Julius Regis

Born in Stockholm on July 20, 1889, Julius Regis was the pen name of Julius Regis Petersson. He studied literary history in Stockholm and worked as a proofreader at P. A. Norstedt & Söner before leaving publishing in 1917 to focus on writing.

He became known for detective fiction inspired in part by Gaston Leroux. His recurring hero, Maurice Wallion, was a journalist-detective whose cases involved coded messages, revolutionaries, murder, treasure, and other sensational puzzles. Among Regis’s novels are Blå spåret (1916), Kopparhuset (1918), Nr. 13 Toroni (1919), Den grå gästen (1922), Eldens hus (1923), and Granitporten (1924). He also wrote adventure stories for younger readers and short-story collections.

Regis took a serious interest in film as well as fiction. He wrote extensively for Swedish film magazines, contributed most of the chapters to Filmens roman (1920), described as the first Swedish book on film, and wrote the script for the 1922 film about Charles XII directed by John W. Brunius. His career was cut short by his sudden death in 1925, when he was only 35.