoint by masked men in his home in Santa Monica, California, on 23 September 2002. No one was harmed.

Played basketball at Roslyn High School

Mystery Writer's of America Edgar award for The First Great Train Robbery (1979). [1980]

Education: Harvard Medical School. Original Job: Anthropology professor. Child: Taylor.

Visiting writer, MIT. [1988]

Frequently hired Jerry Goldsmith to compose the scores for his films.

Association of American Medical Writers award for "Five Patients." [1970]

After failing to get producers interested in "ER" (1994) in 1970, the script sat in a metal safe for twenty years until Steven Spielberg heard about it.