Ken Kelley (September 24, 1949 – January 13, 2008) was an American journalist and publisher, active in the

underground press The terms underground press or clandestine press refer to periodicals and publications that are produced without official approval, illegally or against the wishes of a dominant (governmental, religious, or institutional) group. In specific rec ...

movement. He founded and edited the underground magazines the ''

Ann Arbor Argus ''Ann Arbor Argus'' was a radical, counterculture biweekly underground newspaper published in Ann Arbor, Michigan, starting January 24, 1969, and lasting until mid-1971.

'' and ''SunDance'', and was a notable interviewer for ''

Playboy ''Playboy'' is an American men's Lifestyle magazine, lifestyle and entertainment magazine, formerly in print and currently online. It was founded in Chicago in 1953, by Hugh Hefner and his associates, and funded in part by a $1,000 loan from H ...

'' magazine.

Early life

Ken Kelley was born on September 24, 1949, in

Ann Arbor Anne, alternatively spelled Ann, is a form of the Latin female given name Anna. This in turn is a representation of the Hebrew Hannah, which means 'favour' or 'grace'. Related names include Annie. Anne is sometimes used as a male name in the ...

and grew up in

Monroe, MI Monroe is the largest city and county seat of Monroe County in the U.S. state of Michigan. Monroe had a population of 20,462 in the 2020 census. The city is bordered on the south by Monroe Charter Township, but the two are administered autono ...

. He attended the

University of Michigan, Ann Arbor , mottoeng = "Arts, Knowledge, Truth" , former_names = Catholepistemiad, or University of Michigania (1817–1821) , budget = $10.3 billion (2021) , endowment = $17 billion (2021)As o ...

on a full scholarship, studying

chemistry Chemistry is the scientific study of the properties and behavior of matter. It is a natural science that covers the elements that make up matter to the compounds made of atoms, molecules and ions: their composition, structure, proper ...

but dropping out after three semesters. While at University of Michigan, he worked on the student newspaper, the ''

Michigan Daily ''The Michigan Daily'' is the weekly student newspaper of the University of Michigan. Its first edition was published on September 29, 1890. The newspaper is financially and editorially independent of the University's administration and other stu ...

'', lived at the Trans-Love Energies commune off campus, and was involved in the

White Panther Party The White Panthers were an anti-racist political collective founded in November 1968 by Pun Plamondon, Leni Sinclair, and John Sinclair. It was started in response to an interview where Huey P. Newton, co-founder of the Black Panther Party, w ...

Career

In 1969, Kelley founded the ''

Ann Arbor Argus ''Ann Arbor Argus'' was a radical, counterculture biweekly underground newspaper published in Ann Arbor, Michigan, starting January 24, 1969, and lasting until mid-1971.

'', which ran until 1971 and reached a circulation of 14,000."The underground press: a special report" by John Burks. ''Rolling Stone'', Oct. 4, 1969. In the early 1970s, Kelley moved to the San Francisco Bay Area and, along with

Craig Pyes __NOTOC__ Craig may refer to: Geology *Craig (landform), a rocky hill or mountain often having large casims or sharp intentations. People (and fictional characters) * Craig (surname) * Craig (given name) Places Scotland * Craig, Angus, aka Baron ...

, founded ''SunDance'', an underground magazine funded by

John Lennon John Winston Ono Lennon (born John Winston Lennon; 9 October 19408 December 1980) was an English singer, songwriter, musician and peace activist who achieved worldwide fame as founder, co-songwriter, co-lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist of ...

and

Yoko Ono Yoko Ono ( ; ja, 小野洋子, Ono Yōko, usually spelled in katakana ; born February 18, 1933) is a Japanese multimedia artist, singer, songwriter, and peace activist. Her work also encompasses performance art and filmmaking. Ono grew up i ...

. Kelley joined the staff of the ''

Berkeley Barb The ''Berkeley Barb'' was a weekly underground newspaper published in Berkeley, California, during the years 1965 to 1980. It was one of the first and most influential of the counterculture newspapers, covering such subjects as the anti-war move ...

'' in February 1973 and became managing editor that summer. "But he has turned many chores over to his managing editor, who is Ken Kelley, now 22 and a veteran underground newspaper worker ... Young Kelley went to Ann Arbor to be a chemistry major, managed three semesters before it stuck in his craw and left to write for underground newspapers ... He has been with the Barb since February." Alongside fellow ''

'' columnists Dancing Bear and Gabrielle Schang, Kelley was a correspondent on '' Earthquake News'', a 1973

alternative Alternative or alternate may refer to: Arts, entertainment and media * Alternative (''Kamen Rider''), a character in the Japanese TV series ''Kamen Rider Ryuki'' * ''The Alternative'' (film), a 1978 Australian television film * ''The Alternative ...

television news pilot in San Francisco. Starting in 1976, Kelley became a regular writer for ''

'', best known for his interviews of notable figures. His most well-known interview was of

Anita Bryant Anita Jane Bryant (born March 25, 1940) is an American singer known for anti-gay activism. She scored four "Top 40" hits in the United States in the late 1950s and early 1960s, including " Paper Roses" which reached No. 5 on the charts. She was t ...

in the May 1978 issue, in which she revealed her

homophobic Homophobia encompasses a range of negative attitudes and feelings toward homosexuality or people who are identified or perceived as being lesbian, gay or bisexual. It has been defined as contempt, prejudice, aversion, hatred or antipathy, m ...

