Dan Brown

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Dan Brown (born June 22, 1964) is an author of thriller fiction, best known for writing the controversial 2003 bestselling fiction novel, The Da Vinci Code.

Contents

Early life

Brown was raised in Exeter, New Hampshire, the oldest of three children. His mother Constance (Connie) was a professional musician, while his father Richard G. Brown was a prominent mathematics teacher, writing textbooks and teaching mathematics at Phillips Exeter Academy from 1962 until his retirement in 1997.

According to Brown, his father inspired in him an interest in cryptography - at Christmas time he and his siblings were given codes which were part of a 'treasure hunt' for their gifts. This aspect of his life was written into the character of Sophie Neveu in The Da Vinci Code.

Brown attended public schools in Exeter until the 9th grade, at which time he was enrolled at Phillips Exeter Academy. After graduating from Phillips Exeter in 1982, Brown enrolled at Amherst College. While at Amherst, he was a writing student of novelist Alan Lelchuk. He also sang in the Amherst Glee Club. Brown graduated from Amherst with a double major in Spanish and English in 1986.

Music Career

After graduation Brown, proficient on keyboards (mother Connie was an organist), formed his own record company called Dalliance. In 1990 he self-published a CD, titled Perspective, which also sold a few hundred copies. He moved to Hollywood in 1991 to pursue a career as singer-songwriter and pianist. At the same time, he taught classes at Beverly Hills Preparatory School to provide regular income.

While in Hollywood he joined the National Academy of Songwriters, through which he met his future wife Blythe Newlon who was the Academy's Director of Artist Development. Newlon became involved in helping to promote Brown's musical projects, and over time the pair developed a personal relationship, despite Newlon being Brown's senior by 12 years.

In 1993 Brown released the self-titled CD Dan Brown, which included songs such as "976-Love" and "If You Believe in Love".

Brown moved back to New Hampshire in 1993, with Blythe accompanying him. Brown became an English teacher at Phillips Exeter, though he continued pursuing his musical career with Blythe's guidance. In 1994, Brown released a CD entitled Angels & Demons, which used the artwork by ambigram artist John Langdon which was later used for the novel of the same name. The new album included songs such as "Here in These Fields" and the religious ballad "All I Believe".

Writing Career

While on vacation in Tahiti in 1994, Brown read Sidney Sheldon's novel The Doomsday Conspiracy, and decided that he was capable of being a 'popular' author. Brown began by co-writing a non-fiction humour book with Blythe, 187 Men to Avoid: A Guide for the Romantically Frustrated Woman, under the pseudonym "Danielle Brown", which originally sold a few thousand copies before going out of print.

In 1996, Brown quit teaching to devote himself full-time to writing. The first fiction book he wrote was Digital Fortress, a book about public privacy and computer security, which was published in 1998. Not long after the Brown's released another humour book, The Bald Book, which was credited to Blythe. However, a representative of the publisher said that it was primarily written by Dan Brown.

Brown's followed up Digital Fortress with two further books, Deception Point and Angels and Demons. However, all three novels enjoyed only mediocre success, with fewer than 10,000 copies in each of their first printings. In 2003, Brown released his fourth novel, The Da Vinci Code, which contained the controversial theme that Jesus married Mary Magdalene and sired children, and that their bloodline continues to this day. Much of the book appeared to be based on the very real historical mysteries (though their validity is disputed) surrounding the alleged secret society, the Priory of Sion, and the French village of Rennes le Chateau, both of which featured in the 1982 non-fiction work Holy Blood, Holy Grail.

Brown's book went to the top of the New York Times Best Seller list during its first week of release. The Da Vinci Code became a worldwide phenomenon, redefining the word 'best-seller' and spurring much public and religious debate over its controversial claims. More than 14 books were written just to analyse the topics covered by Brown, and countless television documentaries have also been produced investigating the themes. The Vatican urged Christians not to buy the book due to its contents. The book is now credited with being one of the most popular books of all time, with more than 60 million copies sold worldwide as of 2006.

The success and momentum of The Da Vinci Code pulled Brown's earlier books with it. At one time, in 2004, all four of his novels were the top-sellers on the New York Times list in the same week.

On May 17th 2006, The Da Vinci Code was released as a film, directed by Ron Howard and starring Tom Hanks, Audrey Tautou, Jean Reno and Ian McKellen. The film launched the 2006 Cannes Film Festival. Brown was listed as one of the executive producers of the film, as well as creating additional codes for it. One of his songs, "Phiano", which Brown wrote and performed, was listed as part of the film's soundtrack.

Brown is working on the sequel to The Da Vinci Code, said to be titled The Solomon Key, which will reportedly take place in Washington D.C. and involved Freemasons. The book was originally slated for release in 2005, though most estimates at this time are now for publication in 2007.

