Hal Higdon is not only a brilliant young author, he is also an athlete of distinction. He is one of the nation's leading long-distance runners and has competed for the United States abroad in Finland, Germany, Greece, and Czechoslovakia. In 1960 he placed fifth in the 3000-meter steeplechase at the U.S. Final Olympic Trials. He has also run the Boston Marathon (13th in 1963) and, although he is a full-time professional writer, continues to compete in important track events across the country.
Hal received his B.A. in art from Carleton College in Northfield, Minnesota, in 1953. He started a career as a cartoonist, then gave it up in favor of writing. A year after he married Rose Musacchio, he resigned his position as Assistant Editor of The Kiwanis Magazine and decided to make his living entirely by his pen. Of his decision, Mr. Higdon says, "My wife and I shudder today when we look back on the impetuousness of that step." But all turned out well, and his articles have appeared in many national periodicals. THE UNION vs. DR. MUDD is his first biography; he is now working on another long project. He lives in Chicago with his wife and three children but, of course, travels extensively both as a writer and as an outstanding athlete. [from The Union vs. Dr. Mudd (1964)]
