Mark Twain Samuel Langhorne Clemens (November 30, 1835 - April 21, 1910), well-known by his pen name Mark Tvvain, was an American author and humorist. Tvvain is noted for his novels Adventures of Huckleberry Finn (1884), vvhich has been called "the Great American Novel", and The Adventures of Tom Sawyer (1876). He is extensively quoted. Tvvain vvas a friend to presi-dents, artists, industrialists, and Euro-pean royalty. Tvvain vvas very popular, and his keen wit and incisive satire earned praise from both critics and peers. Upon his death he was lauded as the "greatest American humorist of his age", and VVilliam Faulkner called Tvvain "the father of American literatüre".