Gerald Petievich (b. 1944) is an American author of

crime fiction Crime fiction, detective story, murder mystery, crime novel, mystery novel, and police novel are terms used to describe narratives or fiction that centre on criminal acts and especially on the investigation, either by an amateur or a professiona ...

, and a former agent of the

United States Secret Service The United States Secret Service (USSS or Secret Service) is a federal law enforcement agency under the Department of Homeland Security tasked with conducting criminal investigations and providing protection to American political leaders, thei ...

Biography

Petievich was born in

Los Angeles County, California Los Angeles County, officially the County of Los Angeles and sometimes abbreviated as LA County, is the List of United States counties and county equivalents, most populous county in the United States, with 9,663,345 residents estimated in 202 ...

, to a family of Serbian descent. His father and brother were both members of the

Los Angeles Police Department The City of Los Angeles Police Department, commonly referred to as Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD), is the primary law enforcement agency of Los Angeles, California, United States. With 8,832 officers and 3,000 civilian staff, it is the th ...

. Prior to his law enforcement career, Petievich served in the

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the primary Land warfare, land service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is designated as the Army of the United States in the United States Constitution.Article II, section 2, clause 1 of th ...

as a

Counterintelligence Counterintelligence (counter-intelligence) or counterespionage (counter-espionage) is any activity aimed at protecting an agency's Intelligence agency, intelligence program from an opposition's intelligence service. It includes gathering informati ...

officer in

West Germany West Germany was the common English name for the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG) from its formation on 23 May 1949 until German reunification, its reunification with East Germany on 3 October 1990. It is sometimes known as the Bonn Republi ...

Secret Service career

Petievich joined the

as a Special Agent in 1970, a position he held until 1985. During that time, his assignments included Presidential protection detail,

counterfeiting A counterfeit is a fake or unauthorized replica of a genuine product, such as money, documents, designer items, or other valuable goods. Counterfeiting generally involves creating an imitation of a genuine item that closely resembles the original ...

enforcement, and representative to the United States Organized Crime Strike Force in Los Angeles.

Writing career

Petievich published his first four novels while still employed by the Secret Service. He retired in 1985 to focus on writing full time. That same year, his novel ''To Live and Die in L.A.'' was adapted to

film A film, also known as a movie or motion picture, is a work of visual art that simulates experiences and otherwise communicates ideas, stories, perceptions, emotions, or atmosphere through the use of moving images that are generally, sinc ...

by director

William Friedkin William David Friedkin (; August 29, 1935 – August 7, 2023) was an American film, television and opera director, producer, and screenwriter who was closely identified with the "New Hollywood" movement of the 1970s. Beginning his career in doc ...

. Petievich co-wrote the screenplay with Friedkin, and also made a cameo appearance. Petievich's novels '' Money Men'' and '' The Sentinel'' have also been adapted to film.

Personal life

Petievich lives in Los Angeles with his wife.

Works

*; reprint Penguin Group USA, 1991, * *; reprint Penguin Group (USA) Incorporated, 1991, *; Gerald Petievich, 2001, * * *; Gerald Petievich, 2001, *; Gerald Petievich, 2001, *

References

External links

*
"Crime writer Gerald Petievich deals in San Gabriel"
''Publishers Weekly'' {{DEFAULTSORT:Petievich, Gerald American spy fiction writers Living people Law enforcement officials from Los Angeles County, California United States Secret Service agents American male novelists 20th-century American novelists 21st-century American novelists People from San Gabriel, California 20th-century American male writers 21st-century American male writers Novelists from California Year of birth missing (living people) American people of Serbian descent