Frank Bruno (NZ writer)
Albert Francis St Bruno (1910—12 July 1967)[1][2] was a New Zealand soldier, boxer, cartoonist, and writer.
Bruno was born in Sydney, Australia and moved to New Zealand as a child.[1] He had an early career as a boxer, winning the Auckland amateur flyweight championship in 1930, and the bantamweight and flyweight championships in 1932.[3] During the Great depression he travelled around Australia, working as a freelance writer and as a professional boxer. He enlisted in the New Zealand army at the outbreak of the second world war, serving as a machine-gunner in the first echelon of the 2nd New Zealand Division[1] in both the Greece and Crete campaigns.[4] He was wounded in action in December 1941.[3][4]
On his return to New Zealand he wrote articles for the Auckland Star and published several books of cartoons and stories about his war experiences.[5][6] In 1959 he published his first novel, The Hellbuster, a historical action novel set in the Bay of Islands.[7] This was followed in 1960 by Black Noon at Ngutu, set in the Taranaki Wars, described as "a sadistic blood-and-guts yarn of the tough he-man type",[8] and several other adventure novels. He also worked as a cartoonist, illustrating works by Hori.[9] He died in 1967 after a long illness.[2]
Published works[edit]
- Desert Daze (1944)
- Maleesh George (1946)
- As a matter of fact (1950)
- The Hellbuster (1959)
- Black Noon at Ngutu (1960)
- Twenty years after (1961)
- Fury at Finnegan’s Folly (1962)
- The Black Pearl (1962)
- Cockeye Kerrigan (1963)
- Yellow Jack's Island (1963)
- Riggermortis (1966)
Awards[edit]
References[edit]
- ^ a b c "Bruno, Frank". The Oxford Companion to New Zealand Literature. Oxford University Press. 2006.
- ^ a b "BOXER AND NOVELIST". Press. 14 July 1967. p. 13. Retrieved 7 July 2024 – via Papers Past.
- ^ a b "SOLDIER ATHLETES". New Zealand Herald. 18 December 1941. p. 4. Retrieved 7 July 2024 – via Papers Past.
- ^ a b "BOXER INJURED". Auckland Star. 17 December 1941. p. 10. Retrieved 7 July 2024 – via Papers Past.
- ^ ""DESERT DAZE"". Auckland Star. 6 May 1944. p. 8. Retrieved 7 July 2024 – via Papers Past.
- ^ ""MALEESH GEORGE"". Auckland Star. 24 October 1945. p. 8. Retrieved 7 July 2024 – via Papers Past.
- ^ "NEW FICTION". Press. 20 June 1959. p. 3. Retrieved 7 July 2024 – via Papers Past.
- ^ Joan Stevens (1966). The New Zealand Novel 1860-1965. Wellington: Reed Publishing (NZ) Ltd. pp. 88–89.
- ^ "Miscellany". Press. 3 August 1963. p. 3. Retrieved 7 July 2024 – via Papers Past.
- ^ a b "Albert Francis St Bruno". Online Cenotaph. Retrieved 7 July 2024.
External links[edit]
- Boxing record for Frank Bruno from BoxRec (registration required)
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