108 FANTASY H. P. LOVECRAFT

A Biographical Sketch

by F. LEE BALDWIN

Howard Phillips Lovecraft was born August 20th, 1890, in Providence, Rhode Island, about a mile east of 66 College Street, where he now lives. Began to read at four; Grimm’s Fairy Tales and Arabian Nights being among the first volumes he seized upon. Later, he came across books about Greek and Roman mythology and was still more fascinated by them. He first tried wri- ting at six and his earliest story was written at seven—about a cave of rob- bers—called “The Noble Eavesdrop- per.” At eight he began to take an interest in science—first chemistry— then geography, astronony, and other subjects, but his first love for mythology and mystery never diminished. Was about nine when he got his first volume H. P. LOVECRAFT [Linoleum Cut by Duane W. Rimel] of Poe and adopted him as a model. Virtually all his tales are weird, for no- broke into print for the first time with thing has ever fascinated him half so a monthly article on astronomical phe- much as the mystery of time and space nomena in a new local daily, and fol- and the unknown. Remote and inac- lowed this with other astronomical ar- cessible places like the Antarctic (“At ticles in the local press. the Mountains of Madness”) and other At eighteen he became dissatisfied worlds enthralled his imagination. with all of his fiction and destroyed Astronomy in particular attracted most of the tales he had written. His him and when thirteen began to edit time was used exclusively for verse, and publish a very small hectographed essays, and criticism, and did not write paper called The Rhode Island Journal another tale for nine years. In 1914 he of Astronomy. He continued this little joined the nation-wide United Amateur publication for a few years and at the Press Association, and his first tale to age of sixteen (while still in school) appear anywhere was ‘The Alchemist’ FANTASY 109 in The United Amateur in 1916. This Frank Belknap Long, Jr., has written story was written in 1908. The next was a preface for it. The tale “Cool Air,” “The Beast in the Cave,” written which WT also rejected, was publish- in 1905 and appearing in W. Paul ed in 1927 in the short-lived Philadel- Cook’s Vagrant sometime in 1917. In phia magazine called Tales of Magic this same year, 1917, he wrote “The and Mystery. Of all his tales Mr. Love- Tomb” and “Dagon;” in 1918 “Po- craft likes best “The Colour Out of laris,” and in 1919 “Beyond the Wall Space,” and next best “The Music of Sleep,” “The White Ship,” “The of Erich Zann.” Edward J. O’Brien Doom that Came to Sarnath,” and gave “The Colour Out of Space” a “The Statement of Randolph Carter.” three-star rating in “Best Short Stories His first tale to be professionaly print- of 1928.” “The Music of Erich ed was “Herbert West—Reanimator” Zann” was reprinted in the London in 1922. This appeared in the now Evening Standard and also in an antho- defunct Home Brew in six parts, each logy, then again in WT. “The Rats a separate episode. Later in 1922, in the Walls” was first submitted to Home Brew published “The Lurking Argosy in 1923 but was rejected as be- Fear” as a four-part serial with illustra- ing too horrible. However, it twice tions by Clark Ashton Smith, whom he appeared in WT, and in 1931 was in- met thru amateur journalism. In 1923 cluded in the British anthology “Not Weird Tales was founded, and “Da- at Night.” “The Dunwich Horror” gon” was published in October. was given a three-star rating by Edward “The Horror at Red Hook” was J. O’Brien; the only tale besides “The written while Mr. Lovecraft lived in Colour Out of Space” to be so honor- New York, where he got much of the ed. “The Strange High House in the local color for the tale. “He” was Mist” was given first class rating in the based on the old Greenwich Village “O. Henry Memorial Year Book.” section of New York. Like “The “In the Vault,” “Pickman’s Model,” Horror at Red Hook,” it expresses and “The Silver Key” were given the author’s detestation of the metro- minor year book mention. polis. “The Shunned House” was His favorite authors—aside from the written in Brooklyn. It is about a house Græco-Roman classics and the English in Benefit Street, Providence, not far poets and essayists of the 18th century from his present home. In reality, the —are Poe, Dunsany, Machen, Black- place has no sinister connection. The wood, M. R. James, and Walter de tale was printed by the Recluse Press la Mare. Of the pulp writers he pre- (W. Paul Cook) of Athol, Mass., fers A. Merritt, E. Hoffman Price, as a brochure, but the loose sheets C. L. Moore, Robert E. Howard, were never put together. R. H. Bar- Clark Ashton Smith, and Frank Bel- low of De Land, Florida, now has knap Long, Jr. Apart from fantasy, them in his possession and plans to he likes realism in fiction—Balzac, de present the story sometime in the fu- Maupassant, Zola and Proust, etc; be- ture. It was twice rejected by Weird. lieves the French are better adapted than 110 FANTASY

