Long, Frank Belknap
Entry updated 17 June 2024. Tagged: Author.
(1901-1994) US editor author of sf and fantasy, including some Comics in the 1940s (see Adventures into the Unknown), whose professional working life extended from 1924 to the 1980s; he was married to Lyda Belknap Long (née Lyda Arco) from 1960; under her name he wrote a series of Gothics [see Checklist]. His birth year is often listed as 1903, since Long misrepresented his age at the start of his career and never corrected the record. He produced poetry very early, the best of it appearing in A Man from Genoa and Other Poems (coll 1926) and The Goblin Tower (1935), but is most noted for the weird fantasy he wrote from the beginning of his fiction career, publishing "The Eye Above the Mantel" for United Amateur Press Association in 1921, which was assembled with other unfamiliar material as The Eye Above the Mantel and Other Stories (coll 1995); and publishing his first professional stories, "The Desert Lich" and "Death-Waters" in Weird Tales, November and December 1924 respectively. Influenced by H P Lovecraft, who had promoted the acceptance of his first work and who remained a close colleague until his death in 1937, Long tended to create worlds in his mentor's style with a slender sf base whose fundament – as in his most famous single story, "The Hounds of Tindalos" (March 1929 Weird Tales), featuring creatures originating from a period inconceivably prior to human life (see Time Abyss) – was Cosmic Horror (see Cthulhu Mythos; Horror in SF). He frequently told of his friendship, personal and professional, with Lovecraft, and gave additional details in the valuable introduction and running notes to The Early Long (coll 1975; vt The Hounds of Tindalos 1978), which assembles stories from 1924-1944, the period of his prime as a writer of sf and fantasy. His full-length study, Howard Phillips Lovecraft: Dreamer on the Nightside (1975), treats this material in greater detail. The contents of his first Arkham House volume, The Hounds of Tindalos (coll 1946; cut 1963; vt The Dark Beasts, and Eight Other Stories from the Hounds of Tindalos 1964; vt 2vols as The Hounds of Tindalos 1975 UK and The Black Druid and Other Stories 1975), variously reappeared over his career in other volumes, including The Early Long (see above), which contains other material as well; these stories represent the cream of his work. A more recent Arkham collection, The Rim of the Unknown (coll 1972), draws from the same prime material.
The post-World War Two years saw a change of emphasis in Long's long career, with much more sf being written and published, beginning with John Carstairs: Space Detective (coll of linked stories 1949) which, with "The Ether Robots" (December 1942 Thrilling Wonder) and "The Heavy Man" (April 1943 Thrilling Wonder), formed a series about John Carstairs, detective and biological expert. Most of Long's sf deals with future-Earth situations, space travel occurring relatively infrequently – Space Station No 1 (1957 dos) does occur off Earth, but the setting is not too distant – though much of his earlier sf featured Time Travel. Several of his sf books concentrate on Invasion plots in which Aliens menace our world, as in Lest Earth Be Conquered (1966; vt The Androids 1969) and Journey into Darkness (1967); others, like It Was the Day of the Robot (1963) (see Dystopia; Robots) and This Strange Tomorrow (1966), depict intrigue-filled future-Earth societies. Some of his later books, such as Survival World (1971) and The Night of the Wolf (1972), a Horror fantasy, are among his better works. In the 1950s he also worked in editorial capacities: for Fantastic Universe under Leo Margulies and as associate editor for Satellite Science Fiction February-May 1959. Long published at least 150 short stories over his career, many of them uncollected; a proper estimate of his stature will have to take them into account, as well as the more routine sf novels of his later years, which for some time obscured the shorter work for which he will finally be remembered. In 1978 he received the World Fantasy Award for lifetime achievement. [JC]
see also: Longevity in Writers; Parallel Worlds; Robert Hale Limited; Small Presses and Limited Editions.
