Frank Clune Frank Clune i(A23195 works by) (a.k.a. Francis Patrick Clune)
Born: Established: 27 Nov 1893 Darlinghurst, Kings Cross area, Inner Sydney, Sydney, New South Wales, ; Died: Ceased: 11 Mar 1971 Darlinghurst, Kings Cross area, Inner Sydney, Sydney, New South Wales,
Gender: Male
Heritage: Irish
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BiographyHistory

Frank Clune went to sea as a teenager and served in both the US Cavalry and the Canadian Mounted Police. He enlisted in the AIF during World War I and was wounded at Gallipoli. Before becoming a prolific author, he tried his hand at a number of occupations including actor, musician, bar attendant and a (mousetrap) salesperson.

The distinction between fact and fiction in Clune's works is often blurred. Clune refers to his novels as works based on historical fact (e.g. Dark Outlaw, Ben Hall the Bushranger); other works he maintains are historical, even while admitting his use of fictional techniques (e.g. The Kelly Hunters).

Most Referenced Works

Notes

  • 'Frank Clune's Adventure Magazine' ran to 8 issues in 1948.
  • Craig Munro's Wild Man of Letters: the Story of P. R. Stephensen (1984): 305 claims that fifty-six works published by Angus and Robertson in the name of Frank Clune between 1937 and 1970 were written on his behalf by P. R. Stephensen. He comments: 'During 1936 Stephensen began what was to become a lifelong collaboration with Clune, first as his 'editor' and then later as his ghost writer. Clune prided hinself on coming from the school of hard knocks but he also suffered from a sense of educational and cultural inferiority, especially among his writer friends, so he took on the Oxford-educated Stephensen to make up the deficieny. When their partnership was well under way, Clune provided the principal research material and anecdotes from his travels, and Stephensen put together and poilished the narratives, imitating Clune's jocular style. They first collaborated in Dig (1937), the story of the Burke and Wills expedition, and Stephensen received 35 pounds for his assistance.' Munro (305) includes a list of the works on which they collaborated.

Affiliation Notes

  • Frank Clune set a number of his works in the outback of Western Australia.
Last amended 3 Jul 2024 11:12:33
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