Bio
|
Robert Bloch was born on April 5, 1917 in Chicago. His father, Raphael Bloch, was a bank cashier and his mother, Stella Loeb, was a social worker. Robert had an overall happy childhood. As a young boy, he often went to the movies where some of his fondest memories were of watching the silent mystery melodramas starring Lon Chaney. Bloch saw Chaney in The Phantom of the Opera and was profoundly moved by the story of the disfigured musical genius who lived beneath the Paris Opera house.
Perhaps the most important influence on Bloch’s boyhood was sown in 1927, when his aunt purchased for him his first copy of Weird Tales magazine. The young Bloch thrilled to the bizarre and fantastic tales contained within and over the years came to particularly favor those of (the now) renowned writer, H.P. Lovecraft. |
The Bloch family had a reversal of fortune when the Great Depression hit. Robert’s father lost his job and the family moved to Milwaukee, where they lived in a cramped, three-room apartment. In Milwaukee, Stella Bloch found work at a local settlement house and Raphael Bloch eventually found work as a cashier in a cafeteria.
While in high school, Bloch continued to read Weird Tales. He wrote a fan letter to Lovecraft in 1933. Lovecraft responded, to Bloch’s surprise, shortly thereafter, and thus began an ongoing correspondence that continued until Lovecraft’s death in 1937. Initially, the senior author encouraged Bloch to try his hand at story writing and later provided welcome encouragement and feedback to the youthful Bloch’s submissions.
Bloch’s efforts quickly met with success. He first saw publication in 1934 in the fantasy and horror ‘zines, Marvel Tales and Weird Tales. The latter publication, originally merely a source of unending entertainment to a young boy’s dark imagination, in later years practically became Bloch’s literary “home” until the magazine’s demise in the mid-1950s. Much of Bloch’s early work emulated Lovecraft’s style and subject matter, often employing the use of Lovecraft’s Cthulhu Mythos, an elaborate fictional universe dominated by the titular deity, the monstrous Cthulhu, who once reigned over the Earth. Although long since banished, Cthulhu remains worshiped by a cult of zealous followers who believe in, and work toward, his eventual return.
On October 2, 1940, Bloch married Marion Ruth Holcomb. He continued to make an income with his writing, selling stories to such magazines as Unknown Worlds and Fantastic Adventures. He also worked as a copywriter for the Gustav Marx ad agency to help make ends meet. In 1943, Bloch and Marion had their only child, a daughter named Sally.
While in high school, Bloch continued to read Weird Tales. He wrote a fan letter to Lovecraft in 1933. Lovecraft responded, to Bloch’s surprise, shortly thereafter, and thus began an ongoing correspondence that continued until Lovecraft’s death in 1937. Initially, the senior author encouraged Bloch to try his hand at story writing and later provided welcome encouragement and feedback to the youthful Bloch’s submissions.
Bloch’s efforts quickly met with success. He first saw publication in 1934 in the fantasy and horror ‘zines, Marvel Tales and Weird Tales. The latter publication, originally merely a source of unending entertainment to a young boy’s dark imagination, in later years practically became Bloch’s literary “home” until the magazine’s demise in the mid-1950s. Much of Bloch’s early work emulated Lovecraft’s style and subject matter, often employing the use of Lovecraft’s Cthulhu Mythos, an elaborate fictional universe dominated by the titular deity, the monstrous Cthulhu, who once reigned over the Earth. Although long since banished, Cthulhu remains worshiped by a cult of zealous followers who believe in, and work toward, his eventual return.
On October 2, 1940, Bloch married Marion Ruth Holcomb. He continued to make an income with his writing, selling stories to such magazines as Unknown Worlds and Fantastic Adventures. He also worked as a copywriter for the Gustav Marx ad agency to help make ends meet. In 1943, Bloch and Marion had their only child, a daughter named Sally.
It wasn’t until the early 1940s that Bloch began to move away from his Lovecraftian influences and find his own voice. His fiction, which previously explored the realms of the fantastic and the supernatural, began to take a new direction. The author now turned his focus inward, looking to exploit the limitless terrors inherent within the human animal. By mining the psychology and inner workings of the human mind for material, Bloch brought a level of realism to his work that was all the more chilling for now hitting close to home—for the monster in the room was no longer the vampire or ghoul of old but could well be the very person standing next to you. Bloch’s first published novel, The Scarf (1947) expanded upon this theme and established his unique take on literary psychological horror—that of telling his story from the first-person perspective of the villain/antagonist. Bloch would use this effective and lauded technique again in subsequent novels.
Given his new predilection for writing tales detailing the atrocities spawned from the abnormal mind, it’s not surprising that Bloch maintained a keen interest in the life and mythos surrounding real-life serial killer, Jack the Ripper. Bloch featured the infamous slasher frequently in his work, first broaching the subject in his now classic 1943 story, “Yours Truly, Jack the Ripper.” Bloch revisited the character in the (original) Star Trek episode “Wolf in the Fold” (1967) and in "A Toy for Juliette," his contribution to Harlan Ellison’s famed 1967 story collection, Dangerous Visions. Bloch ended his long association with Saucy Jacky in 1984 with a full-length novel, The Night of the Ripper, an acclaimed entry in the Ripper canon, notable for weaving such real-life personages as Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, the Elephant Man, and Oscar Wilde into its storyline.
