Donald Goines (pseudonym: Al C. Clark; December 15, 1936 – October 21, 1974) was an

African-American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American ...

writer of

urban fiction With more than half the world's population living in cities, urban fiction has become a truly global field. Recent comprehensive studies of urban fiction showcase the worldwide reach of the genre and include ''Writing Beirut: Mappings of the Ci ...

. His novels were deeply influenced by the work of

Iceberg Slim Robert Beck (born Robert Lee Maupin or Robert Moppins Jr.; August 4, 1918 – April 30, 1992), better known as Iceberg Slim, was a former American pimp who later became a writer. Beck's novels were adapted into films. Early life Robert Mau ...

Early life and family

Goines was born in

Detroit, Michigan Detroit ( , ; , ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is also the largest U.S. city on the United States–Canada border, and the seat of government of Wayne County. The City of Detroit had a population of 639,111 at ...

on December 15, 1936. His parents were a middle-class black couple that ran a laundry business, with his mother Myrtle Goines telling Goines that her family was descended from Jefferson Davis and a woman who was enslaved. Donald was the middle child of three, and the only son. At age 15, Goines lied about his age to join the

Air Force An air force – in the broadest sense – is the national military branch that primarily conducts aerial warfare. More specifically, it is the branch of a nation's armed services that is responsible for aerial warfare as distinct from an ar ...

and fought in the

Korean War {{Infobox military conflict , conflict = Korean War , partof = the Cold War and the Korean conflict , image = Korean War Montage 2.png , image_size = 300px , caption = Clockwise from top: ...

Adult life

During his stint in the Armed Forces, Goines developed an addiction to heroin that continued after his

honorable discharge A military discharge is given when a member of the armed forces is released from their obligation to serve. Each country's military has different types of discharge. They are generally based on whether the persons completed their training and the ...

in the mid-1950s. In order to support his addiction, Goines committed crimes including pimping, larceny, robbery, illegal liquor manufacturing and theft. He resided in several cities, including Kansas City, Missouri and

Junction City, Kansas Junction City is a city in and the county seat of Geary County, Kansas, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population of the city was 22,932. Fort Riley, a major U.S. Army post, is nearby. History Junction City is so named from its ...

, but mostly in his native Detroit. He was sentenced to prison several times, both state and federal. He began writing while serving a sentence in Michigan's Jackson Penitentiary. Goines initially attempted to write

Western Western may refer to: Places *Western, Nebraska, a village in the US * Western, New York, a town in the US *Western Creek, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western Junction, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western world, countries that i ...

s, but he decided to write urban fiction after reading Robert "Iceberg Slim" Beck's autobiography ''Pimp: The Story of My Life''. Goines continued to write novels at an accelerated pace in order to support his drug addictions, with some books taking only a month to complete. His sister Joan Goines Coney later said that Goines wrote at such an accelerated pace in order to avoid committing more crimes and based many of the characters in his books on people he knew in real life. He completed 16 books. In 1974 Goines published ''Crime Partners'', the first book in the ''Kenyatta'' series under the name Al C. Clark. Holloway House's chief executive Bentley Morriss requested that Goines publish the book under a

pseudonym A pseudonym (; ) or alias () is a fictitious name that a person or group assumes for a particular purpose, which differs from their original or true name (orthonym). This also differs from a new name that entirely or legally replaces an individua ...

in order to avoid having the sales of Goines's work suffer due to too many books releasing at once. The book dealt with an anti-hero character named after

Jomo Kenyatta Jomo Kenyatta (22 August 1978) was a Kenyan anti-colonial activist and politician who governed Kenya as its Prime Minister from 1963 to 1964 and then as its first President from 1964 to his death in 1978. He was the country's first indigeno ...

that ran an organization similar to the

Black Panthers The Black Panther Party (BPP), originally the Black Panther Party for Self-Defense, was a Marxist-Leninist and black power political organization founded by college students Bobby Seale and Huey P. Newton in October 1966 in Oakland, Calif ...

to clear the ghetto of crime. In his book ''The Low Road'', Eddie B. Allen remarks that the series was a departure from some of Goines's other works, with the character of Kenyatta symbolizing a sense of liberation for Goines. ''Inner City Hoodlum'', which Goines had finished before his death, was published posthumously in 1975. Set in

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the wor ...

