Mr. Black was born in Oakland -- he descended from John Alden, one of the Mayflower pilgrims, and the Cherokee Indian chief Oconostota, his family said. He was raised in San Francisco, educated at the Hotchkiss School in Connecticut, and got his bachelor's degree from Stanford University in three years. He joined the Navy in 1941, and as an intelligence officer in the Pacific made more than 100 PT boat patrols -- the same kind of patrol for which President John F. Kennedy was storied. He also served as a scout behind enemy lines in Indonesia. Among several medals, he was awarded the Silver Star, one of the nation's highest for valor. After the war, Mr. Black moved to Tahiti and, indulging his lifelong love of the sea, eventually sailed a small boat back to the United States over 7, 000 miles of ocean.
