Robert W. Chambers
Encyclopedia
Robert William Chambers (May 26, 1865 – December 16, 1933) was an American
artist
and writer
.
, New York
, to William P. Chambers (1827–1911), a famous lawyer, and Caroline Chambers (née Boughton), a direct descendant of Roger Williams
, the founder of Providence, Rhode Island
. Robert's brother was Walter Boughton Chambers
, the world famous architect.
Robert was first educated at the Brooklyn Polytechnic Institute,and then entered the Art Students' League
at around the age of twenty, where the artist Charles Dana Gibson
was his fellow student. Chambers studied at the École des Beaux-Arts
, and at Académie Julian
, in Paris
from 1886 to 1893, and his work was displayed at the Salon
as early as 1889. On his return to New York, he succeeded in selling his illustrations to Life, Truth
, and Vogue magazines. Then, for reasons unclear, he devoted his time to writing, producing his first novel, In the Quarter (written in 1887 in Munich
). His most famous, and perhaps most meritorious, effort is The King in Yellow
, an 1895 collection of weird short stories, connected by the theme of the fictitious drama The King in Yellow, which drives those who read it insane. E. F. Bleiler described The King in Yellow as one of the most important works of American supernatural fiction.
Chambers returned to the weird genre in his later short story collections The Maker of Moons
and The Tree of Heaven, but neither earned him such success as The King in Yellow. Some of Chambers' work contains elements of science fiction, such as
In Search of the Unknown and Police!!!, about a zoologist who encounters monsters.
Chambers later turned to writing romantic fiction
to earn a living. According to some estimates, Chambers was one of the most successful literary careers of his period, his later novels selling well and a handful achieving best-seller status. Many of his works were also serialized in magazines.
After 1924 he devoted himself solely to writing historical fiction
.
Chambers for several years made Broadalbin, New York
his summer home. Some of his novels touch upon colonial life in Broadalbin and Johnstown.
On July 12, 1898, he married Elsa Vaughn Moller (1882–1939). They had a son, Robert Edward Stuart Chambers (later calling himself Robert Husted Chambers) who also gained some fame as an author.
Chambers died at his home in Broadalbin on December 16, 1933.
said of Chambers in a letter to Clark Ashton Smith
,
Frederic Taber Cooper
commented,
A critical essay on Chambers' horror and fantasy work appears in S. T. Joshi
's book The Evolution of the Weird Tale (2004).
His novel The Tracer of Lost Persons was adapted into a long-running (1937–54) old-time radio
crime drama, Mr. Keen, Tracer of Lost Persons
, by legendary soap opera
producers Frank and Anne Hummert
.
Chamber's creation The King in Yellow
has inspired many modern authors, including Karl Edward Wagner
, Joseph S. Pulver
, Lin Carter
, James Blish
, Michael Cisco
, Ann K. Schwader, Robert M. Price
and Galad Elflandsson
.
Joseph S. Pulver
has written nearly 30 tales and poems that are based on and/or include The King in Yellow
, Carcosa
, Thale, Cassilda, and other elements like the Court of the Dragon of Robert W. Chambers. Joseph S. Pulver
is also editing an anthology of all new tales based upon The King in Yellow
. The collection is called "A Season in Carcosa
". It will be released in 2012 by Miskatonic River Press.
(all before 1907)
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
artist
Artist
An artist is a person engaged in one or more of any of a broad spectrum of activities related to creating art, practicing the arts and/or demonstrating an art. The common usage in both everyday speech and academic discourse is a practitioner in the visual arts only...
and writer
Writer
A writer is a person who produces literature, such as novels, short stories, plays, screenplays, poetry, or other literary art. Skilled writers are able to use language to portray ideas and images....
.
Biography
He was born in BrooklynBrooklyn
Brooklyn is the most populous of New York City's five boroughs, with nearly 2.6 million residents, and the second-largest in area. Since 1896, Brooklyn has had the same boundaries as Kings County, which is now the most populous county in New York State and the second-most densely populated...
, New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
, to William P. Chambers (1827–1911), a famous lawyer, and Caroline Chambers (née Boughton), a direct descendant of Roger Williams
Roger Williams (theologian)
Roger Williams was an English Protestant theologian who was an early proponent of religious freedom and the separation of church and state. In 1636, he began the colony of Providence Plantation, which provided a refuge for religious minorities. Williams started the first Baptist church in America,...
, the founder of Providence, Rhode Island
Providence, Rhode Island
Providence is the capital and most populous city of Rhode Island and was one of the first cities established in the United States. Located in Providence County, it is the third largest city in the New England region...
