Mel Tappan was the editor of Personal Survival ("P.S.") Newsletter and the books "Survival Guns" and "Tappan on Survival". He also wrote a column on survival guns for the Guns and Ammo magazine. "Tappan on Survival" was published shortly after his death. He died of congestive heart failure. Tappan was married to Nancy Mack Tappan, an heir to the Mack Truck fortune. Tappan lived in Rogue River, Oregon. He was an influential leader of the Survivalist movement, also known as the modern Preparedness Movement. A survivalist is a person who anticipates a potential disruption in the continuity of local, regional or worldwide society, and takes steps to survive in the resulting unpredictable situation. ... The Preparedness Movement was a campaign led by Leonard Wood and Theodore Roosevelt to strengthen the US military. ...