E.R. Braithwaite was a diplomat, former Royal Air Force pilot and an author, best known for penning the 1959 memoir To Sir, with Love. The story centered around Braithwaite’s teaching career in the East End of London.
The book was adapted into a hit 1967 film starring Sidney Poitier and was adapted again in 1974 for a television movie of the same name. In 1996, Poitier returned to the role in the TV movie sequel To Sir, with Love II, which saw the main character retiring from teaching and moving to Chicago.
Braithwaite died December 12, 2016, in Rockville, Maryland. He was 104.