STEPHEN ESMEDINAStephen EsmedinaA number of years ago, I was persuaded by a guileful siren with designs on the music biz to share my lowly downtown apartment for “a couple of days” with the great but …
March 5, 2026
The second child of the Nobel Prize-winning author, John Steinbeck. In 1965, Steinbeck IV was drafted into the United States Army and served in Vietnam. He worked as a journalist for Armed Forces Radio and TV, and was a war correspondent for the United States Department of Defense.
In the late 1980s, he moved to La Jolla with his wife Nancy, where he was interviewed by editor Judith Moore and was recruited to write for the Reader. He authored the books In Touch, and The Other Side of Eden: Life With John Steinbeck.
Reader stories:
March 30, 1989: John Steinbeck Was My Father (interview)
Oct. 5, 1989: The Story I Always Wanted to Write But Didn't
March 7, 1991, page 5: Destiny Manifest (story of his death by Judith Moore)
Articles by John Steinbeck IV (RIP)
San Diego Reader writers tell their dream stories never written
Doubleday follows Luis Urrea to Tijuana, priggish Richard Henry Dana visits the presidio
A Living Cloud The next morning, I am greeted by my media escort, Penny. This is a fascinating new feature of my life — escorts. They pick you up, drive you around, provide snacks, meals, …
January 10, 2022
Reader writers: the story I wanted to write... but didn't
Sandy and a girlfriend had gone into a liquor store, robbed the clerk, They locked the clerk in a walk-in cooler. Sandy started feeling bad about the guy. She went back and let him out.
October 5, 1989