Ray Russell (September 4, 1924 – March 15, 1999) was an American editor and writer of short stories, novels, and screenplays. Russell is best known for his horror fiction, although he also wrote mystery and science fiction stories. His most famous short fiction is "Sardonicus", which appeared in the January 1961 issue of ''

Playboy ''Playboy'' (stylized in all caps) is an American men's Lifestyle journalism, lifestyle and entertainment magazine, available both online and in print. It was founded in Chicago in 1953 by Hugh Hefner and his associates, funded in part by a $ ...

'' magazine, and was subsequently adapted by Russell into a screenplay for

William Castle William Castle (born William Schloss Jr.; April 24, 1914 – May 31, 1977) was an American film director, producer, screenwriter, and actor. He is known for the horror film, horror and thriller film, thriller B movie, B-movies he directed durin ...

's film version, titled '' Mr. Sardonicus''. American writer

Stephen King Stephen Edwin King (born September 21, 1947) is an American author. Dubbed the "King of Horror", he is widely known for his horror novels and has also explored other genres, among them Thriller (genre), suspense, crime fiction, crime, scienc ...

called "Sardonicus" "perhaps the finest example of the modern gothic ever written". "Sardonicus" was part of a trio of stories with "Sanguinarius" and "Sagittarius".

Early life

Born in

Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

,Morgan, Chris. "Russell, Ray (Robert)" in Pringle, David. 1998. ''St. James Guide to Horror, Ghost & Gothic Writers''. Detroit, MI: St. James Press, (p.494-6). Russell served in the U.S. Air Force in the South Pacific from 1943 to 1946, after which he studied at the Chicago Conservatory of Music and the Goodman Memorial Institute. Prior to becoming a writer, Russell worked for the

United States Treasury The Department of the Treasury (USDT) is the national treasury and finance department of the federal government of the United States. It is one of 15 current U.S. government departments. The department oversees the Bureau of Engraving and ...

Writing career

Russell's first novel was ''The Case Against Satan'' (1962), about a young girl possessed by a demon. It was published almost a decade before a more famous novel with a similar plot, ''

The Exorcist ''The Exorcist'' is a 1973 American supernatural horror film directed by William Friedkin from a screenplay by William Peter Blatty, based on The Exorcist (novel), his 1971 novel. The film stars Ellen Burstyn, Max von Sydow, Jason Miller (play ...

'' by

William Peter Blatty William Peter Blatty (January 7, 1928 – January 12, 2017) was an American writer, director and producer. He is best known for his 1971 novel ''The Exorcist (novel), The Exorcist'' and for his screenplay for The Exorcist, the 1973 film adaptat ...

Darrell Schweitzer Darrell Charles Schweitzer (born August 27, 1952) is an American writer, editor, and critic in the field of speculative fiction. Much of his focus has been on dark fantasy and horror, although he does also work in science fiction and fantasy. ...

, "The Devil" in S. T. Joshi, ed., ''Icons of Horror and the Supernatural: an Encyclopedia of our Worst Nightmares'' (Greenwood, 2007), (p. 161-186)

described ''The Case Against Satan'' as "a Catholic '' Turn of the Screw''" and said the novel "succeeded brilliantly" in making the concept of the Devil frightening to modern readers. In the 1950s, Russell began working for ''

'' magazine as a fiction editor. In this capacity Russell published a large amount of science fiction, fantasy and horror in the magazine; Russell also encouraged and promoted the fiction of Charles Beaumont. He also contributed to the '' Paris Review''. In 1961, Russell wrote his first screenplay, '' Mr. Sardonicus''—based on his own short story—for director

. He would write several other screenplays over the next five years, including ''

Zotz! ''Zotz!'' is a 1962 American fantasy comedy film produced and directed by William Castle, and starring Tom Poston, Julia Meade, Jim Backus, Fred Clark, and Cecil Kellaway. It is about a man obtaining magical powers from a god of an ancien ...

'' (1962), also for Castle. For

Roger Corman Roger William Corman (April 5, 1926 – May 9, 2024) was an American film director, producer, and actor. Known under various monikers such as "The Pope of Pop Cinema", "The Spiritual Godfather of the New Hollywood", and "The King of Cult", he w ...

he wrote the screenplays for '' The Premature Burial'' (1962) and '' X'' (1963)—the former of which was based on the

Edgar Allan Poe Edgar Allan Poe (; January 19, 1809 – October 7, 1849) was an American writer, poet, editor, and literary critic who is best known for his poetry and short stories, particularly his tales involving mystery and the macabre. He is widely re ...

short story. In 1976, he published ''Incubus'', a horror novel about a creature raping and murdering young women in a small town. He would adapt the novel for the 1982 film of the same name, directed by John Hough and starring

John Cassavetes John Nicholas Cassavetes (December 9, 1929 – February 3, 1989) was an American filmmaker and actor. He began as an actor in film and television before helping to pioneer modern American independent cinema as a writer and director, often self- ...

Death

Russell died of complications resulting from a

stroke Stroke is a medical condition in which poor cerebral circulation, blood flow to a part of the brain causes cell death. There are two main types of stroke: brain ischemia, ischemic, due to lack of blood flow, and intracranial hemorrhage, hemor ...

at a nursing home in

Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

, California on March 15, 1999. He was survived by his wife, Ada Szczepanski, and their two children.

Accolades

In 1991 Russell received the

World Fantasy Award The World Fantasy Awards are a set of awards given each year for the best fantasy fiction published during the previous calendar year. Organized and overseen by the World Fantasy Convention, the awards are given each year at the eponymous ann ...

for Lifetime Achievement.

Bibliography

Books

* ''Sardonicus and Other Stories'' (1961) * ''The Case Against Satan'' (1962) * ''Unholy Trinity'' (1964) * ''The Little Lexicon of Love'' (1966) * ''The Colony'' (1969) * ''Sagittarius'' (Playboy Science Fiction/Fantasy, 1971) * ''Prince of Darkness'' (1971) * ''

Incubus An Incubus () is a demon, male demon in human form in folklore that seeks to have Sexuality in Christian demonology, sexual intercourse with sleeping women; the corresponding spirit in female form is called a succubus. Parallels exist in many c ...

'' (1976) * ''Holy Horatio!'' (1976) * ''Princess Pamela'' (1979) * ''The Devil's Mirror'' (1980) * ''The Book of Hell'' (1980) * ''The Bishop's Daughter'' (1981) * ''Haunted Castles: The Complete Gothic Tales of Ray Russell'' (1985) * ''Absolute Power'' (1992)

Short stories

Poetry

*''The Night Sound'' (1987)

Screenplays

*'' Mr. Sardonicus'' (1961) (adapted from his novella) *'' The Premature Burial'' (1962) *''

'' (1962) *'' The Horror of It All'' (1963) *'' X'' (1963) *'' Chamber of Horrors'' (1966) (story only) *'' The Incubus'' (1982) (adapted from his novel)

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Russell, Ray 1924 births 1999 deaths American horror writers American male screenwriters American mystery writers American science fiction writers Writers of Gothic fiction World Fantasy Award–winning writers 20th-century American male writers 20th-century American screenwriters