Wayne Robbins
Encyclopedia
Windom Wayne Robbins was an American
author
of horror
and weird fiction
. His work was primarily published in the Popular Publications
catalog of weird menace
pulp fiction
. His first published short story was Horror's Holiday Special in the July 1939 issue of Dime Mystery Magazine.
Robert Kenneth Jones reported that Robbins "excelled in explosive chaos," and remarked on his "credible" speculative fiction, namely Test Tube Frankenstein, from the May 1940 issue of Terror Tales, a tale of biological mimicry along the lines of Don A. Stuart's
Who Goes There?
. Test Tube Frankenstein is featured in Sheldon Jaffery's
anthology Sensuous Science Fiction of the Weird and Spicy Pulps, where it is offered as his prime example: "one of the best of its kind to be published."
Weird menace stories often dealt with conventional themes required by the publisher, themes in which an author might specialize. Stories involving "Inescapable Doom" were supplied by Donald Dale (Mary Dale Buckner); Mindret Lord handled the "Woman Without Volition"; Ray Cummings
delivered stories about the "Girl Obsessed"; and many of Wayne Robbins' stories portrayed the "Man Obsessed," and a subsequent descent into madness.
Wayne Robbins' published works are usually attributed to "Wayne Robbins" or "W. Wayne Robbins," but he occasionally used the pen name "Wyndham Brooks," a variation on his own given name and his mother's maiden name.
Wayne Robbins' brother, Ormond Robbins
, also wrote horror, hardboiled
, and western fiction for Popular Publications. Ormond Robbins used the pen names Dane Gregory and Breck Tarrant.
to Charles L. Robbins and Clara Pauline Robbins née Brooks on July 22, 1914. The family moved from Stillwater to Sunnyside, Washington
in March 1919. He graduated (valedictorian) from Washington High School in May 1932. He was something of a polymath, showing ability in music, sculpture, painting, and writing.
During the Depression, he painted signs and posters with his brother Francis, first in Sunnyside, then in Yakima, Washington
. He married Margaret Elizabeth Marlin on July 16, 1936 in Prosser, Washington, bearing a son and daughter.
In late 1930s, he became a successful freelance writer for pulp magazines. Popular Publications was one of the more attractive pulp publishers to work with since they offered at least a penny or more per word accepted.
During World War II
, Wayne Robbins wrote speeches and propaganda
for the United States Department of Agriculture
at Bozeman, Montana
and Pullman, Washington
. When his brother Francis returned from the North African Campaign
of World War II to Spokane, Washington
in 1943, Wayne Robbins shortly relocated there himself. He found employment with the Naval Supply Depot near Spokane where he painted signs. He and Francis pooled their resources to buy a house in Spokane. When the war ended, Wayne and a partner, Vic B. Linden, opened a sign painting shop in Spokane called Post Street Signs. The business was sold about 1951 and the family relocated to Ephrata, Washington
where he worked in a neon sign shop. In the spring of 1952 the family returned to their home in Spokane (which had been rented out). He found employment at Valley Neon Company in Spokane Valley where he worked until shortly before his death. He was a member of the Sign and Pictorial Artists' Union.
The death of his brother Francis in 1949 was a great shock to him, and may have contributed to his own death in 1958, following a three-month illness. He is buried at Riverside Memorial Park Cemetery in Spokane, Washington. His grave remains unmarked (grave #14-22N-16E Geranium).
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
author
Author
An author is broadly defined as "the person who originates or gives existence to anything" and that authorship determines responsibility for what is created. Narrowly defined, an author is the originator of any written work.-Legal significance:...
of horror
Horror fiction
Horror fiction also Horror fantasy is a philosophy of literature, which is intended to, or has the capacity to frighten its readers, inducing feelings of horror and terror. It creates an eerie atmosphere. Horror can be either supernatural or non-supernatural...
and weird fiction
Weird fiction
Weird fiction is a subgenre of speculative fiction written in the late 19th and early 20th century. It can be said to encompass the ghost story and other tales of the macabre. Weird fiction is distinguished from horror and fantasy in that it predates the niche marketing of genre fiction...
