Allen J. Hubin

American historian of crime fiction

Allen J. Hubin
Born	(1936-03-05) March 5, 1936 (age 88) Crosby, Minnesota
Occupation(s)	Literary critic, encyclopedist, anthologist, bibliographer
Notable work	The Bibliography of Crime Fiction, 1749–1975

Allen J. Hubin (born March 5, 1936, in Crosby, Minnesota) is an American historian of crime fiction, a literary critic and bibliographer of crime fiction.^[1]

Biography

Hubin studied at Wheaton College and the University of Minnesota where he graduated in 1961.

A passionate collector of detective literature, Hubin founded the first American magazine devoted to the genre, The Armchair Detective, in 1967. The following year, he succeeded the late Anthony Boucher as author of the column "Criminals at Large", which appeared weekly in The New York Times Book Review.^[2] He worked there until 1971 and by 1972 was reviewer for the Star Tribune.^[3]^[4]

Hubin's personal library of crime novels was of assistance to Ordean Hagen in assembling the first bibliography of English-language crime fiction, Who Done It?, in 1969.^[5] Hubin wrote the introduction.

For several years, he collected the best short stories of the year in anthologies published under the title Best Detective Stories of the Year.

His best-known work is the production of The Bibliography of Crime Fiction, 1749–1975,^[6] published in 1979 by University Extension, University of California, San Diego in cooperation with Publisher's Inc., Del Mar, California, and revised and re-released as Crime Fiction, 1749–1980: A Comprehensive Bibliography.^[7] The bibliography lists all publications in the genre in English. Updates incorporating places, films, screenwriters and directors were made in the 1981–1985 Supplement to Crime Fiction, 1749–1980: A Comprehensive Bibliography and published by Garland in 1988 before Crime Fiction II: A Comprehensive Bibliography, 1749–1990 came out in 1994 in two volumes.

Bibliography

Best of the Best Detective Stories: 25th Anniversary Collection (1971)^[8]
The Bibliography of Crime Fiction, 1749–1975 (1979)
The Armchair Detective (1981)^[9]
Crime Fiction, 1749–1980: A Comprehensive Bibliography (1983)
The Armchair Detective: The First Ten Years (1986)
1981–1985 Supplement to Crime Fiction (1988)
Crime Fiction II: A Comprehensive Bibliography, 1749–1990 (1994)

References

^ Mesplède, Claude, ed. (2007). Dictionnaire des littératures policières [Dictionary of Detective Literature]. Temps noir (in French). Vol. 1: A-I. Nantes: Joseph K. p. 1011. ISBN 978-2-910686-44-4. OCLC 315873251.
^ "Criminals at Large". The New York Times. May 19, 1968. p. BR32. ProQuest 118205999. Retrieved August 20, 2024. The name of Anthony Boucher has been synonymous with the Criminals at Large column, which he began conducting with perception and personality in 1951. Mr. Boucher died on April 29. This week's column is contributed by Allen J. Hubin, editor of The Armchair Detective.
^ "^{[title missing]}". Star Tribune. July 2, 1972. p. 51.
^ "^{[title missing]}". Star Tribune. May 21, 1978. p. 80.
^ Hagen, Ordean A. (1969). Who Done It?: A Guide to Detective, Mystery and Suspense Fiction. New York: R. R. Bowker. ISBN 978-0-8352-0234-3. Trove 21139554.
^ Hubin, Allen J. (1979). The Bibliography of Crime Fiction, 1749–1975: Listing of All Mystery, Detective, Suspense, Police, and Gothic Fiction in Book Form Published in the English Language. [San Diego]: University Extension, University of California, San Diego. ISBN 978-0-89163-048-7.
^ Hubin, Allen J. (1984). Crime Fiction, 1749–1980: A Comprehensive Bibliography. New York: Garland Publishing. ISBN 0-8240-9219-8. OCLC 10020616.
^ Hubin, Allen J., ed. (1971). Best of the Best Detective Stories: 25th Anniversary Collection. New York: E. P. Dutton & Co., Inc. ISBN 978-0-525-06450-3.
^ Hubin, Allen J. (1981). The Armchair Detective. Madison, Indiana: Brownstone Books. ISBN 978-0-941028-00-4.

External links

"My Life of Crime Fiction" by Allen J. Hubin, in Mystery Scene
Crime Fiction IV: A Comprehensive Bibliography, 1749–2000 by Allen J. Hubin, addenda to the 2015 revised edition