. Robert's brother was Walter Boughton Chambers
Walter B. Chambers
Walter Boughton Chambers was a successful New York architect whose buildings continue to be landmarks in the city’s skyline and whose contributions to architectural education were far-reaching....
, the world famous architect.
Robert was first educated at the Brooklyn Polytechnic Institute,and then entered the Art Students' League
Art Students League of New York
The Art Students League of New York is an art school located on West 57th Street in New York City. The League has historically been known for its broad appeal to both amateurs and professional artists, and has maintained for over 130 years a tradition of offering reasonably priced classes on a...
at around the age of twenty, where the artist Charles Dana Gibson
Charles Dana Gibson
Charles Dana Gibson was an American graphic artist, best known for his creation of the Gibson Girl, an iconic representation of the beautiful and independent American woman at the turn of the 20th century....
was his fellow student. Chambers studied at the École des Beaux-Arts
École des Beaux-Arts
École des Beaux-Arts refers to a number of influential art schools in France. The most famous is the École nationale supérieure des Beaux-Arts, now located on the left bank in Paris, across the Seine from the Louvre, in the 6th arrondissement. The school has a history spanning more than 350 years,...
, and at Académie Julian
Académie Julian
The Académie Julian was an art school in Paris, France.Rodolphe Julian established the Académie Julian in 1868 at the Passage des Panoramas, as a private studio school for art students. The Académie Julian not only prepared students to the exams at the prestigious École des Beaux-Arts, but offered...
, in Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
from 1886 to 1893, and his work was displayed at the Salon
Paris Salon
The Salon , or rarely Paris Salon , beginning in 1725 was the official art exhibition of the Académie des Beaux-Arts in Paris, France. Between 1748–1890 it was the greatest annual or biannual art event in the Western world...
as early as 1889. On his return to New York, he succeeded in selling his illustrations to Life, Truth
Truth Magazine
Truth Magazine is a magazine produced by certain preachers within the non-institutional Churches of Christ.Publication began in the fall of 1956 with Bryan Vinson, Jr. as editor and Leslie Diestelkamp and Gordon J. Pennock as associate editors. Cecil Willis served as editor from August 1962 until...
, and Vogue magazines. Then, for reasons unclear, he devoted his time to writing, producing his first novel, In the Quarter (written in 1887 in Munich
Munich
Munich The city's motto is "" . Before 2006, it was "Weltstadt mit Herz" . Its native name, , is derived from the Old High German Munichen, meaning "by the monks' place". The city's name derives from the monks of the Benedictine order who founded the city; hence the monk depicted on the city's coat...
). His most famous, and perhaps most meritorious, effort is The King in Yellow
The King in Yellow
The King in Yellow is a collection of short stories written by Robert W. Chambers and published in 1895. The stories could be categorized as early horror fiction or Victorian Gothic fiction, but the work also touches on mythology, fantasy, mystery, science fiction and romance...
, an 1895 collection of weird short stories, connected by the theme of the fictitious drama The King in Yellow, which drives those who read it insane. E. F. Bleiler described The King in Yellow as one of the most important works of American supernatural fiction.
Chambers returned to the weird genre in his later short story collections The Maker of Moons
The Maker of Moons
The Maker of Moons is an 1896 short story collection by Robert W. Chambers. It followed the publication of Chambers most famous work, The King in Yellow .It consists of several new stories, including the title story "The Maker of Moons"...
and The Tree of Heaven, but neither earned him such success as The King in Yellow. Some of Chambers' work contains elements of science fiction, such as
In Search of the Unknown and Police!!!, about a zoologist who encounters monsters.
Chambers later turned to writing romantic fiction
Romance novel
The romance novel is a literary genre developed in Western culture, mainly in English-speaking countries. Novels in this genre place their primary focus on the relationship and romantic love between two people, and must have an "emotionally satisfying and optimistic ending." Through the late...
to earn a living. According to some estimates, Chambers was one of the most successful literary careers of his period, his later novels selling well and a handful achieving best-seller status. Many of his works were also serialized in magazines.
After 1924 he devoted himself solely to writing historical fiction
Historical fiction
Historical fiction tells a story that is set in the past. That setting is usually real and drawn from history, and often contains actual historical persons, but the principal characters tend to be fictional...
.
Chambers for several years made Broadalbin, New York
Broadalbin (village), New York
Broadalbin is a village in Fulton County, New York, United States. The population was 1,411 at the 2000 census. The name is derived from a region in Scotland....
his summer home. Some of his novels touch upon colonial life in Broadalbin and Johnstown.
