John B. Keane

2025-10-15T10:19:05Z

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{{Short description|Irish playwright, novelist and essayist}}
{{About|the Irish playwright|the Irish architect|John B. Keane (architect)|other uses|John Keane (disambiguation)}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=June 2021}}
{{Use Hiberno-English|date=June 2021}}
{{Infobox writer
| name = John B. Keane
| image = John B. Keane, Irish playwright, cropped.jpg
| caption = Keane in 1983
| birth_name = John Brendan Keane
| birth_date = {{birth date|1928|7|21|df=y}}
| birth_place = [[Listowel]], [[County Kerry]], Ireland
| death_date = {{death date and age|2002|5|30|1928|7|21|df=y}}
| death_place = [[Listowel]], [[County Kerry]], Ireland
| nationality = Irish
| education = [[St Michael's College, Listowel]]
| notableworks = ''[[The Field (play)|The Field]]'', ''[[Sive (play)|Sive]]''
| spouse = {{marriage|Mary O'Connor|1960}}
| children = {{Hlist|Billy|Conor|John|Joanna}}
| awards = Honorary Life Member of the [[Royal Dublin Society]]
}}
'''John Brendan Keane''' (21 July 1928 – 30 May 2002) was an Irish [[playwright]], [[novelist]] and [[essayist]] from [[Listowel]], [[County Kerry]].

==Biography==
[[File:Statue of John B Keane in Listowel - geograph.org.uk - 506946.jpg|right|thumb|upright|Statue of John B. Keane in [[Listowel]], [[County Kerry]].]]
A son of a national school teacher, William B. Keane, and his wife Hannah (née Purtill), Keane was educated at [[Listowel]] National School and then at [[St Michael's College, Listowel]]. He worked as a chemist's assistant for A. H. Jones who dabbled in buying [[antique]]s. Keane had various jobs in the UK between 1951 and 1955 working as a street cleaner, and a [[bar man]], living in a variety of places including Northampton and London.<ref>{{Cite book|title=Self Portrait|last=Keane|first=John B.|publisher=Mercier Press|year=1964|location=Cork|pages=48–74}}</ref> It was while he was in Northampton that Keane was first published in an unnamed women's magazine for which he received £15.<ref>{{Cite book|title=Self Portrait|last=Keane|first=John B.|publisher=Mercier Press|year=1964|location=Cork|pages=56|quote="Then produced a slim envelope from a pocket of her apron and handed it to me. It was from a women's magazine- and Holy God!--it contained a cheque for fifteen pounds."}}</ref>

After returning to Ireland from the United Kingdom, he became a pub owner in Listowel from 1955.

He married Mary O'Connor at Knocknagoshel Church on 5 January 1955<ref>{{Cite book|title=Self Portrait|last=Keane|first=John B.|publisher=Mercier Press|year=1964|location=Netherlands|pages=74|quote=On January 5th of 1955, Mary and I were married in Knocknagoshel Church.}}</ref> and had four children: Billy, Conor, John and Joanna.

He was an Honorary Life Member of the [[Royal Dublin Society]] from 1991, served as president of Irish [[International PEN|PEN]] and was a founder member of the [[Society of Irish Playwrights]] as well as a member of [[Aosdána]]. Keane was named the patron of the Listowel Players after the Listowel Drama Group fractured.<ref>{{Cite book|title=Self Portrait|last=Keane|first=John B.|publisher=Mercier Press|year=1964|location=Netherlands|pages=89|quote="The new group call themselves The Listowel Players and I am their patron."}}</ref> He remained a prominent member of the [[Fine Gael]] party throughout his life, never being shy of political debate.

His nephew is the investigative journalist [[Fergal Keane]]. His son John is a journalist with the ''[[Kilkenny People]]'' while his son, Billy regularly writes a column for the ''[[Irish Independent]]''.