, the novel was about heroin, money and murder.

Death

On October 21, 1974 Goines and his common-law wife Shirley Sailor were discovered dead in their

Highland Park, Michigan Highland Park is a city in Wayne County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 8,977 at the 2020 census. Along with its neighbor of Hamtramck, Highland Park is an enclave city surrounded by the city of Detroit. History The area th ...

apartment. The police had received an anonymous phone call earlier that evening and responded, discovering Goines in the living room of the apartment and Sailor's body in the kitchen. Both Goines and Sailor had sustained multiple gunshot wounds to the chest and head. The identity of the two gunmen is unknown, as is the reason behind the murders. Popular theories involve Goines being murdered due to his basing several of his characters on real life criminals as well as the theory that Goines was killed due to his being in debt over drugs. At his funeral, a relative placed a book with Goines in his casket, but it was stolen.

Novels

Kenyatta series The ''Kenyatta'' series is a four-volume urban fiction series by American author Donald Goines under the pseudonym of Al C. Clark. Goines released the books under a pseudonym on the request of his publisher, who wanted to avoid flooding the marke ...

#''Crime Partners'' (1974)

s Al C. Clark S, or s, is the nineteenth letter in the Latin alphabet, used in the modern English alphabet, the alphabets of other western European languages and others worldwide. Its name in English is ''ess'' (pronounced ), plural ''esses''. History ...

#''Death List'' (1974)

#''Kenyatta's Escape'' (1974)

#''Kenyatta's Last Hit'' (1975)

Stand alone novels

*''

Dopefiend ''Dopefiend: The Story of a Black Junkie'' is a 1971 novel by Donald Goines and his first published novel. The book is considered to be Goines's benchmark novel and shares some similarities to the author's life. The book deals with "the power dyn ...

'' (1971) *'' Whoreson'' (1972) *''Black Gangster'' (1972) *''Street Players'' (1973) *''White Man's Justice, Black Man's Grief'' (1973) *'' Black Girl Lost'' (1974) *'' Eldorado Red'' (1974) *''

Swamp Man Donald Herbert Davidson (March 6, 1917 – August 30, 2003) was an American philosopher. He served as Slusser Professor of Philosophy at the University of California, Berkeley, from 1981 to 2003 after having also held teaching appointments at ...

'' (1974) *''Never Die Alone'' (1974) *''

Cry Revenge ''Cry Revenge'' is a 1974 novel by Donald Goines. It is part of the Kenyatta series The ''Kenyatta'' series is a four-volume urban fiction series by American author Donald Goines under the pseudonym of Al C. Clark. Goines released the books un ...

'' (1974)

*'' Daddy Cool'' (1974) *''Inner City Hoodlum'' (1975)

Influence

Goines's writing has had an impact upon several people, with several

rappers Rapping (also rhyming, spitting, emceeing or MCing) is a musical form of vocal delivery that incorporates "rhyme, rhythmic speech, and street vernacular". It is performed or chanted, usually over a backing beat or musical accompaniment. The ...

inserting mentions of Goines and his writing into their lyrics. In his 1996 song '' Tradin' War Stories'', rapper

2Pac Tupac Amaru Shakur ( ; born Lesane Parish Crooks, June 16, 1971 – September 13, 1996), also known as 2Pac and Makaveli, was an American rapper. He is widely considered one of the most influential rappers of all time. Shakur is among the b ...

writes " Machiavelli was my tutor, Donald Goines my father figure". On the ''

Real Brothas ''Real Brothas'' is the debut album of rappers B.G. Knocc Out and Dresta, released in 1995. The album includes the minor hits "D.P.G./K", "Jealousy" and the Eazy-E-dedicated song " 50/50 Luv". "D.P.G./K" was a diss track towards Death Row artis ...