On July 12, 1898, he married Elsa Vaughn Moller (1882–1939). They had a son, Robert Edward Stuart Chambers (later calling himself Robert Husted Chambers) who also gained some fame as an author.
Chambers died at his home in Broadalbin on December 16, 1933.
Criticism and legacy
H. P. LovecraftH. P. Lovecraft
Howard Phillips Lovecraft --often credited as H.P. Lovecraft — was an American author of horror, fantasy and science fiction, especially the subgenre known as weird fiction....
said of Chambers in a letter to Clark Ashton Smith
Clark Ashton Smith
Clark Ashton Smith was a self-educated American poet, sculptor, painter and author of fantasy, horror and science fiction short stories. He achieved early local recognition, largely through the enthusiasm of George Sterling, for traditional verse in the vein of Swinburne...
,
- "Chambers is like Rupert HughesRupert HughesRupert Hughes was an American historian, novelist, film director and composer based in Hollywood. Hughes was born in Lancaster, Missouri. His parents were Felix Turner Hughes and Jean Amelia Summerlin, who were married in 1865. His brother Howard R. Hughes, Sr., co-founded the Hughes Tool Company....
and a few other fallen Titans – equipped with the right brains and education but wholly out of the habit of using them."
Frederic Taber Cooper
Frederic Taber Cooper
Frederic Taber Cooper, Ph.D. was an American editor and writer. He was born May 27, 1864 in New York City, graduated from Harvard University in 1886 and obtained an LL.B. from Columbia University in 1887....
commented,
- "So much of Mr Chambers's work exasperates, because we feel that he might so easily have made it better."
A critical essay on Chambers' horror and fantasy work appears in S. T. Joshi
S. T. Joshi
Sunand Tryambak Joshi — known as S. T. Joshi — is an award-winning Indian American literary critic, novelist, and a leading figure in the study of Howard Phillips Lovecraft and other authors of weird and fantastic fiction...
's book The Evolution of the Weird Tale (2004).
His novel The Tracer of Lost Persons was adapted into a long-running (1937–54) old-time radio
Old-time radio
Old-Time Radio and the Golden Age of Radio refer to a period of radio programming in the United States lasting from the proliferation of radio broadcasting in the early 1920s until television's replacement of radio as the primary home entertainment medium in the 1950s...
crime drama, Mr. Keen, Tracer of Lost Persons
Mr. Keen, Tracer of Lost Persons
Mr. Keen, Tracer of Lost Persons was one of radio's longest running shows, airing , continuing well into the television era. It was produced by Frank and Anne Hummert...
, by legendary soap opera
Soap opera
A soap opera, sometimes called "soap" for short, is an ongoing, episodic work of dramatic fiction presented in serial format on radio or as television programming. The name soap opera stems from the original dramatic serials broadcast on radio that had soap manufacturers, such as Procter & Gamble,...
producers Frank and Anne Hummert
Anne Hummert
Anne Hummert was the leading creator of daytime radio serials during the 1930s and 1940s, responsible for more than three dozen drama series....
.
Chamber's creation The King in Yellow
The King in Yellow
The King in Yellow is a collection of short stories written by Robert W. Chambers and published in 1895. The stories could be categorized as early horror fiction or Victorian Gothic fiction, but the work also touches on mythology, fantasy, mystery, science fiction and romance...
has inspired many modern authors, including Karl Edward Wagner
Karl Edward Wagner
Karl Edward Wagner was an American writer, editor and publisher of horror, science fiction, and heroic fantasy, who was born in Knoxville, Tennessee and originally trained as a psychiatrist. His disillusionment with the medical profession can be seen in the stories "The Fourth Seal" and "Into...
, Joseph S. Pulver
Joseph S. Pulver
Joseph S. Pulver, Sr. is an author and poet, much of whose work falls within the horror fiction, noir fiction / hardboiled, and dark fantasy genres...
, Lin Carter
Lin Carter
Linwood Vrooman Carter was an American author of science fiction and fantasy, as well as an editor and critic. He usually wrote as Lin Carter; known pseudonyms include H. P. Lowcraft and Grail Undwin.-Life:Carter was born in St. Petersburg, Florida...
, James Blish
James Blish
James Benjamin Blish was an American author of fantasy and science fiction. Blish also wrote literary criticism of science fiction using the pen-name William Atheling, Jr.-Biography:...