Clues to the content of the new book were first given in a puzzle on Dan Brown's website, which referenced codes printed on the cover of the bookjacket of The Da Vinci Code (US version only). The answers referred to the phrase 'Is There No Help for the Widow's Son' (a distress call in Masonry, and also associated with the death of Mormon founder Joseph Smith). They also focused on the Kryptos sculpture at CIA Headquarters in Langley, Virginia. Brown used this promotional ploy in earlier works - a puzzle at the end of the book Deception Point decrypts to the message, "The Da Vinci Code will surface."

Scandals

A number of statements made by Brown have been called into question as either spurious or exaggerated. Despite saying that his wife Blythe is an "art historian" and "painter", there appears to be no record of her having worked professionally as such. His bio has previously said "Dan's live performance experience includes a world tour with the renown ACGC and appearances in such venues as Notre Dame Cathedral (Paris), St. Marco's Cathedral (Venice), St. Stephen's (Vienna), the Acropolis (Athens), and the American Embassies in Delhi, Tokyo, Taipei, Hong Kong, and Seoul." - the "world-renowned ACGC" appears to be the Amherst College Glee Club, which Brown was a part of.

Brown states that during his junior year at Amherst College, he went to Europe to study art history at the University of Seville. However, a source at the University of Seville was quoted as saying "That man was never registered at this university, unless he attended one of the Fall courses for foreign students at the Faculty of Geography and History.")

Brown has been accused of plagiarism by author Lewis Perdue (author of The Da Vinci Legacy and Daughter of God.) However, a court found in favour of Random House and Brown on this matter. Perdue also uncovered a strange situation involving Blythe Brown - at one point he received bizarre messages from an 'Ahamedd Saaddoodeen' regarding his attack on Brown. His investigation of this personage (via social security number) revealed that they shared a birth date with Blythe Brown, and had resided at the same addresses as her - leading him to assume that Saaddoodeen was an alias of Blythe Brown.

In 2006 Random House was sued by Michael Baigent and Richard Leigh, co-authors of Holy Blood, Holy Grail with Henry Lincoln, for copyright infringement of their research. The court found in favour of Random House (and thus Brown), though Baigent and Leigh have been granted leave to appeal.

Blythe's Influence

Along with helping his singing career, Blythe has also been a major influence on Brown's career as an author. She co-wrote both of his early "humor" books, which were written under pseudonyms, and there is speculation that she may have helped with other books as well. Blythe did much of the promotional work for Digital Fortress, writing press releases, booking Dan on talk shows, and setting up press interviews. The liner notes for Angels and Demons thanked her "for being my tireless cowriter, coproducer, second engineer, significant other, and therapist." In the Acknowledgement for Deception Point, Brown thanked her "for her tireless research and creative input."

During the 2006 lawsuit over alleged copyright infringement in The Da Vinci Code, Brown's witness statement shows that Blythe did a very large part of the research for the book - so much so that Brown appeared to be not be as well-versed in the topics of the book as would be imagined of the author.

Influence

In 2005, Brown made Time magazine's list of the 100 most influential people of the year. Forbes magazine placed Brown at #12 on their 2005 "Celebrity 100" list, and estimated his annual income at US$76.5 million. The Times estimated his income from 'Da Vinci Code' sales as $250 million.

In October 2004, Brown and his siblings donated US$2.2 million to Phillips Exeter Academy in honor of their father, to set up the "Richard G. Brown Technology Endowment", to help "provide computers and high-tech equipment for students in need."

CDs

  • SynthAnimals, a children's album[1]
  • Perspective, 1990, Dalliance. Music CD [2]
  • Dan Brown, 1993, DBG Records, (included songs "976-Love" and "If You Believe in Love")[3]
  • Angels and Demons, 1995, DBG Records (included songs "Here in these Fields" and "All I Believe") [4]
  • Musica Animalia 2003, a charity CD for the organization Families First [5]

Non-Fiction writing

  • 187 Men to Avoid: A Survival Guide for the Romantically Frustrated Woman, 1995, Berkley Publishing Group (co-written with his wife under the pseudonym Danielle Brown). ISBN 0425147835 - Scheduled for re-release in August 2006
  • The Bald Book, 1998, co-written with his wife Blythe Brown. ISBN 078600519X

Novels

  • Digital Fortress, 1998
  • Angels and Demons, 2000
    • Angels and Demons, Special Illustrated Edition, 2005, Atria. ISBN 0743275063
  • Deception Point, 2001
  • The Da Vinci Code, 2003
    • The Da Vinci Code, Special Illustrated Edition, 2004, Doubleday. ISBN 0385513755

Movie

  • The Da Vinci Code (film), 2006 (Brown is listed as executive producer)

See also

External links

Retrieved from "http://redpill.dailygrail.com/wiki/Dan_Brown"
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