John Steinbeck IV; Author, Reporter

John Steinbeck IV, 44, a writer and son of the Nobel-winning author of “The Grapes of Wrath.” Steinbeck had been working on his autobiography, “Legacy,” in which he intended to examine the genetics of chemical addiction and to trace what he believed to be his father’s alcoholism to his own. As a free-lance writer, he was published in many magazines, including the New Yorker. He wrote a nonfiction book, “In Touch,” about his experiences in Vietnam, where he embraced the Buddhist philosophy. Steinbeck was born in New York, where his father moved from California. At 18, Steinbeck was drafted into the Army and completed a tour in Vietnam, part of which he spent as a combat reporter for Armed Forces Radio. In an Encinitas, Calif., hospital on Thursday of what was described as cardiac arrest following back surgery.