David H. Keller

David H. Keller (full name David Henry Keller; December 23, 1880–July 13, 1966) was a writer for pulp magazines in the mid-twentieth century who wrote science fiction, fantasy and horror. He was the first psychiatrist to write for the genre, and was most often published as David H. Keller, MD, but also known by the pseudonyms Monk Smith, Matthew Smith, Amy Worth, Henry Cecil, Cecilia Henry, and Jacobus Hubelaire.

Keller was born in Philadelphia and graduated from the School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania in 1903. He served as a neuropsychiatrist in the U.S. Army Medical Corps during World Wars I and II, and was the Assistant Superintendent of the Louisiana State Mental Hospital at Pineville until Huey Long's reforms removed him from his position in 1928.

That same year, Keller would travel to New York City to meet with Hugo Gernsback, publisher of Amazing Stories, who had bought his first professionally published science fiction story, "The Revolt of the Pedestrians". Gernsback was impressed by Keller's quality of writing, unique insight, and ability to address sophisticated themes beyond the commonplace technological predictions or lurid alien encounters typically found in early pulp stories. He encouraged Keller's writing and would later call these distinctive short stories "Keller yarns".

In 1929, Gernsback founded the magazine Science Wonder Stories and not only published Keller's work in the first issue, but listed him as an Associate Science Editor. It was this issue of Science Wonder Stories that introduced the term "science fiction" to the world. This began an intense writing period for Keller, but he was unable to support his family solely on a writer's income and set up a small private psychiatric practice out of his home in Stroudsburg, Pennsylvania.

Keller's work often expressed strong right-wing views (Everett F. Bleiler claims he was "an ultra-conservative ideologically" ), especially hostility to feminists and African-Americans.

The level of complexity found in Keller's writing rises above many other pulp stories of the same period and holds the promise of "science fiction literature" that would be fulfilled during the Golden Age of Science Fiction.

Keller wrote a number of horror and fantasy stories, which some critics regard as superior to his SF work. Most notable is his 1932 horror tale "The Thing In The Cellar". Keller also created a series of fantasy stories called the Tales of Cornwall sequence, about the Hubelaire family; these were influenced by James Branch Cabell. Keller also wrote some fantasy work inspired by his interest in Freudian psychology, including "The Golden Bough" (1934) and The Eternal Conflict (1939 in French;1949 English).

Novels

(1929) The Conquerors

Science Wonder Stories Dec 29 and Jan 30

(1929) The Human Termites

Science Wonder Stories Sep, Oct, Nov

(1930) The Evening Star

Science Wonder Stories April, May

(1931) The Time Projector (w/ David Lasser)

Wonder Stories Aug, Sep

(1932) The Metal Doom

Amazing Stories May, June, July

Fantastic Nov 1967, Jan 1968

(1934) Life Everlasting

Amazing Stories July, Aug

(1940) The Devil and the Doctor
(1948) The Abyss
(1949) The Eternal Conflict
(1949) The Homunculus
(1950) The Lady Decides

Short Stories and Novellas

(1928) The Revolt of the Pedestrians Amazing Stories Feb
(1928) White Collars Amazing Stories April
(1928) The Menace Amazing Stories Quarterly Summer
(1928) A Biological Experiment Amazing Stories Jun
(1928) The Psychophonic Nurse Amazing Stories Nov
(1928) Stenographer's HandsAmazing Stories Quarterly Fall
(1928) The Dogs of Salem Weird Tales September
(1929) The Yeast Men Amazing Stories Quarterly Summer
(1929) The Jelly Fish Weird Tales Jan
(1929) The Damsel and Her Cat Weird Tales Apr
(1929) The Bloodless War Air Wonder Stories Jul
(1929) The Boneless Horror Science Wonder Stories Jul
(1929) The Flying Fool Amazing Stories Jul
(1929) The Feminine Metamorphosis Science Wonder Stories Aug
(1929) The Battle of the Toads Weird Tales Oct
(1929) The Tailed Man of Cornwall Weird Tales Nov
(1929) Dragon's Blood Fanews
(1930) Air Lines Amazing Stories Jan
(1930) Creation Unforgivable Weird Tales Apr
(1930) The Ivy War Amazing Stories May
(1931) The Cerebral Library Amazing Stories May
(1931) Free as Air Amazing Stories Jun
(1931) The Rat Racket Amazing Stories Nov
(1932) The Pent House Amazing Stories Feb
(1932) The Thing in the Cellar Weird Tales Mar
(1932) The Hidden Monster Oriental Stories Sum
(1932) No More Tomorrows Amazing Stories Dec
(1933) A Piece of Linoleum (as Amy Worth) 10 Story Book Dec
(1934) The Lost Language Amazing Stories Jan
(1934) The Dead Woman Fantasy Magazine Apr
(1934) The Literary Corkscrew Wonder Stories Mar
(1934) The Doorbell Wonder Stories Jun
(1934) The Golden Bough Marvel Tales Win
(1935) The Living Machine Wonder Stories May
(1938) Dust in the House Weird Tales Jul
(1938) The Thirty and One Marvel Science Stories Nov
(1939) The Moon Artist Cosmic Tales Sum
(1941) The Goddess of Zion Weird Tales Jan
(1941) The Red Death Cosmic Stories Jul
(1942) The Bridle Weird Tales Sep
(1947) Heredity The Vortex #2
(1948) Helen of Troy Loki
(1948) The Perfumed Garden The Gorgon v2 #4
(1949) The Door The Arkham Sampler Sum
(1951) Chasm of Monsters
(1952) The Folsom Flint
(1952) Fingers in the Sky
(1953) The Golden Key Destiny Spring
(1953) The Question Fantastic Worlds Fall

Boomeranging 'Round the Moon
In Memoriam
The Face in the Mirror
The God Wheel
The House Without Mirrors
The Landslide
The Opium Eater

Early Works

1895 Aunt Martha (as Monk Smith)
1897 A Phenomenon of the Stars The Mirror Feb
1899 Judge Not, in The Red and Blue (University of Pennsylvania) Nov
1900 The Silent One, in The Red and Blue Nov
1901 A University Story (as Henry Cecil), in Presbyterian Journal (University of Pennsylvania) Dec
1902 The Birth of a Soul (as Henry Cecil), in The White Owl Jan
1902 A Three Linked Tail (as Matthew Smith), in The White Owl March
1902 The Winning Bride (as Henry Cecil), in The White Owl March
1902 The Great American Pie House (as Cecilia Henry), in The White Owl April
1902 Mother Newhouse (as Henry Cecil), in The White Owl May
1902 The Greatness of Duval, in Ursinus Weekly Oct

Poetry

1899 The Night The Red and Blue (University of Pennsylvania) Nov
1902 Undo Everlasting The White Owl March
1902 L'Envoi The White Owl March
1902 A Melody The White Owl March
1902 A Mother's Song The White Owl May
1948 "Modern Science." in: Kotan September, 1948, Vol. 1, No. 1. editor Gordon Mack.

Non-Fiction

(1941) The Med-Lee: News Digest of the 9th Medical Battalion

12 Nov, 19 Nov, 26 Nov, 10 Dec

See also

• Homosexuality in speculative fiction
• Sex and sexuality in speculative fiction

External links

• David H. Keller as Pulp Author
• David H. Keller at the Internet Speculative Fiction Database
• Works by David H. Keller at Project Gutenberg
• David H. Keller Papers at Syracuse University