There
were a few Howard collections published between 1937 – 1965.
None of them had the success of the Lancer Conan series. For
better or worse, the Lancer Conan series introduced millions of
readers to the works of Robert E. Howard.
Conan
the Adventurer | Conan the Warrior | Conan
the Conqueror | Conan the Usurper | Conan
| Conan the Avenger | Conan
the Freebooter | Conan the Wanderer | Conan
of the Isles | Conan of Cimmeria | Conan
the Buccaneer | Conan of Aquilonia
Conclusions
The
first book published in the Lancer series was Conan the
Adventurer (1966). It features the seminal depiction of Conan
by Frank Frazetta on the cover. Several fans credit the immediate
success of the Conan series to this painting. There is undoubtedly
some truth in that belief. The cover immediately grabs attention.
It is starkly done in brown tones. There is a small swash of pale
orange fire that highlights the stack of dead bodies that Conan
stands astride. A wispy painted female figure holds onto Conan’s
leg. A suggestion of sex overwhelmed by the images of skulls and
weirdness in the background. An unnatural green tone highlights
Conan’s muscles. It is a startling and fascinating painting.
The
book also features several blurbs designed to attract the reader’s
attention. Superlatives are dished out like M&Ms. The cover
states, “The world’s greatest fantasy hero – ‘The ultimate
in swashbuckling adventure’” the back cover states, “A hero
mightier than Tarzan,” and “more imaginative than Lord of the
Rings.” De Camp states on the back cover [Howard’s] tales are
unsurpassed for vivid, colorful, headlong, gripping action.”
The
whole package appeals to an immediate purchase. The book was a
success and 10 more volumes followed. Clearly the writing
contained therein proved to be the ultimate reason for the series’
continued success. The Frazetta paintings became a bonus instead
of the reason for purchase.
The
book starts with praise about the Conan character from artist Roy
G. Krenkel. An introductory note states Robert E. Howard is a
writer deserving a reputation comparable to Edgar Rice Burroughs.
It also mentions that Howard had a tragic death but no details are
given. The second page tells the reader a bit about Amra, a Conan
fan organization. The copyright information tells the reader that
L. Sprague De Camp completed one of the stories “Drums of
Tombalku”. The rest of the stories are by Robert E. Howard, “The
People of the Black Circle,” “The Slithering Shadow,” and
“The Pool of the Black One.”
A
map of the Hyborian Age appears next, followed by an introduction
by L. Sprague de Camp. De Camp gives only cursory details of
Howard’s life. It is mentioned he lived a short life and from
the dates given the reader can calculate Howard died at 30 years
of age. There is no mention of the suicide. He mentions Howard’s
westerns, detective fiction, and other genre writings. He praises
REH’s writing and the Conan tales in particular. He states it
his “good fortune” to edit the stories, complete the
unfinished ones, and rewrite other REH stories as part of the
Conan saga. He says Conan
the Adventurer will be the fourth of eight volumes. He then
goes on to explain the Hyborian Age and tells the reader of Conan’s
previous exploits setting the stage for the stories in this
collection. He continues the stage setting in brief introductions
to each story throughout the volume.
This
book was a great introduction to the character for readers
unfamiliar with Robert E. Howard’s Conan. It set the standard
for the following volumes. The next of which was Conan
the Warrior.
Conan
the Warrior (1967)
features another Frazetta painting. The primary colors are pale
blue and a blue-green. Conan is painted in realistic flesh tones
this time and seen in a long distance shot killing scores of naked
savages while a serpent prepares to attack. Bright red blood drips
from his axe. A pleasing cover although Conan’s facial
expression seems a bit off and the naked savage in the bottom
center detracts the eye from Conan.
The
back covers call the three stories contained therein “glorious
adventures by the greatest master of heroic fantasy.” The
stories are “Red Nails,” “Jewels of Gwahlur,” and “Beyond
the Black River.” There are no de Camp completions in this
volume. The book follows the same format as the previous volume.
