About the Author

Loren C. Steffy is the business columnist for the Houston Chronicle. His writing has been recognized by the Society of American Business Editors and Writers, the Associated Press Managing Editors, the press clubs of Dallas and Houston, and other organizations and has been cited in the New York Times, the Washington Post Online, and Texas Monthly. He has made numerous radio and television appearances, including CNBC, Fox News, MSNBC, BBC and the PBS Newshour. He is the author of Drowning in Oil: BP and the Reckless Pursuit of Profit, published in 2010. He lives in The Woodlands, Texas.

Reviews

“Dick Steffy created an entirely new branch of archaeology: the decipherment of shipwrecked hulls. This beautifully written and intimate biography could only have been penned by his son, a professional journalist, who not only had access to personal family papers, but grew up with the family members and colleagues who fill out the cast of characters in the story. To read about Dick’s approach to his work is every bit as exciting as reading about Champollion’s decoding of Egyptian hieroglyphs or Rawlinson’s translation of cuneiform. But readers need not be academics or armchair archaeologists to enjoy the book, for it is really just a very human tale.

“I’ve often been struck by how much fate plays a role in creativity, and that comes across emphatically. Although I worked closely with Dick for decades, I never before understood so well how he worked. And I had no idea of the major role of his wife, Lucille, behind the scenes. All in all, it’s a great read for anyone interested in the creative process.” —George F. Bass, distinguished professor emeritus, Institute of Nautical Archaeology, Texas A&M University