Editing Pat Conroy (section)

==Early life==
Born in [[Atlanta]], [[Georgia (U.S. state)|Georgia]], Patrick "Pat" Conroy was the eldest of seven children (five boys and two girls) born to [[United States Marine Corps|Marine]] Colonel [[Donald Conroy]], of [[Chicago]], [[Illinois]], and the former Frances "Peggy" Peek of [[Alabama]]. His father was a Marine Corps fighter pilot, and Conroy moved often in his youth, attending 11 schools by the time he was 15.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/entertainment/books/pat-conroy-best-selling-author-of-great-santini-and-prince-of-tides-dies-at-70/2016/03/04/9390e9a4-e288-11e5-8d98-4b3d9215ade1_story.html|title=Pat Conroy, best-selling author of 'Great Santini' and 'Prince of Tides,' dies at 70|last=Schudel|first=Matt|date=March 4, 2016|newspaper=[[The Washington Post]]|access-date=March 5, 2016|issn=0190-8286|url-access=limited}}</ref> He did not have a hometown until his family settled in [[Beaufort, South Carolina]], where he finished high school. During his senior year in high school, he was a protégé of [[Ann Head]] who was an influence on his future writing.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.islandpacket.com/opinion/opn-columns-blogs/david-lauderdale/article41337273.html|title=Lauderdale: Meet Pat Conroy's 'First Novelist'|last=Lauderdale|first=David|date=October 24, 2015|website=The Island Packet|access-date=March 3, 2020}}</ref> His alma mater is [[The Citadel, The Military College of South Carolina]] in [[Charleston, South Carolina|Charleston]], where he graduated from the Corps of Cadets as an English major.

Conroy had said his stories were heavily influenced by his [[Military brat (U.S. subculture)|military brat]] upbringing, and in particular, difficulties experienced with his own father, a US Marine Corps pilot, who was [[physical abuse|physically]] and [[emotional abuse|emotionally abusive]] toward his children. The pain of a youth growing up in a harsh environment is evident in Conroy's novels, which use autobiographical material, particularly ''[[The Great Santini (novel)|The Great Santini]]'' and ''[[The Prince of Tides (novel)|The Prince of Tides]]''.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/entertainment/books/1986/10/12/pat-conroy-into-the-heart-of-a-family/ae6b5e88-e304-41e8-b22c-5f26d3a09265/|title=Pat Conroy: Into the Heart of a Family|last=Weeks|first=Brigette|date=March 4, 2016|newspaper=The Washington Post|issn=0190-8286|access-date=2019-07-02}}</ref> While living in [[Orlando, Florida]], Conroy's fifth-grade basketball team defeated a team of sixth graders, making the sport his prime outlet for bottled-up emotions for more than a dozen years. Conroy also cites his family's frequent military-related moves and growing up immersed in military culture as significant influences in his life (in both positive and negative ways).

A standout athlete, he was recruited to The Citadel to play basketball; his 2002 book ''[[My Losing Season]]'' focused on his experiences playing his senior year, and like ''The Lords of Discipline,'' also served as a retrospective of his cadet years.