'Mockingbird' author Harper Lee turns 72

April 28, 1998
Web posted at: 5:47 p.m. EDT (1747 GMT)

(CNN) -- She gave us an American classic that was turned into a classic film. Nelle Harper Lee, author of "To Kill a Mockingbird," was born on April 28, 1926.

Known as Harper Lee, the author was the youngest of four children growing up in Monroeville, Alabama. Her roots no doubt fertilized the mind that would one day pen "Mockingbird", the story of racism and justice in a small southern town that was published at the dawn of the Civil Rights movement in 1960.

The movie has been described one of the finest interpretations of a book ever to grace the silver screen. It starred Gregory Peck as Atticus Finch, the widowed father of Scout and Jem, and the story's source of integrity. The film won three Oscars, including one for Peck as best actor.

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