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BARBARIANS
AT THE CITY LIMITS
Arnold is from
Austria -
Conan is from Cross
Plains, Texas
by Brewster Hudspeth |
Robert
the Reclusive
Robert E. Howard, creator of Conan the Barbarian
moved to Cross
Plains in 1919. It was while in Cross Plains he started writing for
pulp magazines for a penny a word. His first story was sold when he was 18 and
he died only 12 years later at the age of 30.
Robert was cursed with
an easily forgettable name. Even if he had been named something exotic, say "Conan"
for example - it wouldn't have helped him make friends since his strange behavior
prevented that. His neighbors never quite knew what to make of a handsome young
man who sometimes wore Mexican sombreros on his way to the store. This just wasn't
done in Cross
Plains. |
His father was a doctor and his mother was devoted to her only child. Robert had
the build and look of a fighter but the melancholy loneliness of a poet. No one
knows how this tiny town so far from exotic places (unless you count Abilene)
inspired young Robert to write such vivid fantasy. It's possible that Cross Plains
didn't inspire him at all - that his drive came from the fact that other boys
his age were picking cotton.
After reading everything in the town's
small library, Robert (allegedly) entered the libraries of neighboring towns and
took books without a valid library card. This was done without regard to hours
of operation and was frowned upon by law enforcement; but since the books were
always returned, no one pressed charges. (Librarians in the old days used to like
to hush things up).
The pennies he earned for his words added up to a
respectable income - when you consider how hard times were. He made $2,000 in
1936 alone, which allowed him to pay cash for his car - the nicest in town. The
millions made on his characters were made by people who never knew him. They were
not even family members, but people who had simply inherited the material.
After reaching adulthood, he had a romantic interest in a former teacher.
It was a mutual attraction, but Robert's mother stood in the way - sometimes literally
- by sending the woman away when she called. Mrs. Howard discouraged any contact,
although she was very supportive of Robert's work.
The woman, Novalyne
Price Ellis moved to Louisiana where she taught school for many years. She
wrote about Howard in her 1986 book He Who Walks Alone. The book
was made into the 1996 movie The Whole Wide World. |
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The
Weird Works Of Robert E. Howard ... | |
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Conan
- The Complete Quest | |
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Death
at 30
For all the killing and mayhem in his pulp adventures,
Robert was extremely sensitive. When his beloved dog was dying, Robert left town
- returning only after the animal had died. This inability to accept death contributed
to his suicide. After learning his mother had slipped into a coma, he went to
his car, got his gun from the glove compartment and shot himself in the head.
His mother died the following day and both were buried in nearby Brownwood.
The name Conan (after becoming an international household word) has
returned home to Cross Plains. After many years, the old Howard home was bought,
painted, furnished with period furniture and put on display as the home of Conan's
creator in 1991 - the same year the Howard Festival was started.
Cross Plains has also instituted a Barbarian Festival held in Treadaway
Park each Labor Day weekend. 2001 will be their third.
©
John Troesser
August
2001
Our thanks to Bobbye Hinkle of the Cross Plains Library for generously
sharing her knowledge of Cross Plains and details of Robert Howard's life |
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Books
by Robert E. Howard - Order from Amazon.com |
| The
Coming of Conan the Cimmerian | |
|
| The
Savage Tales of Solomon Kane | |
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More
on Conan's Father,
Gunsmoke's Sam the Bartender,
and life in Cross Cut
and Cross Plains, Texas |
Letter from Norris Chambers, former citizen of Cross
Cut, Texas. Norris knew Robert Howard and typed many of the Conan stories.
He also wrote a few of his own. We were fortunate to have Mr. Chambers write us.
The following is Mr. Chamber's second letter:
"... I have had
interviews from several writers in the past few years. It is amazing how the interest
in Robert's stories continues. A writer from Paris, France came last week.
Dr. Howard, Robert's father, was a regular visitor at our house. Robert came
with him occasionally. My father was a doctor in the late 1800's and early 1900's
and was a friend of Dr. Howard. My father had a drug store in Cross Cut and lived
next door to Dr. Howard in that town. Later Dr. Howard moved to Cross Plains and
my dad started farming. (After his drug store burned). This was before my time
- I was born in 1917.
We visited the Howards in Cross Plains many times
during the late 20's and early 30's. I stayed with Dr. Howard for two weeks and
helped him get Robert's things in order and write Robert's friends and associates
about the tragedy. My brother and sister, who were much older than I, knew Robert
as a boy. Robert was about ten years older than I. My mother and Mrs. Howard were
good friends.
John Limmer wrote a history of Cross Cut and he quotes
Louise Newton, wife of Ross Newton, saying this about Robert: "Ross played with
Robert Howard, Conan author. He told her Robert was weird even then and he was
a little afraid of him as he was making up queer stories - way back then. Dr.
Howard, Robert's father, wasn't happy about the stories his son wrote. Dr. Howard
delivered most of the babies in town." Ross Newton was the youngest son of pioneer
Jim Newton.
You have a very interesting site.... I happened across it
when looking for articles on Cross Cut. Found some pretty interesting things about
the old town. Its closest call to fame, other than Robert, was Glen Strange
and Curtis McPeters, who left Cross Cut in the late twenties and worked
in the movies. They came back in about 1928 and did a program at the school. They
had a band in Arizona and later got in the movies. Glen was Sam the bartender
in Gunsmoke in later years. He also did a Frankenstein. McPeters was Cactus Mack
and did 167 bit parts in old westerns. They were cousins and were part of the
Byrd family.
When Lake Brownwood was built and it closed the road to
Brownwood, a new road was built farther west. It was not paved until after the
war. The road by-passed Cross Cut and left it further isolated. The main road
originally was the main street of the little town. ..... - Norris Chambers
More on
Robert E. Howard > |
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