Only Five Months until Howard Days!

Yep, you read that correctly! Robert E. Howard Days in Cross Plains is only five months away! Here in NW Indiana we are battening down the hatches against Mother Nature's furious wrath, all the while dreaming of the luxurious warmth provided to us as Howard Days attendees. It can't show up soon enough!

June 12th & 13th are the "official" dates for Howard Days 2026, but the gathering for Howard Fellowship always begins a day or three early. Plans for this year's event are full steam ahead and while some discussion is still to be had, rest assured all the "regular" Howard Days events are in place.

Howard Days 2026 finds us with a good number of "Ending in zero" anniversaries to make it extra special:

• 40 YEARS of HOWARD DAYS! From it's small beginnings in 1986, HD has grown to a world-wide international gathering of Robert E. Howard Fans.
• It's the 30th Anniversary of THE WHOLE WIDE WORLD, the award-winning film about Bob Howard and Novalyne Ellis. Screenwriter Michael Myers will be on hand as we present a special viewing.
• The ROBERT E. HOWARD FOUNDATION is celebrating its 20th Year!
• Let us not forget 2026 is the 120th Birthday Anniversary of Ol' Two-Gun Bob Howard! We'll need help blowing out all those candles, but there WILL BE CAKE! (Don't forget to celebrate the actual date of January 22nd!)
• CONAN the ADVENTURER Lancer paperback came to us 60 Years ago! This seminal tome is responsible for starting the Howard Boom of the 1960's and '70's. 

Any one of these anniversaries is cause for celebration, but having them all happening this year really shines the light on Howard Days and the Robert E. Howard Museum - and it provides all attendees with Fellowship Fuel as we gather at the House and Pavilion to celebrate our involvement with Bob Howard.

PRE-REGISTRATION FOR 2026

Project Pride is in the process of making some changes in the Pre-Registration process for this year. One change will be an increase in cost to $35.00. This low price will get you a seat at the Friday Banquet along with helping defray the costs of the Friday Hot Dog Lunch, coffee & donuts Friday morning, all drinks in the big cooler and birthday cake.

We will get the correct process information to you as soon as it is available, which should be soon.

HOWARD DAYS EVENTS

All of our "regular" HD Events are ready to roll. The Tours (House, Bus, Walking & Grounds) are always the highlight; the Friday Night Celebration Banquet (with Guest of Honor Rusty Burke) will once again be at the Cross Plains Community Center; the amazing Silent Auction takes place next door; and we have an excellent slate of interesting panels in place related to our anniversaries. The REH Foundation Awards will be presented, a special souvenir Postal Stamp Cancellation will be available and the Cross Plains Review and Cross Plains Public Library will be open to show off real Howard artifacts (manuscripts, pulp magazines and boxing gloves!) The Library is planning a fund-raiser dinner for Saturday late afternoon - we'll have more information as details become known.

The Barbara Barrett Memorial Porchlight Poetry will happen Saturday evening as well.

And above all, plan on being immersed in Howard Fellowship, where all like-minded folks with an interest in Robert E. Howard can gather and converse about his Writing, his Life and his Legacy. It's The Best Two Days in Howard Fandom - and we hope you can be part of it! 

Y'all come!

THE REH MUSEUM NEEDS YOUR HELP! You can also make a difference in continuing Howard's legacy and help support the REH Museum from the comfort of your home. 

Last year, serious structural problems were found at the REH Museum and it was determined that restorations are needed. The REH Foundation paid for a structural/architectural analysis and it was found that the foundation of the house is in bad shape.

Currently a fund-raiser is underway at www.rehfoundation.org to provide the means by which the situation can be corrected. A substantial amount of money will be needed and your help will be much appreciated. All the needed info is at the website.

You can also check out the REH Foundation's YouTube channel for additional information and some pretty interesting information and entertainment.

 

HOWARD DAYS 2026 IS JUNE 12th & 13th

 

With our two main family holidays about to make our lives more joyful, let's turn our attention to another type of family event for all of you reading this. Namely, the Family & Fellowship time provided by Robert E. Howard Days!

The friendly fellowship that comes with Howard Days now couples itself with the family reunion feel that happens every year in Cross Plains, Texas and provides an engaging atmosphere for the worldwide fans of Ol' Two-Gun Bob Howard.

In 2026, we hope you'll be able to join us on June 12th & 13th at the Robert E. Howard Museum to honor the Life and Legacy of Bob Howard. We have a number of special events planned as we celebrate (at least) FOUR Anniversaries! We'll be saluting Bob on the 120th anniversary of his birth (there will be cake!), commemorating 40 Years of Howard Days!, enjoying the cinematic success of the 30th anniversary of The Whole Wide World movie and celebrating 20 years of ongoing success for the Robert E. Howard Foundation.

These are all milestone achievements that lead directly to the interest in Howard's life and work, which has continued to blossom with ongoing publishing of his writing, and which is only enhanced by scores of websites, blogs, podcasts, YouTube programs, comics, games and collectible figures and more. New readers and fans are finding out that REH is so much more than Conan and discovering the breadth and depth of his body of work.

