Roger Sherman Hoar (April 8, 1887 – October 10, 1963) was an American state senator and assistant

Attorney General In most common law jurisdictions, the attorney general or attorney-general (sometimes abbreviated AG or Atty.-Gen) is the main legal advisor to the government. The plural is attorneys general. In some jurisdictions, attorneys general also have exec ...

, for the state of

Massachusetts Massachusetts (Massachusett language, Massachusett: ''Muhsachuweesut assachusett writing systems, məhswatʃəwiːsət'' English: , ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is the most populous U.S. state, state in the New England ...

. He wrote and published

science fiction Science fiction (sometimes shortened to Sci-Fi or SF) is a genre of speculative fiction which typically deals with imagination, imaginative and futuristic concepts such as advanced science and technology, space exploration, time travel, Paral ...

under the pseudonym of Ralph Milne Farley.

Family

Hoar was the son of

Sherman Hoar Sherman Hoar (July 30, 1860 – October 7, 1898), was an American lawyer, member of Congress representing Massachusetts, and U.S. District Attorney for Massachusetts. As a young man he was the model for the head of the John Harvard statue ...

, grandson of former

US Attorney General The United States attorney general (AG) is the head of the United States Department of Justice, and is the chief law enforcement officer of the federal government of the United States. The attorney general serves as the principal advisor to the p ...

Ebenezer Rockwood Hoar, great-grandson of

Samuel Hoar Samuel Hoar (May 18, 1778 – November 2, 1856) was a United States lawyer and politician. A member of a prominent political family in Massachusetts, he was a leading 19th century lawyer of that state. He was associated with the Federalist Party ...

, and great-great grandson of American founding father

Roger Sherman Roger Sherman (April 19, 1721 – July 23, 1793) was an American statesman, lawyer, and a Founding Father of the United States. He is the only person to sign four of the great state papers of the United States related to the founding: the Cont ...

, a signer of the

Declaration of Independence A declaration of independence or declaration of statehood or proclamation of independence is an assertion by a polity in a defined territory that it is independent and constitutes a state. Such places are usually declared from part or all of ...

Education and career

Born in

Waltham, Massachusetts Waltham ( ) is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States, and was an early center for the labor movement as well as a major contributor to the American Industrial Revolution. The original home of the Boston Manufacturing Company, ...

, Hoar attended

Phillips Exeter Academy (not for oneself) la, Finis Origine Pendet (The End Depends Upon the Beginning) gr, Χάριτι Θεοῦ (By the Grace of God) , location = 20 Main Street , city = Exeter, New Hampshire , zipcode ...

. He then received his bachelor's degree from

Harvard University Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636 as Harvard College and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of high ...

in 1909 and his law degree from

Harvard Law School Harvard Law School (Harvard Law or HLS) is the law school of Harvard University, a private research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1817, it is the oldest continuously operating law school in the United States. Each class ...

in 1911. During

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...

, he served in the

United States Army Coast Artillery Corps The U.S. Army Coast Artillery Corps (CAC) was an administrative corps responsible for coastal, harbor, and anti-aircraft defense of the United States and its possessions between 1901 and 1950. The CAC also operated heavy and railway artillery ...

. Hoar was a former Massachusetts assistant attorney general. He was a member of the

Marquette University Marquette University () is a Private university, private Society of Jesus, Jesuit research university in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Established by the Society of Jesus as Marquette College on August 28, 1881, it was founded by John Henni, John Martin ...

faculty in the graduate school of engineering, and also "taught scientific subjects at Harvard, the

Coast Artillery School The coast, also known as the coastline or seashore, is defined as the area where land meets the ocean, or as a line that forms the boundary between the land and the coastline. The Earth has around of coastline. Coasts are important zones in ...

, ndthe Ordnance School of Application". He also served as attorney of Bucyrus Erie Company of

South Milwaukee, Wisconsin South Milwaukee is a city in Milwaukee County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 20,795 at the 2020 census. History South Milwaukee was laid out in 1891 by the South Milwaukee company within the Town of Oak Creek, with the purpose of ...

Politician

Hoar served in the

Massachusetts State Senate The Massachusetts Senate is the upper house of the Massachusetts General Court, the bicameral state legislature of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. The Senate comprises 40 elected members from 40 single-member senatorial districts in the st ...

in 1911 and was involved with the

Democratic Party Democratic Party most often refers to: *Democratic Party (United States) Democratic Party and similar terms may also refer to: Active parties Africa *Botswana Democratic Party *Democratic Party of Equatorial Guinea *Gabonese Democratic Party *Demo ...

and campaigned for

women's suffrage Women's suffrage is the women's rights, right of women to Suffrage, vote in elections. Beginning in the start of the 18th century, some people sought to change voting laws to allow women to vote. Liberal political parties would go on to gran ...

