Daniel Keyes (August 9, 1927 – June 15, 2014) was an American writer who wrote the novel ''

Flowers for Algernon ''Flowers for Algernon'' is a short story by American author Daniel Keyes, which he later expanded into a novel and adapted for film and other media. The short story, written in 1958 and first published in the April 1959 issue of ''The Magazin ...

''. Keyes was given the Author Emeritus honor by the

Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America The Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America, doing business as Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers Association and commonly known as SFWA ( or ) is a nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization of professional science fiction and fantasy writers. Whi ...

in 2000.

Biography

Early life and career

Keyes was born in

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

, New York. His family was

Jewish Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of History of ancient Israel and Judah, ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, rel ...

. He attended

New York University New York University (NYU) is a private university, private research university in New York City, New York, United States. Chartered in 1831 by the New York State Legislature, NYU was founded in 1832 by Albert Gallatin as a Nondenominational ...

briefly before joining the

United States Maritime Service The United States Maritime Service (USMS) was established in 1938 under the provisions of the Merchant Marine Act of 1936 as voluntary training organization to train individuals to become officers and crewmembers on merchant ships that form the ...

at 17, working as a ship's purser on oil tankers. Afterward he returned to New York and in 1950 received a

bachelor's degree A bachelor's degree (from Medieval Latin ''baccalaureus'') or baccalaureate (from Modern Latin ''baccalaureatus'') is an undergraduate degree awarded by colleges and universities upon completion of a course of study lasting three to six years ...

in psychology from

Brooklyn College Brooklyn College is a public university in Brooklyn in New York City, United States. It is part of the City University of New York system and enrolls nearly 14,000 students on a campus in the Midwood and Flatbush sections of Brooklyn as of fall ...

. A month after graduation, Keyes joined publisher Martin Goodman's magazine company,

Magazine Management Magazine Management Co., Inc. was an American publishing company lasting from at least c. 1947 to the early 1970s, known for men's-adventure magazines, risqué men's magazines, humor, romance, puzzle, celebrity/film and other types of magazines ...

. He eventually became an editor of their

pulp magazine Pulp magazines (also referred to as "the pulps") were inexpensive fiction magazines that were published from 1896 until around 1955. The term "pulp" derives from the Pulp (paper), wood pulp paper on which the magazines were printed, due to their ...

''Marvel Science Stories'' ( cover-dated Nov. 1950 – May 1952) after editor Robert O. Erisman, and began writing for the company's comic-book lines Atlas Comics, the 1950s precursors of

Marvel Comics Marvel Comics is a New York City–based comic book publishing, publisher, a property of the Walt Disney Company since December 31, 2009, and a subsidiary of Disney Publishing Worldwide since March 2023. Marvel was founded in 1939 by Martin G ...

. After Goodman ceased publishing pulps in favor of paperback books and men's adventure magazines, Keyes became an associate editor of Atlas under editor-in-chief and

art director Art director is a title for a variety of similar job functions in theater, advertising, marketing, publishing, fashion, live-action and animated film and television, the Internet, and video games. It is the charge of a sole art director to supe ...

Stan Lee Stan Lee (born Stanley Martin Lieber ; December 28, 1922 – November 12, 2018) was an American comic book author, writer, editor, publisher, and producer. He rose through the ranks of a family-run business called Timely Comics which later bec ...

. Circa 1952, Keyes was one of several staff writers, officially titled editors, who wrote for such horror and science fiction comics as ''Journey into Unknown Worlds'', for which Keyes wrote two stories with artist Basil Wolverton. As Keyes recalled, Goodman offered him a job under Lee after ''Marvel Science Stories'' ceased publication: One story idea Keyes wrote but did not submit to Lee was called "Brainstorm", the paragraph-long synopsis that would evolve into ''

''. 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." From 1955 to 1956, Keyes wrote for

EC Comics E.C. Publications, Inc., (doing business as EC Comics) is an American comic book publisher. It specialized in horror fiction, crime fiction, satire, military fiction, dark fantasy, and science fiction from the 1940s through the mid-1950s, nota ...

, including its titles ''Shock Illustrated'' and ''Confessions Illustrated'', under both his own name and the pseudonyms Kris Daniels and A.D. Locke.

''Flowers for Algernon''

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 of ''

The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction ''The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction'' (usually referred to as ''F&SF'') is a U.S. fantasy fiction magazine, fantasy and science-fiction magazine, first published in 1949 by Mystery House, a subsidiary of Lawrence E. Spivak, Lawrence Spiv ...

'' and the expanded novel in 1966. The novel has been adapted several times for other media, most prominently as the 1968 film '' Charly'', starring

Cliff Robertson Clifford Parker Robertson III (September 9, 1923 – September 10, 2011) was an American actor whose career in film and television spanned over six decades. Robertson portrayed a young John F. Kennedy in the 1963 film ''PT 109 (film), PT 109'', a ...

