Leslie Noel Daniels III, better known as Les Daniels (October 27, 1943 – November 5, 2011), was an American writer.

Background

Providence, Rhode Island Providence is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Rhode Island. One of the oldest cities in New England, it was founded in 1636 by Roger Williams, a Reformed Baptist theologian and religious exile from the Massachusetts ...

, where he wrote his master's thesis on ''

Frankenstein ''Frankenstein; or, The Modern Prometheus'' is an 1818 novel written by English author Mary Shelley. ''Frankenstein'' tells the story of Victor Frankenstein, a young scientist who creates a sapient creature in an unorthodox scientific ...

'', and he worked as a musician and as a journalist.

Career

He was the author of five novels featuring the

vampire A vampire is a mythical creature that subsists by feeding on the vital essence (generally in the form of blood) of the living. In European folklore, vampires are undead creatures that often visited loved ones and caused mischief or deat ...

Don Sebastian de Villanueva, a cynical, amoral and

misanthropic Misanthropy is the general hatred, dislike, distrust or contempt of the human species, human behavior or human nature. A misanthrope or misanthropist is someone who holds such views or feelings. The word's origin is from the Greek words μῖσ ...

Spanish nobleman whose predatory appetites pale into insignificance compared with the historical catastrophes which he witnesses in his periodic

reincarnation Reincarnation, also known as rebirth or transmigration, is the philosophical or religious concept that the non-physical essence of a living being begins a new life in a different physical form or body after biological death. Resurrection is ...

s. These include: the

Spanish Inquisition The Tribunal of the Holy Office of the Inquisition ( es, Tribunal del Santo Oficio de la Inquisición), commonly known as the Spanish Inquisition ( es, Inquisición española), was established in 1478 by the Catholic Monarchs, King Ferdinand ...

in ''The Black Castle'' (1978); the Spanish conquest of the Aztecs in ''The Silver Skull'' (1979); and the

French Revolution The French Revolution ( ) was a period of radical political and societal change in France that began with the Estates General of 1789 and ended with the formation of the French Consulate in coup of 18 Brumaire, November 1799. Many of its ...

's Reign of Terror in ''Citizen Vampire'' (1981). In the later novels ''Yellow Fog'' (1986, revised 1988) and ''No Blood Spilled'' (1991), Sebastian is resurrected in Victorian London and

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

, where the horror of his vampirism is again contrasted with non-supernatural evil, now in the person of Sebastian's human enemy, Reginald Callender. A sixth (and presumably final) Don Sebastian novel set in

Tibet Tibet (; ''Böd''; ) is a region in East Asia, covering much of the Tibetan Plateau and spanning about . It is the traditional homeland of the Tibetan people. Also resident on the plateau are some other ethnic groups such as Monpa, Taman ...

and entitled ''White Demon'' was planned and is advertised by some sources as being available for purchase, but in fact was never completed: Daniels had begun writing it before abandoning it due to the demands of his non-fiction projects and was told when able to resume that his publisher had lost interest. Daniels also worked with the historical fiction genre. ''The Black Castle'' features appearances by Torquemada and

Columbus Columbus is a Latinized version of the Italian surname "''Colombo''". It most commonly refers to: * Christopher Columbus (1451-1506), the Italian explorer * Columbus, Ohio, capital of the U.S. state of Ohio Columbus may also refer to: Places ...

; in ''The Silver Skull'' Sebastian confronts Hernán Cortés; in ''Citizen Vampire'' he has a couple of friendly encounters with the Marquis de Sade; and

Madame Tussaud Anna Maria "Marie" Tussaud (; née Grosholtz; 1 December 1761 – 16 April 1850) was a French artist known for her wax sculptures and Madame Tussauds, the wax museum she founded in London. Biography Marie Tussaud was born 1 December 1761 in S ...

makes an appearance in ''Yellow Fog''. Daniels described his works as "tragedy, in which evil consumes itself", as opposed to the melodrama of most contemporary horror novels, in which "customarily good guys meet bad guys and win in two out of three falls". He cited Robert Bloch as an influence on his sardonic style, and was an enthusiast of the works of

John Dickson Carr John Dickson Carr (November 30, 1906 – February 27, 1977) was an American author of detective stories, who also published using the pseudonyms Carter Dickson, Carr Dickson, and Roger Fairbairn. He lived in England for a number of years, and is ...

