Bram Stoker (1847-1912)
Abraham 'Bram' Stoker was born in Dublin, Ireland. He spent most of his early years bed-ridden with an unknown illness, but later made a full recovery. After being educated in a private school Stoker attended Trinity College, Dublin from 1864 to 1870 and graduated with honours as a B.A. in Mathematics. His interest in theatre led him to become a theatre critic for the Dublin Evening Mail. Although Stoker is best known today as the author of the 1897 Gothic novel, Dracula, during his lifetime he was better known as the personal assistant of actor Henry Irving and business manager of the Lyceum Theatre in London, which Irving owned. After suffering from a number of strokes, Stoker died in April 1912. The Bram Stoker Award is named in his honour and is given in recognition of "superior achievement" in horror writing.
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