Jack Kerouac

Full Name: Jean-Louis Lebris de Kérouac
Profession: Novelist and Poet

Nationality:

Biography: Jack Kerouac was an American writer and poet, a pioneer of the Beat Generation alongside notable figures such as Allen Ginsberg and William S. Burroughs. He is most renowned for his novel On the Road (1957), which became an overnight success and a defining work of the postwar Beat and Counterculture generations.

Big Sur (1962) and The Dharma Bums (1958) are other significant works in his largely autobiographical series known as the "Duluoz Legend". Kerouac's style is characterized by spontaneous prose, covering topics such as Catholic spirituality, jazz, promiscuity, Buddhism, drugs, poverty, and travel.

Though he achieved fame and notoriety from his writings, Kerouac also faced criticism and struggled with substance abuse. His later years were marked by bouts of paranoia and depression, aggravated by his heavy drinking.

Born: March 12, 1922
Birthplace: Lowell, Massachusetts, USA

Generation: Greatest Generation
Chinese Zodiac: Dog
Star Sign: Pisces

Died: October 21, 1969 (aged 47)
Cause of Death: Cirrhosis of the liver