Les Daniels
Les Daniels, born Leslie Noel Daniels III in 1943 in Danbury, Connecticut, is a multifaceted American writer known for his contributions to literature, particularly in the genres of horror and comic book history. He graduated from Brown University with both a B.A. and an M.A. and was involved in music as a member of the bluegrass group Soop during the 1960s. Daniels transitioned into editing, producing notable anthologies of horror stories in the 1970s, including *Dying of Fright* and *Thirteen Tales of Terror*. His scholarship on comic books began with *Comix: A History of Comic Books in America* and continued with celebrated works on iconic characters from Marvel and DC Comics.
By the late 1970s, he had created the Don Sebastian de Villanueva series, featuring a vampire protagonist who experiences significant historical events such as the Spanish Inquisition and the French Revolution. His first novel in this series, *The Black Castle*, garnered recognition as a World Fantasy Best Novel Award nominee. Throughout the 1980s and early 1990s, Daniels expanded his literary repertoire, receiving nominations for the World Fantasy Award for his short stories, reflecting his enduring impact on the horror genre. His work is characterized by a blend of imaginative storytelling and a deep engagement with historical contexts.
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Les Daniels
Author
- Born: October 27, 1943
- Birthplace: Danbury, Connecticut
- Died: November 5, 2011
Biography
Leslie Noel Daniels III, better known as Les Daniels, was born in Danbury, Connecticut, in 1943. He attended Brown University, where he earned his B.A. in 1965 and his M.A. in 1968. An avid interest in music caused him to join the musical group Soop, whose members performed bluegrass music in the 1960’s.
In the 1970’s, Daniels edited two anthologies of horror stories, Dying of Fright: Masterpieces of the Macabre (1976) and Thirteen Tales of Terror (1977); the latter book was coedited by Diane Thompson. He also began to write histories of comic books and comic book characters, beginning with Comix: A History of Comic Books in America (1971). These histories include Marvel: Five Fabulous Decades of the World’s Greatest Comics (1991), DC Comics: Sixty Years of the World’s Favorite Comic Book Heroes (1995), and books about Superman, Batman, and Wonder Woman.
By the end of the 1970’s, Daniels had launched his Don Sebastian de Villanueva series about Sebastian, a vampire who traveled multiple continents and witnessed many different historical events, including the Spanish Inquisition, the French Revolution, and the war between Spain and the Aztecs over Mexico. Even though Sebastian is an enigmatic and horrific vampire, the people with whom he comes in contact practice far more violent forms of torture and genocide. The first book in the series, The Black Castle (1978), was a World Fantasy Best Novel Award nominee. In the 1980’s and early 1990’s, Daniels continued to write horror novels but also branched out into short stories, two of which, “They’re Coming for You” and “The Little Green Ones,” were nominated for the World Fantasy Award for Best Short Story.