Frank Belknap Long Jr
born New York: 27 April 1901
died New York: 3 January 1994
works
- Space Station 1 (New York: Ace Books, 1957) [dos: pb/Ed Emshwiller]
- Woman from Another Planet (Chicago, Illinois: Chariot Books, 1960) [pb/Basil Gogos]
- The Horror Expert (New York: Belmont Books, 1961) as Frank Long [pb/Schultz]
- The Mating Center (Chicago, Illinois: Chariot Books, 1961) [pb/]
- Planet Without Love (Medford, Oregon: Armchair Fiction, 2022) [dos: vt of the above: pb/]
- Mars Is My Destination (New York: Pyramid Books, 1962) [pb/John Schoenherr]
- Three Steps Spaceward (New York: Avalon Books, 1963) [first appeared June-July 1953 Fantastic Universe as "Little Men of Space": hb/Ed Emshwiller]
- It Was the Day of the Robot (New York: Belmont Books, 1963) [pb/]
- The Martian Visitors (New York: Avalon Books, 1964) [hb/Ed Emshwiller]
- Mission to a Star (New York: Avalon Books, 1964) [first appeared February 1958 Satellite Science Fiction as "Mission to a Distant Star": hb/Ed Emshwiller]
- Mission to a Distant Star (Medford, Oregon: Armchair Fiction, 2011) [dos: vt of the above: pb/Ed Emshwiller]
- So Dark a Heritage (New York: Lancer Books, 1966) [pb/Lou Marchetti]
- This Strange Tomorrow (New York: Belmont Books, 1966) [pb/]
- Lest Earth Be Conquered (New York: Belmont Books, 1966) [pb/]
- The Androids (New York: Tower Books, 1969) [vt of the above: pb/]
- Journey into Darkness (New York: Belmont Books, 1967) [pb/]
- ... And Others Shall Be Born (New York: Belmont Books, 1968) [chap: dos: pb/Jerome Podwil]
- The Three Faces of Time (New York: Tower Books, 1969) [pb/Jeff Jones]
- Monster from Out of Time (New York: Popular Library, 1970) [pb/Frank Frazetta]
- Survival World (New York: Lancer Books, 1971) [pb/Ken Kelly]
- The Night of the Wolf (New York: Popular Library, 1972) [pb/Gray Morrow]
- Operation Square Peg (Medford, Oregon: Armchair Fiction, 2011) with Irving W Lande [dos: first appeared April 1957 Satellite Science Fiction: pb/Ed Emshwiller]
- Made to Order (Medford, Oregon: Armchair Fiction, 2018) [dos: first appeared Spring 1957 Future Science Fiction: pb/Ralph Joiner]
novels as by Lyda Belknap Long
- To the Dark Tower (New York: Lancer Books, 1969) as by Lyda Belknap Long [pb/Lou Marchetti]
- Fire of the Witches (New York: Popular Library, 1971) as by Lyda Belknap Long [pb/]
- The Shape of Fear (New York: Beagle Books, 1971) as by Lyda Belknap Long [pb/]
- The Witch Tree (New York: Lancer Books, 1971) as by Lyda Belknap Long [pb/]
- Hour of the Deadly Nightshade (New York: Beagle Books, 1972) as by Lyda Belknap Long [pb/]
- Legacy of Evil (New York: Beagle Books, 1973) as by Lyda Belknap Long [pb/]
- The Crucible of Evil (New York: Avon Books, 1974) as by Lyda Belknap Long [pb/]
- The Lemoyne Heritage (New York: Zebra Books, 1977) as by Lyda Belknap Long [pb/Gary D Lang]
collections and stories
series
Golden Age of Weird Fiction
- The 8th Golden Age of Weird Fiction Megapack: Frank Belknap Long, Volume 1 (Cabin John, Maryland: Wildside Press, 2016) [coll: ebook: Golden Age of Weird Fiction: na/]
- The Golden Age of Weird Fiction: Frank Belknap Long: Volume One (Cabin John, Maryland: Wildside Press, 2016) [coll: vt of the above: Golden Age of Weird Fiction: pb/]
- The 9th Golden Age of Weird Fiction Megapack: Frank Belknap Long, Volume 2 (Cabin John, Maryland: Wildside Press, 2016) [coll: ebook: Golden Age of Weird Fiction: na/]
- The Golden Age of Weird Fiction: Frank Belknap Long: Volume Two (Cabin John, Maryland: Wildside Press, 2016) [coll: vt of the above: Golden Age of Weird Fiction: pb/]
Megapack
- The Frank Belknap Long Science Fiction Megapack (Cabin John, Maryland: Wildside Press, 2016) [coll: Megapack: pb/]
- The Second Frank Belknap Long Science Fiction Megapack (Cabin John, Maryland: Wildside Press, 2016) [coll: ebook: Megapack: na/]
- The Third Frank Belknap Long Science Fiction Megapack (Cabin John, Maryland: Wildside Press, 2016) [coll: ebook: Megapack: na/]
- The Frank Belknap Long Science Fiction Novel Megapack (Cabin John, Maryland: Wildside Press, 2016) [omni of Space Station 1 (1957), Survival World (1971), Mars is My Destination (1962) and The Three Faces of Time (1969): ebook: Megapack: na/]
