William Kennedy (author)

William Joseph Kennedy ( born January 16, 1928 in Albany, New York) is an American writer who received the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction for his novel Ironweed 1984.

Biography

After school he studied at Siena College and earned a Bachelor of Arts there in 1949 (BA). He then made ​​1950-1952 military service in the U.S. Army before he worked as a journalist for many years. First, he was a sports journalist and columnist for Glens Falls Post Star, and then from 1952 to 1956 a reporter for the Albany Times-Union and deputy managing editor and columnist of the Puerto Rico World Journal. After a short time working as a reporter for the daily newspaper The Miami Herald in 1957, he was 1957-1959 Correspondent of Time-Life in Puerto Rico. He then spent two years as managing editor of the newly founded daily newspaper, The San Juan Star, before he was 1961-1970 journalist and film critic for The Albany Times-Union. After that, he was editor of books and finally 1974-1982 Lecturer at the State University of New York.

Kennedy made ​​his debut as a novelist with The Ink Truck and wrote in the aftermath more novels like Legs (1975 ) about the gangster Jack " Legs" Diamond and Billy Phelan 's Greatest Game (1978).

After a year as a visiting professor for the English Language 1982-1983 at Cornell University, he was in 1983 professor of the English language at the State University of New York.

In 1983 he published his novel Ironweed, for which he received in 1983 not only a grant from the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation ( MacArthur Fellowship ), but also the 1984 Pulitzer Prize. It went over the return of a former baseball star who has now been to a run-down, weepy drinkers. In the film based on the novel by Hector Babenco Ironweed (1987 ), which ran in the German cinemas under the title spurge, Jack Nicholson gave a detailed presentation of the main character " Francis Phelan ."

According to the book O Albany! (1983 ), he was also in 1984 alongside Francis Ford Coppola Co -author of the screenplay of the movie Cotton Club.

Later appeared with Quinn 's Book (1988 ), Very Old Bones (1992 ), The Flaming Corsage (1996) and Roscoe (2002) four more novels, which he called " Albany Cycle" dedicated to his hometown.

In 1993 he published under the title Riding the Yellow Trolley Car, a collection of essays and wrote Grandview (1996 ), a theater piece.

Background literature

  • E. C. Reilly: William Kennedy, Biography (1991 )

External links and sources

  • William Kennedy (Author) in the Notable Names Database (English)
  • Biography (New York State Writers Institute)
  • Biography ( jrank.org )
  • Chambers Biographical Dictionary, p 844, Edinburgh 2002, ISBN 0-550-10051-2
  • Author
  • Literature ( 20th century)
  • Literature ( English )
  • Novel, epic
  • Pulitzer Prize winner
  • University teachers ( Cornell University)
  • Military person (United States Army )
  • Journalist (United States)
  • Americans
  • Born in 1928
  • Man
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