Heros with Barbara Bickmore

Have any of your protagonist/characters been modeled after a personal hero in your life? If so, what heroic qualities inspired you to add them to a book? 

Bonus question: How were the heroic qualities incorporated into a story?

With Barbara Bickmore
I did use William Holden and his wildlife ranch in Kenya in "Oberon."  That was just one part of Jordan's personality, however.  I invented men whom I would have liked to have known and love (and never did).  In "West of the Moon" the character of Ben Burgess (not heroic but owned TV stations etc, quite like CNN) on Ted Turner only in that he owned something like CNN. None of my characters in any book is based on an actual person, they are all conglomerates of many people.  My idea of a hero is one who has integrity, is a leader, puts others before himself, believes in something greater than himself, is an optimist, likes people, is kind and gentle to women and considers them his equal.  He is willing to fight for what he believes in but doesn't do it with guns.  He believes the things that I believe in!  He is never unkind, though sometimes thoughtless (after all, he's human).

When I was interviewed on TV once the interviewer asked me if I'd ever known a man like Marsh in my first book "East of the Sun." I said no.  The interviewer said, "Oh, that's too bad. He's great." And yes, he's what I'd like a man to be.  I think the kind of man I'd consider heroic only exists in fiction or movies.  I suspect that the men we consider heroes in history have clay feet if we really knew them and not just their public actions.