'' album by hip-hop duo B.G. Knocc Out &

Dresta Andre DeSean Wicker (born April 18, 1970), better known by his stage name Dresta (sometimes Gangsta Dresta), is an American rapper. He is best known for collaborating with Eazy-E on the 1993 single " Real Muthaphuckkin G's". He is the older bro ...

, the second one mentioned the author by rapping "take a good look because you're looking at a crook/my life done been took, right outta Donald Goines' book".

Ludacris Christopher Brian Bridges (born September 11, 1977), known professionally as Ludacris (, homophonous with 'ludicrous' in American English), is an American rapper, actor, record producer and record executive. Born in Champaign, Illinois, Ludac ...

mentions Goines in his 2006 song " Eyebrows Down". AZ compares himself to Donald Goines' work in "Rather Unique", with the line, "Your mind's boggled but I'm as deep as Donald Goines' novels".

Nas Nas (born 1973) is the stage name of American rapper Nasir Jones. Nas, NaS, or NAS may also refer to: Aviation * Nasair, a low-cost airline carrier and subsidiary based in Eritrea * National Air Services, an airline in Saudi Arabia ** Nas Air ...

also named the song "Black Girl Lost" on his sophomore album ''

It Was Written ''It Was Written'' is the second studio album by American rapper Nas, released on July 2, 1996, by Columbia Records. After the modest commercial success of his debut album ''Illmatic'' (1994), Nas pursued a more polished, mainstream sound for '' ...

'' after the book by Goines. The New York rap trio Cru had a song called "Goines Tale" where all of Donald's book titles were incorporated into the song's lyrics. Rapper

Jadakiss Jason Terrance Phillips (born May 27, 1975), better known by his stage name Jadakiss, is an American rapper from Yonkers, New York. He began his career in the 1990s as a member of the rap trio The Lox, managed by Ruff Ryders and signed with B ...

also references Goines in the

Sheek Louch Sean Divine Jacobs (born September 30, 1976), better known as Sheek Louch, is an American rapper best known as a member of The LOX and founder of D-Block Records, along with Styles P and Jadakiss. Personal life and career At around the a ...

song "Mighty D-Block (2 Guns Up)" with the lyrics "Yo, the revolve' or the mati's cool, Knife game like Daddy Cool's, since Bally Shoes". The rapper

50 Cent Curtis James Jackson III (born July 6, 1975), known professionally as 50 Cent, is an American rapper, actor, and businessman. Born in the South Jamaica neighborhood of Queens, Jackson began pursuing a musical career in 2000, when he produced ...

writes in his self-help-cum-autobiography ''Hustle Harder, Hustle Smarter'', that "Personally, I didn’t get into reading until I found writers like Donald Goines and Iceberg Slim who wrote in a voice that felt familiar to me". Goines' books have been utilized in several prison literacy programs and his novel ''Dopefiend'' has been taught in a

Rutgers University Rutgers University (; RU), officially Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, is a public land-grant research university consisting of four campuses in New Jersey. Chartered in 1766, Rutgers was originally called Queen's College, and wa ...

class.

Adaptations

Films

Some of Goines's works have been adapted into film. His book ''Crime Partners'' was turned into a 2001 film starring Ice-T,

Snoop Dogg Calvin Cordozar Broadus Jr. (born October 20, 1971), known professionally as Snoop Dogg (previously Snoop Doggy Dogg and briefly Snoop Lion), is an American rapper. His fame dates back to 1992 when he featured on Dr. Dre's debut solo single, ...

, and

Ja Rule Jeffrey Bruce Atkins (born February 29, 1976), better known by his stage name Ja Rule (), is an American rapper and actor. Born and raised in New York City, he debuted in 1999 with '' Venni Vetti Vecci'' and its lead single " Holla Holla". Dur ...

, and in 2004 his book '' Never Die Alone'' was also released as a film starring DMX.

Graphic novel

In 1984 the graphic novel adaptation of the book ''Daddy Cool'' was released by Melrose Square a division of Holloway House. There have been reproductions since 1984 but it was the only graphic of its kind by Donald Goines that was published by Melrose Square.