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The Thing of a Thousand Shapes
UNCLE JIM was dead.
I could scarcely believe it, but the little yellow missive, which had just been handed to me by the Western Union messenger boy, left no room for doubt. It was short and convincing:
COME TO PEORIA AT ONCE. JAMES BRADDOCK DEAD OF HEART FAILURE. CORBIN & ILLIS, ATTORNEYS.
I should explain here that Uncle Jim, my mother's brother, was my only living near relative. Having lost both father and mother in the Iroquois Theatre Fire at the ace of twelve years, I should have been forced to abandon my plans for a high school and commercial education but for his noble generosity. In his home town he was believed to be comfortably well off, but I had learned not long since that it had meant a considerable sacrifice for him to furnish the fifteen hundred dollars a year to put me through high school and business college, and I was glad when the time came for me to find employment, and thus become independent of his bounty.
My position as bookkeeper for a commission firm in South Water Street, while not particularly remunerative, at least provided a comfortable living, and I was happy in it—until the message of his death came...
I could scarcely believe it, but the little yellow missive, which had just been handed to me by the Western Union messenger boy, left no room for doubt. It was short and convincing:
COME TO PEORIA AT ONCE. JAMES BRADDOCK DEAD OF HEART FAILURE. CORBIN & ILLIS, ATTORNEYS.
I should explain here that Uncle Jim, my mother's brother, was my only living near relative. Having lost both father and mother in the Iroquois Theatre Fire at the ace of twelve years, I should have been forced to abandon my plans for a high school and commercial education but for his noble generosity. In his home town he was believed to be comfortably well off, but I had learned not long since that it had meant a considerable sacrifice for him to furnish the fifteen hundred dollars a year to put me through high school and business college, and I was glad when the time came for me to find employment, and thus become independent of his bounty.
My position as bookkeeper for a commission firm in South Water Street, while not particularly remunerative, at least provided a comfortable living, and I was happy in it—until the message of his death came...
- GenresHorror
52 pages, Kindle Edition
Published August 22, 2018
1 person is currently reading
6 people want to read
About the author
Otis Adelbert Kline
190 books21 followersA popular pulp era writer who served on the original Weird Tales editorial staff & appeared frequently in the magazine's early issues, Kline is perhaps best known for his novelistic feud with Edgar Rice Burroughs. He wrote "Planet of Peril" (1929) and two other novels set on the planet Venus and written in the storytelling form of the John Carter of Mars novels, prompting Burroughs to write his own stories set on Venus. In return, Kline wrote two novels set on Mars, as well as several jungle adventurers quite reminiscent of Burroughs's Tarzan.
In the mid-1930s Kline largely abandoned writing to concentrate on his career as a literary agent (most famously for fellow Weird Tales author Robert E. Howard, pioneer sword and sorcery writer and creator of Conan the Barbarian). Kline represented Howard from the Spring of 1933 until Howard's death in June 1936, and continued to act as literary agent for Howard's estate thereafter.
In the mid-1930s Kline largely abandoned writing to concentrate on his career as a literary agent (most famously for fellow Weird Tales author Robert E. Howard, pioneer sword and sorcery writer and creator of Conan the Barbarian). Kline represented Howard from the Spring of 1933 until Howard's death in June 1936, and continued to act as literary agent for Howard's estate thereafter.
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
August 10, 2023
Eine ektoplasmatische (psychoplasmatische) Schauergeschichte, kein Highlight des Genres, aber interessant, wie "klassische" Elemente sich mit dem "moderneren" Pulpstil mischen.
Die größte Schwäche ist die kompositorische Unausgewogenheit: Die Erscheinungen im Mittelteil sind sehr ausführlich geschildert und wirken motiviert nur durchs Sensationelle, während das Ende der Story dann übereilt daher kommt.
