Born: October 13, 1929 Died: March 31, 2022 Ohio connection: Birth Cleveland Born in 1929, Richard Joseph Howard held a distinguished place in contemporary American literature for his work as a poet, critic, and translator. He was adopted as a baby, and it is not known who his biological parents were. It is said he …
Read More Richard HowardBorn: February 1, 1901Died: May 22, 1967 Ohio connection: Birth Cleveland James Langston Hughes was born in 1901 in Joplin, Missouri, the son of James Nathaniel and Carrie Mercer (Langston) Hughes. While he was an infant, his parents separated and he moved to Lawrence, Kansas, where his grandmother raised him. When his grandmother died, he moved …
Read More Langston HughesBorn: November 29, 1883Died: February 20, 1966 Ohio connection: Birth Steubenville Dard Hunter, son of William Henry and Harriet (Rosemond-Browne) Hunter, was born in 1883 in Steubenville, Ohio. His great-grandfather had set up a printing office in rural Ohio in 1812, and his grandfather and father owned and edited newspapers. While a boy, Hunter learned to …
Read More Dard HunterBorn: 1932 Ohio connection: Former Resident Columbus John William Jakes, son of John Adrian and Bertha Retz Jakes, was born in 1932 in Chicago, Illinois. He was the only child of parents who were in their forties when he was born. While growing up, he shared many of their pastimes, including reading, movies, and theater. Though …
Read More John William JakesBorn: 1961 Ohio connection: Resident Kent Born in Tuskegee, Alabama and raised in Windham, Ohio, Angela Johnson, the award-winning author of more than 40 books for children and young adults, attended Kent State University before dropping out to pursue a career as a children’s author. Working as a nanny, she was employed by Newbery-Medal-winning author Cynthia …
Read More Johnson, AngelaBorn: 1950 Ohio connection: Birth Athens John Kachuba received a B.A. in English from Sacred Heart University in Connecticut and M.A. degrees in creative writing from Antioch University (1996) and Ohio University (2003). He has had many articles published in national newspapers, magazines, and journals, including Tin House, Hawaii Pacific Review, Connecticut Review, Dogwood, Antioch Review, and Poets and Writers. He …
Read More John KachubaBorn: 1949 Ohio connection: Resident Granville Katharine Kenah is the author of more than 30 books for children. She writes picture-book texts and science-related book series for beginning readers. Reared on an oceanographic observatory in New York state, among scientists and cats, Kehan developed a strong interest in the physical sciences, in particular, Earth’s plant …
Read More Katharine KenahBorn: September 13, 1917Died: July 28, 2012 Ohio connection: Birth Bucyrus Born in Bucyrus, Ohio, on September 13, 1917, Carol Kendall was the daughter of John Adam and Laura (Price) Seeger. While attending Ohio University, she met Paul Murray Kendall, a Ph.D. who specialized in Renaissance literature and Shakespeare. The couple married on July 15, 1939. …
Read More Carol KendallBorn: 1931 Ohio connection: Resident Cleveland Adrienne Kennedy was born Adrienne Lita Hawkins, daughter of Cornell Wallace and Etta (Haugabrook) Hawkins, in 1931 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. She grew up in Cleveland, Ohio. She received a B.A. from Ohio State University in 1953, and did graduate work in creative writing at Columbia University, 1954-56. She married …
Read More Adrienne KennedyBorn: February 27, 1925Died: July 6, 2002 Ohio connection: Birth Cincinnati Kenneth Koch, son of Stuart J. and Lillian Amy (Loth) Koch, was born February 27, 1925 in Cincinnati, Ohio. He began writing poetry in his early years, with inspiration from favorites Keats and Shelley. He later served in the United States Army in the …
Read More Kenneth Koch