OK, Now my Two Cents About 'ol Two Gun Bob

I was 10 or 11 the first time that I came across a book my first Conan book, Conan the Conquerer. It was one of the old Ace book's, which I happened to find at a friend's house. I asked to borrow it, and spent the next few days reading by a very soft amber hall light, when I was supposed to be sleeping. Reading the Hour of the Dragon was a real nailbiter for me; before I picked up Howard's creation, I was reading books such as The Cache and Dark is the Sun by Philip Farmer. Conan really had an effect on me as a youth. I took it upon myself to find every book possible about him, and at the time, I only remember the 12 book series that was released. It wasn't until much later in life that I discovered that many of Howard's orginal writings were altered, or otherwise tampered with by DeCamp and co.

After studying everything Howard, I became enamoured with the man behind such characters as Conan, King Kull and Soloman Kane. I have read the varying opinions of him, which have ranged from Howard having an Oedipus complex, to closet homosexuality.

In my opinion, and it's just that, REH was just born in the wrong place at the wrong time. He was intellectual, but was living in rural Cross Plains, Texas. If Bob grew up in New York City, which had more access to literary publications, in addition to other like-minded writers such as himself, would he have committed suicide at such an early age? Would he have relied less on carrying for his mother, and focused more on his writings? Perhaps he would have even accepted the fact that she was terminally ill, and would have dealt with the matter in a different way.

If Howard's literary focus was history, then perhaps he did belong to a different time. I'm talking about a time when warriors lined in battle formations, the sun reflecting from their coats of plate and mail armor, as they faced an enemy threatening to invade their homelands. This is what Bob would have wanted, and most definitely would never have passed up.

Bob Howard was also interested in writing about the history of the Southwest, and if he had lived longer, I am certain that he would have written stories about the Native American raids, and the battles between them and the settlers. The stories would have opened up a huge market for himself, as people in the Northeast were still gobbling up stories of cowboys and outlaws from the Old West.

I may be totally off base with my opinions. I am just writing how I picture Howard to be, if I would have spoken with him and have gotten to know him. I think he was just misunderstood by a rural culture, frustrated at having to care for his mother and trying write at the same time, and also at missing his chance with Ms. Price. I believe it was a combination of many factors that eventually led Bob into depression and death. Nothing to do with Oedipus, and more to do with his surroundings.



Could you picture Bob Howard sitting at a cafe in downtown New York City, sipping wine and writing Conan stories in a worn, black leatherbound journal?

Bob Howard was the greatest pulp writer in American literature, in my opinion. Thanks to the good people at REHupa, and many other sites around the net, Howard is being kept alive.