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Frank McCourt Facts

Frank McCourt Facts
Frank McCourt was an author and teacher best known for his book Angela's Ashes, for which he won a Pulitzer Prize. Frank (Francis) McCourt was born on August 19th, 1930 in Brooklyn, New York. His father was Malachy McCourt, an ex-IRA man, and his mother was Angela Sheehan. Frank had four younger siblings including Malachy, Oliver and Eugene (twins), and Margaret, who only lived to seven weeks. Frank's family returned to Ireland during the Great Depression, and the twins Oliver and Eugene died. His mother gave birth to two more boys Michael and Alphonsus. Frank nearly died when he developed typhoid fever at 11. He began working when he was 13, and when he was 19 Frank returned to New York. He went on to graduate from New York University, and became a teacher. 30 years later he wrote his Pulitzer Prize winning memoir Angela's Ashes.
Interesting Frank McCourt Facts:
Frank was only 13 when his father abandoned the family, leaving Frank to quit school and go to work to help support his mother and three siblings.
Frank McCourt's family was living in extreme poverty in Ireland, which is believed to have contributed to the deaths of his younger twin brothers Oliver and Eugene.
After returning to the United States at the age of 19, Frank worked at Biltmore Hotel in New York City. He earned $26 a week and sent $10 to his mother back home in Ireland.
Frank McCourt served in the U.S. Army. He was drafted into service in 1951, during the Korean War. He trained dogs in Bavaria for a few years and then worked as a clerk.
Frank McCourt graduated from New York University in 1957, after talking his way into the school. His first year was probationary, because he had only gone to school until he was 13.
Frank went on to work as a teacher at several schools including Ralph R. McKee CTE School, New York City College of Technology, Stuyvesant High School, Seward Park High School, Washington Irving High School, and High School of Fashion Industries.
In 1961 Frank McCourt married Alberta Small and had a daughter Margaret. Frank and Alberta divorced in 1979.
In 1967 Frank McCourt earned a master's degree from Brooklyn College.
Frank McCourt returned to Ireland in the late 1960s where he spent a year and a half at Trinity College. He tried to earn a Ph. D but returned to the U.S. without earning one.
Frank married Cheryl Floyd in 1984, and they divorced a year later.
Frank married Ellen Frey in 1994. They remained married for the rest of Frank's life.
His book Angela's Ashes was published in 1996. It sold more than 5 million copies, became a bestseller, and made Frank a millionaire. The book was a memoir of his childhood, from Brooklyn to Ireland.
In 1996 Frank McCourt won the annual National Book Critics Circle Award for Angela's Ashes.
In 1997 Frank McCourt won the Pulitzer Prize for Biography or Autobiography for Angela's Ashes.
Angela's Ashes was made into a movie.
In 1999 Frank's book 'Tis was published. It was a continuation of his first book. In 2005 he published Teacher Man, which told about his experiences as a teacher.
Frank McCourt died on July 19th, 2009, in New York City. He was 78.


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