E.L. Doctorow

Ε.L. Doctorow was an acclaimed American author, best known for his novel "Ragtime." Born in New York, Doctorow attended Kenyon College in Ohio, where he studied philosophy and theater. He then went on to Columbia University to complete a year of graduate work in English drama before being drafted into the U.S. Army during the post-war Allied occupation of Germany. After his service, Doctorow worked for a motion picture company, where his experiences led him to write his first novel, "Welcome to Hard Times."

Doctorow was widely recognized for his outstanding works of historical fiction, with novels such as "The March," "Billy Bathgate," and "Ragtime" earning him numerous awards. His writing gained him international acclaim, and he is often described as one of the most important American novelists of the 20th century. Over the course of his career, Doctorow authored several novels, a stage drama, and short fiction, earning him numerous accolades, including the National Book Award, three National Book Critics Circle Awards, two PEN Faulkner Awards, and the National Humanities Medal. In 2012, he won the PEN Saul Bellow Award for Achievement in American Fiction, and in 2013, he was awarded the Gold Medal for Fiction by the American Academy of Arts and Letters. Doctorow passed away in July 2015 due to lung cancer.

In summary, E.L. Doctorow was a highly regarded American author, best known for his historical fiction novels. After growing up in New York and attending Kenyon College and Columbia University, Doctorow served in the U.S. Army before working for a motion picture company. His experiences during this time led him to write his first novel, "Welcome to Hard Times." Over the course of his career, Doctorow wrote several novels, a stage drama, and short fiction, earning him numerous awards and accolades. He is remembered as one of the most important American novelists of the 20th century.