Robbins, Harold

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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Universalium. 2010.

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  • ROBBINS, HAROLD — (1916–1997), U.S. author. Born in New York City and listed as Francis Kane on his birth certificate but abandoned on the steps of a Roman Catholic orphanage, he was raised in a foster home by a Jewish family named Rubins. He dropped out of high… …   Encyclopedia of Judaism

  • Robbins, Harold — pseud. di Kane, Francis …   Sinonimi e Contrari. Terza edizione

  • Harold Robbins — [Harold Robbins] (1916–97) a US author of popular novels that contain a lot of sex and violence. More than 50 million copies of his books were sold and many of them were made into films. The best known is The Carpetbaggers (1961), which sold more …   Useful english dictionary

  • Harold Robbins — Pour les articles homonymes, voir Robbins. Harold Robbins (21 mai 1916 14 octobre 1997) était un écrivain américain. Né à New York, il a passé son enfance dans un orphelinat. Éduqué à l école secondaire George Washington, il occupa plusieurs… …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Harold Robbins — (May 21, 1916 ndash; October 14, 1997) was an American author. Robbins, born Harold Rubin in New York City, claimed to be a Jewish orphan raised in a Catholic boys home; actually, he was the son of well educated Russian and Polish immigrants.… …   Wikipedia

  • Harold Robbins — (* 21. Mai 1916 in New York als Harold Rubin; † 14. Oktober 1997 in Palm Springs, Kalifornien) war ein US amerikanischer Schriftsteller. Leben Robbins war ein Sohn russischer und polnischer Einwanderer. Nach Abschluss der High School arbeitete… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Robbins — can be:Places in the United States* Robbins, California, a town in Sutter County * Robbins, Illinois, a village in Cook County * Robbins, North Carolina, a city in Moore County * Bernie Robbins Stadium, Atlantic City, New JerseyThings* Baskin… …   Wikipedia

  • Robbins — ist der Familienname folgender Personen: Alexandra Robbins (* 1976), US amerikanischer Journalistin und Autorin Andrea Robbins (* 1963), US amerikanische Fotografin Anthony Robbins (* 1960), US amerikanischer Motivationstrainer und Erfolgscoach… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Robbins —   [ rɔbɪnz],    1) Frederick Chapman, amerikanischer Bakteriologe und Kinderarzt, * Auburn (Ala.) 25. 8. 1916; 1952 80 Professor für Pädiatrie in Cleveland (Ohio); bedeutende Forschungen über die Entstehung von Viruskrankheiten. Robbins… …   Universal-Lexikon

  • Harold E. Varmus — Harold Elliot Varmus Harold Varmus Harold Elliot Varmus (né le 18 décembre 1939) est un scientifique américain, lauréat du Prix Nobel de médecine en 1989. Le Prix Nobel lui fut attribué (avec J. Michael Bishop) pour la découverte de l origine… …   Wikipédia en Français

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