David Wright O'Brien


David Wright O'Brien was an American fantasy and science fiction writer. A nephew of Farnsworth Wright, editor of Weird Tales, he was 22 years old when his first story appeared in the February 1940 issue of Amazing Stories.
Between January 1941 and August 1942, he had more than fifty-seven stories published in pulp magazines like Amazing Stories and Fantastic Adventures, most of them written under the pen names John York Cabot, Duncan Farnsworth, Clee Garson and Richard Vardon. Some of the stories were co-written with his close friend William P. McGivern, with whom O'Brien shared an office in Chicago. He continued writing even after he enlisted in the U.S. Army Air Force during World War II, adding "corporal" before all his pseudonyms. O'Brien died at age twenty-six, while flying a bombing raid over Berlin.

Short stories

  • Truth Is a Plague!
  • Treasure Trove in Time
  • The Man the World Forgot
  • Fish Men of Venus
  • John Brown's Body with William P. McGivern
  • Trapped on Titan
  • Suicide Squadrons of Space
  • The Strange Voyage of Hector Squinch
  • The Genius of Mr. Pry
  • The Truthful Liar
  • The Goddess of Love
  • Miracle at Dunkirk
  • Problem on Mars
  • Three Terrible People
  • Bill of Rights, 5000 A.D.
  • The Man Who Murdered Himself
  • Twenty-Fifth Century Sherlock
  • The Thought Robot
  • The Floating Robot
  • Skidmore's Strange Experiment
  • Hammer of the Gods
  • The Last Analysis
  • Murder in the Past
  • The Man Who Lived Next Week
  • Beyond the Time Door
  • The Man Who Forgot
  • Return of the Space Hawk
  • Secret of the Lost Planet
  • Pepper Pot Planet
  • 10 Seconds from Nowhere
  • The Man Who Got Everything
  • Mr. Muddle Does as He Pleases with William P. McGivern
  • Ferdinand Finknodle's Perfect Day
  • Mystery of the Mummy
  • Sergeant Shane of the Space Marines
  • Nicolbee's Nightmare
  • The Odds on Sergeant Shane
  • Rayhouse in Space
  • The Beauty and the Beasties
  • The Legend of Mark Shayne
  • Daughter of the Snake God with William P. McGivern
  • Talu's Fan
  • The Daughter of Genghis Khan
  • V is for Vengeance
  • The Outsiders
  • The Tenant on the 13th Floor
  • Marlow's Malicious Mirror
  • Madagascar Ghost
  • The Incredible Antique
  • Sharbeau's Startling Statue
  • That Dreadful Night
  • Mr. Hibbard's Magic Hat
  • Cupid Takes a Holiday
  • The Giant from Jupiter with William P. McGivern
  • Afraid to Live
  • The Fantastic Twins
  • Spook for Yourself
  • Q Ship of Space
  • The Man Who Changed History
  • Suicide Ship to Earth
  • The Living Manikins
  • Lord of the Crystal Bow
  • Twenty-Four Terrible Hours
  • Return of Joan of Arc
  • Sergeant Shane Goes to War
  • The Incredible Mr. Kismet
  • Blitzkrieg in the Past
  • Squadron of the Damned
  • Hokum Hotel
  • The Case of Jonathan Lane
  • Creegar Dares to Die
  • Resurrection from Hell
  • Flight from Farisha
  • Pegasus Plays Priorities
  • Rats in the Belfry
  • The Money Machine
  • Direct Wire
  • Have You Seen Me?
  • The Last Case of Jules de Granjerque
  • The Merchant of Venus
  • Where in the Warehouse?
  • Trail of the Magic Slippers
  • The Other Abner Small
  • Club of the Damned
  • The Great Train Robbery
  • Saunders' Strange Second Sight
  • Mister Trouble
  • Yesterday's Clock
  • Victory from the Void with William P. McGivern
  • Bring Back My Body
  • Periscope Prey
  • Furlough from Eternity
  • The Curious Coat
  • Stenton's Shadow
  • The Devil's Planet
  • I'll See You Again
  • Matches and Kings
  • Time on Your Hands
  • The Place Is Familiar
  • Private Prune Speaking
  • Mister Anonymous
  • A Room with a View
  • Christopher Crissom's Cravat
  • The Softly Silken Wallet
  • Painting of the Prophet
  • The Spoilers of Lern
  • Let's Give Away Mars!
  • The Martian Cross

Poems

  • Introduction to a Stranger

Essays

  • Meet the Authors: David Wright O'Brien
  • It's a Wonderful World!
  • Progress Is a Headache