In 1939,
August Derleth and
Donald Wandrei established the oldest and most
prestigious fantasy publishing house in the world, Arkham House. Their purpose was to
publish the written works of a
gifted friend,
H. P. Lovecraft, who died in 1937 with almost all of his work unpublished.
"
Arkham" was a fictional town which appeared in many of Lovecraft's stories.
Their first book under this
label was "The Outsider and Others", a
respectable collection of Lovecraft's work, and a must for any serious collector.
They went on to publish many of the best science fiction, fantasy and horror authors of this century, including Ray Bradbury, Clark Ashton Smith, Robert Bloch, John Ramsey Campbell, and many others. Many of their writers have also contributed to the so-called "Cthulhu Mythos".
In 1999 Arkham House celebrated its 60th anniversary by activating their website which will contain the history of the distinguished publishing house, as well as an online catalogue of books.
http://www.arkhamhouse.com/