Jack Ketchum facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Jack Ketchum
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Ketchum at a book fair in Paris, France, in March 2009
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| Born | Dallas William Mayr November 10, 1946 Livingston, New Jersey, U.S. |
| Died | January 24, 2018 (aged 71) New York City, U.S. |
| Pen name | Jack Ketchum, Jerzy Livingston |
| Occupation | Writer, filmmaker |
| Nationality | American |
| Genre | Horror fiction, thriller, Western fiction, Dark fantasy, Genre fiction |
| Notable works | Off Season, The Girl Next Door, Red, The Crossings, and "The Box" (short story) |
| Notable awards | Bram Stoker Award (1994), (2000), (2003 twice) World Horror Convention Grand Master Award (2011) |
Dallas William Mayr (born November 10, 1946 – died January 24, 2018) was an American writer. He was best known by his pen name, Jack Ketchum. He wrote many horror stories and thrillers. Ketchum won four Bram Stoker Awards for his writing. He also received the World Horror Convention Grand Master Award in 2011. This award honors writers who have made a big impact on the horror genre. Some of his books, like Offspring and Red, were even made into movies.
Contents
About Jack Ketchum
His Early Life and Education
Jack Ketchum was born Dallas William Mayr in Livingston, New Jersey. He was the only child of German immigrant parents. His father, Dallas William Mayr, was a soldier during World War II. His mother, Evelyn Fahner Mayr, worked as an accountant.
Ketchum studied English at Emerson College in Boston, Massachusetts. After college, he taught high school for two years. He taught in Brookline, Massachusetts.
How He Started Writing
Before becoming a full-time writer, Ketchum had many different jobs. He was an actor, a teacher, and even worked at a soda fountain. He loved Elvis Presley, dinosaurs, and horror movies when he was young. These interests helped him through his childhood.
He started making up stories when he was very young. He often played alone in his room or in the woods. He used his toy soldiers, knights, and dinosaurs to create characters for his stories. He also loved Halloween and dressing up. His favorite costumes were Peter Pan and Superman.
Ketchum was also interested in classic horror films. He enjoyed movies like Nosferatu and films featuring Universal Monsters. These included The Hunchback of Notre Dame and The Phantom of the Opera.
When he was a teenager, Ketchum became friends with Robert Bloch. Bloch was the author of the famous novel Psycho. Bloch became Ketchum's mentor, guiding him in his writing. This friendship lasted until Bloch passed away in 1994. Ketchum's parents owned a restaurant where he worked to support his writing. He cooked during the day and worked at the soda fountain at night.
Ketchum read a lot of books by many different authors. These included Robert Bloch, Charles Bukowski, and Ernest Hemingway. Reading helped him become a skilled writer. He wrote many short stories and articles for magazines before writing his first novel, Off Season, in 1980. He decided to focus on novels because he wanted more stable work.
Using a Different Name
Before writing novels, Jack Ketchum wrote many short stories and articles for magazines. He used the pen name Jerzy Livingston during this time. Sometimes, he had more than one story in the same magazine. He would use his real name for one and Jerzy Livingston for the others.
He chose "Jerzy Livingston" because he was from Livingston, New Jersey. He also liked the author Jerzy Kosiński. He explained that he liked the "in-joke" of combining these names. One of his characters under this name was Stroup. Stroup appeared in a magazine called Swank. This character later appeared in a book called Triage (2001).
His Passing
Jack Ketchum passed away from cancer on January 24, 2018. He was 71 years old and died in New York City.
Awards and Recognitions
Jack Ketchum received many awards and nominations for his work:
- The Box – (1994) Bram Stoker Award for Best Short Story
- Right to Life – (1999) Bram Stoker Award nominee for Best Long Fiction
- Gone – (2000) Bram Stoker Award for Best Short Fiction
- The Lost – (2001) Bram Stoker Award nominee for Best Novel
- The Haunt – (2001) Bram Stoker Award nominee for Best Short Fiction
- Peaceable Kingdom – (2003) Bram Stoker Award for Best Collection
- Closing Time – (2003) Bram Stoker Award for Best Long Fiction
- World Horror Convention Grand Master Award (2011)
- I'm Not Sam – (2012) Bram Stoker Award nominee for Best Long Fiction (with Lucky McKee)
- I'm Not Sam – (2012) Shirley Jackson Award nominee for Best Novella (with Lucky McKee)
Movies Based on His Work
Jack Ketchum's stories have been adapted into several films. He also worked on some of these movies.
As a Writer
- The Lost (2006)
- The Girl Next Door (2007)
- Red (2008)
- Offspring (2009)
- The Woman (2011)
- Mail Order (short film, 2011)
- Olivia (short film, 2013)
- XX ("The Box" part, 2017)
As an Actor
- The Lost (2006) as Teddy Panik
- Header (2006) as State Trooper No. 2
- The Girl Next Door (2007) as Carnival
- Red (2008) as Bartender
- Offspring (2009) as Max Joseph
As Himself in Documentaries
- The Cult of Ichi (2007)
- The Making of The Girl Next Door (2007)
- Dark Dreamers (2011)
- Inside the Plain Brown Wrapping (2013)
See also
In Spanish: Jack Ketchum para niños
- Cemetery Dance Publications
- World Horror Convention Grand Master Award
- List of horror fiction writers
- Splatterpunk