and

anti-Semitic Antisemitism (also spelled anti-semitism or anti-Semitism) is hostility to, prejudice towards, or discrimination against Jews. A person who holds such positions is called an antisemite. Antisemitism is considered to be a form of racism. Antis ...

views. Kelley had traveled with Bryant and her husband for a week and protected her from a

pieing Pieing or a pie attack is the act of throwing a pie at a person. In pieing, the goal is usually to humiliate the victim while avoiding actual injury. For this reason the pie is traditionally of the cream variety without a top crust, and is rarely ...

incident while conducting the interview. The Kelley–Bryant interview is portrayed in the comedic play, ''Anita Bryant's Playboy Interview'', which premiered in 2016 in

Silver Lake, Los Angeles Silver Lake is a residential and commercial Neighbourhood, neighborhood in the east-Central Los Angeles, central region of Los Angeles, California. Originally home to a small community called Ivanhoe in honor of Walter Scott, Sir Walter Scott. In ...

. Kelley also interviewed

Ferdinand Ferdinand is a Germanic name composed of the elements "protection", "peace" (PIE "to love, to make peace") or alternatively "journey, travel", Proto-Germanic , abstract noun from root "to fare, travel" (PIE , "to lead, pass over"), and "co ...

and

Imelda Marcos Imelda Romualdez Marcos (; born Imelda Remedios Visitacion Trinidad Romualdez; July 2, 1929) is a Filipino politician who served as the First Lady of the Philippines from 1965 to 1986, wielding significant political power during the dictato ...

Cheech & Chong Cheech & Chong are a comedy duo consisting of Cheech Marin and Tommy Chong. The duo found commercial and cultural success in the 1970s and 1980s with their stand-up routines, studio recordings, and feature films, which were based on the hippie a ...

Abbie Hoffman Abbot Howard "Abbie" Hoffman (November 30, 1936 – April 12, 1989) was an American political and social activist who co-founded the Youth International Party ("Yippies") and was a member of the Chicago Seven. He was also a leading proponen ...

Arthur C. Clarke Sir Arthur Charles Clarke (16 December 191719 March 2008) was an English science-fiction writer, science writer, futurist, inventor, undersea explorer, and television series host. He co-wrote the screenplay for the 1968 film '' 2001: A Spac ...

, and

Ray Bradbury Ray Douglas Bradbury (; August 22, 1920June 5, 2012) was an American author and screenwriter. One of the most celebrated 20th-century American writers, he worked in a variety of modes, including fantasy, science fiction, horror, mystery, and ...

, among others, for ''Playboy''. Kelley won a Maggie Award for his 1987 interview of

Lyndon LaRouche Lyndon Hermyle LaRouche Jr. (September 8, 1922 – February 12, 2019) was an American political activist who founded the LaRouche movement and its main organization the National Caucus of Labor Committees (NCLC). He was a prominent conspira ...

for '' Focus Magazine''.

Personal life

In 1971, Kelley was issued a subpoena from a federal grand jury probing the 1971 United States Capitol bombing, and subsequently burned the subpoena during a press conference with

Yippie The Youth International Party (YIP), whose members were commonly called Yippies, was an American youth-oriented radical and countercultural revolutionary offshoot of the free speech and anti-war movements of the late 1960s. It was founded on ...

leader

. "Three leaders of the Washington May Day demonstrations yesterday burned what they said were new subpoenas from a Detroit federal grand jury probing the U.S. Capitol bombing. With Yippie leader Abbie Hoffman, the trio also announced that massive protests were being planned for San Diego during next year's Republican convention." Kelley became interested in the

Divine Light Mission The Divine Light Mission (''Divya Sandesh Parishad''; DLM) was an organization founded in 1960 by guru Hans Ji Maharaj for his following in northern India. During the 1970s, the DLM gained prominence in the West under the leadership of his fourth a ...

in 1973 and wrote about it extensively. He started writing a book about the Divine Light Mission entitled ''Brave New Bliss'', but left it unfinished at the time of his death. Kelley was a press aide to

Huey P. Newton Huey Percy Newton (February 17, 1942 – August 22, 1989) was an African-American revolutionary, notable as founder of the Black Panther Party. Newton crafted the Party's ten-point manifesto with Bobby Seale in 1966. Under Newton's leadership ...

. After Newton's death, Kelley wrote that Newton had admitted to ordering the

murder of Betty Van Patter Betty Louise Van Patter (née Floyd; October 12, 1929 – ), was a bookkeeper for the Black Panther Party, although she herself was white. Disappearance and discovery of body Van Patter was aged 45 when, after being missing for five weeks, h ...

. "In an effort to bolster the defense, Robinson's attorney Alfons Wagner has subpoenaed Kelley, who was once Newton's press aide and who wrote after the slaying that Newton admitted ordering the execution of a former Black Panther Party bookkeeper in 1974 and shooting to death an Oakland prostitute in 1979."

Later life and death

In 2005, Kelley was arrested on charges of possession of child pornography. While awaiting the outcome of an appeal, he had a heart attack in jail and died on January 13, 2008. In April 2008, federal prosecutors asked to drop charges against Kelley.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kelley, Ken People from Monroe, Michigan People from Ann Arbor, Michigan American alternative journalists American LGBT journalists 1949 births 2008 deaths American people who died in prison custody American magazine editors American magazine publishers (people) Playboy people Journalists from Michigan 20th-century American journalists American male journalists 20th-century American LGBT people Prisoners who died in California detention