Hugh Leonard facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Hugh Leonard
Leonard c. 2004
Born	John Joseph Byrne 9 November 1926 Dublin, Ireland
Died	12 February 2009 (aged 82) Dalkey, Ireland
Occupation	Writer
Notable works	The Au Pair Man Da A Life
Spouse	Paule Byrne (d. 2000) Katharine Hayes
Children	1

Hugh Leonard (born John Joseph Byrne; 9 November 1926 – 12 February 2009) was a famous Irish writer. He wrote many plays for the stage, scripts for television, and interesting essays. Over his 50-year career, Hugh Leonard created nearly 30 full-length plays, many shorter plays, several books, and even wrote for newspapers.

Life and Career

Hugh Leonard was born in Dublin, Ireland, as John Joseph Byrne. He was adopted as a baby and grew up in Dalkey, a nice area near Dublin. His adoptive parents were Nicholas and Margaret Keyes, and he changed his name to John Keyes Byrne. Even though he became famous as "Hugh Leonard," his close friends called him "Jack."

Early Life and First Plays

Hugh Leonard went to school in Dalkey and then to Presentation College, Glasthule. He even won a scholarship to help him go to college! For 14 years, he worked for the government, which is called being a civil servant. During this time, he also acted in and wrote plays for local theater groups.

His first play to be performed by professional actors was The Big Birthday in 1956. It was shown at the famous Abbey Theatre in Dublin. He continued to work with the Abbey Theatre for many years, and his plays were often performed in Dublin.

Television Work

In the 1960s and 1970s, Hugh Leonard became one of the first major Irish writers to become well-known for television writing. He wrote many different kinds of TV shows, including original plays, comedies, thrillers, and even adapted classic books for British television.

He was asked to write Insurrection, a TV show that recreated the Irish uprising of Easter 1916. One of his TV plays, Silent Song, won a special award called the Prix Italia in 1967.

Broadway Success

Three of Hugh Leonard's plays were shown on Broadway in New York City, which is a very big deal for a playwright. These plays were The Au Pair Man (1973), Da (1978), and A Life (1980).

Da was his most successful play. It ran for 20 months and had 697 performances! It also toured all over the United States. For Da, Hugh Leonard won two very important awards: a Tony Award and a Drama Desk Award for Best Play. Later, in 1988, Da was even made into a movie.

Later Life and Writings

Hugh Leonard wrote two books about his own life, called Home Before Night (1979) and Out After Dark (1989). He also collected some of his essays and newspaper articles into books like Leonard's Last Book (1978).

Until 2006, he wrote a funny weekly newspaper column called "The Curmudgeon" for the Irish Sunday Independent newspaper. He really loved cats and trying new restaurants!

Hugh Leonard was known for his sharp wit. Even after he stopped writing his column, he still had a quick and funny way with words. He was also a supporter of the Dublin Theatre Festival.

He was very against violence and often spoke out about it. In 1994, he appeared on TV with Gerry Adams, a political leader. Leonard was very critical of groups that used violence.

A film about his life and work, called Hugh Leonard- Odd Man In, was shown on TV in 2009. His last play, Magicality, was not performed while he was alive, but a reading of part of it was done in 2012.

Hugh Leonard passed away in his hometown of Dalkey in 2009, at the age of 82, after being sick for a while.

Awards

Hugh Leonard won many awards for his amazing writing:

• Writers Guild of Great Britain – Award of Merit for Silent Song, 1966
• Prix Italia for original dramatic television programs – for Silent Song 1967
• Jacob's Television Award for adaptations of Wuthering Heights and Nicholas Nickleby, 1969
• Antoinette Perry Award (Tony) nomination for best play – The Au Pair Man, 1973/74
• Antoinette Perry Award (Tony) award for best play – Da, 1977/78
• Drama Desk Award for outstanding new play – Da, 1977/78
• New York Drama Critics Circle Award for the best play – Da, 1977/78
• Outer Critics Circle Award for the Most Outstanding Play of the New York Season – Da, 1977/78
• Harvey's Irish Theatre Award for A Life – best new play, 1979/80
• Rhode Island College – honorary Doctor of Humane Letters, 1980
• University of Dublin – honorary Doctorate of Letters, 1988
• Society of Authors Sagittarius Prize – novel for Parnell and the Englishwoman, 1992
• The Abbey Theatre Award, 1999

Source:

Works

Hugh Leonard wrote a huge number of plays, books, and TV shows. Here are some of his most well-known works:

Images for kids

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  The Broadway production of Da (1978) starred Barnard Hughes (foreground) and Brian Murray