Robert James Waller: Iowa Time Machine August 1, 1939

Iowa Time Machine ⏰: On August 1, 1939, best-selling author of “The Bridges of Madison County,” Robert James Waller was born in Charles City, Iowa.

Waller spent his childhood in Rockford, Floyd County, before attending the University of Northern Iowa (then Iowa State Teachers College). He later obtained a PhD from the University of Indiana. Shortly thereafter, Waller returned to Iowa to teach at UNI, where he founded the UNI College of Business in 1980.

While teaching and serving as the director of UNI’s International Business Institute, Waller started working on his first novel. Upon its 1992 release, “The Bridges of Madison County” made the New York Times bestseller list and became the bestseller of 1993. Two years later, the film adaptation of the novel starring Clint Eastwood and Meryl Streep also proved a massive success.

Waller published seven novels, a collection of essays, and five nonfiction works before he died in 2017. His 1995 book, “Puerto Vallarta Squeeze,” was also adapted into a major motion picture. #Iowa #OTD #History #Writing #Author