== Influences ==
Keane cited many literary influences including [[Bryan MacMahon (writer)|Bryan MacMahon]] and [[George Fitzmaurice (writer)|George Fitzmaurice]], fellow Kerry writers and playwrights.<ref>{{Cite book|title=John B. : the real Keane|first=Des.|last=Hickey|date=1992-01-01|publisher=Mercier Press|isbn=1856350657|oclc=28548700}}</ref>

His personal influences were numerous but, most notably he thanked his father and his wife, Mary. Keane was grateful for his father's help with early editing, for allowing him access to his personal library, and for encouraging him to continue his work until he was successful.<ref>{{Cite book|title=Self Portrait|last=Keane|first=John B.|publisher=Mercier Press|year=1964|location=Cork|pages=89–90|quote="It is easy to say whom it is I owe my success as a writer: to my wife for her constant help, but most of all to my father, --God rest him--because it was he who encouraged me from beginning to end, who edited my early work and gave me the freedom of a fine library, who promised me that if I persevered I would emerge one day as a writer."}}</ref>

He was also influenced by the local population and the patrons of his pub, on whom he based some of his characters.{{citation needed|date=June 2021}}

==Awards and honours==
*1999 [[Irish PEN Award]]

==List of works==
* ''[[Sive (play)|Sive]]'' (1959)
* ''Many Young Men of Twenty'' (1961)
* ''Sharon's Grave'' (1960)
* ''The Highest House on the Mountain'' (1961)
* ''The Man From Clare'' (1962)
* ''The Year of the Hiker'' (1963)
* ''[[The Field (play)|The Field]]'' (1965)
* ''Hut 42'' (1968)
* ''The Rain at the End of the Summer'' (1968)
* ''Big Maggie'' (1969)
* ''Moll'' (1971)
* ''Letters of an Irish Parish Priest'' (1972)
* ''The One-Way Ticket'' (1972)
* ''Values'' (1973)
*''The Crazy Wall'' (1973)
* ''The Change in Mame Fadden'' (1973)
* ''Letters of a Matchmaker'' (1975)
* ''Letters of a Country Postman'' (1977)
* ''Letters of an Irish Publican'' (1977)
* ''The Buds of Ballybunion'' (1979)
* ''The Chastitute'' (1981)
* ''Man of the Triple Name'' (1984)
* ''Owl Sandwiches'' (1985)
* ''The Bodhran Makers'' (1986)
* ''The Contractors'' (1988)
* ''The Ram of God and Other Stories'' (1992)
* ''Durango: A Novel'' (1992)
* ''A Warm Bed on a Cold Night and Other Stories'' (1997)
* ''Faoiseamh''
* ''Pishogue''
* ''No More in Dust''

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20120221015748/http://johnbkeane.ie/ Official Homepage]
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20041019081255/http://www.irishwriters-online.com/johnbkeane.html Irish Writers Online: John B Keane]
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20041020111555/http://www.doollee.com/PlaywrightsK/KeaneJohnB.htm Play Information]
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20041018055443/http://www.culturevulture.net/Theater2/Matchmaker.htm About the Matchmaker]
*[http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/arts/2016252.stm BBC Report of his death]
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20020606023004/https://www.rte.ie/arts/2002/0530/keanejb.html RTE Report of his death]

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Keane, John B.}}
[[Category:1928 births]]
[[Category:2002 deaths]]
[[Category:Deaths from cancer in the Republic of Ireland]]
[[Category:Deaths from prostate cancer in Ireland]]
[[Category:Fine Gael]]
[[Category:Irish essayists]]
[[Category:Irish male dramatists and playwrights]]
[[Category:Irish male novelists]]
[[Category:Irish PEN Award for Literature winners]]
[[Category:Irish publicans]]
[[Category:Male essayists]]
[[Category:People educated at St Michael's College, Listowel]]
[[Category:People from Listowel, County Kerry]]
[[Category:20th-century Irish dramatists and playwrights]]
[[Category:20th-century essayists]]
[[Category:20th-century Irish male writers]]
[[Category:20th-century Irish novelists]]
[[Category:Writers from County Kerry]]

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John B. Keane