Stephen Marlowe was born Milton Lesser, on August 7th, 1928 in Brooklyn, NY. As a respected writer across many genres Lesser actually wrote under a wide range of monikers: Adam Chase, Andrew Frazer, C.H. Thames, Jason Ridgway, Stephen Wilder and Ellery Queen (the Ellery Queen name was used as a ‘house name’ – a way for a publishing house to establish a brand name using the talents of several of its writers) as well as Stephen Marlowe. Lesser was the author of science fiction, mystery novels, as well as fictional autobiographies of Christopher Columbus, Miguel de Cervantes, and Edgar Allan Poe. Perhaps his best work is for his detective character Chester Drum, whom he created in the 1955 novel The Second Longest Night. Lesser attended William and Mary College, earning his degree in philosophy, and marrying Leigh Lang shortly after graduating. He was drafted into the U. S. Army during the Korean War. In 1962 Lesser and Leigh divorced. He was awarded the French Prix Gutenberg du Livre in 1988 for The Memoirs of Christopher Columbus, and in 1997 he was awarded the "Life Achievement Award" by the Private Eye Writers of America. He also served on the board of directors of the Mystery Writers of America. In later life he lived with his second wife, Ann in Williamsburg, Virginia. Milton Lesser along with his pseudonyms died on February 22nd, 2008 at age 79, in Williamsburg, Virginia)