János Kemény (author)
Encyclopedia
Baron
Kemény János (Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania (USA)
, September 5, 1903 – Târgu Mureş, October 13, 1971) was a Hungarian writer
, theater director, a dramatist, the founder of the Marosvécs/Brâncoveneşti
Helikon community.
in 1904. János attended the Reformed College (denominational high school) in Kolozsvár/Cluj (now Cluj-Napoca
, and then enrolled in the fall of 1921 at the College of Land Cultivation in Vienna
. He was married in 1923 to the Scotswoman Augusta Paton and they had six children.
In 1926, János Kemény and Aladár Kuncz organized a literary conference of Transylvanian Hungarians at Kemény's estate in Brâncoveneşti, Mureş
County. The conference led to the formation of the Helikon community, which from 1928 published the influential Hungarian literary periodical "Erdélyi Helikon". In 1930, Kemény was awarded the Corvina Wreath by the Hungarian government. decoration.
For ten years from 1931, he headed the Hungarian Thália Theater in Cluj
and also published literary work. Then from 1945 to 1952 he was among the founding organizers of the Székely
theatre in Târgu Mureş. However, he was obliged to do manual work in the communist period, before later finding a job in the library of Târgu Mureş art college and working on the Hungarian-language magazine Új élet" in the same city. A succession of his works appeared between 1957 and his death in 1971, but he only managed to complete one volume of a planned multi-volume autobiography.
Baron
Baron is a title of nobility. The word baron comes from Old French baron, itself from Old High German and Latin baro meaning " man, warrior"; it merged with cognate Old English beorn meaning "nobleman"...
Kemény János (Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania (USA)
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Pittsburgh is the second-largest city in the US Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the county seat of Allegheny County. Regionally, it anchors the largest urban area of Appalachia and the Ohio River Valley, and nationally, it is the 22nd-largest urban area in the United States...
, September 5, 1903 – Târgu Mureş, October 13, 1971) was a Hungarian writer
Writer
A writer is a person who produces literature, such as novels, short stories, plays, screenplays, poetry, or other literary art. Skilled writers are able to use language to portray ideas and images....
, theater director, a dramatist, the founder of the Marosvécs/Brâncoveneşti
Brâncovenesti, Mures
Brâncovenești is a commune in Mureș County, Romania.The commune is composed of five villages: Brâncovenești, Idicel, Idicel-Pădure, Săcalu de Pădure and Vălenii de Mureș....
Helikon community.
Lifetime
János Kemény's mother, the actress Ida Berenice Mitchell (1871-1956), lost her husband, István Kemény, shortly after János was born and could not afford to support her four children. She therefore moved from the United States to her grandfather's house in TransylvaniaTransylvania
Transylvania is a historical region in the central part of Romania. Bounded on the east and south by the Carpathian mountain range, historical Transylvania extended in the west to the Apuseni Mountains; however, the term sometimes encompasses not only Transylvania proper, but also the historical...
in 1904. János attended the Reformed College (denominational high school) in Kolozsvár/Cluj (now Cluj-Napoca
Cluj-Napoca
Cluj-Napoca , commonly known as Cluj, is the fourth most populous city in Romania and the seat of Cluj County in the northwestern part of the country. Geographically, it is roughly equidistant from Bucharest , Budapest and Belgrade...
, and then enrolled in the fall of 1921 at the College of Land Cultivation in Vienna
Vienna
Vienna is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Austria and one of the nine states of Austria. Vienna is Austria's primary city, with a population of about 1.723 million , and is by far the largest city in Austria, as well as its cultural, economic, and political centre...
. He was married in 1923 to the Scotswoman Augusta Paton and they had six children.
In 1926, János Kemény and Aladár Kuncz organized a literary conference of Transylvanian Hungarians at Kemény's estate in Brâncoveneşti, Mureş
Brâncovenesti, Mures
Brâncovenești is a commune in Mureș County, Romania.The commune is composed of five villages: Brâncovenești, Idicel, Idicel-Pădure, Săcalu de Pădure and Vălenii de Mureș....
County. The conference led to the formation of the Helikon community, which from 1928 published the influential Hungarian literary periodical "Erdélyi Helikon". In 1930, Kemény was awarded the Corvina Wreath by the Hungarian government. decoration.
For ten years from 1931, he headed the Hungarian Thália Theater in Cluj
Cluj-Napoca
Cluj-Napoca , commonly known as Cluj, is the fourth most populous city in Romania and the seat of Cluj County in the northwestern part of the country. Geographically, it is roughly equidistant from Bucharest , Budapest and Belgrade...
and also published literary work. Then from 1945 to 1952 he was among the founding organizers of the Székely
Székely
The Székelys or Székely , sometimes also referred to as Szeklers , are a subgroup of the Hungarian people living mostly in the Székely Land, an ethno-cultural region in eastern Transylvania, Romania...
theatre in Târgu Mureş. However, he was obliged to do manual work in the communist period, before later finding a job in the library of Târgu Mureş art college and working on the Hungarian-language magazine Új élet" in the same city. A succession of his works appeared between 1957 and his death in 1971, but he only managed to complete one volume of a planned multi-volume autobiography.
Masterworks
- His first writing "Emlékezetem" (ClujCluj-NapocaCluj-Napoca , commonly known as Cluj, is the fourth most populous city in Romania and the seat of Cluj County in the northwestern part of the country. Geographically, it is roughly equidistant from Bucharest , Budapest and Belgrade...
, 1921) (My memories) - Kutyakomédia (ClujCluj-NapocaCluj-Napoca , commonly known as Cluj, is the fourth most populous city in Romania and the seat of Cluj County in the northwestern part of the country. Geographically, it is roughly equidistant from Bucharest , Budapest and Belgrade...
, 1934) (Poor comedy)