It’s the birthday of science fiction and psychological thriller author Daniel Keyes (1927-2014), best known for writing Flowers for Algernon, which won a Hugo Award in 1960 as a novella and a Nebula Award in 1966, after being expanded into a novel. (Is that cheating? It seems like cheating. But it’s a great story so we’ll let it slide.) In 1968, the work was also made into a movie, Charly, for which Cliff Robertson won an Oscar.

(I would just like to point out to anyone out there—I am too gracious to name names—who may have complained that I don’t cover science fiction authors enough that this post is about a science fiction author.)

Keyes was born in Brooklyn, NY, and studied pre-med briefly at New York University, then joined the U.S. Maritime Service. He went on to study psychology at Brooklyn College (and in 1961 got an M.A. in American lit there as well) and was teaching high school English when he wrote Flowers for Algernon. He wrote in his 1999 memoir, Algernon, Charlie and I, that he originally had the idea for the story one day back in 1945 while waiting for an elevated train to NYU: “I thought: My education is driving a wedge between me and the people I love. And then I wondered: What would happen if it were possible to increase a person’s intelligence?”

In 1961, after finishing his M.A., Keyes taught creative writing at Wayne State University. He moved to Ohio University in 1966 as a professor of English and creative writing. Keyes went on to write several more novels and several works of nonfiction, including The Minds of Billy Milligan (1981), an account of a criminal with 24 personalities, which was nominated for an Edgar Award (the book, not the criminal). Milligan was one of the first people to use multiple personality disorder, now called dissociative identity disorder, as a criminal defense. (Please don’t tell my children about this. There would be no getting anyone to do his chores.)

Keyes was survived by two daughters. His wife, Aurea Georgina Vazquez, died a year before he did.

Have a pleasant Thursday, you and every last one of your personalities, and stay scrupulously honest to the data.