Information about Amra, the copyright info, the map, then followed
by an introduction.
De
Camp begins by praising the genre of heroic fantasy. De Camp
praises REH and cites some of his literary influences: Jack
London, Talbot Mundy, Harold Lamb, Edgar Rice Burroughs, and H. P.
Lovecraft. He praises Conan and again introduces the character to
the reader. He states that the saga will be twelve volumes of
which this is the seventh. He again sets the stage for the
following stories.
Next
up is Conan
the Conqueror (1967). This is another Frazetta classic. The
primary color here is gray. A swash of reddish fire splits the
painting into a dark gray sky and a raging battle. A pale gray
Conan, in berserker rage, astride an armored horse is charging an
army composed of men and animated skeletons. The back cover
features a blurb by artist Roy Krenkel. “Howard’s words rang
like strokes of brazen sledges on the anvil of some wargod’s
smithy! This is not mere narration – his scenes of carnage evoke
an almost tangible smell of blood. Our ears are deafened by the
clash of sword and war-axe on buckler and mail. We flee, half mad
with fear, through night-black, adder-haunted swamps…”
Again
the same format is kept. De Camp gives the basic facts once again
but adds mention of the historic roots of this type of fiction by
mentioning William Morris, Lord Dunsany, and E. R. Eddison. He
mentions this is the ninth of 12 volumes and the only book-length
Conan novel. He briefly mentions Howard’s suicide and goes on to
compare this novel with The Worm
Ouroboros, The Well of the Unicorn, and The
Fellowship of the Ring series. A little caveat is given, “While
it may be inferior to some of these in literary grace or
philosophical profundity, it yields to none in action, color,
excitement, and headlong drive.” De Camp goes on to critically
look at Howard but he sings his praises as a natural storyteller.
He makes a comment that he kept the Conan the Conqueror title (from the 1950 Gnome Press hardcover
edition) instead of the original name “because, while “The
Hour of the Dragon” is intriguing, it has practically nothing to
do with the narrative.” De Camp detractors have latched onto
this comment with undue ferocity. It is definitely weak reasoning
on de Camp’s part in this instance. The most likely reason for
keeping the Conan the
Conqueror title was to match it with the rest of the Lancer
series’ naming convention.
The
next volume was Conan
the Usurper (1967). Frazetta
is back with another brown toned cover. Conan is chained to the
floor while an impossibly huge snake slithers between his legs and
coils back to face him with dripping fangs. Skeletons are piled in
the corners and ghoulish figures watch on a staircase. This is an
excellent cover that is impossible to resist.
The scene was closely duplicated in the “Conan the
Barbarian” movie.
The
back cover calls Conan, “Fantasy-Adventure’s most colorful
hero.” The book contains two de Camp revisions, “The Treasure
of Tranicos,” and “Wolves Beyond the Border,” along with two
Howard stories, “The Phoenix on the Sword,” and “The Scarlet
Citadel.” Again the same format is followed. De Camp mentions
Howard’s versatility as a writer, citing his humorous westerns
as an example. He cites Conan as Howard’s greatest creation. He
again states the plan to publish a Conan saga saying this book is
about number 6 in the series.
The
singularly named Conan
(1968) comes next. It is the first volume chronologically. The
cover features a fantastic painting by Frank Frazetta. Another
dark brown toned cover but this time with a large red center.
Conan is attacking an ape-like creature in a dimly lit dungeon.
His muscles strain as he plans to slay the red-cloaked beast with
a large knife. This scene was duplicated in the “Conan the
Destroyer” movie. The back cover states “Epic Fantasy at its
best.” Fantasy author, Fritz Leiber is lengthily quoted. The
book contains a letter from REH to P. S. Miller (co-author of the
fan written “Informal History of Conan the Cimmerian”), part
of REH’s Hyborian Age essay, and the following stories by REH:
“The Tower of the Elephant,” “The God in the Bowl,”
and “Rogues in the House.”
