In Trojan Odyssey Giordino reveals the epitaph he wishes inscribed on his tombstone: "It was a great party while it lasted. I trust it will continue elsewhere."
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He is described as being of Italian ancestry, 5'4" in height, 175 lb, with dark curly hair, swarthy skin, dark Etruscan eyes, and a Roman nose.
When he was first appointed to the position as Director of the agency and its creator in 1978, he was only given a staff of twelve individuals (Dirk Pitt and Al Giordino included).
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He smokes 10 custom made, exclusively purchased cigars a day, and is stumped and often furious by the fact that Al Giordino always smokes the same custom brand.
Jose "Joe" Zavala is the sidekick of Kurt Austin in the NUMA Files adventure novel series, similar to Al Giordino in the Dirk Pitt novels by Clive Cussler.
He joined NUMA at the same time as Dirk Pitt and Al Giordino, becoming deputy director of NUMA's oceanographic projects, making him second in command under Admiral James Sandecker.