An H. P. Lovecraft Encyclopedia

Alfred Galpin, writing under the house name Zoilus, remarked of the tale: “It is perfect in execution, restrained in manner, complete, and marked by Mr. Lovecraft’s uniquely effective handling of introductory and concluding portions. The legend is not so powerful as many of Mr. Lovecraft’s dreamings have been, but it is unquestionably original and does not derive from Poe, Dunsany, or any other of Mr. Lovecraft’s favorites and predecessors” ( Wolverine,November 1921). Samuel Loveman also discusses the story at length in the column “Official Criticism: Bureau of Critics,” National Amateur44, No. 2 (November 1921): 29, 33.

See S.T.Joshi, “What Happens in ‘Arthur Jermyn’?” CryptNo. 75 (Michaelmas 1990): 27–28; Bennett Lovett-Graff, “‘Life Is a Hideous Thing’: Primate-Geniture in H.P.Lovecraft’s ‘Arthur Jermyn,’” Journal of the Fantastic in the Arts8, No. 3 (1997): 370–88.

Fantasy Fan, The.

Fan magazine edited by Charles D.Hornig; typeset and printed by Conrad Ruppert (September 1933– February 1935).

The Fantasy Fanwas the first fan magazine in the weird fiction field. Charles D.Hornig of Elizabeth, N.J., at the age of seventeen, founded it and managed to keep it going for eighteen monthly issues, even though the circulation was never very large (its print run probably did not exceed 300, and it had only sixty subscribers). Right from the start, however, Hornig sought to secure the most prestigious weird and science fiction authors he could, and HPL not only sent Hornig numerous contributions of his own but encouraged his colleagues—Clark Ashton Smith, Robert E.Howard, even the resolutely professional August Derleth—to submit to the magazine stories and articles that had been rejected elsewhere. The Fantasy Fanwas, accordingly, an interesting mix of news, articles, stories, poems, and miscellany. Hornig, however, made an error in initiating a column of controversy entitled “The Boiling Point,” which quickly led to acrimonious letter exchanges between HPL, Forrest J.Ackerman, Clark Ashton Smith, and numerous others; the column was terminated with the February 1934 issue.

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Perhaps Hornig’s greatest accomplishment was the serialization of the revised version of HPL’s “Supernatural Horror in Literature” (October 1933– February 1935). However, the serialization proceeded at such a slow place that it reached only the middle of Chapter VIII before the magazine folded. The Fantasy Fanalso saw the first publication of HPL’s stories, “The Other Gods” (November 1933) and “From Beyond” (June 1934), as well as reprints (from amateur papers) of “Polaris” (February 1934) and “Beyond the Wall of Sleep” (October 1934); it also published “The Book” (October 1934), “Pursuit” (October 1934), “The Key” (January 1935), and “Homecoming” (January 1935) from Fungi from Yuggoth. Brief excerpts of HPL’s letters to Hornig appeared regularly in the magazine’s letter column. The October 1934 issue was dedicated to HPL.

After the demise of The Fantasy Fan,numerous attempts were made to revive or succeed it, but no magazine truly filled its place as a news organ, a forum for the expression of fans’ views, and a venue for work by distinguished writers in the field.

Farnese, Harold S. (1885–1945).

Musical composer and correspondent of HPL (1932–33). In July 1932, Farnese (assistant director of the Institute of Musical Art, Ltd. in Los Angeles) asked HPL’s permission to set to music two sonnets from Fungi from Yuggoth. HPL granted permission, and by September Farnese had written and performed music for “Mirage” and “The Elder Pharos.” HPL never heard or saw the pieces, and it was not until HPL died that Farnese had the sheet music printed and circulated (a page from “The Elder Pharos” is printed in SL4, facing p. 159). Farnese tried to enlist HPL’s help in writing a libretto for a planned opera entitled Yurregarth and Yannimaid(later Fen River), but HPL declined, suggesting Clark Ashton Smith as librettist. After HPL moved in 1933, the two fell out of touch. Farnese became the unwitting source of the spurious “Black Magic” quotation attributed by August Derleth to HPL, and thus generating a long misunderstanding of the nature of HPL’s work. See entry on Cthulhu Mythos for details.

See Kenneth W.Faig, Jr., “A Note Regarding the Harold Farnese Musical Pieces,” Dark Brotherhood Journal1, No. 1 (June 1971): 12–14; David E. Schultz, “The Origin of Lovecraft’s ‘Black Magic’ Quote,” CryptNo. 48 (St. John’s Eve 1987): 9–13 (revised version in The Horror of It All,ed. Robert M. Price [Starmont House, 1990]).

Farr, Fred.