This day Gentle Readers brings us another wildly successful author. Though he is not as prolific as yesterday’s authors, today would still be a good birthday to share.

 Thomas Harris was born this day in 1940 in the town of Jackson, Tennessee. He would move as a child to Mississippi. Thomas is famous for creating the iconic connoisseur of human flesh, Hannibal Lector. Like his creation, Harris is a fantastic chef and purveyor of fine wines. He has even taken the grueling Le Cordon Bleu exams. Not much else is known about this supremely private storyteller, as he has not granted an interview since 1976 and avoids publicity like the plague.

To be able to pick the brain of the man that created such a fascinating character as Hannibal would be a dream of mine. However, I am sure he will not break his media silence any time soon, even for a fellow southerner such as myself. A guy can dream though right?

Happy Birthday Thomas Harris, may your meal be delicious and your wine perfect on this day. May I suggest a nice red?

I think Thomas proves that you don’t have to write a hundred novels to be successful. All it takes is that one character who will live on in literary, and in Hannibal’s case Hollywood, history. Go find your character my Gentle Readers. Until next time. Live well, write well, be well.