. Hoar was also an organizer and major force behind the enactment of the Employee Unemployment Benefits Act, served on the Commission to Compile Information & Data, 1917, taught mathematics and engineering, patented a system for aiming large guns by the stars, and authored landmark works on constitutional and patent law.

Writer

Under the pseudonym Ralph Milne Farley, Hoar wrote a considerable amount of pulp-magazine science fiction during the period between the world wars, appearing in such publications as ''

Argosy All-Story Weekly ''Argosy'', later titled ''The Argosy'', ''Argosy All-Story Weekly'' and ''The New Golden Argosy'', was an American pulp magazine from 1882 through 1978, published by Frank Munsey until its sale to Popular Publications in 1942. It is the first ...

'' and ''

Amazing Stories ''Amazing Stories'' is an American science fiction magazine launched in April 1926 by Hugo Gernsback's Experimenter Publishing. It was the first magazine devoted solely to science fiction. Science fiction stories had made regular appearances ...

,'' as well as occasional essays for ''

The American Mercury ''The American Mercury'' was an American magazine published from 1924Staff (Dec. 31, 1923)"Bichloride of Mercury."''Time''. to 1981. It was founded as the brainchild of H. L. Mencken and drama critic George Jean Nathan. The magazine featured w ...

,'' ''

Scientific American ''Scientific American'', informally abbreviated ''SciAm'' or sometimes ''SA'', is an American popular science magazine. Many famous scientists, including Albert Einstein and Nikola Tesla, have contributed articles to it. In print since 1845, it i ...

,'' and

science fiction fanzine A science-fiction fanzine is an amateur or semi-professional magazine published by members of science-fiction fandom, from the 1930s to the present day. They were one of the earliest forms of fanzine, within one of which the term "''fanzine''" was ...

s. His works include ''

The Radio Man ''The Radio Man'' is a science fiction novel by American writer Ralph Milne Farley. It is the first book in Farley's ''Radio Man'' series. The novel was originally serialized from the June 28, 1924 issue of ''Argosy''. It was first published i ...

'' and its numerous sequels, chiefly interplanetary and inner-world adventure yarns in the tradition of Edgar Rice Burroughs, with whom he was friends; Hoar also wrote a number of archetypal time-travel-paradox tales, collected in book form as ''The Omnibus of Time'', and "The House of Ecstasy", which has been frequently reprinted since its initial appearance in ''Weird Tales'' (April 1938). According to one of his editors, from 1932 on the "Farley" byline was actually used exclusively for collaboration between Hoar and his daughter Caroline, who had been writing under the pen name of Jacqueline Farley and by 1933 was an

engineering Engineering is the use of scientific method, scientific principles to design and build machines, structures, and other items, including bridges, tunnels, roads, vehicles, and buildings. The discipline of engineering encompasses a broad rang ...

student at Radcliffe.Palmer, Raymond A. "Ralph Milne Farley author biography". ''

Science Fiction Digest Science is a systematic endeavor that builds and organizes knowledge in the form of testable explanations and predictions about the universe. Science may be as old as the human species, and some of the earliest archeological evidence fo ...

'', July 1933. "Ralph Milne Farley is TWO people! Here's the dope; Ralph Milne Farley, up to January 1, 1932, was Roger Sherman Hoar, A.B., M.A. LL. B. After that he began writing in collaboration with his daughter, Caroline Prescott Hoar, who had been writing under the pen name of ‘Jacqueline Farley.' Their combined efforts have been published under the name Ralph Milne Farley exclusively since the combine was effected. Miss Hoar is a student at Radcliffe, majoring in mechanical and electrical engineering. She is responsible for the improvement in Farley's “The Golden City” over previous works...." Upon relocating to the Midwest, where he worked as a corporate attorney for the firm of Bucyrus-Erie, Hoar joined the Milwaukee Fictioneers, whose members included Stanley G. Weinbaum,

Robert Bloch Robert Albert Bloch (; April 5, 1917September 23, 1994) was an American fiction writer, primarily of crime, psychological horror and fantasy, much of which has been dramatized for radio, cinema and television. He also wrote a relatively small ...

, and Raymond A. Palmer. When Chicago-based Ziff-Davis Publishing Company bought the ailing ''

'' in 1938, Hoar was offered, but declined, the magazine's editorship and recommended Palmer, who held the position through the 1940s.

