Fritz Leiber

American novelist and short fiction writer.

  • Born: December 24, 1910
  • Birthplace: Chicago, Illinois
  • Died: September 5, 1992
  • Place of death: San Francisco, California

Biography

Fritz Leiber, Jr., was born on Christmas Eve, 1910, in Chicago, Illinois, the only child of Fritz Leiber and Virginia (Bronson) Leiber, both Shakespearean actors. Leiber’s consequent background in the theater became an important influence in his fiction, and several of his novels are almost dramatic in their presentation (indeed, one, The Big Time, was adapted into a play).

Leiber grew up in various areas of the country as his parents toured, but spent the largest amount of time in Chicago. While touring with his parents’ company, he learned to play chess, a game at which he became almost too proficient, later blaming his devotion to it for getting in the way of his writing at times. He became a devoted fan of Hugo Gernsback’s Amazing Stories. He attended the University of Chicago, graduating with a bachelor of philosophy degree in 1932.

He was persuaded into attending the General Theological Seminary in the same year, and spent five months in New Jersey as lay reader and minister. Lacking any deep vocation, Leiber then turned to acting with his parents’ company, and ended up with a bit part in Camille with Greta Garbo (1936). During this time he married Jonquil Stephens, a British-born poet; they had one son, Justin, who became a writer as well. He also became friends with Harry Fischer, a Kentucky writer with whom Leiber invented what proved to be his most famous creations, the sword- and-sorcery duo of Fafhrd and the Grey Mouser.

After his acting career failed, Leiber worked as an editor for a Chicago publisher and as a drama teacher in Los Angeles, becoming a precision inspector during the war in Santa Monica, California. By this time, Leiber’s writing career had begun, chiefly in the horror field, with sales to John W. Campbell’s Unknown magazine. His most important longer works of this period include Conjure Wife, his most adapted work (the best adaptation being the 1962 film Burn Witch Burn), about witches who are the actual creators of their husbands’ successes, and Gather, Darkness!, in which a future rebellion against a theocratic state is fueled by seeming magic that is actually technology. That it was initially published in Campbell’s Astounding Science Fiction reveals its science-fiction underpinnings. Leiber was already showing his adeptness at moving between subgenres and often intermixing them.

Leiber’s last full-time day job was as associate editor for Science Digest; he became a full-time author in 1956. Fallow periods in Leiber’s writing career led to speculation about conflicts with various editors, but the more probable cause was Leiber’s alcoholism. Leiber became an award-winning writer; he was eventually to win six Hugo Awards and three Nebulas, as well as a Grand Master award for his science fiction and the World Fantasy Life Award. Leiber’s wife died in 1969, and he married Margo Skinner in 1992, three and a half months before his death. Leiber’s consummate skill in three subgenres may have diminished his overall reputation, but his standing with those who love imagination, inventiveness, wit, and style will always remain high.

Author Works

Long Fiction:

Conjure Wife, 1943

Gather, Darkness!, 1943

Destiny Times Three, 1945

The Sinful Ones, 1953 (also known as You’re All Alone)

The Green Millennium, 1953

The Big Time, 1957

The Silver Eggheads, 1961

The Wanderer, 1964

Tarzan and the Valley of Gold, 1966

A Specter Is Haunting Texas, 1968

The Swords of Lankhmar, 1968

Our Lady of Darkness, 1977

Rime Isle, 1977

The Dealings of Daniel Kesserich, 1997

Short Fiction:

Night's Black Agents, 1947

Two Sought Adventure, 1957

The Mind Spider, and Other Stories, 1961

Shadows with Eyes, 1962

A Pail of Air, 1964

Ships to the Stars, 1964

The Night of the Wolf, 1966

Swords Against Wizardry, 1968

Swords in the Mist, 1968

The Secret Songs, 1968

Night Monsters, 1969

Swords and Deviltry, 1970

Swords Against Death, 1970

The Book of Fritz Leiber, 1974

The Best of Fritz Leiber, 1974

The Second Book of Fritz Leiber, 1975

The Worlds of Fritz Leiber, 1976

Swords and Ice Magic, 1977

Heroes and Horrors, 1978

Bazaar of the Bizarre, 1978

Ship of Shadows, 1979

Ervool, 1980

The Mystery of the Japanese Clock, 1982

Changewar, 1983

The Ghost Light, 1984

The Knight and Knave of Swords, 1988 (also known as Farewell to Lankhmar)

The Leiber Chronicles: Fifty Years of Fritz Leiber, 1990

Gummitch and Friends, 1992

Ill Met in Lankhmar, 1995

Lean Times in Lankhmar, 1996

Return to Lankhmar, 1997

Dark Ladies, 1999

The Black Gondolier, 2000

Smoke Ghost and Other Apparitions, 2002

Day Dark, Night Bright, 2002

Horrible Imaginings, 2004

Strange Wonders, 2010

Bibliography

Bleiler, Richard. Science Fiction Writers: Critical Studies of the Major Authors from the Early Nineteenth Century to the Present Day. 2nd ed, Scribner's Sons, 1999. Includes discussion of Leiber as one of the most important authors in twentieth century science fiction and fantasy.

Clute, John. "Obituary: Fritz Leiber." Independent, 13 Sept. 1992, www.independent.co.uk/news/people/obituary-fritz-leiber-1551326.html. Accessed 27 June 2017. This obituary of Leiber provides an overview of his life and career while discussing his major works and influence on fantasy and science fiction.

Gioia, Ted. "Fritz Leiber at One Hundred." Conceptual Fiction, 13 Feb. 2011, www.conceptualfiction.com/fritz‗leiber.html. Accessed 27 June 2017. Discusses Leiber's legacy, suggesting that his lasting influence on the sword-and-sorcery subgenre makes his catalog worth more consideration from readers and critics.

Szumskyj, Benjamin. Fritz Lieber: Critical Essays. McFarland, 2008. Provides academic examination of Leiber's life and works, including recurring themes, influences, and comparison with horror writer H. P. Lovecraft.

Szumskyj, Benjamin, and S. T. Joshi. Fritz Leiber and H. P. Lovecraft: Writers of the Dark. Wildside Press, 2004. Compares and contrasts Leiber and Lovecraft, offering critical analysis of their works and styles.