. His work was primarily published in the Popular Publications
Popular Publications
Popular Publications was one of the largest publishers of pulp magazines during its existence, at one point publishing 42 different titles per month. Company titles included detective, adventure, romance, and Western fiction. They were also known for the several 'weird menace' titles...
catalog of weird menace
Weird menace
Weird menace is the name given to a sub-genre of horror fiction that was popular in the pulp magazines of the 1930s and early 1940s. The weird menace pulps, also known as "shudder pulps", generally featured stories in which the hero was pitted against sadistic villains, with graphic scenes of...
pulp fiction
Pulp magazine
Pulp magazines , also collectively known as pulp fiction, refers to inexpensive fiction magazines published from 1896 through the 1950s. The typical pulp magazine was seven inches wide by ten inches high, half an inch thick, and 128 pages long...
. His first published short story was Horror's Holiday Special in the July 1939 issue of Dime Mystery Magazine.
Robert Kenneth Jones reported that Robbins "excelled in explosive chaos," and remarked on his "credible" speculative fiction, namely Test Tube Frankenstein, from the May 1940 issue of Terror Tales, a tale of biological mimicry along the lines of Don A. Stuart's
John W. Campbell
John Wood Campbell, Jr. was an influential figure in American science fiction. As editor of Astounding Science Fiction , from late 1937 until his death, he is generally credited with shaping the so-called Golden Age of Science Fiction.Isaac Asimov called Campbell "the most powerful force in...
Who Goes There?
Who Goes There?
Who Goes There? is a science fiction novella by John W. Campbell, Jr. under the pen name Don A. Stuart, published August 1938 in Astounding Stories. In 1973, the story was voted by the Science Fiction Writers of America as one of the finest science fiction novellas ever written, and published with...
. Test Tube Frankenstein is featured in Sheldon Jaffery's
Sheldon Jaffery
Sheldon Jaffery was an American bibliographer. An attorney by profession, he was an aficionado of Weird Tales magazine, Arkham House books, the weird menace pulps, and related topics. Born April 22, 1934, he died on July 10, 2003 of septic shock contracted while being treated for lung cancer....
anthology Sensuous Science Fiction of the Weird and Spicy Pulps, where it is offered as his prime example: "one of the best of its kind to be published."
Weird menace stories often dealt with conventional themes required by the publisher, themes in which an author might specialize. Stories involving "Inescapable Doom" were supplied by Donald Dale (Mary Dale Buckner); Mindret Lord handled the "Woman Without Volition"; Ray Cummings
Ray Cummings
Ray Cummings was an American author of science fiction, rated one of the "founding fathers of the science fiction pulp genre". He was born in New York and died in Mount Vernon, New York....
delivered stories about the "Girl Obsessed"; and many of Wayne Robbins' stories portrayed the "Man Obsessed," and a subsequent descent into madness.
Wayne Robbins' published works are usually attributed to "Wayne Robbins" or "W. Wayne Robbins," but he occasionally used the pen name "Wyndham Brooks," a variation on his own given name and his mother's maiden name.
Wayne Robbins' brother, Ormond Robbins
Ormond Robbins
Ormond Orlea Robbins was an American author of hardboiled detective fiction and weird fiction. His work was primarily published in the Popular Publications catalog of pulp fiction...
, also wrote horror, hardboiled
Hardboiled
Hardboiled crime fiction is a literary style, most commonly associated with detective stories, distinguished by the unsentimental portrayal of violence and sex. The style was pioneered by Carroll John Daly in the mid-1920s, popularized by Dashiell Hammett over the course of the decade, and refined...
, and western fiction for Popular Publications. Ormond Robbins used the pen names Dane Gregory and Breck Tarrant.
Biography
Wayne Robbins was born in Pawnee/Stillwater, OklahomaStillwater, Oklahoma
Stillwater is a city in north-central Oklahoma at the intersection of U.S. 177 and State Highway 51. It is the county seat of Payne County, Oklahoma, United States. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 45,688. Stillwater is the principal city of the Stillwater Micropolitan Statistical...
to Charles L. Robbins and Clara Pauline Robbins née Brooks on July 22, 1914. The family moved from Stillwater to Sunnyside, Washington
Sunnyside, Washington
Sunnyside is a city in Yakima County, Washington, United States. As of the 2010 Census the population was 15,858.-History:On September 16, 1902, residents voted 42 to one to incorporate as the town of Sunnyside. By state law a town needed to have 300 citizens in order to legally incorporate...
in March 1919. He graduated (valedictorian) from Washington High School in May 1932. He was something of a polymath, showing ability in music, sculpture, painting, and writing.
