Robert Bloch

(April 5, 1917 – September 23, 1994)

Robert Bloch was a major early fan and one of the people responsible for creating modern fandom. He also — very successfully — turned pro. He is best known for his 1959 novel Psycho, which became the Alfred Hitchcock film of the same name.

He was born in Milwaukee and in 1935 joined the Milwaukee Fictioneers. He was an early and active member of Wisconsin Fandom and Midwest fandom before moving to LA around 1960. He was a member of FAPA and Vanguard.

Bloch was one of the earliest pros to go on the Auction Bloch. He railed against the Beanie Brigade. He wrote for a large number of fanzines and some of his best fan writing was collected in The Eighth Stage of Fandom, published in 1962 by Advent:Publishers. He was a perennial member of a poker game, at one installment of which he won Marty Greenberg's shirt.

Unfortunately for fandom, after about 1960 he became so immersed in his professional career (see Vile Pro) that he had little time for fanac, though he never forgot his fannish roots. He was a frequent Worldcon toastmaster, Hugo presenter, or foil for his friends Isaac Asimov and Bob Tucker. He was heavily influenced by H. P. Lovecraft and was a member of the Lovecraft Circle.

His autobiography, Once Around the Bloch: An Unauthorized Autobiography (1993), a glimpse of his writing career, from his correspondence with H. P. Lovecraft to his screen-writing career. Anecdotes recounted include ones about Ray Bradbury and Boris Karloff. It received a 1994 Best Non-Fiction Book Hugo nomination.

Bloch was married twice, to Marion Holcombe (1940–63), with whom he had a daughter, Sally Ann (who was briefly married to E. J. Gold), and later to Eleanor Alexander, whom he married in 1964.

• Portrait of Robert Bloch: Toilet and Rose, one of many at the Wisconsin Historical Society.
• Short description of Bloch in 1954 by Peter Vorzimer in Abstract #8 p. 62.

Fanzines and Apazines:

• The Birth of a Notion (a fannish play)
• Chips [1954] (with Dean Grennell)
• Is Science Fiction in a Rut?
• Lagniappe
• Neo Fan's Guide
• Science Fiction Fifty Yearly (for FAPA).
• The Science-Fiction World [1955-57] (with Bob Tucker)

Awards, Honors and GoHships:

• 1948 -- Torcon 1
• 1959 -- 1959 Best Short Story Hugo for "That Hell-Bound Train"
• 1960 -- Big Heart Award
• 1973 -- Torcon 2
• 1974 -- Forry Award
• 1975 -- BYOB-Con 5, 1st World Fantasy Convention
• 1977 -- Clayton Con
• 1978 -- Loscon 5, Lunacon 21, Rivercon IV, Fantasy Faire VIII, Coscon 5, 1978 Best Dramatic Presentation Hugo nominee
• 1979 -- Unicon 5
• 1980 -- Archon 4
• 1981 -- Cinecon
• 1982 -- TusCon 9, Archon 6
• 1983 -- World Fantasy Convention 1983
• 1984 -- Special Committee Award at LAcon II for 50 years as an SF professional
• 1985 -- Tropicon 4, VCON 13, Necronomicon '85
• 1986 -- Boskone 23, TusCon 13
• 1987 -- DeepSouthCon 25
• 1989 -- MileHiCon 21, OKon 12
• 1990 -- 16th World Fantasy Convention
• 1992 -- Rhinocon 2, Arcana 22
• 1993 -- NecronomiCon, 1st Edition
• 1994 -- 1994 Best Non-Fiction Book Hugo nominee for his autobiography, Once Around the Bloch: An Unauthorized Autobiography
• 2003 -- Torcon 3 (Ghost of Honor)

From Fancyclopedia 2, ca. 1959

The name of a vile pro. "Bloch is the Only True Ghod" was the gospel initiated by Vernon McCain, who received the Revelation in 1955 but, Bloch reports, was singularly lax in sacrificing any virgins. "Bloch is Superb" is the motto of Blochists; its popularity reached horrid heights when Dick Ellington had a rubber-stamp made with this phrase and Jack Harness had a set of pencils blazoned with the slogan. (To date no authenticated instances of tattooing have been uncovered.) This traces back to a letter in which Walt Willis was supposed to have suggested making up a rubber stamp with that legend, an obvious timesaver when commenting on any fanzine with Bloch material in it. But Dean Grennell, checking his back files, finds that in the original instance Willis' words were "Bloch was brilliant. (Will you makes me a rubber stamp for this?)" All fandom could be plunged into war [divided into two camps, the Superbists and the Brilliantinees] over a thing like this. In the mythology of congoing, Bloch, Korshak, Esbach and Evans were an inseparable fannish poker group; this idea was invented and popularized by Bob Tucker in 1952.

From Fancyclopedia 2 Supplement, ca. 1960

Dick Ellington's rubber stamp says "Bloch was superb", not "is".

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Person

1917—1994

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