, Michael Cisco
Michael Cisco
Michael Cisco is an American writer and teacher currently living in New York City. He is best known for his first novel, The Divinity Student, winner of the International Horror Guild Award for Best First Novel of 1999....
, Ann K. Schwader, Robert M. Price
Robert M. Price
Robert McNair Price is an American theologian and writer. He teaches philosophy and religion at the Johnnie Colemon Theological Seminary, is professor of biblical criticism at the Center for Inquiry Institute, and the author of a number of books on theology and the historicity of Jesus, including...
and Galad Elflandsson
Galad Elflandsson
Galad Elflandsson is an Canadian fantasy writer. In the 1980s, Elflandsson was a member of a group of fantasy writers who met at the House of Speculative Fiction bookstore in Ottawa, Canada, which he also managed. Other members of the group included Gordon Derevanchuk, Charles de Lint, Charles...
.
Joseph S. Pulver
Joseph S. Pulver
Joseph S. Pulver, Sr. is an author and poet, much of whose work falls within the horror fiction, noir fiction / hardboiled, and dark fantasy genres...
has written nearly 30 tales and poems that are based on and/or include The King in Yellow
The King in Yellow
The King in Yellow is a collection of short stories written by Robert W. Chambers and published in 1895. The stories could be categorized as early horror fiction or Victorian Gothic fiction, but the work also touches on mythology, fantasy, mystery, science fiction and romance...
, Carcosa
Carcosa
Carcosa is a fictional city in the Ambrose Bierce short story "An Inhabitant of Carcosa" . In Bierce's story, the ancient and mysterious city is barely described, and is viewed only in hindsight by a character who once lived there....
, Thale, Cassilda, and other elements like the Court of the Dragon of Robert W. Chambers. Joseph S. Pulver
Joseph S. Pulver
Joseph S. Pulver, Sr. is an author and poet, much of whose work falls within the horror fiction, noir fiction / hardboiled, and dark fantasy genres...
is also editing an anthology of all new tales based upon The King in Yellow
The King in Yellow
The King in Yellow is a collection of short stories written by Robert W. Chambers and published in 1895. The stories could be categorized as early horror fiction or Victorian Gothic fiction, but the work also touches on mythology, fantasy, mystery, science fiction and romance...
. The collection is called "A Season in Carcosa
Carcosa
Carcosa is a fictional city in the Ambrose Bierce short story "An Inhabitant of Carcosa" . In Bierce's story, the ancient and mysterious city is barely described, and is viewed only in hindsight by a character who once lived there....
". It will be released in 2012 by Miskatonic River Press.
Further reading
- Rehearsals for Oblivion: Act 1 – Tales of The King in YellowThe King in YellowThe King in Yellow is a collection of short stories written by Robert W. Chambers and published in 1895. The stories could be categorized as early horror fiction or Victorian Gothic fiction, but the work also touches on mythology, fantasy, mystery, science fiction and romance...
, edited by Peter A. Worthy, Elder Signs PressElder Signs PressElder Signs Press, Inc is a Michigan-based book publisher distributed through the Independent Publishers Group. It specializes in horror, science fiction, and fantasy titles.-History:...
2007 - "Strange Aeons 3" (an issue dedicated to The King in YellowThe King in YellowThe King in Yellow is a collection of short stories written by Robert W. Chambers and published in 1895. The stories could be categorized as early horror fiction or Victorian Gothic fiction, but the work also touches on mythology, fantasy, mystery, science fiction and romance...
, edited by Rick Tillman and K.L. Young, Autumn 2010 - The Hastur Cycle, edited by Robert M. PriceRobert M. PriceRobert McNair Price is an American theologian and writer. He teaches philosophy and religion at the Johnnie Colemon Theological Seminary, is professor of biblical criticism at the Center for Inquiry Institute, and the author of a number of books on theology and the historicity of Jesus, including...
, ChaosiumChaosiumChaosium is one of the longer lived publishers of role-playing games still in existence. Founded by Greg Stafford, its first game was actually a wargame, White Bear and Red Moon, which later mutated into Dragon Pass and its sequel, Nomad Gods...
1993 - The Yellow Sign and Other Stories, edited by S.T. Joshi, ChaosiumChaosiumChaosium is one of the longer lived publishers of role-playing games still in existence. Founded by Greg Stafford, its first game was actually a wargame, White Bear and Red Moon, which later mutated into Dragon Pass and its sequel, Nomad Gods...
2004
For children
- Garden-Land
- Forest-Land
- River-Land
- Mountain-Land
- Orchard-Land
- Outdoorland
(all before 1907)