It also contains a mixture of Howard, de Camp, and Lin
Carter collaborations: “The Thing in the Crypt,” “The Hall
of the Dead,” “The Hand of Nergal,” and “The City of
Skulls” (incorrectly listed as “Chains of Shamballah” in the
first edition).
The
introduction gives the first lengthy biographical sketch of REH.
De Camp talks about bullying REH received as a child and views
that as partial incentive for Howard to become an “exercise
fanatic.” He describes REH as 6 foot of mostly muscle. He talks
about REH’s success as a writer during the depression. He calls
REH maladjusted to the point of psychosis. He mentions REH’s
fascination with suicide and how when his mother "to whom he
was excessively devoted” was near death, he chose to shoot
himself.
De
Camp goes on to praise Howard’s writing and mentions Solomon
Kane, Kull, Bran Mak Morn and others. He then quotes letters from
Howard explaining the creation of Conan. All this was undoubtedly
fascinating to the Lancer readers who were just learning about the
man, Robert E. Howard. De Camp talks about his role in editing the
stories and preparing them for publication. He talks a bit about
the heroic fantasy genre and places REH as an integral part of
fantasy’s literary history. De Camp gives the addresses of Amra,
The Howard Collector, and mentions Arkham House and Donald M.
Grant as places to read more of Howard’s other fiction.
Conan
the Avenger
(1968) was the first volume to not contain any REH Conan content.
Howard is represented only by the concluding section of his
Hyborian Age essay. The
book features a bluish toned painting by Frank Frazetta. Conan is
realistically flesh colored and has an expression of fear. This is
radically different than previous versions of the Cimmerian, but
perhaps fitting for a book with mostly non-Howard content.
Conan is lunging toward a bearded sorcerer while a scantily
clad beauty lies prone on an altar. The painting almost appears to
be underwater. Medallions are flying off of Conan’s necklace
looking almost like bubbles. There is an octopus and alligator
lying at the foot of the altar suggesting an aquatic setting. The
back cover features a blurb by Damon Knight that apparently refers
to this novel by de Camp and Bjorn Nyberg.
The
introduction starts with an overview of heroic fantasy. De Camp
goes on to praise Howard for his “rare knack of giving the
impression of a highly colorful scene without actually using many
adjectives to describe it.” De Camp goes on to explain how this
novel (originally called The
Return of Conan) and the Hyborian Age essay came to be.
The
first non-Frazetta cover appears on Conan the Freebooter (1968). It
features a greenish cover with a realistically drawn Conan hacking
off the arm of a large routinely drawn gorilla. The background
suggests an element of weirdness but the primary focus is on the
gore. The cover art
is by John Duillo. The
back cover features a blurb by Dr. John D. Clark.
It focuses on the vicarious thrill a reader may get from
reading adventure fantasy. The book contains 3 Howard stories: “Black
Colossus,” “Shadows in the Moonlight,” and “A Witch Shall
Be Born” and two posthumous de Camp/Howard collaborations: “Hawks
Over Shem,” and “The Road of Eagles.” The
introduction tells of de Camp’s edits, rewrites, and
completions. This book is the seventh to appear but the third in
chronological order. The introduction features a lengthy letter by
Dr. Clark and ends with the standard addresses for fans to
subscribe to Amra and The Howard Collector.
Conan
the Wanderer
(1968) features another Duillo painting. It is a mostly orange
painting with some effective black tones. A realistically drawn
Conan is hurling a foe onto oncoming arrows while a fire rages in
the background. An Easter Island type statue suggests a small
element of weirdness. The back cover blurb says “Conan the
Barbarian is the hero of heroes.” The book features two stories
by REH: “Shadows in Zamboula” and “The Devil in Iron,” one
by REH and de Camp: “The Flame Knife,” and one by de Camp and
Carter: “Black Tears.” The
introduction gives a short history of REH’s life briefly
mentioning it ended in suicide. De Camp tells the origin of “The
Flame Knife.” It is
a rewritten REH story that featured a character named Francis X.
