Olive Robb

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Olive Robb was a UK fan from Liverpool active in the 1930s. She is only known for a debate with E. E. Smith in the letter column of Amazing Stories.

Robb's letter to Amazing Stories was published in the March 1932 issue, taking issue with Smith and to a lesser extent John W. Campbell. Campbell did not respond but Smith did. The exchange continued until January 1933 during which time Robb moved to Bradford.

In The Fantast #3 (June 1939) 'Fantacynic' still recalled the exchange where:

Miss Olive Robb had that delightful duel with E. E. Smith over his use of slang

He also wondered if she was related to Osmond Robb.

In Futurist #1 (Spring 1950), Arthur Louis Joquel II wrote about 'Letter Hacks of the Dawn' including:

an English girl, Miss Olive Robb, [who] took 'Doc' Smith to task about his use of the English language. She took an incidental swing at John W. Campbell, Jr., too. The latter more or less ignored her, but EFSPhd wrote an immediate answer; two months later, Miss Robb again popped in; 'Doc' answered, but Miss Robb got the last word.

In Astounding Wonder: Imagining Science and Science Fiction in Interwar America, John Cheng said that the 'Robb-Smith Controversy':

... was notable not only for its duration but also because the exchange became the subject of discussions. Readers wrote letters taking sides in the matter, and with each successive month the controversy involved more and more readers and letters.

Sadly, there is no evidence that Olive Robb had any direct interaction with nascent British fandom.

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Person

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