James Dickey on AllMovie

For nearly 30 years, distinguished author James Dickey was the poet-in-residence at the University of South Carolina. During his long career, he penned over 20 poetry collections, one of which, Buckdancer's Choice, earned the National Book Award in 1966. He also penned a few novels, one of which, the award-winning Deliverance, he adapted into a powerful hit movie in 1972 that starred Burt Reynolds and Jon Voight. In 1976, Dickey penned a faithful screen adaptation of Jack London's Call of the Wild. Dickey died at age 73 following complications from lung disease.