I’ve often lamented that, despite there being no less than four films released which claim to be based on his work, none could truly be considered an adaptation. The world of television was not much better, with the three Conan programs virtually unrecognizable as Howard’s creation. It would seem that despite the hundreds of stories and eighty years’ worth of influence on many genres of fiction, there hadn’t been a single professional adaptation of a Robert E. Howard story.

However, there was one. Surprisingly, the first attempt to adapt Howard was also the only example which could be called a true adaptation – taking the plot, themes, title and characters, and translating them to screen. I am, of course, referring to the “Pigeons from Hell” episode of the TV series, Thriller.

The upcoming “adaptation” of “Pigeons from Hell” doesn’t look so worthwhile. Recently, the director Mark Steensland talked about his work, including his upcoming film:

Steensland and Hautala are now working on PIGEONS FROM HELL based on a short story by Robert E. Howard, the author who created Conan, the Barbarian. “It’s my favorite short story,” Steensland said. “It is the scariest thing I have ever read.” He has always wanted to film this Howard story. It took a long time to find out who owned the rights to the story. His plan is to make it into a feature-length film, with a release date in 2012.

Time will tell.

*Art by Virgil Finlay