Ethel Black Kealing

Ethel Black Kealing
A white woman with dark hair, seen in 3/4 profile; she is wearing a high lace collar and a chain necklace.
Ethel Black Kealing, from a 1908 publication
BornNovember 22, 1877
Indiana, US
DiedJune 14, 1960
San Bernardino, California, US
Other namesE. B. Kealing, Jonathan Parker (pen name)
OccupationWriter
Notable workDesra of the Egyptians (1910); A Princess of the Orient (1918)

Ethel Black Kealing (November 22, 1877 – June 14, 1960) was an American writer and arts patron from Indiana. Her novel Desra of the Egyptians (1910) is sometimes counted as an example of early science fiction and fantasy writing by women.

Early life

Ethel Black Kealing was born and raised near Indianapolis, Indiana,[1] the daughter of Samuel Kealing and Margaret Black Kealing.[2][3] She graduated from Shortridge High School.[4] In the 1930s she attended the school of music at Butler University.[5]

Career

Books by Kealing included Desra of the Egyptians: A Romance of the Earlier Centuries (a "lost world" novel, 1910),[6] and A Princess of the Orient (1918). She wrote a three-act play, Madame Lavendere (1911).[7] She also wrote articles for magazines. In "The Ethics of Conversation" (1905, Suggestion magazine), Kealing counsels the friends of sick people to avoid expressing "gloomy, despairing thoughts" at bedside: "Teach yourself to eliminate that part of your conversation which would strengthen the current of ill effecting thoughts, within the patient's mind."[8]

Kealing also wrote a song, "My Heart" (1909, music by Robert Speroy), dedicated to her brother, Clifford C. Kealing;[9][10] and composed "Linger Near" (1909), music for voice and piano.[11] She sometimes used the pen name "Jonathan Parker" when her poetry was published.[1] She and her older sister Ruth E. Kealing ran a fine arts studio in Indianapolis, and organized exhibits of Indiana art, music, and literature from the mid-1920s[12][13] into the late 1930s.[14]

Kealing was a member of the American Esperanto Association,[1] and chaired the telephone committee of the Indiana Woman's Republican Club.[15]

Personal life

Ethel and Ruth Kealing moved to Pasadena, California with their mother in 1939.[3][16] Ethel Kealing died in San Bernardino, California in 1960, aged 82 years.[17]

References

  1. ^ a b c Rice, Alonzo. Some Indiana Writers and Poets (Teachers Journal Printing Company 1908): 38. via Internet Archive.
  2. ^ "Untitled society item". The Indianapolis News. September 9, 1933. p. 12. Retrieved October 12, 2019 – via Newspapers.com.
  3. ^ a b "Mrs. Margaret B. Kealing". The Indianapolis Star. January 31, 1941. p. 16. Retrieved October 12, 2019 – via Newspapers.com.
  4. ^ "Former Shortridger Wins Poetry Contest". Shortridge Daily Echo. March 4, 1924. p. 1. Retrieved October 12, 2019 – via NewspaperArchive.com.
  5. ^ "Ethel Black Kealing". Indiana authors and their books 1917-1966. Retrieved 2019-10-12.
  6. ^ Kealing, Ethel Black; Wheeler & Kalb (1910). Desra of the Egyptians: a romance of earlier centuries. Indianapolis: Printed by Wheeler & Kalb. OCLC 24904313.
  7. ^ Catalogue of Copyright Entries: Pamphlets, leaflets, contributions to newspapers or periodicals, etc.; lectures, sermons, addresses for oral delivery; dramatic compositions; maps; motion pictures. U.S. Government Printing Office. 1911. p. 298.
  8. ^ Kealing, Ethel Black (November 1905). "The Ethics of Conversation" (PDF). Suggestion. 15: 586–587.
  9. ^ Speroy, Robert; Kealing, Ethel Black (1909). My heart. Chicago ; New York: Victor Kremer Co. OCLC 247812269.
  10. ^ "Clifford Kealing, Active in G. O. P., Dies of Pneumonia". The Indianapolis Star. March 16, 1926. p. 1. Retrieved October 12, 2019 – via Newspapers.com.
  11. ^ Kealing, Ethel Black (1909). Linger near. New York: F.B. Haviland Publishing Company. OCLC 247703911.
  12. ^ "Work of Indiana Artists' Club On Display Here". The Indianapolis Star. November 16, 1925. p. 10. Retrieved October 12, 2019 – via Newspapers.com.
  13. ^ "Works of 29 Hoosier Women Assembled in Art Display". The Indianapolis Star. March 13, 1927. p. 10. Retrieved October 12, 2019 – via Newspapers.com.
  14. ^ Morehouse, Lucille E. (October 3, 1938). "'25' Gallery Opens Exhibition Season with 70 Paintings, Etchings, Sculpture". The Indianapolis Star. p. 7. Retrieved October 12, 2019 – via Newspapers.com.
  15. ^ "State G. O. P. Women to Honor New Head". The Indianapolis Star. January 23, 1938. p. 31. Retrieved October 12, 2019 – via Newspapers.com.
  16. ^ "Local Woman Has Poem Accepted for Publication". The Indianapolis Star. December 25, 1937. p. 3. Retrieved October 12, 2019 – via Newspapers.com.
  17. ^ "Authors : Kealing, Ethel Black". SFE : Science Fiction Encyclopedia. Retrieved 2019-10-12.