Robert Francis Jones (May 26, 1934 – December 18, 2002) was a

novelist A novelist is an author or writer of novels, though often novelists also write in other genres of both fiction and non-fiction. Some novelists are professional novelists, thus make a living wage, living writing novels and other fiction, while other ...

and an outdoor writer for ''

Sports Illustrated ''Sports Illustrated'' (''SI'') is an American sports magazine first published in August 1954. Founded by Stuart Scheftel, it was the first magazine with a circulation of over one million to win the National Magazine Award for General Excellen ...

'' and ''

Field & Stream ''Field & Stream'' (''F&S'' for short) is an American magazine focusing on sport hunting, recreational fishing and other outdoor activities. It was a print publication between 1895 and 2015, and became an online-only publication in 2020. After ...

''. Many of his novels contain fantastic and/or surrealistic elements, causing some critics to label his work

slipstream A slipstream is a region behind a moving object in which a wake of fluid (typically air or water) is moving at velocities comparable to that of the moving object, relative to the ambient fluid through which the object is moving. The term slips ...

. Jones' archive resides at the

Albert and Shirley Small Special Collections Library The Albert and Shirley Small Special Collections Library at the University of Virginia is a research library that specializes in American history and literature, history of Virginia and the southeastern United States, the history of the University ...

at the

University of Virginia The University of Virginia (UVA) is a Public university#United States, public research university in Charlottesville, Virginia, United States. It was founded in 1819 by Thomas Jefferson and contains his The Lawn, Academical Village, a World H ...

. Born and raised in

Milwaukee, Wisconsin Milwaukee is the List of cities in Wisconsin, most populous city in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. Located on the western shore of Lake Michigan, it is the List of United States cities by population, 31st-most populous city in the United States ...

, Jones graduated with honors from the

University of Michigan The University of Michigan (U-M, U of M, or Michigan) is a public university, public research university in Ann Arbor, Michigan, United States. Founded in 1817, it is the oldest institution of higher education in the state. The University of Mi ...

in 1956 and then served in the

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the naval warfare, maritime military branch, service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is the world's most powerful navy with the largest Displacement (ship), displacement, at 4.5 millio ...

as an

ensign Ensign most often refers to: * Ensign (flag), a flag flown on a vessel to indicate nationality * Ensign (rank), a navy (and former army) officer rank Ensign or The Ensign may also refer to: Places * Ensign, Alberta, Alberta, Canada * Ensign, Ka ...

, with sea duty in the western

Pacific The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean, or, depending on the definition, to Antarctica in the south, and is bounded by the cont ...

. After his military service, he was a reporter for the ''

Milwaukee Sentinel The ''Milwaukee Journal Sentinel'' is a daily morning broadsheet printed in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, where it is the primary newspaper and also the largest newspaper in the state of Wisconsin, where it is widely read. It was purchased by the ...

'' newspaper in 1959 and then went to ''

Time Time is the continuous progression of existence that occurs in an apparently irreversible process, irreversible succession from the past, through the present, and into the future. It is a component quantity of various measurements used to sequ ...

'' magazine in 1960. Jones transferred to its sister publication ''Sports Illustrated'' in 1968, where he covered the outdoors and a variety of sports, including

motor sports Motorsport or motor sport are sporting events, competitions and related activities that primarily involve the use of automobiles, motorcycles, motorboats and powered aircraft. For each of these vehicle types, the more specific terms ''automobile ...

and pro

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...

. His contributions at ''Sports Illustrated'' included the story "Harvey On The Lam," for the August 23, 1971, issue, famously featuring

Steve McQueen Terrence Stephen McQueen (March 24, 1930November 7, 1980) was an American actor. His antihero persona, emphasized during the height of counterculture of the 1960s, 1960s counterculture, made him a top box office draw for his films of the late ...

doing a wheelie on a motorcycle on the cover. A

Vermont Vermont () is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders Massachusetts to the south, New Hampshire to the east, New York (state), New York to the west, and the Provinces and territories of Ca ...

resident in his later years, Jones died at age 68 of natural causes at Southwestern Vermont Medical Center in

Bennington Bennington is a New England town, town in Bennington County, Vermont, United States. It is one of two shire towns (county seats) of the county, the other being Manchester (town), Vermont, Manchester. As of the 2020 United States Census, US Cens ...

in late 2002, survived by his wife of 46 years and two adult children.Life In Legacy - Week of 01/11/2021
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Bibliography

Fiction

* ''Blood Sport'' (1974): Novel about a father and son fishing trip up the mythical Hassayampa river, which runs from upstate New York to China, and ancient times, and their encounter with legendary outlaw "Ratnose." * ''The Diamond Bogo'' (1978): The story of an African hunting expedition for a large cape buffalo with a giant diamond embedded in its horns, and involving the discovery of a surviving lost race colony of

homo erectus ''Homo erectus'' ( ) is an extinction, extinct species of Homo, archaic human from the Pleistocene, spanning nearly 2 million years. It is the first human species to evolve a humanlike body plan and human gait, gait, to early expansions of h ...

. * ''Slade's Glacier'' (1981) * ''Blood Tide'' (1990): A nautical adventure tale of a father and daughter setting out to wreak vengeance on two different men who had each betrayed them. * ''The Man-Eaters of Zamani'' (1991): Short story on the hunting of a lion in Zamani region of Somalia (Petersen's Hunting 1991) . * ''Tie My Bones To Her Back'' (AKA ''The Buffalo Runners'') (1996): Western * ''Deadville'' (1999): Western * ''The Run to Gitche Gumee''

Non-fiction

* ''Gone to the Dogs: Life With My Canine Companions'' * ''Dancers in the Sunset Sky'' * ''The Fishing Doctor: the Essential Tackle Box Companion'' * ''The Hunter In My Heart: A Sportsman's Salmagundi'' * ''African Twilight: The Story of a Hunter'' * ''Upland Passage: A Field Dog's Education'' * ''Jake: A Labrador Puppy at Work and Play''

References

1934 births 2002 deaths 20th-century American novelists American magazine writers American male novelists 20th-century American male writers 20th-century American non-fiction writers Sportswriters from Wisconsin Novelists from Wisconsin United States Navy officers University of Michigan alumni {{US-sportswriter-stub