John Brendan Keane (21 July 1928 – 30 May 2002) was an Irish

playwright A playwright or dramatist is a person who writes plays. Etymology The word "play" is from Middle English pleye, from Old English plæġ, pleġa, plæġa ("play, exercise; sport, game; drama, applause"). The word "wright" is an archaic English ...

novelist A novelist is an author or writer of novels, though often novelists also write in other genres of both fiction and non-fiction. Some novelists are professional novelists, thus make a living writing novels and other fiction, while others aspire to ...

and

essayist An essay is, generally, a piece of writing that gives the author's own argument, but the definition is vague, overlapping with those of a letter, a paper, an article, a pamphlet, and a short story. Essays have been sub-classified as formal a ...

from

Listowel Listowel ( ; , IPA: �lʲɪsˠˈt̪ˠuəhəlʲ is a heritage market town in County Kerry, Ireland. It is on the River Feale, from the county town, Tralee. The town of Listowel had a population of 4,820 according to the Central Statistics Of ...

County Kerry County Kerry ( gle, Contae Chiarraí) is a county in Ireland. It is located in the South-West Region and forms part of the province of Munster. It is named after the Ciarraige who lived in part of the present county. The population of the co ...

Biography

Statue of John B Keane in Listowel - geograph

A son of a national school teacher, William B. Keane, and his wife Hannah (née Purtill), Keane was educated at

National School and then at

St Michael's College, Listowel St Michael's College, is an all-boys secondary school serving the town of Listowel, and the greater North County Kerry catchment area. The school is situated on the banks of the River Feale, and on the Cahirdown Road. History The school was fou ...

. He worked as a chemist's assistant for A. H. Jones who dabbled in buying

antique An antique ( la, antiquus; 'old', 'ancient') is an item perceived as having value because of its aesthetic or historical significance, and often defined as at least 100 years old (or some other limit), although the term is often used loosely ...

s. Keane had various jobs in the UK between 1951 and 1955 working as a street cleaner, and a bar man, living in a variety of places including Northampton and London. It was while he was in Northampton that Keane was first published in an unnamed women's magazine for which he received £15. After returning to Ireland from the United Kingdom, he became a pub owner in Listowel from 1955. He married Mary O'Connor at Knocknagoshel Church on 5 January 1955 and had four children: Billy, Conor, John and Joanna. He was an Honorary Life Member of the

Royal Dublin Society The Royal Dublin Society (RDS) ( ga, Cumann Ríoga Bhaile Átha Cliath) is an Irish philanthropic organisation and members club which was founded as the 'Dublin Society' on 25 June 1731 with the aim to see Ireland thrive culturally and economi ...

from 1991, served as president of Irish

PEN A pen is a common writing instrument that applies ink to a surface, usually paper, for writing or drawing. Early pens such as reed pens, quill pens, dip pens and ruling pens held a small amount of ink on a nib or in a small void or cavity wh ...

and was a founder member of the Society of Irish Playwrights as well as a member of

Aosdána Aosdána ( , ; from , 'people of the arts') is an Irish association of artists. It was created in 1981 on the initiative of a group of writers with support from the country's Arts Council. Membership, which is by invitation from current member ...

. Keane was named the patron of the Listowel Players after the Listowel Drama Group fractured. He remained a prominent member of the

Fine Gael Fine Gael (, ; English: "Family (or Tribe) of the Irish") is a liberal-conservative and Christian-democratic political party in Ireland. Fine Gael is currently the third-largest party in the Republic of Ireland in terms of members of Dáil � ...

party throughout his life, never being shy of political debate. His nephew is the investigative journalist

Fergal Keane Fergal Patrick Keane (born 6 January 1961) is an Irish foreign correspondent with BBC News, and an author. For some time, Keane was the BBC's correspondent in South Africa. He is a nephew of the Irish playwright, novelist and essayist John B. ...

. His son John is a journalist with the ''

Kilkenny People The ''Kilkenny People'' is a local newspaper circulated in County Kilkenny, Ireland. Popular in Kilkenny City and County, it competes with the ''Kilkenny Reporter'' and '' The Munster Express'' in the south of the county. ''The Kilkenny Peop ...

'' while his son, Billy regularly writes a column for the ''

Irish Independent The ''Irish Independent'' is an Irish daily newspaper and online publication which is owned by Independent News & Media (INM), a subsidiary of Mediahuis. The newspaper version often includes glossy magazines. Traditionally a broadsheet new ...

''.

Influences

Keane cited many literary influences including Bryan MacMahon and

George Fitzmaurice George Fitzmaurice (13 February 1885 – 13 June 1940) was a French-born film director and producer. Career Fitzmaurice's career first started as a set designer on stage. Beginning in 1914, and continuing until his death in 1940, he directed ...

, fellow Kerry writers and playwrights. His personal influences were numerous but, most notably he thanked his father and his wife, Mary. Keane was grateful for his father's help with early editing and for allowing him access to his personal library, and encouraging him to continue his work until he was successful. He was also influenced by the local population and the patrons of his pub, on whom he based some of his characters.

Awards and honours

*1999

Irish PEN Award Irish PEN Award for Literature is an annual literary award presented by Irish PEN since 1999. Its intent is to honour an Irish-born writer who has made an outstanding contribution to Irish literature. The award is for a significant body of work an ...

List of works

* ''Many Young Men of Twenty'' (1946) * ''

Sive Sive may refer to: *Sive means hear us in isiXhosa * David Sive (1922–2014), American attorney, environmentalist, and professor of environmental law * Sive (noun), a Nation, a large body of people united by common descent, history, culture, or l ...

'' (1959) * ''Sharon's Grave'' (1960) * ''The Highest House on the Mountain'' (1961) * ''The Man From Clare'' (1962) * ''The Year of the Hiker'' (1963) * '' The Field'' (1965) * ''Hut 42'' (1968) * ''The Rain at the End of the Summer'' (1968) * ''Big Maggie'' (1969) * ''Moll'' (1971) * ''The One-Way Ticket'' (1972) * ''Values'' (1973) *''The Crazy Wall'' (1973) * ''The Change in Mame Fadden'' (1973) * ''Letters of a Matchmaker'' (1975) * ''Letters of a Country Postman'' (1977) * ''The Buds of Ballybunion'' (1979) * ''The Chastitute'' (1981) * ''Man of the Triple Name'' (1984) * ''Owl Sandwiches'' (1985) * ''The Bodhran Makers'' (1986) * ''The Contractors'' (1988) * ''The Ram of God and Other Stories'' (1992) * ''Durango: A Novel'' (1992) * ''Faoiseamh'' * ''Pishogue'' * ''No More in Dust''

References

External links

Official HomepageBBC Report of his death
{{DEFAULTSORT:Keane, John B. 1928 births 2002 deaths Deaths from cancer in the Republic of Ireland Deaths from prostate cancer Drinking establishment owners Irish essayists Irish male dramatists and playwrights Irish male novelists Irish PEN Award for Literature winners Male essayists People educated at St Michael's College, Listowel People from Listowel 20th-century Irish dramatists and playwrights 20th-century essayists 20th-century Irish male writers 20th-century Irish novelists