Dan O'Keefe (writer)
Encyclopedia
Daniel Lawrence O'Keefe is a former editor at Reader's Digest
, author, and the inventor of Festivus
, an annual secular holiday now celebrated on December 23. His son, also named Daniel, was a writer for the Seinfeld
television show and incorporated the family holiday into an episode of the program.
O'Keefe published the book Stolen Lightning: The Social Theory of Magic in 1982. The Los Angeles Times
Book Review called this book "a spectacular synthesis of sociology, anthropology, and psychoanalysis... a tour de force of accessible scholarship."
The New York Times Book Review called it "a powerful explication of how deeply magic is embedded in society," and Commonweal
dubbed it "a potential classic."
for the American television show Seinfeld
, and during the 1997 season introduced Festivus to the public in a Seinfeld episode named "The Strike".
Reader's Digest
Reader's Digest is a general interest family magazine, published ten times annually. Formerly based in Chappaqua, New York, its headquarters is now in New York City. It was founded in 1922, by DeWitt Wallace and Lila Bell Wallace...
, author, and the inventor of Festivus
Festivus
Festivus is a secular holiday celebrated on December 23 as a way to celebrate the holiday season without participating in its pressures and commercialism. It was created by writer Dan O'Keefe and introduced into popular culture by his son Daniel, a screenwriter for the TV show Seinfeld, as part of...
, an annual secular holiday now celebrated on December 23. His son, also named Daniel, was a writer for the Seinfeld
Seinfeld
Seinfeld is an American television sitcom that originally aired on NBC from July 5, 1989, to May 14, 1998, lasting nine seasons, and is now in syndication. It was created by Larry David and Jerry Seinfeld, the latter starring as a fictionalized version of himself...
television show and incorporated the family holiday into an episode of the program.
O'Keefe published the book Stolen Lightning: The Social Theory of Magic in 1982. The Los Angeles Times
Los Angeles Times
The Los Angeles Times is a daily newspaper published in Los Angeles, California, since 1881. It was the second-largest metropolitan newspaper in circulation in the United States in 2008 and the fourth most widely distributed newspaper in the country....
Book Review called this book "a spectacular synthesis of sociology, anthropology, and psychoanalysis... a tour de force of accessible scholarship."
The New York Times Book Review called it "a powerful explication of how deeply magic is embedded in society," and Commonweal
Commonweal
Commonweal is a American journal of opinion edited and managed by lay Catholics. It is headquartered in The Interchurch Center in New York City.-History:...
dubbed it "a potential classic."
Festivus
O'Keefe invented Festivus in 1966 to commemorate his wife's and his first date. Their son, Daniel, later worked as a screenwriterScreenwriter
Screenwriters or scriptwriters or scenario writers are people who write/create the short or feature-length screenplays from which mass media such as films, television programs, Comics or video games are based.-Profession:...
for the American television show Seinfeld
Seinfeld
Seinfeld is an American television sitcom that originally aired on NBC from July 5, 1989, to May 14, 1998, lasting nine seasons, and is now in syndication. It was created by Larry David and Jerry Seinfeld, the latter starring as a fictionalized version of himself...
, and during the 1997 season introduced Festivus to the public in a Seinfeld episode named "The Strike".