Daniel O'Keefe (writer)

Daniel O'Keefe
Picture of Daniel O'Keefe
O'Keefe in the late 2000s
Born
Daniel Lawrence O'Keefe

(1928-02-25)February 25, 1928
Jersey City, New Jersey, U.S.
DiedAugust 29, 2012(2012-08-29) (aged 84)
New York City, U.S.
Education
OccupationWriter
SpouseDeborah O'Keefe
Children
Writing career
SubjectSocial science
Notable worksStolen Lightning: The Social Theory of Magic
Festivus

Daniel Lawrence O'Keefe (February 25, 1928 – August 29, 2012) was an American writer. He was an editor at Reader's Digest for more than 30 years, where he worked with a wide range of writers.[1]

He is known for creating Festivus, an annual secular holiday celebrated on December 23; it became more widely known after his eldest son, Dan O'Keefe, featured it in a December 1997 episode of the sitcom Seinfeld.[1]

Early life and education

Born in Jersey City, New Jersey, O'Keefe received a B.A. from Columbia in 1949, an M.A. from Columbia University, and a PhD. from the New School for Social Research. At Columbia, he was national president of Junior Achievement.[2]

He was personally recruited for work by DeWitt Wallace, founder of Reader's Digest.[2] O'Keefe became an editor there, serving for over thirty years. He worked with freelancers such as Ray Bradbury and Nobel Prize-winning Polish poet Czesław Milosz, who lived and worked for decades in California.

Writing

In 1982, O'Keefe published the book Stolen Lightning: The Social Theory of Magic, a comprehensive, objective text on magic theory throughout human history.[3][4][5] He dedicated the work to his wife Deborah.[4] A Los Angeles Times book review called this book "a spectacular synthesis of sociology, anthropology, and psychoanalysis... a tour de force of accessible scholarship".[6] The New York Times Book Review said it is "a powerful explication of how deeply magic is embedded in society."[3] Commonweal classified it as "a potential classic".[7]

Theologian Harvey Cox called it "a breathtaking accomplishment," and sociologist Robert Nisbet described it as "the most comprehensive, theoretically informed, and objective study of magic that I can recall reading."

In 1983, it was placed on the New York Times' list of Books for Vacation Reading as a "sociological theory of magic and of 'people's perception and use of it.'"[8]

Festivus

O'Keefe founded Festivus in 1966 to commemorate his first date with his wife Deborah three years earlier. In 1997, their son Dan O'Keefe, a writer on the Seinfeld television series, adapted Festivus for the episode "The Strike".[9] Although many aspects of the O'Keefe family practices made it onto the show, the key piece of the O'Keefe version of Festivus, a clock nailed to a bag on a wall, was replaced by an aluminum pole.[10]

Personal life

Daniel and Deborah O'Keefe married in 1963. She is a writer, publishing numerous magazine articles, as well as the books Good Girl Messages and Readers in Wonderland, works of literary criticism. The couple had three sons, each of whom became a writer and or composer/lyricist: Dan O'Keefe, Laurence O'Keefe, and Mark O'Keefe.

  • Dan is a television writer. In addition to Seinfeld, he has written for Silicon Valley, The Drew Carey Show, The League, Veep, and other shows. In 2005, he published a book, The Real Festivus.[11]
  • Laurence is a composer, lyricist, and book-writer of musicals, including Batboy and Heathers. He collaborated on the Broadway show Legally Blonde with his wife, Nell Benjamin.
  • Mark (aka Markham) has written for television, specifically the David Letterman and Bill Maher series, and for sitcoms including NewsRadio and a show he created, The O'Keefes. He also collaborated with Steven Koren on screenplays for Bruce Almighty and Click.

References

  1. 1 2 "DANIEL L. O'KEEFE Obituary". Legacy.com. February 25, 1928. Retrieved September 30, 2012.
  2. 1 2 Allen Salkin (December 19, 2004). "Fooey to the World: Festivus Is Come". The New York Times. Retrieved December 23, 2010.
  3. 1 2 Mark Glazer (January 2, 1983). "How Magic Works". The New York Times. Retrieved December 23, 2010.
  4. 1 2 O'Keefe, Daniel Lawrence (1982). Stolen Lighting: The Social Theory of Magic. New York: The Continuum Publishing Company. ISBN 0-8264-0059-0.
  5. ↑ Pearlin, Leonard I, ed. (April 1982). "Back Matter". American Sociological Review. 27 (2): 4 – via JSTOR.
  6. ↑ "review cited on front cover of Vintage Books 1983 edition".
  7. ↑ "cited on back cover of Vintage Books 1983 edition".
  8. ↑ "Books for Vacation Reading". The New York Times. June 12, 1983. p. 17. Retrieved April 27, 2026.
  9. ↑ Dolak, Kevin (December 23, 2025). "The True and Traumatic Origins of Festivus, the 'Seinfeld'-Popularized Christmas Alternative". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved December 23, 2025.
  10. ↑ "Origins of Festivus". Archived from the original on January 4, 2007. Retrieved August 19, 2015.
  11. ↑ Dan O'Keefe (2005). "The Real Festivus". Perigee. ISBN 0399532293.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: periodical has ISBN (link)
Daniel O'Keefe's sons
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