POETRY OF THE WEIRD

Besides the usual stories, each issue ofWEIRD TALES usually contained several poems, as well. Here are a few examples from January 1948.

Illustration by John Giunta.

Illustration by John Giunta.

Illustration by Fred Humiston.

HAPPY 120TH BIRTHDAY, ROBERT E. HOWARD!

Today marks the 120th birthday of Robert E. Howard. Born in Cross Plains, TX, we have Mr. Howard to thank for creating the fantasy characters Conan, King Kull, Solomon Kane and many others. His adventure stories have been entertaining readers for nearly a century.

"The Phoenix on the Sword", from WEIRD TALES, December 1923:

FRAZETTA'S CONAN COVER SETS RECORD

Need a few extra mil? If you're the Frazetta family, just put one of his paintings up for auction. Last week bidding closed at Heritage on Frazetta's original for the Lancer paperback, CONAN. The scene depicts a scene from the story "Rogues in the House", first published in WEIRD TALES (January 1934). When the gavel dropped it sold for $13,500,000, instantly becoming, as Heritage puts it, "currently the highest auction result for any Frazetta work and any Comic or Fantasy artwork globally".

NOTE: There is one minor error in the following description: CONAN is a collection of short stories and not a full-length novel.

Auction Lot Description:

Frank Frazetta Conan Novel Cover Painting Original Art (Lancer/Ace, 1967). This quintessential image of Robert E. Howard's famed barbarian is easily one of the (if not the) most desirable of Frazetta's Conan-related covers, and one of the small handful of greatest paintings ever created by the towering artist. "This painting by Frank Frazetta is one of the most recognizable and iconic images of Conan the Cimmerian", according to noted Robert E. Howard historian Mark Finn, who went on to say, "This scene is from the story 'Rogues in the House' wherein Conan fights the man-ape Thak." In addition to the definitive image of Conan, which went on to serve as the template for the pop culture figure, the dynamic composition and bold, inventive palette are Frazetta at his peak. The artist frequently brought up his emphasis on creating movement through an image, which both leads the eye to the focal point and provides a visual narrative that continues to resonate after multiple viewings -- a key to the artist's enduring popularity and acclaim and as aspect perhaps more evident in this painting than any ever created throughout his storied oeuvre. The blood red of the creature's cape is a brilliant device that lodges the image into a viewer's mind, one that is never forgotten.

"Man Ape," as it has also come to be known, was completed in 1966 and published as the cover for Conan of the 1967 Lancer/Ace Books reprints, which were immediately a huge hit due in huge part to Frazetta's powerful cover paintings. Beginning with this series the artist completely reinvented fantasy illustration for an entire generation. The Conan paintings serves as the lightning bolt of an opening - and in our minds most important and revolutionary - salvo. This imagery defined the character and was instrumental in making the Conan resurgence of the late 1960s a mass market success, which ultimately lead to the Marvel Comics book series and the later series of feature films. As such the pop cultural impact can't be overstated. Frazetta masterfully personified elements of the Howard's now classic tales to create absolutely indelible images, none more so than Man Ape, which was subsequently reproduced almost endlessly as a poster as well as on comic book covers. Created in oil on a 16" x 20" canvas wrapped board. Open-front framed to 22.5" x 26.5". The piece is signed and noted "© 74" in the mid-to-lower left. The reverse side of the board is dated "Nov. 1967", which looks to be a production notation from a publisher.

The painting presents absolutely beautifully, and aside from some minor evidence of handling and faint surface wear commensurate with age, as well as a few minor touches of inpaint visible only under blacklight, the painting is in overall stunning Excellent condition, reflecting the fact that this masterpiece has remained with the artist and his family since its creation.

"Rogues in the House" by Robert E. Howard (WEIRD TALES, January 1934)

Cover art by Margaret Brundage.

ALFRED I. TOOKE'S 'THE HEDGE'

Yesterday, I posted a collection of Alfred I. Tooke's poetry and a sample of his fiction from WEIRD TALES. This charming little chiller is also not to be missed. "The Hedge" is a tale of a man who spends his life trimming the hedge in his garden and ends with a very macabre twist. Snip! Snip!

THE POETRY OF WEIRD TALES: ALFRED I. TOOKE

There is little biographical information I can find on author and poet Alfred I. Tooke (1892–1970), except that he appeared to be Canadian and served in the Canadian military. It also appears that he converted to Mormonism later in life as some of his poems are listed in Latter-day Saint publications.

During his writing career, Tooke penned horror, mystery and detective fiction for at least three pulp magazines in the 1930's:

• SUPER-DETECTIVE STORIES (08/1934)
• PHANTOM DETECTIVE (02/1935; 04/1935)
• WEIRD TALES (12/1935; 02/1938; 01/1937; 01/1940)

However, what we are concerned with today is his verse in WEIRD TALES. The three writers with the most poetry published in the famous pulp magazine were H.P. Lovecraft, Robert E. Howard and Clark Ashton Smith. Tooke is in the top ten with 13. 

His poems are often contemplative and lyrical, with some leaning toward the metaphysical. He also seems to have had more than a passing fascination for seafaring and pirates, as well as delving into ghosts, the supernatural and the macabre.

Following is what I believe to be a complete collection of Alfred I. Tooke's WEIRD TALES poetry.

November, 1931 - Illustration by C.C. Senf

February, 1934

September, 1938

June, 1932

August, 1932

December, 1932

May, 1933

July, 1933

January, 1934

January, 1936

February, 1936

March, 1936

July, 1936

EXTRA! Alfred I. Tooke's short story, "The Ghosts at Hadden-le-Green" from WEIRD TALES, February 1938.