Hal K. Wells

Born in Little Hocking, Ohio, in September 1899, Harold Kerton Wells wrote under the name Hal K. Wells. He served during World War I and later built a career in popular fiction, especially in the fast-moving world of pulp magazines.

He began publishing fantasy and science fiction of note with "The Brass Key" in Weird Tales in 1929. Over the years, his stories appeared in magazines such as Astounding Stories, Startling Stories, Thrilling Wonder Stories, and Fantastic Universe, where he became known for energetic tales of danger, discovery, and otherworldly adventure.

Wells also wrote the story behind the 1927 film A Moony Mariner. He died in Torrance, California, on December 12, 1979. Although he is not as widely remembered as some of his pulp-era peers, his fiction still offers a vivid window into the wild imagination of early magazine science fiction.