Robert Eighteen-Bisang

Robert Eighteen-Bisang (1947 – September 29, 2020)[1] was a Canadian author and scholar who was one of the world's foremost authorities on vampire literature and mythology.[2]

Robert Eighteen
Born1947
Brantford, Ontario, Canada
Died29 September 2020
Other namesRobert Eighteen-Bisang
Alma materUniversity of British Columbia
Occupation(s)Writer, scholar
Known forWriting, book collecting and bibliographic research, Transylvania Press
Notable workBram Stoker's Notes for Dracula
PartnerMatilda Bisang (1972 – his death)
AwardsLord Ruthven Award 2009

His book Bram Stoker's Notes for Dracula: A Facsimile Edition, which was written with Elizabeth Miller, won the Lord Ruthven Award.[3] The "Ruthven," as it is often called, is awarded annually for the most outstanding work in vampire fiction or scholarship.

Other books by Eighteen-Bisang include Vampire Stories, which includes vampire stories by Arthur Conan Doyle: The Adventure of the Sussex Vampire, The Captain of the Polestar, John Barrrington Cowles, and The Parasite, along with The Adventure of the Illustrious Client – which Eighteen-Bisang claimed is a rationalized version of Dracula – and four more stories with tenuous connections to vampires. Publishers Weekly called the book "a stretch" and something "only completionists are likely to add this to their collections."[4]

Personal life

Eighteen-Bisang grew up in Toronto, Ontario as the son of a professional poker player. In university, he was a backgammon player and won four championships. Eighteen-Bisang aspired to be a university professor, but was talked out of the position by his professors themselves, believing the position would be too restrictive for him. After a career in marketing, Eighteen-Bisang gained an interest in vampire literature and started his research, collecting and writing.[5] As an adult, Eighteen-Bisang still played in backgammon tournaments and was a member of the Vancouver Backgammon Club.[6]

Eighteen-Bisang had amassed the largest collection of vampiric literature in the world, which he housed at his personal residence.[7][8] The collection included about 2,500 books, 2,000 comic books, 1,000 magazines and over 100 films, including a first edition of Bram Stoker's Dracula.

Academic involvement

Eighteen-Bisang is credited with proving that the novel Dracula is based on the infamous serial killer Jack the Ripper.[5][9] He also discounted that Bram Stoker based his iconic character Dracula on Vlad the Impaler, as many people believe.[10]

Eighteen-Bisang was a member of the American chapter of the Transylvanian Society of Dracula, led by president J. Gordon Melton,[11] and was a member of the Canadian Academy of Independent Scholars.[5] He founded Transylvania Press, a publishing company which "publishes high-quality vampiriana for collectors, libraries and fans."[12]

He had been invited to lecture on vampires in Dallas, London, Los Angeles, Toronto, Vancouver, and Victoria. In 1997, he was guest of honor at Dracula ’97 in Los Angeles.

Literature

As author
  • Bram Stoker's Notes for Dracula: A Facsimile Edition by Bram Stoker, Eighteen-Bisang and Elizabeth Miller[13]

As editor

Referenced in
  • Best New Horror, Volume 6[16]
  • Bram Stoker's Dracula: a documentary volume by Elizabeth Miller[17]
  • Bram Stoker's Notes for Dracula: An Annotated Transcription and Comprehensive Analysis by Michael Barsanti, Eighteen-Bisang and Elizabeth Miller[18]
  • Dracula in Visual Media: Film, Television, Comic Book and Electronic Game Appearances, 1921-2010 by John Edgar Browning and Caroline Joan (Kay) Picart[19]
  • The Complete Vampire Companion by Rosemary Guiley and J. B. Macabre[20]
  • The New Annotated Dracula by Bram Stoker[21]
  • Pulse of Darkness by Christopher Sequeira and Kurt Stone
  • The Soul of an Angel by Chelsea Quinn Yarbro
  • University Affairs
  • Young Lusty Sluts by Michael Goss

References
  1. "Robert S. Eighteen-Bisang". Brantford Expositor. Retrieved 2 November 2020.
  2. Now, Surrey (31 Oct 2008). "Does this man think he's a vampire?". Canada. Archived from the original on 26 June 2014. Retrieved 2 May 2014.
  3. "Robert Eighteen-Bisang". Science Fiction Awards Database. Retrieved 3 May 2014.
  4. "Vampire Stories". Publishers Weekly. Retrieved 3 May 2014.
  5. Zamprelli, Pascal (1 Dec 2008). "The Indie scene". Archived from the original on 4 May 2014. Retrieved 2 May 2014.
  6. "Vancouver Backgammon Club". Vancouver Backgammon Club. Retrieved 3 May 2014.
  7. "VINTAGE VAMPIRE STORIES Edited by HWA Member Robert Eighteen-Bisang". Dark Whispers. Retrieved 3 May 2014.
  8. "Vintage Vampire Stories". Abe Books. Retrieved 3 May 2014.
  9. Eighteen-Bisang, Robert. "Dracula, Jack the Ripper and A Thirst for Blood". Casebook. Retrieved 3 May 2014.
  10. Holte, Jim. "the Journal of the Fantastic in the Arts, vol 21". {{cite web}}: Missing or empty |url= (help)
  11. "An Unquenchable Thirst". Retrieved 2 May 2014.
  12. "Transylvania". Transylvania Press. Retrieved 2 May 2014.
  13. Stoker, Bram (2008). Bram Stoker's Notes for Dracula: A Facsimile Edition. McFarland. ISBN 9780786477302.
  14. Doyle, Arthur Conan (2013). Vampire Stories. Skyhorse Publishing, Inc. ISBN 9781628731453.
  15. Dalby, Richard (2013). Vintage Vampire Stories. Skyhorse Publishing, Inc. ISBN 9781626368804.
  16. Best New Horror, Volume 6. Carroll & Graf. 1994. p. 17. ISBN 9780786702770.
  17. Miller, Elizabeth (2005). Bram Stoker's Dracula: a documentary volume. Thomson Gale. ISBN 9780787668419.
  18. Barsanti, Michael (2008). Bram Stoker's Notes for Dracula: An Annotated Transcription and Comprehensive Analysis. McFarland & Company. ISBN 978-0786434107.
  19. Picart, Caroline Joan (Kay) (2010). Dracula in Visual Media: Film, Television, Comic Book and Electronic Game Appearances, 1921-2010. McFarland. ISBN 9780786462018.
  20. Guiley, Rosemary (1994). The complete vampire companion. Macmillan. p. 198. ISBN 9780671850241.
  21. Stoker, Bram (2008). The New Annotated Dracula. W. W. Norton & Company. pp. xxiv, xlix, 7, 235. ISBN 9780393064506.
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