Daniel Keyes | |
|---|---|
 Daniel Keyes | |
| Born | (1927-08-09)August 9, 1927 New York City, U.S. |
| Died | June 15, 2014(2014-06-15) (aged 86) Boca Raton, Florida, U.S. |
| Occupation | Fiction writer |
| Alma mater | New York University Brooklyn College |
| Period | 1952–2014 |
| Genre | Science fiction |
| Notable works | Flowers for Algernon (1959) The Minds of Billy Milligan (1981) |
| Notable awards | Hugo Award (1960) Nebula Award (1966) Kurd Lasswitz Award (1986) Seiun Award (1993) |
| Spouse | Aurea Georgina Vazquez |
| Website | |
| www | |
Daniel Keyes (August 9, 1927 – June 15, 2014) was an American writer best known as the author of the novelFlowers for Algernon. Keyes was given theAuthor Emeritus honor by theScience Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America in 2000.[1]
Keyes was born inNew York City, New York.[2] His family wasJewish.[3][4] He attendedNew York University briefly before joining theUnited States Maritime Service at 17, working as a ship's purser on oil tankers.[2] Afterward he returned to New York and in 1950 received abachelor's degree in psychology fromBrooklyn College.[2]
A month after graduation, Keyes joined publisherMartin Goodman's magazine company,Magazine Management.[2] He eventually became an editor of theirpulp magazineMarvel Science Stories[5] (cover-dated Nov. 1950 – May 1952) after editor Robert O. Erisman,[6] and began writing for the company'scomic-book linesAtlas Comics, the 1950s precursors ofMarvel Comics. After Goodman ceased publishing pulps in favor ofpaperback books andmen's adventure magazines, Keyes became an associate editor of Atlas[1] under editor-in-chief andart directorStan Lee. Circa 1952, Keyes was one of several staff writers, officially titled editors, who wrote for suchhorror and science fiction comics asJourney into Unknown Worlds, for which Keyes wrote two stories with artistBasil Wolverton.[7]
As Keyes recalled, Goodman offered him a job under Lee afterMarvel Science Stories ceased publication:
Since my $17.25-a-month rent was almost due, I accepted what I considered a detour on my journey toward a literary career. Stan Lee ... let his editors deal with the scriptwriters, cartoonists, andlettering crew. Writers turned in plot synopses, Stan read them, and as a matter of course, would accept one or two from each of the regulars he referred to as his "stable." As one of his front men, I would pass along comments and criticism. ... Because of my experience editingMarvel and because I'd sold a few science fiction stories by then, Stan allowed me to specialize in the horror, fantasy, suspense, and science fiction comic books. Naturally, I began submitting story ideas, getting freelance assignment, and supplementing my salary by writing scripts on my own time.[8]
One story idea Keyes wrote but did not submit to Lee was called "Brainstorm", the paragraph-long synopsis that would evolve intoFlowers for Algernon. It begins: "The first guy in the test to raise the I.Q. from a low normal 90 to genius level ... He goes through the experience and then is thrown back to what was." Keyes recalled, "something told me it should be more than a comic book script."[8]
From 1955 to 1956, Keyes wrote forEC Comics, including its titlesPsychoanalysis,Shock Illustrated, andConfessions Illustrated, under both his own name and the pseudonymsKris Daniels andA.D. Locke.[7]
The short story and subsequent novel,Flowers for Algernon, is written as progress reports of a mentally disabled man, Charlie, who undergoes experimental surgery and briefly becomes a genius before the effects tragically wear off. The story was initially published in the April 1959 issue ofThe Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction and the expanded novel in 1966.[9] The novel has been adapted several times for other media, most prominently as the 1968 filmCharly, starringCliff Robertson (who won anAcademy Award for Best Actor) andClaire Bloom. Keyes also won theHugo Award in 1959 and theNebula Award in 1966 for the story.[1][10]
The inspiration forFlowers for Algernon came from Keyes's experiences as a teacher. When he was teaching at a high school, he taught both mentally gifted and challenged students. One particular experience with a boy in his mentally challenged class sparked the inspiration to begin writing Flowers for Algernon. He was wondering what would happen if it was possible for a person to gain intelligence.[11]
Keyes taught creative writing atWayne State University, and in 1966 he became an English and creative writing professor atOhio University, inAthens, Ohio, where he was honored as a professor emeritus in 2000.[5][12][13]
Keyes died at his home inBoca Raton on June 15, 2014, due to complications frompneumonia.[9][10][14][15] His wife Aurea Georgina Vazquez, whom he married in 1952, had died on May 14, 2013.[16] They had two daughters.[9]
| Title | Year | First published | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| "Precedent" | 1952 | Marvel Science Fiction, Vol. 3, No. 6 | |
| "Robot Unwanted" | Other Worlds, #19 | ||
| "Something Borrowed" | Fantastic Story, Vol. 4, #1 | ||
| "The Trouble With Elmo" | 1958 | Galaxy, XVI, 4 | |
| "Flowers for Algernon" | 1959 | Keyes, Daniel (April 1959). "Flowers for Algernon".F&SF.16 (4). | Expanded as a novel, 1966. |
| "Crazy Maro" | 1960 | The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction, Vol. 18, 4 | Paired with the essay "What Do Characters Cost?" |
| "The Quality of Mercy" | IF, Vol. X, 5 | ||
| "A Jury of its Peers" | 1963 | Worlds of Tomorrow, Vol. 1, No. 3 | |
| "Spellbinder" | 1967 | North American Review, Vol. 4 No. 4 | |
| "Mama's Girl" | 1993 | Daniel Keyes Collected Stories |
daniel Keyes marvel comics.
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