Jennings Michael Burch

Jennings Michael Burch (April 27, 1941 – January 15, 2013) was an American writer and author of the 1984 best-selling autobiography They Cage the Animals At Night.

Jennings Michael Burch was born in the South Bronx, New York and spent most of his childhood in foster homes. Burch's mother, a single parent, first placed her children in foster care in 1949, when Jennings was eight and a half. Between 1949 and 1954, Burch stayed in 32 foster homes, moved with his family^[which?] three times, and stayed with at least three sets of foster parents. He also lost his biological brother Jerome, whom he hardly knew.^{[citation needed]}

He earned a B.A. in forensic psychology from John Jay College in Manhattan, New York City, New York.

He worked as a New York City policeman, a chauffeur, a theater manager, a magazine pressman, and a short-order cook.

Burch was married three times. He had two biological daughters (first marriage), one adopted daughter, (second marriage) and a son (third marriage).