(who won an

Academy Award The Academy Awards, commonly known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit in film. They are presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) in the United States in recognition of excellence ...

for Best Actor) and

Claire Bloom Patricia Claire Bloom (born 15 February 1931) is an English actress. She is known for leading roles on stage and screen and has received two BAFTA Awards and a Drama Desk Award as well as nominations for a Primetime Emmy Award, a Grammy Award an ...

. Keyes also won the

Hugo Award The Hugo Award is an annual literary award for the best science fiction or fantasy works and achievements of the previous year, given at the World Science Fiction Convention (Worldcon) and chosen by its members. The award is administered by th ...

in 1959 and the

Nebula Award The Nebula Awards annually recognize the best works of science fiction or fantasy published in the United States. The awards are organized and awarded by the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers Association (SFWA), a nonprofit association of pr ...

in 1966 for the story. The inspiration for ''Flowers 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.

Later career

Keyes taught creative writing at

Wayne State University Wayne State University (WSU) is a public university, public research university in Detroit, Michigan, United States. Founded in 1868, Wayne State consists of 13 schools and colleges offering approximately 375 programs. It is Michigan's third-l ...

, and in 1966 he became an English and creative writing professor at

Ohio University Ohio University (Ohio or OU) is a Public university, public research university with its main campus in Athens, Ohio, United States. The university was first conceived in the 1787 contract between the United States Department of the Treasury#Re ...

, in

Athens, Ohio Athens is a city in Athens County, Ohio, United States, and its county seat. The population was 23,849 at the 2020 United States census. Located along the Hocking River within Appalachian Ohio about southeast of Columbus, Ohio, Columbus, Athe ...

, where he was honored as a professor emeritus in 2000.

Death

Keyes died at his home in

Boca Raton Boca Raton ( ; ) is a city in Palm Beach County, Florida, United States. The population was 97,422 in the 2020 United States census, 2020 census and it ranked as the 23rd-largest city in Florida in 2022. Many people with a Boca Raton Address, ...

on June 15, 2014, due to complications from

pneumonia Pneumonia is an Inflammation, inflammatory condition of the lung primarily affecting the small air sacs known as Pulmonary alveolus, alveoli. Symptoms typically include some combination of Cough#Classification, productive or dry cough, ches ...

. His wife Aurea Georgina Vazquez, whom he married in 1952, had died on May 14, 2013. They had two daughters.

Awards

Won

* 1960:

for the story "

" * 1966:

for the novel ''

'' * 1986: Kurd Lasswitz Award for '' The Minds of Billy Milligan'' * 1993:

Seiun Award The is a Japanese speculative fiction award given each year for the best science fiction works and achievements during the previous calendar year. Organized and overseen by , the awards are given at the annual Nihon SF Taikai, Japan Science Fic ...

(Non-Fiction of the Year) for '' The Minds of Billy Milligan'' * 2000: Author Emeritus Award from

* 2014: Life Time Award

Nominated

* 1967:

for the novel ''

'' * 1982:

Edgar Award The Edgar Allan Poe Awards, popularly called the Edgars, are presented every year by the Mystery Writers of America which is based in New York City. Named after American writer Edgar Allan Poe (1809–1849), a pioneer in the genre, the awards hon ...

for Best Fact Crime for '' The Minds of Billy Milligan'' * 1987: Edgar Award for the American Association of Mystery Writers for ''Unveiling Claudia''

Bibliography

Novels

* ''

'' (novel, 1966) adapted for cinema as '' Charly'', 1968, and as ''

'', 2000 * ''The Touch'' (1968; re-edited and published as ''The Contaminated Man'', 1977) * ''The Fifth Sally'' (1980) * '' The Minds of Billy Milligan'' (1981) * ''Unveiling Claudia'' (1986) * ''The Milligan Wars: A True-Story Sequel'' (Japan, 1994) * ''Until Death'' (1998) * ''The Asylum Prophecies'' (2009)

Short fiction

Collections

* ''Daniel Keyes Collected Stories'' (Japan, 1993)

Non-fiction

* * Extract from: .

References

External links

* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Keyes, Daniel F. 1927 births 2014 deaths 20th-century American male writers 20th-century American novelists 20th-century American short story writers 21st-century American male writers 21st-century American non-fiction writers 21st-century American novelists 21st-century American short story writers American comics writers American magazine editors American male non-fiction writers American male novelists American male short story writers American military personnel of World War II American psychological fiction writers 20th-century American sailors American science fiction writers Brooklyn College alumni Deaths from pneumonia in Florida EC Comics Hugo Award–winning writers Jewish American novelists Marvel Comics people Military personnel from New York City Military personnel from New York (state) Nebula Award winners Novelists from Michigan Novelists from New York (state) Novelists from Ohio Ohio University faculty The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction people Wayne State University faculty Writers from Brooklyn United States Merchant Mariners United States Merchant Mariners of World War II