S. T. Joshi’s blog has two new posts, both on the passing of Wilum Pugmire — delectable author and painstaking student of Lovecraft’s works. Joshi’s first post is a tribute, “My Friend, Wilum Pugmire”, and the most recent is “More on Wilum”.
The latter post brings news of a Memorial Event on Saturday 4th May 2019. For those able to attend, I’d suggest that this farewell might then be followed by this unconnected but very respectful-looking event for Lovecraft’s work, to be held at Lincoln Woods on the 5th May.
Joshi’s second post also usefully points to Brian Keene’s podcast ‘The Horror Show’, where the most recent episode is a “podcast full of tributes to Wilum”.
There are blog tributes to be found from his good friend David Barker, reporting the news that Lovecraftian author W. H. Pugmire has died. John D. Haefele sent an in memoriam statement to Don Herron’s blog and Herron himself posted Mort: Hopfrog Nevermore. Bobby Derie has penned the tribute W. H. Pugmire; and William Tea has posted a short goodbye. Possibly there are others, though I haven’t found them, and there will surely be more to come over the next few weeks and months.
The science-fiction news magazine Locus swiftly published a short obituary W.H. Pugmire (1951-2019) and his Wikipedia page has full details of his life and works. The Classic Horror Film discussion board has a less dry and, I’d like to think, rather more Pugmirish memory of him which seems fitting to end this post on. I only knew him through his audio interviews and some of his YouTube book reviews, and I don’t think he read Tentaclii, but from that audio I have the feeling that he might have enjoyed this being re-told (by one ‘Gef the talking mongoose’)…
In probably his late teens & 20s he worked at an attraction in Seattle called Jones’ Fantastic Museum…
“For 13 years the museum featured a real live vampire named Count Pugsly who roamed around scaring children and adults alike, even outside the museum. Sometimes he would appear to be a mannequin, standing still until an unsuspecting visitor stepped in front of him. As soon as the realization struck the visitor that no activating floor mat was there, he would walk towards them, often eliciting loud screams of fright.”
That was Wilum.
If you wish to link people to this post, there’s also a public re-post at my Spyders of Burslem blog.