Fritz Leiber

(December 24, 1910 – September 5, 1992)

Fritz Leiber was a writer of fantasy, horror and sf. He was also a port, actor, chess player and a champion fencer. He is one of the rare pros to have been a Worldcon goh twice, at Nolacon in 1951 and Seacon '79.

While a pro, he had a long and close relationship with fandom. He was a member of the Hyborian Legion and of LASFS, an attendee at Centracon, and a contributor to Vorpal Glass and Amra. He was also one of the leaders of the Chicago: 1959 Worldcon bid.

He acted in the title role of a fannish fantasy film by Unicorn Productions, The Genie, in 1959, and helped compose at least one fannish musical.

His first professional sale was to Unknown, and he contributed to the Lovecraft mythos. His most famous creations were the characters Fafhrd and the Grey Mouser. Leiber was a founding member of the Swordsmen and Sorcerers' Guild of America and coined the term Sword and Sorcery.

In 1962, Chicon III presented a special committee award to him and Hoffman Electronic Corporation for the use of SF in advertisements.

He married Jonquil Stephens, an English-born poet, on January 16, 1936. She was the inspiration for Conjure Wife and he put together a chapbook of poems he had written to her, Sonnets to Jonquil and All (Roy A. Squires, publisher), in 1978. They had one child, Justin Leiber, who also wrote sf. Jonquil’s death in 1969 inspired Our Lady of Darkness. In 1992, the last year of his life, Leiber married his companion of 20 years, Margo Skinner (April 13, 1921–January 13, 1993), a journalist and poet.

He left some papers to the University of Houston, part of which form the Fritz Leiber Science Fiction & Fantasy Convention Flyers & Programs Collection. Other papers are at Lilly Library of Indiana University.

• Entry in The Encyclopedia of Science Fiction.
• Fantasy Commentator 57/58 (2004) contains critical essays on Leiber's work, together with three poems by Leiber: "Challenge", "Ghosts" and "The Grey Mouser".
• "Special Fritz Leiber Issue" of The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction (July 1969).
• Video of Fritz Leiber talking about monsters at Pacificon II.
• “The Genie”.
• Obituary in The Independent.

Awards, Honors and GoHships:

• 1951 -- Nolacon
• 1958 -- Best Novel or Novelette Hugo
• 1961 -- Baycon
• 1962 -- Special committee award from Chicon III
• 1965 -- Best Novel Hugo
• 1966 -- Knight of St. Fantony
• 1967 -- Forry Award
• 1968 -- Best Novelette Hugo
• 1970 -- Best Novella Hugo
• 1971 -- Best Novella Hugo
• 1975 -- Gandalf Award
• 1976 -- Best Short Story Hugo, World Fantasy Award for Life Achievement
• 1978 -- 4th World Fantasy Convention
• 1979 -- Seacon '79, The Fantasy Symposium
• 1980 -- OryCon '80
• 1981 -- (Coveted) Balrog Award, SFWA Grand Master Award
• 1983 -- Moscon V
• 1988 -- Bram Stoker Award for Lifetime Achievement
• 1989 -- Minicon 24
• 1992 -- Rhinocon 2
• 2001 -- Science Fiction and Fantasy Hall of Fame
• 2011 -- Posthumous GoH at FOGcon 1
• 2019 -- 1944 Best Novel Retro Hugo
• 2020 -- 1945 Best Fan Writer Retro Hugo
• Eight more Hugo nominations

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Person

1910—1992

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