Asa Earl Carter

Novelist

Birthday September 4, 1925

Birth Sign Virgo

Birthplace Alabama

DEATH DATE Jun 7, 1979 (53)

#249281 Most Popular

About

A controversial figure, he was both a Ku Klux Klan leader and a writer of western-themed novels. He is best known for his 1973 work, The Rebel Outlaw: Josey Wales.

Before Fame

A staunch opponent of the Civil Rights movement, he was the speechwriter for Alabama's segregationist Governor, George Wallace.

Trivia

He published a bestselling memoir under the guise of a Cherokee Indian, but his cover was blown by the New York Times.

Family Life

He married India Thelma Walker, his high-school sweetheart. He and Walker subsequently had four children.

Associated With

Clint Eastwood made Carter's popular Western novel, The Rebel Outlaw: Josey Wales, into a 1976 hit film of the same title.