, who in several of his own works combined historical fiction with horror and the detective story. Daniels was also the author of ''Comix: A History of Comic Books in America'' (Dutton, 1971) — with illustrations by the

Mad Peck John PeckBerke, Ben"Providence's Mad Peck receives little recognition, and wants even less: Counterculture artist, archivist's job description falls somewhere between 'renaissance man' and 'hustler,'"''Providence Journal'' (Oct 20, 2016).l a.k.a. ...

— and ''Living in Fear: A History of Horror in the Mass Media'' (1975). According to Daniels, at the time he wrote ''Comix'', "there was very little literature on the subject and, in fact, there was very little being produced by

fandom A fandom is a subculture composed of fans characterized by a feeling of empathy and camaraderie with others who share a common interest. Fans typically are interested in even minor details of the objects of their fandom and spend a significant ...

. It was an attempt to say, 'Look, here's what has been done in the medium.' I didn't sit down and talk to creators at great length or anything like that." Both ''Comix'' and the more extensively researched ''Five Fabulous Decades of the World's Greatest Comics – Marvel'' (1991) were written with a general audience in mind, in the hopes of educating both comic book fans and those unfamiliar with the medium.

Fiction

Don Sebastian de Villanueva

*''The Black Castle'' (1978) *''The Silver Skull'' (1979) *''Citizen Vampire'' (1981) *'' Yellow Fog'' (1986; revised and expanded edition 1988) *'' No Blood Spilled'' (1991) *''White Demon'' (begun circa 1991 but never completed) An unabridged audio-book recording of ''The Black Castle'' was released by Crossroad Press in 2018.

Non-fiction

*''Comix: A History of Comic Books in America'' 198 pages, 1971,

Random House Random House is an American book publisher and the largest general-interest paperback publisher in the world. The company has several independently managed subsidiaries around the world. It is part of Penguin Random House, which is owned by Germ ...

, *''Living in Fear: A History of Horror in the Mass Media'', 248 pages, 1975,

Charles Scribner's Sons Charles Scribner's Sons, or simply Scribner's or Scribner, is an American publisher based in New York City, known for publishing American authors including Henry James, Ernest Hemingway, F. Scott Fitzgerald, Kurt Vonnegut, Marjorie Kinnan R ...

, *''

Marvel Marvel may refer to: Business * Marvel Entertainment, an American entertainment company ** Marvel Comics, the primary imprint of Marvel Entertainment ** Marvel Universe, a fictional shared universe ** Marvel Music, an imprint of Marvel Comics * ...

: Five Fabulous Decades of the World's Greatest Comics'', 287 pages, 1991, Harry N. Abrams, *'' DC Comics: Sixty Years of the World's Favorite Comic Book Heroes'', 256 pages, 1995, Bulfinch, *'' Superman, the Complete History: The Life and Times of the Man of Steel'', 192 pages, 1998, Chronicle Books, *''Superman: Masterpiece Edition'', 96 pages, 1999, Chronicle Books, *'' Batman The Complete History: The Life and Times of the Dark Knight'', 208 pages, 1999, Chronicle Books, *''The Batman Masterpiece Edition: The Caped Crusader's Golden Age'', 96 pages, 2000, Chronicle Books, *''

Wonder Woman Wonder Woman is a superhero created by the American psychologist and writer William Moulton Marston (pen name: Charles Moulton), and artist Harry G. Peter. Marston's wife, Elizabeth Holloway Marston, Elizabeth, and their life partner, Olive Byr ...

: The Complete History'', 96 pages, 2000, Chronicle Books, *''Wonder Woman: The Golden Age'', 80 pages, 2001, Chronicle Books, *'' The Golden Age of DC Comics: 365 Days'', 744 pages, 2004, Harry N. Abrams,

As editor

*''Thirteen Tales of Terror'' (1971; with Diane Thompson) *''Fear'' (1975) *''Dying of Fright: Masterpieces of the Macabre'' (1976)

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Daniels, Les 1943 births 2011 deaths American horror writers Comics critics Brown University alumni