I. O. Evans

(November 11, 1894 – February 13, 1977)

Idrisyn Oliver Evans was a British author and editor, born in South Africa. He wrote as I. O. Evans. He occasionally featured in the letter column of Weird Tales from 1937 and in addition to this and other writing for magazines he wrote non-fiction books on geology and astronomy. He was a member of the Science Fiction Association (SFA), joining in August 1937, and attended the Second British Convention in 1938 where he “gave an account of the evolution and development of science-fiction from the early folk-lore onwards” (Tomorrow #5).

On January 14, 1958 he gave a lecture at London’s Conway Hall on the subject “Science Fiction – a New Art Form?” attended by several London fans. Sandy Sanderson noted that Evans was “well-known to pre-war fans for contributions to Tales of Wonder and his editing of the one and only cigarette card series to feature the World of The Future – it even used art from s-f prozines”:

Most of the fan members of the audience had something to say during the questioning and the general discussion which concluded the evening, though all agreed afterwards that Evans couldn’t be faulted on knowledge of the field. When the meeting broke up the fans had a few words with Evans and Vince lent him Modern Science Fiction.

He is known in SF circles for editing and translating the works of Jules Verne.

Evans also edited two SF anthologies: Science Fiction Through the Ages 1 (1966) and Science Fiction Through the Ages 2 (1966).

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Person

1894—1977

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