spouse genre image article_title occupation
rosalind death -rrb- peggy kilburn -lrb- m. 1978 -rrb- ogden -lrb- m. 1934 − 1977 , her children 's books , novels thumb walt morey
 author
walt morey

walter `` walt '' morey -lrb- february 3 , 1907 in hoquiam , washington , usa -- january 12 , 1992 in wilsonville , oregon -rrb- , was an award-winning author of numerous works of children 's fiction , set in the u.s. pacific northwest and alaska , the places where morey lived for all of his life .
his book `` gentle ben '' was the basis for the 1967 movie `` gentle giant '' and the 1967-1969 television show `` gentle ben '' .
he wrote a total of 17 published books , most of which involve as a central plot element the relationship between man and animals .
many of his works involve survival stories , or people going into the wild to `` discover '' themselves ; redemption through nature is a common theme of morey 's works .
morey began going to school in 1912 , in jasper , oregon .
he was never very keen on school .
in 1934 he began working in a veneer plant , making brushes in a paintbrush factory and doing work in the woods .
on july 8 , 1934 , he married his first wife , rosalind ogden , in portland , oregon .
rosalind died february 28 , 1977 .
on june 26 , 1978 he married peggy kilburn .
early in his writing career , he also published numerous short pulp fiction stories .
for much of his life , he was a boxer and diver , in addition to being an author .
morey won awards for his books `` gentle ben '' , `` kavik the wolf dog '' , `` canyon winter '' , `` runaway stallion '' , `` run far run fast '' , and `` year of the black pony . ''
dutton animal book award for `` gentle ben '' and `` kavik the wolf dog '' sequoyah book award dorothy canfield fisher award the monique alexis hoswoot award william allen white children 's book award
