FARGO — A book published three years ago that was written by North Dakota native and former Secret Service officer Clint Hill is getting fresh attention thanks to TV host Mike Rowe.
It began when Rowe described in a Facebook post a chance encounter with Hill and encouraged people to buy Hill's book, "Five Presidents," which came out in 2016.
The post went viral with more than 175,000 shares and sparked something of a book-buying frenzy that pushed Hill's book onto Amazon's bestseller list, which as of Tuesday, March 5, ranked Hill's book at #4.
Now an author with several books under his belt, Hill is perhaps best known as the Secret Service agent who jumped on the back of the presidential limousine in Dallas, Texas, on Nov. 22, 1963, in an effort to save President John F. Kennedy from assassination.
His firsthand account of the assassination figures prominently in his memoir, "Mrs. Kennedy and Me," which was a #1 New York Times bestseller.
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Last year, Hill was named the 44th recipient of the Theodore Roosevelt Rough Rider Award , which has been described as the state's highest commendation for its citizens.
Hill was born in Larimore but grew up in Washburn.
He is a graduate of Concordia College in Moorhead and applied for the Secret Service after his honorable discharge from the U.S. Army.
He served five presidential administrations, beginning with President Dwight Eisenhower and ending with President Gerald Ford.
Rowe shared in a Feb. 19 Facebook post information from CNN's website, which stated that Hill's book "Five Presidents" was enjoying a sudden rush of sales thanks to an earlier posting on Rowe's Facebook page that mentioned Hill.
"Let's be clear, friends. This happened because the world wants to hear real stories about real people who live their lives as best they can, even as they risk everything for others," Rowe wrote in his Feb. 19 Facebook post.
