Born on 14 November 1922 in Puodžiai, Užpaliai Valsci, Utena district.
Died on 03.09.2021 in USA, Florida.
In 1944 he left Lithuania. In 1947 he graduated from the Lithuanian Gymnasium in Lübeck, Germany, and in 1958 from the University of Toronto, Canada, where he majored in Russian literature and French. His bachelor's studies were followed by a master's degree (thesis on J. Baltrušaitis, 1961). In 1964, he defended his doctoral dissertation "The Language of J. Baltrušaitis, Lithuanian Poetry" and received his Ph.D. degree from the University of Pennsylvania. He worked at the University of Pennsylvania as a lecturer in Russian (1962-1963), at Lafayette College as an assistant professor of Russian literature (1964-1970), professor (1970) and head of the Department of Foreign Languages (1964-1984). At the University of Illinois, Professor of Lithuanian Literature and Head of the Department of Lithuanian Studies (1984-1992). Since 1984, he has worked exclusively on Lithuanian literature and theatre studies in both Lithuanian and English. He was one of the editors of Lituanus and the Journal of Baltic Studies, as well as a contributor to the bibliography of the Lithuanian Encyclopedia (Boston) and the bibliography of the Modern Languages Association. 1985-1989 - Chairman of the Institute of Lithuanian Studies in Chicago. After coming to Lithuania, he became involved in the activities of Vytautas Magnus University. In 1992, he became Dean of the Faculty of Humanities, Vice-Rector, and in 1993-1997 he was Rector of Vytautas Magnus University. He was a member of the Reconstituted Senate and the Senate. From 1997 to 2003 he was Head of the Department of Theatre Studies at the Institute of Arts, and since 2003 he has been Professor of Literature and Theatre Studies. Since 2009 - Professor Emeritus. In 2000 he founded the Bronius Vashkelis Centre for Literary Comparative Studies at Vytautas Magnus University. His works have been published in the scientific and cultural press, in the monographs "Lithuanian Exodus Literature: 1945-1990", "Jurgis Baltrušaitis: poet, translator, diplomat".