John Walter Lord Jr. (October 8, 1917 – May 19, 2002) was an American author, lawyer,

copywriter Copywriting is the act or occupation of writing text for the purpose of advertising or other forms of marketing. Copywriting is aimed at selling products or services. The product, called copy or sales copy, is written content that aims to incre ...

and popular historian known for his 1955 account of the sinking of the ''Titanic'', '' A Night to Remember''.

Biography

Early life

Lord was born in

Baltimore Baltimore is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland. With a population of 585,708 at the 2020 census and estimated at 568,271 in 2024, it is the 30th-most populous U.S. city. The Baltimore metropolitan area is the 20th-large ...

Maryland Maryland ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It borders the states of Virginia to its south, West Virginia to its west, Pennsylvania to its north, and Delaware to its east ...

to John Walter Lord Sr. and Henrietta MacTier (Hoffman) Lord on October 8, 1917. His father, who was a lawyer, died when Lord was just three years old. Lord's grandfather, Richard Curzon Hoffman, was president of the

Baltimore Steam Packet Company The Baltimore Steam Packet Company, nicknamed the , was an American steamship line from 1840 to 1962 that provided overnight steamboat service on Chesapeake Bay, primarily between Baltimore, Maryland, and Norfolk, Virginia. Called a "Packet (sea t ...

("Old Bay Line") steamship firm in the 1890s. In July 1925, at the age of 7, Lord traveled across the Atlantic Ocean with his mother and sister, from New York to

Cherbourg Cherbourg is a former Communes of France, commune and Subprefectures in France, subprefecture located at the northern end of the Cotentin peninsula in the northwestern French departments of France, department of Manche. It was merged into the com ...

and

Southampton Southampton is a port City status in the United Kingdom, city and unitary authority in Hampshire, England. It is located approximately southwest of London, west of Portsmouth, and southeast of Salisbury. Southampton had a population of 253, ...

, on the , the ''Titanic''s sister ship. Like many other boys who attended high school at Baltimore's

Gilman School Gilman School is an all-boys independent school, independent, day school, day, college preparatory school located in the Roland Park neighborhood of Baltimore, Maryland, United States. There are three school divisions: Lower School, grades pre ...

, he spent his summers at Hyde Bay Camp for Boys at Hyde Bay in Cooperstown, New York, where he was awarded the honorary title of "The Commodore" and later returned to reign over many annual camp events, like the eight-inch regatta and closing barbecue and bonfire. He then studied history at

Princeton University Princeton University is a private university, private Ivy League research university in Princeton, New Jersey, United States. Founded in 1746 in Elizabeth, New Jersey, Elizabeth as the College of New Jersey, Princeton is the List of Colonial ...

and graduated in 1939. Lord then enrolled at

Yale Law School Yale Law School (YLS) is the law school of Yale University, a Private university, private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. It was established in 1824. The 2020–21 acceptance rate was 4%, the lowest of any law school in the United ...

, interrupting his studies to join 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 ...

after the

attack on Pearl Harbor The attack on Pearl HarborAlso known as the Battle of Pearl Harbor was a surprise military strike by the Empire of Japan on the United States Pacific Fleet at Naval Station Pearl Harbor, its naval base at Pearl Harbor on Oahu, Territory of ...

. During

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, he was assigned to the

Office of Strategic Services The Office of Strategic Services (OSS) was the first intelligence agency of the United States, formed during World War II. The OSS was formed as an agency of the Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) to coordinate espionage activities behind enemy lines ...

as a code clerk in London, in 1942. He was the agency's secretariat when the war ended in 1945. Afterwards, Lord returned to Yale, where he earned a degree in law. When the movie ''

The Third Man ''The Third Man'' is a 1949 film noir directed by Carol Reed, written by Graham Greene, and starring Joseph Cotten as Holly Martins, Alida Valli as Anna Schmidt, Orson Welles as Harry Lime and Trevor Howard as Major Calloway. Set in post-Worl ...

'' came out in 1949, the movie's musical soundtrack was "The Third Man Theme" – a zither strummed by Anton Karas. Karas's soundtrack rendition became a hit, and in 1950 Walter Lord wrote lyrics to it. "The Third Man Theme" and Lord's lyrics were recorded by a number of bands. Victor Young's rendition can be heard here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KIskEPRQV4w

Career

Lord wrote, or edited and annotated 11 bestselling books on such diverse subjects as the

(''Day of Infamy'', 1957), the

Battle of Midway The Battle of Midway was a major naval battle in the Pacific Ocean theater of World War II, Pacific Theater of World War II that took place on 4–7 June 1942, six months after Japan's attack on Pearl Harbor and one month after the Battle of t ...

(''Incredible Victory'', 1967), the

Battle of the Alamo The Battle of the Alamo (February 23 – March 6, 1836) was a pivotal event and military engagement in the Texas Revolution. Following a siege of the Alamo, 13-day siege, Mexico, Mexican troops under president of Mexico, President Antonio L� ...

(''A Time to Stand'', 1961), the Battle of Baltimore (''The Dawn's Early Light'', 1972),

Arctic exploration Arctic exploration is the physical exploration of the Arctic region of the Earth. It refers to the historical period during which mankind has explored the region north of the Arctic Circle. Historical records suggest that humankind have explored ...

(''Peary to the Pole'', 1963), pre-

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

America (''The Good Years: From 1900 to the First World War'', 1960), Coastwatchers (''Lonely Vigil'', 1977), the

Dunkirk evacuation The Dunkirk evacuation, codenamed Operation Dynamo and also known as the Miracle of Dunkirk, or just Dunkirk, was the evacuation of more than 338,000 Allied soldiers during the Second World War from the beaches and harbour of Dunkirk, in the ...

