Editor Farnsworth Wright subsequently prompted Howard to write an 8,000-word essay for personal use detailing "the Hyborian Age", the fictional setting for Conan. "The Phoenix on the Sword" appeared in Weird Tales cover-dated December 1932. "The Scarlet Citadel" was published the following month. Although " The Frost-Giant's Daughter" was rejected, the magazine accepted "The Phoenix on the Sword" after it received the requested polishing, and published it in the December 1932 issue. Howard also wrote " The Scarlet Citadel" and " The Frost-Giant's Daughter", inspired by the Greek myth of Daphne, and submitted both stories to Weird Tales magazine. Having digested these influences upon returning from his trip, Howard rewrote a rejected story, " By This Axe I Rule!" (May 1929), replacing his existing character Kull of Atlantis with his new hero and retitling it " The Phoenix on the Sword". According to some scholars, Howard's conception of Conan and the Hyborian Age may have originated in Thomas Bulfinch's The Outline of Mythology (1913), which inspired Howard to "coalesce into a coherent whole his literary aspirations and the strong physical, autobiographical elements underlying the creation of Conan". During this trip, he further conceived the character of Conan and also wrote the poem " Cimmeria", much of which echoes specific passages in Plutarch's Lives. In February 1932, Howard vacationed at a border town on the lower Rio Grande. Some Howard scholars believe this Conan to be a forerunner of the more famous character. "People of the Dark" is a story about the remembrance of " past lives", and in its first-person narrative, the protagonist describes one of his previous incarnations: Conan is a black-haired barbarian hero who swears by a deity called Crom. ![]() In October 1931, he submitted the short story "People of the Dark" to Clayton Publications' new magazine, Strange Tales of Mystery and Terror (June 1932). Howard was searching for a new character to market to the burgeoning pulp outlets of the early 1930s. Howard created Conan the Barbarian in a series of fantasy stories published in Weird Tales from 1932. Licensed comics published in the 1970s by Marvel Comics drew success and included Conan in an iconic loincloth. The most popular cinematic adaptation is the 1982 Conan the Barbarian directed by John Milius and starring Arnold Schwarzenegger as Conan, in which the plot revolves around Conan facing the villainous Thulsa Doom. The barbarian's appearance is mostly centred on his black hair, blue eyes, tanned skin and giant stature. His main abilities encompass strength, combativeness, intelligence, agility and endurance. Characterised as chivalric due to his penchant to save damsels in distress, Conan also displays a humorous nature and enduring loyalty. Conan is a Cimmerian, who are descendants of Atlanteans, and son to a blacksmith. ![]() Howard's mythopoeia has the stories set in the legendary Hyborian Age in the times after the fall of Atlantis. Many Conan the Barbarian stories feature Conan embarking on heroic adventures filled with common fantasy elements such as princesses and wizards. ![]() ![]() Over the years many other writers have written works featuring Conan. By 1932, Howard had officially conceptualised Conan in his lifetime writing 21 stories starring the barbarian. Howard’s character was that of a black-haired barbarian with heroic attributes named Conan in the 1931 short story "People of the Dark". Thought to be the earliest known appearance of Robert E. Howard created the character in 1932 for a series of fantasy stories published in Weird Tales magazine. Conan the Barbarian (also known as Conan the Cimmerian) is a fictional sword and sorcery hero who originated in pulp magazines and has since been adapted to books, comics, films (including Conan the Barbarian and Conan the Destroyer), television programs ( animated and live-action), video games, and role-playing games.
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