Neal Leon Cassady (February 8, 1926 – February 4, 1968) was a major figure of the
Beat Generation of the 1950s and the
psychedelic and
counterculture movements of the 1960s. He was prominently featured as himself in the original "scroll" (first draft) version of
Jack Kerouac's novel
On the Road. He also served as the model for the character Dean Moriarty in the 1957 version of that book. In many of Kerouac's later books, Cassady is represented by the character Cody Pomeray.