 In 2005, Lev Grossman of "Time" called Martin "the American Tolkien", and in 2011, he was included on the annual "Time" 100 list of the most influential people in the world.George Raymond Martin (he adopted the confirmation name Richard at 13 years old) was born on September 20, 1948, in Bayonne, New Jersey, the son of longshoreman Raymond Collins Martin and Margaret Brady Martin.On his mother's side his family used to be wealthy, and owned a successful construction business, but they lost it all in the Great Depression, something Martin was reminded about every day when he passed what used to be his family's dock and house.