Joseph Hansen (writer) facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Joseph Hansen
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| Born | July 19, 1923 Aberdeen, South Dakota, U.S. |
| Died | November 24, 2004 (aged 81) Laguna Beach, California, U.S. |
| Pen name |
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| Occupation | Writer |
| Language | English |
| Genre | Crime fiction |
| Years active | 1952-2004 |
| Notable works | Fadeout (1970) |
| Notable awards | Lambda Literary Award for Gay Fiction |
| Spouse |
Jane Bancroft
(m. 1943; died 1994) |
| Children | 1 |
Joseph Hansen (born July 19, 1923 – died November 24, 2004) was an American writer. He wrote many books, especially crime fiction novels. He was also a poet. He is most famous for his series of books about a detective named Dave Brandstetter.
Contents
About Joseph Hansen
Early Life and First Writings
Joseph Hansen was born on July 19, 1923, in Aberdeen, South Dakota. His father owned a shoe store, but it closed during the Great Depression. When Joseph was ten, his family moved to Minneapolis, Minnesota. Later, they moved to Altadena, California, where his sister lived.
Joseph started writing when he was only nine years old. His first published work was a poem that appeared in The New Yorker magazine in 1952. Through the 1950s and 1960s, he worked part-time in bookstores and for magazines. He kept writing poems for different magazines. In 1965, he wrote his first novel, Strange Marriage. He used the pen name "James Colton" for this book. He also sang in a folk music group for a short time. He even hosted a radio show and helped organize a parade in Hollywood.
Becoming a Crime Writer
In 1970, Joseph Hansen published Fadeout. This was the first novel he published using his own name. This book also introduced his famous character, Dave Brandstetter. Brandstetter was an insurance investigator who was tough and no-nonsense, like classic detectives. Many people thought Brandstetter was a very important character in crime fiction.
Joseph Hansen wrote eleven more books about Dave Brandstetter. The last one was called A Country of Old Men, published in 1991. For his work, Hansen won the Lifetime Achievement Award from the Private Eye Writers of America in 1992. He also won a Lambda Literary Award for Gay Mystery for A Country of Old Men.
Hansen also created another detective character named Hack Bohannon. Bohannon was a former deputy sheriff who left his job and ran a horse farm. Hansen wrote five short novels about Bohannon in a book called Bohannon's Book (1988). A second book with five more short novels, Bohannon's Country, came out in 1993. In 1993, Hansen won another Lambda Literary Award for Gay Fiction for his book Living Upstairs.
Other Books and Awards
Besides crime novels, Joseph Hansen wrote other types of books. He wrote A Smile In His Lifetime (1981), which was a story about a man who became famous. Another book, Job's Year, was published in 1983. He also wrote two suspense novels in the early 1980s. In the 1970s, he wrote two gothic novels using another pen name, "Rose Brock".
His Personal Story
Joseph Hansen was married to an artist named Jane Bancroft. They were married for 51 years, from 1943 until her death in 1994. Joseph said they loved each other very much. Jane Bancroft was an artist, a scholar, and a teacher. She was born in Boston in 1917. She loved animals and often rescued stray pets. She passed away in 1994 after having a stroke. After she died, Joseph Hansen wrote a poem in her memory.
Joseph and Jane had one daughter named Barbara. Barbara later changed her name to Daniel James Hansen.
Joseph Hansen passed away from heart failure in 2004. He died at his home in Laguna Beach, California.