Books

As Roger Sherman Hoar

*''The Tariff Manual.'' Privately printed, 1912. *''Constitutional Conventions: Their Nature, Powers, and Limitations.'' Boston: Little, Brown, and Company, 1917. *''Patents: What a Business Executive Should Know About Patents.'' New York: The Ronald Press Company, 1926. Revised edition: Patent Tactics and Law. 1935, 1950. *''Conditional Sales: Law and Local Practices for Executive and Lawyer.'' New York: The Ronald Press Company, 1929. Revised edition: 1937. *''Unemployment Insurance in Wisconsin.'' South Milwaukee, Wisconsin: Stuart Press, 1932. Revised edition: Wisconsin Unemployment Insurance, 1934.

As Ralph Milne Farley

*''Smothered Seas'' (story, with Stanley G. Weinbaum). Published in ''Astounding Stories'', January 1936. *''Dangerous Love'' (stories). London: Utopian Publications, 1946. *''The Immortals'' (novel). Published in ''The Argosy'' in 1934, later reprinted in Canada by Popular Publications Inc., 1947. *''

'' (novel), 1924. Los Angeles:

Fantasy Publishing Co. Fantasy Publishing Company, Inc., or FPCI, was an American science fiction and fantasy small press specialty publishing company established in 1946. It was the fourth small press company founded by William L. Crawford. Crawford's first co ...

, 1948. Paperback edition retitled ''An Earthman on Venus'' (

Avon Books Avon Publications is one of the leading publishers of romance fiction. At Avon's initial stages, it was an American paperback book and comic book publisher. The shift in content occurred in the early 1970s with multiple Avon romance titles rea ...

). st of "Radio Man" series*''

The Hidden Universe ''The Hidden Universe'' is a collection of two science fiction novellas by American writer Ralph Milne Farley. It was first published in 1950 by Fantasy Publishing Company, Inc. Fantasy Publishing Company, Inc., or FPCI, was an American scie ...

'' (two novellas). Los Angeles:

, 1950. *''

The Omnibus of Time ''The Omnibus of Time'' is a collection of science fiction short stories by Ralph Milne Farley. It was first published in 1950 by Fantasy Publishing Company, Inc. in an edition of 1,500 copies. An additional 500 copies were bound as a Gnome Pre ...

'' (stories). Los Angeles:

, 1950. *'' Strange Worlds'' (contains ''The Radio Man'' and ''The Hidden Universe''). Los Angeles:

, 1953. *''The Radio Beasts'' (novel), 1925. New York:

Ace Books Ace Books is a publisher of science fiction (SF) and fantasy books founded in New York City in 1952 by A. A. Wyn, Aaron A. Wyn. It began as a genre publisher of mystery fiction, mysteries and western (genre), westerns, and soon branched out int ...

, 1964. nd of "Radio Man" series*''The Radio Planet'' (novel), 1926. New York:

, 1964. rd of "Radio Man" series*''The Radio Flyers'' (novel), 1929. Rialto, California: Pulpville Press, 2006. *''The Radio Gun-Runners'' (novel), 1930. equel to "The Radio Flyers"*''Tong War'' (novel, written in collaboration with E. Hoffman Price). Chertsey, England: Blue Mushroom, 2002. *''Pe-Ra, Daughter of the Sun'' (novella). Rialto, California: Pulpville Press, 2005. *''The Radio Minds of Mars'' (novel), 1955. Rialto, California: Pulpville Press, 2005. th of "Radio Man" series*''The Ralph Milne Farley Collection Book 1'' (stories). Rialto, California: Pulpville Press, 2005. *''The Ralph Milne Farley Collection Book 2'' (stories). Rialto, California: Pulpville Press, 2005. *''The Golden City'' (novel), 1933. Rialto, California: Pulpville Press, 2006. *''The Radio War'' (novel), 1932. Rialto, California: Pulpville Press, 2006. *''The Radio Menace'' (novel), 1930. Rialto, California: Pulpville Press, 2008. th of "Radio Man" series

Notes

External links

CONSTITUTIONAL CONVENTIONS:''Their Nature, Powers, and Limitations''Hoar Family Papers, 1774-1940
at Concord Free Public Library * * * *
The Radio Beast Review

at

Political Graveyard The Political Graveyard is a website and database that catalogues information on more than 277,000 American political figures and political families, along with other information. The name comes from the website's inclusion of burial locations o ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hoar, Roger Sherman 1887 births 1963 deaths Politicians from Waltham, Massachusetts People from Concord, Massachusetts Military personnel from Massachusetts Politicians from Milwaukee Harvard Law School alumni Phillips Exeter Academy alumni Marquette University faculty Massachusetts lawyers Wisconsin lawyers Novelists from Massachusetts Novelists from Wisconsin Democratic Party Massachusetts state senators 20th-century American novelists American male novelists American science fiction writers The Harvard Lampoon alumni American male short story writers 20th-century American politicians 20th-century American short story writers 20th-century American male writers 20th-century American lawyers