Dave Barry Keynote Speaker

Dave Barry is an author and humorist who won a Pulitzer Prize for his syndicated column, which ran in more than 500 newspapers and was the inspiration for the TV show Dave’s World. He has also written dozens of bestselling books, most recently Lessons From Lucy: The Simple Joys of an Old, Happy Dog. His latest book Class Clown: The Memoirs of a Professional Wiseass: How I Went 77 Years Without Growing Up was released in May 2025.

Along with Ridley Pearson, Barry wrote the bestselling Starcatchers series of young-adult novels, one of which was adapted as the Tony-award winning Broadway play Peter and the Starcatcher.

Barry once set fire to a pair of underpants with a Barbie doll on national television. He is also largely responsible for the popularity of International Talk Like a Pirate Day, although it was not his idea. In recognition of Barry’s achievements, the city of Grand Forks, North Dakota, named a sewage lifting station after him. Very few authors have attained this honor.

Barry lives in Miami and he really likes it there despite what people say.