Gordon AKA El Borak. De
Camp gives the normal Conan history explaining this book is the
fourth chronologically.
Conan
of the Isles
(1968) features a nicely drawn older Conan wielding a sword
against a somewhat comically drawn dragon. It’s body a dull red
transitioning into a bright green head with large fangs and
spitting red tongue. Skeletons are piled in the corner bottom left
of the illustration. Again
the painting is by Duillo. The
back cover blurbs praise this “new novel of the world’s
greatest hero.” This book has a dedication to authors, John
Jakes, Fritz Leiber, Michael Moorcock and Jack Vance. The
introduction starts with an explanation of the genre. De Camp
gives a good historical overview of fantasy’s roots. He gives a
strong defense of the genre that unfortunately takes silly jabs at
mainstream fiction. “A novel called The President’s Boyfriend
ought to be a lead-pipe cinch,” cracks de Camp. De Camp adds Sax
Rohmer to his previous list of authors who influenced REH. The
rest is mostly restatements of earlier comments. De Camp gives a
lengthy history of Conan setting the stage for this, Conan’s
chronologically last recorded adventure as written by de Camp and
Carter.
Conan
of Cimmeria
(1969) features a beautiful blue and white painting by Frank
Frazetta. It suggests fierce cold and fierce combat. Two large
red-bearded warriors attack Conan. An icy mountain looms in the
background. There is no real weird element in the painting other
than the warriors being slightly taller than average. The book has
three Howard stories: “The Frost Giant’s Daughter,” “Queen
of the Black Coast,” and “The Vale of Lost Women,” 1
posthumous collaboration: “The Bloodstained God,” and four
stories by de Camp and Carter: “The Curse of the Monolith,”
“The Lair of the Ice Worm,” “The Castle of Terror,” and
“The Snout in the Dark.”
The introduction is more restatement of previous
introductions with little new information. De Camp ends the
introduction by plugging the work of Jane Gaskell, John Jakes,
Fritz Leiber, Michael Moorcock, Andre Norton, Fletcher Pratt, and
Jack Vance.
The
last Lancer volume a full-length novel by de Camp and Carter
called Conan
the Buccaneer (1971) features a dark gray and black cover by
Frank Frazetta. Conan is drawn with a small chest and massive
arms. He is strangling a warrior lying atop a heap of dying men.
It repeats some of the images in the painting for Conan the
Warrior but instead provides a close up view. There is an
effective orange-yellow light shining out of a stormy sky. The
lighting of the painting suggests weirdness as much as Frazetta’s
previously painted shadowy ghouls and serpents. A very nice cover
to end the series with. The back cover repeats the “Epic Fantasy’s
mightiest hero” line. The introduction this time is by Lin
Carter. It talks about the world of sword & sorcery. Carter
credits Howard as the modern inventor of Sword & Sorcery.
Carter compares Conan’s popularity to Sherlock Holmes, Tarzan,
and James Bond. Carter tells how he came to be a Howard fan and he
shows a real enthusiasm for the genre and his role in it. Carter
ends the introduction with a mention of the popular comic books
and hints of Hollywood offers.
The
last volume in the de Camp edited Conan saga was published by Ace
Books in 1977, Conan
of Aquilonia. The cover is by Boris Vallejo and features Conan
and his son attacking a beast-man astride a dragon-like creature.
The back cover has the line, “fantasy’s most powerful hero.”
The introduction is by de Camp and it repeats the same information
as in previous introductions. The
book consists of four stories all by de Camp and Carter.
This wasn’t to be the last Conan book though. After the
popularity of the movie more Conan product was produced for Bantam
Books and then later for TOR Books.
The
Lancer series sold millions and established Howard and Conan as a
force in fantasy publishing. Lots of nonsense has been stated
about de Camp causing harm to Robert E. Howard’s literary
reputation. It is plainly obvious than Howard’s recognition as a
master fantasist was bolstered by the popularity of this series
and the Conan character.