(''The Miracle of Dunkirk'', 1982), and the civil rights struggle (''The Past That Would Not Die'', 1965). Walter Lord memorial

Shortly after going to work as a

for the J. Walter Thompson advertising agency in New York City, Lord published ''The Fremantle Diary'', edited and annotated from the journals of the British officer, Arthur Fremantle, who toured the South for three months in 1863. It became a mild, but surprising, success in 1954, as Lord was well into completing ''A Night to Remember'', which would win him much popular acclaim. ''A Night to Remember'', about the sinking of the , became a

bestseller A bestseller is a book or other media noted for its top selling status, with bestseller lists published by newspapers, magazines, and book store chains. Some lists are broken down into classifications and specialties (novel, nonfiction book, cookb ...

in 1955 and was made into a popular 1958 British movie of the same name. The historian tracked down 63 ''Titanic'' survivors and wrote a dramatic, minute-by-minute account of the ocean liner's sinking during her maiden voyage. Lord's knowledge of the ''Titanic'' catastrophe achieved considerable renown, and he frequently lectured at meetings of the

Titanic Historical Society The ''Titanic'' Historical Society, Inc. (THS) is a non-profit organization founded on whose purpose is the preservation of the history of the famous ocean liner RMS Titanic, RMS ''Titanic'', which Sinking of the RMS Titanic, sank in 1912, in ...

. In his final years, Lord wrote another book about the ''Titanic'' titled ''The Night Lives On: Thoughts, Theories and Revelations about the Titanic'', published in 1986, a year after the wreck of the ''Titanic'' was discovered and interest in the ''Titanic'' renewed again. In the next decade, Lord served as a consultant to director

James Cameron James Francis Cameron (born August 16, 1954) is a Canadian filmmaker, who resides in New Zealand. He is a major figure in the post-New Hollywood era and often uses novel technologies with a Classical Hollywood cinema, classical filmmaking styl ...

during the filming of ''

Titanic RMS ''Titanic'' was a British ocean liner that sank in the early hours of 15 April 1912 as a result of striking an iceberg on her maiden voyage from Southampton, England, to New York City, United States. Of the estimated 2,224 passengers a ...

'' (1997). The sequel documentary to Cameron's film ''Titanic'', ''

Ghosts of the Abyss ''Ghosts of the Abyss'' (also known as ''Titanic 3D: Ghosts of the Abyss'') is a 2003 American Documentary film, documentary film produced by Walden Media. It was directed by James Cameron after his 1997 film ''Titanic (1997 film), Titanic''. Du ...

'' (2003), was dedicated to Lord's memory. In 2009, Jenny Lawrence edited and published a biography of Lord — ''The Way It Was: Walter Lord on His Life and Books''. In the late 1980s, Lawrence had recorded hours of interviews she had with Lord, in which he discussed his writing and life. After chapters on his early life in Baltimore and up to his time with the OSS in London and Paris, chapters are devoted to his research and writing of each of his books.

Death

Lord died at age 84 on May 19, 2002, after suffering from

Parkinson's disease Parkinson's disease (PD), or simply Parkinson's, is a neurodegenerative disease primarily of the central nervous system, affecting both motor system, motor and non-motor systems. Symptoms typically develop gradually and non-motor issues become ...

, at his

Manhattan Manhattan ( ) is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the Boroughs of New York City, five boroughs of New York City. Coextensive with New York County, Manhattan is the County statistics of the United States#Smallest, larg ...

home. Noted historian

David McCullough David Gaub McCullough (; July 7, 1933 – August 7, 2022) was an American popular historian. He was a two-time winner of both the Pulitzer Prize and the National Book Award. In 2006, he was given the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the United S ...

said of Lord at his death, "He was one of the most generous and kind-hearted men I've ever known, and when I had stars in my eyes and wanted to become a writer, he was a great help. I'll always be indebted to him." Lord is buried in his maternal family's plot at historic Green Mount Cemetery in

. His grave is marked by a marble bench listing the books he authored.

Publications

Lord published 12 historical works: * ''The Fremantle Diary'' (1954) (ed.) * '' A Night to Remember'' (1955) * ''Day of Infamy: The Bombing of Pearl Harbor'' (1957) * ''The Good Years: From 1900 to the First World War'' (1960) * ''A Time to Stand: The Epic of the Alamo'' (1961) * ''Peary to the Pole'' (1963) * ''The Past That Would Not Die'' (1965) * ''Incredible Victory: The Battle of Midway'' (1967) * '' The Dawn's Early Light: The War of 1812 and the Battle That Inspired Francis Scott Key to Write "The Star-Spangled Banner"'' (1972) * ''Lonely Vigil: Coastwatchers of the Solomons (Bluejacket Books)'' (1977) * ''The Miracle of Dunkirk: The True Story of Operation Dynamo'' (1982) * ''The Night Lives On: Thoughts, Theories and Revelations about the Sinking of the "Unsinkable" Ship – Titanic'' (1986)

References

External links

BBC interview with Walter Lord regarding RMS ''Titanic''
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lord, Walter 20th-century American historians American male non-fiction writers American military writers Historians of Texas Historians of the Texas Revolution Gilman School alumni Princeton University alumni Yale Law School alumni People of the Office of Strategic Services Lawyers from Baltimore Military personnel from Baltimore Writers from Baltimore Writers from Manhattan Deaths from Parkinson's disease in New York (state) 1917 births 2002 deaths Burials at Green Mount Cemetery Historians from New York City 20th-century American lawyers Historians from Maryland 20th-century American male writers United States Army personnel of World War II