Mark Twain, born Samuel Langhorne Clemens, was an American writer, lecturer, and humorist. He was considered the "father of American Literature," having produced such works as The Adventures of Tom Sawyer and Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. Twain was born November 30, 1835 in Hannibal, Missouri where he worked as a typesetter and riverboat pilot. While he filed for bankruptcy a few times during his life, he often made up for it with successful lecturing tours. He was born and died shortly after the appearance of Halley's Comet (April 21, 1910.)