Wayne D. Overholser was born in Pomeroy, Washington on Septmeber 4, 1906. Overholser received his B. S. from the University of Oregon and worked as a teacher and a high school pricipal until he became a full time writer in 1945. Overholser has written under many pen names, including John S. Daniels, Lee Leighton, Dan J. Stevens and Joseph Wayne. Lawman, written as Lee Leighton, won the Spur Award from WWA for best novel in 1954. In 1955, Overholser won the award again for a book written under his own name, The Violent Land. He won for a third time in 1969 for the juvenile novel, The Meeker Massacre. At the 1989 WWA Convention in Portland, Overholser was presented with the Saddleman Award… for outstanding contributions to the literature of the West. Wayne D. Overholser died August 27, 1996 at the age of 89.