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Fern Michaels (born Mary Ruth Kuczkir; April 9, 1933) is an American author of romance and thriller novels, including nearly 150 best selling books with nearly 200 million copies in print. Her USA Today and New York Times best selling books include Family Blessings, Pretty Woman, and Crown Jewel, as well as the Texas quartet and the Captive series.

Fern Michaels is the pen name of Mary Ruth Kuczkir, who was born in Hastings, Pennsylvania on April 9, 1933, weighing only four and one-half pounds. Because of her small birth weight, Michaels' father nicknamed her "Dink," for "dinky little thing. Her family and friends still use the nickname. As a child, though, others referred to her as Ruth. Once she entered the business world, she became "Mary."