author
Day Keene
1904–1969
A fast, prolific storyteller of mid-century crime fiction, he moved easily between pulp magazines, paperback originals, and radio scripts. His work helped shape the hardboiled, suspenseful feel that made 1950s paperbacks so addictive.
1 Audiobook
"What So Proudly We Hail..."
by Day Keene
About the author
Born Gunard Hjertstedt on March 28, 1904, and better known by the pen name Day Keene, he was an American novelist, short story writer, and scriptwriter for radio and television. Reliable reference sources agree that he wrote more than 50 novels, along with a large body of shorter fiction.
Before and alongside his crime novels, he worked in popular entertainment writing, including radio serials such as Little Orphan Annie and Kitty Keene, Inc.. That background helps explain the speed and snap of his fiction: his stories are usually lean, dramatic, and built to keep readers turning pages.
Keene became especially associated with paperback-era noir and mystery fiction, and several of his novels were later adapted for film. He died on January 9, 1969. A suitable verified portrait image was not available from the page images I could confirm during this search, so no profile image is included.