Cyra McFadden (born December 2, 1937) (died April 22, 2024)[2] was an acclaimed American author, who lived on a houseboat in Sausalito, California.[3]
McFadden's 1977 novel The Serial: A Year in the Life of Marin County satirized the trendy lifestyles of the affluent residents of Marin County, California, just north of San Francisco.[4] The book was made into a 1980 movie called Serial, starring Tuesday Weld and Martin Mull.
In 1986, McFadden wrote a memoir entitled Rain or Shine: A Family Memoir, in which she described her childhood growing up as the daughter of James C. "Cy" Taillon, a well-known rodeo announcer. The book was a finalist for the Pulitzer that year. Her father, Cy Taillon, was arguably the most famous American rodeo announcer of the mid-20th century. After being out of print for several years, Rain or Shine was reprinted in 1998.
McFadden wrote a biweekly column for the San Francisco Examiner for six years, mostly in the 1980s, and was also a features writer for that daily newspaper.[5]
She was born in Great Falls, Montana, and spent much of her childhood traveling with her parents on the rodeo circuit and living in Missoula, Montana.