Daniel Allen Butler

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Daniel Allen Butler (born January 24, 1957) is an American author, historian, and screenwriter. His roots are Scots/Irish, his mother, Charlotte, and father, Harold, hailing from western Pennsylvania; the family's American roots lie in southern Virginia. Butler himself grew up in Lapeer, Michigan, a small town approximately 60 miles north of Detroit. He is the author of six books (as of summer 2007):"Unsinkable"—the Full Story of RMS Titanic; The Lusitania: the Life, Loss and Legacy of an Ocean Legend, Warrior Queens: RMS Queen Mary and Queen Elizabeth in World War Two, The Age of Cunard--A Transatlantic History, 1839-2003, Distant Victory: The Battle of Jutland and the Allied Triumph in the First World War, and The First Jihad: the Battle for Khartoum and the Dawn of Militant Islam.

[edit] Education

Butler was educated at Hope College, Grand Valley State University, and the University of Erlangen.

[edit] Military Background

Butler spent eight years in the United States Army, six of them in Intelligence. His service in the military was cut short after an altercation with a superior officer.

During his military service he began laying the foundation for a career as a military and maritime historian by taking every opportunity to do research into a wide range of subjects. He delved into museums, historical archives, public and private records and corporate archives in such diverse places as Dublin and Cobh (Queenstown), Ireland; Belfast, Northern Ireland; the Clyde, Glasgow, Edinburgh, Inverkeithing and Perth, Scotland; and London, Liverpool and Southampton, England; Brussels and Mons, Belgium; and Berlin and Bonn, Germany.

[edit] Writing career

Butler was working at the Sunrise Presbyterian Church in Miami Lakes, Florida, when his first and thus far most significant book, "Unsinkable" was published. This book covering the history of the RMS Titanic, was published by Stackpole Books of Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania, in March 1998, just as James Cameron's film was making its first-run in theaters. The book enjoyed considerable critical acclaim and public acceptance. Hailed for its breadth of scope as well as depth of analysis, "Unsinkable" went through four printings in as many months, and sold almost one hundred thousand copies in less than two years, reaching Number 3 on the UPI Bestseller List in late March, and Number 13 on the New York Times Bestseller List in mid-April of that year. The late Walter Lord, dean of Titanic historians, called the book "a masterful retelling of the Titanic story."

Butler’s second book, The Lusitania, was published by Stackpole in October 2000; Warrior Queens, was released by Stackpole in February 2002. In January 2004 his fourth book, The Age of Cunard was published under the Lighthouse Press imprint of ProStar Publications. July 2006 saw him return to print with Distant Victory, this new work published by Praeger International. The First Jihad, published by Casemate Publishing, was released in May 2007.

Following the success of "Unsinkable" Butler became a commentator on maritime history, in particular the Titanic disaster, on both radio and television. He was featured in the Miramax Studio’s edition of their IMAX film "Titanica" (released on video in the fall of 1998) and in A & E’s documentary "Beyond Titanic," first broadcast in September 1998. He has also been a featured speaker in Belfast, Northern Ireland, as well as a guest lecturer for Norwegian Cruise Lines, Royal Caribbean Cruise Lines, and Cunard.

A rumored screenplay by Butler based on The First Jihad, first reported in 2007, has apparently never materialized. However a stage play by him based on a forthcoming book titled The Other Side of the Night is scheduled for publication by Mariposa Ink in April 2008; it is said that he has also written a screenplay by the same name about the same event. It is reportedly the story of the "Californian Incident," a controversial episode which occurred during the sinking of the Titanic when another ship, the Californian, was alleged to be less than ten miles from the sinking liner and deliberately ignored her distress signals. A stage play based on the last days of the life of English nurse Edith Cavell has reported been completed as well, and will be published by Mariposa Ink in the summer of 2008.

Butler currently lives and works in Los Angeles, California.