During the Depression, he painted signs and posters with his brother Francis, first in Sunnyside, then in Yakima, Washington
Yakima, Washington
Yakima is an American city southeast of Mount Rainier National Park and the county seat of Yakima County, Washington, United States, and the eighth largest city by population in the state itself. As of the 2010 census, the city had a total population of 91,196 and a metropolitan population of...
. He married Margaret Elizabeth Marlin on July 16, 1936 in Prosser, Washington, bearing a son and daughter.
In late 1930s, he became a successful freelance writer for pulp magazines. Popular Publications was one of the more attractive pulp publishers to work with since they offered at least a penny or more per word accepted.
During World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, Wayne Robbins wrote speeches and propaganda
Propaganda
Propaganda is a form of communication that is aimed at influencing the attitude of a community toward some cause or position so as to benefit oneself or one's group....
for the United States Department of Agriculture
United States Department of Agriculture
The United States Department of Agriculture is the United States federal executive department responsible for developing and executing U.S. federal government policy on farming, agriculture, and food...
at Bozeman, Montana
Bozeman, Montana
Bozeman is a city in and the county seat of Gallatin County, Montana, United States, in the southwestern part of the state. The 2010 census put Bozeman's population at 37,280 making it the fourth largest city in the state. It is the principal city of the Bozeman micropolitan area, which consists...
and Pullman, Washington
Pullman, Washington
Pullman is the largest city in Whitman County, Washington, United States. The population was 24,675 at the 2000 census and 29,799 according to the 2010 census...
. When his brother Francis returned from the North African Campaign
North African campaign
During the Second World War, the North African Campaign took place in North Africa from 10 June 1940 to 13 May 1943. It included campaigns fought in the Libyan and Egyptian deserts and in Morocco and Algeria and Tunisia .The campaign was fought between the Allies and Axis powers, many of whom had...
of World War II to Spokane, Washington
Spokane, Washington
Spokane is a city located in the Northwestern United States in the state of Washington. It is the largest city of Spokane County of which it is also the county seat, and the metropolitan center of the Inland Northwest region...
in 1943, Wayne Robbins shortly relocated there himself. He found employment with the Naval Supply Depot near Spokane where he painted signs. He and Francis pooled their resources to buy a house in Spokane. When the war ended, Wayne and a partner, Vic B. Linden, opened a sign painting shop in Spokane called Post Street Signs. The business was sold about 1951 and the family relocated to Ephrata, Washington
Ephrata, Washington
Ephrata is a city in Grant County, Washington, United States. The population was 6,808 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Grant County.-History:...
where he worked in a neon sign shop. In the spring of 1952 the family returned to their home in Spokane (which had been rented out). He found employment at Valley Neon Company in Spokane Valley where he worked until shortly before his death. He was a member of the Sign and Pictorial Artists' Union.
The death of his brother Francis in 1949 was a great shock to him, and may have contributed to his own death in 1958, following a three-month illness. He is buried at Riverside Memorial Park Cemetery in Spokane, Washington. His grave remains unmarked (grave #14-22N-16E Geranium).
Published Short Stories and Novelettes
- Horror’s Holiday Special (Blood Will Soothe My Madness), Dime Mystery Magazine - July 1939
- Guide to Horror House (Minion of Madness), Horror StoriesHorror Stories (magazine)Horror Stories was an American pulp magazine that published tales of the supernatural, horror, and macabre. The first issue was published in January 1935, three years after the weird menace genre had begun with Dime Mystery Magazine. Horror Stories was a sister magazine to Terror Tales, whose first...
- October 1939 - Bride for the Butcher (Bride of the Butcher), Dime Mystery Magazine - November 1939
- Evil Lives in My Hands, Dime Mystery Magazine - December 1939
- Their Flesh Is Soft and Tender, Terror TalesTerror TalesTerror Tales was a long-running American pulp magazine of the horror comics and weird menace genres. It was originally published by Popular Publications. The first issue was published in September 1934...
