New York Times best-selling author Greg Iles will deliver Millsaps College’s commencement address during May 10 ceremonies.
"Greg Iles represents the very best of Mississippi as a writer of national stature and acclaim. We are delighted to have him as our commencement speaker," said Millsaps College President Frances Lucas. "I have read all of his books and find that he does a masterful job of showing both the good and the evil in each character."
Known for writing in a variety of genres, Iles' work has been published in 26 languages, and all of his novels have become New York Times best sellers. Iles wrote his 2002 thriller 24 Hours in just one week, and rewrote the script for the movie Trapped (which starred Kevin Bacon, Courtney Love, and Charlize Theron) that same year. Other works include True Evil, Turning Angel, Blood Memory, Sleep No More, and Black Cross.
Iles was born in 1960 in Stuttgart, Germany, where his father served in the U.S. Army Medical Corps. He was reared in the U.S. from the age of three, almost all of that time in Mississippi. He graduated from Trinity Episcopal Day School in Natchez in 1978 and from the University of Mississippi in 1983. After college, he spent several years playing music in the band Frankly Scarlet. He quit after he married and began working on his first novel, Spandau Phoenix, a thriller about Nazi war criminal Rudolf Hess, which was published in 1993 and became a New York Times best seller.
Iles currently lives in Natchez with his wife and two children. He is a member of the group The Rock Bottom Remainders which includes authors Dave Barry, Ridley Pearson, Stephen King, Scott Turow, Amy Tan, Mitch Albom, Roy Blount Jr., Matt Groening, Kathi Kamen Goldmark, and James McBride.
Iles will speak to graduating students and their families at 9:30 a.m. in the Bowl, the outdoor area adjacent to the A. Boyd Campbell College Center. In case of rain, the ceremonies will be held at Christ United Methodist Church.
