William L. Heath was born in Louisiana, but grew up in North Alabama in the small town of Scottsboro. He was raised by aunts and uncles who owned a mill; the combination of blue collar experience and a small southern town served as the eloquent background of many of his novels and short stories--like Max the Great, the Earthquake Man, Ill Wind, Violent Saturday, Blood on the River, and The Good Old Boys.
William L. Heath, known by his friends as Bill, wrote 13 novels and 36 short stories. Most Valuable Player was featured in grammar books as an exemplary Southern fiction short story. Violent Saturday was purchased by 20th Century Fox in 1955, and was made into a full-length movie starring Victor Mature, Sylvia Sydney, and Ernest Borgnine.
W.L. Heath attended Baylor Prep School and University of Virginia. He served as President of the Sigma Chi chapter at UVA before and after his service in the War. He was married to Mary Ann Stahler Heath for 30 years before her untimely death. Three sons--Will Carrington Heath, Warne Stahler Heath, and Merrill Louis Heath--four grandchildren and one great-grandchild survive his recent death.