we to the reflection of life as a whole; “imaginary” city of Arkham, marking dislikes nearly all Victorian literature all the streets, buildings, rivers, bridges and believes that such very recent ma- and cemeteries so that there will be no terial as escapes freakishness has more chance of a slip-up in locations and promise than most of the stuff imme- landmarks. To us, the readers of his diately preceding it; regards ultra-mo- tales, the names “Dunwich,” “Kings- dernism mainly as a blind alley; likes port,” and “Arkham” are synony- conservatism in style and thinks recent mous with the sequestered and some- prose tends to be slipshod and inartis- times decadent towns of old Mass. tic. In music—disavowing all genuine Ideas for stories come from almost classical taste—he unashamedly prefers anywhere—dreams, pictures, another Victor Herbert, and also likes the old story, a happening on the street—any- colored “cake walk” songs. In paint- thing. The idea for Frank Belknap ing he prefers landscapes as subjects. Long, Jr.’s tale, “The Horror from In architecture he favors Georgian and the Hills,” came while he and Love- classic types, but feels strongly the craft were looking at a reproduction of charm of the Gothic. He is greatly inter- an elephant-god statuette in the Louvre ested in archæology and anthropology. lately added to Long’s collection. His principal hobbies are early Amer- Lovecraft exclaimed: “What do you ican architecture and general antiquar- suppose would cause a Chinaman to ianism. His library, only the weird fall screaming to the floor in front of section of which is catalogued, con- that statue’s original in the Louvre?” tains over 2000 volumes. This includes That sentence caused the spark and a complete set of Weird Tales. Long wrote the tale. He usually does his best work at night The length of time taken by Love- and prefers two meals a day on a flex- craft to write a story depends largely ible schedule. He dotes on cheese, on the difficulty of the theme. “The chocolate and ice cream, but abhors Whisperer in Darkness” took about a all sea food; doesn’t care for tobacco fortnight, “The Dreams in the Witch- and has never tasted intoxicating liquor; House” took a little less than a week. has great fondness for cats of all kinds, A story of average length takes about and likes conversation. Letter-writing three days. holds the place of the latter to quite an The idea for “Cassius” was given extent with him, and he has 51 or 52 to Henry S. Whitehead by Lovecraft, regular correspondents, with about 25 and H. S. W. wanted him to collabo- more as long-term occasionals. Some rate on it. But, of course, he didn’t, are of 20 years’ standing. as his way of developing the tale dif- In many of Mr. Lovecraft’s tales fered widely from Whitehead’s...The the cities of “Arkham” and “Kings- idea for the yarn came from seeing an port” are much in evidence. These actual case of the undeveloped-twin are somewhat modified reflections anomaly in a freak show in New York of Salem and Marblehead, Massachu- ...As Lovecraft puts it, “The man in setts. He has even made a map of the [continued on page 132] 132 FANTASY BOOK REVIEW “Horrors” “Terrors” Collections of Uneasy Tales

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These two weird books are among pered with forbidden subjects; the the latest volumes that comprise The lunatic with a taste for cannibalism; Creeps Series, a collection of uneasy the tragedy of a night of horror spent tales. Each book contains about a in a waxwork exhibition; the fulfill- dozen tales of horror and fear, excep- ment of an age-old curse, etc. Fan- tionally well written. There are real tasy fans would do well to add this shivery stories about the fatal experi- series to their libraries. —J. S. ment of Doctor Fawcett, who tam- [69 Great Russel St., street address] S S S H. P. LOVECRAFT - continued from page 110 question had a little anthropoid excre- sius’—I chanced to mention the mat- scence growing out of his abdomen ter to my old friend Arthur Leeds of that looked hellishly grueseome when New York, who has had extensive uncovered. Clothed, he looked like dealing with freaks and other amuse- any ordinary ‘pot bellied’ individual. ment enterprises. Fancy my surprise He looked so essentially refined and when he told me that he knows the high-grade that I wondered at his will- man well, and that the latter is a per- ingness to be exploited as a freak, and son of much education and intelligence. speculated as to what he would do if a More—that he is interested in every- stroke of luck removed him from the thing weird, and (believe it or not— need of such an ignominious occupa- it’s the actual truth!) that he is especi- tion. The first thing he would do, I fond of my work in WT!! Leeds was argued, would be to have the excre- going to introduce me to him; but scence cut off—and then and there the something prevented, so the meeting idea for the story came. This was in never came off. It certainly would 1924 or 1925. The odd and amazing have seemed odd to meet one of my thing is this: Years afterward—after I plot-germs in the flesh...the flesh of had given the idea to Whitehead and two bodies, or a body and a half, at was awaiting the appearance of ‘Cas- that!” S S S Do Your Part – Every Subscriber Secure Another Subscriber The Future Success Of FANTASY Depends On Your Co-operation Can We Depend On YOU?

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