Growing up in Minot, North Dakota, Keating began collecting comic books when he was nine, buying three 15-cent comics every Friday with his 50-cent weekly allowance. He earned a B.S. from Minot State College, and an M.S. from Millersville University (Pennsylvania). He taught elementary, special education, and secondary students in Pennsylvania, Delaware, and Minnesota. He continued to collect comic books and other aspects of popular culture, and to be active in comics fandom, until his death in September 2014, at the age of 53.