Die größte Schwäche ist die kompositorische Unausgewogenheit: Die Erscheinungen im Mittelteil sind sehr ausführlich geschildert und wirken motiviert nur durchs Sensationelle, während das Ende der Story dann übereilt daher kommt.
October 6, 2021
”As I looked, I fancied I saw a slight movement as of a wing being stretched a bit then folded, and the thing took on the appearance of a large vampire bat, hanging upside down.”
Billy gets a Western Union message telling him that his loving Uncle James Braddock has died. Uncle Jim was Billy’s only living relative that he had left, and who had put Billy through collage.
Uncle Jim had lived on a three hundred plus acre farm run by the Severs family and Uncle Jim was a scientist and who had devoted himself to the study of psychic phenomena. When Billy arrives at Uncle Jim’s home, he finds that Jim’s home has Uncle Jim’s corpse laid out in the main room with the proviso that Uncle Jim was not to be buried until some decomposition starts happening and is evident.
Then soon after he arrives, Billy starts hearing his Uncle Jim’s voice asking for help, along with strange physical and ghostly occurrences that start happening.
Then these occurrences begin escalating spectacularly to the paint that others start experiencing them along with Billy. Added to these circumstances is that a series of anemiaesque deaths and sickness start plaguing the local townspeople leading to the feeling amongst the locals that Uncle Jim is a vampire.
Then something fantastic happens, Billy gets into an accident that happens to him as this accident brings him into contact with Albert Randall who is Uncle Jim’s professional acquaintance and friend, and Ruth, Albert’s psychically attuned daughter.
With these two, Billy starts getting to the bottom of the house’s occurrences and meanwhile the peasants are revolting against Billy, and Uncle Jim’s corpse.
Otis Adelbert Kline (1891-1946) was a leading pulp author of his time, and was supposedly a direct competitor of Edgar Rice Burroughs, and who wrote all types of pulp adventure fiction, until he retired to become a literary agent. Kline was also a songwriter before he published The Thing Of A Thousand Shapes , which was his first published fiction sale. Now, despite a weak ending, this is pretty good story. However, beware, this is more of a psychic investigation that a horror ghost story. Well worth reading for fans of psychic investigation/detective stories.
Billy gets a Western Union message telling him that his loving Uncle James Braddock has died. Uncle Jim was Billy’s only living relative that he had left, and who had put Billy through collage.
Uncle Jim had lived on a three hundred plus acre farm run by the Severs family and Uncle Jim was a scientist and who had devoted himself to the study of psychic phenomena. When Billy arrives at Uncle Jim’s home, he finds that Jim’s home has Uncle Jim’s corpse laid out in the main room with the proviso that Uncle Jim was not to be buried until some decomposition starts happening and is evident.
Then soon after he arrives, Billy starts hearing his Uncle Jim’s voice asking for help, along with strange physical and ghostly occurrences that start happening.
Then these occurrences begin escalating spectacularly to the paint that others start experiencing them along with Billy. Added to these circumstances is that a series of anemiaesque deaths and sickness start plaguing the local townspeople leading to the feeling amongst the locals that Uncle Jim is a vampire.
Then something fantastic happens, Billy gets into an accident that happens to him as this accident brings him into contact with Albert Randall who is Uncle Jim’s professional acquaintance and friend, and Ruth, Albert’s psychically attuned daughter.
With these two, Billy starts getting to the bottom of the house’s occurrences and meanwhile the peasants are revolting against Billy, and Uncle Jim’s corpse.
Otis Adelbert Kline (1891-1946) was a leading pulp author of his time, and was supposedly a direct competitor of Edgar Rice Burroughs, and who wrote all types of pulp adventure fiction, until he retired to become a literary agent. Kline was also a songwriter before he published The Thing Of A Thousand Shapes , which was his first published fiction sale. Now, despite a weak ending, this is pretty good story. However, beware, this is more of a psychic investigation that a horror ghost story. Well worth reading for fans of psychic investigation/detective stories.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews