Messages from Crom

The Art of Robert E. Howard
By Bill Thom

This is the second in a series of articles that provides a showcase for the many fine artists that have illustrated the works of Robert E. Howard over the years.

Virgil Finlay

Virgil Finlay was born July 23, 1914 in Rochester, New York. His father, Warden Hugh Finlay, was of Irish ancestry, and was a wood-lathe worker at a furniture shop. His mother, Ruth Finlay, raised their two children, Virgil and his younger sister Jean. Virgil’s father died at age 40 when Virgil 18 years old. This left the Finlay family to support themselves during the Great Depression. After high school, Virgil worked as a house painter, bridge painter, an assembly-line worker at a radio manufacturer, and a stock boy. Virgil began reading AMAZING STORIES in 1928 and WEIRD TALES a year later.

In 1935, Finlay sent six unsolicited black and white illustrations to WEIRD TALES. Farnworth Wright, editor of WEIRD TALES, purchased one of the illustrations to see how it would reproduce. The illustration appeared in the December 1935 issue of WEIRD TALES, following a story by Paul Ernst and Finlay soon received his first assignments as a published freelance artist. Finlay’s first WEIRD TALES cover art appeared in the February 1937 issue where he provided the cover illustration and interior art for “The Globe of Memories” by Seabury Quinn and interior art for “The Poppy Pearl” by Frank Owen and “Dig Me No Grave” by Robert E. Howard..

In November 1937, Finlay received a letter from Abraham Merritt, the editor of THE AMERICAN WEEKLY newspaper, saying that as a reader of WEIRD TALES he liked Finlay’s art very much and that “there might be an advantageous opening on THE AMERICAN WEEKLY at the present time for you.” THE AMERICAN WEEKLY was a Sunday newspaper supplement that was distributed with all of the Hearst newspapers. It boasted the largest circulation of any newspaper section in the world. Finlay worked for the newspaper as a staff artist paid $80 a week and produced illustrations for the newspaper supplement. In late 1937, Finlay moved to New York City and studied art at night classes at the Mechanics Institute. Once in New York, he discovered that many pulp magazines were published there. He soon began doing illustrations for numerous science fiction and fantasy pulps such as: ASTOUNDING SCIENCE FICTION, ASTONISHING STORIES, STARTLING STORIES, THRILLING WONDER, PLANET STORIES, CAPTAIN FUTURE, and STRANGE STORIES.

Finlay married his high school sweetheart from Rochester, New York, Beverly Stiles, on November 16, 1938. They moved to Long Island where they raised their daughter, Lail.

In 1939, Arkham House published its first title, THE OUTSIDER AND OTHERS by H. P. Lovecraft. The dustjacket art is a montage of drawings for WEIRD TALES by Virgil Finlay.

During WWII, Finlay served in the U.S. Army as a combat engineer on Okinawa. After the war, he resumed his freelance art career by creating interior illustrations and cover paintings for FANTASTIC NOVELS, SUPER SCIENCE STORIES, THRILLING WONDER, and FAMOUS FANTASTIC MYSTERIES.

In the early 1950s, the collapse of a major magazine distributor in the United States sent many publishers into bankruptcy. Paperback books that did not contain interior illustrations were replacing the pulp magazines. As a result, Finlay found many of his markets drying up. He continued to do both interiors and covers for the digest science fiction magazines, IF, AMAZING STORIES, FANTASTIC UNIVERSE, GALAXY, and others. He also found a new market in the astrology publications; ASTROLOGY, YOUR DAILY HOROSCOPE and EVERYWOMAN’S DAILY HOROSCOPE. He also fulfilled a lifelong dream and had a few gallery shows.

In the 1960s, many Finlay illustrations were republished for the Health Knowledge Inc. digest magazine line, MAGAZINE OF HORROR and STARTLING MYSTERY STORIES. Finlay’s interior illustration for “Pigeons from Hell” appeared on the cover of MAGAZINE OF HORROR #21 which reprinted Howard’s “Kings of the Night.”

MAGAZINE OF HORROR #18 features “Out of the Deep” by Robert E. Howard. The cover illustration by Finlay features a skeleton in armor standing in the surf and was originally published in WEIRD TALES (June 1938) to illustrate “The Skeleton in Armor (excerpt),” a poem by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow. In Howard’s story it is the corpse of Adam Falcon that is washed up by the sea and eventually becomes reanimated. There is no skeleton or armor, but this was the first appearance of the story and with just the story title to go by, this illustration seems to be a fit.

MAGAZINE OF HORROR #22 features “Worms of the Earth” by Robert E. Howard. The cover illustration by Finlay was originally published in FANTASTIC STORIES (November 1963) to illustrate “Witch of the Four Winds,” Part 1 of a Brak the Barbarian story by John Jakes. The cover illustration by Finlay features a worm like creature which was possibly intended to represent the Howard tale.

Finaly also wrote poetry throughout his life, but it has only been published posthumously.

In 1970, Finlay learned that he had cancer. He died on January 18, 1971, at age 56. After his passing, it was determined that lung cancer was the exact cause of death.

Virgil Finlay/Robert E. Howard Checklist (Initial appearances only)

Popular Fiction Publishing Company

Weird Tales (February 1937)
Interior illustration for “Dig Me No Grave”

Weird Tales (May 1938)
Interior illustration for “Pigeons from Hell”

Weird Tales (May 1939)
Interior illustrations for “Almuric” Part 1

Weird Tales (June-July 1939)
Interior illustration for “Almuric” Part 2

Weird Tales (August 1939)
Interior illustration for “Almuric” Part 3

Popular Publications
Famous Fantastic Mysteries (December 1952)
Interior illustrations for “Skull-Face”

Famous Fantastic Mysteries (June 1953)
Interior illustration for “Worms of the Earth”

Digest Magazines that featured Robert E. Howard with art by Virgil Finlay

Health Knowledge
Magazine of Horror #18 (“Out of the Deep”)
Magazine of Horror #21 (“Kings of the Night”)
Magazine of Horror #22 (“Worms of the Earth”)

Robert E. Howard Fanzine

Dennis McHaney
The Howard Review #9

Anthologies with Virgil Finlay covers that featured Robert E. Howard

Centaur Press
Swordsmen and Superman (“Meet Cap’n Kidd”)

Pyramid
Weird Tales ((“Pigeons from Hell”)
Worlds of Weird (“The Valley of the Worm”)
Swords & Sorcery (“Shadows in the Moonlight”)
The Spell of Seven (“Shadows in Zamboula”)

References:
The Collectors’ Book of Virgil Finlay
Pulpart.com
societyillustrators.org

All art copyright Virgil Finlay and the respective owners.

Weird Tales (May 1938)
Interior illustration for “Pigeons from Hell”