Robbins, Harold

▪ 1998

      American novelist (b. May 21, 1916, New York, N.Y.—d. Oct. 14, 1997, Palm Springs, Calif.), created gossipy-style formulaic works that featured the triple themes of sex, money, and power and made him one of the best-selling authors of all time. He once bragged that he had experienced firsthand all the vices he presented in his novels. Orphaned at birth, Robbins was placed in a Roman Catholic orphanage and was given the name Francis Kane. He was raised in several foster homes and assumed the last name Rubins from a Jewish foster family, but he changed it when his writing career took off. At the age of 19, he began speculating on crop futures; he became a millionaire the following year but lost his fortune after speculating unsuccessfully in sugar. After filing for bankruptcy, Robbins took a job with Universal Pictures. Dissatisfied with the films that the studio was producing, he bet the head of production $100 that he could write a better story. Never Love a Stranger (1948), his first novel, made him a best-selling author. The Dream Merchants (1949) and A Stone for Danny Fisher (1952) followed. In 1961 Robbins realized international fame when The Carpetbaggers, a blockbuster novel based on the life of millionaire Howard Hughes, was released. It sold millions of copies and became the fourth most-read book in history. His 23 books—all currently in print—were distributed in more than 40 countries and sold 750 million copies; many of his works were also adapted for motion pictures.

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