collections and stories: individual titles
- The Hounds of Tindalos (Sauk City, Wisconsin: Arkham House, 1946) [coll: hb/Hannes Bok]
- The Hounds of Tindalos (New York: Belmont Books, 1963) [coll: cut version of the above: pb/]
- The Dark Beasts, and Eight Other Stories from the Hounds of Tindalos (New York: Belmont Books, 1964) [coll: cut vt of the above: pb/Edward Gorey]
- The Hounds of Tindalos and Other Stories (London: Panther, 1975) [cut vt of the above: comprising its first half: pb/Bruce Pennington]
- The Black Druid and Other Stories (London: Panther, 1975) [cut vt of the above: comprising its second half: pb/Bruce Pennington]
- The Horror from the Hills (Sauk City, Wisconsin: Arkham House, 1963) [novella: first appeared January-March 1931 in Weird Tales: hb/Richard Taylor]
- Odd Science Fiction (New York: Belmont Books, 1964) [exp vt as coll: pb/]
- The Horror from the Hills (London: Brown Watson, 1965) [coll: vt of the above: pb/]
- Odd Science Fiction (New York: Belmont Books, 1964) [exp vt as coll: pb/]
- John Carstairs: Space Detective (New York: Frederick Fell, 1949) [coll of linked stories: John Carstairs: hb/]
- John Carstairs: Space Detective (Vancleave, Mississippi: Ramble House/Suriman Turtle Press, 2012) [exp of the above: two stories added: John Carstairs: pb/O'Keefe]
- The Challenge from Beyond (Washington, District of Columbia: Pennsylvania Dutch Cheese Press/A Weltschmerz Production, 1954) with Robert E Howard, H P Lovecraft, A Merritt and C L Moore [chap: Round-Robin story: first appeared September 1935 Fantasy Magazine: pb/]
- The Illustrated Challenge from Beyond (West Warwick, Rhode Island: Necronomicon Press, 1978) with Robert E Howard, H P Lovecraft, A Merritt and C L Moore [chap: vt of the above: Round-Robin story: illus/pb/David Ireland]
- The Rim of the Unknown (Sauk City, Wisconsin: Arkham House, 1972) [coll: hb/Her Arnold]
- The Early Long (Garden City, New York: Doubleday and Compay, 1975) [coll: hb/Peter Rauch]
- The Hounds of Tindalos (New York: Jove/HBJ, 1978) [vt of the above: contents different from other iterations of the title (see above): pb/]
- A Dangerous Experiment (West Warwick, Rhode Island: Necronomicon Press, circa 1977) [story: chap: first appeared Fall 1934 The Californian: in the publisher's F & SF Fragments series: pb/nonpictorial]
- When Chaugnar Wakes (Warren, Ohio: Fantome Press, 1978) [story: chap: pb/C M James]
- Night Fear (New York: Zebra Books, 1979) [coll: edited by Roy Torgeson: pb/Clyde Caldwell]
- Rehearsal Night: A Short Story (Boston, Massachusetts: Cat's God, 1981) [story: chap: pb/Courtney Skinner]
- Escape from Tomorrow: 3 Previously Unreprinted Weird Tales (West Warwick, Rhode Island: Necronomicon Press, 1995) [coll: chap: pb/Hannes Bok]
- The Eye Above the Mantel and Other Stories (West Hills, California: Tsathoggua Press, 1995) [coll: pb/Robert H Knox]
- The Man Who Died Twice (And Three Others) (Rockville, Maryland: Wildside Press, 2009) [coll: pb/Freesurf]
- Frank Belknap Long (Lakewood, Colorado: Centipede Press, 2022) [coll: edited by S T Joshi: hb/]
poetry (selected)
- A Man from Genoa and Other Poems (Athol, Massachusetts: W Paul Cook, 1926) [poetry: coll: chap: hb/nonpictorial]
- The Goblin Tower (Cassiam, Florida: Dragon-Fly Press, 1935) [poetry: coll: chap: hb/]
- In Mayan Splendor (Sauk City, Wisconsin: Arkham House, 1977) [poetry: omni of the above two plus additional poems: hb/Stephen E Fabian]
- The Goblin Tower (Denver, Colorado: The New Collector's Group, 1949) [poetry: coll: contents differ from 1935 coll with the same title: pb/Hunt]
nonfiction
- Howard Phillips Lovecraft: Dreamer on the Nightside (Sauk City, Wisconsin: Arkham House, 1975) [nonfiction: H P Lovecraft: hb/Frank Utpatel]
- Autobiographical Memoir (West Warwick, Rhode Island: Necronomicon Press, 1985) [nonfiction: chap: pb/]
about the author
- Peter Cannon. Long Memories: Recollections of Frank Belknap Long (Stockport, near Manchester, England: British Fantasy Society, 1997) [nonfiction: chap: pb/]
links
previous versions of this entry