De
Camp unnecessarily edited the Howard stories collected in the
Conan series to be sure. Some of the editing was useful, “The
God in the Bowl” for instance, and some of the editing was done
for racial sensitivity, but most of it was to done for copyright
reasons and was totally unnecessary. Still it is a great leap in
bad judgment to suggest that it is de Camp’s minor editing of
the Weird Tales published Conan stories that is keeping the
literati from recognizing Howard as a writer on a par with his
Weird Tales’ peers Tennessee Williams or H. P. Lovecraft.
De
Camp and Carter admitted their tales paled in comparison to Howard’s
Conan and fans of the Lancer series were quick to notice this
also. The fans divided into two camps: Conan fans and Howard fans
(of course there is intermingling between the two.) Non-Howard
Conan books are still being published today proving the popularity
of the Conan character. Conan fans are pleased about this whereas
Howard fans are inexplicably hostile to the idea. It has been
illogically suggested that the popularity of the Conan character
keeps other Howard characters out of print. That the lack of
popularity of other Howard characters is what keeps other Howard
characters out of print seems to be too heinous a concept for
Howard fans to accept. Despite a history of book, comic book, and
magazine publishing that proves otherwise, Howard fans have
trouble accepting the fact that non-Howard Conan is more popular
than REH characters like Breckinridge Elkins or El Borak.
The
canard from some Howard fans that de Camp hurt REH’s literary
reputation appears to be primarily an emotional reaction to de
Camp’s less than flattering description of Howard in the REH
biography, Dark
Valley Destiny. The biography is full of praise for Howard’s
writing ability and any literary critics that read the book would
understand that. It hardly seems likely that “The New York
Review of Books” lacks in-depth articles on Robert E. Howard
because de Camp considered Howard to be too attached to his
mother. But the fevered imaginations of some Howard fanatics
accept that view as gospel.
Some Howard fans are
uncomfortable with de Camp’s emphasis on Howard’s suicide. They
blame de Camp for starting the view that Howard was emotionally
disturbed. Some
Howard fans have argued that Howard’s suicide was a “reasoned
choice” but shooting yourself in the head seems like a bad idea
to a majority of people. De
Camp can hardly be blamed for creating that majority opinion.
Howard
fans began the worthwhile campaign to get pure unedited Robert E.
Howard Conan into print. The original REH stories for the de
Camp/Howard posthumous collaborations like “The Flame Knife”
did see print during the Howard boom of the 70’s. Eventually all
Howard faded from the marketplace, as did the de Camp edited Conan
saga. The disappearance of Conan (except for the TOR pastiches)
from the shelves does seem inexplicable. The series was tied up in
bankruptcy for a while and increasing Howard fan hostility toward
de Camp appears to have made him distance himself from Conan
publishing in his later years. Howard fans routinely admit to
baiting de Camp in fan publications like REHupa. It doesn’t seem
surprising that de Camp was recalcitrant toward the demands of
Howard fans. But REH’s Conan stories did appear in volumes from
Donald M. Grant and some trade paperback reprints of the Grant
volumes were published during the post Lancer/Ace years. This
should place huge doubt on de Camp’s rumored resistance to
having REH Conan in print. Most likely copyright considerations,
the public domain status of the stories, and simple business
practices played the larger role in Conan publishing.
The
Lancer series was a blessing to heroic fantasy fans and is
remembered by most with great fondness and love. The joy of seeing
these purple-edged volumes appear on newsstands throughout the
country was a living breathing phenomena. Millions of fans looked
forward to the next volume in the series and breathlessly read the
meaty prose of Howard and also enjoyed the candy bar thrills of de
Camp and Carter. Perhaps it is time for a revitalization of the
Lancer series now that unedited REH Conan is readily available.
Facsimile editions of the Lancer series would be an impossible
item for those millions of readers with fond memories of the
series to resist.
Gary
appreciates receiving feedback on all his articles. You can
send him email here.
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