Referred to as Mark Twain by people who don't know that this was just a pseudonym, Samuel Clemens was an incredibly prolific American author who lived through the times that shaped American culture. For better or for worse, he helped shape that culture.

There is a ton of work by Clemens that is purely autobiographical, so much is known of his life. The best description of his life is "very nearly." He was very nearly a hero in the American Civil War ("The Private History of a Campaign that Failed"), very nearly a wealthy gold miner ("Roughing It"), and in between he made his living piloting riverboats and editing newspapers, although it's difficult to say which was more dangerous. He very nearly got killed at both posts on a regular basis.

His most famous work is "Huckleberry Finn," a rather innocent story that has managed to get itself banned from most libraries in the US on the offhand chance that it might offend somebody. Because of this, he is rarely studied in school, and none of his works are considered classics. This is because he offers the following definition: "classic: a book which people praise and don't read." Despite his lack of status, however, the novels "Huck Finn," "Tom Sawyer," "The Prince and the Pauper," and "Conneticutt Yankee in King Arthur's Court" have been made and remade into cinema more often than any other works, save possibly Billy Shakepeare's.