Given his new predilection for writing tales detailing the atrocities spawned from the abnormal mind, it’s not surprising that Bloch maintained a keen interest in the life and mythos surrounding real-life serial killer, Jack the Ripper. Bloch featured the infamous slasher frequently in his work, first broaching the subject in his now classic 1943 story, “Yours Truly, Jack the Ripper.” Bloch revisited the character in the (original) Star Trek episode “Wolf in the Fold” (1967) and in "A Toy for Juliette," his contribution to Harlan Ellison’s famed 1967 story collection, Dangerous Visions. Bloch ended his long association with Saucy Jacky in 1984 with a full-length novel, The Night of the Ripper, an acclaimed entry in the Ripper canon, notable for weaving such real-life personages as Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, the Elephant Man, and Oscar Wilde into its storyline.
|
The early 1950s saw Bloch’s life and career busier than ever with the publication of three additional novels as well as a voluminous number of short stories. In 1953, Bloch left the Marx agency and moved his family to Weyauwega, Wisconsin. When Weird Tales ceased publication in 1954, Bloch’s tales continued to find homes in such disparate-themed magazines as Amazing, Ellery Queen’s Mystery Magazine, and Shock. |
Bloch was shocked near the end of 1957 to learn of the gruesome reports coming out of the small town of Plainfield, Wisconsin surrounding one of its residents, Edward Gein. Gein had become a suspect in the recent disappearance of local female hardware store owner, Bernice Worden. During a search of his property, police discovered to their horror the decapitated body of Worden hanging in a shed. Authorities additionally found a staggering amount of various human body parts, which Gein accumulated through the years via innumerous exhumations of dead bodies from the graves of local cemeteries. As shocking as Gein’s actions must have been to Bloch, the horror must certainly have been heightened for the writer by the fact that his hometown of Weyauwega was…a mere 40 miles away from Gein!
From this horrific event, Bloch came to an idea for a novel. It would be based, not on Gein himself, but on the extraordinary situation of how a seemingly ‘normal’ and respected resident of a small rural town could get away with such unspeakable acts for so long a period.
After working out remaining plot and character points, writing went smoothly for Bloch, who completed the novel in roughly seven weeks’ time. Psycho was subsequently published by Simon & Schuster in January 1959 to generally favorable reviews, with the novel even earning positive mention in the revered New York Times. The book was an instant hit with readers, with its initial hardcover print run selling out quickly. Alfred Hitchcock then released his cinematic adaptation the following year, becoming a box office success beyond anyone’s imagining. The film’s success spilled over into Robert Bloch’s life as well. Sales of the novel skyrocketed with demand resulting in numerous printings and publication in a number of languages.
In October 1963, Robert and Marion divorced. Soon after, he would meet and marry Eleanor (Elly) Alexander. They remained wed for the rest of his life.
Not one to rest on his laurels (nor that of Hitchcock’s film), Bloch’s post-Psycho career produced an extensive and varied thirty-plus year body of work that included:
In 1993, Bloch’s autobiography, Once Around the Bloch: An Unauthorized Autobiography was published. He died the following year, September 23, 1994, of cancer.
The Official Robert Bloch Website extends heartfelt thanks to Bob Madison, author of American Horror Writers (Enslow Publishers, 2001) for use of portions of material from his chapter on Robert Bloch.
After working out remaining plot and character points, writing went smoothly for Bloch, who completed the novel in roughly seven weeks’ time. Psycho was subsequently published by Simon & Schuster in January 1959 to generally favorable reviews, with the novel even earning positive mention in the revered New York Times. The book was an instant hit with readers, with its initial hardcover print run selling out quickly. Alfred Hitchcock then released his cinematic adaptation the following year, becoming a box office success beyond anyone’s imagining. The film’s success spilled over into Robert Bloch’s life as well. Sales of the novel skyrocketed with demand resulting in numerous printings and publication in a number of languages.
In October 1963, Robert and Marion divorced. Soon after, he would meet and marry Eleanor (Elly) Alexander. They remained wed for the rest of his life.
Not one to rest on his laurels (nor that of Hitchcock’s film), Bloch’s post-Psycho career produced an extensive and varied thirty-plus year body of work that included:
- Twenty novels, including two Psycho follow-ups--Psycho II (1982) and Psycho House (1990), as well as innumerous short stories
- Original and adapted screenplays for such films as Strait-Jacket with Joan Crawford, The Night Walker with Barbara Stanwyck, and several anthology films for the British film studio, Amicus
- Numerous teleplays for such popular and acclaimed television series as Alfred Hitchcock Presents, (the original) Star Trek, Thriller, and Rod Serling’s Night Gallery.
In 1993, Bloch’s autobiography, Once Around the Bloch: An Unauthorized Autobiography was published. He died the following year, September 23, 1994, of cancer.
The Official Robert Bloch Website extends heartfelt thanks to Bob Madison, author of American Horror Writers (Enslow Publishers, 2001) for use of portions of material from his chapter on Robert Bloch.