All of this ties directly into Howard Days, where fans from all over the world gather each June to marvel at being in the spot and touch the table from where Bob Howard conjured realms of fantastic worlds from the dry Texas dust. This is the one common feeling that most everyone who has visited Cross Plains has felt.

Rusty Burke, the Founder of Howard Days in 1986, will be on hand as Guest of Honor. Hear stories of yesteryear and revel in the tales of today as we talk about REH.

The nuts and bolts of Howard Days 2026 are in the put-together stage. We're attempting to update some parts, like registration, payment options and programming, but we will not ignore the "family reunion" atmosphere that we have cultivated. We'd like to make it as enjoyable as we can while dealing with the limited venue that is Cross Plains. The main thing is: this is where Howard lived and wrote!

It is the Robert E. Howard Museum that brings folks from all over, and Howard Days is the time we can gather to celebrate the Legacy of a remarkable Texan Author who just seems to have captivated a goodly number of us. We can return that favor by honoring REH not only on June 12 & 13, but all year long.

Make your plans now to come to Texas! If you've been before, y'all come back! If you've never been, we hope to see you next June when you scratch that bucket list!

A note not only about the photos shown here, but how Howard Days can bring nice surprises. Two never before seen photos of a seven-year old Bob Howard and one of his father, Dr. Isaac Howard came from HD 2025. You never know when fantastic finds like these will pop up, so come to Howard Days and prepare for a surprise or two!

Howard Days 2025!

 We're off! The time is nigh and we've pointed our ponies southwest towards Cross Plains!

Hope to see a passel of you'uns under the Texas sky. Until then, safe travels!

All the Howard Days info you need is right here, but there's nothing like experiencing it first hand. Plenty of room, so y'all come!

ONE WEEK TO GO!

Howard Days 2025 is now in the home stretch! In one week we'll be gathering at the Robert E. Howard Museum in Cross Plains, Texas, to enjoy The Best Two Days in Howard Fandom!

And when we speak of "Howard Fandom", we mean Fans of the myriad of genres Bob Howard wrote in: Sword & Sorcery, adventure, horror, historical, western, boxing, science fantasy, detective, spicy, weird menace & ghosts, humor and poetry. We mean Fans of Conan, Kull, Solomon Kane, El Borak, Bran Mak Morn, Steve Costigan, Dark Agnes, Esau Cairn, James Allison, Cormacs FitzGeoffrey & Mac Art, Kirby O'Donnell, Breckinridge Elkins and dozens more!

We gather at Howard Days every year to enjoy the in-person company of our fellow travelers, as we come together to navigate the words and worlds of Robert E. Howard.

OK, that being said, let's get down to some brass tacks, as the saying goes. Howard Days 2025 "officially" happens Friday, June 13th and Saturday, June 14th; but for early birds, the Museum is open on Thursday the 12th from 2-4. (First look at the new stuff in the Gift Shop is always a treat!) However, folks will be gathering in the Pavilion during the day on Thursday, so as long as you are there, give a hand with setting up tables and chairs in the Pavilion, hey? Thanks!

Folks actually start arriving in Cross Plains on Tuesday and Wednesday in anticipation of the always-goes-too-fast weekend, so if you come early, enjoy yourselves in Cross Plains while helping out the local economy!

On Friday, the festivities begin at the REH Museum. If you would, please sign the guest book under the little canopy set up in the front yard, get a name badge, pick up a schedule and meet and greet with fellow fans - in the House, in the Pavilion (and enjoy the new ceiling fans!) and all around the grounds.

Then, just enjoy your Howard Days! Visit the Museum, attend panels, take a Bus Tour of the surrounding area, get a special postal cancellation stamp souvenir, visit the Cross Plains Review, eat a Hot Dog Lunch, view original Howard typescripts & pulps at the Cross Plains Library, view Howard books and items in the Dealer's Area surrounding the Pavilion - and then enjoy the Celebration Banquet & Silent Auction. And a night-time panel back at the House!

In the Silent Auction this year!

Statue by Gabriel Denman, bust by Joe Broers

On Saturday there is a Walking Tour of downtown Cross Plains and a guided Grounds Tour around the Museum along with more panels, dealers, the Library is open and the Pavilion remains filled with Howard Fans. New this year: there will be food trucks coming in Saturday afternoon. We always end Howard Days with a direct-from-his-porch open mic reading of Howard's poetry at the Barbara Barrett Memorial Porchlight Poetry.

And this year on Saturday, you can help out the Cross Plains Volunteer Fire Department! Stop by the parking lot at Lowe's Market and enjoy some good lunch-time vittles!

We'll have one more post before saddling our stallions and riding for Texas, then you can follow us along on Facebook. In the meantime, it would be all right if you dropped everything and came to Howard Days! Texas is a really big state and there's room for everyone! Hope to see you soon!

Two Weeks to Howard Days!

