ELWOOD, Roger

(1933-)

   US editor who produced a number of reprint ANTHOLOGIES in the 1960s, mostly in collaboration with Vic Ghidalia (1926-) or Sam MOSKOWITZ, and who burst into prominence in the early 1970s when, with indefatigable salesmanship, he sold a huge number of ORIGINAL ANTHOLOGIES -about 80 in all (including a number of short books for young children), according to his claim - to a variety of publishers. At one time it was estimated that RE alone constituted about a quarter of the total market for sf short stories, and such dominance led to criticism of his restrictions on the free use of SEX and RELIGION as themes. Notable among his many anthologies were: Future City (anth 1973); Saving Worlds (anth 1973; vt The Wounded Planet 1974) with Virginia KIDD; the Continuum sequence, whose 4 vols -Continuum \#1 (anth 1974), \#2 (anth 1974), \#3 (anth 1974) and \#4 (anth 1975) - featured 8 different 4-part series; and Epoch (anth 1975) with Robert SILVERBERG. Collections ed RE included The Many Worlds of Poul Anderson (coll 1974) and The Many Worlds of Andre Norton (coll 1974). RE was also responsible for the short-lived magazine ODYSSEY, the LASER BOOKS series of sf adventures from Canada, and Starstream Comics (1976). Later, as the oversaturated anthology market contracted, he diversified into editing the sf lines of various publishers - Bobbs-Merrill, Pinnacle and Pyramid, in addition to Laser. As a devout Christian, RE also wrote evangelical and inspirational works, and in the late 1980s several novels that were similarly inspirational, including the Angelwalk sequence - Angelwalk: A Modern Fable (1988) and Fallen Angel (1990) - and some singletons: The Christening (1989), The Frankenstein Project (1991), Wise One (1991) and Darien: Guardian Angel of Jesus (1994).

   MJE/JC

   Other works (as editor): Alien Worlds (anth 1964) and Invasion of the Robots (anth 1964), both ghost-edited by Sam Moskowitz; Strange Signposts (anth 1966); The Human Zero (anth 1967) with Moskowitz; The Time Curve (anth 1968); Alien Earth (anth 1969) with Moskowitz; Other Worlds, Other Times (anth 1969) with Moskowitz; The Little Monsters (anth 1969) and More Little Monsters (anth 1973), both with Vic Ghidalia; Beware the Beasts (anth 1970) with Ghidalia; The Horror Hunters (anth 1971) with Ghidalia; Young Demons (anth 1971) with Ghidalia; Signs and Wonders (anth 1972); And Walk Now Gently through the Fire (anth 1972); The Venus Factor (anth 1972) with Ghidalia; Androids, Time Machines and Blue Giraffes (anth 1973) with Ghidalia; Demon Kind (anth 1973); Frontiers I: Tomorrow's Alternatives (anth 1973) and Frontiers II: The New Mind (anth 1973); Monster Tales: Vampires, Werewolves and Things (anth 1973); Omega (anth 1973); The Other Side of Tomorrow (anth 1973); Science Fiction Adventures from Way Out (anth 1973); Science Fiction Tales: Invaders, Creatures and Alien Worlds (anth 1973); Showcase (anth 1973); Strange Things Happening (anth 1973); Children of Infinity (anth 1973); Future Quest (anth 1973); Flame Tree Planet: An Anthology of Religious Science-Fantasy (anth 1973); Ten Tomorrows (anth 1973); The Berserkers (anth 1974); Chronicles of a Comer (anth 1974); Crisis (anth 1974); The Extraterrestrials (anth 1974); Future Kin (anth 1974); Horror Tales: Spirits, Spells and the Unknown (anth 1974); The Graduated Robot and Other Stories (anth 1974); The Learning Maze (anth 1974); More Science Fiction Tales: Crystal Creatures, Bird-Things and other Weirdies (anth 1974); Survival from Infinity (anth 1974); The Far Side of Time (anth 1974); The Long Night of Waiting (anth 1974); Strange Gods (anth 1974); Vampires, Werewolves, and Other Monsters (anth 1974); Beware More Beasts (anth 1975) with Ghidalia; Dystopian Visions (anth 1975); Future Corruption (anth 1975); The Gifts of Asti (anth 1975); In the Wake of Man (anth 1975); Tomorrow: New Worlds of Science Fiction (anth 1975); The 50-Meter Monsters and Other Horrors (anth 1976); Visions of Tomorrow (anth 1976); Futurelove (anth 1977) ed anon, perhaps because it dealt in part with sexual matters; A World Named Cleopatra (anth 1977); Spine-Chillers: Unforgettable Tales of Terror (anth 1978) with Howard GOLDSMITHFor younger children (ed anon): The Graduated Robot (anth 1973 chap); Adrift in Space (anth 1974 chap); Journey to Another Star (anth 1974 chap); The Killer Plants (anth 1974 chap); The Mind Angel (anth 1974 chap); The Missing World (anth 1974 chap); Night of the Sphinx and Other Stories (anth 1974 chap); The Tunnel (anth 1974 chap).

   See also: CHILDREN IN SF; COMICS; SHARED WORLDS; TABOOS; THEATRE.