- January 1940 - I Am the Madman! (as Wyndham Brooks), Terror Tales - January 1940
- The Thing in Search of a Body (Her Heritage is Hate), Dime Mystery Magazine - February 1940
- Author! Author!, Dime Mystery Magazine - February 1940
- They Seek Your Skin!, Dime Mystery Magazine - March 1940
- Mates for the Passion Flower (Terror From the Tropics), Terror Tales - March 1940
- The Unborn Horror (The Senseless Horror; as Wyndham Brooks), Terror Tales - March 1940
- Mad is the Flesh-Master!, Dime Mystery Magazine - April 1940
- The Soul-Thief, Horror Stories - May 1940
- Test-Tube Frankenstein, Terror Tales - May 1940
- The Zombie Master, Terror Tales - July 1940
- Asylum for Murder, Dime Mystery Magazine - July 1940
- The Thing from Beyond, Horror Stories - August 1940
- The Last Horror (as Wyndham Brooks), Horror Stories - August 1940
- The Nightmare Dreamer (as Wyndham Brooks), Horror Stories - August 1940
- A Beast Is Born, Horror Stories - October 1940
- Seal Tight His Grave!, Terror Tales - November 1940
- Mistress of the Dead, Horror Stories - December 1940
- At Home in Hell (as Wyndham Brooks), Horror Stories - December 1940
- The Sealed Jar Horror, Terror Tales - January 1941
- Brother of the Beast, Horror Stories - April 1941
- Murder Boss of The Poverty Pool (with Dane Gregory), 10 Story Western - September 1941
- Gunman’s Honor (Vengeance by Proxy), Big-Book Western Magazine - April 1942
- The Nightmare Dreamer (as Wyndham Brooks), Horror Stories (UK) - January 1952
Other Works Accepted by Popular Publications
- The Black Brain, October 1939
- I Am the Stalker, October 1939
- The Lunatics Stand In, December 1939
- Red Hands Seek Her Body, December 1939
- Death Watches the Calendar, February 1940
- Slaves of the Grey Ghoul, April 1940
- Satan Sends a Beast, May 1940
- All These Must Die, July 1940
- Frankenstein Island, November 1940
Works Rejected by Popular Publications
- This Door to Hell, July 1939
- The Doom Beyond the Door, October 1939
- The Corpse Has a Plan, October 1939
- Terror Creeps Behind, October 1939
- The Crimson Vampire, May 1940
- For Peace -- Smoke Your Guns!, October 1941
- Johnson, Rypert and Me, December 1954
- Traitor's Hot Lead Reckoning, ?
- Trouble With Wind, ?
Anthologized Works
- Test-Tube Frankenstein, Sensuous Science Fiction from the Weird and Spicy Pulps, ed. Sheldon JafferySheldon JafferySheldon Jaffery was an American bibliographer. An attorney by profession, he was an aficionado of Weird Tales magazine, Arkham House books, the weird menace pulps, and related topics. Born April 22, 1934, he died on July 10, 2003 of septic shock contracted while being treated for lung cancer....
, Bowling Green State University Popular Press, 1984, ISBN 0-87972-305-X, ISBN 0-87972-306-8 - A Beast Is Born, The Weirds, ed. Sheldon Jaffery, Starmont House Inc., 1987, ISBN 0-930261-92-5
Extant Unpublished Works
- For Peace -- Smoke Your Guns! (Popular Publications rejection letter dated October 23, 1941)
- Chain of Command (manuscript only, no letter, but envelope addressed to Popular Publications and postmarked December 12, 1954)
- Johnson, Rypert and Me (Argosy rejection letter dated December 23, 1954)
- Booking at Clyde's Fork (manuscript, no letter attached, undated)
- I Bring You Death (manuscript only, no date or letter, written in Sunnyside, WA)
- Is The Ant Willing? (humor, manuscript only, 1950s)
- The Flesh Builders (incomplete)
- The Secret of the Room (manuscript only, no date or letter, written in Yakima, WA)
- Traitor's Hot Lead Reckoning (rejection letter from Popular Publications)
- Trouble With Wind (Yakima Valley farmers struggle against tumbleweed-clogged irrigation canals, submitted to Argosy in the 1950s, rejected, no letter found)