Robert Shea#Bibliography
{{short description|American novelist}}{{Infobox writer
| name = Robert Shea
| image = Robert shea in 1977.jpg
| caption = At the British National Theatre in 1977 for the opening of the nine-hour stage version of Illuminatus!
| birth_name = Robert Joseph Shea
| birth_date = {{birth date|1933|02|14}}
| birth_place = New York City
| death_date = {{Death date and age|1994|03|10|1933|02|14}}
| spouse = Yvonne Bremseth Shea, Patricia Monaghan
| alma_mater = Manhattan College
Rutgers University
| website = {{URL|http://bobshea.net/}}
}}
Robert Joseph Shea (February 14, 1933 – March 10, 1994) was an American novelist and former journalist best known as co-author with Robert Anton Wilson of the science fantasy trilogy Illuminatus! It became a cult success and was later turned into a marathon-length stage show put on at the British National Theatre and elsewhere. In 1986 it won the Prometheus Hall of Fame Award. Shea went on to write several action novels based in exotic historical settings.
Early life and education
Robert Joseph Shea was born in New York City. He attended high school at Manhattan Prep (Manhattan College High School), a Roman Catholic school run by the Christian Brothers, in the Riverdale section of The Bronx. After graduation, he attended Manhattan College and Rutgers University.
Career and other works
Apart from co-authoring Illuminatus! with Wilson, Shea wrote several historical action novels, including Shike (1981), a two-volume novel set in Ancient Japan about the warrior monk Jebu and his love Lady Shima Taniko, All Things Are Lights (1986), and The Saracen, a novel published in two volumes in 1989 depicting the struggle between a blond Muslim warrior called Daoud ibn Abdullah and his French crusader adversary, Simon de Gobignon. His last published book was the Native American tale Shaman (1991).{{citation needed|date=June 2025}}
All Things Are Lights and the outline for the unfinished novel Children of Earthmaker have been released under a Creative Commons license and are available to read and copy at Robert Shea's website, as are Shike, The Saracen, and Shaman under similar license terms.[https://www.bobshea.net/ Robert Shea Website] Lady Yang was finished but never published; a Creative Commons online version is in the works by Shea's son Michael.[http://clevelandokie.blogspot.com/2007/10/robert-shea-inside-look-sheas-literary.html Interview on Cleveland Okie Website]
Three of his lectures and two panel discussions he participated in were recorded when he was a featured speaker at both the Starwood Festival[http://www.rosencomet.com/starwood/starlist.html Starwood Speakers' Roster] and the WinterStar Symposium (both with and without Robert Anton Wilson) and produced by the Association for Consciousness Exploration.{{citation needed|date=June 2025}}
For several years, Shea edited the anarchist zine No Governor. The title comes from a quote attributed to Zhuangzi, "There is no governor anywhere." The zine was mentioned in, and read by, one of the characters in Illuminatus!.{{citation needed|date=June 2025}}
Tributes
Clipped from the Robert J. Shea Tribute page:
:Robert Joseph Shea attended Manhattan Prep, Manhattan College and Rutgers University and worked as a magazine editor in New York and Los Angeles. In the 60's he edited the Playboy Forum where he met Robert Anton Wilson, with whom he collaborated on Illuminatus! After publishing Illuminatus!, Bob left Playboy to become a full time novelist. His novels include: Shike, set in medieval Japan; All Things Are Lights, a story that entwines the fate of Cathars of southern France with the occult traditions of Courtly Love and the troubadours; The Saracen, describing the intricate politics of medieval Italy through the eyes of an Islamic warrior; Shaman, tracing the fate of the survivors of the Black Hawk War in 19th century Illinois; Lady Yang, a tragic story of an idealistic empress of medieval China.[http://bobshea.net Bob Shea Website]
Personal life
Shea was a resident of Glencoe, Illinois{{cite news|last1=Heise|first1=Kenan|title=Robert Shea, 61 Wrote fantasy, historical novels|url=https://www.chicagotribune.com/1994/03/12/robert-shea-61-wrote-fantasy-historical-novels/|access-date=24 August 2016|publisher=Chicago Tribune|date=12 March 1994}} He was survived by his son, Michael E. Shea, and his second wife, author Patricia Monaghan.{{Cn|date=June 2025}}
Bibliography
- The Illuminatus! Trilogy (with Robert Anton Wilson) Full Trilogy printed December 1, 1983 by Dell: {{ISBN|0-440-53981-1}}, {{ISBN|978-0-440-53981-0}}
- The Eye in the Pyramid (1975) Dell
- The Golden Apple (1975) Dell
- Leviathan (1975) ISBN Dell
- Shike (January 13, 1992) Two in One version: Ballantine Books {{ISBN|978-0-345-36046-5}}
- Time of the Dragons (June 1, 1981) Jove {{ISBN|978-0-515-04874-2}}
- Last of the Zinja (July 1, 1981) Jove {{ISBN|978-0-515-05944-1}}
- All Things Are Lights (April 12, 1986) Ballantine Books {{ISBN|978-0-345-32903-5}} [http://bobshea.net/all_things_are_lights.html]
- From No Man's Land to Plaza del Lago (October 1987) Amer References {{ISBN|0-913765-08-2}}, {{ISBN|978-0-913765-08-1}}
- The Saracen - both books available as free downloads from Project Gutenberg [http://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/28515] and [http://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/28516]
- Land of the Infidel (February 13, 1989) Ballantine Books, {{ISBN|978-0-345-33588-3}}
- The Holy War (March 13, 1989) Ballantine Books {{ISBN|978-0-345-35933-9}}
- Shaman (February 20, 1991) Ballantine Books {{ISBN|978-0-345-36048-9}} - Available as a free download from Project Gutenberg [http://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/28976]
Recorded lectures & panel discussions
- A Meeting With Robert Shea, ACE
- Writing and Mysticism, ACE
- Magic in the Central Empire, ACE
- The Once and Future Legend (panel discussion with Ariana Lightningstorm, Patricia Monaghan, Jeff Rosenbaum, Rev. Ivan Stang, and Robert Anton Wilson), ACE
- What IS the Conspiracy, Anyway? (Panel Discussion with Anodea Judith, Jeff Rosenbaum, Rev. Ivan Stang, and Robert Anton Wilson), ACE
References
{{Reflist}}
External links
- [http://bobshea.net Robert Shea's Official Website]: Robert J. Shea's official website maintained by his son, Michael E. Shea. The site includes creative commons licensed versions of All Things Are Lights and other works.
- {{Gutenberg author | id=33088| name=Robert Shea}}
- {{Internet Archive author |sname=Robert Joseph Shea}}
- {{Librivox author |id=8799}}
{{Robert Shea}}
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Category:Novels by Robert Shea
Category:20th-century American novelists
Category:American historical novelists
Category:American male novelists