The countdown has begun! Howard Days 2025 is only two weeks away! Robert E. Howard fans and enthusiasts will begin arriving in Cross Plains, Texas, in anticipation of enjoying themselves at The Best Two Days in Howard Fandom! And Project Pride & the City of Cross Plains, the Robert E. Howard Foundation and members of REHupa (the Robert E. Howard United Press Association) will be on hand to insure a great time will be had by all!

Many thanks go out to Teri Brown and the gang at the Cross Plains Review for the fantastic logo artwork shown above! It is already being shown around Cross Plains and The Review will open its doors Friday morning for tours and souvenir shopping. While you're there, you can go across the street for the special REH postal cancellation and then visit the Cross Plains Library to view original Howard items there. A compact REH Tour of downtown Cross Plains!

And let's not forget the theme of this year's event: 100 Years of Robert E. Howard. No, not his age; we will celebrate the 100th Anniversary of his first professional story. "Spear and Fang" was published in the July 1925 issue of Weird Tales - and launched the career of an original American writer who created not only the Sword & Sorcery genre of fiction, but the Weird Western as well.

One of the best things about Howard Days is how it humanizes Bob Howard. We have all his stories in print to talk about, analyze, debate and discuss; and we have lists of favorite stories, characters and themes; and we have photos of him and drawings that he did and letters that he wrote. But what Howard Days does is help us look at Bob Howard the Man: we talk about him as a person - what he was like and who he was. We do get a feel for Bob from his writings, but he becomes a real person when we sit and talk about him, speculate about him, wonder what he would have been like or what he might have done had he lived to old age. 

This is Howard Fellowship and it is the very best thing about Howard Days. Fans from all over the world come to a tiny town in Texas to visit his home and talk with like-minded people about the Life, Work and Legacy of the incomparable Robert E. Howard.

We hope to be seeing (and talking to) you in a couple of weeks. Y'all come!

Howard Days Fans Have Arrived!

 OK, so fans arriving three weeks early to Howard Days may be a bit much, we have to tell you now that it's true: the Fans are here!

Well, our feeble attempt attempt at humor notwithstanding, the Pavilion will be a cooler place for Howard Days 2025! Working in conjunction with Project Pride, the Robert E. Howard Foundation has seen to the installation of three giant ceiling fans in the roof of the Pavilion next to the Robert E. Howard Museum.

Besides being a wonderful gathering of Robert E. Howard aficionados from all over the world and The Best Two Days in Howard FANdom (get it?!) Howard Days is also notable for being "as hot as the slag heaps of Hell" (to use Bob's own words).

Three 10' fans should alleviate at least some of that situation and allow for pleasant Howard Fellowship under the Pavilion roof. Many thanks to the hard work of Mr. Paul Herman and the REH Foundation for helping cooler heads to prevail!

UP TO DATE NEWS FLASH: The Friday night REH Celebration Banquet has filled the 150 seats available. They are currently taking names for the Wait List, so if you've missed out on a reservation, email Arlene at projpride@gmail.com and she'll put you on the list. (There are always no-shows and give-ups, so don't despair). And you can still come to the Community Center and hear Guest of Honor speaker Mark Wheatley and place bids in the Silent Auction - just no chicken-fried steak for you.

Next up date in a few days!

Howard Days is One Month Away!

 We're getting down to the nitty gritty! Howard Days in Cross Plains, Texas starts one month from today! Time to start that check list and tighten up your plans for visiting the Robert E. Howard Museum June 13th & 14th. Hundreds of "Howard Heads" from all over the world will be found there, enjoying the Fellowship provided by interest in Ol' Two-Gun Bob Howard.

And there will be Howard fans starting to congregate in Cross Plains as early as Tuesday June 10, so coming early gets the festivities off to a great start. And the Museum is open on Thursday the 12th from 2 to 4. Come hang out!

First off, a reminder about reservations. The only true cost of this entire weekend is getting a ticket to the Friday night Celebration Banquet at the Cross Plains Community Center. All the rest of HD activities: tours, panels, dealers area, library viewings, postal cancellation, readings, hanging out in the Pavilion - are provided for fans at no cost!

And as the Banquet is the social event of the weekend, please send your $25 per person to Arlene Stephenson at Projpride@yahoo.com and you'll be in with the in crowd at Howard Days! As of today, there are only around 30 seats left and they're going fast, so don't get left out!

The Howard Days Silent Auction is held along with the Banquet at the American Legion Hall next to the Community Center. 100% of the proceeds from this auction goes to Project Pride and their year-round maintenance of the REH Museum. We'll be needing your help on this with donations of primarily REH items: books, paperbacks, magazines, pulps, fanzines, comics, chapbooks, 2D & 3D original art, records & CD's, items from Howard's time, Texas memorabilia - you get the idea!

You can either send these items to Project Pride, POB 534, Cross Plains, TX 76443 or you may bring items Thursday or Friday to the Museum.

Updates will be happening every few days now, so stay tuned. And even if you decide to come last minute - don't worry! It's Texas - there's plenty of room for y'all!

                                        Just a few of the items you may find at the Howard Days Silent Auction!